Chapter 95: The Friend Who Owes Gratitude and Holds Resentment

After finishing his late-night meal, Chen Zhe politely declined Choi Soo-young and Jung Soo-jung’s offer to escort him home, watching as the two were picked up by their manager.

He exhaled in relief as the silver-gray van faded into the distance, then dialed his own manager, Lin Soo-ho, asking him to come pick him up.

Once the call ended, Chen Zhe pocketed his phone and found a bench by the roadside. He sat down, arms crossed, and gazed up at Seoul’s night sky, dark and devoid of stars, lost in thought.

“Excuse me! May I sit here?”

While staring at the sky, Chen Zhe let his mind drift, giving his overworked brain a moment’s rest. But a woman’s voice interrupted his reverie, pulling him back to reality.

“Of course, please have a seat!” He withdrew his gaze from the heavens and turned toward the source of the voice.

Before him stood a girl concealing her identity with a mask and hat. Chen Zhe’s lips curled into a gentle smile as he nodded to her, then shifted to the right side of the bench, making room for her.

“Thank you!” The masked girl nodded in gratitude and settled on the left end of the bench, maintaining a respectful distance.

“Are you waiting for a car?” The silence between them grew heavy, neither speaking. After a while, the woman seemed unable to bear the awkwardness and broke the quiet, her tone attempting a maturity that struck Chen Zhe as somewhat forced.

“Yes, are you waiting for a car as well?” Chen Zhe had intended to break the silence himself, but was surprised when she spoke first.

He had assumed she was simply resting after a long walk, not expecting that she, too, was waiting for a ride.

“Looks like we’re in the same boat!” Her voice grew excited, clearly pleased to have guessed correctly. Sitting idle while waiting for a car was dull; having someone to chat with made the time pass more easily.

“But I feel like you look familiar…” She scratched her head, puzzled as she studied Chen Zhe, who was now unmasked and unhidden.

He seemed strangely familiar, as if she’d seen him somewhere before, but she couldn’t recall where.

“Familiar? Perhaps I resemble someone you know?” Chen Zhe chuckled at her remark.

He’d heard that phrase many times since arriving in Korea and was already immune to it, but responded with a smile out of courtesy.

“Someone you know—that’s it!” The word triggered a spark in her mind. Borrowing his phrase, she began rummaging through her phone, absorbed in scrolling through her gallery and chat history.

Watching her search for something on her phone, Chen Zhe felt a bit embarrassed, inwardly wondering if his casual guess about resembling a friend might actually be true.

She searched diligently for a while before finally finding what she was looking for. Raising her head, she glanced at Chen Zhe, then looked down at her phone, as if comparing something.

Seeing her scrutinize him in this way, Chen Zhe grew even more bewildered. Wasn’t he supposed to look familiar? Why the need to compare with her phone? Perhaps he’d guessed wrong and didn’t actually resemble her friend.

“May I ask, is the boy in this photo with Ji-eun you?”

After a moment of comparison, she still seemed uncertain. She raised her phone, showing Chen Zhe the screen—a photo he immediately recognized.

“Oh, isn’t that a candid shot of me and Ji-eun noona? How do you have it?”

The instant he recognized the photo, Chen Zhe was taken aback. It was a playful picture he and Lee Ji-eun had taken after acting class.

“So it really is you! I was worried I’d mistaken someone else!”

The girl exhaled in relief, patting her modest chest as if a weight had lifted.

“You know Ji-eun noona too! May I ask who you are?” Chen Zhe quickly realized her connection and his expression grew curious.

He hadn’t expected, while waiting for a car, to run into someone acquainted with Lee Ji-eun—his strange luck seemed to be taking a new turn.

“Yes, hello, Chen Zhe-ssi, I’m Ji-eun’s friend, Park Ji-yeon. It’s nice to meet you!” After introducing herself, the girl extended her hand.

“Hello, Senior Park Ji-yeon, I’m Chen Zhe. It’s a pleasure to meet you!”

Upon learning her identity, Chen Zhe’s eyes widened. Now he understood why she had the photo of him and Lee Ji-eun—it was Park Ji-yeon, the little dinosaur, Ji-eun’s closest friend. It made perfect sense for Ji-eun to have shared the photo with her, given their close relationship.

“I’ve heard Ji-eun mention you, Chen Zhe-ssi. She said you’re her dear younger brother!”

Park Ji-yeon’s grip was light, and her demeanor turned lively and cheerful.

“Yes, I’ve heard noona mention you too, senior. She said you’re a wonderful person and her best friend!”

Seeing Park Ji-yeon so animated, Chen Zhe’s lips curved upward. He repeated Ji-eun’s praise, albeit simplified and edited.

“Ji-eun told you about me? But that’s not exactly her original words, is it?”

Upon hearing him, Park Ji-yeon raised her eyebrows in disbelief, crossing her arms and giving a playful huff.

“Ah, alright, I admit it, senior. What I just said wasn’t exactly her words—it was my condensed version!”

Watching her gestures and expressions, Chen Zhe instinctively wanted to rub his forehead, but held back.

“Just as I thought!” Park Ji-yeon continued to cross her arms, head held high, her manner proud and teasing.

“Yes, senior, you really are amazing!” Though tempted to tease her, Chen Zhe resisted the urge and instead praised her.

His compliment made Park Ji-yeon even more pleased. Though her mask concealed her cheeks, the crescent shape of her smiling eyes betrayed her genuine delight.