Chapter 64
Chapter 64
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 64
Chapter Title: Exam Day Uniform Crisis
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“Da-hye!”
“What’s up? Did someone steal your uniform?”
“Are you a woodcutter or something...? Lending out your uniform like that.”
I walked into the classroom in a uniform borrowed from my friends, and they all swarmed around me. I waved them off and backed away.
“Don’t come too close. I smell like sweat.”
“You don’t.”
Gyeong Se-in sniffed dramatically and whispered.
“But it’s obvious you didn’t wash your hair.”
I used the apple-shaped hairpin Gyeong Se-in handed me to pin back my bangs.
“Da-hye, your forehead is so round.”
I seriously apologized to my friends, who were clapping and calling me cute even in my beggar-like state.
“Sorry. If my sweat ruins your uniforms, I’ll buy you new ones.”
“No, but seriously, there’s no sweat smell at all.”
“Thanks, guys...”
They must have been baffled when I suddenly asked to borrow a uniform that morning, but they lent it without questions or complaints. It was so touching.
I’ve lived a good life.
“But what really happened?”
“Oh, my mom got into a car accident...”
“A car accident?!”
“Don’t even ask. I bolted out when I heard, and almost got hit by a car myself.”
“What? Are you hurt?!”
“My heart’s hurt.”
I must be feeling better. I was even cracking jokes.
“Guys, can I borrow a computer-safe marker and some correction tape?”
I hadn’t brought so much as my pencil case for the exam, let alone my bag. Do-yeon lent me extras, which I tucked into my pocket. My friends exchanged glances and dispersed.
“Alright. We’ll talk details after the exam.”
“Yeah. We’ve got to cram vocab until the last second.”
“The exam’s right there—how are we supposed to memorize words now...?”
“What happened?”
Seo Jae-kyeom asked as we arranged our seats into exam formation, putting some distance between us. Unlike me, he was impeccably neat from head to toe, his gaze scanning my disheveled appearance.
“Cute hairpin.”
“Yeah. It’s Gyeong Se-in’s.”
“So, what happened?”
I flipped open Jeong Eun-seong’s workbook that I’d grabbed in a rush and trailed off.
“Uh. Well.”
Did I really have to tell him?
If I didn’t, he’d sulk about me not telling him specifically.
“My mom got hit by a hit-and-run last night at dawn.”
“Hit-and-run?!”
“Yeah... Luckily, it’s not too serious.”
“The perp?!”
“The police are investigating, but they don’t think they’ll catch them. No CCTV there.”
Scraaaape.
“Kids! Studied hard?”
Our excited homeroom teacher burst in, cutting the conversation short. Right behind, Jeong Eun-seong shuffled in—he’d been dragged to the teachers’ office for wearing summer uniform.
He must have washed his hair in the meantime; he was shaking out the T-shirt he’d worn underneath, using it to towel off his head.
Whoa. Someone murmured in quiet admiration.
“Of course you did! You’re the best! Class 2-2 of second year!”
“Class 2-2 roster: Kang Da-hye, one member.”
“And then there was no one.”
Our class was perfectly in sync only at times like this, while I ignored them and stared at my workbook.
“Why’d he show up in summer uniform?”
Seo Jae-kyeom grumbled beside me. I solved a problem type I kept messing up in my head and replied.
“Stuff happened.”
“...You know why?”
“Yeah.”
“...”
“Kids... Is Da-hye the only one who actually studied?!”
“I didn’t study much either...”
“Yeah~ Not much at all~ Only 9,999 hours out of 10,000~”
“Do Ha-jun, shut it.”
“...”
Maybe I’d had a bit of a crush on Jeong Eun-seong even before regressing.
That’s why running into him at the company that day was so mortifying.
It would’ve been embarrassing with anyone, but “that much” because it was him.
“Kids, one more thing—this was decided hastily in this morning’s meeting. Starting with these midterms, we’re posting grades publicly on the board.”
“What?!”
My train of thought derailed instantly.
Public posting?!
Is this Sign World?!
Personal Information Protection Act’s been around forever... Aren’t they not supposed to do that anymore...?
“It’s a parent association request. Your mock exam scores in March were so bad, this is a special measure. No choice.”
Do parents outrank the law?!
“Not exactly—we’re only posting top 30, from first in the school down. On the left stairwell board.”
