Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: First Day Embarrassment
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"What have you two been doing all day? All the teachers who came to our class today had something to say about it. I was so embarrassed I wanted to crawl into a hole!"
Into a mouse hole!
The homeroom teacher stomped her foot, pointing at the empty floor.
The teacher was furious, but I was just dazed.
It was the face of our homeroom teacher, unchanged after ten years since graduation.
She was a fresh college graduate who had just been assigned to our school this year and immediately took on homeroom duties—a total newbie to teaching.
She wasn't even ten years older than us, and she was still full of rookie mistakes.
It wasn't just once or twice I'd seen her slump her shoulders and say, "The vice principal told me to finish this before I go..." when I'd ask, "Teacher, aren't you heading home?"
She knew even less about how the school worked than we did, having only been here a year already. Some of the boys openly ignored her.
Even so, she'd seemed like a total grown-up in my eyes back then.
But seeing her now, she looked like a total kid. A baby.
Does the teacher go home and boil some instant noodles while rewatching old variety shows?
Anyway, right now she was a pissed-off adult woman seven years my senior, grabbing me and Jeong Eun-seong amid the kids rushing out for lunch.
"What the hell was that today? Were you trying to sync up or something? To get me in trouble?"
The homeroom teacher roared.
"The teachers gave me an earful!"
"Teacher, that's not it. Jeong Eun-seong...!"
I really didn't want to do this!
I'm twenty-nine years old, and I spent all day raising my hand and calling on teachers!
Some of the teachers I whined to about disciplining Jeong Eun-seong today were even younger than me.
What the hell!
"Jeong Eun-seong started picking on me first!"
"No, I was just helping the music teacher."
"Both of you, shut it. Do it one more time, and you'll be staying after class together for cleaning duty."
"Ooh, Kang Da-hye must be thrilled."
"Teacher, I want to stay behind with Eun-seong too!"
The kid who jumped in shouting from the side wilted under the homeroom teacher's glare and slunk away.
"Please behave, guys. Our class already has so many late arrivals that the grade supervisor is watching us. Keep it up, and I'll really get chewed out."
"Yes. Sorry."
"Sorry."
"Alright. Go eat. Stir-fried octopus today."
She warned that if we were late, there wouldn't be any sauce left to mix with our rice, then vanished first with eager expectations of "There'll be seaweed flakes too, right?"
...My plan to live as the picture-perfect model student had already gone off the rails on day one.
I glared at Jeong Eun-seong.
Feeling my stare, Jeong Eun-seong looked down at me.
"What're you looking at?"
"......"
Ignore him.
Time to eat. If we're late, no octopus sauce.
I flung open the classroom door, now empty as all the kids had filed out.
The friend I used to eat lunch with at this time...
"Da-hye!"
Unable to enter because of the [No Entry to Other Classes!!!!] sign, my friend waited outside, beaming and reaching out to me.
"Han Ji-su!"
I ran and hugged my friend tight.
"Ji-su! Hnggg!"
"Huh...? What's wrong...?"
"Hng... It's really you, Ji-su..."
It's really Ji-su. My friend Han Ji-su.
Tears welled up just like they had that morning facing my rejuvenated mom.
"Hng hng heung..."
I sniffed and squeezed her arm harder.
Han Ji-su.
My friend, after ten years.
The closest friend in my twenty-nine years of life.
We were in the same class all three years of middle school, and even in high school first year.
We stayed tight for six straight years, until I bombed the college entrance exam and cut off contact.
To be precise, I unilaterally ghosted her.
Out of inferiority.
I flunked the exam, but Ji-su got into Korea University in the major I wanted, performing as usual.
Even after that, Ji-su kept reaching out steadily, but when I ignored her, contact faded after about a year.
Whenever life got tough, I'd think of Ji-su, but I could never bring myself to reach out again.
I had no shame left.
And I wasn't living well enough to justify reconnecting.
I regretted cutting her off so many times.
So how could I not be thrilled to see her again?
My friend's face.
"Hiiing..."
"What's up? Did the homeroom teacher yell at you?"
