Chapter 6
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Subtle Dissonance
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Siwoo, who had returned home, flopped straight onto his narrow bed without even taking off his bag.
As he stared blankly at the ceiling, the afterimage of Iseol, who had been walking side by side with him just moments ago, seemed to shimmer like a heat haze.
Siwoo carefully pulled his phone from his pocket and grinned like an idiot as he checked the playlist in the music app he'd newly added today.
The playlist that Iseol had shown him while they walked together.
On the way back, Siwoo had searched for each of those songs one by one and carefully saved them to his library.
'She listens to indie band songs like these... It suits her so well...'
Listening to the dreamy band sound flowing through his earphones, Siwoo chuckled and kicked his feet excitedly on the bed.
"Nam Siwoo! Come out and eat dinner already!"
"Yeah! Coming right now!"
Siwoo jumped up from the bed, carefully set his phone down, and headed out of the room with light steps.
But perhaps the world never rolled along so easily.
After their karaoke outing, Siwoo had thought he'd started blending into Juwon's group a bit, but his school life began to twist in a subtle, unpleasant way.
At the center of it all was Im Hyunsu, who had disliked Siwoo from the very start.
He no longer glared openly or subtly bumped shoulders and stepped aside like before.
Instead, a far more cunning and blatant form of dismissal came his way.
"Hey, anyone up for heading downtown this Saturday? Let's check out that new wood-fired pizza place."
During break time, Park Geon spun his chair around backward and kicked off the lively chatter.
"Ooh, I'm in! They say pics there come out super pretty!"
"Cool. We can hit the cafe nearby right after eating."
Dasom and Chaerin jumped in first, and even Jiyoon, who had been glued to her phone with earphones in, nodded lightly.
"So that's Juwon, Iseol, and us—seven people? Okay, I'll make the reservation."
Hyunsu, tapping away at his smartphone amid the group, naturally locked in the headcount.
Seven.
The number that left Siwoo out.
"Hey, why didn't you ask Nam the Loser?"
Thankfully, the sharp-eyed Juwon sensed something off, nudged Hyunsu, and asked. Hyunsu blinked as if he'd just remembered.
"Oh, right! Sorry, sorry. I forgot since it's always the seven of us. What now? I already made the reservation."
With Hyunsu saying that much, Siwoo couldn't bring himself to ask him to change it.
He felt like an intruder forcing his way in.
"Nah, I was gonna meet up with some middle school friends this weekend anyway..."
Siwoo waved it off with a forced smile, and Park Geon sounded genuinely disappointed.
"Aw, man. Too bad. Next time for sure."
"Yeah, what can you do."
Hyunsu quickly chimed in and swiftly changed the subject.
"Oh, right. Juwon! Did you sell that item you mentioned last time? I was gonna buy it..."
As he turned to Juwon, Hyunsu smirked broadly at Siwoo.
Feeling this blind malice for the first time, Siwoo stood there dumbfounded, mouth agape.
Was it really just a slip-up?
Siwoo glanced at Juwon, but Juwon was already deep into the game talk Hyunsu had brought up, getting all heated.
That was how it went.
Hyunsu's attacks continued in that sly manner.
When heading to the school store together, he'd subtly try to leave Siwoo behind, or bring up chats from the group chat Siwoo wasn't in to make him feel excluded.
When Juwon was around, he'd act all buddy-buddy calling "Nam the Loser!" but the moment Juwon or Park Geon weren't paying attention, his gaze would turn ice-cold in an instant.
It wasn't outright bullying, so Siwoo had no one to complain to.
If he said Hyunsu was slyly sidelining him, he'd just come off as a petty, oversensitive loser.
At lunchtime, Siwoo's steps halted as he headed to the table with his tray.
Hyunsu was brazenly sitting in Siwoo's usual spot—next to Juwon, across from Iseol—messing around with Juwon.
"Uh, Hyunsu. That's my seat..."
"Sorry. Mind sitting at the end? I gotta talk to Juwon."
Without a real apology, Hyunsu quietly shoved Siwoo toward the edge of the table.
Juwon looked up curiously from chewing his food.
"Hey, Nam the Loser. Why sit there? Come over here."
Before Siwoo could hesitate and approach with his tray, Hyunsu cut in quick.
