Campus Newlywed Diary (1)

It was Kwon Hwi-young.

At the far end of the Practical Training Building corridor, a crowd had gathered, murmuring among themselves. And, as always, at the center of it all stood Kwon Hwi-young.

Like the eye of a typhoon.

Everyone around him buzzed with admiration and curiosity, yet he himself seemed somehow a step removed from the very center of it — just leisurely sipping his coffee through a straw, a straw dangling from his lips, as if nothing in the world concerned him.

He'd been a celebrity in the Theater and Film Department even before he enlisted in the army, and the day he returned from his military leave, he single-handedly brought the entire department group chat to its knees. Naturally, the 6 Scene Stealers chat — the one Kwak Som-i belonged to — was no exception.

Back when Kwon Hwi-young first enrolled, what had everyone chasing after him was his family. Rumors that he was the son of a famous production company CEO, that both his parents were towering figures in the industry. But none of that talk lasted long.

Within a week of enrollment, he had rendered all that borrowed halo completely irrelevant. His own three-syllable name alone turned out to be more than enough.

Start with the looks. Even in a department crawling with gorgeous men, he was cut from undeniably different cloth. A tall, striking frame with limbs that stretched clean and uncluttered, and eyes that could go utterly languid — then curve into a smile so soft it made you melt on the spot.

It was a peculiar face: one that drew your gaze without him doing a thing, and whenever your eyes happened to meet, made you read meaning into absolutely nothing.

Thanks to him, the campus café he frequented kept posting record-breaking sales, and even students from other departments found themselves loitering in front of the Theater and Film practice building.

But it would be far too easy to dismiss Kwon Hwi-young as all glitter and no gold.

"Hwi-young, what role are you auditioning for this time?"

The moment the department workshop auditions were announced, the hot topic among the male students was, without question, what was going on inside Kwon Hwi-young's head. Most of them had decided, first and foremost, to simply avoid whichever role he chose.

"This audition? Hmm. Still deciding."

His thick lips, holding the end of the straw, curled up in a sly smirk. That half-smile — promising an answer and withholding it all at once, deliberately toying with people's patience — sent a tremor through the pupils of every girl standing nearby. And not a single one of them complained about his fox-like way of dodging the question.

And sure enough.

"Da-eun, hey there!"

One cheerful greeting from him, and the girl heading into the lecture hall found herself skewered by daggers of glares from every direction. Whether Hwi-young savored those ripples or was genuinely oblivious, no one could tell. He simply narrowed his characteristically lazy eyes a touch and took the straw back between his lips.

The truth was, the most dangerous thing about Kwon Hwi-young was precisely that kindness of his. The way he remembered the names of countless juniors, one by one. The way he handed out a beautiful, even smile to everyone, without favoritism.

But no one should ever mistake that for affection. It was simply innate manners. And yet, knowing full well what it was, a whole truckload of girls had already tumbled headfirst into the swamp of misunderstanding, stabbing themselves in the foot.

With that message, at the landing at the end of the corridor, a head of deep brown waves swayed gently. An instant hush fell over the previously noisy hallway. Every gaze lining the corridor turned in one direction.

Bae Ye-ri. Same class year as Kwon Hwi-young, and until recently, his campus couple partner.

The news that the two of them — a pairing whose visuals alone could carry any drinking party's conversation — had broken up had set the department group chat ablaze for the entire vacation.

Startled, Som-i's fingers tightened around her phone without her meaning to.

The chat carried on as though someone were broadcasting her every move live from somewhere. Som-i rolled her eyes, embarrassed, then gazed at Kwon Hwi-young from a distance for one last moment. At length, she let out a small sigh and turned on her heel.

"Som-i! Hi there!"

At her classmates' friendly greetings, she lifted the corners of her mouth in answer, then quietly took a seat in the very back corner of the lecture hall.

She had just pulled her tablet out of her backpack and was getting ready for class when the area near the door began to stir again. Som-i's shoulders stiffened. She didn't need to look to know.

