Mom's Advice

Chapter 85: Chapter 85
My mom also had tearful eyes when she shook her head immediately as a response.
“No, Donnie. I’m so glad that you’re my daughter. Once your dad and I die, you’ll be left alone in the
world and no one’s gonna take care of you, so I thought it would relieve us if you live a successful life by
getting good scores. That’s all.”
“Boohoo, no mom, why are you saying that you’re gonna die? Don’t say that, we’re gonna live forever.”
“Donnie…”
“Mom…”
When my mom and I started hugging each other while crying my dad asked us what we wanted to eat, so
he could place an order. It was his way of apologizing. Therefore, we had braised seafood for dinner and
had a nice chat again last night.
When I woke up in the morning, I felt so refreshed although I went to bed at around two in the morning.
As what Yoo Chun Young said before, it seems true that mental illness caused 90% of modern people’s
diseases.
The weather was sunny and bright enough that the jacket I was wearing felt a little hot for the day. Ban
Yeo Ryung complained in a hurry that I was being too relaxed even though I was already running late,
but I just responded with a smile.
“Hehehe, I made up with my mom.”
“Oh, really? We’re late though! You should pick up your phone on the way, too.”
“I think we’d be on time but alright, let’s walk a little faster.”
Then I stretched out my hand to Yeo Ryung. She was hesitant for a second but soon grabbed my hand and
showed a radiant smile.
She looked like an angel from the sky when her pure eyes bent smoothly and her jet-black hair waved
through the breeze. Others might have felt the same when I found other students and office workers
halting their fast steps in front of the entrance of the apartment complex to dwell upon her beauty.
I pulled her hands gallantly, and she seemed to follow my steps but soon she walked faster than me. We
walked back-and-forth with each other while battling as to who gets to walk faster than the other and
finally passed through our school entrance.
When I placed my bag on the desk, the bell rang to alert that there were three minutes left before class
started. Fortunately, our teacher glanced at me with no words then left the class with the roll book.
As soon as I sat down to check the timetable, I heard Yi Ruda calling me from my side.
“Donnie.”
“Oh, hold on!”
English was our first class. I couldn’t find where my textbook was, so I responded busily while standing
up and searching for it. It was not inside my desk, so I thought it might be inside the locker which was all
the way at the bottom. Someone then called me from behind while I searched inside my locker with my
back hunched up.
“Donnie, were you at the big supermarket chain at the intersection two days ago…?”
“Huh?”
As soon as I heard the word ‘intersection’ I raised my head in surprise. Under the bright sunlight
shedding through the open window, I saw a neatly combed blue-black hair waving around a person’s
shoulders. It was Kim Hye Hill.
I held my textbook and stood up while reeling from surprise. Then I stared at her with a blink. She
mentioned about two days ago… It was the day my accident took place, and that was also the day Eun
Hyung collapsed. I could hardly notice my face turning pale.
When Kim Hye Hill was about to say something, the bell rang to announce that classes would begin. Kids
went back to their seats. I also had to hurry to my seat since the English teacher was the headteacher of
my grade.
Kim Hye Hill pointed at my seat with her chin as a gesture that we should talk later, so I nodded to her
and quickly walked back to my seat beside Yi Ruda.
Sigh. As I fetched out my relief, the teacher stepped into the classroom. Yi Ruda then tapped her pencil
on her table when I opened my textbook. I turned my head to look at her.
There was a note written in her textbook, which looked unbelievably perfect for a girl who lived abroad.
“Did you almost died in front of the intersection two days ago?”
I drew in my breath out of surprise. On the other hand, I also thought, ‘yeah, why ‘
It took less than a 10-minute walk from my place to So Hyun High School. apartment complexes were
usually close together, which means many students lived around the same neighborhood. It was
reasonable to think that kids from our school were inside the crowd that day.
However, I never thought that the incident would spread out this fast. Since they mentioned my name
exactly, the kids might have known that Eun Hyung had something to do with the accident with me too.
I picked up my pencil and wrote a few words at the corner of the textbook. It was worthless to lie when
she already knew everything.
“To be honest… yeah.”
“I heard someone pushed you? A sophomore at our school.”
I raised my head in surprise. I saw Yi Ruda’s brightly shining blue eyes staring at me.
The rumor included a good deal of information, and it was more than what I had in mind. I also assumed
it could be a sophomore who pushed me, but I was never too sure about it. I quickly scribbled back on the
book
“What exactly is the rumor all about?”
“Kids were waiting for you in the morning to see if you’re okay. Why didn’t you text back?”
“Oh, my screen broke at the crosswalk that day, so I picked it up today.”
“I see. Every one was so concerned.”
Now I realized why there were gazes wandering around me. I thought it was because I was late, but there
was something else behind it all.
Yi Ruda, who was glimpsing at me, then quickly moved her pencil to write more of what she had in mind
“The rumor is about you and Kwon Eun Hyung from Class 1-1 getting involved in a brawl. Someone
pushed you when you were about to stop Eun Hyung from getting beaten. That’s when you fell to the
crosswalk when the dump truck almost ran toward you.”
Pfft, if I had water in my mouth, I would have definitely spat in front of her.
What’s the deal with this awfully accurate rumor? They even knew that it was a dump truck.
Yi Ruda glanced at me then kept on writing.
“You disappeared under the dump truck. People were screaming but soon you crawled out from the
bottom of the halted truck. It seemed that the truck stopped right before you. Kwon Eun Hyung then had a
heart attack when he saw that.”
It was hyperventilation instead of a heart attack though. I quietly watched Yi Ruda’s knuckles moving
through as she started writing.
“Fortunately, a group of doctors who had lunch around the area took emergency measures to Kwon Eun
Hyung. Soon the recovered Kwon Eun Hyung hugged you so tight saying that he thought you were dead,
and it was lucky that you were safe. You also said to him that you were glad that he was safe. Then
everyone applauded with a warmed heart.”
He didn’t hug me that tightly, and no one applauded. They just watched us when we walked away while
we had our arms around each other. While I read this part, it looked as though Eun Hyung and I survived
from the will of Fate. I then showed an obvious frown.
Yi Ruda put a period after writing ‘That’s all’ and lifted her eyes to stare at me. Her bright golden hair
gently shook above her forehead.
I looked at her blue eyes then scratched my hair. Jesus, what should I do… This made Yi Ruda move her
lips to whisper in surprise.
‘Why?’
Before responding, I lifted my eyes to glance at the teacher. Fortunately, he was busy writing something
on the board. I knitted my eyes and replied to Ruda.
‘Both of us, Eun Hyung and I, have hidden something to the kids…’
‘What is it?’
‘Eun Hyung hid that he had a seizure, and I hid that I almost died. Geez, what should I do?’
When I pouted my lips with a sad face, a thick and firm voice flew over us.
“Hey, you two!”
Holy shoot, me and Yi Ruda rolled our eyeballs with a dumbstruck expression. I then saw that the English
teacher in front of the class was looking exactly at us. He pointed the hallway with his chin.
“Go outside if you want to make out.”
“Sorry, sir.”
“I don’t want to hear that. Leave the classroom now.”
Geez, when I had my mouth open widely, Yi Ruda pulled her chair quietly to stand up. When I looked at
her, she shrugged as if there was nothing else she could do about it.
I followed Yi Ruda to walk out to the hallway as we felt others’ gaze at us pleading us to confirm if we
were really dating. Then I questioned myself, ‘why do teachers in web novels ask characters to leave
when they catch students doing something else at the class time?’
Outside, in the hallway, there was no one else but us. I heard the math teacher’s relaxed voice coming out
of the next classroom. While I had my ears to that voice, Yi Ruda, who was standing in front of the
window, spoke to me in a lower tone.
“Which part is true and false in the rumor?”
“Hmm, so…” I gently grinned while making my response. Then I kept on, “To be honest, Eun Hyung did
not have a heart attack, actually, it was hyperventilation. What else… Eun Hyung didn’t hug me tight. He
just collapsed because he lost his strength after seeing what happened to me. No one applauded too.
Except for those, everything seems correct. Oh, and one more thing. They never beat Eun Hyung or
anything. I just fell down when someone tried to snatch my phone to stop me from calling the police.”
“And that’s why your phone is broken?”
“Correct. I grabbed it tightly, so it would not get snatched, but I fell down with my hand to touch the
ground while hiding… Oh!”
Then I came to realize something which made me put my hand suddenly inside the pocket.
I forgot to open my phone after picking it up from the mobile carrier. When I opened my flip phone, I saw
that they had flawlessly repaired the screen. As I firmly pressed the power button, Yi Ruda flung a
question.
“What do you mean by hiding? Hiding what?”
“Um… that is…”
I swept my hair in perplexity. Yi Ruda, who was still leaning at the window, had a calm face while
waiting for my response, so I heaved a sigh and continued.
“Eun Hyung has a traumatic memory of a dump truck, so he showed difficulty in breathing in fear that I’d
die. Since I was afraid if this could traumatize him again, I lied to him that I was okay and that he simply
misunderstood.”
