Chapter 226: Problem Child-4
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 226: Problem Child-4
After finishing her tutoring session, Yun Si-a headed to a cafe.
It was a place famous as a study cafe within her usual haunts, though the owner hadn't actually intended to run the establishment that way. It was simply that word of mouth had branded it a study cafe after countless students began gathering at the large tables on the second floor to hit the books.
After ordering a one-liter iced americano, Yun Si-a unpacked her things at a table tucked away in a corner.
Ding.
A notification chimed on her phone.
[Iluni Cafe: 4,500 won]
It was an alert for the coffee she had just purchased.
"When does the tutoring fee come in again...?"
She muttered to herself while opening her banking app to check her balance. After tracing her security pattern, the app laid her balance bare in all its stark reality. Her eyes lingered on the pitifully small number of digits, and a long sigh escaped her lips before she could stop it.
Bzzzzt.
While she was wallowing in her financial misery, her pager vibrated. She left her phone on the table and went downstairs to pick up her coffee.
Returning with the drink, she picked her phone back up. The banking app was in the middle of syncing to see if there was any new data.
[Deposit: 1,500,000]
[Memo: Tutoring Fee]
"It’s in!"
She cried out at the sight of the long-awaited payment, drawing subtle, judgmental glares from the cafe-study crowd nearby.
"......"
Though she felt awkward under their gaze, the smile fixed on Si-a’s face didn't fade.
The subjects she taught were Language Arts, Math, and Foreign Language. The conditions the parents had set weren't even that high—they just asked her to keep his grades above the 5th tier. It was the kind of condition that would make any tutor doubt their own ears.
Three times a week, twelve times a month. Two hours per session, six hours a week, twenty-four hours a month.
1,500,000 won for twenty-four hours of work.
This was the reason she continued the job even while being treated like a ghost by her student.
"Ah... I can finally breathe."
She let out a sigh of relief as she transferred more than half of the money to her family’s account. She pulled a pen from her pencil case and twirled it between her fingers.
Si-a began to replay the day's events in her head. Usually, whenever she arrived, the student would just lie on his bed playing on his phone or sleeping. So why was he so diligent during the lesson today?
Was it to trick her?
No, he was the type to ignore her if he was going to ignore her; he wasn't the kind of kid to go through the trouble of acting. Si-a’s thoughts grew complicated.
"Did the kid suddenly grow a conscience or something?"
She pouted as she recalled him focusing seriously on the lesson.
"Maybe he’s turned over a new leaf?"
She considered the possibility. It was unlikely he’d been scolded by his parents, who were currently abroad. If parental nagging could have corrected his behavior, he would have been a model student long ago.
"Ah... should I give him the benefit of the doubt?"
Maybe he really had just developed a spark of interest, like he said.
She began organizing the material for the next lesson in her notebook. It was a task she hadn't skipped once since taking the job. However, she could tell that her mood was a bit more buoyant than usual today.
"I wonder if he'll listen well next time, too."
Si-a hoped In-ho’s interest would continue. As her hand moved the pen, it carried a strange sense of anticipation.
*
Drugs. It meant that things I’d never even encountered in my previous life were currently rolling around on my floor.
I wasn't the one who bought or used them, but if they were discovered, I’d be the one facing the consequences.
"Hey, are you okay?"
The young-looking girl reached out and felt my face. The gesture, filled with worry, felt burdensome. I raised my hands, grabbed her arms, and pulled them away from my face.
At my rejection, Jeong-ah looked up at me with an expression like a discarded puppy.
"Do you hate it?"
She was too casual to be just a friend, yet there was a subtle, wall-like caution between us that kept us from being lovers.
"No, I just feel a bit sick to my stomach."
Moving away from the range where I could feel her breath, I grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. I took the clear plastic bottle and headed straight up to the second floor.
When I opened the door, a tidy room was revealed. For some reason, Jeong-ah looked delighted; she darted into the room ahead of me and plopped herself down on the bed.
"Wow, your room is seriously nice. It’s like three of the rooms at my house put together."
She bounced her body up and down as if testing the mattress's quality. The bed creaked, and Jeong-ah’s firm chest bounced with the movement.
To any other guy this age, it would have been a sight to stir his libido, but I was being cautious. I didn't want to get hauled off for violating the Child and Youth Protection Act.
"So, are we doing it here today?"
Jeong-ah asked in an expectant voice as she leaned back on the bed.
"Doing what?" I replied instantly.
Apparently, that wasn't the answer she wanted. Jeong-ah stared at me with a bizarre expression, as if I had just rejected an offer no one could possibly refuse.
"Is it a side effect of the Pennyam?"
I let out an involuntary hollow laugh at her mutterings. There were side effects to Pennyam. I was the living proof.
Whether it was misuse, abuse, or just a bad reaction... the owner of this body had laid hands on that stuff and died. And according to the rules of possession, I had ended up in this body.
"Anyway, you've seen how I am, so why don't you head home?"
When I spoke to the girl—whose last name I didn't even know—she puffed out her cheeks in a pout.
"Aww, why? If you're not there, I'm not going to the karaoke bar either."
Jeong-ah sprawled out on the bed in a 'spread-eagle' position and flailed her arms.
"Weren't you happy that you found a place that would serve us alcohol?"
"Do you think I drink because I like alcohol?" She shot me a sidelong glance.
"You don't?"
My answer clearly displeased her, as she turned over and gave me the cold shoulder.
That’s unexpected. I figured kids who played around like this would naturally love drinking.
"Hey, I told you to get up."
I spoke as I approached the bed. Jeong-ah remained unresponsive, her back still turned to me.
This is driving me crazy. I need to get her out of here so I can study the social relationships surrounding this body.
"Hey. Hey."
I poked the back of her shoulder with my finger.
"......"
I poked her with a fair amount of force that should have hurt, but there was no reaction.
"Hey, what's wrong with you all of a sudden?"
I poked her again. Still nothing.
Feeling like we were just running in circles, I grabbed her shoulder this time and pulled her toward me. As I did, Jeong-ah’s face, which had been facing the wall, turned back toward the ceiling.
"Gotcha!"
She whipped her body around and grabbed my arm with both hands. Her soft hands wrapped around my forearm. Then, she pulled my arm hard toward her chest. My balance broke, and I fell right on top of her.
We didn't actually collide or anything. However, because I had extended my arms to keep from falling, I ended up hovering over her, effectively pinning her down.
"What do you think you're doing?"
I asked, suppressing the irritation that was starting to flare up. Jeong-ah just gave me a mischievous grin.
Just as I was thinking that if a fox became a human, it would look exactly like this, Jeong-ah tilted her chin up slightly and looked into my eyes.
"In-ho~ let's do it here~"