Chapter 19. Exploitation
"Alright then, shall we leave the first tasks to our class president and vice president?"
After the class president election wrapped up, the homeroom teacher called us to the office and handed me and Baek Hara a stack of prepared documents, issuing instructions as if he'd been waiting for this moment.
"Get all these sorted and bring them back to the office by the end of the day."
"That's quite a lot," I remarked.
"Well, it's right after the start of the semester, so there's a ton to do. You'll be organizing study materials and running a survey for the students. It'd be more efficient if you two split the roles."
In other words, Baek Hara and I just needed to coordinate and get it done today.
As I nodded in agreement, she casually grabbed part of the stack and said matter-of-factly,
"Then I'll handle the document sorting, and you take the student surveys."
"Me, the surveys?"
"Why? Don't wanna do surveys?"
"No, I just figured you'd prefer the surveys, since you're the biggest social butterfly in school."
She was the queen bee, after all—naturally outgoing and perfect for mingling with everyone. But Baek Hara scowled at my words, glaring at me like I'd insulted her.
"Ugh, seriously? The vice president questioning the president's opinion?"
"...Is 'vice president' such a lowly title that you have to rub it in like that?"
"The president is higher than the vice, right? And since you nominated me, you gotta take responsibility and follow my lead. Am I wrong?"
Here she goes again, pinning it on me. Whatever—whoever handled what, as long as it got done.
I brushed it off and headed back to class with her. I immediately started on my assigned surveys: just approach each student, ask the questions on the form, and fill it out.
"Mind helping out for a sec?"
"Ah, do we have to do that?"
"It'll only take a minute."
"Tch, fine."
Using breaks, I methodically worked through the class, getting a firsthand look at the school's social dynamics along the way. Most kids stuck to their cliques, orbiting the popular groups. Baek Hara's crew was one of them, but when I went to survey them, she wasn't doing any work—not even a little.
"So anyway~ what happened next was~"
"President. What are you doing?"
I interrupted her mid-gossip. She paused, shooting me an annoyed glance.
"What~? You're killing the vibe. Wanna hang with us or something?"
"No... Didn't the teacher assign us work?"
It was a hefty load—enough that we'd need after-school time. But she was acting like it didn't exist, so as vice president, I couldn't help worrying.
"Oh, that? I'll handle it, so butt out~"
"You sure you can finish by after school?"
"What, you think I'm gonna dump it all on you?"
"...I hope not."
She wasn't the most reliable, but if she said so, probably no blowback on me. Hoping for the best, I continued surveying her group—and that's when I noticed someone missing who should have been glued to her side.
Yoo Soeun. The girl always hovering near Baek Hara's crew during breaks.
"Soeun's not here—any idea where she went?"
Baek Hara smirked mockingly.
"Who knows~? No clue here~"
"You really don't know?"
"Sigh. Look at you fussing over her again. Always sneaking peeks... Got a crush or something~?"
"...I have to survey everyone, including her."
"Sure, sure, if you say so, Manbung~ Funny thing, I'm not her babysitter, so no idea where she is~"
She sneered and dove back into chit-chat with her friends. No point pushing—she was drawing a hard line.
Figuring Soeun would return for class anyway, I turned to leave.
"That Kim Manbung guy's hilarious, right?"
Their voices hit me as I walked away—blatant enough that I couldn't ignore it. Their snickers grated on my nerves.
"Thinks he's hot stuff 'cause he's next to the window, runs for president, ends up vice by a landslide~ And get this—he nominated Hara, which is why she won."
"Probably 'cause of Soeun, though? Hara pushed Soeun thinking she'd be perfect, but he stuck his nose in and made Hara president instead."
"Now Hara's stuck with the job she never wanted. Ugh, what if she's too busy to hang with us?"
Too busy for us 'cause of work? From what I'd seen, work was the last thing on her mind.
"Nah~ don't be so negative~ Lots of work, sure, but there's ways to handle it~"
Did she have some ace up her sleeve? She chatted confidently, no worries about fallout.
It didn't inspire confidence. But after school, there she was, handing the teacher a neatly finished stack.
"Nice and tidy. Good job, both of you."
The teacher even praised it—no signs of a last-minute rush job. Unable to shake my doubts, I cornered Baek Hara sharply.
"I didn't see you working—when'd you finish all that?"
"Wow, our vice is so curious~"
She played it cool and sauntered off, dropping a line that fueled my suspicions.