“A-ha.”
Yi Ruda nodded in understanding. I kept on with a sad face.
“Eun Hyung doesn’t want his friends to feel concerned about him having difficulty in breathing, so I
guess he didn’t say that to anyone.”
“Hmm.”
Yi Ruda gently nodded and asked, “So both of you were hiding those truths, but now that the rumor is
spreading everywhere, your friends will soon know about those things too, right?”
“Yeah, and…”
“Once they realize you guys both lied, they will get furious, correct?”
Yi Ruda differed from other female protagonists in web novels just for having such a marvelous insight.
When I continuously nodded, Yi Ruda closed her lips tightly as if she had something deep to contemplate.
I stopped fetching a sigh and held Yi Ruda’s hands then I shook them to ask a question.
“Oh, what should I do? Any good ideas?”
“Hmm, I’m thinking too but I can’t think of anything special…”
“Geez…”
I kept shaking her hand with a sad face. She dropped a confused gaze at me then suddenly hugged me in
her arms.
While my eyes became wide open while I had my head buried in her arms, she patted my head and spoke
gently.
“Hold on. I’m still thinking.”
“Um, yeah…”
Surprisingly, she smelled like mint. Maybe it was because she was a female crossdresser, her arms felt
tight. I blinked my eyes from feeling befuddled then decided to stay inside her arms for a moment. We
were in the empty hallway, and I was exhausted both in mind and body.
Hmm, was it because she’s a female crossdresser? Yi Ruda had an unexpected reliable side on her. It was
when I thought as this did I started wiggling my hand in embarrassment.
The phone inside my pocket began to vibrate suddenly. It kept on as if multiple phones started vibrating
at once.
What… was it? While I felt discombobulated, Yi Ruda spoke to me softly.
“Did you open your phone just now? It might be receiving the delayed messages.”
“Oh.”
“Maybe you just received my messages.” She said with a smile.
I got off from her arms and took out my phone. There were indeed many missed calls and unread
messages displayed on the screen.
Unread Messages: 103/400
Missed Call: 47
The number of unread messages was understandable, but how could there be 47 missed calls? I tried to
check the recent call list; instead, I opened my inbox since I knew they were all calls from the Four
Heavenly Kings or Ban Yeo Ryung.
The first unread message was from Eun Jiho which he sent on Saturday.
Sent by: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho
“Aren’t you coming back? Went to Africa for the coffee beans?”
He surely sent it. Then there were a few messages from Jooin which showed his concern about me while
Ban Yeo Ryung called me instead of sending messages. Then the date of the messages I got suddenly
leaped to the date today.
There were about twenty messages from the kids in my class including Yi Ruda and Kim Hye Hill. Then
I saw a text message someone had sent 10 minutes ago right before the class.
Sent by: Yoo Chun Young
“Dump truck”
It was simply those two words; however, I could feel a violent temper bursting out of the text. As I drew
my breath in, I saw my fingers, that were holding the phone, trembling with anxiety. When I clicked the
next button, Eun Jiho’s message came into my sight.
“Dude, kids are totally pissed off LOLOLOLOLOL Wow, you!”
It was unbelievable that Eun Jiho could laugh at this situation. Well, at least he isn’t mad?
I fetched a sigh after feeling that things were starting to be a little hopeful. It was a fortunate thing for me
to have fewer people to appease.
The next text was from Eun Hyung. As I went over his message, my face started turning dark.
Sent by: Kwon Eun Hyung
“Why did you lie to me? How could you say that you weren’t in danger that time? Heard you crawled out
under the dump truck, which means it stopped right before you. Geez, I’ll see you at the break. Don’t go
anywhere and just stay inside your classroom.”
Just stay inside your classroom… As I read over that sentence, a silly smile flashed over my face. Gosh,
it’s totally fu*ked up. Hehe, hehehe. I was almost abandoning myself to despair as I pressed the next
button.
Sent by: Ban Yeo Ryung
“Cya”
Ban Yeo Ryung’s short text was just as frightening as Eun Hyung’s long message. Then I saw the one
Jooin sent as he made the grand finale of the horror text parade.
Sent by: Son
“lol”
Sent by: Son
“Lolololol”
I felt that my eyes were about to burst into tears. Whether or not it was class time, I should run away from
them now; however, if I vanished away from this place, the English teacher would see that I was absent
after class, and he would definitely call me to the teacher’s office.
Then let’s first text back Eun Jiho since he didn’t seem that mad about it. While Yi Ruda stared at me, I
quickly moved my fingers around the keypad.
To: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho
“Hey, do you think I can survive their attacks?”
Within a few seconds, he replied. For the record, Eun Jiho was the fastest in typing messages among us.
“No way, you’re dead meat. LOLOLOLOL RUNNNN!!!!!!”

I deeply appreciated his kind advice always. For real, it’s very thankful.
I knitted my brows for a moment then moved my fingers to send a response that I had been wondering for
a while.
“But aren’t you mad??”
His reply arrived immediately again.
“Yes, pissed off!”
“But why are you being so kind? Advising me to RUNNN”
“To make you run away from me as much as you can cuz I’m gonna kill you”
“Lol Let me enjoy your last frantic attempt”
I stood still in silence while gazing at my phone for a while. Yi Ruda, who was standing beside me, tilted
her head toward me as if my face looked strange. She then asked in concern.
“Donnie, are you okay?”
“N…o…t at all…”
“…?”
I desperately held my trembling chin before responding to Yi Ruda, whose eyes were wide open in
wonder.
“I…”
“Yeah.”
“I need to run away right now. Do you know any place to hide from here?”
“A place to hide?”
Yi Ruda gently furrowed her eyes and looked up at the ceiling in consideration. As she dropped her gaze
at me, she opened her mouth.
“There’s a few. Do you have to go right now?”
I shook my head.
“No, when the teacher comes out later, you will get blamed, so just tell me. I’ll go there by myself.”
“It’s kind of hard to explain though.”
Yi Ruda kept her grimace then responded with her eyes on me.
“Let’s go together. I’m not afraid of getting scolded.”
“No way!”
“Those places are secluded, so what if people break in when you’re alone? Just follow me. You need to
be away until the end of the break, right?”
“Yeah.”
I nodded with little confidence. The guys won’t be that crazy to stay in my classroom until the next class
starts.
Yi Ruda beckoned to me as if she felt satisfied with my response.
“Follow me.”
As I went down the desolate staircase after Yi Ruda, my phone vibrated once again. Who is it? I took out
my phone from my pocket.
Sent by: Son
Mama lol
Sent by: Son
Where are you going? lololol
I felt a shiver down my spine. When I stopped myself from descending the stairs to turn my head, I saw
two shadows standing from far away down the hallway. They were standing at quite a distance to figure
out their exact appearances, but one of them had long hair, which would definitely mean that one of them
was Ban Yeo Ryung. The one beside her would be indeed Woo Jooin then. I assumed that they got kicked
out to the hallway to keep a close eye on me.
Instead of replying to the text, I yelled to Yi Ruda while increasing my pace.
“Ruda!”
“Huh?”
“Give… give me your hand.”
From her previous demeanor, I considered she would not refuse my hand. It was too frightening for me to
bear the situation. After a second of hesitation, Yi Ruda soon stretched out her hand. I held her tight not to
fall on the stairs while walking down with my trembling legs.
Coming out of the freshmen building, I drew my breath in and then I found out that I had just received yet
another message.
Sent by: Son
Mama, what did I tell you about having a new dad?? lol
‘Yeah, you said you will kill him.’ I replied to myself.
***
Ban Yeo Ryung and Woo Jooin narrowed their eyes and watched the two disappear at the end of the
hallway. In the school, both received splendidly positive comments such as ‘Ban Yeo Ryung, beautiful
and innocent, is a walking trophy,’ ‘Woo Jooin is the definition of a cutie pie.’ However, if the kids saw
how tenacious they were right now, it seemed dubious for them to retain the same admiration they held
for these two.
Ban Yeo Ryung’s sparkling jet-black eyes, which Ham Donnie often complimented for having a galaxy
within, froze like ice. Woo Jooin’s eyes didn’t show any signs of delight although his adorable grin still
remained on his lip. His golden pupils splashed ferocious glares at them like a beast.
Ban Yeo Ryung then pouted her lips to ask, “Did you see them hugging?”
“Yup.”
“I’m not getting it wrong?”
“Nope.”
Then they both had their eyes on each other with a smile that speaks in more ways than one.
“Cool, but first we have something to do beforehand, right?” Ban Yeo Ryung said. It sounded like they
could have dealt with Yi Ruda immediately; however, they had something to handle first. What she meant
was not that different from the truth.
Woo Jooin responded with a nod and a bright smile before moving his fingers on the keypad quickly.
To: Brother Sanny ♡♡♡
Hey bro, things all good? Are they all there?
Despite Woo Jooin’s charming personality, seeing a 17-year-old boy putting three hearts right after his
cousin’s name saved in his contact was a sight that was seldom to see.
