Campus Log - Chapter 14 - The Definition of a Friend

12:10 PM, the student cafeteria was bustling chaotically.

Ryu Eun-seok, who had arranged to meet me in advance, stood awkwardly near the kiosk. Being such a noticeable figure, every student buying a meal ticket glanced at him once.

So that’s why he said he couldn’t eat alone. Just standing still draws attention—it must be quite a burden to have to eat lonely amid these pouring gazes.

I looked at Ryu Eun-seok with pity as I chose my menu.

“I’ll pay.”

Ryu Eun-seok, who had approached, held out his card. It seemed like a reward for coming to the cafeteria with him.

“It’s fine.”

I didn’t add the rest— even though you’re broke.

I chose kimchi fried rice and found a reasonably empty seat. Ryu Eun-seok sat three seats away as agreed. His tense face, looking around nervously, seemed restless.

Seeing Ryu Eun-seok like that made me fidgety too. Maybe this is how a parent feels leaving their child at the water’s edge. I don’t know why I have to feel this way, though.

As I quickly picked up my food and returned to my seat, Ryu Eun-seok was sitting with an awkward expression, unable to pick up his utensils. Just as he had feared, a noisy group of students had taken the seats right next to him.

I quietly started my meal with a Banda fancam playing on mute. Ryu Eun-seok glanced in my direction, then reluctantly picked up his chopsticks.

“Oh? Eun-seok oppa.”

Ryu Eun-seok’s hope of smoothly finishing lunch this way was mercilessly shattered. A girl who recognized him approached, tray in hand.

It was Yang Su-bin from the English Literature department. The girl who gained fame through her Baek-san University vlogs. She’d popped up in my algorithm before, and I’d occasionally seen her hanging out with Ryu Eun-seok.

“Eating alone?”

Ah, please. Asking someone eating alone if they’re eating alone should be legally banned. Especially when he’s already shrinking as if left alone in a crowd—what kind of nonsense is this?

“Uh, yeah.”

Ryu Eun-seok answered curtly and continued eating. Yes, act confident. I cheered him on internally while keeping my attention sharply focused on the situation beside me.

“Why? Where’s Tae-hyun oppa? Oh, does he not have class today?”

“How would I know?”

“Don’t tell me you had a fight? Then you should’ve contacted me, why are you eating alone…”

Why treat him like such a pitiful creature? Ryu Eun-seok seemed flustered too, his earlobes gradually turning red.

“Why would I contact you? Go eat with your friends.”

Still, the man handled it fairly calmly. He was trying his best in his own way.

“No. Come eat with us. Oh, but there aren’t enough seats here. Oppa, get up. Let’s move over there.”

But Yang Su-bin gently trampled over Ryu Eun-seok’s efforts and brightly suggested. The attention-grabbing pair conversing caused people to glance over from all around.

“I said it’s fine. Don’t worry about it and go eat your own food.”

Ryu Eun-seok continued eating without even looking at Yang Su-bin, but the girl stubbornly stood her ground in front of him.

“How can I not worry when oppa is eating alone? Don’t be like that—come with me and eat over there. Okay?”

I could no longer hold back and slid my tray over to the seat beside Ryu Eun-seok.

The edge of the tray touched Ryu Eun-seok’s left hand. My rear also shifted to the seat on his left.

Then, I pulled the tissue case closer and propped up my phone at an angle. On the screen a video of twin pandas eating bamboo leaves was playing.

Gazes locked onto me as I abruptly intruded. My figure caught Ryu Eun-seok’s blank gaze, while Yang Su-bin’s eyes sharpened increasingly.

“Who’s this?”

The displeasure in Yang Su-bin’s voice as she asked about the uninvited guest was evident. Regardless, I poked the egg yolk I’d been saving with the tip of my spoon, popping it.

“Friend.”

Ryu Eun-seok answered simply, picking up his chopsticks again. This time, I was the one staring at his profile.

The sunlight pouring into the cafeteria settled on a beauty blessed with good genes.

It had been a very long time since someone introduced me as a friend. Maybe that’s why my earlobes itched. If I weren’t in the middle of a meal, I might’ve scratched them vigorously.

“Oppa had a friend like that?”

I’m quick to sense how others perceive me. Whether they intend to respect me person-to-person, feel goodwill, are guarded, or simply find me unpleasant.

Yang Su-bin’s true feelings fell into the very last category.

There were reasons why I never got close to people. It was because reacting sensitively to every little thing exhausted me. Blocking potential sources of disturbance to my peaceful daily life from the start was better for my mental state.

“She’s older than you.”