A Peaceful Day.
A Peaceful Day.
Some time had passed in agony when someone shook me awake.
I squinted through half-closed eyes at the person who'd roused me.
Then I saw them—the ones snapping pictures of me with an audible click.
"...?"
"You're Si-yoon, right?"
I checked their name tags. Male students, a year older than me.
One of them spoke up while I stared at them wordlessly.
"Saw you on your way into school. You were crazy pretty. Go out with me."
Back in elementary school, there were plenty of little brats who'd 'confess' to me. Once I hit middle school, the number who'd 'cling and pester' shot up.
"Haah... Get lost."
The brat shoved his face at me, going dead serious.
Ji-hoon and Kim Tae-oh crossed my mind.
Even dog shit is hard to find when you need it...
"Go out with me, I said..."
I raised my head and met his eyes.
"I said fuck off, you little shit..."
I dropped my face back to the desk to get some sleep, and he grabbed a fistful of my hair and yanked my head up.
Fwip.
I flicked the brat's chin like I was swatting a fly, felt the grip on my hair go slack, and flopped back down.
The boy crumpled to the floor in the same slow motion as my head met the desk.
Already felt like garbage and didn't want to move, so I just rolled my head to the side.
"Haul your buddy off... if you don't wanna actually die..."
BANG!
A bigger kid next to Park Ji-hoon's desk kicked it over hard and came at me.
"Hah... This is unreal. Just 'cause you've got a pretty face, you think you're—"
Scraaape.
Just then, probably worried about me, Park Ji-hoon walked in with snacks he'd bought while skipping gym class and found his overturned desk and the scene in front of him.
It was practically the dog shit I'd needed showing up right on cue—I was genuinely glad to see Ji-hoon for once in a long while.
"What the hell! What's going on?"
"I'm trying to rest and these guys were all 'go out with me' and pulled my hair."
Veins looked ready to pop on Park Ji-hoon's face.
Ji-hoon still thinks of me as Boss, so he goes pretty far out of his way to look after me, same as back when he was my subordinate.
After that, those little shits got a taste of hell.
They did try to fight back and charge at Ji-hoon, but they just ended up unconscious three more times each.
Even that was him handling them with kid gloves.
And then, wouldn't you know it, a teacher from the student affairs office happened to walk by and spotted the unconscious kids.
Just as the teacher, who seemed to consider this a serious issue, was about to demand an explanation from us, the teacher noticed that the three kids lying there had white name tags.
"What... are second-years doing... in a first-year classroom..."
The little punks had woken up.
Right when Ji-hoon was about to say something, I stepped in.
"I was... it was that time of the month so I was lying down in pain... and these upperclassmen came in and... h-hic... sniff."
I pulled out my first trump card.
'The first to cry wins.'
But trump cards have a way of failing you, so I covered my eyes with my arm and faked forcing out the tears.
Dad wouldn't have fallen for it... but the teacher was flustered.
The angle was perfect, so he absolutely believed I was actually crying.
"They took pictures of me while I was sleeping... grabbed my hair... and threatened me to go out with them... If Ji-hoon hadn't been here..."
The delinquent brats, just now awake, had no clue what I was even saying.
They were cowering under the look in Ji-hoon's eyes.
The student affairs teacher addressed the newly-conscious brats.
"Is what Si-yoon said true?"
"...Huh?"
"Hand over your phones. And I asked if you grabbed Si-yoon's hair and threatened her."
They'd been listening to the teacher, then made eye contact with Ji-hoon.
Flustered, they handed over their phones, and the teacher confirmed the photos of me asleep.
"You three... know this isn't going to end lightly..."
Seems they were already known troublemakers within the school. The teacher moved to take the crew of brats out, accompanied by just Ji-hoon.
Ji-hoon righted his knocked-over desk and said to me,
"Get some rest..."
"Yeah."
The teacher, who'd been watching this exchange, said to me,
"You're not feeling well, so rest up..."
"Yes..."
Thanks to Ji-hoon's reaction and my own, I'd become the perfect victim. I looked over at the bag Ji-hoon had brought.
The bastard may be an idiot, but he's loyal—he's good about this kind of thing.
I spotted the strawberry milk Ji-hoon had brought, let out a short laugh, and slumped forward onto my desk in my chair.
My stomach was killing me, and the damn things were ice-cold, naturally.
Son of a bitch...
A smile touched my lips.
A hectic day came and went...
The next day, I was tearing open a sanitary pad wrapper inside my bag.
The rustling made Park Ji-hoon ask, curiosity on his face.
"Is that food? Gimme some."
"You fucking moron... You wanna split it? Huh?"
I pulled one out and tossed it at Park Ji-hoon. Kim Tae-oh and Da-yeon, upon seeing what it was, looked absolutely horrified.
"You. Put it on and wear it around during break, asshole."
Park Ji-hoon figured out what it was a beat later and was equally horrified.
"Ugh... Sorry..."
I got up with a smirk.
"Where you going?"
