Chapter 64

Stepping to the back of the mountain, Jiny Tae-yeon was lost in thought. Her schoolbag had fallen several times, and she had picked it up again. If it weren't for its sturdiness, it would have been thrown away long ago. But when she finally reached the abandoned teaching building, she opened the lunch box inside and saw the mess of food. Already without much appetite, Tae-yeon now pushed it far to one side. Hugging her knees, she stared blankly at the smiling face on the wall, her eyes half-closed in a daze.

"Why? You know I have nothing to do with that senior, so why do you say such things? Just because of a boy, a transfer student you've only spoken to a few times and secretly admired, you say such things to your closest friend? They might misunderstand, but why do you have to say it too? Why? Why do you have to do this?"

Burying her face in her knees, Tae-yeon felt like crying. Indeed, this place suited her best. Quiet, with no one to pay attention, and no one to hurt her. Despite the loneliness, it was peaceful, right? She instinctively moved her body to lean closer to the stairs. But she felt something odd beneath her. Frowning, she stood up and saw the diary from yesterday that she had been sitting on.

Picking it up casually, she opened the folded page: "Why are you here? Do you have the same thoughts as me?" Looking at the message she had written, Tae-yeon suddenly froze.

Because there was another paragraph below, clearly not written by her. Tae-yeon's expression was strange as she squinted her eyes, her lips trembling, her gaze peculiar.

"You're a boy, I can't possibly give it to you. You're a girl... then it depends on how pretty you are. You want to know what happens if you're pretty? Of course, I won't give it to you. This is such a rare opportunity, if I don't get you to tell me your name, phone number, and oppa, it would be a waste. But first, I need to confirm you're not a boy. Otherwise, passing notes like this would be a bit too strange (you see, as I talk, I feel goosebumps). I'll state it first, I'm a boy. As for who I am, it's not the senior you admire in third year. If you don't tell me your name, I won't tell you mine. Okay. The last question. If you're not pretty, how will I choose? To be honest, I'm a superficial person. If you're not pretty, I think you'll get your wish. I'll give this place to you forever and avoid you as much as possible. If you're really not pretty, even to the point of not being cute, and perfectly match the environment of this abandoned teaching building, I might even transfer schools. That's it, waiting for your reply, above. O(∩_∩)O"

At the end, there was a smiling face, but at this moment, Tae-yeon wished she could just tear it up with a pen. She was very introverted, although she had fought with her brother when she was young and had a good friend, Lee Ya-yuan, in her class, she was still introverted.

There were only a few people who could make her speak freely and show her embarrassing trait of laughing like a middle-aged woman.

After becoming a student of the famous musician TheOne in Seoul, she was not as popular as the transfer student and was slightly distanced by her classmates. But she could understand the reason. Girls' jealousy of other girls is not as easily ignored as boys' jealousy of other boys. And her personality made such jealousy seem more substantial.

Moreover, there was the incident with that senior. She was innocent, but no one believed her. And that senior, after the incident, avoided her, completely ignoring that he was the instigator, letting the senior girl cause trouble for her without a word.

Fortunately, she had endured a semester, and the senior who was in third year at the time had now moved on to high school. The senior girl who caused her trouble had also gone to another school. But from then on, Tae-yeon seemed to change, having only one friend, Lee Ya-yuan, and no longer interacting with anyone.

But this wasn't enough. Even with Lee Ya-yuan, she couldn't truly let down her guard against the strange gazes around her. So, she found this place by chance, a good place to avoid her classmates when she had to face them despite reducing her school time.

The environment here seemed to be left specifically for her, even though it was very quiet, making her, as a girl, instinctively feel a bit uncomfortable. But the benefits outweighed the drawbacks.

But... even when I find a place to be alone, does someone have to come and compete with me? Looking at the paragraph in the notebook, her gaze finally fell on the smiling face.

Tae-yeon wrinkled her nose and huffed, still a smooth-talking bad guy. Not in third year, then second year, or even a junior, right?!

Taking a pen from her schoolbag, Tae-yeon forcefully crossed out the smiling face. But her pen suddenly paused on the paper, a mischievous smile flashing in her eyes. She flipped to a new page and started writing again.

Leaves drifted onto her head, but they didn't disturb her sudden good mood. The midday sun shone through the branches, casting a shadow of her small figure on the wall.