Woo San added and saved those hearts since Woo Jooin’s cousins thought the more heart they put after
their name corresponds to the level of love Woo Jooin had for them. In short, the competition among the
cousins to win their love of Woo Jooin was a dog eat dog situation.
The one who currently had the most hearts was a cousin named ‘Woo Rinara.’ She had eight hearts next
to her name.
As soon as Woo Jooin sent the text, a message arrived within a few seconds.
Sent by: Brother Sanny ♡♡♡
Yup, no worries. Do you believe me??
To: Brother Sanny ♡♡♡
Of course… Thanks, bro
From: Brother Sanny ♡♡♡
Someone’s here. I’ll talk to you later
Woo Jooin checked the texts and closed his flip phone. When he raised his head to see Ban Yeo Ryung,
she showed a pale grim face with her stare fixed at the stairway where Yi Ruda and Ham Donnie
disappeared.
A dark shadow cast over Ban Yeo Ryung’s face under the bright sunlight coming through the hallway
windows. While standing still and waving the black hair, her profile looked like a delicately sculptured art
piece.
Woo Jooin repeated the plan within his head while glancing at her appearance.
One, no one would ever touch Ban Yeo Ryung and others again.
Second, no future troubles would take place.
To execute a plan that satisfied both requirements, Woo San’s help was mandatory. Inthis regard, Woo
San played a significant role in this plan; however, Woo Jooin never concerned himself with the
possibility that his cousin would fail.
***
Meanwhile, Woo San was sitting inside the dark equipment room in the gym of Sun Jin High School. He
was waiting for someone.
The first one who came into the room had purple hair. He, surprisingly, had his bobbed hair tied into a
ponytail which looked gorgeous for a guy. His facial features were sharp and masculine, and he seemed to
reach about 190cm. He wore a school uniform of Tae Pyung High School; everyone in the neighborhood
knew who he was.
Gong Haru, the captain of Tae Pyung High School and the Number 2 of the nationwide fighters. Since
Ban Hwee Hyul was missing, he was the same as the Number 1 in the fighting scene. While he strode into
the equipment room and found Woo San sitting next to four empty chairs, his brows met in the middle.
“Is no one here?” he asked.
“Yeah, just take a seat.”
Woo San pointed the chair beside him with a laid-back smile.
Gong Haru glanced down at Woo San in confusion for a second but soon sat next to him.
As from the official fighting challenge, Woo San ranked 102nd, not even in the top 100; however, Woo
San did not show a sign of intimidation upon seeing Gong Haru. Everybody knew that Woo San didn’t do
his best in the ranking battle.
How long did the two boys sit down in silence? Vroom! Soon, they heard a loud noise of a motorcycle,
and the door suddenly opened. Then a guy who took off his helmet entered with a girl.
Both the boy and the girl had marvelous appearances that resembled each other, so others might confuse
them as members of the same family. In fact, they were a half-brother and a sister, and they shared the
same blood.
The nationwide fighter Number 5, Gang Han, and the Number 11, Dae Lisa. Both had flame-like red
hairs, cat eyes, and slim but wiry bodies. While looking at Dae Lisa, Gong Haru waved his hand and
spoke nonchalantly.
“Hi, Mona Lisa.”
“How dare you compare me with that brow-less bitch?”
Dae Lisa pulled up her dark red brows and sat beside Gong Haru. Her actions were loud but cool. Gang
Han then nodded slightly and sat next to Woo San.
Now only one seat was vacant, but they were lucky enough to wait shortly.
The one who arrived, at last, appeared too gently to end the finale. All he did was just to knock the door
twice.
The four people, sitting with their legs crossed, slowly shared eye contacts. Dae Lisa broke the ice.
“Did he just knocked on the door?”
“Are we inside a bathroom?” Gong Haru asked back while feeling ridiculous.
“He deserved his name. Hey, Kim Pyung Bum, come in!”
When Woo San screamed out loud to the door, the door soon swung on its squeaky hinge. Then a run-of-
the-mill boy walked in carefully, who hardly looked like a captain of a school.
He was slightly over 180 cm tall with an average appearance and black hair. He even wore his tie neatly
with his shirt all buttoned up. Kim Pyung Bum, who looked just average from head to toe, turned out to
be the 17th in the nationwide ranking battle.
He glanced over everyone inside the room then waved his hand.
“Hi, long time no see. Sorry for running late.”
“No problem, Bum. Come here and sit next to me!” Lisa said with her eyes sparkling and tapped the chair
beside her. Pyung Bum, who became shy in front of girls, sat next to Lisa in embarrassment.
“Hey, why are you flirting at him when you have a boyfriend?” Gang Han, who sat across Lisa, spoke in
a low voice, but he soon shut his mouth when she kicked him in the shin by her.
Everybody’s eyes were on Woo San then. The four had no idea why he called them here. The one who
first broke the ice was Gong Haru. He swept his purple hair back and spoke with a brusque face.
“Just be brief, I need to leave soon.”
“Why? What’s up with you?” It was Dae Lisa who asked in wonder. Gong Haru knitted his brows while
having difficulty in answering her question.
He then questioned back, “You know my girlfriend has a hard time affording her living?”
“Yeah, I do. I also know that you’re from an extremely wealthy family.”
“Her father recently had a stroke, so I paid the hospital bills in a hurry… but I guess they knew it. I’m
receiving so many calls right now, so I have to leave ASAP.”
“Oopsie.” Lisa covered her mouth in surprise.
Then, Gang Han, who remained silent after Lisa kicked him, opened his mouth. He glanced up to talk to
Woo San.
“I also need to leave ASAP.”
“What’s up with you?” Woo San asked. Furrowing his face, Gang Han took out his phone from his
pocket.
He said, “We’re having a gathering today, and Hanbee said she’s gonna wear a skirt, so I told her not to. I
mean, who likes his girl showing off her legs? She seems angry and will wear that skirt, anyway.”
“Hanbee? You mean, the girl with the glasses? You’re the only one who finds her pretty, so why would
you worry?” Lisa asked with her eyes wide open. Gang Han then opened his flip phone with a frown and
revealed his phone screen. Every eye was bent on it.
A moment after, Kim Pyung Bum emitted a whoop.
“Dude, did she go on plastic surgery?”
“Are you kidding me? It takes months to recover.” As Gang Han asked back in annoyance, Lisa and Woo
San murmured. “Wow, she looks different without the glasses. How can this happen?”
“Is it a magician’s glasses?”
Gang Han shut his flip phone and continued with a shrug.
“Anyway, she became truly gorgeous, so who knows if someone’s gonna hit on her? I should leave
ASAP, understood?”
“Oh, me, too. I have to go soon.”
“Now it’s you, Lisa?” Woo San asked with an appalled look. How could three out of four of them have
things to deal with?
Instead of responding, Lisa swept back her voluminous red hair. The beautiful curls waved through her
hand, which made Kim Pyung Bum and Woo San exclaim.
She fluttered her long arc-like lashes twice and said, “Hmm, I received a text on my way here; my
boyfriend went for a blind date.”
“Seriously?”
“He doesn’t want to live anymore.”
When Kim Pyung Bum and Gong Haru replied one after another, Lisa swept back her red hair again.
There was no sign of frustration on her face.
“It’s time to catch him at the scene and break up. He should be thankful to have such a girl like me dating
him. How dare he cheat on me?”
“True.”
“OMG, San, can I flirt with you once I’m single?”
Lisa looked attractive while flinging that question with a wink; however, Woo San just smiled without an
answer. She was a good girl to be friends with but to have her as a girlfriend would be too scary.
The last person who opened his mouth was Kim Pyung Bum.
“Oh, I should go back soon too.”
His words drew everyone’s attention. Kim Pyung Bum felt a shiver running down his spine.
“How come you guys have that look on me? You all agreed with each other that you have some things to
do that would make you leave, so why can’t I do the same? Is it because I’m taking my turn at the end?’
Woo San took the lead to ask, “Is your girlfriend’s father also sick?”
“N… o.”
Then Gong Haru followed, “Is your girlfriend fiercely hot without her glasses?”
“No.”
The next was Gang Han, “Did your girlfriend cheat on you?”
“No!” Kim Pyung Bum yelled while feeling dumbfounded.
The last one who asked was Dae Lisa. She pouted her red lips then dropped a bombshell in a nonchalant
voice.
“Then is it a boyfriend instead of a girl?”

“Hey!!! Where are all these bullshit coming from!? No, all wrong!”
Feeling intolerable at last, Kim Pyung Bum shrieked out and got up the seat. When the usually gentle
character exploded suddenly, the other three boys struck dumb. Lisa, however, just blinked her lashes
apathetically.
These bastards… Kim Pyung Bum screamed out in anger, “Dudes, at least have in mind if the person has
a girlfriend or not before asking such a question! I don’t have any girlfriends!!”
“…”
“I have to feed my dog at home!! He’s a beagle; as one of the three notoriously hyper dogs, he will mess
up my house if he’s hungry. All my family members are out traveling, so I must go feed him!! Not a
girlfriend but a dog food!!! Got it?!”
