I Don't Recommend a Blunder with a Male Friend (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 14
“Section Chief? Section Chief, why…?”
Judging by Baek In Ha’s expression, she must have seen me with Ji Seo Jun. In other words, it was too late to pretend I didn’t know her.
“Oh. Haha. Baek In Ha, what brings you here…?”
I scrambled to buy time, trying to figure out how to explain this without causing any misunderstandings. But the problem wasn’t just Baek In Ha.
Ji Seo Jun didn’t even know I worked at the same company—if she mentioned S.T., everything would be exposed instantly. Cold sweat started beading on my forehead.
“I came to meet some friends… Section Chief, Ji—ugh! Mmph!”
I quickly clamped my hand over her mouth before she could say Ji Seo Jun’s name.
“I’m meeting a coworker, okay? Just—just a sec!”
“The taxi’s here.”
“Huh? Oh, right. We were waiting for a taxi, weren’t we? Haha.”
Whether lucky or unlucky, Ji Seo Jun didn’t seem interested in Baek In Ha at all.
I pulled my hand away from her mouth.
“S-Section Chief! You can’t just cover my mouth like that!”
“I’m sorry, Baek In Ha. Um… I mean… uh…”
As I fumbled for words, Ji Seo Jun’s irritated voice came from behind me.
“Moon Moon. The taxi’s here.”
I turned around to see the taxi slowing down as it approached.
“Baek In Ha! I’ll explain everything tomorrow, okay? Got it?”
With that, I quickly jumped into the taxi and left her behind.
“Is Seoul really this small? Doesn’t seem like it… Then how did we bump into each other? Can coincidence like this even happen? Heh.”
Still in shock, I kept muttering to myself in the taxi.
“Why are you talking to yourself so much?”
Ji Seo Jun asked from beside me.
“You’re good at math, right? What’s the probability of randomly running into a coworker right in the middle of Seoul on a weekend?”
“What are you even talking about…?”
“Guess even someone as smart as you doesn’t know that.”
At my remark, he shot me a suspicious look.
“A coworker?”
“What?”
“That woman just now.”
“Huh? Oh… well, sure, I guess.”
“It’s either yes or no. What’s with this ‘I guess’ nonsense?”
I, Moon Da Yul, age 29, got scolded for not giving a clear answer.
“Yes, she’s a coworker.”
“Then why were you acting so flustered?”
“Me? When? I wasn’t flustered at all!”
I quickly averted my eyes and fiddled meaninglessly with my phone.
“What now? What are you hiding?”
“Hiding? What…?”
If I looked into his eyes right now, I’d spill everything instantly—so I stubbornly refused to meet his gaze.
After watching me silently for a while, Ji Seo Jun quietly issued a warning.
“If I find out later, you’re on your own.”
Chills ran down my spine.
Back at Ji Seo Jun’s place, I absentmindedly patted General Tto Ri’s rear as I worried about how to explain things to Baek In Ha tomorrow.
It wouldn’t work to just say we knew each other casually—Ji Seo Jun had even used my nickname, and we’d gotten into the same taxi together, after all.
All those moments when I’d pretended indifference or ignorance about Ji Seo Jun in front of Baek In Ha flashed through my mind like a slideshow.
“General Tto Ri, please grant me wisdom.”
Whether or not he understood my predicament as his self-proclaimed butler, when I stopped patting his rear, his tail sharply tapped my hand, ordering me to keep going.
I wasn’t even hungry—after fussing over General Tto Ri, I left Ji Seo Jun’s officetel.
Though Ji Seo Jun hadn’t dropped his suspicious stare until the very end, the real fire had landed on my foot from Baek In Ha’s side, not his.
Even after getting home, washing up, and getting into bed, no good solution came to mind.
I’d just wing it.
That was the conclusion I’d reached after long, deep thought.
“Section Chief Moon, did you know I couldn’t sleep last night because I was so curious? You didn’t even reply to my message…”
Baek In Ha, who had come to work early.
The moment I entered the office, she grabbed me and dragged me straight to the break room.
“Just how do you two know each other? Huh? You seemed pretty close yesterday… Right?”
