Omega Complex Novel (Completed) - Chapter 80

It was a single sentence packed with many meanings. It was ambiguous whether he was worried about their studies, or about the students themselves. It seemed to be the latter, as Kim Dohyun quietly added,

“Their family is very well-off, but they don’t pay attention to the child at home.”

“……Really?”

“Yes, and they don’t seem to get along at school either.”

He added that the student had a temper but was somewhat timid, and that it seemed to stem from being ostracized. Kim Dohyun sighed again. This time, it was a sigh of relief.

“I thought I couldn’t go tutoring today, so it’s a relief. They said they were home alone.”

“How long have you been tutoring?”

“Well……”

He touched his chin and narrowed his eyes. ‘About two weeks?’ At that answer, a thought naturally surfaced.

“You’re kind.”

Kim Dohyun suddenly stopped moving. He raised his head and looked at me, blinking slowly.

“……What’s kind?”

“It’s kind that you care about such things after only two weeks. You’d make a good teacher.”

A 9th grader was at an age sensitive about their privacy. The fact that Kim Dohyun knew so much information meant that the student relied on him.

“Hurry and go. The kid must be waiting.”

He didn’t say anything for a long time, then put his phone away. His back, as he hurried into the kitchen, somehow seemed embarrassed.

“Yoonwoo! Long time no see!”

After Kim Dohyun left and the number of customers had somewhat decreased, three familiar guys entered the pub. The shortest one raised a hand and greeted me loudly, followed by a gruff voice.

“What’s with ‘Sold Out’? That’s Choi Taegyeom’s doing, isn’t it?”

It was Jeon Raehyeon, Kang Minseo, and Lee Jihoon. They walked noisily inside, looking around the pub. It was clear they were looking for Choi Taegyeom, but unfortunately, he had just gone into the kitchen.

“Taegyeom’s in the kitchen.”

As I, with my hands free, approached them, the three guys made deflated expressions. They were always so honest with their expressions.

“Aw, what? No fun.”

“Yoonwoo, where should we sit?”

“But your business is doing well.”

I had become close with these guys after drinking at Lee Jihoon’s place last time. Although most of my memories are hazy from getting drunk so quickly, I remember us getting along without awkwardness.

“Sit over there, in the back. The entrance has people coming and going.”

I seated them close to the kitchen and pointed to a table. On the table was a small menu printed by Minjeong. Of course, it also didn’t list the types of alcohol.

“We have all kinds of alcohol. For food, mala tang sells best.”

“Wow, you sell mala tang?”

Jeon Raehyeon exclaimed in admiration and meticulously read the menu. Lee Jihoon pointed at my cap with curious eyes.

“What does Taegyeom say?”

I instinctively touched the brim of the cap. I still regretted that this cap wasn’t on Choi Taegyeom.

“……Handsome?”

“Not God?”

“It used to be God, but there were some circumstances.”

Just then, Park Sungjae came over to take an order at the next table, smiling brightly. The three guys nodded understandingly as they saw him. Perhaps because they had known Choi Taegyeom for a long time, they quickly caught on to the situation.

“So, what would you like?”

When I asked lightly, Lee Jihoon gave a pleasant smile. He pushed up his glasses and gestured towards the kitchen with his chin.

“We’ll order when Choi Taegyeom comes out.”

“Right, we came to cause trouble, so you shouldn’t take our order.”

“Don’t mind us, just do your work.”

Kang Minseo and Jeon Raehyeon chimed in one after another. At the part about coming to cause trouble, I let out an involuntary chuckle. I could clearly picture the mischief they would cause and Choi Taegyeom’s reaction.

“Don’t bother him too much.”

I let out a soft laugh and turned around. I saw Choi Taegyeom pulling back the plastic curtain and coming out of the kitchen. As soon as his eyes met mine, he gave a ticklish smile, then frowned when he saw his friends waving next to him.

“……Why are you guys here?”

I passed Choi Taegyeom and went to clear another table. It was getting late, so it was a little less busy than before. An hour ago, there hadn’t been any empty tables, but now about half were empty.

“Why are we here? We came to support you since you’re working.”

“They probably came to cause trouble. You guys pay 10,000 won per bottle. I don’t do this for just anyone.”

“What a thug. We’re going to our department’s pub.”

“Go ahead.”

Throughout clearing the tables, I heard Choi Taegyeom and his friends’ conversation. Choi Taegyeom spoke to them in a completely different tone than he used with me. I felt like he was being unusually prickly, but he probably wouldn’t act like that if they weren’t really close.

“Hey, ‘God’ is embarrassing, but ‘Handsome’ isn’t?”

“Can’t you guys just leave?”

“Give us about three services and we’ll leave.”

Choi Taegyeom openly showed his annoyance and went back into the kitchen, saying, “Eat what you’re given.” His friends looked bewildered, perhaps not expecting him to actually refuse to take their order.

“Hyung, are those Taegyeom hyung’s friends at that table?”

