Expelled
"...!"
Seo Jae-kyung stared at the cards and clamped his mouth shut. Watching him, I thought to myself, 'Good.' I never planned on playing fair from the start. What was the point of stepping into that bastard's territory? I'd just get crushed. So, I wrecked the game. Defeated him and nailed him as a cheating scumbag in one go. Made sure he had no place left in this club. All to stop him from harassing Lee Seol-ah ever again.
I picked up the spade ace on the table. One by one, I laid them down, pressuring Seo Jae-kyung even more.
"Why'd you shut your mouth? Explain yourself."
"......"
Seo Jae-kyung kept his lips sealed tight. Of course he had nothing to say—and no way to fight back. Because I'd orchestrated the whole thing.
The first time I followed Seo Jae-kyung. He looked at Seol-ah and spat out those words.
-"Let me talk to Lee Seol-ah alone for just three minutes."
I saw his eyes then. Eyes that spoke nothing but the truth. That's probably why Seol-ah agreed. But I sensed something off. An unnatural confidence, maybe. I had a gut feeling something bad would happen in those three minutes. So, I decided to flip the table.
. . .
-"I don't know much about board games."
I brought along the lackey next to Seo Jae-kyung. Simple reason: his face was the easiest to read. Seo Jae-kyung must have prepared thoroughly. So, I targeted someone close to him who looked like a pushover. We fiddled with various board games. He tried to keep a poker face, but I saw right through it.
'I've been studying faces for years. These guys aren't doctors or anything.'
Every time we touched a game, his expression gave it away. Chess—when we did that, his face stiffened just a bit. Seo Jae-kyung's weak spot. So, I quickly ruled it out. "This is one I suck at, so invalid!" I didn't want to hear that bullshit. Better to pick a game he was good at.
And that's how we settled on trump cards. I grabbed a deck and asked the pushover if leaving it to luck might be better.
'Gotcha.' I thought.
Plus, more variables were better, so I tossed out some bait. Poker. Suggested luck as a factor and watched his face.
"......"
A pleased expression. Not faked for Seo Jae-kyung—it was genuine excitement for himself. He must have felt confident in this game. Whether it was real skill or sleight-of-hand tricks, I didn't know yet.
At the same time, an idea hit me.
'Should I make that guy the dealer and let him pull his tricks?'
It was a surefire way for me not to lose. If he didn't cheat, great for me. If he did, even better—it'd cover my own moves. Once he was guilty too, he wouldn't dare act rashly.
That's how I hid the second deck and came back.
-"I'm a bit suspicious by nature."
I said it on purpose. Jae-kyung accepted it without question. He had no choice. Right then, I was Seol-ah's boyfriend, the guy stepping up to crush a sleazy punk. Naturally, we switched seats. I positioned myself with a wall blocking everyone else's view.
-"Oh, and let's pick dealers for each other."
Another setup. Two goals: drag the pushover into it and buy time with Seol-ah. The game started, and results showed fast. When the pushover dealt, I fell behind a little. When Seol-ah dealt, it was even. The rest was up to me.
I watched Seo Jae-kyung and the pushover's faces, dragging it out as long as possible.
. . .
After about 45 minutes, I spotted the pattern. Every time the pushover's face twitched subtly, the same cards came out. Still not sure on the sleight-of-hand, but whenever it showed on his face, I manipulated my hand. Mine moved busily too.
Flip cards face-down on the table, pretend to think, slip my hand under. Slowly, bit by bit. Memorize the order, get the feel. Sometimes hide a card from the deck and bring it up, keep observing reactions. Over and over, dozens of times. Even hide cards dealt to me on purpose.
I held out, hiding and enduring until the very end.
And then—the moment came.
Seo Jae-kyung and the pushover exchanged glances. I could tell they were signaling a rigged card, so I raised the stakes. Suggested flipping one card at a time. He accepted, of course. He thought he'd win.
One by one. With each flip, the club members' attention locked in. They cheered and groaned at the reveals, dopamine pumping. That's when I swapped.
When Seo Jae-kyung flipped a trump, I switched it on the sly.
Just like that, I shattered the game.
"...Ha."
Seo Jae-kyung shut his mouth. No—he had to. His mind went blank.
'What... the hell.'
Cards. Spread across the table. Five aces. Impossible. A hand that could never come up. He knew it better than anyone.
Because—
'Woo Won-jae... he touched them.'
