Chapter 81
Love (5)
After all the academy’s daily routines were finished.
Jin Soyeon visited her childhood friend’s house for the first time in a long while.
A single-story house of about 30 pyeong. She could still recall the memories of playing here as if it were her own home when she was younger.
Though it was an ordinary house, the memories she shared with Lee Jinhyuk were embedded in every corner, having spent more than ten years together.
‘Those were fun times.’
When they were naive kids, they could play together without complicated thoughts.
But over time, their visits began to dwindle, and eventually, they stopped altogether.
‘Is this my first time at Jinhyuk’s house since entering the academy?’
It really had been a while.
It must have been lonely for him, living here all by himself.
Imagining Lee Jinhyuk alone in this large house without his parents made her heart ache.
Although Jin Soyeon had provided him with some support when he was struggling with the loss back then, the loneliness he must have felt when he returned home alone was likely even more overwhelming.
Having experienced neglect herself in her younger years, Jin Soyeon could fully empathize with how he must have felt.
But now, he wouldn’t be alone anymore.
She intended to stay by his side so that he wouldn’t feel lonely from now on.
‘Stay by his side, huh.’
Suddenly, the thought of visiting a healthy teenage boy’s house alone brushed lightly through her mind.
In a house without parents, with just the two of them?
H-Hmm.
In the past, she wouldn’t have cared whether it was just the two of them or not, but now that she was starting to see things through the lens of gender, she couldn’t stop her cheeks from turning slightly red.
Her foolish heart was already beating erratically on its own.
Ah, seriously.
What’s wrong with me? Really!
It’s not like it’s the first time I’m alone with Jinhyuk.
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‘…But he doesn’t seem to care much.’
Was she the only one who was aware of their gender difference?
She glanced at Lee Jinhyuk, but he seemed indifferent, calmly opening the front door as if it were no big deal.
He didn’t seem to have any particular thoughts about being alone with her. He used to like her, but now he might not even see her as a girl anymore.
Thinking that made her feel a little sad.
But the sadness didn’t last long.
Jin Soyeon quickly shook her head, brushing away her negative thoughts. Yeah, enough with the silly thoughts—let’s focus on how to confess.
No matter what happens, I’ll just have to face it head-on.
“Hmph, excuse me~.”
“Why are you saying that when you know no one’s here?”
With a determined greeting, Jin Soyeon slowly stepped into the house.
The white wallpaper adorned with elegant patterns and the ivory-colored floor caught her eye.
The living room was furnished with a luxurious sofa and a 65-inch wall-mounted TV, and when Lee Jinhyuk turned on the lights, a soft, warm glow fell over the room, creating a cozy atmosphere.
Wow. There are a lot of new pieces of furniture I’ve never seen before.
It felt both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.
Jin Soyeon looked around the house carefully. He did say he made a lot of money—looks like he bought quite a few new things.
“Did you buy all this with your stock earnings?”
“Yeah.”
Lee Jinhyuk nodded nonchalantly, tossing his coat and bag onto the sofa.
“But where did you get the money to invest in stocks?”
“From the inheritance. It was in the hundreds of millions.”
“…Oh, really?”
Jin Soyeon blinked in surprise.
He invested the billions of won left by his parents into stocks?
Well, I understand that it’s his right to use the inheritance however he wants.
But investing such a precious inheritance in stocks feels a bit… risky, doesn’t it? Jin Soyeon couldn’t help but feel a bit uneasy.
If it were her, she wouldn’t gamble something so important on stocks, which are almost like gambling.
One wrong move, and the entire inheritance could be lost.
“Hey, what’s with that look like I’m some kind of gambler? Did you forget what power I have?”
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“Ah… The ability to foresee the future?”
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Lee Jinhyuk chuckled and nodded.
“Thanks to that, I’ve been able to rake in the cash.”
Of course, he didn’t actually have a future-seeing power, but his memories of the game allowed him to accurately predict which stocks would go up or down. In a way, it was similar to having such an ability.
“These days, I’ve even been investing in real estate. Isn’t it great to have money coming in without having to work?”
“…Where’s the financial supervision commission when you need them?”
