Chapter 29 — The Great Jealousy Standoff

The seminar room for "Comparative Analysis of Romantic Obsession in 19th Century Prose" was far too small for the amount of psychic pressure currently contained within its four walls. It was a room designed for twelve students and a professor, but as Han Jae-in sat in his usual seat, he felt as though he were trapped in a diving bell at the bottom of the ocean.

Professor Han Yoon-seok was late. This was a tactical disaster. Without the stabilizing presence of a faculty member, the "No-Stalking Agreement" had devolved into its most primal form: a territorial standoff where the weapons were elbows, intense glares, and the deafening roar of overlapping internal monologues.

Jae-in sat in the center of the front row. To his left, Seo Yuri had established a "bureaucratic buffer zone." She had laid out three separate highlighters, a digital recorder, and her navy-blue planner in a way that claimed precisely sixty percent of the shared desk space. To his right, Min Chaerin was practically sitting in his lap. She had hooked her arm through his and was resting her chin on his shoulder, her eyes darting toward Yuri with the defensive ferocity of a cornered animal.

And behind him, Kuroe Hana sat in a chair she had physically dragged from the back of the room. She was so close that the front of her hoodie was touching the back of Jae-in’s chair. He could feel the steady, rhythmic heat of her presence—a silent, tactical shadow that refused to blink.

'The seating arrangement is 88% compromised,' Yuri’s internal voice sharpened into a cold, administrative blade. 'Subject Chaerin is utilizing low-level tactile manipulation to disrupt the academic flow. Subject Hana is utilizing a rear-guard intimidation tactic. I must escalate the "Partner" status. If I cannot remove them, I will simply make my presence more official.'

"Jae-in," Yuri said aloud, her voice a calm, professional contrast to the static in his head. She leaned in, her hair brushing against his cheek—a calculated move that sent a spike of white-hot jealousy through the girl on his other side. "I’ve highlighted the relevant passages on 'The Self-Destructive Lover' in your text. You should follow my notations specifically. They are the most... accurate."

'Accuracy is a euphemism for control,' her thoughts hummed. 'Read my words. Hear my voice. Realize that I am the only one who can translate the world for you.'

"I... thanks, Yuri," Jae-in stammered.

"HE DOESN'T NEED YOUR HIGHLIGHTERS!" Chaerin’s internal scream was so loud Jae-in actually winced. 'SHE’S TOUCHING HIS FACE WITH HER HAIR! SHE’S TRYING TO TURN THIS SEMINAR INTO A WEDDING REHEARSAL! JAE-IN, DON'T LOOK. LOOK AT ME.'

"Jae-in-ah," Chaerin whispered, her hand sliding down his arm to interlace her fingers with his. Her grip was desperate, her palms slightly damp. "I didn't understand the part about the 'eternal bond.' Can you explain it to me? Just whisper it in my ear. Don't let her hear."

'If I can get him to whisper, our breath will mix,' Chaerin’s mind spiraled into a manic, romantic delusion. 'It’ll be like a secret. A secret that excludes the Vice President. A secret that makes us the only two people in the room. I’ll lean in so close he has to smell my strawberry gloss. I’ll win the scent war.'

Jae-in felt the physical pull from both sides. He was a human wishbone.

'Threat level: Critical,' Hana’s thoughts rumbled from behind his head. 'The target is being physically distorted by the competing vectors. His spine is curved at an unnatural twelve-degree angle. If Subject Chaerin pulls any harder, she will cause a muscular strain. I must provide a counter-weight.'

Hana reached forward. She didn't touch the girls. She placed her hands firmly on Jae-in’s shoulders. It wasn't a massage; it was a physical anchoring. She pushed him forward slightly, forcing him to sit upright and, in the process, dislodging Chaerin’s chin and pulling his arm away from Yuri’s "buffer zone."

"Posture," Hana said.

'Stability restored,' her mind added. 'I am the anchor. I am the center. I am the only one who cares about his structural integrity.'

"Get your hands off him!" Chaerin snapped, her "bubbly" persona finally cracking under the pressure of Hana’s silent interference. She turned in her seat, glaring at the girl in the hoodie. "You’ve been following us all day! You don't even talk! You just... you just linger like a bad smell!"

Hana stared back, her expression as flat as a sheet of lead.

"I am a guardian," Hana said.

'I am the shadow that protects him from your noise,' her thoughts countered with chilling clarity. 'You are a chaos variable. You provide no utility. You only provide "habit." Habits can be broken. Shadows are permanent.'

"A guardian? You’re a stalker!" Chaerin cried, her thoughts reaching a fever pitch. 'SHE CALLED ME NOISE. I’LL SHOW HER NOISE. I’LL SCREAM SO LOUD THE WHOLE UNIVERSITY WILL KNOW SHE’S A CREEP!'

"Ladies, please," Yuri intervened, her voice like a velvet-wrapped gavel. She didn't look at them; she was busy adjusting her digital recorder. "We are in a house of learning. If you cannot maintain the minimum standard of decorum, I will be forced to file a formal complaint regarding 'Disruptive Academic Behavior.' It would be a shame for your transcripts to reflect such... emotional instability."

'Bureaucracy is the ultimate silencer,' Yuri thought. 'I will use the rules to erase them. I will make their very presence a violation of the student handbook. They are playing checkers. I am playing the legal system.'

Jae-in looked at the door. Where is Professor Han? he wondered. Please, let there be a lecture. Let there be anything other than this.

The standoff moved from verbal to physical as the three girls began a silent battle for the "Shared Space" of the desk.

Yuri moved her digital recorder two inches to the right, encroaching on Jae-in’s notebook. Chaerin moved her water bottle—decorated with hearts and glitter—into the space Yuri just claimed. Hana leaned forward even further, her chest now firmly pressed against the back of Jae-in’s chair, her chin resting on the top of his head.

