The Student Council President and Childhood Friend, Lee Yu-ri (2)
The daily life at Jinsu High Education Academy in Love in School was incredibly similar to real high school life, yet because this was a light novel world, the finer details differed in many ways.
First and foremost, the biggest difference was that the admission age here was one year older. There were also practically no restrictions on students' hairstyles or accessories.
As for facilities, the most notable change was the presence of a swimming pool inside the academy annex, along with actual swimming classes.
When it came to the schedule, third-years weren't crammed into endless study sessions like battery hens the way Korean high school seniors were in reality. Instead, there were plenty of refreshing events—spring sports festivals, autumn festivals, school trips, and picnics.
The testing schedule was slightly different too. There were only the first-semester evaluation, second-semester evaluation, and mock exams, followed immediately by the November College Scholastic Ability Test. In place of the usual midterms and finals, pop quizzes happened frequently and regularly. Students who scored poorly or had consistently bad attitudes were forced to attend supplementary classes after school.
And then...
I let out a long sigh inside the classroom, rubbing my temples with a frown.
"Ugh... why do I have to do this on the very first day of the semester..."
"Whose fault do you think it is?!"
With the first day's classes over, the only two people left in the classroom were me and Lee Yu-ri.
As punishment for the violent incident I'd caused that morning, I was stuck with a week of classroom cleaning and tidying.
Instead of a fixed rotation for cleaning duty, the fact that problem students like me got assigned these tasks was yet another difference from the schools I remembered.
And Lee Yu-ri, who served as student council president, had stayed behind at her homeroom teacher's request—to supervise me and make sure I knew what needed to be done.
She made no effort to hide how much she didn't want to be here, muttering under her breath.
"The student council president has so much work to do... Because of you, I couldn't even focus on any of it from the very first day. What is this? I don't have time to waste, so can you please hurry up and finish?"
"For someone saying that, you're staying pretty willingly. What, did you fall for me or something?"
At my words, Lee Yu-ri's face perfectly embodied the phrase 'utter disgust' as she glared at me.
"I hate guys like you more than anyone else in the world."
"That's pretty harsh. The thing this morning was seriously those bastards acting on their own—"
"See? This is exactly why I hate people like you. You're all sloppy, can't even talk without throwing in curses. You come to school with zero intention of studying, just taking up space, then gather around to smoke and drink... You think I've only heard those rumors about you guys once or twice?
And I bet the second I turn my back on this cleaning duty, you'll just sneak off like you always do. Am I wrong?"
Watching Lee Yu-ri's sharp, prickly attitude made me feel incredibly satisfied.
This is exactly how it should be if I'm going to make her mine for real.
I deliberately tilted my head, pretending to think for a moment before answering.
"Half right, half wrong."
"Which part is wrong?"
"First, I quit drinking and smoking. Second, even if you leave, I'll still do the cleaning duty properly."
"Ha? You expect me to believe that... The second I look away—"
"And if anyone's giving a sermon here, it should be me to you."
"What?"
I strode straight toward Lee Yu-ri, who was staring at me in disbelief.
She took a step back, but she was quickly cornered against the classroom wall.
"You've got guts and you say what you want. That's fine and all..."
"W-what are you doing? G-get away from me?!"
"But shouldn't you at least consider your own situation first? For example, if I were to do something weird to you right here..."
I slammed one hand against the wall beside her head in a classic wall-pin move. Lee Yu-ri shrank back like a frightened turtle, squeezing her eyes shut.
"Wouldn't that be a big problem, since there's no one around here to help you?"
"W-what... what are you..."
Her whole body was trembling pitifully. I lightly gripped her chin for a moment and forced her to look at me.
Our eyes met from an incredibly close distance. Through my fingertips, I could feel her chin quivering.
"Just saying, in case something like that happens."
With that, I released her and pulled my arm back from the wall.
Lee Yu-ri scrambled backward in a hurry, positioning herself between the classroom door and the hallway so she could bolt if needed. She was panting heavily.
"You can swear at me or do whatever you want to me. But imagine if the person standing here right now wasn't me, but one of those bastards who messed with you today.
If you'd talked back to them the same sharp way you did to me earlier, you might've really been screwed. So from now on, it's better to have some kind of insurance before you raise your voice like that."
"......"
And at this point, I deliberately dropped the bait.
"For example, that guy... Gong Yeong-bae or whatever... Ah, never mind. That bastard isn't insurance—he's more like a swamp dragging you down by the ankles."
For a split second, Lee Yu-ri's expression turned razor sharp.
"What did you just say? What about Yeong-bae?"
"A swamp dragging you down by the ankles."
"...Take that back."
