WTFUDLS 02

Chapter 02

Bzzz—

[Are you at school?]

It was a message from Ji-woo. Noeul checked the text and set her phone down.

Bzzz—

Ten minutes later, it buzzed again. Ji-woo, of course.

[You know that Conan suspect you mentioned? Did you know there’s a spinoff manga where that suspect is the main character?]

Obviously I know, Noeul thought silently. Even though Noeul hadn’t replied to the first text, Ji-woo sent another without hesitation. Typical Ji-woo—totally free in moments like this.
Noeul never sent a second message before getting a reply. What if the other person thought she was annoying, or that they didn’t want to talk and she was too dense to notice?
But Ji-woo never had to worry about things like that. Who would ever find Ji-woo annoying or not want to hear from her? That’s why she could just send texts without caring. It actually made her seem like someone cool who didn’t mind whether people replied or not.
Noeul put her phone down again.

People like Ji-woo never get hurt if you don’t answer. They already have more friends than they can handle. If anything, Noeul had to leave a few of Ji-woo’s messages unanswered so Ji-woo could think, “Oh, she’s not clinging to me,” and feel at ease.
Not that Noeul ignored her to put her at ease. It was obvious Ji-woo wasn’t texting out of any real desire to talk to Noeul. Maybe she thought, “That poor girl from yesterday—she’s probably never had a pretty girl text her. It’s like charity.” Or maybe Ji-woo thought keeping Noeul friendly could somehow help with Jun-gi. Whatever the reason, it definitely wasn’t “because I want to talk to Noeul.”

Not that Noeul thought Ji-woo was a bad person. People just are like that.
But she wasn’t going to play along and giggle at those texts, making Ji-woo think, “Ha, she must really want to talk to me—pathetic.”
Better to wait about an hour and send a neutral reply. That way she wouldn’t look like some desperate guy crazy for a pretty girl’s attention.

“Alright, that’s all for today’s lecture.”

Noeul packed her laptop and bag and left the classroom.

“Noeul!”

As she walked down the hall, someone called her name. She turned to see Ji-woo beaming and waving. Noeul stared for two seconds. Partly stunned by Ji-woo’s beauty, partly because it felt off.
When she’d seen Ji-woo with Jun-gi before, she hadn’t seemed like someone who would greet people so brightly. She’d smiled during their conversation, yes, but it was that polite, “fine, I’ll humor you” smile pretty girls give.
But the way she was waving now looked like a Pomeranian waiting for its owner.

…A Pomeranian…

For a moment Noeul saw a little Pomeranian yapping over Ji-woo’s image. Cute, she thought—and then immediately irritating.
A girl like Ji-woo calling out loudly in a crowded place had only one purpose: Look, even someone as pretty as me says hi to that ugly guy. See how kind I am?

Noeul could predict the next three seconds. Ji-woo would bound over and greet her in a rough, joking way—like a guy to his buddies—just to show everyone that Noeul was not her boyfriend, practically just “one of the guys.”
Not that anyone would think they were dating, but girls like Ji-woo found even a one-in-ten-thousand chance of that embarrassing.

Ji-woo trotted over, just like a Pomeranian.
Noeul decided to make the first move, raising a hand and greeting flatly in a deep voice.

“Yo.”

Ji-woo stopped right in front of her, looking up with a soft, fluffy expression.

“Why didn’t you text back?”

Noeul stared down at her, hand still raised. This… this was not in her mental playbook.

“…Huh? What…?”

“You just came out of the lecture room looking at your phone. So why didn’t you reply to my messages?”

Noeul felt people around them glance over. What a weird conversation to overhear.
Could Ji-woo actually be malicious? Saying something no one could relate to, making people think, “Wow, that ugly one is acting hard to get,” and snicker. Some pretty people enjoyed seeing the unattractive squirm. Maybe Ji-woo was one of them.
But Ji-woo just looked innocently curious.

“So, where are you going now?”

“Gonna get lunch.”

“Oh? Let’s eat together.”

Noeul felt irritation rising. Ji-woo was definitely the type. Of course Ji-woo knew how people whispered when a pretty girl hung out with someone unattractive. Maybe she liked that attention.
Or maybe she was playing volunteer—You look like you’d eat alone, so I’ll keep you company. I’ll even pay, like giving charity.

“I’ve got someone to eat with.”

“Really?”

Noeul almost laughed. That open reaction—as if the idea that Noeul might have lunch plans was unimaginable. And she didn’t even bother to hide it.
Why would Ji-woo ever need to hide anything or watch someone else’s feelings?

Ji-woo tilted her head.
“Jun-gi said you usually eat alone on Mondays.”

“……”

…What?

Before Noeul could process that, someone tapped Ji-woo’s shoulder.

“What’re you doing, Ji-woo?”

A tall guy, maybe 185 cm, handsome. He gave Noeul a wary look, as if suspecting him of hitting on Ji-woo. Noeul’s mood soured further.

