NN 05

Chapter 5

“Men? You?”

The girls’ mouths dropped open.

I had no idea what was so shocking about it. Didn’t everyone date and have sex?

“Yes, me. A man.”

“Who? No, why? Are you doing some kind of biological experiment or something?”

How did she know? I was startled by the insight of the medium-height girl. Was she using mind-reading, mind-reading techniques, or some kind of supernatural power?

I was a living organism. Since I was using my own body and mind for a self-experiment, calling it a biological experiment was not entirely wrong.

“Isn’t she in Philosophy? She’s a humanities student. Do they even have something like that?”

Just as I was about to answer, the tallest girl shot back. The two of them looked at each other and burst into giggles.

What was so funny just now? I couldn’t understand the girls’ sense of humor.

Holding onto something I didn’t understand wasn’t my preference. Right now, finding out the identity of the medium-height girl was the priority.

“How did you know?”

“What, really? It really is a biological experiment?”

What? Had she just guessed?

The medium-height girl covered her mouth with her hand and started hitting the short girl sitting beside her. The corner of her mouth, hidden behind her hand, was clearly raised, as if she had discovered something interesting.

Judging from that reaction, I could conclude that she hadn’t used mind-reading or some similar supernatural ability.

“I got my hopes up for nothing.”

When I muttered that, the medium-height girl tilted her head as if she had no idea what I meant.

“Who’s the guy you’re trying to seduce? Korean?”

After a brief commotion, the tall girl spoke as if to organize the conversation. Her face was flushed from the alcohol, and it was full of amusement.

No, seriously. What exactly was so funny?

“No, British.”

“British? Philosophy?”

There were about 25,000 students at Cambridge University. Would knowing the department really help? I began to question the intelligence of the medium-height girl, who kept throwing questions at me as if she were interrogating me.

“Why are you curious about that? He’s in Mathematics.”

“Is he from Emma College?”

“No, probably King’s College.”

“What do you mean, ‘probably’? Don’t you know him well?”

“He’s in the King’s College choir. So he must be from King’s College.”

“Mathematics, choir? Don’t tell me… Elias Montague?”

The medium-height girl asked in horror. I was just as shocked as she was.

How did she know?

Goosebumps rose along my arms. I hugged my arms.

“Do you have some kind of telepathy or something?”

“Telepathy? What’s that?”

While we were having a serious discussion about the identity of the medium-height girl, the short girl frowned.

“Elias Montague…”

“Why? Do you know him?”

“Not directly. I just heard some rumors…”

“Rumors? What kind of rumors?”

Just then, the medium-height girl reached across the table and lightly tapped the short girl’s arm. When the short girl tilted her head, the medium-height girl giggled.

“Leave her alone. It’s funny.”

“Is it?”

The two exchanged glances before turning their bodies toward me. Whatever the reason, judging from their changed posture, they seemed ready to accept my S.O.S.

“What do you need our help with?”

Finally, we were getting somewhere.

I gave the short girl a clear answer.

“Dating coaching. And lend me some clothes. Something that works well on men. You girls have lots of that kind of stuff, right?”

How many times had I been rejected in my life?

In the first place, I rarely put myself in situations where I could be rejected.

The last time I had been rejected was when I failed to get into Oxford.

It wasn’t a problem because I had been accepted into Cambridge, but it hadn’t been a pleasant experience.

Yesterday, I experienced all of those unpleasant feelings at once.

<Clothes are kind of… You don’t really wash yourself… No, I mean… Sorry. But I’ll give you dating advice. What do you want to know?>

Not only had Elias rejected me, but the girls had also refused to lend me their clothes.

But I was not someone who would be defeated by that.

<Then coach me on what I should do now.>

It was 1 a.m.

Even at that late hour, the girls listened carefully to my worries.

<You suddenly asked him out on a date like that? Even I would have freaked out.>

<You’re a Spring Warm, so bright-colored tops would look good on you. White, pastel tones, things like that.>

From my situation with Elias to how to apply makeup and how to coordinate clothes, they gave me all kinds of advice.

They didn’t lend me their clothes, but they had still given me their advice sincerely.

This morning, I woke up early, hurriedly washed myself, and went out into the streets.

