NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 161
I threw Park Yoo-jung and Na Han-na into Yoo Seol’s nagging bomb and went to the living room, where Lee Hye-jeong and Seo Yoo-jin, sitting on the sofa, asked me with worried expressions.
“Ye-rin.”
“Ah, yes, Hye-jeong unnie.”
“What’s going on? It sounds really loud!”
“Yoo-jung and Han-na secretly brought snacks and alcohol, and they got caught. They’re being scolded by Seol unnie right now.”
“…They brought alcohol? Oh my.”
Lee Hye-jeong seemed shocked by the news and covered her mouth.
On the other hand, Seo Yoo-jin…
“They brought alcohol?!”
Her expression was strangely filled with anticipation at the mention of alcohol.
As soon as I saw that, I knew.
Like Park Yoo-jung and Na Han-na, Seo Yoo-jin also had a huge fantasy about the unknown called alcohol.
So, I put on a serious face and patted Yoo-jung’s head.
“Hmm! If you want to say you want to taste it, absolutely not. Yoo-jin, you’re 17.”
“No, can’t I have just one? I’m so curious about the taste….”
“No.”
“Sigh…”
As Seo Yoo-jin pouted at my stubbornness, Hye-jeong chuckled and asked me,
“Then, what kind of alcohol did Yoo-jung and Han-na bring? Soju? Beer?”
“No, they brought whiskey.”
“Wow, whiskey… Hmm.”
“Unnie…? Why are you licking your lips?”
“Ah, no, it’s just… Haha, it’s nothing. Did you see what kind of whiskey it was?”
“Yama…, Zaki? I think it said Yamazaki 18 years in English.”
“Huh? Yamazaki 18 years?!”
The unexpected reaction came from Seo Yoo-jin, who jumped up.
“Do you know that alcohol?”
“Of course! My dad buys it every time he goes on a business trip to Japan! But it should be pretty expensive, right?”
Hye-jeong discreetly took out her phone and searched for the price when she heard it was expensive.
And…
“Gasp…”
“What’s wrong, unnie? How much is it?”
“The cheapest place says it’s 1.5 million won… Some places charge 2 million won…”
“Wow….”
Over 1 million won for a bottle of alcohol…?
Having only tasted soju and beer worthy of a few thousand won, I couldn’t help but fall into deep thought.
What on earth does a 1.5 million won alcohol taste like…?
“…….”
Hye-jeong also had a vacant expression, as if she was thinking the same.
Then….
“Unnie…”
“…Um?”
“What if we convince Seol unnie to let us taste it just once?”
While we were lost in deep thought, Seo Yoo-jin began to tempt us like a devil.
“Seriously, just one sip each. My dad said that when you mix it with soda, it tastes amazing.”
“Han-na even brought sparkling water. She originally planned to make highballs….”
“Gasp! That sounds amazing with snacks…!”
“…….”
“Unnie, you’ve been eating only greens today, right? And you like snacks! …Once we start our activities, we won’t be able to have these things at all.”
As I hesitated, thinking they had won me over, Seo Yoo-jin turned to Hye-jeong.
“Hye-jeong unnie! You’re an adult! Have you never tried alcohol?”
“Uh, not often, but I’ve tried quite a bit.”
“Once we start our activities, we won’t even be able to touch alcohol, so don’t you want to drink just this once on a commemorative day like today?”
“…….”
Just when Hye-jeong and I were about to be persuaded by Seo Yoo-jin’s silver tongue…
Bang.
“……!”
Finally, Yoo Seol came out of her room after finishing her nagging bombardment.
“……Ugh.”
“……I’m sorry, I was wrong.”
It seemed that Park Yoo-jung and Na Han-na had been thoroughly tormented, looking totally dazed.
And Yoo Seol had her usual cold expression, as if nothing had happened…
Eek.
With a bottle of alcohol in her hand, she headed toward the bathroom.
…….
…The bathroom?
Surprised, we all hurried after her, and indeed, Yoo Seol was going to pour the whiskey down the toilet.
“Wait a moment, unnie!”
Seo Yoo-jin rushed in and shouted, blocking Yoo Seol from disposing of the alcohol.
“Of course, it was wrong for Yoo-jung and Han-na to bring it, but this isn’t okay, right?”
“Yoo-jin, step aside, or you’ll get scolded.”
