Sub-top… It was a position of Min Siheon that Cha Seung-ah had vaguely mentioned before.
I didn’t know BL novel terminology, so I roughly took it to mean some kind of catalyst who shakes up the main couple.
A guy that handsome failing at romance. Then again, Kang Taeyoon and Go Heemin weren’t exactly lacking in looks either. There must’ve been some valid reason. Maybe he just didn’t click with Min Siheon.
With thoughts drifting here and there, I couldn’t focus on the lecture. Resigned, I tore at the corner of my notebook and fidgeted with it. The Min Siheon sitting right beside me spoke up.
“Bored?”
When I turned my head, Min Siheon was resting his chin on his hand, watching me. I had no idea how long he’d been looking.
I answered indifferently, as if it were nothing.
“It’s just… I can’t focus in class today.”
If I’m such a distraction, you could’ve just not dragged me to sit next to you in the first place. He was the one who stubbornly hauled me over here, and now he’s acting like this. Seriously, what a complicated guy.
“Then should I entertain you?”
“I’m good. You listen to the lecture. I’ll focus now too.”
“Okay.”
I figured studying would be better than playing around with him, so I picked up my pen and faced forward. I could still feel his gaze lingering, but it didn’t last long before it disappeared. He seemed to refocus on the class.
It hadn’t been that long since Min Siheon started acting this way toward me. In fact, until recently, I hadn’t even known he existed.
After the world of the book merged with reality and I returned to school as a reinstated student, I came to know Kang Taeyoon and Go Heemin.
It was only after hanging out with them and becoming part of their group that I realized the two of them were the protagonists of the novel.
It was less than a month after I’d returned to school. Because of an unspoken incident, I was reminded of Min Siheon.
It was exam period, with midterms approaching. I had been studying at the library but slipped out to the campus cafeteria that day.
A scene from the original novel flashed through my mind, making me shudder, and I was taking a sip of the coffee I’d set on the table—
From the juniors sitting behind me came excited voices.
“Min Siheon sunbae, insanely handsome.”
“What, did something go up on Everytime app again? Asking if he has a girlfriend, right? So obvious. Totally obvious.”
“I think I’ve seen that same question more than five times since I enrolled.”
“So there was a unicorn at our school too. Damn it, why is there no one like that in our year?”
“Hey! There’s just none in your year! I don’t even have one in my entire department!”
“The Business kids must be so jealous. Didn’t Everytime go crazy saying the returning students at the College of Business Administration were handsome? Besides Min Siheon sunbae, there’s that group that hangs out together….”
Min Siheon? I feel like I’ve heard that name before. It sounded familiar, but I just tilted my head slightly. While I was spacing out, Yoo In-ho stole a sip of my coffee.
“Hey!”
At my shout, the juniors behind us turned their heads. Our eyes met for a split second, and the ones who’d been talking scrambled awkwardly, flustered.
That was when I realized they’d been talking about Kang Taeyoon and Go Heemin. Since the group they mentioned was sitting right there, they’d hesitated to speak openly.
I just smiled as if I knew everything, and they hurriedly gathered their bags and left, embarrassed.
“…Hey, do you happen to know someone named Min Siheon?”
“Min Siheon? He’s in our year. Cha Jung— you don’t know him? You went to school with him for a year.”
“I don’t.”
How would I know? Back then, I’d been living as office worker Cha Jungwoo in the real world.
Asking about Min Siheon had been a bit impulsive. The name rang a bell, and I had a vague feeling about it.
Yoo In-ho, who seemed to have spoken with Min Siheon before, gave me some basic info.
“He took about two years off too. He’s popular, I think? They say he’s on par with Kang Taeyoon. But there were some bad rumors about him. Like he has a crappy personality or something.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Apparently there were tons of rumors saying he lives up to his face. You know Choi Hyerin from the Music Department? It’s pretty famous that she got dumped by Min Siheon. People say more than a few heard her cursing him out while plastered at that four-way intersection snack bar. His gaze is kind of cold, but he didn’t seem that bad to me. Then again, I only talk to him when I need to~”
Kang Taeyoon had built a fairly decent image on campus. The reason was Go Heemin at his side. Trying to look good in front of the guy he liked seemed to have helped with his image-making. Meanwhile, Min Siheon, who was similarly famous for his looks, seemed to be walking the opposite path from Kang Taeyoon.
…Wait. Kang Taeyoon, Go Heemin, and Min Siheon? Listening to Yoo In-ho list the three names in succession, I suddenly snapped to attention. I remembered where I’d heard Min Siheon’s name before.
Ah, fuck.
Min Siheon was the last name I saw in front of the bookshelf before I entered Love Prequel. Cha Seung-ah had mentioned him in passing too, though I’d half-forgotten about him.
Kang Taeyoon’s rival, and the second man who lost his mind after seeing Go Heemin. That was Min Siheon.
That day, I resolved to never get involved with Min Siheon. I was already practically part of the main couple’s group, and I didn’t have the energy to worry about their rival too.
Other people’s fights are like watching a fire from across the river. I’d sworn to just protect myself—that was a few months ago.
Life really is unpredictable, because that “fire across the river” was now sitting right next to me, attending class.
And contrary to what I’d heard, he was actually a pretty approachable guy.
I glanced sideways at Min Siheon, who was listening to the lecture with his chin propped on his hand. Even though the class was nearing its end, he still sat upright and composed.