"He said he wants to eat quietly today, so I told him to sit aside. Right, Nam the Loser?"
Hyunsu flashed Siwoo a grin with that absurd lie.
His eyes weren't smiling at all, but no one else noticed.
Under Hyunsu's silent warning, Siwoo bit his lip and nodded in resignation.
That was when it happened.
"Hey."
Iseol, who had been quietly eating, lifted her head with a chilling tone.
Her gaze swept over Siwoo in the corner once, then over Hyunsu basking in triumph once.
"Sit where you always do. You're in the way."
"Huh? Oh, Iseol. I was just with Juwon..."
"Can't you hear me? Don't mess around with seats during meals. It's childish."
A hush fell over the table at Iseol's words.
Hyunsu coughed awkwardly and scurried off with his tray to another spot.
Having sorted things out, Iseol stared plainly at Siwoo, still standing awkwardly, and added,
"And you, come here. It's not even that loud—you're overreacting."
Thanks to Iseol's defense, Siwoo managed to return to his proper seat across from her almost by accident.
But even seated, he kept his head down, silently shoving food into his mouth without knowing if it went in through his nose or mouth.
More than gratitude for her help, shame at his own patheticness flooded him first.
Hyunsu, back in his own seat, was already goofing off with the others like nothing happened.
"Let's eat up and hit the school store."
Juwon, relieved the subtle tension hadn't blown up into a real fight, livened things up with his usual easygoing vibe.
Siwoo, not wanting to ruin the group's mood, forced food into his mouth and gave an awkward smile.
But the rice sliding down his throat felt oddly scratchy and bitter.
After that day, as Iseol subtly shielded Siwoo a few more times, Hyunsu got even more pissed and ramped up his torment.
Things neither improved nor worsened, just teetering on the edge, until midterms arrived in April to shatter the weird peace.
"Weather this nice, and we gotta take exams right now? Kills the vibe."
Park Geon sprawled his massive frame across Juwon's desk, using his textbook as a pillow, and sighed.
Even the usually laid-back Juwon rested his chin on his hand, staring blankly at the cherry blossoms outside. Chaerin and Dasom bickered over their notes.
"Why's everyone acting like the world's ending? You're not even gonna study with pen in hand anyway."
Iseol tossed her phone carelessly from the window ledge, making Park Geon and Juwon flinch in unison.
"Hey, there's such a thing as atmosphere. How can we be the only ones grinning in this solemn mood?"
As Park Geon said, they'd gotten friendly with all the first-years by now—greetings echoed nonstop in the halls.
"...Ugh, this won't do. How about we all meet at the cafe by school this weekend and pretend to study?"
True to his ironclad rule of at least faking study during exam week, Juwon wasn't just slacking.
His healthy weekend study proposal got enthusiastic yeses from his fun-loving friends without hesitation.
Siwoo nodded awkwardly in agreement, but a new worry stirred inside him.
And so Saturday morning arrived.
"Argh... I'm losing it. Nothing to wear..."
From 8 a.m., Siwoo had turned his tiny closet inside out, buried in a pile of clothes.
'Can't exactly go in uniform...'
For middle school hangouts, he'd always thrown on a baggy tee and comfy pants. But now, the biggest dilemma of his 17 years hit him.
Dress up too much, and it'd seem try-hard and laughable.
Go casual like usual, and his friends—who'd all doll up—would outshine him.
And above all, Iseol's gaze weighed on him.
"Nam Siwoo! Aren't you going? You'll be late!"
At his mom's urging from the kitchen amid dishwashing, Siwoo broke out in cold sweat and grabbed the most decent-looking navy hoodie and sweatpants from the mess on the bed.
Standing before the mirror, he adjusted his glasses and scanned himself.
'...This the best I got.'
It was neat enough, but plain as day compared to the friends he'd meet.
Siwoo sighed deeply in resignation and stuffed his notebook and books into his backpack.
Ready at last, he stood at the front door, tying his laces tight with a determined look.
"I'm off!"
Click.
Down to the first floor, he opened the lobby door, and April's warm spring breeze gently brushed his flushed cheeks.
Hoping desperately the day would pass without incident, Siwoo took his first step toward the meetup cafe.