“Hmph. What can the Financial Supervisory Service even do? It’s not like I committed fraud or anything, right?”
“…If that’s not fraud, then what is?”
Jin Soyeon pouted at Lee Jinhyuk’s playful comment.
“Anyway, I’m feeling a bit hungry. Should we order some food? It’s on me. What do you want to eat?”
“Anything.”
“Really? I’ll order anything, then.”
When Lee Jinhyuk said he’d order sashimi, maeuntang, and sushi, she nodded. Sashimi and sushi sounded good.
A short while later.
Ding-dong! The doorbell rang, and the delivery arrived with sashimi, sushi, maeuntang, and more.
Lee Jinhyuk and Jin Soyeon neatly set the food on the dining table and sat down.
“Drinks are in the fridge, so help yourself.”
“Do you have grape juice?”
“Your taste is so childish.”
“Leave me alone.”
Jin Soyeon dashed over and swung open the fridge door.
And then…
“Wait, there’s alcohol?”
The fridge was packed with various types of alcohol. What… what is all this?
Whiskey, soju, beer, and more. The variety was surprising, and Jin Soyeon couldn’t help but chuckle in disbelief. Alcohol? Alcohol? How does a minor have so much alcohol? Even if he has a hero license…
‘Damn it. I forgot all about the alcohol.’
Lee Jinhyuk scratched the back of his neck.
Since he had been a working adult in his past life and liked alcohol, he had bought a bunch of new drinks and stocked them in the fridge.
He planned to drink them whenever he felt like it.
“Jinhyuk?”
“Yeah?”
Jin Soyeon turned around with a big smile.
Her lips were curled upward, but her eyes weren’t smiling at all, making it a rather ominous sight.
It was like watching a mother catch her son smoking for the first time.
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“…What’s up with all this alcohol? You’re too young to be drinking!”
“You know in Germany, you can drink from the age of 14.”
“This is Korea! And how did you even get your hands on all this alcohol? This much, too?”
I just asked Yoo Seolhyun nicely, and while she gave me a look like she couldn’t believe it, she sighed and got it for me, no problem.
“Sigh. Jinhyuk, alcohol is still, you know, alcohol.”
“Come on, don’t be like that. Didn’t you and your friends sneak a drink or two during your school trip?”
“That’s completely different!”
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Jin Soyeon frowned.
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“Why did you buy so much alcohol…?”
“I only drink a little on the weekends. And most of it is beer, so it’s not that strong.”
“Do you even hear yourself right now?”
Rubbing her temples as if she had a headache, Jin Soyeon let out a deep sigh.
“…I mean, I can’t exactly nag you about drinking alcohol, but still, Jinhyuk, it’s a bit much.”
“Alright, alright, I’ll only drink a little. Happy now?”
“What’s there to be happy about? Sigh.”
Since her concern was genuine, Lee Jinhyuk didn’t argue back.
He wasn’t tactless enough to retort, “What’s it to you if I drink?” in a sharp tone.
After all, the two of them were practically family.
For Jin Soyeon, nagging him a bit was natural. And for Lee Jinhyuk, listening to those complaints wasn’t unreasonable.
“Drinking isn’t illegal.”
“It is illegal. …There’s just no punishment.”
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“See? It’s fine then.”
“How did you even buy alcohol in the first place?”
“If you report me, only the seller would get punished, you know that, right?”
“If I notify the academy, you’d probably get in trouble too.”
“You wouldn’t report the guy who saved you from Seong Yura, would you? You’re not that ungrateful, are you, Soyeon?”
Of course, it was Lee Jinhyuk’s fault that Jin Soyeon was kidnapped in the first place, but still.
“If you keep talking, you’re only going to get more annoying. Sigh.”
Jin Soyeon frowned as she looked at the alcohol in the fridge.
To be honest, Hero cadets had near-superhuman bodies, so drinking a little alcohol didn’t really pose any major health risks.
But the fact that he, as a minor, bought alcohol was absurd. Underage drinking and purchasing alcohol were illegal after all, illegal.
…Well, that said, Jin Soyeon wasn’t entirely inflexible.
