As If Transmigrating Wasn’t Enough, I’m Pregnant?!

Opportunities find you this way. Just like the clichés of this terrible novel, the chance to meet the person you least want to see yet desperately need at the very end of despair. A faint yet persistent light began to flicker in Ryu Hae-sol’s vacant eyes. Desperately moving his bruised and aching muscles all over his body, he hurriedly tapped away at the keyboard.

Everything else didn’t matter. There was no leisure to ask how Ju Ha-ram was doing or make excuses for his current situation inside Ryu Hae-sol’s mind. Only a single fact he needed to verify filled the chat window in front of him.

[Ryu Hae-sol: Is senior Do Won-hyung coming to that gathering too?]

After sending the message, Ryu Hae-sol held his breath. The air in the room suddenly felt heavy. It felt as though his own heartbeat was echoing in his ears. Please. Please tell me he’s coming. A desperate wish almost slipped past his lips. After a few seconds that felt like an eternity, his phone rang shortly once again.

[Ju Ha-ram: This punk is finally answering now. What have you been doing up until now? I was super worried, you know.]

[Ju Ha-ram: Won-hyung sunbae is probably coming, right? I heard he’s friends with the student council president sunbae, and that he frequently participates in department events.]

[Ju Ha-ram: But why are you asking about that sunbae?]

“Probably coming?” An answer close to a conjecture felt like a solid conviction to Ryu Hae-sol. He clenched his fists tightly without realizing it. He could feel the sensation of his poorly maintained nails digging into his palms, but he felt no pain. An emotion far more intense than that dominated his entire body.

It was the instinct to survive, and the desperation to break through this situation by any means necessary. Ryu Hae-sol recalled his appearance in a room without a mirror. A swollen and bruised face, split lips, and a complete mess of an outfit. In this appearance, which was far from presentable, he couldn’t stand before Do Won-hyung.

However, he didn’t care. He had to go no matter what. He had to meet Do Won-hyung. Tomorrow evening, that gathering might be the single lifeline that could pull Ryu Hae-sol out of this hell. Once again, he sent a short reply back to Ju Ha-ram.

[Ryu Hae-sol: I got it. I’ll go too.]

Right after Ryu Hae-sol made up his mind and sent the brief reply, the old cell phone in his hand began ringing like crazy, as if having a seizure. Bzzzt— bzzzt— bzzzt—. At the unstopped, consecutive arrival of message notifications, Ryu Hae-sol couldn’t help but frown.

The screen was instantly filled with messages sent by Ju Ha-ram. The ripple effect caused by his affirmative answer was far greater than expected. Wondering how Ryu Hae-sol usually lived his life, Ju Ha-ram poured out questions filled with all sorts of confusion.

[Ju Ha-ram: What? You’re coming? You? To a gathering?]

[Ju Ha-ram: Hey, are you really Ryu Hae-sol? Did you take drugs somewhere?]

[Ju Ha-ram: What kind of wind is blowing all of a sudden? Hell must have frozen over…….]

[Ju Ha-ram: No, more importantly, where are you right now? Are you really okay?]

[Ju Ha-ram: You haven’t been answering your phone since last evening. You’re not really in some kind of trouble, right?]

[Ju Ha-ram: Did you go home by any chance?]

[Ju Ha-ram: No, there’s no way you’d do that.]

[Ju Ha-ram: Then where on earth are you wandering around at this hour of the night? How dangerous!]

[Ju Ha-ram: Come straight to my place. Understand?]

[Ju Ha-ram: You know my studio apartment address, right?]

[Ju Ha-ram: It’s super late now, so don’t bother trying to save money by taking a bus or subway, just take a taxi. I’ll give you the taxi fare.]

[Ju Ha-ram: Hey, answer me!]

Ryu Hae-sol stared expressionlessly down at the endlessly pouring messages. The friend’s raw emotions, a mix of worry, bewilderment, and slight annoyance, were vividly transmitted across the screen.

However, Ryu Hae-sol’s fingers wouldn’t move easily. He was mentally exhausted. He didn’t want to owe favors to anyone anymore. It felt like piling up yet another debt. As for the existence of Moon Seong-yoon, it had been a long time since he forgot how to lean on others or ask for help while living his life up until now.

In particular, this kind of unilateral goodwill and pity was something he guarded against and avoided the most. Regardless of the other person’s intent, it felt like an invisible emotional burden that he would eventually have to repay someday.