Chapter 33
“Se-yeon! Right?”
“…Yeah.”
“Do you remember me?”
I reluctantly nodded. I didn’t really want to acknowledge her in this situation, but I couldn’t lie and say I didn’t remember. Forgetting that face was impossible.
‘Yoon Seol-ah, wasn’t it?’
The prettiest girl at school, who had come looking for me to ask if I was Jung Soo-min’s girlfriend.
“Ugh…”
Yoon Seol-ah muttered a small curse under her breath as she gracefully walked forward, leaving Ra-yura behind.
“That’s good. Anyway… huh, what happened! Did you spill milk? Are you okay?”
Then she noticed Myung Ah-jin and gave a worried look.
Myung Ah-jin’s cheeks were red, and she gave a shy little nod with a giggle.
“Yeah, I’m okay! Se-yeon helped me clean it up… Whoa. Wait, Se-yeon, your clothes got dirty!”
Realizing this, Myung Ah-jin opened the hoodie I was wearing, looking dismayed. The white fabric was stained with chocolate milk and looked terrible.
“Don’t worry. You can just throw it away.”
When I said it casually, Myung Ah-jin shook her head frantically.
“I’ll wash it tomorrow and bring it back!”
“No need. Even if you wash it, it should be her doing it, not you.”
I nodded toward Ra-yura with my chin, and Yoon Seol-ah’s gaze followed.
Ra-yura, standing a step behind, glared at me fiercely.
“What are you staring at? Aren’t you going to apologize? Even backwards, come on, Ra-yura.”
“What? That crazy—!”
“Yura, did you spill milk on Se-yeon’s friend?”
Ra-yura, who was about to explode, immediately clamped her mouth shut at Yoon Seol-ah’s question.
Her eyes darted around in panic, then dropped to the floor. She slumped her shoulders and pursed her lips.
“No… I just bumped into her by accident. You keep picking a fight. If you think about it, the milk was theirs anyway…”
“Stop pretending to be pitiful. Seriously.”
“Unbelievable…!”
“That’s enough!”
Yoon Seol-ah’s scolding made Ra-yura shut up again. Observing her, it was clear Yoon Seol-ah wasn’t Ra-yura’s ally but ours.
“Here, give me the hoodie.”
Myung Ah-jin opened her mouth in surprise and handed the hoodie to Yoon Seol-ah, clearly distracted by her appearance.
Yoon Seol-ah, now holding the hoodie, spoke firmly as she turned to Ra-yura.
“Yura, since it was your mistake, wash it and return it to Se-yeon.”
“…Okay.”
“And apologize to Se-yeon’s friend quickly.”
“Sorry.”
The voice was so small it was barely audible. Considering how annoyed she had been earlier, this was a huge improvement.
She’s completely immobilized.
Doesn’t look like it, but is she actually good at fighting?
‘Whatever it is, serves her right.’
I chuckled quietly to myself, but Yoon Seol-ah’s attention quickly turned to me.
“And Se-yeon, don’t scold Yura too much, okay?”
“What did I do?”
“You teased her about her name, said she was pretending to be pitiful… You shouldn’t do that to a friend.”
“Huh?”
Her calm, almost parental tone made me instantly annoyed. Getting lectured by someone I wasn’t even that close to?
“Why should I…”
Showing my displeasure openly, Myung Ah-jin nudged me.
“Se-yeon, just say okay! She seems nice!!”
…Seriously.
I raised her, played with her, helped her grow, and now this girl I’ve known for only a minute is taking her side.
Raising kids is useless, indeed.
Too shocked to argue, I just nodded.
“Thanks.”
Yoon Seol-ah smiled brightly, clearly proud.
“Okay, that’s done! Se-yeon, go with your friend to the bathroom quickly, you should wash up with water too.”
“I was going anyway.”
I answered irritably, and Myung Ah-jin poked my side again, signaling not to be so rough.
‘Wow, seriously… unreal.’
I lost all motivation and shut my mouth.
Just as Myung Ah-jin grabbed my wrist to drag me along, a familiar face appeared around the corner at the end of the hallway.
“Oh? Kim Se-yeon! Ding-a!”
Jung Soo-min, in a loose school uniform, probably came from playing soccer.
“Soo-min!”
Myung Ah-jin shouted happily.
Soo-min approached, looking down at the messy Myung Ah-jin, clicking his tongue lightly.
“What’s going on? You look like a mess. What were you doing not watching the kid?”
“I was watching properly. She came at me.”
He gave a thumbs-up toward Ra-yura, who was standing behind.
