“Uh… I, um, career counseling?”
“With him?”
Seeing his expression darken, Jingi hurriedly waved his hands, fearing Joo Unyoung might have mistaken Joo Hyeonje for a classmate.
Perhaps Joo Unyoung didn’t even know of Joo Hyeonje’s existence yet.
It was possible that Joo Hyeonje had just been stalking him gloomily and developed a crush.
“No, no, he’s a senior.”
Joo Unyoung stared intently at Joo Hyeonje.
It felt like lasers were about to shoot out of his eyes.
My heart plummeted.
‘No way… please don’t tell me he’s fallen for him? There’s Go Yeol and Baek Jaehui, so why on earth would he pick a disaster like this…?’
The review, ‘If he got entangled with Joo Hyeonje, it would be a total psychological horror story,’ seemed to flash before my eyes.
Jingi quickly broke free from Joo Hyeonje’s grasp and ran to Joo Unyoung.
A courage I hadn’t possessed earlier surged up.
Humans really are creatures who can’t do anything on their own.
“Senior! Go to your class quickly!”
“Jingi?”
“Let’s go in, let’s go. Class is starting soon.”
“Wait a second.”
‘No, absolutely not.’
Since Joo Hyeonje had said he was “interested,” it probably wasn’t love yet, so I had to tear them apart immediately.
I couldn’t let his interest evolve into love.
If Joo Unyoung had been incredibly ugly, we wouldn’t be having this mess just because they ran into each other.
But because Joo Unyoung was so heartbreakingly beautiful, I was nervous that the guy’s eyes might just roll back and lose it.
So, I pushed Joo Unyoung’s back, intending to force us back into the classroom.
But Joo Unyoung, not Joo Hyeonje, pushed me aside and stepped firmly forward.
“Hey.”
The low-pitched voice, the way he called out to Joo Hyeonje—Jingi clutched his forehead.
‘I see, it wasn’t just a passing glance, was it? They’ve already met, and something must have happened.’
At those words, Joo Hyeonje spun around, leaned his back against the wall, and crossed his arms.
Since I had decided to become a supporting character who helps the protagonist find love, it was only right to step aside.
But I was far too anxious to leave the two of them alone.
I hurriedly grabbed Joo Unyoung’s arm and pulled, but he didn’t budge.
Jingi was shocked to find that Joo Unyoung, whom he thought would be weaker than him, had such immense strength.
He was as solid as a rock.
And then, exactly one meter.
The two men’s gazes locked.
They stared at each other as if they were madly in love.
Silence fell, and Jingi was going crazy not knowing what to do.
It was Joo Unyoung who broke the silence.
“I told you… not to be seen in my sight.”
‘That’s a line from a pure romance manga.’
Jingi felt dizzy and held his head. His legs almost gave out.
‘Is this one of those developments where they bicker at first because they can’t admit their feelings? Enemies to lovers? Denying they’ve fallen for each other? Maybe that ‘physical attraction turning into emotional love’ trope?’
I had only ever read one BL novel, but I had read plenty of romance and fantasy, so I knew this trope well.
Why, it’s not even that rare in morning dramas.
The arrogant male lead meeting the stubborn female lead on the first day.
Fighting without backing down, only to start feeling love for each other before they know it!
Jingi gulped, hoping those two dazzling, handsome men would please, please not fall in love.
Above all, wasn’t Joo Unyoung currently in a “some” (dating-stage) relationship with Go Yeol?
It would be truly sad if Go Yeol didn’t get his chance in this life, either.
“Oh my, scary. Relax those eyes, a friend is right there.”
“Get lost, right now. Don’t push your luck.”
“We can run into each other at the same school, can’t we? If you hate it so much, why don’t you transfer?”
“Who was it that insisted on coming here? If you forced your way in, you should be the one to leave.”
“You’re really mean to your hyung, sob sob.”
Joo Hyeonje made a fake sobbing sound.
Meanwhile, Jingi frowned upon hearing the title.
‘Hyung? Could they be real brothers? No, that can’t be.’
If Joo Hyeonje, one of the sub-leads, were his real brother, that would be… too much cognitive dissonance.
Jingi had never once encountered a novel with incest.
He shook his head vigorously to wipe the thought away.
Joo Hyeonje is a madman.
That must be why he keeps pestering Joo Unyoung, demanding to be called hyung.
No, it had to be that way.
Even if they shared the rare surname “Joo,” this had to be Jingi’s own absurd misunderstanding.
Joo Unyoung had said he didn’t have any siblings. He had clearly stated that in the original work.
But then, Kim Hyeyeon’s existence—her “secret episodes”—popped into his head.