"With real leadership, stuff like this is a breeze~"
...Leadership, huh. Sounds like she dumped it on someone.
*****
Yeah, Baek Hara definitely offloaded her work. I'd watched her the whole time—nothing but gossiping. No window for that massive task.
And the next day, I learned who she'd dumped it on.
"Lunch on the rooftop again today?"
"Sorry... don't think I can today..."
At lunch, Soeun—who usually joined me—was declining, pulling out a stack of documents instead of her lunchbox.
"I, um... have work..."
I recognized it instantly: the stuff the teacher gave us yesterday, the part we'd split.
"The president gave it to you?"
She nodded silently.
Irritation boiled up. I snatched the papers from her hands and said,
"I'll handle this. You go eat with Mary on the rooftop."
"Ah, wait..."
"Sorry, can't do lunch today."
No time for eating. Not when the slacker class president was ditching her duties.
I stormed to the cafeteria and planted myself in front of Baek Hara, mid-meal and gossip.
"Got something important to say. Come out for a sec?"
"Ugh, why so uptight? Even the most diligent person doesn't barge in on someone eating and demand—"
Thud! The stack slammed down, echoing through the cafeteria. The vibe shifted awkwardly as I fixed her with a sharper glare.
"Come out. Now. I need to know what you were thinking."
"...Heh."
She grinned like it was amusing. We stepped outside amid the murmurs, and I shoved the documents at her.
"You dumped your class president duties on another student, didn't you?"
"What's wrong with that?"
"What's wrong? You can't just—"
"I just asked friends for help 'cause there's so much. No rule says the president has to do everything solo. See? No big deal."
Ridiculous. She was the responsible party, shoving it off on someone outside her role. How could I let that slide?
"Asking for help is fine in moderation, but you dumped your entire share."
"Whole or partial—who cares? I gave it to someone more suited anyway. You know, put the right people in the right spots for efficiency?"
She turned my scolding back on me, oozing annoyance like she was the victim.
"I'm no good at paperwork. That's why I wanted someone better suited in the role—but thanks to you, I'm stuck as president. Know how annoying that is?"
True, I'd put her there. I'd suspected she wanted Soeun as a pawn...
And her words confirmed it wasn't far off.
"You made her president to exploit her, huh."
I hit the nail on the head, but she just laughed openly, unfazed.
"Exploit? Too negative~ Helping struggling students as president is just duty—and borrowing a hand now and then? Not worth interrogating."
Semantic games. The president leads the class and assists the teacher—not slaves to whims. But if Soeun were president, she'd have been treated like one. She couldn't say no to anyone.
"Even if it's me instead, no complaints there. Presidents handle things their way."
"...And your way is dumping everything on her?"
"Sounds like I'm bullying her. I didn't force it~ If she'd said no, I'd have asked someone else. But she says yes every time—why not?"
"That doesn't make offloading everything okay..."
"Don't wanna hear it~ Not from someone a whole tier below me~"
Her words dripped classism. Stunned silent, she smirked and kept going.
"You seem pretty mad at me, but I've got gripes too. Crushing on her hard is one thing, but babying her like this? Not a good look."
"What're you—"
"You nominated me to block her, and now you're grilling me 'cause you care. If I'm exploiting her, you're playing favorites."
"A leader should treat everyone equal, not special one kid... Pfft, lovesick high school boys are such a pain~"
Her mockery had no brakes. I wanted to deny any romance angle—my past kept me far from that—but explaining to this brazen opportunist was pointless.
The issue: she felt zero remorse, spouting nonsense to defend her position and convenience.
"Anyway, I don't see a problem with what I'm doing. If she complains, fine—but otherwise, friends help each other, right?"
"...Demanding one-sidedly isn't friendship."
"That's your opinion, Nosy McNoserson. She doesn't mind, so stop sucking up. Don't call me out like this again."
She turned to leave, then paused, glancing back with a sly grin.
"Oh, and don't go convincing her to say no to me, okay?"
"Hope not. Messing with someone else's good thing just 'cause it bugs you? Super petty~ Kyahaha~"
She headed back inside, leaving me alone.
Yeah, the shameless girl's brazen words left one stunned boy speechless, no real comeback.
"Hah."
But no sense of defeat. Reasoning with a puffed-up teen mistaking ego for greatness? Futile.
"Interesting."
Alright, time to think. How to knock that smug brat down a peg.