Chapter 19

“Hmm… I guess I’ll know once I taste it. But anything you make is good.”

Hearing this, Chae Ah snuck up behind Hyun Woo and hugged him tightly from behind.

“Hey… This is dangerous, so don’t cling like that.”

Hyun Woo felt a wave of unease. The soft touch on his back made him uncomfortable, but moving only brought him closer to the hot pan in front of him.

“I’ll stay still and not be dangerous.”

“That’s exactly the problem.”

Chae Ah showed no signs of letting go, and as the pressure from her embrace intensified, Hyun Woo started to feel dizzy.

Ding!

Hyun Woo’s phone buzzed with a notification.

“Hold on, let me check this.”

Using the excuse of the notification, he subtly slipped out of Chae Ah’s arms.

On the screen was a yellow speech-bubble-shaped alert. Assuming it was just an ad, he intended to glance at it briefly—but then saw a message:

[Thank you.]

The sender was Jin Hyuk. That was all the message said.

[?]

Confused by the sudden thank-you, Hyun Woo replied with a question mark.

[Thanks to you, I found a good model. I’ll help more from now on.]

[What do you mean? What model?]

[Jeong Eun Bi agreed to be my art model.]

[??? Why?]

[Can’t tell you. Anyway, I got a pretty model, gg.]

[…?]

The responses became increasingly cryptic.

“What? Who’s this?”

“It’s Jin Hyuk… He suddenly thanked me.”

“Huh? Why?”

“I don’t know either.”

While frowning and rereading the chat,

Ding!

This time, Chae Ah’s phone buzzed.

“Oh, it’s Eun Bi!”

With a cheerful expression, Chae Ah unlocked her phone and began reading Eun Bi’s message:

[Chae Ah, you should really know how grateful I am. How did I end up doing something like this…]

Blinking, she couldn’t understand what Eun Bi was talking about.

[Why are you saying this? Is something wrong?]

[Ah… No, it’s not like you asked for help or anything. Honestly, it’s because I want to do it myself…]

[Is it something serious you can’t say?]

After receiving the reply, Chae Ah began to worry.

Could it be related to some issue Eun Bi had discussed with her before losing her memory?

If Chae Ah couldn’t recall their previous conversations, maybe she was unknowingly frustrating herself…

[No, it’s nothing like that. Just forget about it. Rather, take a look at this.]

Eun Bi sent a few links, which turned out to be women’s clothing shopping sites.

[Why are you sending these suddenly?]

[Just see if there’s anything decent. Maybe something men would like?]

Receiving this meaningful message, Chae Ah absently stroked her lips.

“Hmm?”

Out of nowhere, why was Eun Bi showing her clothes that “men would like” and asking for opinions?

Since Chae Ah was already aboard the “Jin Hyuk & Eun Bi ship,”

her mind quickly connected the dots.

“Hyun Woo, I think Eun Bi might actually like Jin Hyuk.”

“Oh? Well, anyway, dinner’s ready—ah~”

“Ah~ Not ‘ah’! Listen to me, Hyun Woo!”

Realizing too late that she almost automatically accepted another bite of food, Chae Ah regained her focus.

“Eun Bi just randomly sent me pictures of clothes that men would like. Don’t you think she’s trying to impress Jin Hyuk?”

“So what? At school, we all wear uniforms anyway.”

“Exactly! She wants to meet him outside of school!”

Inwardly doubting if things would progress so easily,

Hyun Woo ate another bite of pasta.

‘…Ah, didn’t I just feed that fork to Chae Ah?’

Though they accidentally shared an indirect kiss,

Chae Ah remained completely unaware, tapping the table lightly instead.

“Does Jin Hyuk have any quirks?”

“He’s already quirky enough. Adding more might not be good… Oh.”

Hyun Woo recalled his earlier conversation with Jin Hyuk.

“By the way, I heard Eun Bi will be modeling for Jin Hyuk’s art projects.”

“WHAT?”

“You probably don’t remember, but his career goal is art-related. Still, why would Eun Bi suddenly offer to model?”

“That’s it!”

Before Hyun Woo finished speaking, Chae Ah exclaimed loudly, having finally pieced together the final missing puzzle piece.

“She must be buying new clothes because she’s going to model for Jin Hyuk.”

“But why would she do that?”

“I don’t know either, but isn’t that the only reason? If she’s wearing a uniform at school…”

“Maybe she just wanted to buy clothes?”

“No, if that were true, she wouldn’t have specifically mentioned ‘clothes men like.'”

Chae Ah chuckled softly, concluding her detective-like reasoning.

“Clearly, Eun Bi likes Jin Hyuk, which is why she’s willing to model for him and dress up nicely.”

“Alright, I get your point, but try not to say that in front of Eun Bi. You might break another arm.”

Seeing Chae Ah’s unwavering certainty, Hyun Woo began to doubt.

Although their relationship seemed to be improving,

something important seemed to be missing from Chae Ah’s assumptions.

“Let’s eat first. Ah~”

“Ah~”

No matter what happened, that night ended with Hyun Woo feeding Chae Ah pasta until dinner concluded.

