Chapter 48

Soo-Yeon and Hae-Jung heard what she said, and the two looked at each other. Hae-Jung pleaded with her eyes for Soo-Yeon not to reveal it. Soo-Yeon contemplated whether to disclose it or not.

But as Hae-Jung saw Soo-Yeon's gradual smile, she knew that it was over for her. She had planned to move, but with Gyeong-Eun's eyes on her, she stopped. She watched as Soo-Yeon smiled from ear to ear at her reaction.

Gyeong-Eun then turned to Soo-Yeon, listening to what she was about to say. But for a moment, Soo-Yeon only thought again about whether to share this or not. Ultimately, she decided to keep it to herself.

"Umm... Sorry, I changed my mind. I wouldn't tell you. It's nothing noteworthy, just a small thing," Soo-Yeon said as she waved her hand up and down. Gyeong-Eun frowned, feeling that she was being played by Soo-Yeon.

Hae-Jung, who didn't expect Soo-Yeon to tell, only felt relief and anxiety from this moment. "What is this girl thinking? She's certainly planning something," she thought to herself as she looked at Soo-Yeon's face.

She felt that it was even worse than not telling Gyeong-Eun about it. But she could only hope that Soo-Yeon wouldn't go too far.

Gyeong-Eun looked at Soo-Yeon and immediately knew that she was hiding the cause of this. So she wanted to press instead of just accepting it.

"What are you two hiding?" Gyeong-Eun said to them as she looked at Soo-Yeon and Hae-Jung. "I know that there's more to this." She crossed her arms as she addressed them.

But Soo-Yeon still held her ground. She stood up and walked a few steps toward Gyeong-Eun. "Like I said, it's nothing worth your time," she said as she approached her.

Gyeong-Eun looked at her, and slowly the atmosphere of the place became tense. Hae-Jung felt this and took the initiative to side with Soo-Yeon. "Yeah, Soo-Yeon's right. She just saw something on my phone. The same thing you caught me with last time," she said, prompting Gyeong-Eun to shift her gaze to her.

Seeing that, she asked her, "Is it the videos that you masturbate in your office?" Her question prompted Hae-Jung to blush, but she nodded, hiding the real incident.

Though it was embarrassing for her to be reminded of this again, at that time, she forgot to lock her office as she masturbated. Thankfully, it was Gyeong-Eun who caught her and not someone else.

And it was that incident that somewhat helped them get to know each other. For Soo-Yeon, it was the first time she heard of this. She kept up a facade of surprise as she digested what Gyeong-Eun said.

"Well, I didn't expect to learn about that information," she thought to herself and looked at Hae-Jung. "At least I have something more to tease her about," she smiled as she thought about this.

Hae-Jung saw her smile, but didn't care about it. Gyeong-Eun then just turned back from them and walked to the door. As she was close, she said to them without looking back, "Don't do this again here. If you want to, then do it outside the university." She paused and continued. "Both of you are just trying to get in trouble."

After she said that, she grabbed the door handle and opened the door. She then saw a few people still lingering. So she looked at them and said, "Don't you all have classes? Scram, all of you," she said to them coldly, making them follow her words unconsciously.

Now the students were gone from near the office. She walked away, and as she did, she thought to herself, "Those two... I know that both of you are not telling the truth," she recalled a few moments ago.

"I need to do some digging if I want to know what they're really hiding." Gyeong-Eun considered doing some digging, but as she remembered Seok-Woo's conversation with her, she stopped in place. After that, she sighed to herself. "I'll mind my own business from now on," she said to herself and walked to her destination.

Back at Hae-Jung's office, both girls tidied themselves up, patting away the dust on their clothes. After a few seconds, Hae-Jung looked at Soo-Yeon and asked, "What are you trying to pull this time?" She spoke to her with an anxious tone.

Soo-Yeon smiled and replied, "I'm not trying to pull anything. Don't be so guarded against me," she said lightheartedly. But Hae-Jung didn't feel assured by her words. Soo-Yeon spoke once more.

"Good luck with your time with Seok-Woo," Soo-Yeon said as she walked towards the door. Before she left, she stopped and faced Hae-Jung again. "I'll be speaking to you again about what happened." She smiled as she said it, then went out and closed the door.

Leaving Hae-Jung alone in the office, she moved back to her seat and reclined as she looked up. "I'll change my phone password this time," she said to herself as she recalled the moment when Soo-Yeon unlocked her phone.

A few hours passed. Meanwhile, Seok-Woo was at the library, passing the remaining time and waiting for Hae-Jung's text. As he did, he tried to be a good student by spending his time studying, although not consistently. At least he wouldn't be cramming for his studies.

