🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter: 11
“Waiting… for me?”
“You’ll finish eating before class anyway.”
“Well, that’s true, but…”
“No problem then.”
Dragged into the conversation in an instant, Hadam just stared blankly at I-gyeol with wide eyes.
There wasn’t anything to argue back with.
“Uh, um… okay. I’m having cereal so I’ll be quick.”
“That counts as a meal?”
“Yeah. Better than not eating. And I like cereal.”
Adding unnecessary explanations, she walked ahead of him.
But because his stride was much longer, he caught up immediately.
For a split second, a fresh soap scent brushed the tip of her nose.
…So boys can smell nice too, huh.
The thought came out of nowhere, and she felt oddly embarrassed.
Of course they can.
It’s nothing special.
“You know where the cafeteria is, right?”
“Behind the high school building, wasn’t it?”
“You say it like someone who’s never been there. Didn’t you eat dinner yesterday?”
“No. I didn’t have an appetite.”
Maybe the unfamiliar environment was getting to him.
Some beastfolk were like that—
like animals who get stressed when taken out of their territory,
he seemed sensitive to his surroundings.
Her heart softened again.
It wasn’t even his own choice to come to the main campus.
And now he couldn’t even eat properly.
“Then wouldn’t eating breakfast be better? You’re empty all day. You must be starving.”
“It’s fine. I’m used to it.”
He really looked like he meant it.
But both fine and used to it were hard to believe.
Judging by everything she’d seen so far, boys ate a lot, almost like a different species.
And they never, ever skipped meals.
Ugh, now I’m worried.
Maybe I should look after him until he adjusts.
Of all times, why did I have to be late on the first day…
It’s all that damn Byeol Yunseong’s fault…
Right as that thought reached its end, someone appeared in her line of sight.
“Why’d you stop?”
I-gyeol stopped as well, following her gaze.
“Isn’t that our class rep?”
Yunseong was just entering the cafeteria.
“Haa…”
Hadam answered with a sigh.
“What’s wrong? Yesterday you two didn’t seem on good terms either. Did you fight?”
“No. We just hate each other.”
He usually ate much earlier, so why was he here now?
Her luck was rotten this morning.
Thankfully, I-gyeol didn’t pry further.
The cafeteria was already pretty full.
Since it was the start of the semester, everyone seemed intent on living diligently…
though that wouldn’t last more than two weeks.
Hadam grabbed a carton of milk and a cup of cereal from the front of the serving line.
She was about to find a table when she turned back to ask once more:
“Are you really not eating? They have rice too. Breakfast soups rotate between soybean paste, seaweed, and radish soup. Looks like today’s seaweed soup.”
She glanced at the menu as she explained, but I-gyeol was firm.
“Breakfast upsets my stomach. Don’t mind me—take your time.”
“You’d better not complain later.”
Hadam scanned the cafeteria quickly.
She wanted to sit as far from Yunseong as possible.
“Let’s sit near the exit.”
Not many students there—
if she ate fast, she wouldn’t have to run into him.
But Hadam soon realized she had made the worst choice.
Of course she failed to consider that I-gyeol’s presence was prime entertainment in their dull school lives.
Almost every student stared at their table as they left.
Some peeked discreetly,
others outright spectated.
They slowed down as they passed,
pretended to walk by then circled back,
or lingered a few steps away, sneaking glances.
“He’s really a tiger?”
“So beasts aren’t that different from us. I thought he’d bare claws at least.”
“At least he’s not ripping into raw meat.”
“Maybe he’s starving so no one sees what he really eats.”
Hadam gulped down her cereal as if drinking it.
She felt like she was going to choke.
Jerks.
She wiped her mouth with a napkin and stood up.
I-gyeol knit his brows, looking apologetic.
“Sorry. I won’t follow you tomorrow. You had to rush because of me.”
“No.”
But in truth, she was the one who wanted to apologize.
“They were too rude.”
“I expected it. It’s fine.”
