Hae-hyun had said it himself — a few days apart wouldn’t be a problem. He hadn’t been nagging him because of any danger from the curse. And anyway, going out in a big group like this wasn’t the same as the overnight trips he worried about. Really, there was no reason not to drink.
As soon as that thought hit him, an odd sense of duty to drink welled up. It wasn’t like he was committing a crime — why stress about it? Truth was, Jae-ha was a bit impulsive by nature, and he’d always enjoyed drinking with people.
“I’ll ask Ji-hyang to come too, since she’s in the same class.”
The moment he finally agreed, a cheer of “Waa!” rose from the table. The noisy excitement already felt like a group that had downed a few glasses each.
***
“Yo, Seo Jae-ha!”
“Jae-ha’s here? Hey, Ji-hyang !”
“Why so late? Didn’t class end at six?”
“Hello~.”
“The professor ran it over.”
As Jae-ha walked in with Ji-hyang , every eye turned their way. They both bowed politely, and immediately the chatter flared back up. People waved them over to sit. By the time he found a seat, a glass and chopsticks were already waiting for him. A perfectly orchestrated welcome.
“What do you want to drink, Jae-ha?”
“Somaek, please.”
“And you, Ji-hyang ?”
“I’ll just have soju.”
Their glasses were filled with a hiss. The table was already covered with side dishes. Jae-ha grabbed chopsticks, scooped up some whelk and somyeon noodles together, and took a bite — which earned him a jeer from a classmate about eating before drinking. He put on an exaggerated whine.
“Come on, cut me some slack. I’m starving.”
“What, you skipped lunch?”
“I ate something at the department lounge earlier, but nothing since.”
Not to mention, sitting through back-to-back lectures had burned off plenty of energy. That was enough to get the group to let him eat first. “Jae-ha oppa, try this.” “Here, this is good, Jae-ha.” “Hey, pass some of that over to Jae-ha hyung!” After a round of fuss, a feast landed in front of him.
“Damn, this is good.”
He popped a bite of spicy pork stir-fry that someone had spooned onto his plate. When he gestured for Ji-hyang to try it, she took a bite and let out a happy noise. Watching them, one junior couldn’t resist blurting out:
“Jae-ha oppa, Ji-hyang unni… you’re really not dating?”
That made Ji-hyang pause mid-bite, frown, and snap back.
“Min-hee, I’ve got my own taste, you know.”
“Oh yeah? I’m not into you either.” Jae-ha shot back with an incredulous look. Here we go again.
“You’re just too close. And Ji-hyang doesn’t even date.” Minho, sitting a couple of seats down, teased. Min-hee gasped, then quickly asked again:
“Then, oppa, do you have a girlfriend?”
“No, not right now.”
“Why, are you interested?”
Another junior, who’d clearly been listening in, cut in with a sly jab. Min-hee, who had been firing off questions all along, flailed her hands in denial.
“No, I was just curious!”
“Hey, Kim Min-hee. Oppa’s glaring — don’t say stuff that embarrassing.” Minho pretended to scold her seriously. Though they weren’t related at all, Minho and Min-hee’s shared surname and similar names often had people teasing them as “siblings.”
“Ugh, oppa, you just don’t get me!” They leaned into the act. Min-hee turned away in mock sulk, while Minho bowed deeply to the group, saying his “little sister” was in her rebellious phase. The skit-like exchange had everyone laughing. Amid the laughter, Jae-ha caught a stray joke from across the table.
“So, is Min-hee taking over Seongji’s spot now?”
“Hey, don’t say that.”
Yeah, why would you say that? But instead of joining in, Jae-ha just twirled up more somyeon and took a bite. Next to him, Ji-hyang muttered.
“Must be rough being the popular guy.”
“Listen to your voice cracking. Drink some water.”
Honestly, they were all just addicted to teasing people. Jae-ha chuckled and raised his glass. Noticing instantly, the senior beside him lifted his own.
“Cheers!”
“Oh, me too.”
“Do a cheers with me!”
“My glass is empty.”
Glasses of all shapes clinked together with a crisp ring amid the noisy chatter.
After a few more rounds, Jae-ha slipped up from his seat. He just wanted to head to the bathroom. As expected, questions of “Where you going?” flew at him, and he dutifully answered while making his way out.
The bar was large, but the bathrooms were tiny, which meant even the men’s line snaked out the door. Joining the line, he found himself behind a woman who glanced back casually, then blinked in surprise when she recognized him.
“Oh, oppa.” Her voice carried a note of surprise. Jae-ha smiled politely.
“Hey, Seongji.”
Choi Seongji was a year younger — a pretty, mischievous junior who’d been well-known since freshman year. By chance their friend groups had overlapped, and they’d hung out a few times, close enough to be friendly.
But lately, things had felt a little more distant. That was thanks to the confession she’d made to him, which had become common knowledge in the department.
She’d drunkenly mumbled in an alley by the bar about liking a senior, and he’d turned her down kindly. Somehow, someone had overheard, and the next day the entire department knew. Luckily, Seongji herself laughed it off, admitting she’d been rejected, and even turned it into a running joke, saying outright in front of people that she liked him. Her confession became more of a meme than gossip.
For Jae-ha, her behavior wasn’t exactly how someone with serious feelings would act, but it wasn’t worth avoiding her either. Nothing else had happened after that, it’d been over a year already, and he hardly thought about it anymore. To others, it was just occasional teasing since the two of them got along normally.
They’d ended up sitting at opposite ends of the table, so despite being at the same party, this was their first actual conversation that night. Maybe bored while waiting in line, Seongji quickly turned to face him.
“Did you drink a lot?”
“Eh, enough. What about you?”
“Oh, I think I drank more than I meant to. I’m here more to take a breather than anything.” She complained lightly about two people at her table who turned into runaway trains once they started drinking. Jae-ha glanced over and sighed in sympathy. Sitting next to those heavy drinkers, no matter how well you paced yourself, you’d end up downing several glasses in a row.
“Want me to switch seats with you?”
Maybe because he’d gone at the food so eagerly, most people had offered him dishes rather than pouring drinks. As a result, he’d had less alcohol than expected for the time he’d been there. But Seongji just shook her head with a smile.
“No thanks. I wouldn’t kill you just to save myself. Besides, I’ve already played up looking drunk — they’ll probably go easier on me now.”
The seriousness of the line was oddly cute. Jae-ha chuckled and tapped her shoulder.
“Hang in there. If it gets too much, just say so.”
“Got it,” Seongji said brightly. Right then, the person ahead of her stepped out, and Jae-ha waved before heading into the restroom.
When he returned and sat back down, the junior next to him immediately shoved a phone under his nose. The screen was already lit, filled with unread messages — as if he’d been waiting just for Jae-ha to return.
“Hyung, be honest. Did I just screw this thing up?”
Jae-ha tilted his head and read the screen:
[What are you doing?]
[Just relaxing at home lol why?]
[Nothing, haha. Just checking in.]
Three hours later, the last message still hadn’t even been opened.
“Maybe she’s just busy? That’s what it is, right?”
The junior’s voice was heavy with disappointment. He’d clearly been waiting for a reply that never came. Jae-ha let out a thoughtful hum.
“Could be.”
“Hyung, has a crush ever left you hanging this long before?”
“Well…”
No, never. But saying that wouldn’t do anything to lift the junior’s mood.
