"Jina. Are you feeling sick or something lately?"
The afternoon break, when body and mind grow languid.
Lee Sea turned around with a genuinely worried look on her face to gaze at me.
Lee Soyun, visible from the side, nodded vigorously in agreement.
"Same as always."
"But, Jin, you haven't been sleeping in class at all lately."
Lee Sea twirled a lock of hair from the side as she spoke.
I let out a hollow laugh at her words, utterly dumbfounded.
"That's obvious, isn't it?"
"You didn't live like that before."
...Is it that bad?
Come to think of it, I can't really remember my elementary or middle school teachers' faces.
Hmm.
"...I figured it's about time I actually pay attention in class to keep up with the material."
Up until now, the exams were easy enough that just skimming the textbook worked fine, but high school curriculum definitely has its tough parts.
"Why don't you worry about the guy sitting next to you instead of me?"
I pointed at Yoon Jiu, who had gone out to play during lunch and had been sprawled out asleep from the start of class until now.
"Oh, Jiu's asleep again."
You don't really care, do you...
"I wonder if he's even adapting well to the Academic Advancement Class with that attitude."
"Huh? Jiu didn't join the Academic Advancement Class."
What?
Didn't he say on the first day that he was going to it?
"What? Then what club did he join?"
"He's been going around trying out the Entertainment Club and the Fashion Model Club."
Come to think of it, I think I recommended something like the modeling club to him.
Did my words change the original story again...?
Well, for Yoon Jiu's personality without any trauma, those clubs suit him better than the Academic Advancement Class anyway.
The snowball from the middle school episode has rolled into a bigger cloud than I expected.
"What do you think about club activities, Jin?"
"Eh, they're fine, I guess."
...Truth be told, it's not entirely fine. The club president is a bit—no, a lot—exhausting.
I recalled my first day visiting the club.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
'Is this the place?'
After classes ended, I headed to the club for after-school activity orientation.
I arrived at one of the annex buildings in a remote corner of the school grounds—an old structure that looked like it had seen better days.
Low-profile clubs probably rank low on the intramural club standings, so they get assigned to rundown buildings like this for their clubrooms.
I checked the directory sign.
The lineup of clubs in the old building was pretty brutal.
Chinese Martial Arts Research Club? What even is that? Not one of those wuxia novel reenactment groups, I hope.
Not just me—every incoming freshman here had the same expression: 'Uh, maybe not this one.'
I dragged my feet a little slower than before.
The old building's interior was filled with all sorts of quirky decorations.
Passing by posters like the Fish Research Society's '[Ranking of Tasty Fish for Sashimi]', I reached the Subculture Club room deep on the first floor.
The entrance was anything but ordinary.
A life-sized poster of some beautiful girl character was politely pointing to the clubroom door.
I swallowed hard and cautiously knocked.
- Knock knock
...
...
"Huh?"
- Knock knock!
No response even after knocking again.
Maybe no one's here? I gently pushed the door open, and it swung ajar.
Despite it still being bright daylight, the clubroom inside was pitch dark, which struck me as odd.
I peered through the narrow gap created by the open door to check inside.
"Gasp!"
"Whoa!"
This is insane.
I nearly fell backward after making eye contact with someone through the door crack.
As I calmed my racing heart, the clubroom door swung open from the inside.
"Wh-who are you?"
The one who appeared was a timid-looking guy.
Checking his name tag, it read Im Seongho, a third-year senior.
"Oh, uh. I came for club orientation."
"A freshman!? To here? For real? You're not lost, are you?"
His eyes shook violently, as if he couldn't believe it.
"Yeah. This is the Subculture Club, right?"
"It is, but... the Subculture Club..."
"...So, what were you doing in there? You scared me."
"I-I was scared too."
The senior cleared his throat awkwardly, straightened his clothes, and turned on the lights in the dim clubroom.
The interior came into full view.
A small table, two sofas, and a few desks shoved into the corners.
By the window, there was a water purifier and side table stocked with instant coffee mixes and green tea bags.
But what really stood out was the interior decor. Walls and ceiling crammed with an insane amount of otaku merchandise.
