Chapter 104: Academy Heroine's Right Diagonal Back Seat
Chapter 104
The day I was forced to go on a blind date by my mother.
Marin Eloise, who was planning to dress up casually because she didn't expect much, had been stuck in front of the dressing table for hours against her will.
This was all due to her childhood friend, Florene Dolos, who was eagerly making her up, having been asked by Marin's mother to make her look so stunning that anyone would fall for her.
Despite asking for just a casual look, Florene, who didn't know the meaning of 'casual' when it came to dressing up, insisted, "I'll make you the prettiest you can be today!" And Marin simply let her do as she wished.
Florene, usually a troublemaker who caused various problems if Marin wasn't around, had a surprising talent for styling, probably due to her obsession with beautiful and handsome things.
At first, Marin thought Florene's passion for dressing up was just a childhood hobby, but it had grown to the point where the designer clothes and cosmetics she created sold like hotcakes.
Florene, who was from the Dolos family known for their incredible strength, had once split a piano in half during a piano lesson they took together as children. It was astonishing that someone with such strength had a talent for delicate work.
Looking at herself changing under Florene's touch, Marin thought, "You never know what life has in store."
Soon after, Florene's busy hands stopped, and she exclaimed with satisfaction.
"Kyaaa, Marin, you're so beautiful! You look like a princess! You're the prettiest person I've ever made up!"
Marin admired her reflection in the mirror. She finally understood those parts in novels where a female protagonist who had never dressed up before looks in the mirror and whispers, "Is this... me?"
It felt like she was looking at a completely different person.
As she stared at the mirror, Florene initiated a video call with Marin's parents, whose faces appeared on the screen.
[Oh, honey, look at our daughter. There's no man who wouldn't fall for her, right?]
[Ugh, it's so sad to have to give our beautiful daughter to some guy... Marin, your father is heartbroken.]
[Honey, shut up. Anyway, my dear, do well. You need to capture his heart from the first meeting. If necessary, make it a done deal. I lied about being safe when I first met your dad.]
[...What? You did?]
The people on the screen were renowned heroes, respected by many...
Seeing them already excited and confident that things would go well, Marin was simply at a loss for words.
Nodding her head appropriately, Marin ended the call and thanked Florene, who had spent so much time on her.
"Thank you, Florene, for taking the time to do this for me."
"Hehe, it's nothing! I was happy to dress you up! You're meeting Yoon Si-woo from Class A, right? I can't wait to see how beautiful the baby between you two would be! Don't worry, I'll make all the baby clothes!"
"What baby clothes..."
Already feeling a headache from Florene's eagerness, Marin couldn't bring herself to say that she planned to reject the match and quietly sighed.
---
The place Marin and Yoon Si-woo were meeting was a famous restaurant that required high status to even make a reservation.
They had to choose such a place because if the recent sensation, Yoon Si-woo, and the daughter of the Eloise couple were seen together, it would cause a huge commotion.
So, to avoid any scandals, they met at a place where paparazzi or journalists wouldn't have a reason to snoop around.
Marin, entering the reserved room in the late evening, saw Yoon Si-woo already seated and found herself holding her breath.
"Nice to meet you. We've met before, right?"
"...Yes, nice to meet you, Yoon Si-woo."
He looked like the male protagonist of a novel.
She had thought he was handsome when she first saw him, but how could someone look so stunning?
Wearing a black suit contrasting his pure white hair, he looked so impressive that Marin's heart raced, despite her intention to reject him.
Thinking she would have been too embarrassed to face him without Florene's makeover, Marin sat down and met Yoon Si-woo's calm eyes.
Unlike her nervousness, his eyes were steady and serene.
Was her effort in dressing up meaningless?
With a wry smile, Marin spoke to Yoon Si-woo.
"I'm sorry if this is inconvenient for you. My mother can be quite forceful. I'm afraid we've troubled you."
"Haha... No, it's okay. Actually, I should apologize..."
Seeing Yoon Si-woo's slightly troubled smile, Marin felt she knew what he was about to say and forced a smile.
She knew, but it still hurt a little.
If he had no interest at all, he wouldn't have come to this meeting in the first place.
She had intended to dress casually, knowing this was going to be a rejection, but now that she had put effort into it, she felt regret.
"If you're going to say you're going to reject me, you don't have to. I already know."
So, she said it first before he could.
She didn't want to hear rejection from someone she had a slight interest in.
Yoon Si-woo's eyes widened at her words.
To get rid of any lingering regrets, she added another comment.
"You already have someone you like, right? Scarlet Evande."
"Uh..."
Mentioning the person she saw him with at the department store a few days ago, Yoon Si-woo's voice faltered, and his face turned red.
He can make that kind of expression too.
Seeing him look embarrassed and avoiding her gaze, Marin found it a bit amusing.
"Was it that obvious?"
"Didn't you make it obvious on purpose? I thought you were trying to ward off other girls by flaunting it."
"That wasn't my intention... Oh, really..."
Yoon Si-woo muttered, his head hanging low.
She had thought he was a player, but he was surprisingly naive.
Finding his reaction unexpectedly cute, Marin chuckled, causing Yoon Si-woo to lower his head even more, embarrassed.
"Anyway, I knew this wouldn't work out. But since we’re here, let's talk for a bit before we leave."
"...Alright. Talking is good..."
Yoon Si-woo, his face still red, gulped down a glass of water.
Marin, smiling softly at him, asked,
"Then, tell me how you came to like Scarlet Evande."
"Um, uh... What?"
"Since you've already rejected me, you can at least tell me that, right? Or do you not want to?"
