I woke up at 5:00 AM.
Even though it was an hour when I usually would have been nodding off, my eyes snapped open with strange clarity. I rolled around in bed for a while before finally getting up to explore my room.
It was clean and orderly, the kind of room you only see on TV. There wasn’t a single piece of junk; organized like a model home, the room contained only a bed, a desk, a dresser, and a closet.
I pulled out the chair and sat down cautiously. I glanced at it, wondering if even the chair was expensive, and let out a long sigh.
‘It really isn’t a dream. This is real.’
Yesterday I had been nothing but joyful, but today felt a bit different. This was because I had fully realized that this was inside a novel, and I was the character destined to end up with the “Bottom.”
First of all, Choi Jingi and Joo Unyoung are supposed to start dating toward the end of Volume 1. Choi Jingi was the one who liked him first, but because they were the same gender, he hesitated—it was Joo Unyoung who eventually pulled him in.
In Volume 2, the two of them are all lovey-dovey, playing a game of “push and pull” while flirting, but then the three sub-Tops appear, and the trials and tribulations begin.
The sub-Tops do everything in their power to tear them apart, and Joo Unyoung falls into traps or has to run away countless times.
Choi Jingi uses his wealth and power to push the sub-Tops away and rescue Joo Unyoung. Then, at the beginning of Volume 4, Choi Jingi gives a heartfelt confession, and the two become closer than ever, ending the story as a couple.
In the final epilogue, on January 1st when they turn twenty, they share a careful kiss under the dark moonlight.
Actually, that novel was a total disaster.
Not that I knew much about writing, but since I had only given her pointers on characters or dramatic plot developments, Kim Hyeyeon had published her debut work without knowing any better.
And my last memory in my previous body was comforting Kim Hyeyeon, who was drinking heavily because she was hurt by all the malicious comments, and taking her home.
Then, I had returned to my studio apartment and gone to sleep.
“First… first, it’s probably best to distance myself from Joo Unyoung.”
I remember the scene from yesterday occurring toward the end of Volume 1. That meant it was now time for the flirting and the “push and pull” with Joo Unyoung, and the period where the sub-Tops would slowly start making their presence known.
I took a seemingly new notebook out of the drawer and began to neatly organize the situation. My gaze, fixed on the paper, was incredibly serious.
I had gained a new life. I felt bad for Joo Unyoung, but since our relationship hadn’t progressed that far anyway, I had to end it.
I had no intention of being foolish enough to let this opportunity slip away.
However, the current point in time was after Choi Jingi had already done the flirting and Joo Unyoung’s heart had begun to waver. There were two ways.
First, act in a way that makes him lose interest.
Second, pretend to be a total jerk by claiming I was just bored and playing with him.
“I already rejected him, but… hmm.”
Maybe I could just delay dating as much as possible while doing pathetic things to make him lose interest. The second option was something you shouldn’t do to a person, even if they were just a character in a novel.
But I had never seen a gay person in my life. So, I had to spend a long time agonizing over what they might dislike.
‘If I were gay, then… what if I were gay? I’d hate a guy who met other guys all over the place, right? And also, well, Choi Jingi has been the ‘Sweet Top’ until now, so what if I started treating Joo Unyoung like a caught fish and acted all indifferent?’
At the bottom of the paper, I wrote: “Solution 1: Become a Bad Choi Jingi.” I couldn’t predict exactly how this novel would flow now.
Since not all three sub-Tops were total trash, maybe Joo Unyoung’s heart would lean toward them.
I remembered that the sub-Tops were also handsome, tall, lived diligently, and were incredibly obsessed with Joo Unyoung.
Especially two of them—they were so delicate and kind that they might even be better than me.
One thing that worried me was the last piece of advice I gave Kim Hyeyeon: that I wished the villain characters were a bit worse, and while they were okay now, wouldn’t something more dramatic be better?
In fact, if they were real people, they were bad enough to be headed for prison. I only recommended making them more extreme because it was a novel.
“…She probably published it as is since it’s hard to revise the whole thing, right?”
It was a bit difficult because I hadn’t seen the final manuscript that went through the publisher.
I moistened my dry lips with my tongue and tore the page out of the notebook. Then, I folded the paper four times and shoved it deep into the drawer.
I went downstairs, ate a hearty breakfast while thanking the people who quietly prepared the meal, and put on my school uniform.
It felt very strange. It was a uniform I thought I would never wear again.
Even though it was early, I left the house. And as if it were the most natural thing in the world, a black sedan and a man in a suit were standing there.
…Wow, crazy. Even if it’s a school for the rich, he really rode around in something like this so openly? When it’s not even a long distance?
“Excuse me, could I walk from today on?”
“Understood.”
At my cautious question, they immediately nodded and moved out of the way bluntly. I hiked my bag up for no reason.
The distance from home to school wasn’t that far.
It was about three bus stops away, but for the old Jingi who lived in the countryside, this distance was practically a short stroll.
As I trudged along, I smelled the unique scent of the early morning.
It was something I had forgotten because I was so busy commuting after becoming an adult, so it felt quite welcoming.
“Jingi.”
Just then, a heavy voice called out from a distance. When I turned my head, the name naturally came to mind: Go Yeol. With pitch-black hair and a raspy low voice, his height—which looked over 190cm—and thick eyebrows were making a strong impression.
His sanpaku eyes turned toward me without a word.