His gaze stabbed like needles pricking skin. Murmurs and whispers echoed from all sides.
And—blatant suspicion.
"Hey... that."
"Does that even make sense?"
"What's Seo Jae-kyung doing?"
Those words burrowed into his ears. His temple twitched.
'No.'
This wasn't him. The problem was—
"Hey."
Seo Jae-kyung whipped his head around, glaring at Woo Won-jae.
"What did you do?"
"...Huh?"
Woo Won-jae blinked blankly. That innocent face. It pissed him off more.
"You messing with me?"
Seo Jae-kyung's voice dropped low.
"Why are the cards like this?"
"I-I don't know—"
"Bullshit."
Thud. He slammed the table.
"You were the dealer."
"Yeah, but—"
"Then explain."
Pressure. Blatant blame-shifting. But then—
"Whoa..."
Someone cut in. Sung-hoon looked down at Jae-kyung, like he was disgusted.
"You're really pathetic."
Quiet, but clear. Seo Jae-kyung averted his eyes, looking elsewhere. One member stood with arms crossed, watching.
"If you're caught, just admit it."
"...What?"
"What do you mean, what."
Snicker. A mocking laugh.
"You cheated."
In that instant—the air flipped.
Everyone stared at Seo Jae-kyung, whispering.
"Yeah, I thought it was weird too."
"Right? He kept siding with Jae-kyung."
"Only weird when Won-jae dealt."
"They rigged it together, right?"
One word. Two. Piling up. Suspicion turned to certainty faster than expected.
"No."
Seo Jae-kyung finally spoke.
"I—"
But the words died.
What could he say? Then what about these cards? He didn't even know what trick was used—no excuse came to mind. He couldn't explain.
That's when Kang Sung-hoon stepped forward.
"I told you to explain."
Calmly.
"Why there are two sets of cards."
"..."
"Or—"
Snicker. A faint smile.
"Wanna just admit it?"
"...Fuck."
Finally—a curse slipped out.
That sealed it. One word, and the culprit was set.
And then—
"Get out."
A quiet voice rang out. A tough-looking student pushed through the members. Cha Jin-cheol. Face like a thug, no exaggeration.
But everyone there, far from cowed, pointed at Seo Jae-kyung.
"President! Seo Jae-kyung rigged it!"
"...I know. I saw the end."
Cha Jin-cheol's voice was low. Not loud—but impossible to defy.
"...Hey, wait—"
Seo Jae-kyung blurted desperately. Forced smile. But his eyes were already shaking.
"Misunderstanding. This is—"
"Enough."
Thud. Cha Jin-cheol cut him off.
"It's uglier if you keep going."
"..."
That shut Seo Jae-kyung's mouth for good.
"Both of you."
Cha Jin-cheol's gaze shifted. To Woo Won-jae, and—
"Get out together."
"...Huh?"
Woo Won-jae sounded dazed.
"M-Me? I—"
"You were the dealer."
"..."
"Cards came from your hands."
Short. Final.
"Get out together."
"Hey!! No, I—!!"
Seo Jae-kyung exploded.
"That bastard—! Woo Won-jae, that fucker—!"
"Stop."
Cha Jin-cheol took a step forward. In that moment—words halted. No fist, no threat. Just the vibe. The air that it was over. No one was on Seo Jae-kyung's side.
And so, Seo Jae-kyung was kicked out of the board game club.
A few minutes after he left, Cha Jin-cheol approached Kang Sung-hoon.
"...Sorry."
Cha Jin-cheol spoke, looking at Sung-hoon like he regretted dragging him into this.
"Should've stopped it sooner."
"...No, it's fine."
Sung-hoon smiled lightly.
"He got caught in the end."
"Still—"
"Really, it's okay."
He cut him off.
Grab. He took Lee Seol-ah's wrist and pulled her close.
"Just go easy on Seol-ah instead."
"...Huh?"
Seol-ah looked up in surprise.
Cha Jin-cheol glanced at them, then chuckled.
"Got it. No more incidents next time."
Short reply.
And with that, the board game club's drama ended.
After the chaos wrapped up that day, Kang Sung-hoon parted with Lee Seol-ah and headed home. He opened the screen door and punched in the code at the front door.
Beep!
The door unlocked. As Sung-hoon stepped in—
"...You're back?"
A familiar male voice. Sung-hoon looked toward the living room where he sat, smiling warmly.
"You're home early, Dad."