Kwon Hwi-young had walked in.

She ducked her head low to hide her flushed face, but every nerve in her body strained toward her back. With each step he took closer, the oxygen in the room somehow seemed to grow thinner. In the end, unable to resist, she sneaked a glance up.

But he was deep in conversation with another returning-student senior who'd come in with him, and didn't spare so much as a glance in Som-i's direction.

Of course. That's how it should be. Of course it is….

She was absently biting down on her lower lip when his gaze, which had been fixed straight ahead, drifted slowly toward where she sat.

Oh no, we're about to make eye contact.

Her curling fingernails scraped uselessly down her trouser seam when—

"Som-i, could you lend me a pen?"

The voice of a classmate behind her snapped her back to her senses.

"Oh, sure! Here you go!"

By the time she'd fumbled the pen into her classmate's hand and looked up again, Kwon Hwi-young had already brushed past her. He had taken a seat by the window with his group, absorbed once more in their conversation.

The cool, crisp scent of cologne that had brushed her nose and vanished — Som-i stared blankly into empty air at the memory of it. Not a single word of the lecture registered. By the time she came back to herself, the bell announcing the end of class was already ringing.

"Go on ahead. I've got something to ask the professor — I'll catch up in a bit."

That languid voice drifted through the crowd ebbing out of the lecture hall. Som-i, careful not to attract attention, deliberately packed her things at a sluggish pace. She opened and closed her pencil case zipper, then fiddled with her fingers, straightening the corners of her textbooks for no reason at all.

In the distance, she could see Hwi-young's back as he spoke with Professor Hwang in front of the lectern. A moment later, Professor Hwang gave Hwi-young's shoulder a light pat and left the room. One by one, the bustle of the lecture hall drained away — until only two people remained: Som-i and Hwi-young.

Whew…….

Som-i drew a deep breath, adjusted the backpack strap slung crookedly over her shoulder, and marched bravely toward the lectern.

She had planned it: today, she was going to make the confession of her life.

The hands wrapped lightly around her stomach were trembling. She was terrified. She felt hopelessly out of her depth. Every instinct screamed at her to run — and yet, today, she had to say it.

Kwon Hwi-young, standing before the lectern, sensed her presence and turned around.

Sunlight pouring through the windows traced the line of his face and pooled at the sharp tip of his nose. It was unmistakably a man's profile, and yet there was something so fluid, so alluring about it that it kept stealing the breath of anyone who looked.

Overwhelmed by that almost unreal beauty, Som-i swallowed drily without meaning to.

"Oh. Som, hi there."

Kwon Hwi-young always called her Som. He seemed to believe her name was "Kwak Som." Strictly speaking, that was wrong, but she had never once thought of correcting him. As long as he was the one saying it, it didn't matter what he called her. How could the same name sound so different passing through his lips? Whenever that low, soft murmur brushed her ear, some corner of her heart would itch and flutter.

"You haven't left yet?"

"Ah — no, not yet."

With the words, Hwi-young's gaze landed on Som-i's face. Their eyes met as he looked down at her for a quiet moment — and then he curled his mouth upward again, as if nothing had happened.

"It's been a while."

Som-i's cheeks flared peach-pink in an instant. Memories of that day bloomed up thick and hazy, and she shook her head in a frantic rush. A mischievous smile settled at the corner of Hwi-young's mouth.

"Don't tell me — you were waiting for me?"

"Yes…. It's just, there's something I need to tell you, sunbaenim."

"Me? What is it?"

Hwi-young tilted his head slightly, meeting her eyes. Som-i stared at a spot somewhere around his chest and, desperately, found her courage.

"Sunbaenim… I, actually…."

"Mm-hm. I'm listening."

Handsome eyebrows arching slightly, Hwi-young flashed the world's most harmless, gentlest smile. Som-i squeezed her eyes shut.

"It's just… I…."

A sharp breath in. Then Som-i opened her bloodless lips.

"I'm pregnant."