Yoo Seol’s threat made her flinch, but Seo Yoo-jin, using her past arrogant traits, stood her ground against Yoo Seol.
“T-This is 1.5 million won alcohol! If you just throw this away, Han-na unnie’s dad will be really sad, don’t you think?”
“This alcohol is… 1.5 million won?”
When she heard the price, Yoo Seol hesitated for a moment.
Seizing the opportunity, Seo Yoo-jin continued to persuade her using Yoo Seol’s weakness.
And that weakness was….
“Ye-rin unnie really wants to taste alcohol just once!!”
…It was me.
Yoo Seol, who was usually strict, sometimes showed a gentle side only toward me.
Seo Yoo-jin must have wanted to leverage that.
Of course….
“Ah, no…! Why are you throwing me under the bus here…!”
Suddenly being pointed out, I was caught off guard.
Still, Seo Yoo-jin unrelentingly kept pushing her case.
“Ye-rin unnie! You’ve had a tough diet today! Leading up to the debut, you must be feeling anxious! So, you just want to taste it a little bit!”
“…….”
“Don’t you think we should grant Ye-rin unnie’s wish just this once?”
With continued persuasion from Seo Yoo-jin, Yoo Seol propped her chin and pondered before looking at me.
“Ha Ye-rin.”
“……Yes.”
When Yoo Seol calls me by my full name, it just feels much scarier.
I hesitated, and Yoo Seol spoke to me in a chilling tone.
“Do you really want to drink?”
“…….”
Then, other members’ gazes also shifted toward me.
Park Yoo-jung, Na Han-na, Seo Yoo-jin, and Lee Hye-jeong.
They all looked at me with desperate eyes.
It was a look that meant “convince Yoo Seol no matter what.”
I glanced between the whiskey bottle in Yoo Seol’s hand and her frigid expression.
Yoo Seol is scary.
But I want to drink…
After a moment of hesitation…!
“……Yes.”
“…….”
“…Honestly, I do want to try it.”
I said, tapping my fingers on the table.
“Can I just have a little…?”
Yoo Seol stared at my face blankly for a moment, then…
“…….”
Realizing that other members were watching me eagerly, she sighed deeply and finally said,
“Then just one glass each, as highballs…”
She finally permitted it.
“Wow-!”
“Wow-!!”
Hearing this, Park Yoo-jung and Seo Yoo-jin cheered in excitement.
That night, we Rookies decided to engage in a little adventure together.
Our Rookies members spread out snacks in the living room and sat in a circle around them.
“Oh, this feels just like a school trip.”
“Have you ever been on a school trip?”
“…No, because I was too busy practicing. The company told us to skip trips and come to the practice room instead….”
“…….”
Everyone fell silent, as if they agreed with Park Yoo-jung’s words.
At that moment, Lee Hye-jeong asked me.
“Ye-rin, you haven’t been a trainee that long, right? Haven’t you been on a school trip?”
“Well… We didn’t have the money….”
“…Ah.”
It didn’t really cost that much to go on a school trip, but we didn’t have that kind of money at home.
So instead of going on a school trip, I chose to work more during that time.
“Hey, let’s drink the alcohol quickly.”
When my answer turned the mood a bit somber, Park Yoo-jung, the mood-maker, picked up the whiskey bottle to change the subject.
“Okay, shall we open it? Ta-da~ Ta-da~ Daram~ Bang bang~ Bang bang~ Ta-ra-lira-lira~”
“Ohhh…!”
As soon as Park Yoo-jung opened the cap, the unique smoky scent of whiskey filled the living room.
Is it because it costs over 1 million won?
The smell was already different from soju’s.
It wasn’t just me who noticed it; the other members, especially the younger ones like Park Yoo-jung, Na Han-na, and Seo Yoo-jin, looked excited.
“Let’s drink quickly!”
“Just one glass of highball each, okay?”
“Yes!”
Even under Yoo Seol’s warning, the members were eagerly waiting for the alcohol with bright smiles.
The job of making the highballs fell to Lee Hye-jeong.
Using ice from the fridge and the sparkling water brought by Na Han-na, she skillfully prepared a total of six highballs and handed them to us.
For me, Lee Hye-jeong, and Yoo Seol it didn’t matter, but for the other members, it was their very first drink.
With joyful smiles, we each raised our glasses of highball.
Then….
“Shall we toast to the success of Rookies?”
“Sounds good!”
