My Stalking Diary

Chapter 28

“Don’t be so childish.”

“Ah, how could you drink just among the guys? That’s not fair.”

“Next time, you must invite Ji-ye and me too. Okay? Jeong-ha, I didn’t think you were like that… that’s a bit mean…”

I didn’t know what to say in response to Choi Kyung-won’s seemingly reproachful words, so I just opened and closed my mouth. It wasn’t that I was trying to exclude Choi Kyung-won and Shin Ji-ye; I only went because Joo Kwon-oh had invited me…

“Ah! We have our presentation next week anyway. How about we have a celebration after the presentation is over? Preferably on Friday evening.”

“I’m totally free. You know that new bar that just opened right next to Le Monde Coffee? I heard they’re having some events. It would be perfect to go there.”

“I agree!”

“So, next week, okay?”

Even though Joo Kwon-oh and I hadn’t answered yet, Choi Kyung-won and Shin Ji-ye had already decided on the plans. As if the after-party was already set in stone, Choi Kyung-won winked at us and pretended to gulp down a drink.

“I haven’t been there yet, but I am curious. Has anyone from our department been there?”

Joo Kwon-oh showed interest, seemingly thinking it wasn’t a bad idea.

“I think some freshmen went there recently. I heard them making a fuss about how good the side dishes were.”

“Ask them what they ate.”

“Yeah. But Jeong-ha, can you drink well?”

“I…”

“No. He’s really bad at drinking.”

Joo Kwon-oh cut off my answer.

“Well, Jeong-ha does seem like that kind of person.”

“Yeah. It seems like you’d get drunk after just one glass, oppa.”

I wasn’t particularly good at drinking, but I had never been told I was bad at it either. Joo Kwon-oh should know since we’ve already drunk together.

I glanced at him with a look that said, “What are you thinking?” Joo Kwon-oh pretended not to notice and made a show of chewing on the tanghulu pen he was holding.

“Ah. Joo Kwon-oh, are you going to apply for that thing Lee Sung-rok sunbae asked about last time?”

“Of course. It’s a good opportunity.”

“That’s great. I thought you might have forgotten about it.”

“Not at all. I was about to start preparing the application.”

“It might be a bit troublesome, but participating in such events before graduation is good for gaining experience. Make the most of it this time.”

“What is Kwon-oh oppa doing?”

Thankfully, the bold Shin Ji-ye asked the question I was too shy to ask.

“The fourth-year department representative is involved with the furniture exhibition that’s being held at COEX this winter. He said he might be able to get Kwon-oh a spot as a staff member in the overall planning team for the exhibition.”

“Why a furniture exhibition?”

“Didn’t you know? Kwon-oh’s family makes furniture. Their manufacturing factory is quite large, I think.”

“Wow. I had no idea.”

“Didn’t he say it’s in Yongin? Right, Joo Kwon-oh?”

I listened intently to what Choi Kyung-won was casually saying.

A staff member for the overall planning of a furniture exhibition. Being a business administration major, he seems to have a lot of connections related to business and events. I suppose if his family is in the furniture business, getting hands-on experience in exhibition planning and marketing would be helpful.

I wonder if it’s similar to an art student planning an exhibition.

“Manufacturing factory? Wow, is the Business Administration department full of rich kids?”

“Ji-ye. Have you ever been to a furniture manufacturing site? It’s pure manual labor.”

Joo Kwon-oh refuted, seemingly disagreeing with the “rich kid” comment.

“Come on, it’s not like you work there, oppa.”

“Why wouldn’t I? It’s a family business, so when there are a lot of orders and things get busy, I have to go help out.”

“That’s right. That’s why Joo Kwon-oh is good at hammering nails. He hung all the clocks and frames in the professor’s office. He’s our department’s handyman.”

“Choi Kyung-won, I can hammer your mouth shut too.”

My ears perked up at this interesting information. New details were overflowing, stimulating my curiosity and providing material to write in my notebook.

I glanced sideways at Joo Kwon-oh, who was casually agreeing with Choi Kyung-won’s words while scratching his cheek.

“…”

Our eyes met unexpectedly. Startled, I turned my gaze to the desk.

I pretended to prepare for class by fiddling with some printouts, but Joo Kwon-oh’s gaze lingered on my face for quite a while.

I was suddenly tense when he told me to sit next to him in the liberal arts class, but once the class started, fortunately, Joo Kwon-oh quickly focused on the lecture.

The chatty Choi Kyung-won and Shin Ji-ye also quietly took notes and attended the class. Thanks to that, I could relax a bit and focus on my own work.

Unlike those three with their considerable enthusiasm, my mind was in turmoil. I had to follow the class, and at the same time, try to find an answer as to why Joo Kwon-oh kept acting familiar with me.