Park Sungjae came shuffling towards me, holding empty liquor bottles. Perhaps because his hands were large, he was holding six bottles in each hand, a total of twelve.

“Yeah, guys from the same department.”

“Really?”

Park Sungjae’s eyes glinted faintly. What was he thinking? A sly smile played on his lips. I really wished he wouldn’t make plans if he could help it. As soon as I thought that, his cheeks twitched with excitement.

“Then we should give them lots of service again.”

I didn’t tell him that they had said they’d go to the Business Department pub if they didn’t get three services. His bear-like, bulky figure swayed as he headed to the kitchen. I must be crazy, because that large frame even looked cute to me.

Park Sungjae didn’t come out of the kitchen for a long time. The same went for Choi Taegyeom, who had gone in earlier, so I had to go into the kitchen where they were, filled with curiosity. As soon as I pulled back the translucent curtain, I saw three people huddled together.

“What are you doing in here?”

The three of them were gathered around a box of alcohol, their faces full of mischief. Minjeong and Park Sungjae were one thing, but even Choi Taegyeom was like this. Park Sungjae, whose eyes gleamed, turned to me and secretly gestured.

“Hyung, come in.”

I slowly approached them. Their heads were together, looking more serious than ever. Minjeong, who had the most serious expression, pointed her thumb outwards.

“How many tables are left outside?”

“Well, about five tables?”

While they were in the kitchen, customers had ebbed away like a tide. The remaining tables, excluding Choi Taegyeom’s friends, were almost the last ones. Most would finish their bills and leave within 30 minutes at the latest.

“Five tables, huh……”

Minjeong touched her chin, lost in thought. Park Sungjae waited for her next words with a tense expression. After a brief silence, Minjeong slightly raised her eyes.

“Shall we stop taking customers?”

“Yes!”

A thunderous answer burst out. Park Sungjae quickly nodded, lest she change her mind. Despite his uncomfortably close face, Minjeong maintained her poker face. She just pushed Park Sungjae’s face away and smiled with a refreshed expression.

“Let’s close up shop.”

“To the Business God!”

“Cheers!”

Paper cups clinked silently. Choi Taegyeom sighed at the unagreed-upon toast, but it wasn’t a big problem for the club members. Each of them downed their drinks and chattered away.

“Good work, everyone!”

“Man, this pub is legendary, seriously.”

“Kuh, they pulled it off again. Being handsome really is the best!”

Soju bottles on the table, beer bottles under the table. Besides that, snacks that would easily cost 100,000 won at a bar, and all kinds of drinks.

‘Let’s close up shop.’

At Minjeong’s single word, Park Sungjae moved faster than ever. He went out of the kitchen to deliver the news and subtly started setting the stage. Fortunately, the remaining tables left the pub in less than 30 minutes, and only Choi Taegyeom’s friends remained.

‘You’re Taegyeom hyung’s friend, right?!’

As slyly as his eyes had gleamed, Park Sungjae actively enticed Choi Taegyeom’s friends. He told them they wouldn’t be taking any more customers, and asked if they’d like to drink together. Choi Taegyeom’s friends, whose sociability was inversely proportional to his, naturally accepted Park Sungjae’s offer, and soon the familiar recruitment began.

‘These days, even business needs sensibility.’

As soon as several blue plastic tables were joined together and snacks were laid out, Park Sungjae settled down near them. In his hands were one soju bottle and two beer bottles. To those staring blankly at him, Park Sungjae recited a very familiar line.

‘By any chance, do you like Shakespeare?’

How that pattern never seemed to change. Anyway, he was known for his shamelessness. You could tell by how he stubbornly pushed the same line, even though business majors who liked Shakespeare were rare.

“Oh, hyung, you came out of there too? Me too!”

Regardless, Park Sungjae succeeded in his sales pitch. It wasn’t because they liked Shakespeare, but thanks to Minjeong’s single remark: “There’s a lot of drinking.” Considering Park Sungjae did more work but Minjeong had more success, it reinforced the idea that Minjeong was indeed the true power.

“Thanks to you two, we’re completely in the black.”

Minjeong personally mixed drinks and placed them in front of me and Choi Taegyeom. Choi Taegyeom naturally took the paper cup placed in front of me and instead offered me a cup with a soft drink. Seeing this, Minjeong clicked her tongue, calling it overprotective.

I replied nonchalantly and took the soft drink Choi Taegyeom offered.

“Well…… everyone came to see him.”

Even if you said ‘you two,’ about 80% of it was Choi Taegyeom’s share. Until the very end, gazes full of ulterior motives were directed at Choi Taegyeom. Thinking that it was all over now, I finally let out a sigh of relief.

“It’s not like no one came to see you, oppa.”

Minjeong said, sipping her drink. From her tone, it sounded more like a polite remark.

“Oppa, you’re quite popular in our department. There aren’t really any good-looking people in English Lit, so you and Kim Dohyun are basically carrying the department.”

It was a blunt assessment, even though most of the club members were English Literature majors. Of course, the surrounding club members didn’t strongly object to Minjeong’s words. Instead, they even agreed, saying it was true.