Jae-in felt like he was being swallowed by a three-headed monster.

'I am the crown,' Hana’s mind hummed as she rested her head on his. 'I am the ultimate proximity. I can hear his thoughts. I can feel the vibration of his skull. I am the closest thing to his soul.'

'SHE’S TOUCHING HIS HEAD!' Chaerin’s mind was now just a series of jagged, red lines of fury. 'THAT’S MY FAVORITE PART OF HIM! HIS HAIR IS SO SOFT AND SHE’S RUINING IT WITH HER HOODIE!'

'Inefficient,' Yuri thought, though her pen-hand was trembling with suppressed rage. 'A vulgar display of physical dominance. I will counter with intellectual intimacy.'

"Jae-in," Yuri said, ignoring the other two. "Look at page 142. The author describes the 'boiling point' of passion as a moment where the individual loses their sense of self. Do you feel that? The loss of self? I’ve written a three-page analysis on why that is the ideal state for a relationship."

'I want to erase his "self,"' Yuri’s mind whispered with terrifying honesty. 'I want to replace his ego with my schedule. I want to be the only thought he has left.'

Jae-in looked at the text. He didn't need to read page 142. He was living it. He was the "boiling point." He could feel his own identity being shredded by the three competing versions of "Han Jae-in" they had created in their heads.

To Yuri, he was a project to be optimized. To Chaerin, he was a childhood fantasy to be reclaimed. To Hana, he was a treasure to be guarded from the light.

None of them were looking at him. They were looking at the space he occupied.

"I... I think I need some air," Jae-in said, his voice a ragged whisper.

The reaction was instantaneous.

'Departure detected,' Yuri thought. 'I will accompany him to ensure he doesn't wander into an unmonitored area.' 'He’s running away because they’re being mean!' Chaerin thought. 'I’ll catch him! I’ll hug him in the hallway until he feels better!' 'Extraction protocol initiated,' Hana decided.

Before Jae-in could even stand up, the door to the seminar room finally opened. Professor Han Yoon-seok walked in, looking flustered and carrying a stack of papers.

"Apologies, class! The faculty meeting ran over. Now, let’s begin. Page 142—The Emotional Boiling Point."

The professor stopped. He looked at the front row.

He saw Han Jae-in, looking like a man facing a firing squad. He saw the Vice President leaning in from the left, the "Childhood Friend" clinging to the right, and the "Shadow" leaning over from behind.

"Ah," the professor said, a slow, knowing smile spreading across his face. "I see you’ve already begun the practical application of the text. Excellent. Jae-in, tell the class: what does it feel like when the proximity of others becomes a threat to your very existence?"

The class erupted in titters of laughter. They thought it was a brilliant pedagogical joke.

Jae-in looked at the professor, then at the three girls who were all staring at him with a terrifying, expectant hunger.

'Answer him,' Yuri thought. 'Tell them you belong to the system.' 'Tell them you love me!' Chaerin’s mind wailed. 'Tell them you are safe,' Hana pulsed.

Jae-in took a slow, deep breath. The internal noise was a white-out blizzard. He couldn't hear his own heart anymore. He could only hear them.

"It feels," Jae-in said, his voice deadpan and hollow, "like there’s no such thing as 'me' anymore. There’s only 'us.' And 'us' is a very, very crowded place."

'He said "us"!' Chaerin’s mind sang. 'He means him and me!' 'He understands the integration,' Yuri noted with pride. 'We are a unit,' Hana finalized.

They had all misinterpreted his despair as a confession of unity.

The lecture continued for another hour, but for Jae-in, time had ceased to have meaning. He was physically pinned by Hana, emotionally drained by Chaerin, and mentally managed by Yuri. Every time he tried to move, he was corrected. Every time he sighed, he was questioned.

As the bell finally rang, signaling the end of the seminar, the three girls stood up in perfect synchronization.

"The next lecture is in the Science Hall," Yuri said, checking her planner. "We have six minutes for transit. I’ve calculated the fastest route that avoids the crowded main stairs."

"I want to go through the park!" Chaerin argued. "The cherry blossoms are almost out! It’s romantic!"

"The park has too many blind spots," Hana interjected. "We will use the service elevator. It is the most secure."

Jae-in stood in the middle of the hallway, watching them argue over the "best" way to transport him. He felt like a piece of high-value luggage being disputed by three different shipping companies.

He looked at his hands. They were covered in Chaerin’s glitter. He looked at his wrist. Yuri’s schedule was still visible on his smartwatch. He felt the weight of the knife Hana had given him in his pocket.

The "Great Jealousy Standoff" hadn't ended with the seminar. It had simply moved into a new phase of mobile occupation.

As they began to walk toward the Science Hall, Jae-in saw Sunhee in the distance. She saw him, saw the three girls surrounding him like a security detail, and she didn't even wave this time. She just shook her head and walked away.

She was the last normal person in his life, and she was leaving.

'Good,' Yuri thought, noticing Sunhee’s departure. 'One less distraction.' 'He didn't even look at her!' Chaerin’s mind cheered. 'He’s finally learning!' 'Clearance achieved,' Hana noted.

Jae-in walked on, his feet moving in time with the three heartbeats he could hear as clearly as his own. He realized that the "Boiling Point" wasn't a moment of explosion. It was a moment of total, silent evaporation.

He was disappearing into them. And the terrifying part—the part that made him want to scream and laugh at the same time—was that he was starting to forget why he had ever wanted to be alone.

"Jae-in," Yuri said, her hand grazing his arm as they entered the elevator. "Are you still with us?"

'Always,' the three of them thought in unison.

Jae-in looked at the closing doors. "I don't think I have a choice," he whispered.