The incident occurred shortly after Hayun’s threats.
As she had predicted that school life would become interesting, indeed, unusual events began to unfold.
“Hey, watch where you’re going.”
“What’s wrong with that desk?”
It was collective bullying directed at Kim Mollu.
There were situations that even a passerby could clearly recognize: a male student bumping shoulders and threatening him as he walked by, overturned desks, missing gym clothes, and more. It was evident that Kim Mollu had been targeted by the bullies.
Despite having been bullied before, this level of intensity was new for him.
He strongly felt like he was Minji’s personal errand boy, and because of that, no one else directly bullied him.
Recently, Minji had even stopped bullying Kim Mollu, meaning no one was bothering him at all.
“I feel like I’ve been bullied less thanks to Minji all this time.”
[For real, Minji is like an angel.]
[She enjoyed making him run errands, so she acted all nice, haha.]
[Did Minji slap him, order him around without paying, or spit on his face?]
[I knew spring would come only after the flowers withered…]
[Minji, you’re missed, oh…]
Maybe it was Hayun’s instructions or maybe they had been waiting for the right moment; either way, they were acting very seriously.
In such a situation, Minji, who would protect the protagonist, wasn’t coming to school.
With no contact and reports that she had quit her part-time job at the convenience store, something must have happened.
The surrounding students didn’t seem to care much about Kim Mollu’s bullying. To be precise, even if they noticed, they probably didn’t want to get involved deeply.
It was obvious that getting entangled in this situation would make school life very tiring.
While most students turned a blind eye to the situation, there were some who did not.
“What are you guys doing? Are you bullying Mollu right now?”
It was Yuri, a member of the student council. True to the role of a model student who could not tolerate injustice, she did not stand idly by while the bullies harassed Mollu.
“Bully him? We’re just joking around. We’re friends, right, buddy?”
“Don’t lie. Who jokes like that? Even if it’s a joke, there are ways to not make your friend uncomfortable.”
“Hey, it’s gone too far. Let’s just back off.”
As long as Yuri was present, even the bullies would often withdraw with expressions of annoyance.
“Yuri is really a decent person… Maybe I should try to go after her next time.”
[For real, there’s only Yuri.]
[Minji is out there leaving her boyfriend in such a tough spot while not showing her face…]
[Should I switch to Yuri right now?]
[Just earlier, you were saying there was only Minji, haha.]
“They’re all Minji’s friends, right? Now that I think about it, Minji has been making Mollu run errands back when she bullied him. This time, it’s because of Minji—”
“That’s not true.”
When Kim Mollu firmly denied it, Yuri appeared slightly flustered.
“If it’s not you, then it must be the case. If there’s anything I can do to help, just let me know. We can even go see a teacher together.”
Yuri showed her concern for Kim Mollu before leaving, and he fell into brief thought. It was a contemplation related to his school life and Minji.
“In dating sims, this kind of scenario is a standard. No matter which heroine it is, there can’t be no problems at all. Each character has their own issues…”
[That’s a rule, for sure.]
[You’ve seen some dating sims.]
[No one lives life without worries.]
[It’s so enjoyable when the protagonist solves those issues and gets saved.]
[Our poor Mollu can’t do that…]
How long had it been since he started going to school alone without contacting Minji? Eventually, something happened.
“Ugh!”
“That guy’s hanging around girls like it’s nothing. How did Minji and that Yuri manage to charm him? Is he more competent than he looks? Huh?”
The next day during lunch, Kim Mollu was dragged to the rooftop by a group of male students and was being beaten up.
“I doubt there will be a scenario where Mollu suddenly becomes super strong and knocks them all out, right?”
[Do you think that will happen? Haha.]
[The fool, nerd, loser, and outcast Mollu can’t do stuff like that…]
“Mollu, that’s you, right? You sent the picture of yourself getting beaten, so Minji won’t be able to help but come running.”
Hayun sat on the rooftop railing and continued speaking.
“First off, it really pisses me off to see you with Minji. She doesn’t even play with me, but I see her hanging out with a loser like you, and while you ignore my words, you seem to care about hers… It’s just all so annoying.”
Hayun’s eyes were red with rage as she glared at Mollu. Heavy emotions leaked from her. It was a feeling too intense to simply be about friendship.
“Hayun seems a bit unhinged. She must really like Minji.”
[Um… it doesn’t seem like just liking.]
[Hayun is such a lesbian… ]
[Who does that to a friend? Haha.]
[The crazy psycho lesbian appears, whoa!]
[Oh haha, I thought we were building up to a yuri moment, and then suddenly this happened.]
[It’s understandable why she would be mad.]
Perhaps it was love. Perhaps Hayun was nurturing an unrequited love all alone.
“You sent a picture of me getting beat up, so Minji has to come running.”
Hayun’s expression seemed very complicated. Even as she said that, it seemed like she didn’t want Minji to actually come.
