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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 61
Chapter Title: Wonderland Where Love Blooms
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“What are we doing this Saturday?”
Jun-woo asked A-jin.
Spending weekends together had somehow become the norm.
“Right. I can’t do this Saturday.”
His eyebrows curved inward as he wondered what other plans she could possibly have.
“Why not?”
“Ho-jin’s coming over to my place.”
“What?”
He sharply furrowed his brow.
He asked again, wondering if he’d misheard.
“We have a group project, remember? We decided to do it at my house.”
His heart, which had barely settled, started racing again.
“Are you really that naive, or just an idiot?”
“Why are you mad again?”
As he got angry once more, A-jin wrinkled her brow, wondering what was wrong this time.
A long sigh escaped his lips.
He looked like a teacher at a loss for where to even begin the lesson.
“Your parents work on weekends, don’t they?”
“Yeah.”
“So no one will be home. And you’re planning to bring a guy into an empty house like that?”
“Bring a guy?”
“What kind of world do we live in these days? You’re really fearless. He’s eighteen.”
“So what if he’s eighteen? You’ve been to my house too.”
She just didn’t get it, and it was driving him crazy.
“Is he the same as me?”
“We’re just classmates. What’s the big deal? He doesn’t even like me.”
“You sure about that? That he doesn’t like you? Even if he doesn’t, he’s still a guy. You think he won’t get any weird ideas if you two are alone in an empty house?”
“Weird ideas?”
He was speechless at her innocent gaze.
What was he supposed to say to that?
He couldn’t answer.
Because answering would be admitting his own feelings.
He couldn’t taint her pure heart with his impure thoughts.
“Anyway, no way!”
“Then where should we do it? Go to Ho-jin’s house?”
That was just as bad, wasn’t it?
Jun-woo glared at her, fuming.
“Are you doing this on purpose?!”
“No, I’m asking where we should do it then. But why have you been so irritated since earlier?”
Irritated?
And whose fault was that?
“Me? When?”
“Since earlier…”
“Whatever. No house. If you really want to do it, come to my place.”
“Your house?”
She stared at him in bewilderment.
Her expression said there was no way she’d go to his house when they weren’t even that close.
* * *
Ji-yeon’s body flew through the air and slammed hard against the wall.
It was the same situation as last time, but the force was even greater.
Rubbing her aching back against the wall, Ji-yeon spat curses while glaring at Cho-hee.
“Damn it! What the hell is your problem?”
Cho-hee planted a hand on the wall, trapping Ji-yeon, and looked down at her with menacing eyes.
“It was you.”
“What?”
Ji-yeon tried not to be intimidated by Cho-hee’s presence.
“How does it feel eavesdropping like a filthy rat?”
“What are you even talking about?”
“Fun, right? Must’ve been hilarious. I had a good time too.”
“I have no idea what you’re saying, sis.”
“You’re so stupid.”
“What?”
Ji-yeon bristled, raising her eyes even higher.
“You heard it in the bathroom. My phone call.”
“What phone call? Are you thinking I spread the rumor about your parents’ divorce?”
“I never said that.”
Ji-yeon faltered, caught in her own trap.
“No. Then why the hell are you doing this?”
Cho-hee straightened up with a leisurely smile.
She played a recorded file from her phone.
[“But Cho-hee sis doesn’t know you spread the rumor, right?”
One of the group whispered to Ji-yeon.
“How would that bitch know whether I spread it or not.”
“Still, that sis seemed kinda scary. What if she finds out you talked? She won’t let it slide, right? Like last time…”
“Hey! What’s she gonna do if she doesn’t let it slide? If she pulls that crap on me one more time, it won’t end with just rumors.”]
The audio ended.
Ji-yeon’s pupils dilated wildly at the irrefutable evidence.
Cho-hee flashed another leisurely smile.
“That’s you, isn’t it?”
“P-prove it’s me.”
“Nope.”
“See? It might not even be me.”
“Don’t most people say ‘it wasn’t me’?”
“Huh? Yeah. It wasn’t me.”
Cho-hee sneered at Ji-yeon’s stupidity.
“Oh? Then who was it? Hey, maybe I should play it over the school broadcast. That’ll reveal who it is. Oh, and this bitch badmouthing other girls too.”
