Chapter 29 – You Have Been Read – Part 3

Chapter 29 – You Have Been Read – Part 3

As Lee Hyerim took her seat, Oh Jeonghoon subtly lowered his hand under the table.

The watch Lee Hyerim was wearing was as expensive as his own Candle Righteous Path watch.

“But seriously, aren’t you two a couple? Am I the only one feeling this strange atmosphere?”

Lee Hyerim’s white brow furrowed slightly, and the surrounding atmosphere quieted.

Because it felt like he was speaking rudely to someone he wasn’t close to.

Just as Lee Hyerim was about to speak, Woojin answered first.

“Jeonghoon, we’re not like that.”

“Oh, I just thought you two looked good together…”

Soon, drinks and snacks were set up, and Woojin spoke to the friend next to Oh Jeonghoon.

“Kangtae, do you often hear that you have good proportions?”

The compliments didn’t stop with him.

After a round of drinks, Woojin spoke to another person as well.

“Jeonghwan, you seem to be a really good swimmer. You snorkel and surf, too. Do you have any places you’d recommend?”

He also asked questions that brought up pleasant memories while complimenting them.

They smiled happily, unconsciously recalling times they were happy, and poured out interesting anecdotes.

While the essence of questions is to receive information, when Woojin distorts their form like this, the other person feels considerable pleasure.

Woojin exchanged stories, considering his friends’ values and current interests.

While everyone else had happy faces, only one person’s words grew fewer and fewer.

That was Oh Jeonghoon.

He was always someone who tried to dominate the atmosphere and make himself stand out rather than listen to others… Woojin was creating a stage for Oh Jeonghoon to play on.

With Lee Mina there, the reaction would come even faster.

Just then, Oh Jeonghoon subtly glanced at Minjae, who was small in stature and hadn’t been getting along well with his friends for a while.

Minjae was furtively checking the Mobile Trading System…

“Hey, staring at it like that won’t do anything. When the market closes, you should study. Study. You didn’t get into college by studying on your cellphone, did you? Hahahaha!”

“Huh?”

The psychology of elevating oneself by belittling others.

He targeted weak people and made them the butt of his jokes, thinking that if everyone laughed and chatted, the atmosphere would return to him.

At Minjae’s reserved words, Oh Jeonghoon put his arm around his shoulder and said,

“He’s sulking. He’s sulking. Hahahaha!”

As Oh Jeonghoon intended, he dominated the atmosphere.

Of course, it wasn’t the atmosphere he wanted.

Everyone was smiling bitterly at Oh Jeonghoon’s disregard and Minjae’s appearance.

Conversely, Oh Jeonghoon, who had a few drinks, didn’t properly grasp the atmosphere and spoke louder, as if he was enjoying himself.

At that moment, Woojin, who had slowly sipped his drink, fixed his gaze on Oh Jeonghoon.

Oh Jeonghoon’s nature, always wanting to be superior; if you slightly suppress that personality with the atmosphere, it will backfire and he will go wild to rise even higher.

And now.

To become what people commonly call an ‘insider’, Oh Jeonghoon jumped onto the stage.

All he had to do was watch.

Oh Jeonghoon doesn’t know what he did wrong, and just as he has always done, he continues to bully the weak.

Because it had worked until now.

Because making others look foolish to get a laugh was one of his secrets to success.

Oh Jeonghoon took Minjae’s bracelet and started talking loudly.

“That bracelet, what is it?”

“Oh? It’s called Hakuna Matata, they say it brings good luck if you wear it.”

“What kind of luck?”

“Oh…”

At the mention of luck, curiosity flickered in his friends’ eyes.

It was truly pure curiosity.

But Oh Jeonghoon was different.

“Luck? Luuuck?”

“Oh?”

Oh Jeonghoon subtly scanned his surroundings.

Curious glances, as expected, it was natural.

Oh Jeonghoon twisted the corners of his mouth and refilled Minjae’s glass.

“Looking for luck? Have you even tried? You don’t need a fashion bracelet if you just put in the effort, right? Don’t you know the saying that luck and opportunity belong to those who pursue them? If luck just comes to you because you wore a bracelet, that’s ridiculous. Do you actually believe in this stuff? Oh my… You idiot, that’s all superstition. Spend your time working hard instead of wearing a bracelet. Work hard.”

Oh Jeonghoon babbled, uttering seemingly profound words.

He wanted to show his superiority by mixing in some insults.

No, he wanted to appear like Woojin.

The problem was that it was going in the exact opposite direction of Woojin’s vibe.

Woojin’s friends felt pleasure conversing with him, but Minjae felt upset and simultaneously like he was being lectured.

And Minjae couldn’t overcome the sympathetic looks from his other friends.

Minjae stood up with a bitter expression.

“S-sorry. I’ll leave first.”

All of his friends’ gazes focused on Minjae and Oh Jeonghoon.

An awkward atmosphere.

“Are you g-going?”

“Hey…”

“Hey, it was just a joke, you punk…”

His friends were well aware of Oh Jeonghoon’s mistake.

But they couldn’t say anything harsh.

Because they were closer to Oh Jeonghoon, and Minjae was a quiet kid.

As his friends tried to comfort Minjae and assess Oh Jeonghoon, Woojin glanced at Lee Hyerim.

The only one who could oppose him in this situation was Lee Hyerim.

Someone who wasn’t in the same department, so she didn’t have to worry about others’ opinions.

Someone who had always lived life on her own terms.

And she absolutely despises people like Oh Jeonghoon.

If she were here…

As Woojin expected, she crossed her arms and spoke.

“How amusing. If I chased after luck, I’d be an idiot too, wouldn’t I?”

Everyone’s gaze sharply turned towards Lee Hyerim.

Lee Hyerim’s long, white fingers were revealed.

“This, Balsam Water. They say if you keep it until the first snow, love will come true, so I tried it. By your logic, I was an idiot, wasn’t I?”

“……”

Lee Hyerim stood up from her seat.

“Woojin, what kind of person is this? Not even a high schooler, did she graduate kindergarten? Why is she so childish?”

Oh Jeonghoon didn’t want to lose.

“What? Kindergarten?”

Lee Hyerim didn’t care and picked up her bag.

“I seem to have caused a stir. I’ll pay for the drinks. I listened patiently, but it’s so childish I can’t stand it anymore.”

Oh Jeonghoon called out to Lee Hyerim.

“Hey!”

Lee Hyerim looked Oh Jeonghoon up and down.

She truly looked at him like he was a bug.

“I might not know about superstitions, but there’s one thing I do know.”

“What?”

Lee Hyerim frowned as if she was in front of someone who smelled bad, and said,

“That everything you’re wearing is counterfeit.”

“What?”

“So cheap-looking… You must have no self-esteem to be walking around in fakes.”

Lee Hyerim then left a few checks on the table and walked out.

Woojin frowned, looking at his friends who were staring at Oh Jeonghoon, at Oh Jeonghoon who was trembling with misery under their gaze, and at Lee Hyerim who had stormed out.

Everyone is a marionette.