With a thud, a large lottery box was placed on the table. Moon Jung-woo squinted his eyes and waved to the crowd coming to draw lots: "Seniors, juniors, and peers, the reality is this: I'm too handsome, girls secretly admire me, and boys want to use me to pursue the girls they secretly admire. I'm so popular as a medium. So everyone wants to perform and collaborate with me, right?"

Song Hye-in, standing by the window with her arms crossed, couldn't help but smile at his antics on stage. The girls' giggles and the boys' cheers never stopped.

Moon Jung-woo squinted his eyes, his smile full of sunshine. But Song Hye-in couldn't help but admire that he was nothing like the typical handsome but arrogant transfer student in TV dramas.

He was even more excellent and better at dealing with people. No matter what the situation, what to say, or how to act, he handled it naturally and appropriately. The current antics were a good example.

Getting to know him privately, Song Hye-in understood he wasn't this kind of person. He was gentle, humorous, and even a bit refined, but not overly lively.

But when he needed to adjust the atmosphere to achieve a certain goal, he could do it naturally. Indeed, to achieve a certain goal. Even the lottery had a hint of arrogance.

But he openly teased it, and the many classmates easily accepted it. He also expressed his principles and thoughts, showing he was very smart.

Casually glancing at the small figure in the corner, Song Hye-in's smile gradually faded. It was because of this junior, Kim Tae-yeon, that she now kept her distance. At this moment, Song Hye-in's impression of Kim Tae-yeon seemed even deeper.

But before she could think more, the lottery had already started. Another gaze, just like hers, that had been on Kim Tae-yeon, also retracted.

Moon Jung-woo hadn't expected Kim Tae-yeon to come. But he wasn't concerned now. After all, if there was no cheating, the chance of her drawing his name was one in thirty. There were over thirty programs, all kinds of things. Moon Jung-woo didn't have high hopes, just went with the flow.

There were thirty-some slips of paper, only one with Moon Jung-woo's name. Whoever drew Moon Jung-woo would collaborate with him. Of course, it wasn't because Moon Jung-woo was so popular. Initially, there were over sixty programs. But after hearing that Moon Jung-woo would decide by lottery, more than half withdrew.

After all, some were just there for fun, and they had no confidence in their programs, whether they drew or not. Better to leave the chance to others and be a spectator. One by one, they drew lots, holding the slips in their hands, waiting for the final moment to reveal.

After everyone had their slips, Moon Jung-woo subconsciously looked at the box and suddenly froze: "Is there anyone who hasn't drawn? There's one left here?"

Seeing no one answer, Moon Jung-woo touched his nose and smiled: "What? Backing out at the last minute? Do you think I'm not handsome anymore?"

Song Hye-in laughed: "Jung-woo, you should be the MC for the school anniversary event." The classmates followed with cheers, and Moon Jung-woo bowed with a smile.

Looking at Kim Tae-yeon in the corner, Moon Jung-woo raised his head and said: "Kim Tae-yeon, did you draw?"

Kim Tae-yeon was startled, raising her hand and showing the slip.

Moon Jung-woo scratched his head: "Then who could it be? Did I write too many?"

Song Hye-in stepped forward: "If no one wants it, I'll take it. Maybe I'll have a chance to collaborate with Jung-woo."

Ryu Sang-min, sitting below, tapped the table and teased: "Maybe Jung-woo left it for you? Are you going to act it out for us?"

Everyone laughed, and Song Hye-in raised her hand, glancing casually at Moon Jung-woo. Moon Jung-woo scratched his head awkwardly, waving and smiling without a word.

Everyone had their slips, and Song Hye-in opened hers first. But after looking, her smile faded: "Bad luck, it's blank."

The other classmates also opened their slips one by one, and Moon Jung-woo scanned them, but each one opened with disappointment.

"Ah!" A soft cry came from the corner, and Kim Tae-yeon looked at the slip in her hand with a strange expression.

Ryu Sang-min, sitting in front of her, turned around, snatched the slip, and stood up, pouting at Moon Jung-woo: "She drew it."

Everyone looked at the small figure, and Kim Tae-yeon, feeling a bit awkward, lowered her head, a bit at a loss. But occasionally, her gaze swept over Moon Jung-woo, and it was unusually strange.