Kim Pyung Bum spat out his words like a rapper then shrugged to catch his breath.
‘Huff… puff… bastards!’
Even after his infuriated yell, the atmosphere was still, however, strange. Dae Lisa, who should have
asked him for being mad about such a trivial thing, just stared at him with sympathetic eyes. Not only her
but everybody was looking at him with the same gaze.
What the… Kim Pyung Bum stepped back in perplexity. Lisa then said to him in tearful eyes.
“Right, Pyung Bum. Feeding a dog is very important. Oh, yes, truly important.”
“It sure is.” Gang Han agreed while nodding his head, and so did Gong Haru while saying, “Yeah,
girlfriends are nothing once you break up. A man’s true friend is indeed a dog, loyal forever.”
“…”
Kim Pyung Bum stood still at a loss of words. He then sat down with a sigh.
He crossed his legs, tilted his head, and said to Woo San, “Cool. Anyway, I should go back home to feed
my goddamn true friend, so tell us what you have.”
“Oh, that is…” Woo San spoke with a smile, “I came up with important information about why Ban
Hwee Hyul is missing.”
“What?”
Lisa sprung up from her seat in surprise. The other three boys also looked at Woo San with a darkened
face.
The winner of the ranking battle was confirmed just a month ago, but Ban Hwee Hyul was missing right
after. It was the earliest disappearance among the same cases that happened to the line of winners.
Gong Haru pushed Woo San for the update, “What happened? Where is Ban Hwee Hyul right now?”
It was enough for him to be anxious since the international ranking battle would soon take place when
summer vacation started. If Ban Hwee Hyul didn’t appear until that time, Gong Haru would take his turn
to participate in that competition.
Gong Haru didn’t like fighting at all; besides, going abroad to compete with the best high school fighters
were not his thing.
Woo San replied with a cold smile, “Do you know that Ban Hwee Hyul had a twin brother?”
“What?”
“To put it briefly, Ban Hwee Hyul’s twin brother was enjoying his run-of-the-mill school life while
hiding the fact that his brother was the Number 1 fighter. One day, one of the school gangs picked a fight
on him, which pissed off Ban Hwee Hyul’s brother, but unfortunately, his fighting skill wasn’t equivalent
to his temper.”
“That means…” When Lisa murmured with a grim face, Woo San moved his head up and down.
Woo San said, “At first, it looked like he scraped through the fight quite well when pitting against
someone, but after a few days, the whole gang members came over to beat him up. In the end, he’s in the
hospital in a state of coma.”
“…”
“Because of that, Ban Hwee Hyul became disenchanted with all the school captain thing. Do you know
that the whole school gang members of Oh Sung High School retired? Ban Hwee Hyul’s whereabouts are
unknown after that. He might be hiding himself with the run-of-the-mill kids. I guess he’s planning to go
through his brother’s daily life.”
“Wow.”
As the heavy silence hung among them, the one who broke the ice was Lisa. She covered her mouth with
her eyes filled with tears. People feared her while saying that she was far from being feminine, but she
was still a woman, who could be emotional and shed tears under circumstances.
The other boys also shared mixed feelings.
“Do not touch the innocent students. A growing number of kids are breaking this rule,” Gong Haru
opened his mouth in a darkened face.
Woo San showed a smile and said, “Actually, something similar happened in So Hyun High School, too.”
“What?”
“A girl, nothing to do with the fighter ranking, got pushed by a school gang at the crosswalk. A dump
truck was running towards her and stopped right before it ran her over. She crawled out from the bottom
of the truck.”
“Oh, god. How could that happen?” Lisa turned pale, for she couldn’t control her surprise. A girl was
almost run over by not just a regular truck but a dump truck… The other three boys turned stiff too.
Gang Han said, “I get what you mean. Let’s show them what we got.”
“That’s it.”
“Cool, it’s time for them to learn some lessons. I’m in,” with that said, Gang Han leaned back in his chair.
Lisa also assumed a determined attitude while saying, “Me, too,” and so did Gong Haru, “I’m in, too.”
Gan Han pointed at Lisa with his chin as an agreement with what she said. When Woo San looked at Kim
Pyung Bum, he spoke with a nod, “Of course, then I’m leaving.” He then pulled out his chair back and
stood up. Everyone stared at Kim Pyung Bum with a dumbfounded expression.
‘Gosh, for what now…’ Kim Pyung Bum said with a frown, “The one I have to meet right now isn’t a
human being, so he doesn’t have a sense of time. He’d probably be chewing off my dad’s shoes right
now.”
“O… ok… bye, kiddo.”
Lisa put on a sour face. Kim Pyung Bum nodded while waving his hand and strode out of the equipment
room. Before he left, he turned back and yelled, “I’m gonna feed my Beedollee; you guys enjoy your
fu*king love business.”
While everyone stared at him widely with their jaws dropped, Kim Pyung Bum gave a double flip off and
left the room. ‘Geez…’ As soon as they all gathered their senses, they clicked their tongues while looking
at each other.
“Maybe it’s truly sad to be single.”

When Dae Lisa reacted while turning pale, Gong Haru bent his waist to the front and wrinkled his eyes in
wonder.
He asked, “Dude, but doesn’t Kim Pyung Bum look handsome in a way? He’s a good fighter, too, but
why doesn’t he have any girlfriends? Girls might have asked him to go out many times. Is he just being
picky and refusing all that?”
The one who answered back to that question was Gang Han. He responded bluntly, as usual, with a
straight face.
“Nope, I heard him going nuts while being half passed out after seeing that girls would escape his gaze
when their eyes met. He cried so hard that I threw my clothes away because it got wet from his tears.”
Dae Lisa, listening in silence, shot out her words, “Oh, it also reminds me of something that I heard.”
As she drew the boys’ attention, she continued while stammering in perplexity.
“I mean… You know Suh Doh Gyum in Pyung Bum’s high school, AKA the mad dog. He was
unbeatable in middle school, right? Everybody said that he’s the school captain; he’ll be in the top 5 of
the nationwide ranking. However, soon as he met Pyung Bum, he started to go silent.”
“So?” Woo San asked.
“The kids say that Pyung Bum is keeping his rank because of Suh Doh Gyum. He tries to cut off those
who try to pick a fight with Pyung Bum.”
“…”
“And Suh Doh Gyum also scowls at the girls who like Pyung Bum, so they all give up, eventually.”
“…?”
“…!”
“…!!!”
All three of them showed their surprises on their faces and soon became speechless. A moment after,
Woo San murmured with his now pale face.
“Then Kim Pyung Bum… will soon have a boyfriend.”
“Yeah.”
While Gang Han responded with a face as white as a sheet, Gong Haru made an apathetic reaction.
“Our Pyung Bum’s wish of going out with someone will soon come true. I should write a congratulatory
card.”
Then they all began to get up from their seats. The meeting was over shortly after 10 minutes.
Gong Haru moved his steps toward the door without looking back. Gang Han and Dae Lisa followed
while walking together. Woo San watched their backs and flung a few words.
“Hold on.”
“…?”
The three of them turned back. Woo San continued with a grin.
“To show them what we got… The higher the ranking of the attempted murderer is, the stronger the
impact he will get from us, right?”
“We should make the leader set an example for the group.”
Gong Haru responded nonchalantly. Woo San put a refreshing smile on his face while waving his hand to
the kids. When they all left the room, he sat alone and took out his phone to write a text.
To: My dearest adorable, cute brother
We’re ready
He moved his fingers to press the send button then had a twisted smile.
Article 9. Boys and Girls Fight and Quarrel but Love Can Bud As Well
At the break after the first class, Yi Ruda pulled me to a hidden space near the garbage incinerator
between the freshmen building and the sophomore building
While I crouched at the most out-of-the-way spot in the space, Yi Ruda stuck her head out to glance
around then walked toward me. She bent her knees in front of me and said, “The bell’s about to ring.
Should we go back?”
I was hesitant for a moment, but soon swept my knees and stood up.
It will take over two minutes to go from Class 1-1 to 1-8 especially since Eun Jiho, Ban Yeo Ryung, and
Eun Hyung always get ready before the class starts. Since they only 3 have minutes left until the next
class, they would have already gone back to their class. With that being said, we only have 5 minutes to
talk when they come over to our class during the 10-minute break.
Did they try to come over to my class to talk for that short time? I began to wonder and checked my
phone for any texts. Strangely, I received no messages. This weird silence made me even more anxious
than having an overload of texts.
Yi Ruda stretched out her hands naturally on her way up the stairs then held my arms for assistance.
When I walked to the garbage incinerator, I almost had myself inside her arms, so she might have thought
I couldn’t walk well.
In fact, I felt my legs weakening, which made me lean towards her to walk back to our classroom. When I
got back, fortunately, I didn’t see any colorful hair.
As I fetched a sigh of relief, my eyes met with Shin Suh Hyun’s, who was looking at his desk from across
the room. He blinked his light dark-brown eyes and spoke to me.