“Are you threatening me right now?”
“Threatening? You said it wasn’t you.”
Anyone could tell it was Ji-yeon’s voice.
Ji-yeon realized there was no escape.
She had to do something before public execution.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she made a pitiful face.
“S-so what do you want? If it’s an apology, I’ll do it. I’m sorry. I was wrong.”
“Don’t need your apology. The rumor’s already spread everywhere. It’s not like saying sorry makes it go away.”
“Then what do you want?”
As soon as Ji-yeon finished speaking, a sharp slap echoed through the hallway.
Cho-hee struck Ji-yeon’s cheek.
Stunned by the shock, Ji-yeon froze for a moment.
“Y-you just hit me…”
Another sharp slap rang out.
Cho-hee slapped her other cheek.
Ji-yeon staggered, clutching the remaining stinging cheek.
If the first had left her dazed, the second snapped her back to reality.
Tears brimming, she glared at Cho-hee with murderous intent.
But Cho-hee just chuckled as if it were amusing.
Her smile was relaxed, her eyes downright vicious.
“Can’t take back a rumor that’s already out there, so at least make me feel better since it’s come to this.”
“Even so…”
“That’s why I told you not to mess around. If you want to keep that pretty face intact.”
Cho-hee leaned in threateningly, and the scared Ji-yeon flinched.
She feared another hit.
Cho-hee gently stroked Ji-yeon’s hair as she spoke.
“One was for me, one for my mom. I’m being nice letting it end with two. So, junior, don’t ever act up again.”
* * *
They arrived at Wonderland.
“I’m gonna hit the bathroom first.”
As soon as they entered the gate, A-jin said.
“Sis, I’ll go with you.”
Min-young chimed in sweetly and followed A-jin.
With the two girls off to the bathroom, Jong-min sidled up to Jun-woo.
Jun-woo’s face was full of dissatisfaction.
“What? Scared of the rides?”
“Wanna die?”
Jun-woo shot him a deadly glare.
He’d wanted to come alone with A-jin, but Jong-min and Min-young had crashed the party without reading the room.
“Hey! Heard Ho-jin’s going to your place?”
“How’d you know?”
Jong-min smirked smugly and jerked his head.
“A-jin and I are BFFs.”
Jun-woo’s expression turned deadly again.
Jong-min caught on and stopped his teasing.
“Hey, are you so blinded by jealousy you’re gonna mess with kids doing homework? Does Ho-jin know too?”
“Yeah.”
“And A-jin’s cool with it?”
A-jin was fine with it.
Honestly, that stung a bit.
It felt like she trusted some other guy besides him.
“Oppa, let’s hurry and ride!”
Just then, A-jin and Min-young returned from the bathroom.
The paired-up four headed to the first ride.
“Our cutie, sit here.”
The first ride was the teacups.
Jong-min escorted Min-young into the cup like she was royalty.
“Safety belt so our cutie doesn’t get hurt.”
He even buckled her in himself.
Jun-woo felt like he might puke up breakfast at his friend’s cutesy antics.
A-jin sat in the teacup first and said.
“Jong-min’s so sweet.”
Was that sweet?
Was she hoping for it?
Should he buckle hers too?
As he pondered, he reached for her belt.
But she was quicker than expected.
“Yours is over there.”
She’d already buckled up and pointed to the other side for his.
His extended hand felt awkward, so he twisted his body into a fake stretch.
Next up was the Viking.
He upped the ante.
“Oppa, this looks scary.”
Min-young clung tightly to Jong-min’s arm, acting cute.
“Don’t worry. Your oppa’s here.”
Jong-min patted his chest proudly.
‘They’re playing around.’
Jun-woo sneered inwardly at Jong-min.
“This does look kinda scary.”
A-jin was spooked by the screams from the ride.
Jun-woo started to place a hand on his chest but slid it down instead.
“Don’t worry. I’ll…”
“I don’t think I can ride. I’ll wait down here. You go ahead.”
He’d tried to reassure her gently, but A-jin backed out and headed down the queue backward alone.
The cuddly Jong-min and Min-young looked kinda cute.
He envied their easy affection, which he couldn’t pull off.
