I am not a Yandere chapter 45

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Looking at Jihoon, whose grin resembled the dog character printed on his puffy jacket, Yeongdeok thought, ‘He’s like a dog.’

“You know how to take the bus, right?”

“Of course I do. What do you take me for?”

“I don’t know, you just seem like you might not.”

But Yeongdeok was no longer the person he used to be.

He was now perfectly comfortable with buses, subways, and taxis.

Jihoon continued talking about the restaurant as he led the way to the bus stop.

“I heard about this place from my college friends. The food’s supposed to be amazing. I really worked hard to track it down.”

“Is that so?”

“Here comes the bus. Number 11. That’s the one we need to take.”

Bus number 11 passed by them and stopped a little further up at the bus stop.

Jihoon, without warning, grabbed Yeongdeok’s arm and started running.

“Seo Jihoon, why are we running?”

“We need to catch that bus! Stop talking and just run!”

With no choice but to follow Jihoon’s forceful lead, Yeongdeok reluctantly jogged behind him, looking like a kite fluttering in the wind with no enthusiasm of his own.

Yeongdeok thought Jihoon was wasting unnecessary energy.

If they missed this one, they could just catch the next, right?

It wasn’t like they were in some rural town with long waits between buses.

Despite his internal grumbling, Yeongdeok followed Jihoon onto the bus.

It was crowded, likely due to Christmas, and the cramped space made him feel uncomfortable.

Squeezed among the other passengers, Yeongdeok was annoyed.

No matter how good the restaurant might be, he doubted it would be worth this discomfort.

Just then, Jihoon reached out to create a bit of space for him.

“What are you doing?”

“You’re not used to this kind of thing, right? Just trying to help.”

Feeling strangely condescended to, Yeongdeok was about to retort when the bus suddenly jerked forward, causing him to grab onto the handlebar for support.

Jihoon chuckled lightly.

“Wow, even you get flustered sometimes?”

“Stop laughing.”

“Sorry, sorry.”

Jihoon tried to hold back his laughter, turning his head away, but his lips kept twitching upwards. Yeongdeok thought to himself how rude Jihoon was.

The scenery outside the bus window changed several times as they passed stops.

Every time the bus halted, the inertia made Yeongdeok feel even more drained.

He had thought he’d gotten used to public transportation, but the packed bus was something else.

His expression grew colder with each stop.

After a few more stops, Jihoon signaled for them to get off, weaving through the crowd.

Yeongdeok followed the path he cleared and stepped off the bus.

The fresh air that greeted him felt refreshing as it filled his lungs.

Had the air in this novel always been this pleasant?

Yeongdeok relished the peace he had finally regained.

“Where are we heading now?”

“Oops, I made a mistake. We got off a little early. We’ll have to walk a bit.”

Yeongdeok had never made such a mistake with buses.

His eyes, filled with disdain, were about to fixate on Jihoon once more when Jihoon spoke quietly.

“Is it alright if we walk?”

Jihoon, usually sharp and intense, softened his gaze as he asked.

The weather wasn’t too bad for a walk, Yeongdeok thought.

Yesterday, when he walked with Baek Seonwoo, the wind had been a bit strong.

But today, even the wind seemed calm.

“Do whatever you want.”

“There you go again, leaving it all up to me. But later, you’ll probably complain a lot, won’t you?”

You’ll say I’m stupid, question my intelligence, and wonder if I even think at all.

Jihoon mimicked Yeongdeok’s usual deadpan expression and tone.

“When did I ever do that?”

“Every time.”

Unlike the blunt, accusatory tone of Yeongdeok, Jihoon responded cheerfully.

Yeongdeok thought that Jihoon seemed unusually compliant today.

Normally, he would have cursed at least once by now, but today, the swearing was noticeably less frequent.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day felt quite similar in the scenes that passed by.

Instead of looking around, Yeongdeok kept his gaze fixed on the reddish-brown hair in front of him as he walked.

Was it because Jihoon was tall? Even among the crowd, he stood out.

As they walked for a while, listening to the familiar sound of carols, Jihoon stopped in front of a blue brick house with a white sign.

“We’re here. This is the place.”

The white sign had the name of the store engraved on it, glowing gold as if it had been gilded.

Yeongdeok squinted at the sign, which simply said “Restaurant.”

Naming the restaurant “Restaurant” seemed absurd to him, making him want to come up with a better name.

Had they really gone through all this trouble just to come to a place like this?

“Let’s go in.”

Jihoon pulled Yeongdeok, who was staring at the sign as if locked in a staring contest, into the restaurant.

“How many in your party?”

A staff member greeted them as soon as they entered.

When Jihoon mentioned the reservation under his name, the staff led them to a corner table by the window.

Yeongdeok wanted nothing more than to sink into the chair after the tiring journey.

