<CHAPTER 01>
March is a beautiful month when flowers bloom and buds sprout.
The last year as a student, which seemed like it would never come, begins, and even before Yu-In can get caught up in the gloom that graduation is about to happen, she hears shocking news.
It was said that her best friend, Jae-hee Han, was having her 23rd birthday party at her club.
Yu-in, who frowned in displeasure on her face, spoke sharply to her friend who only looked happy.
“Of course I’m not going.”
“What are you talking about? Have you forgotten that you and I are one body?”
“no. What should I do there? I don’t like alcohol and I hate loud noises.”
“How long do you want to live as a princess in a dark cave? Get out there now! It’s time.”
“What about the princess? Anyway, I’m not going!”
From the moment Yu-In refused, Han Jae-hee’s obsession ignited and burned brightly.
As a result of harassing Yu-in at all times by mobilizing all means and methods without hesitation, Yu-in, who was unable to overcome her friend who was united with her persistence and stubbornness, eventually surrendered.
“Now, promise. You can never say something different later?”
“… … ha. I knew.”
Yu-In, who was completely fed up with Han Jae-hee, who held out her little finger and said that she had to go with a happier face than anyone else, put her finger on the line with the mindset of ‘let it happen as it should be’.
okay. If I come back for a moment, something bad will happen. While being complacent and thinking simple thoughts.
But the Yu-in was, she should have known then. That it was a very wrong choice.
After all, people shouldn’t do things they haven’t done before.
****
Saturday evening, the downtown area of the weekend was busy, noisy and complicated.
Yu-In was uncomfortable with the short, tight dress, so she lowered the hem of her skirt, but the already short dress was still short.
Jae-hee, who had suddenly barged into the house in the morning and made it look like she was massaging a doll, was walking along humming a song as if she was in a really good mood.
Yu-in, who was once again discouraged by her friend’s stubbornness, sighed and followed her friend who was tall and walked quickly.
Finally, in front of the club entrance. Jae-hee said, putting her arm around Yoo-in’s shoulder as she glared at the crowded crowd.
“Okay, are you ready. Nam Yoo-in?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Let’s go in quickly.”
“Are you ready? okay!”
The club that was pushed into the club by Jae-hee’s call for departure was exactly as Yu-in had thought.
The stuffy air that makes you suffocate. The music is loud enough to make your head pound, not just from the speakers. Even though it’s early, people are already drunk and slurping.
For Yu-In, who occasionally drinks alcohol with friends but has no interest in entertainment and doesn’t like people in the first place, places like this were the worst.
“… … eww.”
Yu-In, who let out a groaning sound, come closely to Jae-hee’s back.
Jae-hee bravely climbed the stairs with a koala-like lure on her back and opened the door in the middle of the passage on the second floor.
Then her friends, who had been preparing in advance, burst out firecrackers and champagne at Jae-hee and sang her a deafening birthday song.
“Happy birthday~ Han Jae-hee”.
“Congratulations, Han Jae-hee!”
“Jae-hee, happy birthday!”
“Jae-hee is such a raw animal!”
The congratulatory songs and gift-giving ceremony continued endlessly.
Yu-In, who managed to escape from the crowd of people tightly gathered together, leaned against the table, completely absorbed.
Although she had only been in the room for a few minutes, her body was already exhausted from being thrown around.
It was when she poured a pink drink from a crystal glass on the table into her mouth to moisten her burning throat, thinking that this kind of place was not for her.
“Hey, isn’t he Nam Yu-in?”
“That’s right. This is the first time I’ve seen it dressed like that.”
“therefore. But I’ve felt this for a long time. Doesn’t she look a lot like Nam Yu-jin?”
“uh? It really is. Why didn’t I know this before?”
Thanks to the story being heard clearly even in such a noisy room, Yu-in had to swallow it without even feeling the taste of the liquid she was gulping down.
It is said that she resembles Nam Yu-jin.
That word, which was nothing special to others, touched Yu-in’s heart.
The reason she did not enjoy makeup and had no interest in dressing was because of the stigma that followed her as Nam Yu-jin.
It will probably be a label that will stick with her until she dies. She doesn’t want to hear that name anymore, so she turns around, trying to hide her disheveled expression.
Just as she was about to take a step, someone grabbed her shoulder from behind and dragged her.
“Nam Yu-in!”
“Ugh!”
Yu-in, who had shouted at her, was startled by her and raised her head.
She found her face smiling, with a gentle glow of affection, and a mixture of surprise and relief at the same time struck her with irritation.
“Yoon Ji-han, you surprised me!”
“Are you very surprised? Sorry.”
Jihan, who was delicately patting Yu-in’s stiff shoulder, was one of Jae-hee’s best friends, having been close friends since high school and going to college together.
Yu-in was the one who got a little too irritated by the light prank, but Jihan was the one who cared more. She asked again if she was okay and she waved her hand away telling him that she had been lured.
She naturally followed Jihan to a deserted place and was about to sit down on the sofa, but stopped when she saw Jihan frozen with his brow furrowed as he looked at her.
“why?”
“These are clothes I’ve never seen before.”
“Ah, Jae-hee said you had to wear it. Is it very strange?”
Yu In, who already didn’t like her outfit, awkwardly tapped her feet in her walkers.
Jihan, who gave her a displeasing look from head to toe, answered in a slightly subdued voice.
“… … No, it’s not strange.”
“okay? I’m dying of awkwardness. I can’t wait to go home and take it off.”
“When are you going home?”
“hmm… … soon?”
At that time, among the noisy crowd, ‘Yoon Ji-han, what are you doing!’ A loud voice calling for Jihan was heard, and both of their eyes turned together.
Yoo In patted Ji-han on the back and pushed him.
“They are looking for you. Go quickly.”
“you?”
