"Yujin, did you memorize all the new raid mechanics?"
"Yeah."
Kim Daeseok, who had been dozing off the entire class while sitting next to me, suddenly perked up and asked the moment the lecture ended.
I answered indifferently as I put on the coat that had been draped over my chair, and he slumped his shoulders.
"Ugh, even on Normal, why is it so hard? I'm supposed to dive into the Abyss starting tomorrow. I'm screwed."
"Then just leave you behind, right?"
"I'm the only proper healer in the guild."
Fair enough. In our guild, the only healer player who could handle Abyss-level raids was Haerin.
Healer was such a hard class to raise that there weren't many players, and the gear was so expensive that only a few could participate in high-level raids.
"Can't you come as a mercenary for our guild? I'll treat you well."
"You're putting effort into that nonsense."
Grabbing my bag, I got up immediately.
This wasn't the time to be chatting like this. I had made plans to meet Chae Yujeong, but the lecture had ended about ten minutes later than usual, so I was short on time.
"Hey guys, wanna go grab drinks?"
"No."
"Then how about a club?"
"You're seriously something else, man."
Even Kim Daeseok shook his head with a fed-up expression at Eun Haeseong, who repeated the same line every Friday without fail.
One guy begged me to be a mercenary for his guild, the other invited me to a club—just watching the two made me feel exhausted.
[Chae Yujeong: Hyung hyung]
[Chae Yujeong: Did your class end?]
[Chae Yujeong: I'm here]
[Yujihan: Yeah]
[Yujihan: Drop your location so I can find you]
Replying to the messages, I stepped out of the building and headed toward the front gate.
Trailing behind me and still chatting with Eun Haeseong, Kim Daeseok clung onto my shoulders with both arms and whined.
"Yujin~ you're really not gonna help? Did you forget I bought you the starter pack when you first started Xeno?"
"You're heavy. Get off."
"Our guild's not obsessed with first clears or anything like that, okay? We're a pure-hearted group that just wants to finish the raid. You can get the first clear and help us afterward."
I reached the front gate and ignored Kim Daeseok's plea as I checked my messenger.
Why isn't Chae Yujeong replying? I need to know where he's waiting so I can head over.
"You guys still play Xenoris?"
"You do too, so why aren't you playing?"
"I thought Jihan quit after I saw him practically living at school."
"I'll buy you a starter pack if you join. But you gotta play buffer or healer so we can bring you into the guild."
"I like flashy stuff… Buffers and healers aren't cool."
"What? Dropping a healer field is super cool. But if you're gonna play healer, it's gotta be a female character."
Leaving the two airheads, Eun Haeseong and Kim Daeseok, to their nonsense, I sent another message to Chae Yujeong.
[Yujihan: Where are you?]
[Yujihan: I need you to reply so I can come]
"Hyung."
Just as I was narrowing my eyes at my phone screen, a familiar voice called out nearby, and I quickly turned my head to the side.
"I'm right here."
"You…"
Despite saying he had something to do, Chae Yujeong was dressed up more than usual and stood right in front of the main gate.
He met my eyes and smiled faintly, just curling the corner of his lips, then slid the phone he was holding into his jacket pocket.
"Why are you here? I told you to wait at the café nearby."
"I brought my car. But there was nowhere to park."
At that, I belatedly noticed a car parked across the street.
"You can drive?"
"Of course. I got my license as soon as I turned twenty. But, hyung…"
Yujeong smiled, but there was a slight furrow between his brows as he glanced behind me.
"Are those people your friends? How long are they going to cling to you like that?"
"Oh."
Now that he mentioned it, Kim Daeseok was still draped over my shoulders. I brushed his arm off and gave a brief introduction.
"He's a classmate. Hey, snap out of it."
"Whoa… You've really got the aura. I'm a fan!"
"Thanks."
Despite the messy greeting, Yujeong offered a polite handshake with a smile.
'He's totally different when he's with me.'
Up until now, he'd acted more like a 13-year-old than someone who's 23.
Come to think of it, he'd given someone an autograph on the street last time, hadn't he? Since he started as a pro athlete at twenty and gained popularity early on, he probably knew how to handle these situations well.
"Damn. He's insanely good-looking. Jihan, can I ask him to come clubbing with us?"