Jong-min was sweet, even buckling her belt.
Not wanting to stare enviously, he quickly buckled his own.
Gazing up at the towering Viking made him dizzy for a second.
The pendulum swings messed with his eyes.
The screams were scary too.
As he came down alone from the Viking, Jun-woo followed.
“Why aren’t you riding?”
“Not feeling it.”
He shook his head like it was no big deal.
“You didn’t come down because of me?”
A-jin looked sorry, but he smiled and denied it.
“Nah. I’m not big on rides anyway.”
“Then we came here for nothing?”
A-jin looked apologetic again.
She was the one who’d suggested the amusement park.
As she pouted guiltily, he grabbed her hand.
“You think there’s only rides here? Come on.”
* * *
“Eek!”
A-jin screamed and leaned into Jun-woo.
She screamed, but her face was smiling.
She flinched at the tiger face pressed to the window, scared yet thrilled.
Every time the tiger or bear leaned in, she pulled back from her window seat.
Each time, she threw herself into his arms.
Then met his eyes with an excited grin.
Fun, right?
He was smiling too.
Not because of the tiger, but because she kept leaning into him—he couldn’t help it.
Picking the safari had been a stroke of genius.
* * *
After splitting up to enjoy separately, they met Jong-min and Min-young again as evening fell.
They found a gourmet burger joint.
The burgers were like towers.
Packed with thick patties and fresh veggies, they were too big for one hand.
Jong-min cut Min-young’s burger, making a show of it.
“Oppa will cut it for you. Cute and tiny like our Min-young.”
He was annoyingly loud just cutting one burger.
Jun-woo eyed Jong-min disapprovingly.
But he couldn’t just sit there.
Jun-woo reached for A-jin’s burger with a knife.
But she’d already started cutting.
Others struggled just to slice it with a knife, but for someone great at cooking and baking, it was nothing.
She cut it neatly, not a veggie out of place.
“Wow, sis, I’ve never seen anyone cut a burger like that.”
Min-young marveled, comparing it to Jong-min’s cut.
A-jin brushed it off bashfully, while Jun-woo felt awkward with his unnecessary knife and switched to slicing his own.
It was a mess.
“Let me do it.”
A-jin swapped her burger with his.
He nearly grinned, proud of his girlfriend’s skills, shoulders puffing up.
But he composed his face to save face.
“Our cutie, try this too.”
“No, oppa eat first. Ahh.”
Jong-min speared a fry and fed Min-young.
She fired back, feeding him one too.
Jun-woo’s stomach churned worse.
“I’m gonna hit the bathroom.”
“Want oppa to come with?”
Jong-min said to Min-young.
This time, Jun-woo couldn’t hold back and shot him a dirty look.
After Min-young left for the bathroom, Jun-woo said.
“Cut it out.”
“What?”
“You’re really making me nauseous.”
“Take some digestive meds then.”
“Can’t you tone it down? Save it for when you’re alone.”
Jun-woo grimaced irritably.
“What?”
Jong-min looked like he was overreacting to nothing, and A-jin, amused by their bickering, sided with Jong-min.
“Why? It’s cute. He’s sweet to his girlfriend. Min-young seems to love it.”
“Hear that? It’s cute. You’re supposed to be sweet to your girlfriend. No girl falls for a stiff like you. A-jin, you’ve got it rough.”
Jong-min looked at A-jin pityingly.
Jun-woo scoffed, lips twitching, while A-jin shook her head, correcting him.
“No. Jun-woo’s really good to me. So sweet.”
If it weren’t for A-jin, Jun-woo might’ve flung a fork at Jong-min.
His shoulders puffed up again at her words.
“Him? Pfft, a stray dog on the street’s sweeter. No need to sugarcoat your boyfriend.”
Jong-min waved his fork, telling him not to bother.
Should he snatch that fork and chuck it?
Jun-woo glared at Jong-min.
“I don’t do that in front of people. Do you have to go that far when everyone’s watching?”
“Who cares if people see? As long as she likes it.”
Jong-min sassed back, popping a burger piece in his mouth.
He was annoying, but not wrong.
Jun-woo reflected: had he been too conscious of others’ eyes?