“Oh, hey, oppa,” Ji-woo said, surprisingly curt. Maybe they were close enough to skip niceties.

“What’s up?”

“Talking with a friend.”

“Oh, yeah?”

The guy gave Noeul another skeptical glance—This is your friend?—and Noeul fought the rising anger.
Now that the good-looking guy was here, Ji-woo would leave. No more being treated like a prop. Relief.

“Have you eaten?” he asked her.

“Yeah.”

…Yeah?

“Already?”

“Yeah, I eat early.”

“Alright. Let’s eat together next time.”

“Sure. See you.”

…What?

Ji-woo turned back to Noeul.
“What? Weren’t you going to eat?”

“Hmm…”

Ji-woo rolled her eyes playfully.
“I never said I hadn’t eaten. I just asked if we could eat together.”

“…You were going to eat twice?”

“…Yup! Is that a problem?”

Noeul grew more confused by the minute.

“So who are you eating with? Can I join?”

“…Of course not.”

The words came out sharper than she intended as she turned away. Can I join? She already knew the answer. Of course she could. A pretty girl like Ji-woo could invite herself to a family wedding and they’d make room.
Had anyone ever refused her an invitation to eat together? Probably never. That sunny confidence on Ji-woo’s face proved it. It made Noeul snap for a moment.

—Why didn’t you reply?

The image of Ji-woo looking up at her like a Pomeranian flashed in Noeul’s mind.
Exactly. This is why it’s dangerous. Human brains are built to hope. If someone like Ji-woo shows even a little kindness, you start expecting things.
Objectively there’s nothing to expect, but when it’s happening to you, you twist logic to keep a shred of hope alive.
That’s why you can’t trust your own judgment. There’s only one unshakable fact:
No one truly loves an ugly person.

The scariest part is when that little hope grows into real feelings.
An unattractive person’s love isn’t a bittersweet romance novel crush. It’s self-destruction: I like them. But of course they’d never like me. You know it’s true, but you still hope. You hope over tiny gestures. Then you realize—of course not. You knew all along.
I’m pathetic. Did I really think they might like me? Know your place. Would you like someone like you? Pitiful. Disgusting.
Round and round in that cage of thought.
That is what love is for someone unattractive.

And if others find out that an unattractive person likes someone pretty, it’s even worse.
Then you’re not only ugly—you’re arrogant for aiming too high.
But if a pretty person likes someone unattractive? Then they’re praised as someone who “looks at the heart, not the face,” beautiful inside and out.

That’s how it is. That’s why someone like me must not hope, must not love.

“Jun-gi, you joined the English club too?”

“Yeah. Started this semester.”

“Oh…”

Ji-woo glanced at Noeul. He mouthed, Why? She lowered her eyes and shook her head.
Noeul had been in the department’s English club since freshman year. Then one day Ji-woo started coming. That same day Noeul had messaged Jun-gi.

[Jun-gi.]

[?]

[Join the English club.]

[That boring club? Ugh.]

[Ji-woo’s coming this semester.]

[Hey, Han Noeul.]

[What.]

[What do you want to eat? Tell me now.]

[lol]

[Thanks, man. You lifesaver. lolol]

And that’s how the three of them ended up at the same table now.

“Ji-woo, are you good at English?”

“Pretty good. I studied abroad when I was little.”

“Really? When?”

“Until elementary school.”

“Wow… then you don’t even need this club, huh?”

“…But that was a long time ago. I forgot a lot. I joined to refresh my memory.”

“Oh, that’s so diligent of you. Impressive.”

Watching them, Noeul felt an odd calm.
It was like seeing puzzle pieces click perfectly into place, like a flawless plaid pattern, a world without contradictions.
Yes. This was right. Someone like Ji-woo belonged chatting with someone like Jun-gi.
How fitting. This was the “correct” picture.

Jun-gi looked at Noeul.
“After the meeting I might head to a café to work on assignments.”

He was speaking to Noeul, but Noeul knew it was meant for Ji-woo to hear.
Noeul wasn’t dumb enough to say, Oh, I’ll come too.

“Cool. I’m heading to a PC bang,” Noeul said.

Ji-woo’s eyes lit up.
“Oh? Me too.”

Jun-gi smiled brightly.
“There’s a new café by the back gate. Want to check it out?”

Noeul began packing her bag, ready to leave.
PC rooms were good. People there barely even looked at the person sitting next to them.

What game should she play? A ranked match? Too much hassle. Boring. Maybe that farming sim she bought on Steam. Single-player…

Just as she was thinking that—

“…Huh? No, I meant I’m going to the PC bang too.”

Ji-woo said it. Noeul turned to look at her.
What? What did she just say?

“…Oh… oh, I see. I thought…”

Jun-gi chuckled awkwardly.
Noeul saw the corner of his mouth twitch.

END