Yuna's Photos
By the time we reached the school gate, Hyunwoo quickly headed toward the swimming pool.
The morning air made his wounds sting even more sharply.
His face was swollen purple, and as students passed by in the hallway, Hyunwoo felt their gazes fixed on him alone.
Their eyes were a mix of curiosity, contempt, and a hint of fear.
Hyunwoo lowered his head, but those gazes pierced into his back like needles, forcing him to walk faster.
The corridor leading to the swimming pool was filled with the scent of wet and chlorine, which clouded Hyunwoo's mind even further.
Upon arriving at the swimming pool, Yuna greeted Hyunwoo warmly.
Her smile pierced Hyunwoo's heart even more deeply.
It seemed to overlap with the smile he had seen at the senior community center.
Hyunwoo couldn't believe that smile was genuine.
"Thank you, Hyunwoo. It really helped."
Yuna's voice was bright as usual, but there was a subtle unease mixed in.
Hyunwoo handed her the swimsuit and said,
"You're not late, are you?"
"It's fine. We have exactly the right time."
Yuna looked at Hyunwoo's face and showed a surprised expression.
"Huh? Hyunwoo, are you okay? There's... a bruise on your face. What happened?"
Before he could even think of lying, Hyunwoo opened his mouth.
"Ah. Last night... I fell after drinking. I'm fine."
Yuna's eyes showed she didn't believe him, but she didn't ask further.
Yuna was like that by nature.
Leaving Hyunwoo's worries behind, she hurried into the locker room as practice time was about to end.
"Hyunwoo, wait a second. I'll change into my swimsuit and come out right away."
And Yuna entered the locker room.
Hyunwoo started waiting.
The humidity of the swimming pool pressed heavily on his shoulders, and the sticky chlorine smell dug into his nose.
There were other swimming club students in the pool, and they stared at Hyunwoo with curiosity or wariness.
Their gazes lingered on the bruise on Hyunwoo's face before changing to suspicious expressions.
Hyunwoo ignored their stares and stared at a point on the cracked tile floor.
Faint light seeped into the water-filled cracks.
A short while later, the locker room door opened and Yuna came out.
She had a towel over her shoulder, her wet hair flowing down her neck.
Yuna was seen greeting someone.
It was an old man wearing a whistle around his neck, with a protruding belly and a shiny bald head.
He was dressed in old shorts, his arms tanned from the sun, but somehow he looked happy.
Hyunwoo felt that this old man was probably the coach.
The coach approached Yuna and said something.
His lips moved, but due to the water sounds and the students' voices, he couldn't hear it exactly.
Yuna hesitated for a moment before nodding her head quickly.
Her expression was positive, but there was an unmistakable sense of unease.
Hyunwoo sat on the bench waiting, and Yuna approached him again after a while.
"Hyunwoo, the coach said he needs private coaching, so it might be a bit late."
Yuna's voice was bright as usual, but there was a subtle tension mixed in.
Hyunwoo tried to go back to school saying it was fine.
He stood up from the bench and turned towards the locker room.
At that moment, the conversation of the swimming club students gathered in the corner of the swimming pool suddenly entered his ear.
"Hey, Yuna-senpai is getting private coaching from the coach again?"
A female student asked with a puzzled expression.
"Yeah. The coach has been focusing on coaching Yuna-senpai intensively lately."
Another student replied.
"But the coach's gaze was weird."
The first student said again.
"It was a perverted gaze, I tell you."
Her voice had clear disgust mixed in.
"It's because her skills are good that the coach is giving intensive coaching."
A male student countered.
"It's fun. I wonder if something interesting will happen until Yuna-senpai graduates."
Students looked at each other with faint smiles on their faces.
Hyunwoo had listened to their conversation to the end.
His heart grew cold.
He started walking towards the door to the school.
When the bell announcing the start of class rang down the hallway, Hyunwoo sat at the back window seat where the blackboard was visible.
The sound of pulling out the chair was unusually loud,
and every time the bruise on his face from yesterday throbbed and moved his flesh, it brought a dull pain.
With his chin resting on his hand, looking out the window, the sight of students sweating on the track field appeared hazy.
Everything felt distant, and even the noise inside the classroom seemed far away.
At that moment, Jongdoo next to him poked Hyunwoo's shoulder with his finger.
His face was filled with a mischievous, lecherous glint unlike usual.
It was like a cat that had found something delicious to eat.
"Hey, Choi Hyunwoo, should I show you something fun?"
Jongdoo's voice was light like a wagging tail, but it was filled with greasy desire.
Hyunwoo turned his head away in annoyance and answered without looking at him.
"What is it now?"
His voice was low and powerless.
Jongdoo ignored Hyunwoo's indifference and frantically opened his phone.
The sound of fingers swiping quickly on the screen was heard, and soon a photo appeared on the screen.