* * *

The next day.

Eun Bi arrived much earlier than morning assembly time, opening the classroom door.

Given the hour, the room was empty except for one person:

Jin Hyuk, who was playing a mobile gacha game featuring cute girls.

“You’re early today.”

“Because you told me to.”

Greeting each other casually without turning around,

they both acknowledged their mutual presence.

“There’s no other time besides now.”

Their early arrival had a simple purpose:

To finalize plans for the “Hyun Woo-Chae Ah matchmaking project.”

“So, what did you say to Do Hyun Woo yesterday?”

Despite confirming they were alone, Eun Bi kept her voice low.

“Not much, really.”

“What? You said you’d help enthusiastically!”

“Yeah, but some kind of trigger is needed. I can’t just tell him to confess because he likes Chae Ah.”

“I gave Chae Ah fashion advice. You could’ve done something similar.”

Eun Bi clicked her tongue disapprovingly and shook her head.

Indeed,

the clothes she recommended weren’t meant for her own use.

Chae Ah assumed Eun Bi was picking outfits to impress Jin Hyuk,

but in reality,

Clothes men like = Clothes to charm Do Hyun Woo.

They were simply suggestions for Chae Ah, with no other hidden meaning.

‘Guess I overthought it. Sigh.’

Originally, according to Eun Bi’s plan,

Jin Hyuk should have prodded or encouraged Hyun Woo to get closer to Chae Ah.

However, since Jin Hyuk merely said “thank you,”

he unintentionally led Chae Ah to form a misunderstanding.

“Still, I have an idea.”

“What is it?”

“The cherry blossom festival.”

And indeed, Jin Hyuk wasn’t entirely unprepared to help them connect.

“Oh? The cherry blossom festival?”

“To rekindle feelings, don’t you think an event is necessary? The upcoming cherry blossom festival is the perfect opportunity.”

“True… Why didn’t I think of that?”

Eun Bi was impressed by Jin Hyuk’s surprisingly good idea.

“Seriously, Jin Hyuk. You can come up with ideas like this? Let’s tell Chae Ah and Do Hyun Woo right away.”

“Okay.”

Slap! Slap!

After mulling it over multiple times, it seemed like a solid plan.

Eun Bi smiled broadly and playfully slapped Jin Hyuk’s arm without realizing it.

Meanwhile, as more students filled the classroom,

Hyun Woo and Chae Ah soon arrived.

“Whoa…! Look, I was right, Hyun Woo!”

Unbeknownst to them,

their timing coincided perfectly with Eun Bi slapping Jin Hyuk’s arm.

From afar, it looked like Eun Bi was laughing cheerfully while casually engaging in friendly physical contact.

Witnessing this scene, Hyun Woo was shocked.

‘Could it be true? Does Jeong Eun Bi like Jin Hyuk?’

Initially dismissing the notion as absurd,

by this point, he began trusting Chae Ah’s deductions.

“…Yeah, that seems accurate.”

Thus, Hyun Woo joined Chae Ah in misunderstanding the situation.

Thoughts among the four individuals gradually diverged.

* * *

When Hyun Woo’s friend and Chae Ah’s friend become somewhat close,

things grow awkwardly complicated.

Sitting down with mixed emotions,

“Good morning, Chae Ah! And good morning, Do Hyun Woo!”

Eun Bi greeted them energetically.

“Why are you in such a great mood today?”

“Hm? Yeah, I guess there’s something to celebrate.”

Glancing at Jin Hyuk, Eun Bi grinned again.

Upon making eye contact, both Hyun Woo and Chae Ah thought simultaneously:

‘She definitely likes Jin Hyuk.’

‘My intuition was right.’

Unaware of their misinterpretation, Eun Bi spoke up.

“Chae Ah, didn’t you say you’d have your cast removed next week?”

“Yeah, that’s what I heard.”

“Then, how about we go to the cherry blossom festival together? It’s happening the week after next.”

“Huh? The cherry blossom festival?”

“Yes! You, me, Do Hyun Woo, and Jin Hyuk—let’s go as a group of four!”

Chae Ah’s eyes sparkled upon deciphering the underlying intent.

‘She’s inviting us because she doesn’t want to go alone with Jin Hyuk!’

Just as she was about to nod in agreement,

“Isn’t that three weeks before exams?”

Hyun Woo poured cold water on the suggestion.

“W-well, so what? It’s not the exam day itself.”

Eun Bi stuttered nervously, sensing impending doom.

“Three weeks before means we should study for the exams.”

“Come on, who starts studying three weeks ahead? Exams test what you’ve learned regularly.”

“So, have you been preparing regularly?”

“…”

Eun Bi fell silent after being hit with undeniable facts.

“We’re seniors now. There’s only one semester left before college entrance exams, and there are only two exams remaining. We need to prepare seriously.”

Hyun Woo drove home his final fact-laden statement.

“Yeah… We’re seniors alright… I knew that already…”

Eun Bi’s promising plan deflated into disappointment.