The Top Student Hides Her Regression
Chapter 2
“No, I mean, I do like you. As a friend.”
“……”
“But us dating… Even you have to admit that’s a bit much, right, Da-hye?”
“Ah.”
Hearing those words jogged my memory.
How could I have forgotten this?
And what came next was definitely…
“I mean, haven’t you been watching from the sidelines all this time, Da-hye? The girls I’ve dated. Did you never pick up on anything looking at them? What made you think you could confess to me? Compared to them, you’re… No, forget it. I won’t go that far.”
Right. Of course he’d say that.
The very lines that had crushed my self-esteem and plunged me into a swamp of depression.
I looked the boy up and down.
Tall, with soft hair and sleek, striking features that would probably earn him some ridiculous moniker like ‘Top Three Hunks of XX University’ once he got to college. And resting on that face was an expression that clearly said, I’m pissed, but I’m holding it in.
“…Seo Jae-gyeom.”
“Yeah.”
He gave a slight nod at my call.
Right, this was Seo Jae-gyeom.
The most popular guy in our school until idol trainee Jung Eun-sung transferred in.
And even after Jung Eun-sung arrived, he hadn’t fallen behind, splitting the girls’ adoration right down the middle.
My first love.
‘My mom used to work as a housekeeper at Seo Jae-gyeom’s house.’
Whenever I ran errands to that house, there was always a dazzling Seo Jae-gyeom.
A handsome boy my age living in a spacious, pristine home beyond comparison to mine.
Living alone with his mother in the biggest house in the best neighborhood around.
The subject of rife rumors that he was the illegitimate child of some corporate conglomerate.
And I was one of the few people who knew that the rumors were true.
‘Oh, Kang Da-hye. Hey.’
‘Kang Da-hye. You’re here again.’
Knowing I held his secret, he could have found me uncomfortable to be around, but Seo Jae-gyeom never showed any sign of it.
He’d toss me a casual greeting when we ran into each other at school, and offer to walk me home if it was late. Even if he’d never actually walked me home, the words alone were enough.
‘Seo Jae-gyeom, are you dating Kang Da-hye?’
‘Cut the bullshit.’
It had been the perfect environment for me to get the wrong idea.
But reality wasn’t a drama, and I wasn’t the main character.
It really had been nothing more than a delusion.
“It really is Seo Jae-gyeom……”
I stared in fascination at Seo Jae-gyeom’s face, seeing it for the first time since my senior year of high school.
Like with so many other friends, I’d lost touch with him right after graduation.
The contact, which had always been a one-sided effort on my part anyway, was completely severed when I hid away in shame after ruining my CSAT.
Seo Jae-gyeom had never once looked for me.
“Seo Jae-gyeom. When was it that I confessed to you?”
“Who knows? I don’t really remember that far back.”
Seo Jae-gyeom replied nonchalantly to my question.
Just this alone made it obvious he didn’t care about me.
It was March.
Early March.
The start of the semester… no, the start of the school year! It hadn’t even been a week since school started.
Q. Don’t people usually confess on special occasions like Valentine’s Day, end-of-year festivals, or graduation trips?
How did you plan on facing a guy from the same school if you got dumped right at the beginning of the semester? Especially when, at this point, you’re in the same class as Seo Jae-gyeom?
A. No.
I confessed at the end of the year too.
I confessed last December, and his answer just happened to come now.
‘Huh? You? Me?’
‘Jae-gyeom! Hurry up! There won’t be any seats left if we’re late!’
‘Ah. But I gotta go now. I’ll text you later, okay?’
And then, silence for the entire winter break.
Seo Jae-gyeom didn’t even show up for the end-of-term ceremony, claiming he was traveling abroad.
I was the only one clutching my phone until March, burning up with anxiety over whether to reach out or not—checking Chasebook dozens of times a day as photos of him surfing at Manly Beach were uploaded.
There was that famous saying: no response is a response.
Just in case. Clinging to a sliver of hope.
For the record, my birthday was in February, and Seo Jae-gyeom hadn’t sent a single message then, either.
Then, seeing that we were in the same class once the new school year started, he finally let out an ‘Ah,’ as if just remembering.
And only gave his answer today.
Before my regression, I had been so hurt by this that I bawled my eyes out.
But what about the me of today?
“Da-hye, you’re smart. You get what I mean without me having to spell it out, right? I’ll just pretend I never heard what you said that day. You should also……”
“Yeah, sounds good.”
I raised a hand, cutting Seo Jae-gyeom off.
“I understand completely. You’re saying we should act like it never happened, right? Suits me just fine.”
Eleven years ago, it might have been a heart-wrenching unrequited love that made me cry every night, but now that I was twenty-nine, it was just hilarious.
‘Seriously, Kang Da-hye, always sniffing out handsome guys like a hawk.’
Still, seriously, what possessed me to confess?
Was he the only good-looking guy around? If that was the case, you should’ve just liked no one.
If only I’d stepped back just one pace, it would have been crystal clear.
Who actually held a place in Seo Jae-gyeom’s heart.
‘Whatever. Not like we’ll see each other after graduation anyway.’