"Impressive."
"Right? This is all the history of our Subculture Club. Collected one by one by alumni seniors and us."
The quality and quantity screamed genuine passion and dedication.
As I browsed the goods, I noticed a blackout curtain on one wall.
Noticing my reaction, the senior approached it.
He poked his head through the gap in the curtain.
Looked like he was talking to someone inside.
Moments later, the curtain was pulled back, revealing the space.
Inside was a large screen and beam projector dominating one wall of the clubroom.
A popular anime was paused on the screen.
And plush chairs for viewing were arranged in front.
In the center, like a throne, sat a special-looking chair with a girl in it, and a boy next to her.
The pair stood up as light filtered in.
"Oh my. You're the new recruit?"
The girl whipped around, her intensely black hair—almost like splattered ink—flowing behind her, to look at me.
She was a beauty straight out of a painting.
Like a refined young lady from a prestigious family.
"Y-yeah. Not officially yet, though."
"Here for trial membership, then. I'm Yu Ara, president of the Subculture Club. Nice to meet you, junior."
"Seo Ijin."
Her looks, her speech—everything about her screamed 'ojou-sama'.
This really is a rom-com world, huh.
Guided by Im Seongho, who had opened the door, I sat on the sofa, and the three seniors sat across from me in a row.
"This is Im Seongho, our vice president. And this is Kim Juyong, our treasurer."
Vice President Im Seongho was the first one I'd met, and Treasurer Kim Juyong was the guy who'd been sitting next to the president.
All three were third-years.
The VP had this aura of shyness that resonated with the loner soul inside me.
The treasurer was a cool-headed guy with black horn-rimmed glasses.
...But with only three members, and all of them executives?
Following the president's elegant hand gestures as she introduced left and right, we exchanged names.
After greetings, Treasurer Juyong stood briskly and prepared instant coffee.
As I started to rise, the president stopped me.
"You're still a guest, junior. Please stay seated."
I half-stood, half-sat awkwardly.
I nodded in thanks, took a sip, and the president's voice broke the silence.
"So, Seo Ijin junior, what brings you to the Subculture Club?"
"Oh, I like drawing illustrations in this style. Thinking of going pro, and I've taken a few commissions."
"Oh? Already working professionally? What an impressive junior!"
Suddenly excited, I scratched the back of my head sheepishly.
"It's not that big a deal."
"If it's not too much trouble, could I see your artwork?"
"Sure."
I pulled out my phone, opened the commission site, and showed her.
"Huh? Oh!"
The president shot up and snatched my phone.
"Th-this, this, this!"
"Yu Ara senior...?"
"Call me President! No, more importantly—junior, you're really Seojin!? Now that I think about it, your name is Seo Ijin! Eek!"
The elegant lady from moments ago was now flushed red and wildly excited.
"Seojin! I'm a fan!"
"Pardon?"
"L-look at this."
Unable to calm down, she fumbled with her trembling hands for her phone, swiped around, and shoved it at me.
On the screen were several illustrations I'd drawn for commissions.
"This... so you're—"
"Yes! I'm Arara, Seojin's number one fan!"
What a coincidence—meeting Arara here of all places.
True to being my first fan, she'd given me my very first commission.
And she'd spent enough money on me since to have a big hand in my current comfortable life.
"What an incredible coincidence. Uh, calm down a bit first."
While the president caught her breath, the VP and treasurer sneaked over and took my phone from her to look.
"Whoa, real pro-level stuff."
"Am-amazing. S-So, Seo Ijin junior?"
I gave a brief thanks to their admiration.
"Feel free to call me casually. VP."
"Uh, yeah. Ijin-ah..."
Crash!
At that moment, the quiet president slammed up from her seat.
"Whoa, you scared me! Yu Ara!"
"Call me President! A-anyway, autograph. Paper for the autograph..."
I watched her possessed-like frenzy as she rummaged through the clubroom.
Is that really the same refined lady from before?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
And so, after a fan autograph session with just the three of them, I joined the club on the president's unconditional approval.
Is this club gonna be okay?