Twisted Hate(Annyeongz ver)

WONYOUNG[CHAPTER 17]

THE FINAL SCORE IN OUR GAME? SIXTEEN NUMBERS FOR YUJIN, twenty-seven for me.

“You cheated.” Despite her declaration, the gleam in Yujin’s eye told me she was more upset she hadn’t thought of my idea first than by my unconventional strategy.

“Can’t cheat if there were no rules.” The thrill of victory added an extra bounce to my step.

We’d left the bar after tallying our numbers and were currently walking home from the Hazelburg metro station. Maybe it was the alcohol or the body heat radiating off Yujin as she walked beside me, but I was roasting in my coat even though the early evening temperature hovered in the low fifties. I didn’t feel like carrying it though, so I kept the coat on.

“Should’ve known you’d find a loophole.” Yujin angled her chin toward my bag, where I’d stuffed the dozens of napkins with men’s numbers scribbled on them. “You gonna call any of them?”

“Maybe. Couldn’t be worse than trying to find someone on a dating app.” My smile dimmed when I remembered my encounter with Saeng-San. He had some nerve, approaching me like that. Then again, he possessed nothing if not audacity.

“Hmm.”

The disgruntled sound settled into my bones and caused my pulse to spike. Was Yujin…jealous?

No. That was ridiculous. To be jealous, she had to like me and while we’d developed a grudging mutual respect, we didn’t like each other. I still wanted to punch the cocky smirk off her face every time I saw her.

“And you? Are you going to call any of the numbers you got?” I asked casually.

“Maybe,” Yujin said. “Haven’t thought about it.”

“Hmm.”

Shit. The sound slipped out without thinking. Now it sounded like I was jealous.

“What’s the deal with you lately, anyway?” I added quickly in an attempt to draw attention away from my slipup. “You used to go through a different girl every week, but I haven’t seen you with someone in months.”

“You’re exaggerating, and I didn’t go through them. I made my intentions clear from the start. I wasn’t interested in a committed relationship, and they all knew it before we did anything.” She slid a glance in my direction. “You understand.”

I did. Our approach to sex and relationships was one of the few things we had in common. Like Yujin, I’d never been
interested in long-term dating. There were too many goals to reach, too much of the world to see, and too much of life to live without being tied down to one person.

Besides, after my only experience with a serious relationship, I wasn’t in any hurry to jump into another one.

“You want to attend law school?” Minju grimaced. “Why?”

“I think I’d make a good lawyer.” I twisted the hem of my shirt around my finger. It was a new piece I’d bought with my
allowance from Yunho, my stepfather. After years of threadbare clothing, I couldn’t stop touching it to make sure it was real, that I was really wearing a designer shirt that cost more than my old monthly budget for food. “It pays well if I go into corporate law, and I can help—”

A loud laugh cut me off. “Oh, come on, Wonyoung.”

“What?” My brow creased with confusion and a touch of hurt.

“You’re so cute.” She gave me an indulgent smile, like I was a child who announced I would be running for president. But let’s be real, babe, you don’t want to be a lawyer.”