As long as it didn’t harm others, she was pretty lenient.
And since Lee Jinhyuk was just drinking alone at home, nagging him about it wasn’t going to help, and telling him to throw it all away would just lead to an argument.
‘…I was planning to confess today once the mood was right, but if I keep scolding him about the alcohol, I’ll just ruin the atmosphere. Maybe I should stop now.’
Though she didn’t like the fact that Lee Jinhyuk was sneaking drinks, continuing to nag him would only strain their relationship.
After all, while Lee Jinhyuk was patiently listening to her now, if the nagging continued, he would eventually get irritated.
‘Why does he even drink…’
She remembered the times her mother had let her try a sip or two. It tasted awful, gave her a headache, and made her lose her senses… Wait, hold on.
‘Ah, right. There’s that old saying that alcohol gives you the courage to confess, isn’t there?’
There’s a common phrase, “I got the courage because I was drunk.”
It might have been due to the impaired judgment caused by alcohol, but it might actually help Jin Soyeon, who had been hesitating whether or not to confess all day.
Taking a shot of courage before confessing was something that usually happened in dramas.
And now, with alcohol right in front of her, why not give it a try?
“…Jinhyuk, are you planning to drink now?”
“Hmm.”
Lee Jinhyuk glanced down at the table.
Fresh sashimi and spicy maeuntang were laid out.
“Honestly, I’m kind of craving some soju, but if you don’t like the smell of alcohol, I won’t drink.”
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“No, go ahead.”
“Huh?”
Jin Soyeon returned with soju and beer from the fridge.
“Why the beer?”
“Since we’re here, I want to try it too.”
“…You?”
“Yeah. I’m curious what you like about it.”
“What about tomorrow’s academy schedule?”
“It’s a day off.”
“Well, I guess a little beer won’t hurt. Honestly, beer isn’t even alcohol—it’s just a drink with alcohol in it.”
“…That’s still alcohol, you idiot.”
Jin Soyeon looked at him in disbelief, then opened the beer can. Ugh, the smell of beer.
“Let’s toast, then.”
“Sure.”
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Lee Jinhyuk chuckled and opened his beer can, clinking it with hers.
He was slightly worried about Jin Soyeon drinking, but he could guess what she was thinking, so he decided to let it slide.
Given everything that had happened, he had a pretty good idea of what was on her mind.
‘…Come to think of it, wasn’t there a setting where she was weak to alcohol?’
But seriously, could she really get drunk off just one can of beer?
Beer only had about 4.5% alcohol, after all.
Considering the makgeolli she once sneaked a sip of was over 6%, it didn’t seem likely that a Hero cadet would get drunk from a single can of beer.
***
“Hic, hey! Lee Jinhyuk! Aren’t you being too much lately~? You’re always hanging out with other girls!”
“…”
“Are you even listening to me?! Hey!”
“…”
Jin Soyeon had been muttering nonsense over and over again, her face flushed bright red.
What the heck—
Is she actually drunk?
From beer?
“Soyeon, you’re just pretending to be drunk, aren’t you?”
“Hah! Yeah, I’m pretending, so what!”
“…You’re terrible when you’re pretending.”
“I told you, I’m not drunk!”
“…Sure, sure.”
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Lee Jinhyuk chuckled bitterly as he took a sip of his beer.
He made a mental note to never let Jin Soyeon drink again.
“So… Soyeon, is there something you want to tell me?”
“Hmph, nope~.”
“Really? That’s a relief.”
Lee Jinhyuk locked eyes with Jin Soyeon.
Then, in a light tone, he teased,
“I thought you were going to pretend to be drunk and confess to me or something.”
“Hahaha, like I’d ever—”
Suddenly.
Jin Soyeon froze in place.
“What, wait, Jinhyuk, what did you just say…?”
“I said, I thought you were going to pretend to be drunk and accidentally confess. Why?”
At Lee Jinhyuk’s casual words, Jin Soyeon felt the slight buzz from the alcohol instantly vanish.
“What’s with you, Soyeon?”
Lee Jinhyuk twirled his beer can, smiling slyly.
“Did you really think I wouldn’t figure it out?”
End of Chapter.