“Oh, whatever~”
The class, ready to riot, slumped in relief.
“Not like mine’ll be up there anyway.”
“Better if it is, right?”
“Now we’ll know who’s really top-tier?”
“Not my problem~”
“...”
If I didn’t take first this time, everyone would know I’d fallen...
“I bet Kang Da-hye gets first—hundred won!”
“Me too!”
“Me three!”
“Ugh, if everyone bets on Da-hye, there’s no game.”
“Shut up, teacher’s talking.”
“Thanks, vice class president.”
Seo Jae-kyeom quieted the class.
This damn exam—it’s soul-crushing right up to the very last second.
I numbly gathered Do-yeon’s loaned computer-safe marker, the mechanical pencil and eraser from my desk, and stood.
“Kids, you know the drill? Heading to Class 1-2. Sit by number order there.”
“Yep.”
To prevent cheating, second-year girls swapped classes with first-year boys.
“Da-hye!”
I ran into Ji-su on the way, her face shaken from ruffling her hair.
“Ji-su... Good luck on the exam...”
“Why the long face? Oh, you heard about the grades posting.”
“Yeah... Your mom’s the parent association president, right...?”
“Yeah... That was her idea...”
Solemn silence...
“You eat breakfast?”
“No...”
“I brought this. Eat up.”
She handed me two boiled eggs.
“See ya! Ace the test!”
“You too!”
We arrived at Class 1-2.
“You gonna eat that now?”
“Huh? Oh, no. Do-yeon, want one?”
“Nah.”
“Ooh, Da-hye, can I have it then? I’m starving crazy.”
“Yeah, go for it.”
“Thanks. Here, take this.”
I found my seat, munching the chocolate I’d traded with Ye-su-a.
The homeroom teacher from Class 1-2 second-years entered through the front and smacked the blackboard with a wooden stick.
“Importance of exams—short talk now.”
Smack. Smack.
“You’ll screw up once when you’re out in society, got it? If you’ve got good credentials, people chalk it up to a fluke. ‘Oh, smart kid got confused for a sec.’”
Smack. Smack.
“But if you went to some no-name college? They’ll say it’s your level. ‘Kid’s always been dumb.’”
Smack. Smack smack.
The first-year diagonally in front grimaced and plugged his ears.
I’d already done mine.
Oh, please... Five minutes left.
Let me read my book.
“Good credentials mean you don’t have to prove your brains or diligence to strangers everywhere!”
What’s that supposed to mean! Like teachers crashing clubs in school uniforms!
Can’t even focus on my book now!
The neighboring homeroom teacher finally rang the bell after one last rant on academic elitism, then slowly pulled the exam papers from the envelope.
“Lemme see... This the first-years?”
“We’re second-years.”
“Right right. OMR sheets here... 1, 2, 3, 4, 5...”
“Teacher, it’s been two minutes since the bell. Can we start with the exam papers?”
Ga-eun spoke up from behind me, unable to hold it in.
“Fine, sure. Your row’s last anyway.”
“...”
Trembling with rage...
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ “Kang Da-hye’s back!”
“Da-hye! What’s the English subjective #1?!”
I stopped by the teachers’ office for the answer key and headed to class.
Our class girls are cute—they could just go up first and check the textbook if they’re curious.
But they mobbed me at the office door, waiting to climb up together.
“Da-hye, math #2 is 1, right?”
Asking stuff like that.
Aw, my little chicks.
I opened the classroom door like the Pied Piper, girls hanging off me, scattering Park Su-hwan’s group who’d been giggling together.
“Where’re Jeong Eun-seong and Seo Jae-kyeom?”
“A first-year got caught cheating, so they took him down.”
“Took him down?”
“Music teacher snatched his answer sheet, first-year resisted with brute force but failed, so he chucked a pencil case at Music. Then suddenly claimed he couldn’t breathe because of Music and rolled around.”
“?!”
“Anyway, Jae-kyeom said don’t wait, call answers first.”
“Got it.”
“Ah, Da-hye! English #1!!!! What is it!!!!!!”
“Aigoo, gonna pass out.”
I called out answers for the kids first, then grade mine later.
I stood at the lectern and unfolded the key.
“English first?”
“Yeah!”
“Wait! Waitwaitwaitwait!”
“Alright...”
While waiting for them to scramble to seats, I first checked math #20—the one that’d stumped me the whole exam.