Chapter 1

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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: Someone Else's Confession Scene
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[Visuals on point today!! I really want to try it.]

[Sweet Honey's cakes are always love.]

[Oh my! You have to smash this one!]

A-jin checked the comments on her blog in front of the bright LED stand.

[Thanks for the great comments today. I forgot the baking powder and lost my mind for a bit, but the visuals turned out better than expected and I was pleasantly surprised. Next up, I might try meringue cookies. Have a sweet night, everyone^^]

Having replied to the comments, A-jin gazed at the monitor with a satisfied smile.

She was a baking blogger.

Not a famous influencer by any means, but she had her own core fans.

She hadn't planned on starting a blog from the beginning.

She had simply posted pictures of her pretty cakes on SNS because she hated keeping them to herself, and the response was better than expected, so she kept going.

People were curious about her.

Some asked if she had a shop, others if they could buy her cakes or take classes.

Sometimes they called her a housewife, other times a college student, and occasionally an instructor.

A-jin closed her laptop and stretched her arms.

"Ah! I have homework to do."

A-jin already looked bored as she pulled her math textbook out of her schoolbag.

High school student was never one of the guesses people made about her in the blog.

*Ding-dong, ding-dong*

A-jin's phone alarm rang continuously.

-Ding- 'A-jin, can you come out now?'

-Ding- 'Come to Love Park.'

-Ding- 'A guy from school messaged me. Come out with me.'

-Ding- 'I don't want to go alone.'

-Ding- 'Hey? Why no reply?'

The number of messages from Cho-hee piled up quickly.

It was something that happened often, so A-jin didn't think much of it.

"If you're gonna do this, just call me."

A-jin stood up, pulling her pink tracksuit pants up to her waist.

She grabbed the matching pink zip-up hoodie from her closet.

* * *

As soon as A-jin entered the park entrance, Cho-hee waved her over urgently.

Her tight skinny jeans revealed the lines of her legs perfectly.

The baggy man-to-man tee hid her long arms completely, with only her fingertips peeking out.

After waving, her fingertips disappeared entirely into the sleeves.

It was spring, but the night air was still chilly.

"Cho-hee."

"A-jin, why'd you take so long?"

Cho-hee complained but sidled up to A-jin warmly and linked arms with her.

"What did you drag me out here in the middle of the night for?"

"That's what I'm saying. It's so annoying. If I shut them down cold, they call me rude. If I'm nice, they think I like them. What do they want from me? I'm exhausted. For real!"

A-jin was used to these complaints disguised as bragging and didn't react much.

It was something that never happened to her, so she couldn't really empathize.

She just nodded along as she listened.

Cho-hee had a beauty that anyone would acknowledge, and despite being a minor, she had a glamorous figure that rivaled any woman in her twenties.

When she wasn't in uniform, plenty of people mistook her for an adult, and older guys had thrown her leers before.

Dozens of SNS mentions and confessions from guys were just part of her daily routine.

In comparison, A-jin had never received a single confession.

Her curly hair was more messy than lush, her reading glasses made her look dim-witted, her braces stuck out, and her neglected lips were dry and chapped.

The most ridiculous part was the blunt bangs covering her forehead completely.

People found it strange that two completely mismatched girls were best friends.

Some friends whispered that they must want different things from each other.

To stand out or to ride on coattails.

But the truth was this.

A-jin didn't know much about playing the field, acting coy, or putting on airs.

A-jin was the only one who treated Cho-hee without prejudice.

Touched by that, Cho-hee opened up, and the two became inseparable.

"Who is it this time?"

At A-jin's question, Cho-hee shook her head.

"Not sure. Some guy named Choi Jong-min?"

"Choi Jong-min? First I've heard of him. Why'd you come out if you don't know him?"

"Oh? Uh... well. He's from school."

Cho-hee faltered for a moment at A-jin's question.

But she quickly played it off casually.

"I guess."

If he was a school friend, it probably wasn't dangerous.

Around this time last year, Cho-hee had come out for a confession just like today and nearly gotten seriously hurt when the guy swung at her in rage after her blunt rejection.

Luckily, a passerby intervened and averted disaster, but after that, whenever someone called her out at night, she always brought A-jin along.

"Wait here on this bench. I told him to meet at the exercise equipment."

"Got it. Scream if anything happens."

"Yeah."

After Cho-hee left, A-jin sat on the bench, checking her phone while waiting for her.

Then, someone approached from behind her.

A man in a neat suit holding a black long umbrella stood behind A-jin.

"Miss?"

The man bent at the waist and whispered in her ear.