He felt more exhausted than the time he first rode the subway to a famous chicken restaurant.

Just as he was about to sit down at the table, he heard a familiar, yet irritating voice from the next table.

“Whoa. I didn’t expect to see you here.”

The voice was annoyingly light, almost flippant, and Yeongdeok reflexively turned his head.

His usually composed eyes widened in surprise.

“Why is Cha Yeongdeok here?”

Opposite Seonwoo, who was waving his hands excitedly in greeting, sat a man with a familiar figure, his head hung low like a guilty party.

At that moment, Yeongdeok recalled what Seonwoo had told him just yesterday.

‘I’m meeting Eungyeol on Christmas. Just the two of us.’

So, the man sitting across from Baek Seonwoo must be…

The man seemed too uncomfortable to lift his head, only his shoulders twitching slightly.

Before Yeongdeok could say anything, Jihoon called out the man’s name.

“Lee Eungyeol? What the—why are you here?”

Lee Eungyeol.

Hearing Jihoon clearly enunciate every syllable of his name, Eungyeol seemed to realize he had been caught.

He awkwardly lifted his head with a forced smile. It was a face Yeongdeok hadn’t seen in a long time.

“Hi, Jihoon. And… Dowon.”

Eungyeol’s eyes seemed to shift toward Yeongdeok, but then they quickly darted away.

His eyes, which couldn’t seem to settle anywhere, kept checking for Yeongdeok’s reaction.

Yeongdeok merely stared at Eungyeol’s uneasy expression.

Now it was a strange situation where all four of them, who knew each other to varying degrees, were seated in close proximity.

Around them, the festive sounds of people dining out on Christmas surrounded the restaurant, but an odd silence hung over their table, as if they were cut off from everything else.

With everyone either stiff or silent, Seonwoo was the only one smiling mischievously.

Isn’t this an amusing situation?

Seonwoo’s gaze shifted from Eungyeol to Yeongdeok.

He clearly remembered what Yeongdeok had said the day before.

Even though Yeongdeok had been indifferent to the topic of Eungyeol yesterday, now that Eungyeol was right in front of him, could he really maintain the same composure?

Surely, he would react.

Seonwoo found this situation quite entertaining.

In stark contrast to Seonwoo’s enjoyment, Jihoon felt deeply uncomfortable.

Of all the restaurants, why did Eungyeol have to come here?

Jihoon stole a glance at Yeongdeok’s face before looking at his childhood friend, Eungyeol.

Though Jihoon wasn’t directly involved, he had some idea of the history between Yeongdeok and Eungyeol.

Cha Yeongdeok had confessed his feelings to Lee Eungyeol and was rejected.

Ever since then, Eungyeol had felt uncomfortable around Yeongdeok.

And now…

Jihoon glanced at Seonwoo, who was smiling smugly by himself.

What on earth is that guy thinking?

Eungyeol felt the same way.

After rejecting Yeongdeok, he had quit his convenience store job, changed his phone number, and gone out of his way to avoid him.

And now, to run into him here?

Eungyeol shot a resentful glare at Seonwoo, who had casually greeted Yeongdeok.

Finally, even Yeongdeok thought this situation was troublesome, but not just because he had run into Eungyeol.

What bothered him most was that this situation was exactly the kind of thing ‘Petite Rolang’ would love.

How exciting was this scene, even from a reader’s perspective?

All the key characters of this novel had gathered in one place.

PetitRolang… Yeongdeok paused for a moment to consider his next move.

“Well, since we all know each other, why don’t we just sit together? Or should we move to your table?”

“Seonwoo, what are you—?”

Eungyeol quickly grabbed Seonwoo’s sleeve.

Despite noticing Eungyeol’s discomfort, Seonwoo smiled innocently, a mischievous grin that contrasted with his otherwise friendly expression.

“You don’t mind, do you, Eungyeol?”

“No, well…”

Caught off guard by Seonwoo’s sudden question, Eungyeol hesitated, glancing at Yeongdeok.

Would it be too rude to act like he was avoiding him?

Given the situation, pretending to be too uncomfortable seemed impolite, so he decided to change his approach.

“Sure…”

“Great.”

Before Eungyeol could finish, Yeongdeok jumped in, giving his agreement first. Jihoon, sitting right next to him, gulped nervously at the scheming look in Yeongdeok’s eyes.

What’s he up to now?

Jihoon, a mere bystander, couldn’t begin to understand Yeongdeok’s plans.

But Yeongdeok’s thinking was surprisingly simple.

Since Lee Eungyeol was the main character of this trashy novel, the current situation would likely be told from his perspective.

And if this was something PetitRolang and the readers would enjoy, wouldn’t it be fun to shatter their expectations?

A glint of determination flashed in Yeongdeok’s eyes.

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Translator: I will not be posting new chapters from mon-sat because I am busy. See you again on sunday.

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