“Hey, did you almost got hit by a car?”
“Oh, everyone really knows that.”
“Of course, you almost died. Did you go to the hospital?” Shin Suh Hyun asked back while tossing my
words.
Although I crawled out from the bottom of the truck and trembled like crazy, I went out of the situation
with no injury. Only a few scratches on my face or on my palms remained. As soon as I laughed while
saying that nothing was serious, I found his face turning dark. It was when he tried to continue his words.
Pushing the front door wide open, Yoon Jung In strode toward me.
He suddenly screamed, “Ham Donnie! Are you okay? I heard you got involved in a car accident!”
His voice was so loud that kids, who were studying with their heads down, also turned back to look at us.
Soon, those who sat around me asked the same questions.
“Donnie, are you okay?”
“Anywhere hurt?”
“Have you been to the hospital?”
I covered my face in confusion. Yi Ruda’s gaze on me was showing a sign of wonder, but I had no time
to consider. Inside my head, many words came across as a response to the kids giving me kind regards;
however, I could say none of them.
My cheeks blushed even more that I covered my face desperately. Think about it. For the last 3 years, I
never was apart from Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings in school for hours.
I was not trying to confess that I had no friends except them, but all the attention was heading toward my
fancy friends, not me…
It had been such a long time since I received this much attention. Like when I voted for them in front of
the class last time, I could hardly open my mouth while feeling my heart throbbing for such a trivial thing.
No one complained about how I remained silent for quite a while. They began to talk in whispers to each
other.
“Dude, isn’t the sophomore going too far? How could he try to kill someone?”
“Isn’t it attempted murder?”
“Wow, holy Christ, fu*king scary. Isn’t there anyone in the freshmen to counterattack?”
While I watched them buzzing gossips with darkened faces, I carefully opened my mouth.
“Oh, I’m fine… The truck stopped right in front of me, but I’m not injured. Very lucky.”
It was Yoon Jung In who made the first response. He stopped talking with other boys then turned his head
to see me.
“Hey, no. I heard that there are aftermaths.”
“Aftermaths? Dude, that sounds too eerie.”
“Oh, not aftermath? Then what do you call that? Having symptoms after an accident?”
“You mean, after-effects?”
When Shin Suh Hyun altered his words with a befuddled face, kids burst out laughing. ‘How can an after-
effect change into aftermath? Geez, Yoon Jung is hilarious.’ Someone tapped Yoon Jung In’s shoulder
with a laugh. I watched them giggling and turned my head as I heard the teacher, who came into the class
suddenly, calling our names in front.
The kids around my desk scattered away. I felt strange and just saw them running back to their seats.
As I touched my hand while somehow feeling embarrassed, Yi Ruda, who was staring at me from my
side, flung a question.
“Donnie, do you hate people’s attention?”
“Huh?”
“I thought you were being too bewildered. Maybe I got it wrong?”
She then wrinkled her golden brows in wonder. I considered her question for a moment and scratched my
cheek with a blush.
The moment I tried to answer back, the Korean history teacher, who was standing in front of the teacher’s
table, gave us a withering look. We could also get kicked out again to the hallway for our second class, so
Yi Ruda and I held up our heads to the front, shutting our mouths.
At the break after the second period, I could no longer give Yi Ruda a hard time, so I hid at the back of
the classroom. When I told the kids, who were wondering what I was doing, they stood around guarding
for me.
Unlike their refined appearances, the Kim twins seemed to enjoy this. As I watched them while hiding at
the narrow space between the rack and the wall, the Kim twins looked quite entertained while snooping
around the hallway.
At the break after the third class, Shin Suh Hyun also joined the guarding when the Kim twins invited
him. They chose him because of his status as an archery athlete which gave him good eyes and a keen
sensitivity to even the smallest moves.
Shin Suh Hyun looked distressed, and when Yoon Jung In said, ‘Should I tell you the culprit of the book
you’re reading? Hold on, I…’ he lifted his book and smashed Yoon Jung In’s back. He then glanced at
me with a sigh and gave a bit of advice.
“Every occasion is the same; running away solves nothing.”
“It is… right?”
I heaved a sigh. I know that, but when I get over their texts, I can’t help myself from feeling discouraged.
As if he read my concerns from my darkened face, Shin Suh Hyun seemed hesitant for a moment but
soon tapped my shoulder to cheer me up.
“Well… in some parts, time will help you through, anyway.”
Finishing his words, he walked out to the hallway. His back looked quite reliable.
While I spent the two break times in an FBI-level escort, surprisingly, they detected no movements from
Class 1-1. According to the network of Yoon Jung In, who had a wide circle of acquaintances, the Four
Heavenly Kings gathered around Ban Yeo Ryung’s seat during the breaks to discuss something with
serious faces.
The Four Heavenly Kings showed no signs of movement until lunchtime. It was, at least for me, quite
hopeful news.
I guessed, they had noticed that the 10-minute break was not enough, so if I escaped from them after
school, nothing will be a problem. When the fourth class was about to come to an end, I felt so good that I
had a bright smile on my face.
When the bell rang to announce that the fourth class was over and when lunchtime was about to start right
after, the thing, however, happened, eventually.
As I tried to take a step with Yoo Jung In, Shin Suh Hyun, and the Kim twins, as usual, Yoon Jung In,
who was passing through the front door, took out his phone. He then suddenly turned pale.
Stopping his step, he dashed through the front door to the hallway. He looked around quickly as if he was
finding someone.
What’s going on… I blinked my eyes in wonder. He then yelled out of the blue.
“Yi Ruda!! Hey, Yi Ruda!!”
“Huh?”
The person who Yoon Jung In was looking for desperately was no one else but Yi Ruda, who was about
to walk out the back door with other boys. While she flicked her blue eyes, Yoon Jung In strode toward
her and pulled Yi Ruda’s shoulder.
Yoon Jung In then spat out his words in a hurry which made my face turn bloodless.
“Hey, Yi Ruda. My friend from Class 1-1 told me that the Four Heavenly Kings went down the West
staircase, not to the cafeteria but to Class 1-8.”
“That means…”
“Ha… yeah, the break is too short, so they were about to use the lunchtime.”
Their conversation was like it came from a spy movie. To explain the suspense level, I was about to
suffocate. Chucky chasing a 5-year-old girl would not be as frightening as this.
While I stared at them with a devastating feeling, Yi Ruda turned her head, strode toward me, and
snatched my wrist.
The Kim twins and Shin Suh Hyun had a blank gaze at us, but Yi Ruda just pulled my hand while calling
my name.
“Donnie.”
“Huh…?”
“Do you believe in me?”
I nodded my head crazily. Who else could I trust in this situation? No one else but Yi Ruda. As if my
reaction had satisfied her, Yi Ruda lifted her eyes to glance over my back then quickly went down the
stairs.
I had no time to look back but could feel that Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings were walking
across the hallway getting closer toward us. At last, the race of death had begun.
While walking down the stairs against the crowds, I sensed that the phone inside my pocket started to
vibrate. The messages would be obvious. In the middle of the desperate escape, I opened my flip phone.
When I looked at the text, my face turned stiff like a rock.
1 second, if I don’t see you…
just passed class 1-1 lol
What a sick bastard! I shut my flip phone and poured as many curses as I could at him in my mind. Was
he trying to play the black carriage joke? The black carriage arrived at the school entrance, passed the
first floor, the second floor, the third floor, and then to the bathroom?
I’ll put up with it for making a mistake… I bit my lip and focused on running away. Although I wanted to
go back up to smash Eun Jiho, before attempting that, the other guys would catch me.
My phone kept vibrating.
2 nervous, right?
class 1-2 just passed

3 seconds seems too long
now passed 1-3 lol
When I saw the last message, I nearly collapsed. If Yi Ruda didn’t hold my hand tight, I would have
tumbled down the stairs.
My face darkened while scowling at the phone screen.
4 the number of death U dead
passed 1-4 lol
o, mistyped! sorry^^ luv ya
no death nooo
Was he fu*king kidding me? He wrote the d-word twice, but he said he mistyped?!
I couldn’t stand anymore. Even if my pace slowed down, I must text back. My fingers were in a hurry on
the keypad.
You sssunof a biiiitchhh
There were many errors in my text message, but it was no problem. We shared so many curses during our
longtime friendship that Eun Jiho would never get it wrong.
After pressing the send button, I ran like chickens with their heads cut off, but within a few seconds, a
new message arrived. I quickly opened my phone.
Donnie, what did I tell you? No swears.

“…”
It was Eun Hyung. Look at the grammatically correct message, indeed it’s from Eun Hyung.
Oh, it’s him. Oh, yes… I closed my phone and put it back into my pocket with no words. Then I sped up
as if I was using a booster. I was dead meat when they caught me.
A fierce wind hit the back of my ear. Yi Ruda’s bright golden hair fluttered in front of my sight. As if she
also realized her physical limit, she breathed heavily. She then asked me with a glance.