I had things that were far more important than Seo Jae-gyeom.
I brushed the dust off my school uniform and looked up at Seo Jae-gyeom.
Meeting my unblinking gaze, Seo Jae-gyeom furrowed his brows slightly.
“Kang Da-hye?”
“Sorry for crossing the line. I won’t do it again.”
“Uh…”
“I’m heading inside first, then.”
“O…kay.”
“Yeah.”
“……”
“……”
“……”
“Oh, but Seo Jae-gyeom.”
“Yeah?”
“If ‘How could you confess to me after seeing all the girls I’ve dated’ isn’t considered harsh, then what on earth counts as harsh by your standards?”
Without waiting for an answer, I returned to the classroom alone.
I couldn’t remember which class I was in, so I wandered a bit before recognizing some classmates’ faces and barely managing to find my way in.
“My locker is… Ah, here it is.”
There’s a padlock on it, but I don’t remember the combination.
Let’s just smash it.
Crack!
“Gasp.”
“Holy shit.”
The classmates watched in sheer horror as I smashed the broom down and ripped the lock off.
“Da-hye, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine. I’m feeling great right now.”
I pulled out all the textbooks inside the locker. Hugging an armful of them, I turned around.
I asked the girl whose eyes just happened to meet mine.
“Hey there.”
“Y-yeah?”
“Could you maybe tell me where my seat is?”
I couldn’t sleep last night, so my memory is a bit hazy, I added, and she pointed without any particular suspicion.
Row three of Column two.
“Thanks.”
Sitting down at my desk, I stacked the textbooks I’d brought over.
Taking a deep breath, I began flipping through them one by one.
— Korean.
Well, Korean isn’t like I forgot the language. I just need to practice solving questions again. Pass.
— English.
I scored a perfect mark on the TOEIC, so I’ll be fine. Pass.
— Korean History.
I know the general timeline, but I don’t remember the details. On hold for now.
— Mathematics.
Huh? What was this symbol again? How do you solve this?
— The second foreign language that other kids don’t have to take, but I must since I’m aiming for Hankuk University = French.
The only French words I remember are Joan of Arc, Napoleon, and Jambon-beurre??????
Wait, hold on, but math…… this subject that most people back then still called the ‘Mathematical Ability Section’…… I don’t remember a single thing……?
“I’m screwed……”
I was totally fucked.
That was the conclusion I could reach without even having to think twice.
I was utterly fucked.
“Wow, insane. I don’t remember a single thing.”
I can’t even remember the quadratic formula.
How much time is left until the CSAT?
A year and seven months? Eight months?
But doing well on the CSAT isn’t everything. School GPA matters too.
I have to relearn everything I forgot while keeping up with new material……?
Tears trickled down.
“Gasp, Da-hye! Why are you crying!”
“Huh? Is Kang Da-hye crying?”
“Kang Da-hye is crying.”
“Why?”
“No idea.”
“Da-hye, are you okay?”
“…What’s going on?”
“Jae-gyeom, Da-hye is crying!”
“…Crying?”
Just walking into the classroom, Seo Jae-gyeom looked at me upon hearing that ‘Kang Da-hye is crying.’
Seeing tears streaming down my face, Seo Jae-gyeom creased his brows slightly… and let out a sigh.
As if he had expected this.
He must find me seriously annoying.
I wanted to tell him, ‘I’m not crying because of you, you know?’ but even if I did, it would just sound like an excuse to him……
Ah, so embarrassing.
“I’m going to the restroom for a second.”
Grabbing the first thing in reach—my phone—I stepped out of the classroom.
I leaned my back against the hallway wall and took a deep breath.
“It’s fine.”
There’s still plenty of time.
After traveling all the way back in time and getting a second chance others couldn’t even dream of, am I really going to whine?
“No whining allowed. Let’s just say these were tears of joy.”
Wiping away my tears with the back of my hand, I tapped on my smartphone with the other.
Maybe because it was a model from eleven years ago, it was certainly heavy, thick, and slow.
Let’s see.
What apps was the eleven-years-younger me using?
“I used this music app even eleven years ago. …What on earth is this, an unrequited love playlist?”
[Kang Da-hye’s Unrequited Love Playlist]
We Should’ve Just Stayed Friends
If It Were Me… The One You Love… If Only It Were Me……
One Step Behind You… I Was Always There…☆
I Want to Tell You… That I Love You… I Hate Myself… For Not Being Able to Say a Word…
Even By Chance Would Be Enough… If I Could Just Run Into You… If Only I Could Look at You One More Time……
A Friend’s Confession…☆★☆
You Really Must… Feel Comfortable Around Me…
Loving All on My Own ㅠ
What Do I Do~~~ I’m Still So Clumsyyy~~
Note: Is having a meal with me really that hard…… I’m going crazy, oh stars…… I want you. Jae.
“Aaargh!”
What in the world is this!
I hurled the phone in my hand away.
The smartphone skidded across the floor and stopped at someone’s feet, its screen still glowing bright.
“Uh…”
Bending down slowly, someone picked up my brightly illuminated dark history.