Jongdoo pushed the screen right in front of Hyunwoo's eyes.
"Hey, look at this. It's a photo that Jaemin took yesterday. Who do you think it is?"
Hyunwoo didn't want to look at first, but when Jongdoo stubbornly pushed the screen, he reluctantly lifted his eyes.
At that moment, Hyunwoo's expression froze, as if paralyzed.
Hyunwoo's heart pounded loudly, as if it would cover the entire classroom.
At that time, Jongdoo noticed Hyunwoo's reaction.
His gaze, which was enjoying Hyunwoo's reaction by pushing the phone screen, suddenly fixed on the purple bruise on Hyunwoo's cheek.
Jongdoo's lips curled up meanly.
"Hey, Choi Hyunwoo, why is your face like that? Did you get beaten somewhere?"
His voice mixed false concern with true mockery.
Hyunwoo couldn't say anything.
What was more painful than his face right now was that Kim Jongdoo had Yuna's nude photos, making it even more dangerous.
Hyunwoo's heart froze. How had the photos taken by Jaemin and Minsu spread to Jongdoo?
Their voices echoed in his ears again.
'Should we take photos and sell them to the school kids?'
Did they really start selling them?
Hyunwoo felt his fingers growing cold.
He looked straight into Jongdoo's eyes, but his gaze became hazy.
The noise of the classroom faded, and only Jongdoo's breathing and his own heartbeat remained.
Jongdoo enjoyed Hyunwoo's silence and said again.
"Ah, you got hit by Jaemin and Minsu, right? Hey, you're really an idiot, aren't you?"
His laughter pierced Hyunwoo's ear like a dagger. Hyunwoo clenched his fist.
The pain of nails digging into his palm was felt, but even that pain wasn't enough to bring him back to reality.
The fact that Yuna's photo was in Jongdoo's hand filled Hyunwoo's mind completely.
What should he do? Should he rush to Jongdoo and snatch the phone? But that would cause even bigger commotion.
Hyunwoo exhaled. Then inhaled again. The cold air stung his lungs.
He looked at Jongdoo. And said nothing. Jongdoo thought Hyunwoo's silence was evidence of powerlessness.
A more cunning smile spread across his face.
"Hey, this photo is really amazing, right? Yuna's body is totally fucked up, huh?"
Even hearing that, Hyunwoo showed no reaction.
His eyes were empty, like a person whose soul had left.
Jongdoo pouted his lips as if disappointed by that appearance.
"Ah, boring."
He put the phone in his pocket and said,
"Still, I'll keep this photo well. It might be useful someday."
His words pierced Hyunwoo's back like needles. Hyunwoo just sat there.
At that moment, the bell rang loudly, overwhelming all the noise in the classroom like thunder.
Hyunwoo watched the papers shaking with empty eyes, but the sound didn't pass through his ears.
The classroom quickly filled with chaos,
sounds of pushing chairs, closing books,
and laughter of relief that class was over mixed in, dulling Hyunwoo's mind.
Amid all that noise, Hyunwoo could only think of Jongdoo's mean laughter and Yuna's appearance on the phone screen.
While the students stood up and left the classroom one by one, Hyunwoo just remained frozen in his seat.
His hands were still clenched, and clear marks of nails digging into his palms remained.
At that time, the classroom door opened roughly and two figures entered. Hyunwoo knew who they were without lifting his head.
The footsteps of Jaemin and Minsu were different from the other students'.
They were clicking their shoes sharply.
With arrogance and confidence mixed in their steps, it froze Hyunwoo's heart.
The two ignored the commotion around them and approached Jongdoo's seat directly.
Jaemin patted Jongdoo's shoulder and sat down, and Minsu stood beside him with arms crossed, sweeping his gaze across the classroom.
His gaze lingered on Hyunwoo for a moment, then turned with a contemptuous smile.
There were now a few students left in the classroom,
and their conversation swallowed all the noise of the classroom and floated in the air.
"Jongdoo-senpai, please deposit the promised money quickly."
Jaemin's voice was leisurely, but the threat contained in it was clear.
His eyes were staring fixedly at Jongdoo's face, and in that gaze was the tenacity of a deal.
Jongdoo was momentarily taken aback by Jaemin's words.
His eyes swept the corner of the classroom, then stopped briefly on Hyunwoo.
A subtle calculation passed through his expression.
"Hey, Jaemin. Don't rush like that. I'm not going to give you the money."
Jongdoo's voice was leisurely, but his eyes avoided Jaemin's eyes.
Minsu couldn't hold back and joined their conversation.
"Senior, we also need money. We need to receive the money from selling the photos soon so we can plan the next thing."
His words were mixed with blatant desire.
The word 'next plan' pierced Hyunwoo's ear like a dagger.
Their conversation meant they would earn money by selling Yuna's photos and use that money for something else.
Hyunwoo stood up from his seat unconsciously.