“… Are they still after us?”
“Let… me check!”
After the sprint, even Yi Ruda stuttered her words with a constant gasp, and so was I, hardly letting out
my voice. However, I squeezed out my last strength to put out my words and looked back. Argh! I drew
in my breath.
Where we were running along was inside the sophomore building. Since I went through the incident that
Hwang Siwoo caused, I didn’t want to come into this place; however, it happened when I followed Yi
Ruda.
Sophomores used the cafeteria earlier than us; therefore, the sophomores who just finished their lunch
crowded the hallway. No one in the crowds had fancy hairstyles like the Four Heavenly Kings or
purplish-black hair like Ban Yeo Ryung. At least they weren’t wearing wigs; none of them came into my
sight so far.
When I slowed down without a word, Yi Ruda also turned back to check if things were okay. As if she
also realized we ditched the tail, her steps came to a halt too.
Phew… She wiped out the sweat falling under her chin then smiled at me.
“See? I told you to believe me!”
I nodded. Making her my guide was such a splendid decision. She didn’t even hesitate for a second to
move around.
Only three weeks had passed from the entrance ceremony, but Yi Ruda knew the school like the back of
her hand. How many hallways, byways, and corners did we pass… It seemed countless.
I dabbed my forehead to wipe the sweat.
“Th… phew…”
Before I tried to say my thanks, I leaned on the wall out of strength.
A few sophomores wandering the hallway seemed to have a strange gaze at us, so I grabbed my gasping
throat and pulled Yi Ruda’s sleeve. It was a gesture to get out of this place.
To be honest, it was hard to catch up with Yi Ruda’s adroit escape route with a regular brain; however, if
the chaser was Woo Jooin, it was a different story.
Woo Jooin was brilliant enough to distinguish a pack of cards, a standard 52-card deck without jokers,
just by the worn-down patterns on the back of the card. He was such a genius; it would be possible for
him to guess our escape route soon.
Gosh… As I disheveled my hair with a random scratch, Yi Ruda pulled me to the end of the hallway. She
then opened a door which was, surprisingly, an empty classroom. From the outside, it didn’t look much
different from other classrooms, so I never thought it would be empty, but when inspecting it, I saw that
there were no writing tools or books on the desks.
How did she find an empty classroom? When I looked at Yi Ruda in wonder, she swept her wet hair back
and responded to my gaze.
“It was a classroom for math specialists until last year, but since the sophomore teacher’s room moved to
the first floor, the math specialist class took the space. That’s why this classroom is empty.”
“How did you know that?”
“Hmm… it just happened,” she then smiled with a wink.
The thick pink curtains covered the whole windows; the classroom sunk inside the dark. Golden sunlight
penetrated through the curtain gap with specks of dust fluttering around. The silence prevailing in the
room relieved my heart at last.
Phew… I caught my breath while sitting right below the window near the hallway. Yi Ruda came next to
me and sat down with a deep sigh.
We remained speechless as we adjusted our breath for a while. As I tried to check the text by opening my
phone, Yi Ruda called my name. I raised my eyes to glance upon her.
“Donnie.”
“Huh?”
“Hmm… I hope you don’t mind.”
“No.”
She bit her lip a few times as if she was hesitating to continue. Then she raised her blue eyes to look at
me.
“I think… um… you and your friends are sharing a weird friendship… like not normal, you know?”
“…”
“Well, I never saw you guys in a close distance, so it might sound strange, but that’s how I feel. If you
deny, just ignore my words and treat them as bullshit.”
Looking a little embarrassed, Yi Ruda then touched her curly hair on her forehead. I just stared at her
quietly while she did so.
I didn’t know what to say. As I kept my gaze at her for a while, Yi Ruda opened her mouth again while
thinking I was expecting her to keep on.
“The reason I’ve thought like that is…”
She stopped for a moment then lifted her head to look at the ceiling.
“You know, friends are those who smile when you smile and cry when you cry. Of course, you always
looked happy and never looked awkward with them. I can see that you guys look more natural together
from the times you shared, but…”
She was at a loss of words for a while, so I nodded as a sign for her to continue her words. Yi Ruda then
heaved a sigh and began to talk again.
“You never try to talk about your difficulties. Well, maybe you don’t want them to worry about you, but I
feel like you don’t want to bother them. That’s not something natural in a normal friendship, I guess.”
“I don’t want to bother them…” I said.
Feeling a little perplexed, Yi Ruda continued, “What I want to say is that, your attitude… generally,
friends worrying about each other isn’t something bothering, you know? That’s what friends are for, but
you try to avoid them so deadly.”
I blinked my eyes twice. It’s true. If something big and serious happens to me, it is natural to talk about
that with a friend. As a person, I would like to share some happy things to celebrate together and troubles
to cheer up. We all need someone to hear our stories and stay by our sides. No wonder.
However, the reason I didn’t tell them about the car accident, although it was obvious that they would get
even angrier if they knew I hid that incident to them…
Gosh… I frowned. While Yi Ruda stared at me with a worried expression, the hallway outside seemed to
be filled with the busy school vibe. Sigh. Looking in front, I covered my mouth with both of my hands.
Then for quite a while, I sat like that in silence.
It was exactly what she said. I didn’t want to make them worry about me because it seemed like I was
bothering them. They were too overwhelming for me, and I should be grateful to have them as my
friends. For this reason, I didn’t want them to worry about or get hurt because of me.
My heart felt as if it got penetrated right in the middle. Someone saw through my mind, which I hardly
understood; it made me feel miserable, but at the same time, I did not feel so upset.
It sure was pathetic but, for real, I didn’t hate Yi Ruda or so. While looking at her blue gaze at me, I fell
into thought.
From the very beginning, I showed her the bottom of my heart. That was why I opened my mind and
became myself in front of her. I couldn’t turn uglier anymore to Yi Ruda.
Ever since I decided not to be friends with Yi Ruda, I revealed the selfishness laid inside the bottom of
my heart to her.
After a moment of hesitation, I gave out a smile.
Then I asked, “Yeah, you can really tell that I’m a weirdo?”
“…”
“True. If friends are there to share all the difficulties, they and I aren’t friends because I don’t talk about
such things.”
“Why? They aren’t trying to avoid your stories, right? As far as what I see, their anger shows that they are
fully ready to hear from you, right?”
“The problem isn’t them, it’s me.”
I slowly breathed in and lifted my hands to cover my face. Oh, gosh… I truly felt miserable.
I continued, “I… still can’t believe they are my friends.”
“…”
“I’m lacking too much confidence, but it’s something that I can’t help. Three years have passed, so I
thought I’m fine now, but if something serious happens, I still can’t say a word to them. Making them
worry about me seems to be wasting their time. Do you know how I feel?”
Looking complicated, Yi Ruda just stared at me. I sat still while facing her deep blue eyes for quite some
time. As I considered, I had no one else but Yi Ruda to talk with honestly about such things. How could I
confess this pathetic story to someone…
It was at that very moment when I thought so.
A fierce wind hit the back of my ear. Yi Ruda’s bright golden hair fluttered in front of my sight. As if she
also realized her physical limit, she breathed heavily. She then asked me with a glance.
“… Are they still after us?”
“Let… me check!”
After the sprint, even Yi Ruda stuttered her words with a constant gasp, and so was I, hardly letting out
my voice. However, I squeezed out my last strength to put out my words and looked back. Argh! I drew
in my breath.
Where we were running along was inside the sophomore building. Since I went through the incident that
Hwang Siwoo caused, I didn’t want to come into this place; however, it happened when I followed Yi
Ruda.
Sophomores used the cafeteria earlier than us; therefore, the sophomores who just finished their lunch
crowded the hallway. No one in the crowds had fancy hairstyles like the Four Heavenly Kings or
purplish-black hair like Ban Yeo Ryung. At least they weren’t wearing wigs; none of them came into my
sight so far.
When I slowed down without a word, Yi Ruda also turned back to check if things were okay. As if she
also realized we ditched the tail, her steps came to a halt too.
Phew… She wiped out the sweat falling under her chin then smiled at me.
“See? I told you to believe me!”
I nodded. Making her my guide was such a splendid decision. She didn’t even hesitate for a second to
move around.
Only three weeks had passed from the entrance ceremony, but Yi Ruda knew the school like the back of
her hand. How many hallways, byways, and corners did we pass… It seemed countless.
I dabbed my forehead to wipe the sweat.
“Th… phew…”
Before I tried to say my thanks, I leaned on the wall out of strength.
A few sophomores wandering the hallway seemed to have a strange gaze at us, so I grabbed my gasping
throat and pulled Yi Ruda’s sleeve. It was a gesture to get out of this place.
To be honest, it was hard to catch up with Yi Ruda’s adroit escape route with a regular brain; however, if
the chaser was Woo Jooin, it was a different story.
Woo Jooin was brilliant enough to distinguish a pack of cards, a standard 52-card deck without jokers,
just by the worn-down patterns on the back of the card. He was such a genius; it would be possible for
him to guess our escape route soon.