“Well, I guess you could say we’re close—or distant, depending on how you look at it.”
At my vague answer, she quickly fired off another question.
“Why have you been pretending not to know me this whole time? You could’ve just told me!”
“It’s… not just you. I didn’t want to tell anyone in the office. I’m sorry.”
When I apologized, Baek In Ha pouted cutely and, slightly calmer now, pressed on.
“Then tell me—what’s your relationship with Researcher Ji Seo Jun?”
Just be honest.
“We’re friends. Twenty-nine years of friendship.”
“What?”
She looked up at me with wide eyes. I silently marveled at how big human eyes could actually get.
“Our birthdays are just two days apart—he was born first, then me. You could say we’re OB-GYN buddies. We’ve been friends ever since.”
“That’s an incredible connection.”
“Well… I guess you could say that. Haha.”
“But why didn’t you tell anyone!”
For some reason, Baek In Ha looked deeply aggrieved.
“It’s just how it’s always been… since middle school… We kept getting caught like this, but looking back, I wonder why we ever bothered hiding so desperately in the first place…”
“Why? If I had a friend like that, I’d brag about it to everyone!”
That’s just your way…
I let out a small sigh.
“After going through various things, you just end up like this. Alright! Are all your questions answered now?”
I wanted to wrap up this interrogation quickly. Maybe I only wanted this sweet, naive girl to know this much.
Of course, I hadn’t lied—I just hadn’t told her everything.
Since I myself didn’t yet know what kind of relationship Ji Seo Jun and I would end up having, I didn’t feel like telling her every little detail.
Just as I was about to head back to my seat with my coffee, Baek In Ha followed me closely.
“Oh, Baek In Ha—let’s keep this between us.”
I suddenly realized I hadn’t told her the most crucial fact.
“What? Why?”
“He—I mean, Ji Seo Jun—doesn’t know I work at the same company.”
“What?”
I treated her to lunch and got her promise to cooperate.
When she asked why I kept it secret from Ji Seo Jun, I simply said, “For my sake at work,” and surprisingly, Baek In Ha understood easily.
On our way back after lunch, she even spotted Ji Seo Jun from afar and warned me in time. Thanks to her, I managed to hide quickly and avoided getting caught again today.
“Section Chief, you really live a harder life than I thought.”
“That’s what happens when you have a friend like that.”
We watched until Ji Seo Jun completely disappeared, then took the elevator back up to the office, chatting quietly. Surrounded by the lunchtime crowd, I got squeezed all the way to the back and hunched over.
“Did you hear about Researcher Ji Seo Jun from Team One?”
A whisper came from the cramped elevator. They meant to whisper, but in this tiny space, it sounded loud enough.
“What about him? Did someone confess again?”
“The front desk staff. You saw them earlier, right?”
“Oh… they were really pretty.”
“Apparently got rejected—again.”
“Why? If someone like that confessed to me, I’d jump at the chance.”
“Well, that’s because you’re Team Leader Kim. Honestly, someone like Researcher Ji Seo Jun can afford to be picky, right?”
“How unfair the world is.”
Their whispering paused briefly—
because the elevator doors opened and everyone rushed out.
“With a face like that, he should just become an idol—why work here and disrupt the office ecosystem?”
“Disrupt the ecosystem? Haha.”
They stepped off the elevator too.
Baek In Ha glanced up at me and said,
“Now I think I understand why you wanted to keep it a secret.”
“Huh?”
We got off the elevator together. The hallway was sparsely filled with people returning from lunch.
After glancing around, she rose onto her tiptoes and whispered to me,
“You want to protect Researcher Ji Seo Jun—like an undercover cop.”
I wondered what on earth was going on in that little head of hers to come up with such a story.
Those people earlier had been incredibly rude, and I was furious—but there was nothing I could actually do. Even if word got out that I was close to Ji Seo Jun, would their rudeness really stop?
From my experience, it wouldn’t.
The most I could do was memorize their faces and, next time they ran toward the elevator, slam the close-door button like my life depended on it.
