NOVEL NEXT Chapter 235
“Miss.”
After playing with her hair for a while, Yang Hye-in spoke up.
To be honest, I hadn’t heard the hair dryer for some time, only the sound of her fingers brushing through my hair softly.
…Somehow, I felt like asking, “Isn’t your hair dry by now?” would be a bad idea. My instincts were telling me that.
“I understand that you think this situation is enjoyable.”
The delicate touch on my hair stopped, and I turned slightly to look back.
Yang Hye-in had taken a step back, bowing her head slightly with a courteous expression.
“However, you shouldn’t completely let your guard down.”
“……”
Hmm, well.
That’s a fair point.
“The chairwoman, Choi Na-kyung, has not been arrested yet. Do you understand what that means?”
“……What does that mean?”
“It means the police are not doing their job properly.”
That was something anyone could think of. Just searching the internet would yield a ton of rants about the police, and occasionally, there’d be major incidents in the news or some officers’ ridiculous posts cemented online.
But Yang Hye-in probably meant more than that.
I turned my body to lean against the chair’s backrest.
“Does that mean Choi Na-kyung’s influence is still lingering?”
“I think it will remain in a different form than the Yujin Group. You haven’t broken off your engagement yet, after all.”
“…You’re talking about the Ho-myung Group, aren’t you?”
“That’s correct.”
The gap between the first place and the second was so huge that it was ridiculous; the Ho-myung Group was definitely not a small group.
If Choi Na-kyung were to join forces with the Ho-myung Group to pressure the police… it wouldn’t be impossible.
“What’s the reason for bringing that up when it’s just the two of us?”
“Because I am your maid.”
Yang Hye-in raised her head.
In her deep eyes, I could sense a strong will. Normally, one would feel a deep and dark vibe when seeing such a look, but… my sensation felt more like ‘dark and viscous’. I wasn’t quite sure why I felt that way.
“…Are you saying you can’t trust my friends?”
“In a way, yes.”
Yang Hye-in nodded.
“At least they don’t believe in the same way you do.”
“……”
Does that mean she didn’t want to shatter my happiness? Perhaps my cheerful appearance among friends made her postpone this for too long.
“Got it. I’ll keep that in mind.”
Honestly, that was true.
I had also forgotten that fact.
It’s not completely over yet.
The chairwoman of the Ho-myung Group who came to the birthday party had some devious thoughts.
And that thought would definitely not lead to any positive outcomes for me.
“Thank you.”
At my response, Yang Hye-in bowed her head again.
*
“…That was foolish.”
“Right?”
Yoo Ha-neul and Shin So-hee said that as they left Lee Soo-ah’s house.
If Lee Soo-ah really thought of running away for a little while, she wouldn’t have said where she was going. Saying she was heading home was just an excuse; if she took a bus for about ten minutes to hide in any café, it wouldn’t be possible for ordinary high schoolers like Yoo Ha-neul and Shin So-hee to find her.
Well, they didn’t get ignored for being Lee Soo-ah’s friends, but… it was still quite embarrassing to go looking for a friend at a house without any friends. The more they explicitly believed they could find her, the more they felt that way.
“What’s foolish about it, anyway?”
One of the two complained as they walked out, and then suddenly, they heard a voice.
Turning their heads, they saw Lee Soo-ah.
Beside her was the reporter they met last time.
Seemingly pulled out in the middle of the night, she looked incredibly displeased, but Lee Soo-ah seemed indifferent.
“Hey…”
Yoo Ha-neul, with a tired voice, called out to Lee Soo-ah but then suddenly paused as if she had remembered something.
“Hmm?”
“What’s wrong?”
Shin So-hee, who was next to her, asked.
“…I mean, if she had escaped the negotiation, there wouldn’t be any reason for her to show up in front of us, right? She could have appeared after we went back to Sara or gone to meet Sara before us.”
“……”
Then both of them remembered again that they were failing to make an objective judgment.
Yes. If they rushed after Lee Soo-ah, all she had to do was go back to Sara. That way… well, since Yang Hye-in was there, they couldn’t be alone together, but at least they could avoid the negotiation table.