“Still.”
She’d endured every kind of stare throughout her school life,
yet even she struggled in that brief moment.
I-gyeol must have felt worse.
Even if he looked composed, inside he must’ve been a mess.
With a heavy heart, Hadam left the cafeteria.
If it were Yuna, she would’ve snapped at them—
Don’t bother people while they’re eating,
Mind your manners,
Stop staring, something like that.
Hadam was disappointed in herself for not having that courage.
“Seon Hadam.”
Lost in gloomy thoughts, she raised her head.
I-gyeol stood at the entrance of the high school building,
his expression unreadable.
Warm sunlight filtered through his messy bangs,
casting fragments of light down his cheek—
yet his neat features somehow looked cold.
As their eyes met, he slowly spoke:
“Don’t you have anything you want to ask me?”
Maybe she had been too lost in her own thoughts.
Talking might help her forget the cafeteria incident…
“Hmm.”
Of course she had questions—
too many, in fact.
What was hard was knowing which ones could be asked.
“If I don’t want to answer, I won’t. So go ahead, ask anything.”
he added quickly, as if sensing her hesitation.
“Then…”
After a long pause, Hadam chose the question that had bothered her the most.
“Uh, the relic museum—you know it, right?”
“Behind the main building?”
“Yeah. Do… beastfolk from Taebaek Hall ever go there?”
A conclusion she reached after much thinking:
there couldn’t be real wild beasts on campus.
So another hypothesis gained weight—
that the sound she heard came from beastfolk of Taebaek Hall.
Even Yuna dropped a hint.
‘Like you.’
Ever since hearing that, Hadam had been excited—
The possibility of beastfolk like her existing somewhere.
That she wasn’t a freak—
not alone.
If someone from Taebaek Hall came to the relic museum,
maybe they knew something
—something main campus beastfolk didn’t.
As she waited for his reply, her watch buzzed.
Her heart fluttered slightly with anticipation.
I-gyeol tilted his head thoughtfully.
She wanted to see his expression,
but his face slipped into shadow.
She swallowed hard.
After a short silence, his answer finally came:
“Who knows.”
If that could even be called an answer.
“Wha… ‘who knows’?”
Still stunned, she watched as he turned away naturally and walked toward the elevator.
Hadam hurried to follow.
“No, I’m asking because the other day I heard some kind of… crying sound in there.”
She added quickly, as if making excuses.
Only then did I-gyeol look back, an odd expression on his face—
but he soon grinned teasingly.
“Isn’t your imagination a bit too active?
‘Beastfolk of Taebaek Hall resolve everything within Taebaek Hall.’
That’s the number one rule.
Meaning—we wouldn’t come all the way here.”
With that, he pressed the button.
The elevator door opened immediately.
“After you.”
He gestured for her to enter.
Hadam stepped in almost on instinct.
“See you soon.”
“…Huh?”
The doors closed with I-gyeol standing outside.
Hadam stood frozen, speechless.
Is this how people tease others now?
If sharing a small space was uncomfortable,
he could’ve just said so.
Or said he’d take the stairs.
It’s not like I was dying to ride the elevator anyway.
Her thoughts grew more and more aggravated.
She jabbed the 4th floor button a bit too sharply.
And what was with that rule talk—
they’re not the military.
He could’ve just said it was hard to answer,
or said he didn’t know.
Acting cryptic all the time—
how’s he going to make friends like that?
I only put up with it because it’s me.
Hadam clicked her tongue internally.
The cafeteria incident was unfortunate,
but maybe being friends with Do I-gyeol wouldn’t work out after all.
“Fourth floor.”
As she shook her head, the elevator doors opened—
and a pair of pitch-black eyes locked onto her instantly.
Long, sharp eyes with a graceful curve.
Lips curled upward, clearly amused.
Short, rough breaths.
Hadam froze in surprise.
She frowned slightly and began to speak.
“What are you—”
“I win.”
Cutting her off, I-gyeol beamed.