Aside from that, all I could do was stand beside him and chatter nonsense to make him laugh.
But an undercover cop?
“I appreciate you putting it that way, but nope—you’re wrong. I’m just doing this for my own comfort.”
With that, I hurried back to the office and sat down at my desk.
‘Ecological disruption.’
Such a horribly unpleasant choice of words.
Staring blankly at my monitor, I picked up my phone and texted Ji Seo Jun.
[Chicken and beer tonight?]A short while later, I got a reply.
[Deal.]“Hey! Hurry up! I’m starving to death!”
Somehow arriving earlier than the homeowner myself, I punched in the familiar door code and walked in.
The chicken had arrived before him, and I was drooling over it, unable to eat while it was still hot and fresh.
“Just start without me.”
Ji Seo Jun set down his backpack, rolled up his shirt sleeves, and went to the bathroom to wash his hands.
“How can I eat without you? If I start first, you’ll only get the neck bones left.”
“You barely eat anything, yet your appetite…”
Thankfully, he didn’t change clothes and sat down right in front of me.
“What beer do you want?”
“Whatever.”
I picked the imported beer from the convenience store—the one I least wanted to drink—and placed it in front of Ji Seo Jun.
As he popped open the can, he asked,
“Why chicken and beer all of a sudden? Something happen at work today?”
“Uh? N-nothing. Just craving chi-ki.”
“If you talk with food in your mouth one more time, you’re banned from eating at my place ever again.”
Neat-freak Ji Seo Jun pulled out a tissue and wiped away the crumbs I’d dropped.
Not wanting to get scolded again in front of the chicken, I chewed and swallowed carefully before speaking.
“Just… felt like eating chicken.”
“Really?”
He must have been pretty thirsty—he gulped down his beer quickly, finishing half the can in one go, then set it down with a thud on the table.
“Nothing going on with you at work?”
“You’ve been awfully interested in my work life lately?”
“I’ve always cared about you.”
“Recently, you lie as easily as you eat rice…”
Though I felt deeply stung inside, I played it cool and continued.
“What’s the point of having a good friend? It’s so you can grab a drink together after work and vent about your awful day or badmouth your boss together—that’s what friends are for.”
“………”
I expected him to say something, but Ji Seo Jun just pressed his lips shut.
Instead, he pushed all the wings and drumsticks to my side, picked up some breast meat, and took a big bite with an “Ah!”
“Have you been thinking hard about things lately?”
“What things?”
I twisted the chicken wing he’d handed me, making it easier to eat, and asked.
“It’s less than two months now.”
Ah. That kind of thinking.
“Well… just so-so.”
“I see.”
The conversation stalled, and the only sound was me chewing chicken.
“No trouble at work, right?”
When I asked again, the guy sitting across from me just shook his head as if nothing was wrong.
“No one’s been spreading nasty rumors about you—like talking trash or gossiping after getting rejected when they confessed?”
At my words, Ji Seo Jun set down the breast meat he’d been eating, took a swig of beer, and said,
“Just brush it off. Don’t worry about it.”
Just as I thought—he was clearly swallowing it all alone.
Male lead is a Love-Obsessed Merman
When he discovers she has gone, he risks everything to pursue her on land, enduring agonizing pain to transform his tail into human legs…
One-line summary: Male lead chases female lead. The male lead’s love is a bit sick, an invincible love brain.
Synopsis
During a voyage at sea, Jiang Yang accidentally captures a merman.
Servant: I heard that mermen are fierce and brutal.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman obediently rubbing her palm like a puppy: “You call this fierce and brutal?”
Servant: I heard that mermen have no human nature.
Jiang Yang looks at the merman with wet puppy eyes, obsessively calling her ‘A Yang’ like a childish infant: “You call this having no human nature?”
With great difficulty, she releases the merman back into the sea and returns to shore.
Who would have thought that in less than half a month, the merman, who should have been freely wandering in the South China Sea, would shed his scales, endure the pain of losing his tail, transform into human legs, and come ashore to find her?
He kneels at her feet, rubbing her palm, with merman tears rolling down: “A Yang, don’t abandon me.”
_____
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