After all, it would mean recognizing that Mollu was valuable to her if the currently unreachable Minji came running.
“Minji will come.”
Regardless of how Hayun felt, Minji would show up. The story structure demanded it.
There was no way Minji wouldn’t come to Mollu’s side amid the dangerous bullies. If left alone, he might end up with a broken head, right?
She would burst through that rooftop door at any moment.
Bang!
Yes, just like that.
“Hayun, what are you doing? What’s all this texting about?”
Minji appeared on the rooftop, fuming. After catching sight of Mollu’s state in the corner, her expression froze.
“sh*t, you actually came? You came after I called and even went to your house without seeing you? How is it that you’re here so fast right after I texted?”
Cutting off Hayun’s mumbling, Minji asked.
“Mollu… did you do this? Did you hit him?”
“Is that really what’s important right now?”
“Yes, it is important, so answer me!”
“Minji, your assertiveness is crazy…”
[What a shout… ]
[What’s with her voice… ]
[The voice acting is superb.]
[Minji is such a strong character!]
[“If Mollu ends up dating you, he will be doomed.”]
“Yeah, I did. So what now?”
“… Don’t act like you know me. I’m taking Mollu with me.”
“Don’t act like you know me? Don’t be ridiculous.”
Hayun twisted her face and blocked Minji.
“Then let me ask you, what’s so great about him? Why go this far for him? He’s a friend, and so am I, right?”
“Get out of the way. I’m not friends with you anymore.”
“Just what is he that you care so much? Are you dating him or something?”
Minji paused momentarily, stopping her actions. She stared at Mollu and fell deep into thought.
“This is an important scene. Minji is realizing and acknowledging her own feelings!”
[Yuri is excited.]
[It’s like watching a drama, my goodness.]
[Oh no.]
[Never call a female streamer an aunt.]
[It’s time for popcorn!]
[Minji is about to confess first!]
After a brief moment, Minji fidgeted with her fingers and spoke up.
“I… I like that guy. Is that enough for you?”
As she said this, Minji’s face was flushed, and no one could doubt the honesty in her words.
“What…?”
“sh*t, I’m leaving. Live well from now on! Don’t look for me!”
Leaving Hayun in shock, Minji took Mollu’s hand and left the rooftop.
-…
She continued down the stairs, leading Mollu along. From the rooftop to the first floor, Minji didn’t say a word until they left the school gate.
Mollu, who had been watching her back, spoke up first.
“Minji, earlier, you—”
“You idiot, idiot, idiot…!”
Minji turned around suddenly, her face as red as a tomato.
“You, you loser… Why didn’t you confess first?”
“Ah, no. It’s just that… so…”
“Seriously, how frustrating. You couldn’t pick up on my signals, even after I gave them a few times.”
Although she liked those traits, Minji mumbled.
“Wait here for a moment.”
They reached the convenience store near the school. She sat Mollu on a chair inside while she went inside.
When she returned, she had a band-aid in her hand.
“They messed up my already ugly face like this… bad guys.”
“It seems that Mollu isn’t really good-looking, huh?”
[Whew.]
[If he were good-looking, he wouldn’t be a loser, haha.]
[It’s not a dating sim if you charm someone based on looks alone.]
[Mollu recognizes you as an ally.]
“All done. Even if it’s uncomfortable, keep it on for a few days. It looks bad.”
“Okay…”
After finishing the first aid, as they headed back to school together, Minji slowed her pace to match Mollu’s and gently took his hand.
“Uh?”
“What, what, what? Is it, um, uncomfortable?”
“No, it’s not.”
“… From today, we’re a couple. Got it?”
Mollu awkwardly nodded, and the ending came with Minji showing a bright smile.
“This feels like pure young love at that age. Minji is surprisingly shy yet assertive. She matches well with the timid Mollu.”
[Mollu really needs a proactive girlfriend, right?]
[The fool, nerd, loser, outcast Mollu has succeeded in romance, sob.]
[At least I can vicariously enjoy this… ]
[Twenty thousand shut-in Mollus watching and suddenly realizing their lives are sad.]
[Now I’m sitting here laughing at a 2D character dating.]
“I thoroughly enjoyed the ending with Minji in a delightful romance. Don’t you feel like your dating instincts are awakening, too?”
[What?]
[Haha, reality is not a dating sim, you know?]
[I don’t know about dating instincts, but I realized that socializing is scary, yeah… ;)]
[Hayun is indeed scary.]
[Mollu is such an oblivious loser, he wouldn’t know that.]
“Why all of a sudden?”
[Mollu will d*e~]
Indeed, dating is not an easy thing. If it were as simple as just deciding to do it, then why do we have so many single people and why can’t everyone just get married?
Since I had experienced that myself, it felt as if the sentiments of the people in the chat resonated with me.
I nodded quietly in agreement.
