Chapter 12 - Chapter 10: Episode 9 - Surveillance
Since that day, my campus life—which should have been a dream—was utterly ruined. It wasn't a "sex life" with Yu-rin; it was a life of constant rape.
She followed me everywhere. She was there at the orientation I was semi-forced to attend, and she stuck to me like glue during the semester kickoff party that doubled as a freshman welcome. She simply refused to be away from me.
As if she wanted to mark her territory, she never left my side. She'd constantly call me "My Seon-ah," touch me in front of everyone, and make it blindingly obvious that we were dating.
Once the other women realized I was already taken, the attention I'd been getting almost completely vanished.
In this world, trying to wedge yourself between a couple is a social death sentence. You'd be branded as "trash," and your reputation on campus would be finished.
Yu-rin even used my past "education"—back when I'd search her room for books or delete porn from her computer to fix her twisted views on sex—as an excuse to monitor me. She demanded to check my smartphone constantly. Whenever I had to exchange numbers for department business or group projects, I had to get her permission first—at least when it came to other women.
Because of this, I was barred from almost everything—from casual hangouts with classmates to joining any clubs.
It had long since passed the point of a normal relationship. This was pure obsession.
At first, my classmates and seniors didn't look too kindly on Yu-rin's behavior.
But Yu-rin was strangely perceptive.
She picked up on exactly what people thought of her and how they were looking at us.
Maybe it was her natural personality, combined with the years I'd spent "raising" her and teaching her the social skills needed to maintain good relationships.
She was sharp and a smooth talker. Her ability to cater to people's moods played a much bigger role than I'd expected.
Eventually, the perception of her shifted. People stopped seeing her as a stalker and started seeing her as just "a girl who's head-over-heels for her boyfriend."
However, my own reputation among the men in the department was taking a hit.
Rumors were spreading that I was some kind of psycho who dragged his girlfriend along to every single social event.
Not every college gathering was about hooking up, but when people are trying to flirt over drinks and a couple keeps barging in, it gets old fast. People might tolerate it once or twice, but eventually, they start whispering that you're only there to show off.
The guys in my class started saying I was rubbing it in their faces. Some even badmouthed me, calling me a "slutty bastard" who was trying to hit on every girl in sight despite having a girlfriend, just because I kept showing up to drinking parties.
In a world where gender roles were reversed, hearing a "man" called a slut for going to parties was both bizarre and frustrating.
In my previous life, nobody said things like that about women with boyfriends who liked to socialize.
I had no idea why these rumors were even starting.
.
.
.
Seon-ah seemed to really enjoy socializing with others.
But if he's seen at drinking parties alone while he has a girlfriend, who knows what kind of nasty rumors will start?
If people start calling him a slut and some woman tries to hit on him, I know I'll lose my mind. I'll burn the whole place down.
It's dangerous for a "man" to be at parties alone. Other pests will swarm him. That's why I have to "surveil" him. It's for his own good.
I've seen it happen. At the parties, women are always trying to push drinks on him.
At the orientation party, Seon-ah kept emptying the glasses the seniors gave him until his face was flushed. When his eyes started to lose focus, he complained about the heat and unbuttoned the top of his shirt.
He looked so incredibly sexy in that moment that I saw those other crazy bitches practically salivating as they watched him.
When Seon-ah went outside to get some fresh air because he was feeling hot, and a group of seniors and classmates followed him out, I felt like I was going to explode.
I had to swallow the urge to start swinging. I made it crystal clear that Seon-ah was mine and swatted away those crazy bitches who were trying to make a move.
I've spent fifteen years with Seon-ah. I know he wasn't trying to seduce anyone.
He's just... defenseless.
He acts in a way that's just as charming as any woman, so people are naturally drawn to him. They say he's easygoing and understanding, unlike a typical "man."
Because he's so popular, women are always subtly hinting that they want to date him.
Even when I'm standing right next to him, some crazy bitches still try their luck.
Back in elementary, middle, and high school, I never let a single girl get close to him. I'd drag them to the bathrooms or the roof to threaten them. If they didn't listen, I'd beat them until they got the message.
