This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 93

It might not be entirely the senior’s fault that things turned out this way, but since I ended up getting hurt, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.

Standing in front of the counter, I found myself pulling out my card almost reflexively, and just that made me endure some heavy, piercing gazes while riding the elevator down.

And I’m not sure if it’s because of that, but after entering the pharmacy, the senior had fallen silent.

“…Thank you.”

This was what she finally said after a long period of silence.

To be honest, it was a bit… awkward.

With the atmosphere being in shambles, I had no idea how to respond.

“No, well… if you were in the same situation, you would have done the same, senior…”

“…Still.”

This is seriously uncomfortable.

It was the first time I experienced such an atmosphere after getting to know her.

It felt like this air of awkwardness was flowing between us.

Even during our first conversations, it hadn’t been this awkward.

Yet, for some reason, I couldn’t try to break this tension… maybe because I sensed a strong will in the senior not to open her mouth unless absolutely necessary.

So here, it’d be better to… change the subject.

Of course, if I suddenly changed the topic abruptly, that could become a source of awkwardness itself, so I had to be careful while attempting this.

“Um… I’m glad. You came out looking so pretty; it would have been upsetting if you got a stain on your clothes.”

I said that with the intention of easing the conversation.

However, her reaction was a bit strange.

It felt like… she flinched.

You know that typical response people show when they hear something completely unexpected?

‘What…?’

Was what I said really that surprising?

While I was puzzled inside, at that moment, the senior suddenly stood up as she heard a voice from the counter.

“Med…! It must be out. I’ll take care of it, so just sit here.”

“Ah, yes…”

And then she dashed over to the counter.

After a brief absence, she returned with a bag of medicine that had a super cute design, presumably targeting children.

“Here.”

“Thank you.”

“The pharmacist said to apply the ointment every six to eight hours.”

Was she worried I’d forget?

That was just the beginning, as thereafter, she started rattling off all sorts of cautions about applying the ointment.

Since it wasn’t for herself and she was genuinely concerned for me, it felt a little wrong to interrupt her, so I just nodded along now and then while listening…

“Ah, it’s already time…”

When I finally stood up from the cafe, I realized the time had flown by so quickly.

“I should get going, right?”

“…Yes.”

After that incident in the cafe, I had no choice but to admit it, but before that, I hadn’t really stopped moving at all. To think I didn’t gain anything… I felt ashamed I couldn’t show my face to the senior.

Feeling a bit down, I suddenly felt a light pat on my shoulder.

“It’s because of the accident; it can’t be helped.”

“Still…”

“And originally, you had prior plans, right? I just suggested we meet today since I won’t be available tomorrow.”

In this moment, she was probably the one feeling the most anxious and troubled… yet she said that to ease my burden, and her words made the heavy weight on my heart feel a little lighter.

“By the way, shouldn’t you be heading out soon? If you linger here and end up being late…”

“Oh, you don’t need to worry about that. The place I’m meeting up with is nearby, anyway.”

“…Really?”

“Yes.”

“That’s quite… intriguing.”

*

Watching Dogun slowly rise from his seat, Baeksulhwa discreetly bit her lip.

There was no other choice… she felt confused.

It wasn’t like they had done anything physically intense; they simply faced each other and exchanged conversations, yet somehow her heart was racing like it just sprinted a hundred meters.

No, upon closer examination, it was even more intense than that.

Back then, even if her heart raced, it didn’t feel like it was going to explode out of her chest as it did now.

Why was this happening?

How had things ended up like this?

Even if I said that, I already knew the answer.

For the timing of the change was too clear to ignore.

‘How could I not know…’

What good was there in saying it aloud?

My heart was racing this fast, feeling like it would leap out at any moment, ever since Dogun told me I was pretty.

Of course… I understood.

That what Dogun said likely didn’t carry much weight.

From the very nuances, it hadn’t felt that way.

He probably just said those words to mask the awkward atmosphere since I had been keeping my mouth shut.

I knew that very well, yet the moment I heard those words, I couldn’t stop my heart from racing.

How could I help it when his one simple compliment made my face feel hot and flustered?

I had been so anxious about what Dogun must’ve thought after seeing me today, whether he found me strange or not, that it added to my embarrassment.

I thought I had secretly brushed it off without letting Dogun notice… only to find myself in the very situation I was in now.

Just a moment ago, I didn’t feel too bad, but now… the thought of Dogun going off to meet that little girl made my heart feel a bit heavy.

At the same time, I couldn’t shake off this strange desire.

I didn’t want to just let Dogun go.

For reasons I couldn’t explain, I felt that way.

So—

“Um, where are you supposed to meet?”

I hurriedly asked as I looked at Dogun, who seemed like he was about to leave.

*

Just when Baeksulhwa’s statement had caught Dogun off guard for a moment, he ultimately revealed the place he planned to meet his friends, and at that, Baeksulhwa offered to take him since it was on her way.

Meanwhile, Yoonseo, who had set out early from home to avoid being late, managed to successfully reunite with her friends.

“Oh, Yoonseo…”

“What time did you wake up this morning? You look completely ready from head to toe!”

I had many worries when I left home, but seeing my friends’ reactions made me feel a bit relieved.

“Yeah, I mean, I needed to look sharp. Even though Dogun seems like an easygoing guy, once he gets angry, he’s deadly serious, right?”

Because I was too focused on that, I ended up reacting rawly.

“Oh, you knew…?”

“It’s not like I’ve only been sighing for a day or two. Did you think I wouldn’t notice? I genuinely thought a sinkhole would form beneath our school because of your sighs.”

So… it was that obvious.

“Anyway, make sure to reconcile this time, okay?”

“Uh, yes…”

“But don’t start being too nervous right from the get-go.”

“Yeah, just say you’re sorry and keep it simple. To be honest, just hearing that should be enough to make him feel better, right?”

Could it really be that simple?

Would I truly… be able to do that?

Perhaps in that moment, I desperately prayed for it to turn out that way.

“Oh? Here come the guys!”

Hearing that made me open my eyes quickly, but… strangely, I didn’t see the person I was expecting.

Could it be… he decided not to show up when he heard I was coming?

“What’s up? Why are you two the only ones here?”

“Right? Where’s Dogun?”

“Oh… He said he might be a bit late since he had some things to take care of nearby.”

I had felt anxious about that possibility, but thankfully that didn’t seem to be the case.

“Then I guess we’ll have to wait for him?”

“I think so…? We should probably get out of the cold and wait somewhere like a cafe.”

So we shifted our positions to a cafe right next to the meeting spot.

However, it seemed like the weekend had filled every available seat, so we couldn’t sit down and wait.

Instead, I ordered something that Dogun used to drink whenever he visited the cafe.

“Hey, isn’t that… Dogun?”

“Looks like it? Hey! Dogun!”

And just like that, at that moment… I saw him.

Dogun, there with a girl.