“She’s been following us around since earlier.”
Lunch time.
More people joined us during the meal.
So-hee naturally joined the table.
It wasn’t simply because she was my maid that I couldn’t refuse, but because I had no intention of ignoring a friend who now attended the same school.
Even if she had said she wanted to eat separately, I would have still invited her.
“Wow, even lunch here is fancy. The expensive tuition definitely shows.”
So-hee smiled brightly— but surprisingly, she didn’t pile food onto her plate.
I thought she would load up her plate, like she did the first time we ate together at the mansion, but she took less food than Ha-neul and Soo-ah.
Of course, it wasn’t like she took as little as I did.
“Huh? Oh, this? What’s the big deal? I eat all my meals with fancy food now. I had a hearty breakfast, so I’m fine.”
When I looked back and forth between the other girls’ plates and So-hee’s, she seemed to have guessed what I was thinking and explained.
So, does that mean she ate so much breakfast that she’s not hungry now?
…How much did she eat, exactly?
Of course, asking something like that would be rude, so I quietly tried to pull my plate toward me—
“Ah, please wait a moment, Miss.”
So-hee said this and then pulled a handkerchief out of her uniform pocket.
She skillfully unfolded the soft handkerchief and spread it over my lap.
Despite being thin, it was surprisingly large, covering half of my thighs with ease, even though it came from her pocket and was folded in half.
“…What’s this?”
“It’s a napkin.”
So-hee said proudly as she looked at the white napkin now resting on my lap.
But I still don’t understand her switch between formal and informal language.
Does she only remember to use formal speech when doing her maid duties?
…Well, it’s not something that really matters.
“A napkin?”
So-hee nodded.
Without further explanation, she sat down in her seat.
“…”
Well, okay.
When you go to expensive restaurants, sometimes there’s a napkin on the table before the food comes out.
And I remember reading in some fantasy novel that placing a napkin on your lap is proper etiquette.
Come to think of it, we did use napkins occasionally at the mansion.
Sometimes Yang Hye-in would lay it out for me, and sometimes I’d place it on my own lap.
But I’ve never used a napkin at school before.
…Should I even worry about this?
It’s not like I usually have a maid following me around at school, so I never had a reason to use one here.
But now I do have a maid following me.
She’s just wearing a school uniform instead of a maid outfit.
When I stopped thinking about it and looked at my plate, I noticed how perfectly arranged my utensils were.
You know those plates, forks, and knives you see drawn in posters?
They were lined up just like that.
If there was more time, I bet she’d have even put something under the plate.
The only thing disrupting this perfect setup was the random way I had piled food on my plate.
So-hee seemed to be taking her new duties very seriously.
“Uh… thanks?”
“You’re very welcome. I’m just doing what I should.”
At my thanks, So-hee gave me a slight bow.
She didn’t get up from her chair, but it was still a decently graceful gesture.
Though not quite on Yang Hye-in’s level.
Well, she’s only officially been my maid for a day.
“…”
Saying any more would really make this feel like a conversation between a mistress and her maid, so I just picked up the fork and knife beside my plate.
Until then, Ha-neul and Soo-ah had been staring blankly at me, but only now did they pick up their utensils.
I guess they were too baffled by the situation to do anything but stare—
But it seemed that one uninvited guest at the table didn’t think the same way.
“…Just as I thought.”
I stopped moving my fork and knife toward the plate.
Then, I looked up at the person sitting diagonally across from me.
To my left was So-hee, to my right was Ha-neul. Soo-ah sat almost directly across from me.
We were sitting at a round table, so we should have been sitting across from each other in pairs, but it seemed like So-hee and Ha-neul had moved closer to me, leaving a bit of extra space.
And in that space, between Soo-ah and So-hee, sat none other than the student council member…
Son A-reum.
I almost forgot her name because I’ve been calling her “student council member” this whole time.
Thankfully, the school’s name tags are in Hangul instead of Hanja.
Back when I was in high school, they used Hanja on our name tags to make us study it, and it made remembering names a nightmare.
I had no idea what she meant by “just as I thought”, but I couldn’t ignore the fact that she had seamlessly blended into our table.
“Um, what are you doing here?”
In response to my question, Son A-reum declared boldly,
“Obviously, I’m here to keep an eye on you.”