Does he still have more questions for me? But what more could he be curious about? We’ve already had sex…

Now that I’ve gotten my notebook back, Joo Kwon-oh and I had no more business with each other. It was bitter, but that was the truth.

“How about we grab a coffee together to wake ourselves up? There are so many flowers blooming next to the main building these days.”

As soon as the class ended, Choi Kyung-won looked at the three of us with expectant eyes.

“I have a meeting with the professor later…”

Shin Ji-ye was the first to answer.

“I’m having lunch with Jeong-ha.”

“Oh? Then I can join you guys.”

“No, you can’t. We have something to discuss privately.”

Joo Kwon-oh said shamelessly, putting his arm around my shoulders as I was putting on my backpack.

He perfectly blocked out Choi Kyung-won’s whining and led me out of the classroom.

I had been frozen since the moment he put his arm around my shoulders, so it took me quite a while to come up with something to say.

“Um, Kwon-oh. We didn’t make any lunch plans.”

“Oh, didn’t we?”

“…Your arm is heavy.”

I protested timidly. In fact, I wasn’t used to someone putting their arm around my shoulders.

“Sorry. It’s become a habit.”

Joo Kwon-oh coolly removed his arm and smiled. Then he tilted his head slightly towards me and bumped our shoulders.

“Did you get home safely that day?”

I didn’t expect Joo Kwon-oh to bring that up first.

“Yeah…”

I answered quietly, walking quickly as if someone might overhear. My shoulder that had touched his was burning. Even though I tried to create distance as I walked, Joo Kwon-oh persistently stuck close to me today.

“I thought about contacting you, but I figured it would be better to let you rest.”

“…”

“I looked it up, and they say your stomach can really hurt after doing it with a guy. The condom didn’t leak, right?”

I looked around quickly with a shocked expression and a reddened face. Only after confirming that there were no students around did I glance up at Joo Kwon-oh.

“It’s, it’s fine, so don’t talk about that.”

“What’s the big deal? We’re both guys.”

“…”

Since when did the world become a place where guys kiss each other and have sex after drinking? Even as a gay man, I’ve never heard of such a case.

My thinking was too rigid to accept Joo Kwon-oh’s incredibly casual attitude.

“What do you want to eat for lunch? If your stomach isn’t feeling well…”

“I’m supposed to have lunch with Yu-rim and Jae-hyun.”

“Who’s Jae-hyun?”

Joo Kwon-oh slightly furrowed one eyebrow.

“A friend from my department. The one who went to the brunch cafe with us last time.”

“Ah. The one wearing glasses?”

“Yeah.”

“You can eat with them next time.”

Honestly, I wouldn’t have minded going along with Joo Kwon-oh’s suggestion, but I didn’t like being swayed so much by his every action and word. If I had to continue this kind of conversation with him throughout the meal, it would be troublesome.

“We’re planning to order delivery… They might have already ordered.”

“I see.”

Joo Kwon-oh made a deflated sound. He looked so obviously disappointed that I felt my resolve weakening.

Did I reject him too harshly? It might seem like I’m making a big deal out of nothing.

After hesitating, I added casually:

“…Do you want to eat together with us in the studio?”

*

The studio was unusually crowded even though it wasn’t a practical class day. As soon as we entered, a classmate who was chatting excitedly with others waved at me.

“Jeong-ha! I borrowed some white paint from your spot earlier.”

“Oh, that’s fine.”

“I’m going to the art supply store tomorrow, so you can use mine later if you run out.”

“Okay.”

I nodded casually as it was a common occurrence, and walked to my spot where my canvas was. I awkwardly glanced back at Joo Kwon-oh who was following me.

Although I hadn’t just said it out of politeness when I suggested eating together, I didn’t expect him to actually come along.

“Jeong-ha… Oh? Kwon-oh? What brings you here?”

Bae Yu-rim, who was seriously discussing menu options while arranging desks to put the delivered food on, opened her eyes wide in surprise.

“I came to hang out with Jeong-ha.”

“I heard you two were working on a project together. Seems like you’ve become quite close.”

“Wow. Doesn’t suit you.”

Kim Jae-hyun muttered quietly while adjusting his glasses. Perhaps overhearing this, Joo Kwon-oh stared intently at where Kim Jae-hyun was sitting.

Kim Jae-hyun hesitated under the blatant gaze and turned his head away.

“Yeah. We found out our personalities match well while taking the same class. He insisted on eating here, so I followed along because I was bored.”

“We usually order food together here if we don’t have other plans. Sung-im and Jae-wook are joining us too.”

“Oh, really? Jeong-ha told me it was an important appointment he had to keep.”

Joo Kwon-oh muttered, looking in my direction after hearing Bae Yu-rim’s words. His tone seemed almost accusatory.

I broke out in a cold sweat, at a loss for words. What kind of combination was this?