Chapter 56
Chapter 56
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 56
Chapter Title: Sasaeng Intrusion
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Jeong Eun-seong's phone vibrated in his hand. The screen showed an unsaved number.
He didn't pick up, so it rang off briefly.
Then again,
Vrrr- vrrr-
Click.
It hung up again.
Then again.
Missed Calls (4) The phone, which had been ringing nonstop, suddenly went quiet.
The darkened screen lit up.
💬 KakaoTalk — Unread Messages 6 11 17 180 ......
Messages poured in from people whose profile pictures were bold selfies of themselves—photos that made them look perfectly normal, even handsome.
— Unknown LOLOLOLOL — Unknown HAHAHAHAHA — Unknown LOLOLOL HAHAHA HAHA — Unknown This is the right number? "Don't."
I snapped my head up and stopped Jeong Eun-seong as he started to look around. I shook my head quietly and nodded toward the phone.
Understanding, he covered the screen with his hand and unlocked it.
On the home screen, the KakaoTalk app's yellow icon had a red badge showing 6 unread messages.
While we watched, it climbed:
6
11
17
180
"......"
"Hi, Eun-seong!"
"LOL epic"
"LOLOLOLOL"
"Your surprised face is so cute ㅠㅠ"
"Eun-seong, why no profile pic ㅠ Noona was looking forward to it"
"♡Happy Birthday Event♡"
"But who's the girl next to you?"
"She's pretty."
"Mi..."
"Shh."
I covered Jeong Eun-seong's mouth as he tried to speak. Our eyes met, and he immediately leaned in. I gripped his shoulder and whispered in his ear.
"They... seem to have installed cameras in the classroom."
Your surprised face is cute.
They're watching us right now, aren't they?
I glanced around.
Lockers. Bulletin board. Pencil cases left on desks, broom carelessly propped in the corner.
Nothing different from usual.
Yet cold sweat trickled down my spine.
I grabbed Jeong Eun-seong's sleeve.
"Let's get out first."
"Where to..."
"Staff room."
Part of me wanted to bolt straight home.
But we didn't know where these crazy stalkers were watching us from. Heading home directly could expose Jeong Eun-seong's address.
"No matter what equipment they're using... it can't be that good. They won't be far. They might still be hiding in the school."
Maybe even the next classroom over... That was even creepier...!
"We'll tell the teachers and check the school CCTV. We'll get a picture of their movements—how they got in, if they left or are still here. We'll find them and catch them first..."
And then what?
Hand them over to the police? Would the stuff in the lockers count as evidence?
But is this even punishable? They didn't steal anything or hurt anyone. They just snuck into the school and put things in the lockers.
Since they trespassed on school grounds, maybe under education laws?
Argh, why don't I know anything about this!
Why am I so clueless about the law!
I tugged at Jeong Eun-seong's clothes, which I was clutching.
"Grab your bag first. Anything weird in it?"
"No. My bag's fine."
"Guess they didn't have time to rummage through the desks."
I was too scared to separate even for a second. Sticking right to Jeong Eun-seong, I grabbed my own bag. As I turned, he suddenly undid my tied-up hair.
He looped the hair tie around his own wrist and tousled my hair over my face.
"What if the camera catches your face."
"Ah."
It was probably too late anyway...
"Can you see ahead?"
"Yeah."
I wore my hair messily over my face and slung my bag to the front. We crept to the classroom door and cracked it open. As I tried to peek into the hallway, Jeong Eun-seong stopped me.
"I'll look."
"What if someone jumps out and shoots fireworks at your face."
"That make sense?"
That nonsensical thing had happened in the past.
He hid me behind him and peeked out the front door.
"No one's there."
"Let's go."
"Lights off?"
"Yeah."
We alternated glances side to side as we left the classroom.
Our class was on the 4th floor. Staff room on the 2nd. We had to pass Class 1 and the bathrooms to reach the stairs.