"To put on a new one of the ones I threw at you. Why."
"".....""
Silently, only Da-yeon followed me.
She matched my pace as we walked.
"Da-yeon, why are you doing nothing but study these days?"
"Mmm... So I can go to the same university as you?"
I tilted my head at the unexpected answer.
"You need to study for us to go to the same university? I can just go wherever you go."
"No way~ I wanna go somewhere good!"
"Then Kim Tae-oh and Ji-hoon won't be able to come."
"Ah!"
I chuckled and laid a hand on Da-yeon's shoulder.
"Wait here. I'll be right back."
"Take your time~"
After I came back from the restroom, Da-yeon was waiting, and we headed back to the classroom together.
Ji-hoon, fiddling with the pad I'd thrown. And Kim Tae-oh, unable to hide his sheer dismay at the sight...
And Da-yeon's expression started to harden.
The braindead bastard was fiddling with it and was just about to try smelling it.
I sprinted over and landed a high kick.
Ji-hoon spotted me, panicked, and tried to flinch back, but he got caught on his chair, couldn't dodge, and my high kick clipped his chin, putting him to sleep on the spot.
Tae-oh stared at me with a flinching expression, looking at Ji-hoon, genuinely unconscious.
"That moron literally can't not do moron shit, right?"
"Yeah... So trashy..."
Kim Tae-oh warily watched Da-yeon being so completely matter-of-fact about it.
I sat down in my seat next to the slumped-over Ji-hoon.
Ji-hoon snapped out of his temporary anesthetic state and jumped up in a startled panic, immediately raising his guard and settling into a stance.
"The hell are you doing?"
"I just saw my ancestors... what the fuck! You're killing off brain cells!"
"You sick freak, what were you trying to stick your nose in it for? Just bury your face in it and die, motherfucker."
"...I was just curious, okay."
"Looked more like you were about to lick it, you goddamn lunatic. If you're that curious, wear one—I told you to put it on, didn't I? You little Shrimp. You don't have the equipment anyway, so it'd probably be a real comfortable fit."
"HEY!!!"
I ignored Park Ji-hoon and pulled out the hot yuja tea he'd bought me that morning.
When I handed it to him, Ji-hoon, even as he was pissed off, opened the cap for me.
"You feeling any better?"
"Weren't you supposed to say 'thank you' first...?"
"Whatever."
Class started. When my concentration started to blur during a consecutive two-hour stretch, I looked over and saw Kim Tae-oh was asleep.
And Da-yeon was taking the lesson with a smile, stealing glances here and there.
Next to me, Park Ji-hoon had long since passed out cold.
Why does Kim Tae-oh look like he's just sleeping, and this bastard looks like he's been knocked unconscious...
Right as I was puzzling over that distinction, a Bbbb-ffft! sound rang out next to me.
"".....""
Every single eye was on me, and no joke, my entire face went hot.
Bbbb-ffft! Bbbb-ffft!
As if this lunatic had a hole drilled through his asshole, his whole backside was bouncing like it was about to take flight.
Even Da-yeon was staring at me in appalled shock.
My face burning red, I brought the book I was holding down hard on Park Ji-hoon's head. THWACK! He jolted awake with a startled yell.
"Whoa... I had a dream I was laying eggs..."
Yep, definitely a goddamn moron.
"Is that all you laid, you fucking lunatic? The smell's gone toxic."
The classroom was already so filled with laughter that nobody heard me cuss him out.
Encountering the most overwhelmingly foul scent in my life, I opened the window.
Park Ji-hoon was the same as ever: shame barely registered with him. No, that wasn't quite right—now that he had a 'Shrimp,' he knew what embarrassment was, but that uniquely brazen shamelessness was still there.
Park Ji-hoon was a goddamn idiot, but loyalty was one thing you had to give him. That was probably why he was still stuck right beside me.
I appreciated how he was always trying to help me, but there was no helping the wave of revulsion that rose whenever I looked at his face.
Once the time of suffering was over, the sky was impossibly clear.
The weekend arrived. I'd pinned my bangs back with a headband and was lounging around when a text came in.
(Da-yeon) - Si-yoon, what are you up to?
(Me) - Lounging.
(Da-yeon) - Let's go shopping! My treat!
(Me) - Shall we?
(Da-yeon) - Yeah! See you in 2 hours!
(Me) - Okay~
I had plans with Da-yeon.
I headed to the bathroom for a shower, meaning to wash my hair, too.
Dad looked up when I suddenly got up.
"Where are you going?"
"Da-yeon wants to go shopping."
"Should Daddy come along?"
"What? No."
"Hey, I'm saying that because I worry about you."
"Honestly, going around with Da-yeon is safer than going with you, you know."
"Well... true..."
I stretched and went into the bathroom.
"Si-yoon~"
Da-yeon was already trying to hug me the second she saw me.
Per Da-yeon's suggestion, we each dressed in our own usual style, and we both put on masks.
I gave Da-yeon a good squeeze as she clung to me, and we headed out together.