Gosh… As I disheveled my hair with a random scratch, Yi Ruda pulled me to the end of the hallway. She
then opened a door which was, surprisingly, an empty classroom. From the outside, it didn’t look much
different from other classrooms, so I never thought it would be empty, but when inspecting it, I saw that
there were no writing tools or books on the desks.
How did she find an empty classroom? When I looked at Yi Ruda in wonder, she swept her wet hair back
and responded to my gaze.
“It was a classroom for math specialists until last year, but since the sophomore teacher’s room moved to
the first floor, the math specialist class took the space. That’s why this classroom is empty.”
“How did you know that?”
“Hmm… it just happened,” she then smiled with a wink.
The thick pink curtains covered the whole windows; the classroom sunk inside the dark. Golden sunlight
penetrated through the curtain gap with specks of dust fluttering around. The silence prevailing in the
room relieved my heart at last.
Phew… I caught my breath while sitting right below the window near the hallway. Yi Ruda came next to
me and sat down with a deep sigh.
We remained speechless as we adjusted our breath for a while. As I tried to check the text by opening my
phone, Yi Ruda called my name. I raised my eyes to glance upon her.
“Donnie.”
“Huh?”
“Hmm… I hope you don’t mind.”
“No.”
She bit her lip a few times as if she was hesitating to continue. Then she raised her blue eyes to look at
me.
“I think… um… you and your friends are sharing a weird friendship… like not normal, you know?”
“…”
“Well, I never saw you guys in a close distance, so it might sound strange, but that’s how I feel. If you
deny, just ignore my words and treat them as bullshit.”
Looking a little embarrassed, Yi Ruda then touched her curly hair on her forehead. I just stared at her
quietly while she did so.
I didn’t know what to say. As I kept my gaze at her for a while, Yi Ruda opened her mouth again while
thinking I was expecting her to keep on.
“The reason I’ve thought like that is…”
She stopped for a moment then lifted her head to look at the ceiling.
“You know, friends are those who smile when you smile and cry when you cry. Of course, you always
looked happy and never looked awkward with them. I can see that you guys look more natural together
from the times you shared, but…”
She was at a loss of words for a while, so I nodded as a sign for her to continue her words. Yi Ruda then
heaved a sigh and began to talk again.
“You never try to talk about your difficulties. Well, maybe you don’t want them to worry about you, but I
feel like you don’t want to bother them. That’s not something natural in a normal friendship, I guess.”
“I don’t want to bother them…” I said.
Feeling a little perplexed, Yi Ruda continued, “What I want to say is that, your attitude… generally,
friends worrying about each other isn’t something bothering, you know? That’s what friends are for, but
you try to avoid them so deadly.”
I blinked my eyes twice. It’s true. If something big and serious happens to me, it is natural to talk about
that with a friend. As a person, I would like to share some happy things to celebrate together and troubles
to cheer up. We all need someone to hear our stories and stay by our sides. No wonder.
However, the reason I didn’t tell them about the car accident, although it was obvious that they would get
even angrier if they knew I hid that incident to them…
Gosh… I frowned. While Yi Ruda stared at me with a worried expression, the hallway outside seemed to
be filled with the busy school vibe. Sigh. Looking in front, I covered my mouth with both of my hands.
Then for quite a while, I sat like that in silence.
It was exactly what she said. I didn’t want to make them worry about me because it seemed like I was
bothering them. They were too overwhelming for me, and I should be grateful to have them as my
friends. For this reason, I didn’t want them to worry about or get hurt because of me.
My heart felt as if it got penetrated right in the middle. Someone saw through my mind, which I hardly
understood; it made me feel miserable, but at the same time, I did not feel so upset.
It sure was pathetic but, for real, I didn’t hate Yi Ruda or so. While looking at her blue gaze at me, I fell
into thought.
From the very beginning, I showed her the bottom of my heart. That was why I opened my mind and
became myself in front of her. I couldn’t turn uglier anymore to Yi Ruda.
Ever since I decided not to be friends with Yi Ruda, I revealed the selfishness laid inside the bottom of
my heart to her.
After a moment of hesitation, I gave out a smile.
Then I asked, “Yeah, you can really tell that I’m a weirdo?”
“…”
“True. If friends are there to share all the difficulties, they and I aren’t friends because I don’t talk about
such things.”
“Why? They aren’t trying to avoid your stories, right? As far as what I see, their anger shows that they are
fully ready to hear from you, right?”
“The problem isn’t them, it’s me.”
I slowly breathed in and lifted my hands to cover my face. Oh, gosh… I truly felt miserable.
I continued, “I… still can’t believe they are my friends.”
“…”
“I’m lacking too much confidence, but it’s something that I can’t help. Three years have passed, so I
thought I’m fine now, but if something serious happens, I still can’t say a word to them. Making them
worry about me seems to be wasting their time. Do you know how I feel?”
Looking complicated, Yi Ruda just stared at me. I sat still while facing her deep blue eyes for quite some
time. As I considered, I had no one else but Yi Ruda to talk with honestly about such things. How could I
confess this pathetic story to someone…
It was at that very moment when I thought so.
The door suddenly opened. Yi Ruda and I looked at each other with our eyes wide open but couldn’t even
think about the thought of standing up.
While we froze like ice, the first one who stepped into the classroom was no one else but Eun Jiho. His
distinguishable platinum blond hair shone like gold under the dim sunlight.
As soon as he saw us… no, when he saw me, a smile lifted at the corner of his mouth. He then spoke with
a grin.
“Hey, Ham Donnie! Why is it so hard to see your face? Bahaha!”
“Ha… haha.”
I stood up and glanced over the front door, not the back door where Eun Jiho came in. The meticulous
Four Heavenly Kings were, however, fully prepared to surround us, the fugitives.
The front door opened at once and there came in Eun Hyung. He would usually have a soft grin on his
face but now, he looked dark and stiff. He sent a blameful gaze at me. Oh, lord. I hid my face within the
palm of my hands.
Soon, Ban Yeo Ryung, Yoo Chun Young, and Woo Jooin stepped inside. Woo Jooin was smiling more
than usual, which made me sweat from all over.
A heavy silence hung in the empty classroom for a while. It was me who broke the ice. I couldn’t stand
the air without flinging the question.
“How… how did you guys find us? We’ve been running away for 40 minutes.”
Right. Yi Ruda and I spent 40 minutes to try escaping them during the one-hour lunch break. Since they
lost us on their way once, I thought they would no longer run after us… but how did they find us?
Eun Hyung seemed a little hesitant to respond to my question then he turned back to face Woo Jooin. It
looked as though he was asking him if it was good to answer. Woo Jooin nodded and opened his mouth.
“Yeah, mama. As soon as the lunch break started, something very shameful happened.”
“What?”
“The principal took a few teachers to a local restaurant when the fourth class began. Meanwhile, someone
broke into his office and messed around.”
I blinked my eyes. I never heard of such a thing. Well, we were busy running around, so Yi Ruda and I
could have missed the announcement; however, something still felt icky.
How could they know about that happening; besides, what does it have to do with them finding us? As
soon as I had those thoughts in my mind, Jooin continued his words.
“The principal soon knew of what happened because he received a report from a trustworthy student who
turned out to be our class president, the smart and well-behaved Eun Hyung. He went to see the principal
to discuss something and found out a kid running out of the office in a hurry.”
“…”
“The principal wanted to check the security camera immediately, but there might be someone visiting the
office earlier for other purposes, so he asked Eun Hyung to go together with them to see the security
camera. Of course, Eun Hyung agreed, and I, who was with Eun Hyung at that time, happened to check
the camera together.”
Woo Jooin then pointed himself with an adorable smile, but I could hardly put a grin on my face.
Woo Jooin gave a refreshing smile and kept on with his explanation.
“Luckily, when we checked the security cameras, no one visited the principal’s office, so Eun Hyung
apologized for getting something wrong but the principal appreciated his concerns. During the ongoing
warm conversation, I…”
“Checked the security camera to find out our escape route.”
Yi Ruda cut in while looking fed-up. I heard her mumbling through her red lips, ‘meticulously crazy
asshole.’ Jooin, however, just showed a full rich smile regardless of what she thought of him.
Oh, Jesus Christ, I muttered. Excluding the camera set inside the principal’s office, there would be over
twenty security cameras installed within the school. It was in every hallway, staircase, and entrance. How
could he deduce our escape route by checking all the other security cameras in such a short time?
I murmured in a pale face, “Why… why are you wasting your brain for such things?”
What a waste of a gifted brain…
I could dare to convince myself that all the plans they had, starting from mapping out to practice, that
came from Woo Jooin’s mouth was done only inside his head. Geez, why was he using his brain to such a
trivial thing… I showed a sad face.
“Jooin.”
“Yeah, mama.”
He nodded like a good boy. It looked like the usual Jooin I knew, so I felt a little relieved.
“Promise me to never use that brain of yours to hurt anybody, got it?” I said.