"Do you think that would work? I've got plans, so I'm heading out first."
I shot down Eun Haeseong's bright-eyed question and approached Yujeong, who was smiling like he was wearing a mask.
"Let's go."
"Yes."
"Hey, Yujihan! If you have time, seriously come merc for us, okay? I'll be waiting for your call!"
"..."
Hearing Daeseok shouting from behind, Yujeong glanced at me.
That guy just won't stop… This is so embarrassing.
As I got into the passenger seat and fastened my seatbelt, Yujeong asked with a small smile in his eyes.
"When he said 'merc,' did he mean Xenoris?"
…Didn't expect Yujeong to bring up Xenoris first.
"Yeah. How'd you know?"
"I heard about it from Taeyoung hyung a while back. I asked, and he just answered."
Maybe worried I'd be upset, he glanced at me cautiously.
"It's fine. If Taeyoung hyung had blurted in a public interview that his close friend plays Xenoris, then yeah, I'd be annoyed."
"Sorry."
As he pulled the car out past the main gate, Yujeong spoke with a gloomy tone.
"I wasn't thinking. I called right after that interview to ask them to cut the part about you. So please forgive me this once."
"You didn't have to go that far."
"No, I did. Thinking about it later… it's not great having random people digging up videos of your matches. Your face would be in them, too."
That was exactly why I called him in the first place, because it had been bothering me. But since he'd sincerely apologized and taken care of the aftermath, I had no reason to hold a grudge.
If anything, I appreciated that he handled it so thoroughly.
"Yeah. Then I won't dwell on it anymore either."
"Okay. Hyung, aren't you hungry? There's this restaurant the coach recommended."
"Where is it?"
"It's up near Gangnam Station, so it'll take maybe thirty to forty minutes. I'll buy you some beef as an apology for the interview thing."
"Ooh."
Beef? I go wild for any kind of meat—pork, beef, fish, you name it—so my eyes lit up.
How did this guy know I love beef…? Impressive. The last bits of unease vanished, and I broke into a wide smile.
"I'm down."
Seeing me smile, Chae Yujeong blushed faintly at the tips of his ears and gave a shy smile in return.
He was a year younger than me, but while I was just a student, he was a popular pro athlete who'd already competed in two world tournaments. I figured getting a free meal from him wasn't too much to ask.
Besides, the place was recommended by our coach, who was way older than both of us, so that made it feel all the more trustworthy.
"Actually, I know why you were busy last week. You went to do the new raid, right?"
"Yeah. To do Abyss this week, I had to memorize all the mechanics from the Normal run in advance."
"So you chose the game over me."
"Well…"
He wasn't wrong, so I had nothing to say. I trailed off and looked out the window. Yujeong let out a quiet, bitter complaint as he drove.
"I could've bought you beef last week too…"
"…"
"And the reason you so coldly turned me down… was because of a game raid…"
"Alright, that's enough."
If I let him go, he'd probably keep going to the third verse, so I had to cut in. Yujeong let out a small laugh as he kept driving.
"He really is something."
The sunlight filtering through the window cast a soft glow on his pale skin. It was fascinating how someone with such sharply defined features could still give off such delicate vibes.
His hair, catching the light, shimmered gently and lingered in my vision. The black T-shirt and muted beige jacket beneath it, too.
"You said you had stuff to do today—was it another interview? You're really dressed up."
"Oh, this…"
While stopped at a red light, Yujeong glanced down at his outfit and looked a little embarrassed.
"I dressed up because I was meeting you…"
"…"
I was so caught off guard I couldn't respond right away. As I blinked, unsure of how to react, Yujeong hesitated and spoke again.
"Is… is it not good?"
"Huh?"
Snapping out of it, I instinctively responded like I would to a girlfriend.
"No, I mean—anything looks good on you."
"…What?"
Ah, shit. I messed up.
It was way too much for a conversation between two people who hadn't known each other long. Awkwardness instantly washed over me. I was about to try and backtrack and say I'd gone overboard when I caught sight of Yujeong's face—flushed bright red.
"…"
"…"
His face, neck, and even ears were glowing scarlet as he pressed his lips together and started driving again.
I, too, had no idea what to say anymore, so I awkwardly folded my arms and turned away. A crushingly awkward silence fell over the car.
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