“For the success of Rookies!!”
We toasted to Rookies’ success and took a sip of our highballs.
“Oh….”
“Wow… so good….”
“Expensive alcohol really tastes different.”
As Rookies OB members, Lee Hye-jeong, Yoo Seol, and I were all hearts in our eyes as we drank the highball.
It was that delicious.
On the other hand….
“Ugh…?”
“Ugh….”
“Yuck….”
The YB side reacted like first-time drinkers usually do, making faces as if to say, “Why are we drinking this?”
“What is this….”
“This tastes terrible…? It’s so bitter….”
“Ugh,… it feels like my throat is burning….”
“Haha, that’s how alcohol is.”
We OBs chuckled while taking a sip, watching the YB’s cute reactions.
“…I’ll take a call for a moment.”
In the middle, Yoo Seol left to answer a phone call with a serious expression…
But this simple drinking session continued on happily.
‘…Nice.’
Especially since it was my first drink in 19 years, I felt particularly good.
In my previous life, I always drank alone, so I didn’t know…
Drinking with people I liked was this sweet.
As I sipped my highball, Park Yoo-jung looked at me curiously.
“Ye-rin unnie, you said you’re drinking for the first time? You look so used to it?”
“Huh? Ah… Haha. I guess it just suits my taste. It’s delicious.”
“Wow, unnie must have the talent for drinking! You could probably drink a lot!”
Indeed….
Isn’t it usually the case that those with good physical abilities can drink well?
Ha Ye-rin’s body is almost like an iron man, so I could probably drink a lot.
With confidence, I smugly smiled and said.
“Yeah, I think I can drink a lot.”
So I enjoyed the alcohol like a grown-up, looking down at the baby-faced girls.
[Seola, mom’s condition has improved a lot.]
“That’s a relief… I’m really glad…”
The call Yoo Seol received was from the hospital.
The call was about her mother’s condition, and fortunately, it seemed her mother was getting a lot better.
‘This is all thanks to… Ye-rin…’
The reason her mother’s condition could improve was that Ye-rin covered her hospital fees so that she could have surgery on time.
While recalling her gratitude for Ye-rin, Yoo Seol ended the 20-minute call.
As she walked back into the house…
“Guys, I just finished the call and… huh?”
…She immediately sensed that something was off in the atmosphere at home.
“Huh? Hehe, unnie…!”
“Ye-rin, wait… AHH!”
As soon as Yoo Seol entered, Ha Ye-rin dashed to her with a flushed face.
Squeeze!
Caught off guard, Yoo Seol held Ha Ye-rin in her arms, frowning at the strong smell of alcohol coming from her.
“…Hehe, unnie… I love you….”
“Ha Ye-rin…!”
Her voice was strangely filled with affection, her face flushed, and her demeanor all relaxed.
Plus, the heavy smell of alcohol.
Seeing Ha Ye-rin, who had been totally intoxicated in her absence, Yoo Seol looked furiously at the other members.
“How much alcohol did you give her to make her like this?!”
To Yoo Seol’s question….
“Just one glass.”
“…What?”
The members laughed like it was unbelievable and pointed at Ha Ye-rin’s glass.
Ha Ye-rin’s glass still had about a quarter of a highball left.
“One glass… And she’s like this already…?”
“…Yes, we were surprised too; she suddenly turned into Jekyll and Hyde. Maybe you’ll have to put up with it too.”
“…Put up with it? Wait, huh…?!”
Squeeze!
In the meantime, Ha Ye-rin started to grip Yoo Seol tighter like an anaconda.
‘…What strength!’
Yoo Seol tried to escape but was trapped by Ha Ye-rin’s superhuman strength.
“Unnie… you’re the only one for me….”
“Ye-rin… just let me go for a sec…?!”
The small-framed Yoo Seol was getting engulfed by the tall Ha Ye-rin.
Ha Ye-rin held on fiercely, not letting go, her hands going deep.
“Unnie… I only have you…. Unnie….”
“…Ye-rin, I only have you too…!”
“That’s a lie…! You’re just going to ditch me again… Don’t ever let go…!”
Ha Ye-rin was almost whispering while speaking into Yoo Seol’s ear, filled with obsession.
“No… Ye-rin! I won’t leave you… Just… just let go of me for a second…!!”
And so, Yoo Seol began to be thoroughly mistreated by Ha Ye-rin.