As if sensing my gaze, Min Siheon shifted only his eyes and looked at me.
“What? Is there something on my face?”
“No, I was just looking, idiot.”
At my words, Min Siheon laughed quietly. I couldn’t figure out how he’d gotten a reputation for being an asshole. He was smooth enough that most people would fall for him easily.
His lowered lashes fluttered, and between them I met slightly bright eyes. The light caught in his pupils, making them sparkle. For a moment, I felt as if I were being pierced through.
“Hey, the professor’s assigning homework. Let’s at least get that.”
“Yeah.”
Min Siheon’s gaze against my cheek felt almost scorching. But right now, securing my credits safely was more important than that guy. Listening to the old professor’s lullaby-like voice, I checked the assignment.
“This assignment will be done in groups. Pair up in teams of two to submit a report and give a presentation.”
Of course it had to be a presentation class. It felt like just yesterday I was submitting reports at a company, and now I was about to present among college students.
The moment I heard “teams of two,” I reached out to call Yoo In-ho.
Kang Taeyoon and Go Heemin were obviously going to pair up, so I figured the one who’d have the easiest time finding a partner should go solo.
For example, someone like Min Siheon sitting right next to me.
Just as I was about to grab the front of the hoodie in front of me, Min Siheon tapped the table before me.
Tap, tap—. At the sound of his nails hitting the surface, my eyes rolled toward him.
“What?”
“Jungwoo-ya, let’s do it together.”
“…Do what?”
“The assignment. They said teams of two. Let’s team up.”
“Hey, then what about him? …Are you sulking or something?”
The moment I pointed at Yoo In-ho, the tapping on the table grew stronger.
Tap, tap—.
I wasn’t small by any means, but the pressure coming from someone nearly a head taller than me was beyond what I’d imagined.
Maybe Yoo In-ho sensed the commotion from the two of us in the back row, because he turned around and asked. He had one arm slung over his chair, looking at us like, What are you two doing?
“Hey, you guys have been messing around all class. Ah, Cha Jung, do the assignment with me. They said teams of two. No need to even ask over there~”
“Yeah, I was just about to….”
“Sorry, but Jungwoo’s doing it with me.”
Min Siheon cut in between Yoo In-ho and me. His fingers were still tapping the table at a steady rhythm.
After hearing him, Yoo In-ho looked at me like I’d betrayed him. I knew exactly why he was reacting like that.
“Hey! You’re supposed to do it with me! …Just looking at it, who do you think will find a partner more easily, him or me?”
He practically shouted the last part in a whisper, but his meaning was clear.
Min Siheon was famous not only for his looks but also for his excellent grades. There were truckloads of people who liked him, so finding someone to do an assignment with would be a piece of cake.
Even now, there were glances around us clearly aimed at Min Siheon. I locked eyes with a few classmates glancing over from afar, then looked back at the guy standing there with a faint smile.
It seemed Min Siheon’s stubborn streak had flared up again. This time, I set my expression firmly, determined not to let it slide.
Min Siheon tilted his brows as if protesting, even sounding faintly aggrieved.
“I’m shy around strangers.”
“…Strangers? You? Did you forget you became friends with me? You warm up in just a few days.”
Honestly, I didn’t want to accept this behavior of his so easily. I knew why he was clinging like this.
Don’t drag me into your gay love rivalry. If my guess was right, this bastard Min Siheon was doing this to test Go Heemin.
Thinking about how the novel’s story would unfold, that had to be the correct answer.
***
“Cha Jungwoo, you punk. Traitor. A guy with not even a speck of loyalty.”
“I said I’m sorry.”
After class ended, we moved to a café near campus.
Aside from Kang Taeyoon and Min Siheon, who had gone to order drinks, only Yoo In-ho, Go Heemin, and I remained at the table.
After enduring Min Siheon’s relentless stubbornness, I’d ended up becoming his partner for the assignment. Yoo In-ho must’ve felt intimidated by Min Siheon, because he saved his swearing for when Min Siheon wasn’t around.
“Yoo In-ho, then do you want to team up with Taeyoon? I can try to find someone else.”
“Are you kidding me?!”
“I mean… even I think that’s a bit….”
Watching the two of us, Go Heemin made a rather shocking proposal to Yoo In-ho. Was he trying to get someone killed? He wasn’t clueless, but sometimes he took strange routes.
But even Yoo In-ho, who’d been desperate for a partner, seemed unwilling when it came to Kang Taeyoon. He shot Go Heemin a resentful look and just raked his hands through his hair.
To be honest, I wasn’t thrilled about this situation either. That’s why I’d been trying to think of a way out since earlier.
“What do you mean, kidding?”
“Huh? You’re back. Where’s mine?”
“Here.”
“What is this? Kang Taeyoon, I ordered a frappuccino.”
“You’re coughing your lungs out with a cold. What frappuccino? Drink something warm.”
As he was handed a cup of yuzu tea, Go Heemin glared at Kang Taeyoon with a sulky expression. Kang Taeyoon returned the look with heated eyes.
It seemed Kang Taeyoon had only brought two drinks—his and Go Heemin’s. After setting them down, he took the seat beside Go Heemin.
If I’d known this would happen, I should’ve made an excuse and bolted right after class. Because of Min Siheon, I’d missed my chance and been dragged here instead.
I remembered how he’d held my cardigan hostage, refusing to let go while saying we should go together. He seemed to know I was weak to his face and used it at just the right moments.