But now that we're in university, I can't just use violence to protect him.
Even if they're the ones touching a man who's already taken, if I get reported, it'll cause trouble for Seon-ah. And if I get expelled, I won't be able to get near him until he graduates.
For now, the only way is to stay by his side and make sure no other pests can swarm him.
.
.
.
As I was walking toward the lecture hall, I overheard two men talking about Seon-ah.
"Even with a face like that, his dick's probably black and shriveled from every bitch in town taking a turn, right?"
"Heh heh heh. Exactly. Just look at how he teases women. You can tell how often he spreads his legs."
Envy and jealousy were dripping from their mouths as they slandered Seon-ah with the most vulgar words imaginable.
It happened more than I'd like to admit in high school, too. Seon-ah was often misunderstood because of his looks and "unmanly" behavior, and other men would talk shit behind his back.
Back then, I'd track them down and "resolve" the issue with my fists. But I couldn't do that here at university, which meant these rumors were likely to reach Seon-ah's ears.
Since I couldn't use violence, it was difficult to handle things between men directly.
The rough world of women and the petty, emotional world of men were two completely different things.
If I approached them in a fit of rage, I'd be the one who looked like the aggressor if things went south.
Still, I have to say something this time, don't I?
As I started toward them, fuming, I heard a woman's voice.
She was arguing with the two men.
"Hey, Choi Min-ji. Is that guy your boyfriend or something? Why are you eavesdropping and defending him? Did you fuck him too?"
"Look at you, listening in on other people's business. Do you always just pop out of nowhere to act like a hero? You really have no tact."
The woman looked slightly flustered, but she stood her ground.
"Regardless, we're classmates. Besides, Seon-ah has a girlfriend, and he's not the type of person to do the things you're saying. It won't end well for you if you keep talking like that."
I hadn't heard the beginning of the conversation, but it was clear she was trying to shut down their nasty rumors.
"Whatever. What a pain. Let's go."
"Look at her, defending a man who's already taken. Birds of a feather flock together, I guess. They probably both play dirty."
The two men, acting like trash until the very end, finally left. The woman went on her way as well, likely heading to whatever she had planned.
I felt a small spark of gratitude toward her. She'd done exactly what I should have done.
Choi Min-ji? I think I've seen that name before.
A memory flickered in my mind. She was the classmate who'd exchanged numbers with Seon-ah, saying she'd invite him to the department group chat.
Didn't he say she was the first person he met on the day of the entrance ceremony?
Since I'd been practically glued to Seon-ah since before school started, I knew for a fact they hadn't known each other before then.
It was nice that someone else was clearing up misunderstandings about Seon-ah, but if she was doing it because she was "interested" in him, I couldn't just sit back and watch.
The best way to handle this...
was to keep my enemies close.
.
.
.
To become "natural friends" with Choi Min-ji, I
used my connections with other seniors to get into the same group chats Min-ji was in.
At first, I just chimed in with jokes or shared information. I made sure to show up to the occasional drinking party just to make my face known.
By the second month, Min-ji and I were friends. We talked quite a bit.
What I learned about her was that she was a girl overflowing with a sense of justice.
She was the type to follow her own beliefs, regardless of what others thought.
So, that argument she'd had with those two men wasn't because she was defending Seon-ah specifically; it was just her sense of justice at work.
She even mentioned that she was frequently called upon by the Han-il University student council.
Now that I knew Choi Min-ji, it didn't seem like she was the type to mess with a man who already had a girlfriend.
Especially now that she was friends with me, it seemed almost impossible given her personality.
Still, nothing in this world is absolute, so I decided to keep playing the role of the "friend."
Min-ji was actually better company than I'd expected. We got along well.
Specifically, her "taste in men" was remarkably similar to mine.
I knew for sure because I'd seen several photos of men who looked just like Seon-ah on her phone.
She even had pictures of scantily clad men that she clearly used for masturbation. It was official: she was a bitch who might be targeting Seon-ah.