Soo-min glanced between Ra-yura and Yoon Seol-ah, when suddenly Ra-yura rushed forward.
“No, no, Soo-min! I bumped into her by myself, and Seol-ah came later and actually helped them!”
“Uh… okay.”
Even though it wasn’t necessary, she overexplained suspiciously. Soo-min glanced back at me.
“Hurry up and wash up. Shouldn’t you take a shower at this point?”
“Bathroom first…”
“Hey, wait!”
A soft voice interjected suddenly.
“Should I ask the PE teacher if we can use the gym showers?”
I turned to see Yoon Seol-ah, quietly resting her hand on Myung Ah-jin’s shoulder.
Soo-min tilted his head, skeptical.
“You said you didn’t bump into her.”
“Well, yeah, but I bumped into my friend so I care… and I’m kind of close with the PE teacher.”
“That’s not true. I’m closer with the PE teacher than you. I should ask instead.”
Soo-min suddenly turned it into a weird pride contest. I was baffled.
Yoon Seol-ah, however, was unfazed, smiling softly while covering her mouth with her fingertips.
“That could work. The PE teacher is a basketball fan, right? Your name… Soo-min, right? I heard you’re a former youth national player.”
“Yeah, you know well. Anyway, just go.”
“Or do you want to go ask together?”
“Why would I?”
“If we go together, maybe he’ll say yes.”
…What are they even doing?
I felt annoyed at the two high schoolers treating me and Myung Ah-jin as props for their little romance game.
Finally, I waved my hand impatiently and cleared the way.
“Are you all leaving or not? I’m the one washing Myung Ah-jin.”
“Oh, okay, Se-yeon! Wash up at the nearby bathroom. Soo-min and I will ask the PE teacher about the shower.”
“Fine.”
I didn’t care.
They disappeared while I washed Myung Ah-jin, helped her change, and returned her to class.
Only after lunch did Soo-min return, babbling explanations about why it took so long, but I barely listened.
‘Finally, maybe they’re dating?’
I had a feeling school life would get easier.
The room was quiet as a mouse.
I fidgeted restlessly, glancing at Seo Jin-hyung. His eyes remained fixed, unwavering.
After hesitating for a long moment, I finally spoke.
“…Hey, do you want to play Kangaroo?”
“Se-yeon.”
“Huh?!”
“You miscalculated.”
Damn it.
I grabbed my eraser and scrubbed away the equation I had been solving.
‘Terrible… I really asked after thinking about it.’
My hands trembled with shame.
The hellish time passed slowly, counting down to D-3 before midterms.
When I declared a boycott of the library that made me want to vomit, Seo Jin-hyung dragged me to his room.
So the tutoring continued.
‘Soo-min and Myung Ah-jin are probably having fun together.’
I thought of the foolish duo going to the movies immediately after school, claiming a holiday from the association regardless of exams. I wanted to go too, but Jin-hyung was waiting like a reaper at the school gate.
I rested my head on the desk, glaring at the workbook. I only had to endure three more days, but today I was too lazy to study.
Thump.
My forehead slammed onto the workbook.
“Ha… just a moment. Let’s lie down for a minute. Honestly, you’re tired too.”
The delinquent sitting next to me, reading his textbook, replied.
“The exam is in a few days. You have to do your best until the end.”
“X really full of yourself…”
I muttered quietly, and Jin-hyung smirked.
“Is it that hard?”
“Yes!”
I sat upright abruptly. It was time to give a little carrot. Even a sociopath can’t handle two weeks of constant whipping…
“Bear with it.”
I choked back my frustration.
“Hey! Seriously?! This is high school student abuse!!”
“That’s why I do it too. Fairly.”
“I said it’s abuse. You’re a high schooler too! No, stand up.”
I got up and yanked Jin-hyung’s arm. I expected resistance, but his big body followed easily.
Flop!
“Ouch.”
“Ouch? Shut up… ugh, gross.”
I tossed Jin-hyung onto the bed and set a timer on my phone.
“Let’s sleep for 30 minutes. No talking.”
“You’re sleeping too, Se-yeon?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“Just… I’m happy because it’s the first time you asked me to sleep together.”
“….”
The same guy who claimed he couldn’t spit on a smiling face could now be countered with action.
I trembled with rage, whispering low.
“Don’t get the wrong idea. It’s not because I like you… I’m just mentally cornered and making a poor choice…”
“Okay, come here.”
“Ahh!”
Jin-hyung grabbed my wrist and pulled lightly. My body was instantly dragged along.