Then I headed to the Grand Arcade to visit the clothing brand the short girl had mentioned last night, “Macio.”

The Grand Arcade was an old shopping mall in the Market Square shopping district surrounding Cambridge University.

It was about a twenty-minute walk from Emma College. I had come here once, maybe two years ago, to buy a pair of training pants.

Various brands, from low-priced to mid-range, had stores here, and the Macio store I was looking for was on the second floor.

I took the central escalator to the second floor, then turned around and looked down at the main hall.

It was already the end of November.

Perhaps because Christmas was approaching, people were carrying shopping bags and gift boxes in their hands.

From the tree standing in the center of the main hall to the lights hanging from the ceiling, everything sparkled and lifted my spirits.

“Should I buy a snow globe or something?”

Christmas was my favorite holiday.

It was the only day when my Christian mother didn’t make me study.

My mother, who had always been extremely enthusiastic about my education, even checked how much I had studied during Lunar New Year.

It had already been three years since I came to England to study abroad.

It had been a long time since I had escaped from under my mother’s wing, but I couldn’t help getting excited whenever Christmas came around.

“I should buy presents for my family, too.”

Wouldn’t my mother like a perfume she always used?

Dad had been really happy when I brought him whiskey from the duty-free shop last time.

My younger brother…

Well, if I got some kind of free gift, I could just give that to him.

Before I knew it, I was standing in front of the Macio storefront the girls had mentioned.

There were three mannequins in the display window.

Choosing which clothes to buy wasn’t difficult.

The short girl had told me, ‘It absolutely has to be a skirt. A bright-colored top! White would be even better. Absolutely no black!’

Ah, but what was her name again?

I was sure she had told me, but I had forgotten.

She had told me not to buy cosmetics randomly and to message her on KakaoTalk.

But what was I supposed to call her?

Hey?

“That’ll be 510 pounds.”

“Excuse me?”

The clerk had just said the equivalent of one million Korean won.

One blouse, one skirt, and one coat.

It was only three pieces of clothing.

Unable to believe the amount, I hurriedly checked the tags.

“Are you kidding me? How is one blouse 200,000 won?”

It was completely ridiculous.

Were all those girls daughters of chaebol families?

Perhaps she had heard me muttering in Korean, because the clerk entered the amount into the calculator and showed it to me.

Ah, she thought I was a tourist.

Only then did I remember that I could speak English.

“Holy Fucking Price.”

The clerk snickered.

After buying the clothes, I went straight to the cosmetics drugstore, Muts.

Perhaps because of the year-end sale, it was packed with people who looked around my age.

[Hey, what color should I get for my lips?]

I had been thinking about it until then, so I sent a KakaoTalk message to the short girl, addressing her as “Hey.”

After waiting a few minutes, a reply came.

[Lip color… Sigh, Sarang… Tint. Please, okay?]

After getting her confirmation, I put lipstick, foundation, and other cosmetics into my basket.

Finally, I chose a perfume.

Last night, the girls had told me to buy a pear scent from some brand called “Chic” or something.

They said it was safe and easy to use.

But after actually smelling the perfumes, I wondered whether this neutral scent could really help increase my sexual appeal.

Wouldn’t something more floral, something that clearly said, ‘I’m a woman,’ be better?

I had more than a dozen fragrance strips in my hand.

After smelling so many perfumes one after another, they all started to smell the same, and my head was spinning.

“Should I just go with this?”

I picked up two perfumes to send to my mother.

They smelled like soap and were extremely feminine.

Just then, someone spoke to me from behind.

“Are you going to use that for a date?”

It was a male voice filled with testosterone, speaking with a clear British accent.

Startled, I turned around.

Standing behind me was a tall white boy with brown hair and greenish eyes.

He had a broad forehead and clear features, giving him a very pleasant appearance.

“Men don’t really like that kind of perfume, you know?”

The man smiled, his eyes narrowing into crescents.

Flustered, I answered in a trembling voice.

“Oh, Holy shit. Who are you?”

The man’s eyes widened when he heard me.

Then he broke into a bright smile, showing his teeth.

His teeth were incredibly white and perfectly straight.