"Don't wanna."
"Take it back right now!"
"This morning when I said I wanted to talk, he hid behind you. When my guys threatened you after the entrance ceremony, he hid behind you again. If that's not a swamp dragging you down by the ankles, what is it?"
"That's because Yeong-bae has a kind heart and doesn't like getting involved in those kinds of situations...!"
"So you like being put in those situations?"
Lee Yu-ri was momentarily at a loss for words.
"Gong Yeong-bae has a kind heart so he shouldn't be put in those situations, but you have a bad personality so it's fine for you to see dirty things? From where I'm standing, it looks like neither you nor Gong Yeong-bae actually wants to get involved in that kind of crap."
"W-well, that's true, but..."
"Tsk tsk. Our poor student council president. You're working so hard to protect the guy you like, but it seems that guy doesn't even see you as a woman."
At that, Lee Yu-ri's face flushed bright red and she practically jumped.
"W-w-what are you talking about?! Why would I like Yeong-bae?!"
It was written all over her face: 'You're completely right.'
I held back the laughter threatening to spill out and continued.
"Guys are creatures who, when they're in front of a girl they like, suddenly create confidence they never had before. They show off and try to protect her.
But after seeing how Gong Yeong-bae acted today, it looks like he thinks of you more like a mom or a guardian or something."
"......"
"Oops. Did I hit a sore spot for our student council president? I talked too much—"
"...Have you finished cleaning or not?"
Lee Yu-ri growled in a voice even sharper than before.
"I finished."
"Did you change the water in the flower vase?"
"Did that first."
"Wipe the windows?"
"You watched me do it."
"Dust the lockers? Mop the floor? Clean the blackboard erasers? Wipe the windows again? Empty the chalk dust?"
"You watched me do everything with your own eyes. Why are you even asking?"
With no more excuses left, Lee Yu-ri glared at me while breathing heavily. She scanned every corner of the classroom with an expression that said she was determined to find something to nitpick.
But I'd already finished cleaning the entire classroom with my outstanding life skills.
W-what the... He really cleaned everything perfectly...
In the end, Lee Yu-ri failed to find a single thing to complain about.
Looking even more furious, she glared at me with wide, axe-like eyes and shouted.
"Then just go home already!"
"Sure."
Lee Yu-ri stomped out of the classroom, deliberately slamming her feet down harder than necessary.
There was nothing left for me to do at school, so I obviously should have gone home too, but...
It was already five in the afternoon.
The school gates closed at six, so even if it took her a while, Lee Yu-ri would probably finish her student council work and leave the academy within an hour.
"Maybe I should buy dinner in advance."
Instead of heading home, I stopped by the convenience store right in front of the academy. I bought a few boxed lunches, some bread, and cola, then deliberately wandered around the area to kill time.
Before long, I spotted Lee Yu-ri coming out through the school gates. I pretended it was a coincidence and acted like I was just passing by, "bumping into" her again.
"What the hell? Are you going home now?"
"Ugh... Han Seong-jin..."
"We're in the same class and this is how you react when we run into each other?"
"Who said we were friends? Why are you still hanging around here?"
I slightly lifted the convenience store bag to show her.
"Just bought some dinner."
"Good for you. Enjoy it. I'm going home."
Lee Yu-ri glanced at the bag silently, then spun around and started walking.
I immediately followed right behind her.
Less than three minutes after we started walking, she turned around again and looked me up and down.
"Why are you following me?"
"I'm not following you. I'm going home."
"...Your house is in this direction?"
"Yeah."
"Tch..."
Lee Yu-ri openly showed her displeasure and deliberately sped up, taking several quicker steps ahead of me.
Apparently she really hated me following her, because instead of sticking to the busy main road, she turned and headed into a narrow alleyway.
Oh no. Of all places, she went in there.
I knew exactly what that alley was.
It was what guys like us used to call an "hideout."
It was dark and rarely had any foot traffic, so it was the perfect spot for groups to secretly smoke or drink.
Now that I was twenty, there was no reason to sneak in there anymore, but back when I was a minor a year ago, Han Seong-jin and his gang used to gather there all the time to drink and smoke.
It wasn't just the delinquents from Jinsu High who used it—troublemakers from other academies liked the place too, so territory fights broke out pretty often.
And now a girl who wasn't even a delinquent—and an incredibly beautiful one at that—had walked in there all by herself without knowing any of that...
"Kyaaah! L-let go of me right now!"
I waited for a moment behind the corner of the alley Lee Yu-ri had entered. Sure enough, her scream rang out.
"What a handful of a young lady."
Still holding the convenience store bag in one hand, I turned the corner and walked toward the source of her voice.