"Han Ji-su. I'm heading down first."
Seo Jae-kyeom, who had been with Ji-su until I came out, glanced between me emerging with Jeong Eun-seong and waved to Ji-su.
"Enjoy your lunch."
"You too, Seo Jae-kyeom."
Before turning away, Seo Jae-kyeom's gaze flicked to me briefly, but I only had eyes for Ji-su.
Who cares about Seo Jae-kyeom? Han Ji-su was right in front of me.
"Da-hye, nothing really happened, right?"
"Yeah. Just hungry."
"Phew. Let's go down then."
"Okay."
"Wipe your nose first."
"Do I look ugly?"
"Yeah. Totally."
"Hiiing."
I wiped my face with tissue in the bathroom, giggling at Ji-su's laughter.
I linked arms with Ji-su, who didn't complain at all about wasting precious lunch time.
My friend.
"I went to your class this morning."
"Really?"
"Yeah. But you weren't there."
"Oh, you must've come when I was at the canteen."
"Probably."
"Why? Something to say?"
"Nah, not really. Just missed you."
"What's with you suddenly? You're scaring me..."
"Hee hee. I'll be good from now on, okay?"
Regression is a good thing.
I can meet friends like this again.
This time, I'll never cut contact. We'll be best friends forever.
God, Buddha, ancestors.
I don't know who you are, but thank you for sending me back. I'll live righteously from now on.
As I joked by stuffing the used tissue into Ji-su's uniform pocket, Jeong Eun-seong suddenly appeared from behind and overtook us.
Ji-su whispered, eyeing Jeong Eun-seong's back—which screamed handsome even from behind.
"That's Jeong Eun-seong?"
"Yeah."
"You two close?"
"No?!"
What kind of rude question is that!
"He's totally weird!"
"Really? From outside earlier, you two looked friendly."
"We were telling each other to buzz off."
"For real?"
"Yeah. We're not the type to chat. He's just bad luck."
"How can someone that good-looking be bad luck?"
"Exactly. He pulls off the impossible."
"Why? What's his deal?"
"I'll tell you over lunch."
Because I'm starving.
We were so late from the scolding that there was no line at the cafeteria.
I tagged my student ID at the entrance and read today's menu on the sign.
-Brown rice
-Beef mushroom soup
-Stir-fried octopus* with ssam radish
-Seasoned mung bean jelly with seaweed
-Chopped kimchi
-Red bean butter walnut pastry
"Red bean butter walnut pastry?!"
Is this for real?!
"Sounds amazing."
Can life be this satisfying?
I hummed happily as I got my tray.
Instead of seaweed flakes for the octopus, they had chives, and since no one took them, I loaded up extra.
"Da-hye, you used to hate chives, right...?"
"I think so back then... but now I love them. Good for your liver."
"Liver health...?"
"Yeah. After eating, let's walk a lap around the field. Post-meal blood sugar management is key."
"Uhhh...?"
"Teens don't get it yet. But health is something you protect while you have it."
So you take some too, Ji-su. I piled chives mountain-high on her tray, then turned.
The cafeteria was packed, and we wandered looking for a seat...
"...Why's the vibe like this?"
So many people, yet weirdly quiet.
Like secretive giggles or hushed watching.
Perplexed, I scanned around and soon spotted the source.
A short-haired girl sat alone at an eight-person table smack in the middle, eating.
The area around her buzzed with chatter, but her table was conspicuously empty.
Everyone acted like she was invisible, yet all their attention zeroed in on her.
The group at the table right next to hers snickered.
A loud voice, clearly meant to be overheard, pierced my ears.
"Wow. How do you eat alone like that?"
"I'd skip meals. Just starve."
"I'd drop out."
"Yeah, you need skin that thick to hook up with Ji-ri... and..."
"Not just Ji-ri! She did it with the history teacher too... Mention Ji-ri and our Do-yeon gets all 'poor me'."
The cheap gossip targeted her directly, yet the girl sat steadfast, eating alone.
Ah...
How did I forget this?