I half-expected someone to pop out and blast Jeong Eun-seong's face with something any second. Staying hyper-vigilant, we tiptoed along.
Drag!
"Eek!"
"?"
A kid burst out of Class 1 and gave us a weird look as they passed.
"......"
"......"
"Just run?"
"Yeah."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "What?"
"Panties in the lock... what the...?!"
"?! !!!!?!"
It was chaos.
Underwear, sanitary pads... It was apparently too much stimulation for our respectable veteran teachers who'd lived normal lives.
Our homeroom teacher from the '90s generation was the only one calmly adding, "Those kinds of kids are called sasaeng fans."
No, looking closer, she wasn't calm.
Her hands were shaking.
"Seo Hee, call the security guard. Ask if any outsiders visited the school today."
"Did our class leave the room empty today?"
"We had PE today. Let's start with the CCTV in front of the classroom from that time and trace their movements."
Did they leave the school, or were they still hiding?
"Aigoo, am I a teacher or a detective...? What is this..."
A nearby teacher clutched their forehead, saying it was their first time dealing with something like this in 20 years of teaching.
Everyone's faces were grave at the fact that outsiders had waltzed into the school and invaded a classroom on their own.
And no one even noticed the intrusion until Jeong Eun-seong opened his locker.
The parents would lose it if they found out.
"Eun-seong and Da-hye must've been so scared."
Having finished reporting to the police, our homeroom teacher patted our shoulders with a soulless expression. Only then did I realize my arm was glued to Jeong Eun-seong's and flinched away.
"The police will be here soon to check the CCTV... Want to head home for now?"
"If it's okay, I'd like to wait here."
"Da-hye?"
"I'll stay too."
Jeong Eun-seong glanced at me as I answered firmly, but I ignored him.
"Alright, then have a seat over there. Want some hot chocolate?"
"Yes, thank you."
"Eun-seong?"
"I'm good."
"Why? Drink some."
Wouldn't something warm help after the shock? But he shook his head.
"Afraid I'll need the bathroom."
"Then?"
"...What if they put cameras in the bathrooms too."
"...Ah."
"The security guard says no outsiders visited today. And no one left their seats empty."
Yi Mong-ryong, who'd just hung up, spoke up. Damn. The PE teacher over there was scratching his head furiously.
"What? Then how'd they get in..."
"It wasn't our school kids, right?"
"Aish, don't jinx it."
The teachers bustled about. When were the police coming? How to check CCTV? Didn't we check it last time with the Bang Eun-ji incident...?
"Aigoo, Jeong Eun-seong's gonna have insane stalkers later? Remember that transfer student, Song Yeo-reum? She went nuts over him. Now girls are stripping down to their underwear to throw themselves at him."
Even the geography teacher was spouting something that would've gotten him reported in a few more years.
In the midst of the chaos, Jeong Eun-seong and I sat silently at the round conference table.
I combed my disheveled hair with my fingers. Jeong Eun-seong, who'd been watching, handed back the hair tie from his wrist.
"Kang Da-hye."
"What."
"When are you leaving?"
"When they catch the culprits."
"Could take late."
"I know."
I grumpily pulled out the books I'd shoved into my bag in a rush and spread them on the table.
"Kang Da-hye, the culprits won't get caught any faster just 'cause you're here."
"Nor if I'm not."
"Better to go home before it gets later. Dangerous in the dark."
"...You just don't wanna talk to me?"
Thud. I slammed the book on the table and glared at Jeong Eun-seong.
"You want me gone quick?"
"That's not it."
"Then what."
"...You're supposed to be studying, but you're wasting time 'cause of me."
"Think of it as a birthday gift."
"Being by my side?"
"Why, too cheap?"
"No. No."
His eyes widened as he shook his head.
He lowered the hand that had covered his mouth and looked me straight in the eye.
His voice—pleasant enough to carry a full 4-minute song solo without the other six members, no, even a 40-minute piece would be captivating the whole way—spoke clearly.
"Not cheap. Huge."
"......"
"I'm serious."