‘…Even if that guy is a mad dog and an attention seeker, surely, surely he wouldn’t go that far, would he?’
Could the side story they planned to release after the novel’s success have been: ‘Actually, they were brothers!’?
That hypothesis fit suspiciously well.
Jingi clutched his bursting heart.
‘Wow, that really wouldn’t be it. That would immediately land the author on every reader’s blacklist.’
Even I would send the author a long email asking, “How could you deceive us like this?”
There’s a limit to trolling.
But the surname, the calling him hyung…
While Jingi’s brain was overloading and ready to pop, the two men continued their conversation.
“Why are you bothering him?”
“Jingi? Bothering him? What are you talking about? We’re just living as a close older-younger brother duo.”
“Bullshit, fucker. You think I don’t know you approached him on purpose? Do I look like an idiot?”
Jingi, who had just managed to escape his pile of imagination, was shocked once again to see Joo Unyoung spewing curses so naturally.
I could only see his back, but it was hard to believe those words were coming from that angel-like face.
I doubted if it was even the real Joo Unyoung speaking.
“Un… Unyoung, shouldn’t we go in…?”
Jingi asked, gathering his courage.
He placed a trembling hand on Joo Unyoung’s shoulder, but he didn’t move an inch.
“Go in first. I have something to say to this guy.”
“Nooo, you should come in too. The homeroom teacher will be waiting. Senior, you should go now too, right…?”
I looked back and forth between them and gave a weak “Hehe” laugh.
I probably looked like an idiot.
But I was terrified of these two, so I couldn’t help it.
My body had grown, but my heart remained the same.
The Jingi of my past life was a coward, and he was a coward now, too.
Eventually, Joo Unyoung let out a sigh.
Joo Hyeonje also twitched his lips and straightened up.
“Sure, sure. You should both go in. My business is finished anyway, so I’ll be going. Jingi, reply to my KakaoTalk, and see you Wednesday.”
“KakaoTalk? Wednesday?”
“Ah, r-right… Yes! Please go!”
I ignored Joo Unyoung’s question and bowed my head to Joo Hyeonje as he walked toward the stairs.
My heart was pounding wildly.
I was so drained that I felt like I was on the verge of collapsing.
“How long have you known him? Why are you in contact with that guy, and what’s this about Wednesday?”
“First, let’s just go inside.”
“Choi Jingi.”
“Ugh, I don’t know.”
The harsh tone made goosebumps rise on my arms.
I don’t know what on earth happened between them to make the kind Joo Unyoung change 180 degrees like that.
In the original work, they didn’t seem to be on such bad terms.
Joo Unyoung, who had been kidnapped, had muttered things like “Why, how,” and Joo Hyeonje had whispered, “If you wait a little longer, I’ll let you go.”
Before that incident, they clearly must have been just an ordinary senior and junior.
Jingi left Joo Unyoung behind and scurried into the classroom.
When the teacher asked why he was late, he said he stopped by the bathroom.
Whether the teacher hadn’t heard the noise in the hallway or just chose to ignore it, he just grunted, “Is that so.”
Since late students couldn’t get in once the gate was closed, they ended up arriving during the break before the first period, so luckily, it wasn’t marked as an absence.
“Phew…”
I let out a deep sigh and collapsed into my seat.
Seeing the empty seat next to me, it seemed Go Yeol had been training since dawn.
As I was shuffling my bag, Joo Unyoung came in a bit late.
The teacher gave him a glance and let it go.
Jingi glanced at the title of the book the teacher was reading passionately.
‘Escape! The Struggles of a Stock Beginner.’
Well, middle-aged men like him were always blinded by the stock market.
“Jingi.”
“Uh…”
“During the break, don’t go anywhere—just stay seated.”
“Uh, uh-huh.”
“Look at me and answer properly.”
“Uuu-ung.”
‘Why does it have to be the seat right next to me? Why are protagonists always in the back row, sitting in a line by the window?’
Even if the seats were far apart, it wouldn’t have affected the story’s progress.
I ignored his piercing gaze and turned my head.
The window was slightly open, letting in a damp breeze.
‘Is the reason for the back row because of the ‘breeze by the window’ aesthetic? Is the reason for sitting next to me so he can pick up my eraser if I drop it? Or to pass me notes?’
Certainly, the moment I possessed this novel, Joo Unyoung, with his back to the window, was breath-takingly pretty.
Against his naturally dazzling face, the setting sun and the wind—like a movie scene—illuminated him like stage lighting.
That’s why I almost stopped breathing the moment I saw him.
Yeah, aesthetics are important.