Asking teasingly, Yoon Si-woo, perhaps choked up, coughed and stuttered.
Though his face was red, it might have just been from embarrassment.
"Well, there's no special reason..."
"There's always a reason. What was it?"
"Um... When I first saw her, I just thought she was interesting... But as I kept seeing her, I started noticing her good qualities..."
"What good qualities?"
"...Her kindness to others, her heroic nature... And when she smiles, even though she's usually expressionless, it's really beautiful..."
"I see..."
Seeing Yoon Si-woo blush and shyly yet happily list Scarlet's good qualities, Marin felt herself blushing in turn.
Still, she found it fascinating.
It felt more heart-fluttering than reading a romance novel.
This wasn't just a crush; he was completely head over heels.
With that thought, Marin asked Yoon Si-woo,
"I’m curious, if you like her so much, why did you become a hero? Don’t you miss the time you could spend with her?"
At her question, Yoon Si-woo paused before answering.
"Of course, I miss her... but Scarlet asked me to become a hero. She hoped that seeing me might help people forget their sorrows, even just a little."
Marin was slightly taken aback by this backstory behind Yoon Si-woo becoming a hero. She recalled Scarlet’s reaction during their recent conversation. Scarlet had no idea that Yoon Si-woo liked her.
Yoon Si-woo must know that she doesn't realize his feelings, yet he still became a hero to fulfill her request.
That seemed like an unfair deal for Yoon Si-woo...
Thinking this, Marin asked him,
"Are you really okay with that? Scarlet..."
"It’s fine. I’m doing it because I want to," Yoon Si-woo quickly replied, as if he understood what Marin was about to say.
He continued with a slight smile,
"I like her because she makes such requests, and I want to become strong to fulfill them. It doesn’t bother me at all."
Looking into Yoon Si-woo’s eyes, Marin couldn’t help but mutter,
"You’re really stupid..."
Marin had seen that look before.
Once, when her parents were drinking together, her father had asked if there was anything her mother wanted. Her mother, jokingly, asked him to fetch the moon. Her father, with a look similar to Yoon Si-woo’s, had actually started building a ladder to reach the sky to get the moon.
If her mother hadn’t stopped him, he might have really tried to get the moon, because he would do anything for her.
Marin had called her father foolish back then too.
But deep down, every woman dreams of a man who would do anything for her.
Feeling a bit embarrassed, Marin looked at Yoon Si-woo and said,
"How can you say such embarrassing things so easily to someone you barely know?"
"Uh... that... well..."
"But it was quite cool. Ah, Scarlet is so lucky! She probably doesn’t even realize how fortunate she is to have someone like you like her. I wish I had met you a bit sooner."
"Ahaha..."
Seeing Yoon Si-woo laugh awkwardly at her honest words, Marin smiled.
With that, all her regrets disappeared.
Feeling much lighter, Marin said,
"Anyway, I enjoyed our conversation. It was fun even if it wasn’t the original purpose. Shall we get going?"
"Ah, can I ask you for a favor?"
"A favor?"
Tilting her head at Yoon Si-woo's unexpected request as they were about to leave, she listened as he hesitated, unsure if he should ask.
"Um... if possible, could you become friends with Scarlet?"
Marin couldn't hide her astonishment as she responded,
"...Are you seriously asking the girl you just rejected to befriend the girl you like? That's unbelievable."
"Uh... well..."
Knowing it was a rude request, Yoon Si-woo looked troubled. Seeing this, Marin let out a laugh and said,
"Well, okay. If someone you like is as good a person as you, she must be worth befriending. But I have a request too, will you listen?"
When Yoon Si-woo nodded, Marin smiled and said,
"I’ll become friends with Scarlet, so you be friends with me. I want to build connections with a promising hero."
"...Alright. Let's do that."
"Friends don’t talk formally to each other, you know."
When she said that, Yoon Si-woo smiled and replied,
"Okay. I look forward to being friends, Marin."
With that, Marin gave the brightest smile she had that day.
The joy of making a good friend outweighed the bittersweet feelings of unrequited love.
---
Meetings of the city's upper class were often held in secure, luxurious restaurants to avoid prying eyes.
Sylvia Astra, the young heir of the influential Astra family, was leaving one such restaurant late at night after a prolonged meeting.
If I go back home, I can finally spend time with Scarlet.
As she was thinking this, she heard a familiar voice.
"Si-woo, I had a great time today. See you next time."
"Yeah, see you."
Sylvia turned her head and saw Yoon Si-woo, dressed in a suit, laughing with a beautifully dressed woman with blue hair.
Is that Marin from Class B?
Why are they together in a place like this when they barely talked at the academy?
Instinctively hiding where they wouldn’t see her, Sylvia watched them. As she did, she saw the door of another room open.
"Today was fun. Will you invite me again?"
"Of course, sweetheart. We’ll have fun again next time."
The couple who emerged were a well-known businessman and a heavily made-up woman.
As they kissed goodbye, Sylvia tilted her head.
Wait, isn’t that businessman married? But that woman isn’t his wife.
Remembering how the family elders had warned her that this restaurant was often used by high-ranking officials for secret trysts and advised her not to reveal what she saw here, Sylvia’s eyes widened.
A tryst, could it be...
A scenario quickly formed in Sylvia's mind: Scarlet Evande’s tragic story of falling in love with a handsome playboy, giving her body and soul, and ultimately meeting a lonely end.
Ahahaha XD I like this misuderstanding
ReplyDeleteLol
ReplyDeleteOh dear, the already poor impression of siwoo is falling even more, rip heh
ReplyDeleteThat moon thing was actually pretty romantic
ReplyDelete