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Chapter : 23
After the closing homeroom, Yi-seol was chatting and laughing with the children who had swarmed around her.
Yi-seol was very popular among the students.
Especially the girls liked her as if she were an idol and followed her everywhere.
Taeshin, leaning back comfortably in his chair, watched her bright smile as she was surrounded by the children.
Throughout the entire homeroom, she hadn’t made eye contact with him once, yet she smiled easily at the other students.
And for some reason, that irritated him so much.
After Yi-seol, who hadn’t even glanced at Taeshin, finally left the classroom, he also got up from his seat.
His desk was stacked with snacks like chocolates and candies.
These were secretly left by the girls after the lunchtime line-cutting incident.
Leaving the snacks as they were, Taeshin headed to the library.
He had found out that Yi-seol also worked as the school librarian.
That meant she came to the library at least once a day.
It was currently after-school class time, so there weren’t many students around.
The kids who noticed Taeshin whispered to each other cautiously.
While choosing books he needed for his Korean language assignment, Taeshin received a text from Yi-seol.
[Don’t wait for me today—I have an appointment in the evening.]
She wasn’t even going to leave work with him.
[Let’s meet briefly in the library. Or I can come to the teachers’ office.]
[I’m coming, so don’t come.]
Taeshin smirked after reading her reply.
[Then I’ll wait at the second-floor foreign-language section.]
That corner was the least popular among students, a place no one ever visited.
As he browsed the foreign-language books, Yi-seol arrived, pushing a book cart.
The cart was piled with books returned by students.
From a little distance, she checked the serial numbers of the books and said,
“I saw you earlier in the cafeteria. You handled Hwang In-woo impressively.”
“Did I?”
Yi-seol nodded while shelving the books and asked professionally,
“Since so many people saw, why did you want to meet here?”
Still avoiding his gaze.
“Where is your evening appointment?”
“After the meeting, Senior Junpil will see me off. You don’t have to come.”
Taeshin stepped closer to Yi-seol.
She stepped aside to avoid him, and he closed the distance again.
When she tried to move away a second time, he trapped her between the bookshelf and his body, placing his hands on either side so she couldn’t escape.
Startled, Yi-seol finally looked up at him, meeting his eyes.
Her large, clear eyes trembled, and her long eyelashes fluttered.
Being close, he caught her pleasant, fragrant scent.
He unconsciously inhaled deeply.
“Why… are you doing this?”
“Did I… do something wrong?”
“No. Of course not.”
“Then explain why you’ve been avoiding me all morning.”
“Avoiding… who says I’ve been avoiding anyone…”
Her words trailed off, and her eyes darted to the left.
She was lying.
Taeshin lightly lifted her chin to prevent her from looking away.
Their gazes met forcibly.
In her clear, pure eyes, he saw nothing but himself reflected.
“Could you step aside a bit? What if someone sees us?”
“No one comes here.”
“Even so…”
“If you want to end this quickly, you’ll have to answer honestly.”
Taeshin held Yi-seol’s chin and slowly traced her soft, delicate cheek with his thumb.
He felt her jaw muscles tense under his finger.
Everything about her was so soft and tender that a little pressure could crumble her, so he had to be careful not to grip too hard.
“What do you mean, be honest about…”
“The reason you’re avoiding me. Is it because of yesterday?”
“…What happened yesterday?”
She slowly blinked and asked, her lips flushed the same color as her cheeks.
Her lips looked unusually tempting, as if biting them would release sweet juice.
They seemed like they might taste like strawberries, or perhaps peaches.
The memory of holding her body in the dark—the curves, the softness—was still vivid.
He had tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep.
He didn’t know if this was pure desire for Yi-seol, or the aftereffect of having stayed away from women for so long.
Taeshin briefly closed his eyes and opened them again, as if restraining desire.
“If you don’t remember, I could make you remember.”
He leaned close and whispered into her ear. Flustered, Yi-seol tried to push him away with her palm but flinched.
Her cheeks, already flushed, turned even redder.
“Yes. I’ve been avoiding you because of yesterday. Happy now?”
Giving up her pretense, Yi-seol pushed him with force this time.
When he stepped back, she quickly moved to place the cart between them.
“I was embarrassed because I mistook the hair tie for a cockroach and made a scene. Do you really need me to confirm that with my own mouth? You’re harsher than I thought.”
Seeing her blush, he struggled to keep a straight face.
“If you hadn’t been avoiding me, there would have been no need for confirmation.”
Leaning against the bookshelf, Taeshin watched her.
“So, are you going to have a drink with that PE teacher? As a gesture of reconciliation?”
His tone sharpened without him realizing it.
“There’s no need to go that far. It’s just the three of us, including Teacher Na-eun.”
Hearing “three,” his irritated nerves calmed.
“Tell me where it is.”
“I told you—you don’t need to come pick me up.”
“I won’t pick you up. I just need to know where you’ll be and what you’ll be doing.”
After a brief hesitation, Yi-seol told them the restaurant name and hurried off with the cart so no one would see.
After work, Junpil and Na-eun came to pick up Yi-seol.
“Why are your cheeks so red? Are you hot?”
Junpil asked.
“Doesn’t it feel hotter than usual today? I guess summer’s here already.”
“It’s not that hot. It’s chilly.”
Na-eun muttered annoyingly beside her.
Since talking with Taeshin in the library, her heart had been racing nonstop.
Even if she tried not to think about it, the lingering heavy scent, the feeling of his firm chest muscles, the sensation of his fingers slowly brushing her cheek—it all stayed in her mind.
Even if there were few students around and no one else present, it was still school. Allowing such contact was reckless.
She must have spaced out for a moment.
Whenever she was with Taeshin, this always happened.
She needed to be careful so it never happened again.
Na-eun continued talking about Taeshin.
“He was already handsome, but after that… he looks even better. His face literally shines. And his body! His arm muscles, broad shoulders—exactly my type.”
The three of them walked toward the dock rather than the health center.
There was a small restaurant near the dock where the island’s fishing boats came and went. It was popular because the captain sold freshly caught seafood directly, so it was fresh and cheap.
“I heard the address is near the health center. Did Yi-seol know and just not tell me?”
Na-eun pressed.
“I had no reason to tell you.”
“Come on. Be honest. You’re interested in that guy, right? That’s why you didn’t say anything.”
Junpil looked at Yi-seol.
“No.”
“Come on. Be honest.”
“Don’t assume, senior.”
“If you’re interested, it’s okay to say it. Being attracted to a handsome guy is a woman’s instinct. Before we’re teachers, we’re women, right?”
Sometimes Na-eun was excessively free-spirited and open with her feelings.
Her simplicity and honesty could be enviable at times.
“…It’s not like that.”
“Never mind, then.”
As they talked, they arrived at the restaurant.
They took a window seat with a view of the sunset over the sea and ordered stew, seafood, and soju.
Two hours later.
After drinking more soju than usual, a drunken Yi-seol stumbled while walking.
Junpil caught her in time to prevent a fall, but her legs gave out, and she couldn’t walk.
Her stomach churned, and her head ached.
“Piggyback.”
Junpil offered his back.
“Quick, or we’ll get there at dawn at this pace.”
Though she protested that she was fine, Na-eun forced her onto Junpil’s back.
“By the way, haven’t you felt like someone’s been following us since a while ago?”