So, the only explanation for Lee Soo-ah showing up here was that she was deliberately waiting for them.
“Where were you waiting?”
In response to Shin So-hee’s question, Lee Soo-ah silently pointed behind her. There, a car they had ridden before was parked.
“……”
And after seeing the incredibly pouty expression of the reporter once more, they figured out that Lee Soo-ah had been waiting in the car all along.
Realizing this fact simultaneously, Yoo Ha-neul and Shin So-hee thought the same thing.
Why bother?
If Lee Soo-ah wanted, the three of them could meet without Sara. …Or maybe, if it was Sara, she’d secretly be happy to have some breathing room.
But why go out of her way to find a loophole in the agreement and confront the two, not to mention outright running away?
“Hey, how about we have a little chat?”
Seeing the two’s heads getting messy, Lee Soo-ah smiled slightly and asked.
*
Unlike the sticky summer night felt outside, the café with air conditioning was exceptionally cool and refreshing.
Seated in a corner of such a franchise café, Lee Soo-ah slowly opened her mouth.
“We’re friends, right?”
Suddenly hearing such a question, Yoo Ha-neul and Shin So-hee momentarily gaped at each other.
Just as they were about to answer “Of course!”, they halted.
“……”
“……”
We’re friends, right?
Friends who became close because of Sara. Friends who had lived in the same room without ever having a significant fight until now. They must have thought about it that way.
But…
The only reason the three of them hadn’t fought openly was that if they did, Sara would be the most awkward one involved. Being a freeloader at home, she didn’t want to be disliked by the one she liked.
But if that’s the case, can they truly say they’re “close”?
Was the reason they made a pact simply to maintain their friendship?
“We all like Sara. But at the same time, we’re friends. Looking back, I’m not so sure if there’s any friendship left now…”
At Lee Soo-ah’s words, Yoo Ha-neul and Shin So-hee found themselves at a loss for words.
They hadn’t openly fought, but the truth was they had quarreled over Sara.
“Just like I did today, you can act that way too. Once or twice is fine. We all can tolerate that. But what if such situations keep repeating? Can we maintain our relationship as it is?”
No.
Eventually, they’d have to part ways due to jealousy and resentment someday.
“…I see.”
Yoo Ha-neul seemed to understand roughly why Lee Soo-ah wanted to have this meeting.
“……”
Shin So-hee didn’t say anything, with a blank expression, but she seemed to share the same thought.
“So how about we relax a little and try to go back to the way things were… well, we can’t return completely to how things were, but can we spend time like we used to be friends? Until Sara becomes an adult, it seems she has no intention of dating anyone.”
Lee Soo-ah paused for a moment and then added,
“…It seems like Sara is getting exhausted too.”
“……”
“……”
A moment of silence.
“Hah.”
Finally breaking the silence, Shin So-hee let out a big sigh as if everyone needed to hear it.
Shin So-hee pushed her chair back roughly and stood up.
“Ah…”
Thinking she was about to leave, Lee Soo-ah let out a somewhat disappointed sound.
“……”
However, without any further words, Shin So-hee walked over and plopped down beside Lee Soo-ah.
“Ugh!?”
In that position, she grabbed Lee Soo-ah and pulled her into a hug.
Startled by the sudden embrace, Lee Soo-ah’s face buried in Shin So-hee’s chest, looking immensely flustered.
“You, even with all that talk, you did that today. I couldn’t sleep properly watching over you all night!”
It felt like she was crushing Lee Soo-ah’s suggestion with those words.
But Shin So-hee—no, her expression seemed considerably lighter.
While the dark circles under her eyes were still there.
Seeing the two of them, Yoo Ha-neul also stood up and quietly sat next to Lee Soo-ah.
And—
Well, openly hugging like Shin So-hee felt a bit much. So, Yoo Ha-neul simply took one of Lee Soo-ah’s hands.
“Got it. So that’s what you were thinking, Sua~”
Yoo Ha-neul said while smiling.
“But I think the events from last night to this morning need a more detailed and accurate clarification!”
She added in a bright voice.
“Ugh!”
But since Shin So-hee didn’t let go of Lee Soo-ah for a while, they could only clear things up a few minutes later.