“Even without Taegyeom sunbae, we probably would have avoided a deficit. Of course, the surplus is thanks to sunbae.”

Minjeong pointed at Choi Taegyeom with her cleanly split wooden chopsticks. Then, with neat chopstick skills, she brought a piece of rolled omelet to her own plate.

“Good work. Honestly, it must have been annoying.”

Choi Taegyeom turned his head and looked at me. His top hair was slightly pressed down from wearing the cap all day. He looks handsome even with his hair pressed down, I thought, and then he softly curved his eyes.

“It was kind of fun.”

“Then that’s good.”

He probably didn’t mean the work itself was fun. If I had to pick a reason, it would be that he enjoyed me throwing a tantrum out of jealousy. Or that he liked playing around with the cap. Either way, Minjeong wouldn’t know.

“But since when was running a pub illegal?”

“It’s been a while, probably? It’s not something I should say as someone who ran a pub, but it makes sense for it to be illegal. There are more than one or two guys who cause trouble after drinking at festivals.”

No sooner had she finished speaking than a clattering sound was heard. It was the sound of Park Sungjae knocking over the extra chairs he had stacked next to him. Seeing this, Minjeong coldly spat out,

“Guys like that.”

“Why did this fall over?!”

Park Sungjae’s face was already flushed with alcohol. It hadn’t been long since the toast, but he seemed to have drunk a whole crate by himself. Or perhaps he just got drunk exceptionally early today.

“Hey, you, just sit still.”

At Minjeong’s words, Park Sungjae’s eyes widened. Then he suddenly stood up, dragged a chair, and approached Minjeong. He carelessly placed the chair down and plopped onto it. His grinning face was truly innocent.

“Then make me a so-maek.”

Minjeong, despite her annoyed expression, obediently brought the liquor bottles. As he skillfully mixed the drinks, Choi Taegyeom’s friends also showed interest. True to his reputation for mixing drinks at a perfect ratio in any glass, four bomb shots were quickly completed.

“Wow, Shiba, this club has talent!”

“I’ve never seen anyone mix drinks better than Kang Minseo.”

“How do you pour it into a paper cup without making foam?”

I had felt it last time too, but Choi Taegyeom’s friends really loved alcohol. Looking at Minjeong with sparkling eyes, it seemed like their joining the club was a foregone conclusion. Choi Taegyeom must have thought so too, as he shook his head while dishing out snacks for me.

The drinking party continued for quite a long time after that. Someone stole pizza cheese from another pub, and someone else brought tonic water. By the time they made new rolled omelets with the stolen cheese and drank fruit soju mixed with tonic water, a drunken Park Sungjae was clinging to Minjeong, sobbing.

“Don’t get a job, let’s go to school together forever. Please?”

“……You’re cursing me, you’re cursing me.”

Minjeong, with a bewildered expression, pushed away the clinging Park Sungjae. Asking if he was still holding a grudge about that, if she was going to die or something. She asked if he knew how hard she worked not to take a leave of absence, then finally, with a deep sigh, she patted Park Sungjae.

“Please act your age. You’re not a child, what is this?”

“Hooong, I want to be a child……”

Sniffling sounds were heard. Seeing him even sniffle, it seemed he wasn’t just pretending to cry. The people around giggled and teased Park Sungjae, but the large, baby bear couldn’t compose his emotions and clung to Minjeong.

“Oh dear, he’s really heartbroken.”

They weren’t going to be separated forever, so why was he so upset? They were just leaving school, but they would still be friends. Even if they met less often, nothing would change, would it?

“Don’t you think you’d be sad?”

Then, suddenly, Choi Taegyeom asked. He placed his hand on my thigh and tilted his head to look at me.

“If I graduate before you, are you confident you wouldn’t be like that?”

“That’s……”

I opened my mouth confidently, then stopped mid-sentence. His intense gaze felt as if it was binding my entire body. I blinked, and the hypothetical situation that had surfaced in my mind became increasingly clear.

It was different from enduring five years without seeing Choi Taegyeom. Back then, Choi Taegyeom was in the same space as me, but later, he would be in a space I didn’t know. A school without Choi Taegyeom. A future where he graduates from school, gets a job elsewhere, and walks a different path than me.

“……”

Unlike the past, where I naturally assumed we would always be together, I no longer felt certain that we would continue to be together. It wasn’t the anxiety of him leaving me, but the uncertainty of where he would go that frightened me. The parts I had forgotten because we had always been together until now pressed down on me suffocatingly.

“……I don’t know.”

If he hadn’t taken a leave of absence, and had left school before me like Minjeong, would I have reacted differently from Park Sungjae? Even Park Sungjae, who was just a friend, was like this; could I have maturely supported his future and focused on our separate lives?

“That’s why I took a leave of absence.”

Choi Taegyeom provided the conclusion for me. His gently lowered voice softly soothed my fearful heart. I held his hand on my thigh and replied in a small voice. Perhaps, I might have been as upset as Park Sungjae.