Ha ha ha.
You don’t need to keep an eye on me.
I already stand out enough.
Honestly, just hearing stories about me wandering around would tell you exactly what I’ve been up to today.
Well, today’s been pretty uneventful.
The other students are just terrified because of So-hee and Ha-neul.
“Really? Did you find anything interesting?”
I asked as I stabbed a piece of meat with my fork.
Was this beef?
“…”
Son A-reum was silent for a moment.
Then she just kept thinking for a long time.
Of course, she couldn’t have known anything about the incident with So-hee this morning, and there was no way for her to know what happened in class.
Sure, rumors might spread, but what happened today wasn’t something students could carelessly talk about.
Our homeroom teacher had taken bribes— from someone he shouldn’t have accepted them from.
And we’re talking tens of millions of won.
Thanks to that, the kids in my class are probably debating whether to ignore me or not.
If that kind of story spread, things would definitely get dangerous.
“…Why is no one sitting around us?”
Son A-reum asked.
Ah, right.
Now that she mentioned it, no one was sitting near us.
The rest of the cafeteria was packed with students, but there wasn’t a soul around our table.
It did look a bit like I had cleared everyone out to eat comfortably.
I could see how someone might misunderstand.
“Do you think I told them to leave?”
“…”
When I stared at Son A-reum and popped a piece of meat into my mouth, she seemed a little flustered.
Right, if I deny it, she has no way to prove otherwise.
Even if she asked the students avoiding me, they’d just say something vague.
The way kids at this school talk is surprisingly consistent.
“Not that you’d believe me if I said I didn’t.”
Besides, “they moved out of their own accord” is pretty much the truth.
I’ve never asked anyone to move.
After eating in this spot for the past two weeks, it just became our regular spot.
“You’ve never sat near us, right? Have we ever said anything to you?”
“Ugh…”
Yeah, it’s a pretty weak argument to bring up now.
In the end, Son A-reum didn’t offer any further rebuttal.
And meanwhile, she cleaned her plate.
Well, the food here is good.
*
“Since we’re here, how about a conversation?”
As I finished my meal and stood to leave, Son A-reum followed, so I made the suggestion.
At my words, she crossed her arms over her chest.
“No matter what you say, I won’t be convinced!”
“…”
I just wanted to talk.
In this school, other than my close friends, the only people who talk to me are Nam Da-un, Yoon Da-ho, and the soccer team captain.
I never even see Team Leader Han Garam during lunch.
“I’m not trying to convince you. You just seemed like you wanted to talk, so I thought I’d offer.”
I shrugged and added,
“You don’t want to?”
“…”
Son A-reum opened her mouth as if to say something, then suddenly looked like she realized something and gasped.
“No, thanks!”
She shouted and spun around to leave.
…It really seemed like she wanted to talk, though.
Even though she’s sharp with others, I can’t help but feel like she wants to connect with someone.
It trying to be overly perceptive, but she gives off that vibe.
It’s like the people who say, “I don’t like people”, but really, it’s not that they hate others.
They’re just awkward with social interaction and use that as a defense mechanism.
They rationalize their behavior, thinking, “I’m not being excluded by others, I’m excluding them”, when in reality, it’s the other way around.
I understand that, because I’ve been there.
Actually, this kind of thinking is necessary to some extent in social situations.
And so, when someone finally listens to them, they end up being sharp and defensive without realizing it.
It’s not like they’re being mean on purpose or that they don’t understand, so it doesn’t really upset me.
I shrugged again for no reason and turned around, only to find three pairs of eyes staring at me.
“…Why are you all looking at me like that?”
When I asked, the three of them sighed in exasperation.
Was what I said to Son A-reum really that strange?
“No, seriously, what is it?”
“What’s there to say?”
So-hee replied.
The way she rubbed her face made it look like she was worried.
I had no idea what she was so concerned about.
“I mean, making more friends isn’t a bad thing…”
Ha-neul mumbled.
Exactly.
It’s not like that’s a bad thing.
“Where should I even begin explaining again…”
Soo-ah muttered quietly, though it wasn’t quiet enough that I couldn’t hear.
…Is this really such a fundamental issue?
“Oh, is it because I tried talking to someone who dislikes me?”
At my question, the three of them sighed in unison.
No, seriously, just tell me!