As he studied, a pair of eyes looked at him from a distance. It was Bin-Na, holding a book in her hand. She had been studying but stopped when she saw Seok-Woo.

As she looked at him, she thought to herself, "It's him. Should I apologize to him for my behavior last time, or not?" She asked herself this question. "Maybe I won't. I hope he forgot about it." But as she said it, she doubted whether he had.

She went back and forth in her head about whether to do it or not. After a few seconds, she shook her head and dismissed the thought, deciding to just pretend it didn't happen and move on.

Seok-Woo noticed her eyes on him, though he didn't call her out for it. "Does she want to say something to me?" he thought to himself, then went back to studying.

Time passed, and Bin-Na gathered up her belongings to leave the library. As she did, her pen fell to the floor. She heard the pen hit the ground and looked at it. Then she knelt down, holding her things close to her chest.

But as she reached for the pen, her belongings on top fell to the ground. She sighed at this moment. After that, she placed her remaining things on the ground and began to pick them up. As she did, someone came to help her.

Seok-Woo was about to leave as he received a text from Hae-Jung, but when he saw Bin-Na on the ground picking up her things, he helped her without expecting much.

Bin-Na looked at Seok-Woo as he knelt down to help her. Though grateful for the act, she was reminded that she had acted rudely toward him during their last meeting.

The two didn't take too long to gather all the items on the floor. After they finished, they stood up, facing each other. Bin-Na felt it was her cue to say something in this moment.

"Thank you for helping," Bin-Na said, making eye contact with him.

"No need, I didn't do much after all," Seok-Woo replied. After that, silence filled the room between them.

Bin-Na obviously knew what was happening with the atmosphere; it felt awkward for her but also for Seok-Woo.

So instead, she apologized to him, to tie up some loose ends. "You know, about last time... I'm sorry for talking that way to you," she said, moving her eyes away from him.

Seok-Woo remembered what she meant as she mentioned it, but he didn't hold any grudges or anything. "Don't worry about that, I didn't take offense or anything. You were in a bad mood the last time I saw you, I guess," he said, recalling her face last time.

"Well... You're right about that. I was not in a great mood at that time. Sorry again for you to see that," Bin-Na said, to which Seok-Woo nodded.

"Then I'll be on my way out. Are you also going?" Seok-Woo said to her, to which Bin-Na nodded.

"If so, then let me carry some of the books that you're carrying. Just to lessen your burden for a bit," Seok-Woo said to her, which she refused at first. But when she thought about it, she accepted his offer, as it would make it easier for her, even if only for a short time.

Bin-Na gave the books to him, and the two of them walked together. As they got outside of the library, they talked with each other on the way. As they did, they got to know each other's names.

Whether Seok-Woo knew this or not, he was great at talking with girls. Though he didn't have a lot to talk about, his appearance did contribute to it.

Both of them shared their experiences of the university, telling stories to each other and getting to know one another. But this only stopped as the two stepped outside the building.

"It's a pity, but we'll continue our conversation next time," Seok-Woo said to her as he handed back her books.

"I feel the same. Hope to see you again at the library," Bin-Na replied as she took hold of her belongings.

"Then I'll b-" Seok-Woo was about to say goodbye when someone interrupted him. It was Hae-Jung, walking towards the two.

She had been waiting for him outside, and she saw him outside talking with Bin-Na. She looked at Bin-Na, somewhat surprised to see her.

"Professor, sorry for taking too long," Seok-Woo said to her as he walked towards her. Hae-Jung looked at him, then glanced at Bin-Na behind him.

"Professor, good evening," Bin-Na said to her as she noticed Hae-Jung looking at her. Bin-Na was taking a class taught by Hae-Jung, so it was unexpected for her to see her here.

"Studying hard, Bin-Na?" Hae-Jung asked, observing what she was carrying. Bin-Na replied, "Yes, Professor. I'm preparing for some upcoming tests next week, including yours," as she looked at her.

"Is that so? Then I hope you get a high score in mine," Hae-Jung said with a smile. Bin-Na nodded in response.

"I'll be on my way now. Goodbye, Professor," Bin-Na said to Hae-Jung after a few seconds, then she looked at Seok-Woo and continued, "Goodbye to you as well, Seok-Woo," as she walked away.

"See you next time, Bin-Na," Seok-Woo replied with a slight smile, which Hae-Jung noticed but didn't think too much about.

As Bin-Na was no longer in their sights, both Seok-Woo and Hae-Jung faced each other. Hae-Jung then said to him, "Let's go. I don't want you to get home late, after all," to which Seok-Woo nodded. After that, the two walked to the parking area to go to their destination.