“me? Still, it’s Han Jae-hee’s birthday, so I should drink a glass of champagne. I’m going to drink this and go.”
Yoo In raised a glass from the table next to him. Earlier, I passed it on without even tasting it due to the uncomfortable story, so this was like my first drink.
Ji-han hesitated for a moment as he looked at the gesture of gently shaking the pale pink alcohol before opening his mouth.
“Then I’ll take you there, so just wait here for a moment. Understand?”
“uh? no-.”
Yu-In tried to tell Ji-han, who was sometimes overprotective like this, that there was no need to do that, but she had a premonition that the conversation would go on for no reason, so she nodded her head roughly.
Ji-han then patted Yu-in’s head as if praising him and quickly blended into the group that had called him.
Yu-In, who was looking at the group making loud noises one after another without any emotion, took a sip of the champagne she was holding in her hand.
As she savored the tasteless drink, the rich peach scent and sweetness melted her tongue, and it was moderately refreshing, so it felt good to drink.
When the bottle of champagne she had been drinking one or two glasses of while waiting for a friend who did not come was more than half empty, Yu-In’s eyes were relaxed and her body was sluggish.
“Oh, I can’t…” … .”
Yu-in, who was deceived by the sweetness and didn’t even know she was drunk, buried her face in her hands.
It was not in her plans to look disheveled in such an unfamiliar space with many unfamiliar people.
I had to get out of here before I got any more drunk.
With her weak hands, she rummaged through her pockets, managed to send a message to her friends that she would go first, and stood up.
Yu-In, who closed her eyes tightly at the spinning vision, immediately dragged her weak legs to avoid the drunk people and opened the room door wide.
“Cough… … Cough!”
Yu-in, who took a deep breath of the air that was even more acrid and stale than inside, coughed and stuttered forward.
She barely managed to cut through the haze of smoke and go down the stairs. In the large hall, there were more people than before and the music was pounding louder.
Yu-In, who was completely unconscious and unable to think properly due to the alcohol, ended up circling around the same spot instead of finding the entrance.
As she continued to run around the hall and bump into people like a sailboat that had lost its destination, Yu In caught sight of a slightly open door.
She was glad that she had finally found the exit and rushed towards it.
“… … Ah, what is it? Why isn’t it outside?”
However, contrary to expectations, there was a quiet hallway spread out there.
The quiet passageway, entirely painted in purple, had an atmosphere so far removed from the club that a small chandelier softly lit the wall, giving it a nostalgic feel.
I had to wonder why there was such a passage in a club with psych lights and loud music, but Yu-in’s body was already pushing its limits.
The thin upper body leaning against the wall slid down the wall helplessly, and a groaning sound echoed in the hallway.
While Yu-in was fighting the headache and nausea that were getting worse, heavy footsteps were heard from the other side of the hallway, piercing the still air.
Step by step.
Step by step.
Yu-In, who had been hanging her head, slowly lifted her head and looked in the direction from which the sound was heard.
Opposite her, a man in a sharp, black, knife-pleated suit was walking towards her.
His black shoes stopped at a distance where her face could be seen, and Yu-in could only stare blankly at her large form with her alcohol-soaked, half-closed eyes.
The man who had his hands stuck into his suit pants tilted his head, looked at the person sitting there, and asked.
“Nam Yu-jin?”
“… … It’s not like that.”
“… … No?”
“… … .”
A voice as heavy and low as the sound of footsteps asked, but Yu-in did not respond.
Taeyeong Nam Yu-jin was bored and wanted to stop listening. It’s all annoying and I want to stop. please.
As her lure lowered her head between her legs like a hermit crab escaping into her shell, her speeding footsteps were heard on the top of her head, and her commanding bass called to her.
“Hey.”
“… … .”
“Lift your head.”
It was a voice so powerful that I felt like I had to raise my head.
The gazes of Yu-in, who slowly raised her face, and the man who was bending over her head were intertwined from nearby.
When Yu-in caught a glimpse of her features that were hard to see due to the distance, she began to grope him with an unusually bold look.
His beautifully drawn eyes and tightly closed lips connected to the towering bridge of his nose. And a jawline as sharp and strong as his eyes. And the same pitch-black eyes staring at Yu-in.
After finishing appreciating him, Yoo In unconsciously raised her cheeks and smiled. This is my first time seeing a man more handsome than Yoon Ji-han, I wrote a drunken review.
It was a natural expression after seeing something beautiful and pretty.
“under… … So absurd.”
The man tilted his head and sighed softly.
As she tilted her head without understanding what was being said, a large hand was suddenly pushed in front of her nose.
“I can’t stay here, so get out.”
“… … yes? why?”
“Let’s go out first. hurry.”
Then she waved her hand as if fussing.
Yu-In, who had been blinking blankly, grabbed her large palm without knowing what was happening, and the strong grip immediately lifted her body up.
The man started walking quickly without giving the startled Yu-in time to catch her breath.
However, the two had to stop before they got far.
“ah. Wait a minute, wait a minute… … yo. this. “I’m so dizzy.”
The aftereffects of alcohol, which seemed to have subsided, suddenly turned into a big wave and were quickly eating away at Yoo In’s body.
Along with her shallow sigh, a low-pitched sound filled with regret flew to the top of her head.
“What and how much did you drink?”
“Head… My head hurts too much. I feel like I’m going to throw up.”
Yu-In tried to release the hand gripping her even more tightly than just a moment ago, gasping for breath.
The man exerted more force, unable to let her go. He pulled her closer, making her lean against his upper body, and asked roughly, like an angry person, “Hey. What’s your name?”
“…Na…Name… Why?”
“Name.”
“I…I’m… Yu-in.”
With that, Yu-in let go of the thin thread of consciousness she had been holding onto precariously.