When we got down to the apartment entrance, Kim Tae-oh was waiting, dressed in a suit.
Maybe because the guy's built like a clothes hanger, he fills out a suit impressively well.
Da-yeon kept pretending she wasn't, but she was stealing glances at Kim Tae-oh.
Thinking to myself that the poor kid's got it rough starting from the weekend itself, I called Park Ji-hoon.
Da-yeon looked curious who it was, so I switched it to speakerphone.
—"Yo."
"Where are you?"
—"Mid-run along the Han River."
"Not about to run right off a bridge, are you?"
—"Picking a fight this early, what's up?"
"Come out, I'm buying you clothes."
—"Whoa, what is this, a 'generous older girl who buys me clothes' thing?"
"Screw off, forget it."
—"I reek of sweat right now, wait up."
"Why would I wait for you, I'll ping you the location; just wash up and come."
I smoothly hung up and pocketed the phone.
We could've gone by car, but Da-yeon and I like walking, so we set out on foot.
The security team, dressed like civilians, kept pace with us from a distance, and Kim Tae-oh followed behind us, scanning the area.
You see movies with bodyguards protecting high-ranking officials.
Comments always say it's over the top, but watching this in real life, the movies were practically understated.
"Kitty!"
"Our Alpha would win."
"Oh...?"
Going by sheer weight class, Alpha was at least three times the size of that alley cat.
"Alpha and Beta fight like crazy these days."
"Really? Why?"
"Alpha's meaner, but Beta's stronger. So Alpha picks on Beta and they fight."
"I want a cat, too..."
"You wanna sleep over at my place tonight?"
I said it without any real thought behind it, but Da-yeon answered without a shred of hesitation.
"Yeah!"
"So Da-yeon's treating today, then?"
"Of course!"
Da-yeon pulled out her card to show me.
Unlike the one Lee Jin-seok had given me, this one had gold trim around the edge.
It was a Korean black card, same as mine.
"Ohhhhh..."
"I bugged my dad that I wanted to buy stuff for you, Si-yoon, so he gave it to me."
After a long walk, the streets began to crowd with people.
Since it was right around lunchtime, I popped the question to Da-yeon.
"Should we eat first?"
"Yeah!"
We went into a tonkatsu place and were about to order at the kiosk at the entrance when Park Ji-hoon called.
"Hello?"
—"Combo platter, plus an extra hire-katsu."
And Park Ji-hoon hung up.
This fucking asshole just keeps testing me, wanting to find out just how far he can push my limits.
"....."
Da-yeon tilted her head, seeing my expression curdle.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
I tapped in what Park Ji-hoon had ordered.
Da-yeon naturally swiped the card she'd gotten from Lee Jin-seok.
She was smiling—seemed like she was having fun with it.
The food came out before long, and at some point Park Ji-hoon walked in and said hi.
"Hey Da-yeon~"
"Hey."
Then he spotted Kim Tae-oh in his suit and started laughing.
"Daamn~ Look at that getup. You come to slice up some tonkatsu dressed like that?"
I smacked Park Ji-hoon on the back of the head and pointed at the food.
"What'd you hit me for!"
"Your allowance got cut off—so when someone's treating you, just shut up and eat..."
"Yep."
Park Ji-hoon started shoveling the tonkatsu into his mouth.
He was eating so fast I half worried he'd shred his throat on the crispy fried batter...
Halfway through inhaling his meal, Ji-hoon held both hands out to me.
When I stared at him, he bowed his head.
Knowing exactly what Park Ji-hoon wanted, I got out my wallet and handed my card over.
The second he had my card, he dashed to the kiosk, tapped in buttons without a second's hesitation—t-t-t-t-tk—swiped the card, and returned it to me.
And with that, the Park Ji-hoon eating show kicked off.
"Whoa... He eats a ton..."
Even Kim Tae-oh was wearing an expression of sheer overwhelm at how Park Ji-hoon was eating. And this bastard Park Ji-hoon, mid-meal, started eyeing what was in my bowl.
"I'm serious—keep that up and I'll make sure you die mid-meal..."
"Yep."
And he didn't mean 'eat so much you die.'
Park Ji-hoon, having accurately read my meaning of literally dying by my hand, went back to the food he'd ordered himself.
While Da-yeon and I were laughing and chatting away, Park Ji-hoon, evidently finished eating, rubbed his stomach.
Maybe it's because I've been living with a certain level of decorum lately...
Or maybe Park Ji-hoon is just that excessive...
Park Ji-hoon, who'd been looking at me, made a gesture like something was coming up and let out a belch.
"Urp."
A powerful smell rose, the kind that would linger unforgettably.
Operating on a simple mindset of "shut that moron's throat-hole permanently," I grabbed the knife meant for cutting tonkatsu. With a clatter and crash, Park Ji-hoon dropped to his knees.
"Sorry... I couldn't hold it."
Every eye on us just made it ten times more embarrassing.
I let out a sigh and hurriedly herded my party out the door.