Startled by the voice mixed with the wind, A-jin flinched and turned her head.

The man was there.

Her initial wariness eased at his neatly styled hair and tidy attire.

A-jin stood from the bench and replied.

"Yes?"

"Sorry, but could you give me directions? Which way to the Cultural Gymnasium?"

"Um... hold on."

Unsure how to explain, A-jin opened her map app.

"Take your time."

As she did, a sleazy smile crept across the man's face as he watched her.

It was a chilling smile, but A-jin chalked it up to the cold weather and kindly gave directions.

"It's a bit far to walk. Head out that way and you'll hit the subway station. Two stops from there."

A-jin pointed toward the park entrance with her finger.

But the man's tilted gaze was fixed on her butt.

"Oh, really? Thanks. Hey, miss, ever thought about being an extra? I'm the Extra Casting Director, and we're shooting at the Cultural Gymnasium right now. We're short on extras."

"Shooting?"

"Yeah. You're really pretty. Exactly the look I'm after. You could earn some pocket money too? Fifty thousand won an hour."

"Fifty thousand? No, I don't want to."

She was tempted by the fifty thousand, but she didn't believe the pretty compliment.

As A-jin refused, the man's expression grew urgent.

"Come on, just try it. Or want to come watch? Celebrities are there."

The man kept pressing, and A-jin kept refusing.

Frustrated by how she wouldn't budge, he grabbed her wrist and dragged her toward where his car was.

"Just come check it out."

A-jin panicked and struggled to shake off his hand.

"Why are you doing this? Let go!"

"Uncle's not a bad guy."

'No, you are a bad guy!'

A-jin couldn't overpower the sturdy adult man.

Despite her desperation, no cry for help escaped her lips.

Tears welled up in her eyes, and her feet dragged as much as they could to resist.

"Ack!"

At that moment, someone appeared and twisted the man's arm.

The man screamed, his face contorted in pain, and A-jin watched in shock.

Then she shifted her gaze to the benefactor who had saved her from the predicament.

'Uh... you.'

Her eyes widened in surprise at the completely unexpected person, turning into startled rabbit eyes.

It was Park Jun-woo.

Seowon High School's top student overall. The boyfriend of every girl's dreams.

Brains, height, looks, family background—he lacked nothing. He was every female student's fantasy and a school celebrity known to all.

But he showed no interest in anyone. He found girls annoying if they even tried to talk to him and treated them with such cold indifference it embarrassed onlookers.

* * *

"Park Jun-woo, come with me!"

Choi Jong-min pleaded desperately with Jun-woo.

But Jun-woo pretended not to hear, staring at his phone.

"Hey! Don't be a jerk—your friend's trying to get a girlfriend, and you won't help?"

"You can go alone."

"I'm too nervous!"

"No way. Korean Derby's on today."

"Just watch on your phone."

"......"

Choi Jong-min sulked, hurt by their shallow friendship losing to some soccer game.

Then, as if resolving himself, he dropped his trump card.

"Fine. I'll give you that Premier League limited edition uniform my dad brought back from England."

A uniform...

The sweet offer made Jun-woo pause for a second.

The limited edition uniform Jong-min mentioned couldn't be bought anymore, and even if it could, it'd cost way more than retail.

"I'm sacrificing it for the sake of love."

Choi Jong-min clutched his nose like he might cry.

Jun-woo shook his head at Jong-min's over-the-top act.

With a reluctant expression, he stood from his seat.

"Where'd you say to meet?"

* * *

[Son Heung-jin receives the ball in midfield. He dazzles past the defender with fancy skills. Oh, oh, oh—he's charging toward goal.]

*Beep-beep*

Jun-woo sat on the bench watching the game on his phone until Jong-min arrived.

But with only 5% battery left, the screen switched to power-saving mode and dimmed.

"Damn, right at the crucial moment."

His phone was about to die, and way over there, Jong-min was just standing around shyly, unable to even speak properly.

"Ah, seriously, Choi Jong-min. Useless."

He was pissed at missing the important soccer match.

Sighing as he looked up, he spotted a girl sitting on the bench next to his.

His eyes caught the item in her hand.

Even in the darkness, a flashy hot pink portable battery gleamed in his cornea.

"Should I ask to borrow it?"

He found himself in unfamiliar territory.

He'd never spoken to a stranger, nor wanted to.

Normally, he'd just let the phone die.

But this was the Korean Derby—you never knew when you'd catch it again.

As he agonized seriously, a man crept up behind the girl.

'Is that guy borrowing a battery too?'

He felt like he'd been too slow.

But the man's smile was off.

Jun-woo instantly clocked him as a creep.