I sent a desperate gaze to Jooin. It shouldn’t be said in this critical situation, but I couldn’t even imagine
what kind of trouble would take place when he used that big brain of his to hurt someone.
I voiced out in concern about his future; however, the overall reaction seemed weird. Eun Jiho and Yoo
Chun Young, far apart, began to cough, and Ban Yeo Ryung and Eun Hyung turned pale.
Woo Jooin also reacted strangely. He kept his smile but the corner of his lips was trembling.
When I tried to ask, ‘What?’ in wonder, Yi Ruda grabbed my arm suddenly from the back. It made my
tension go away. Woo Jooin’s golden eyes glared at me with burning flames, and Eun Hyung’s face
turned grim again.
Yi Ruda said to me, “I told you I’m gonna help you no matter what. I never go back on my word. We can
still run away.”
“Uh… no…”
She did her best to run around for 40 minutes during the lunch break. I couldn’t burden her any more than
this.
In my thought, Yi Ruda might consider that this situation had puzzled me after she heard my confession.
When I tried to reply that I was now fine and would resolve this situation, someone stepped closer to us. I
turned my head and found that it was Yoo Chun Young.
Yi Ruda anxiously scowled at him while Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings watched us; Yoo
Chun Young stopped exactly a meter apart from me.
At a distance, reachable if my hand stretched out, he gave out his hand to me.
I looked up to gaze upon his bluish eyes. Under his long straight lashes, his serene eyes, as usual, were on
me without a sign of hesitation.
“Come here,” he said. The coldness of his distinctively low and deep voice scattered around my ears.
A moment of silence passed. As I blinked my eyes, still without a word, he called me again.
“Ham Donnie, come.”
“…”
Yoo Chun Young’s blue eyes and my blank sight met in the air. Specks of dust fluttered along with the
golden sunlight between us.
Staring at his shaded face under the dim light captivated my mind that I nearly moved my steps toward
him. If it wasn’t for how Yi Ruda tightly grabbed me, I would have done so.
I turned my head back in surprise. When our eyes met, Yi Ruda spoke quietly.
“Whatever it is, isn’t what you have in your mind all that matters? If you’re uncomfortable, you don’t
have to force yourself.”
I was still feeling surprised while staring at her, whose blue eyes were pointing directly at me.
Both Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda’s eyes had no signs of reluctance.
Suddenly, I felt the absurdity of such a thing shaking me up. I bit my lip. It was a matter regarding my
self-esteem which made me unable to confess my difficulties to my so-called best friends.
I said, “No. I told you that I’m the problem.”
Anyone could agree with this. The problem was me. As I said with a smile, Yoo Chun Young’s voice
flew toward us from the back.
This time, he was directing it towards me. My eyes widened in surprise.
“Take your hand off from her.”
It was a freezing cold voice enough for one to sense his aggressive and unpleasant mood which he never
used to me. I turned my head to him. Yoo Chun Young’s blue eyes were staring at Yi Ruda.
Their gaze bumped against each other in the air. Yi Ruda then suddenly pulled my arm to her. ‘What’s
going on?’ Feeling befuddled, I took a few steps toward Yi Ruda. Then another hand from the opposite
side pulled me at the same time. From the shiveringly cold temperature, I could grasp who it was without
a stare. It was Yoo Chun Young.
I caused this troublesome thing since Yoo Chun Young pulled me when I was standing behind Yi Ruda. I
was dragged to Yoo Chun Young’s side, but at the same time, I bumped into Yi Ruda, who was in front
of me.
Yi Ruda, who lost her balance when I pushed her, collapsed to Yoo Chun Young. So did I, who lost a
human-prop in front. Yoo Chun Young, who held my hand, also stumbled and leaned toward the floor.
Then, it happened
Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings gushed out a whoop at a time while watching from behind.
“Whoa!”
“Geez!”
“Ch… ung Young!”
While Ban Yeo Ryung, Eun Jiho, and Eun Hyung shouted one after another in perplexity, I bumped my
butt on the floor and rubbed my waist while frowning in pain.
I got aware of what happened just now: running into Yi Ruda and Yoo Chun Young pulling me to his
side. However, after that, I had no idea what happened. When I turned back to see them, the scene in front
of me got me dumbstruck.
Yoo Chun Young was rubbing his lips in a devastated face. Meanwhile, Yi Ruda was kneeling on the
floor like a tragically defeated person.
Soon after, she raised her head and asked, “Shit, was it your lips that bumped into me?”
“What?” Yoo Chun Young replied shortly with a grimace.
It was my first time hearing Yi Ruda swearing, which surprised me. She always looked soft and cheerful,
so Yi Ruda taking off her mask for the first time disconcerted Yoo Chun Young too.
Yi Ruda asked back, “Hey, was it your lips that bumped into mine just now?” Her face looked like the
angel of death.
“Answer me, say something!!”

She yelled out abruptly as if Yoo Chun Young, who remained silent while touching his lips with a pale
face, had annoyed her.
Yoo Chun Young still didn’t reply. While everyone watched them in excitement, he stopped touching his
lips then raised his hand to cover his mouth. He tottered to the back door. On his way out, he quietly
spoke to Eun Hyung while walking past him closely.
“Eun Hyung.”
“Huh…?”
Yoo Chun Young glanced back at Yi Ruda with a pale face then continued.
“I’m going to the bathroom. I might throw up.”
“Uh… yeah.”
As soon as Eun Hyung responded, Yoo Chun Young tottered out the back door as if he would really puke
anytime soon.
After he walked out of the space with no agitated reactions, all of us left inside the classroom shared our
gazes slowly. A moment later, Yi Ruda burst out in anger while stamping her feet.
“That son of a b*tch!! I’m about to throw up, too! Hey! You!!”
“R… Ruda…”
I called her name while feeling perplexed, but she might have missed it since she rubbed her lips roughly
with her sleeve then left the room after Yoo Chun Young.
Geez… I blinked my eyes in confusion.
Although she’s a female crossdresser, could she just walk into a man’s bathroom like that? Especially,
when Yoo Chun Young was already inside?
As I watched them walk out of the room while pouting my lips, Eun Jiho’s mumble went into my ears.
“Wow, amazing. How likely are we to bump our lips when collapsing to each other?”
Jooin shook his head and asked back.

“Yeah, but Chun Young… doesn’t he have something like a mysophobia?”
“Right, he doesn’t share cups with anyone. He’s not trying to be sarcastic, but he might have said what he
truly meant from the bottom of his heart. Hey, Eun Hyung, shouldn’t we go tap his back?”
“It’s gonna be fine. Chun Young woke up late today, so he didn’t have any breakfast. Nothing will come
out. Maybe he’s just going for a mouthwash. Okay, so…”
Eun Hyung responded to Eun Jiho then turned back to look at me. Oh, yes! While exclaiming at the
situation that just happened, I totally forgot the reason they came here. Anyway, female crossdressers
were different. How could she bump into someone and get kissed?
Eun Hyung’s green eyes bent smoothly, and I stepped back with a bitter smile. Eun Hyung took a step
forward and whispered.
“Donnie.”
“Y… eah?”
“We have something to talk about, right?”
Ban Yeo Ryung, who stepped closer together with Eun Hyung, swept her purplish-black hair back. Jooin
also smiled and stepped toward me.
When our eyes met, Eun Jiho waved his hand to me and said something by moving his lips quietly. ‘What
is he talking about?’ I knitted my brows and turned my head to his side.
‘I told you. You’re dead.’
Okay, sure. Did he want to become a seer? Before I could take a moment to applaud them, my face turned
pale when I saw Eun Hyung and Ban Yeo Ryung getting closer to me. Oh, lord, please…
***
Out of the one-hour lunch break, we spent 40 minutes to chase Ham Donnie. Now, there were only about
10 minutes left until the end of the break and a few sophomores were brushing their teeth near the
bathroom sink. Other than that, no one else was inside the bathroom.
Yoo Chun Young retched a few times but since he ate nothing for the day so far, nothing came out.
Frowning his blue-black brows and rubbing around the lips, Yoo Chun Young washed his mouth a few
times. Still, the crappy feeling wouldn’t diminish.
He usually tried not to share the cup he used. Yoo Chun Young fetched a deep sigh while holding the sink
with his two hands.
A sophomore who was brushing his teeth beside him stepped aside in surprise. Regardless of that, Yoo
Chun Young swept his hair back with his wet hands and heaved another sigh.
‘My first… kiss…’ From watching many movies and TV dramas, he knew that what he did with Yi Ruda
was not even a kiss; however, Yoo Chun Young wanted to smash his head when he recalled the three
words ‘my first kiss’. If the bathroom wall wasn’t dirty, he would have definitely attempted to do so.
He rubbed his face with his water dripping hands then checked his reflection in the mirror to see how he
looked. At that moment, someone came into the bathroom. A unique and confident stride, slender figure,
and distinctively bright blond hair; it was Yi Ruda.
Regardless of Yoo Chun Young grimacing his face or Yi Ruda himself yelling fiercely at him earlier, he
didn’t seem to care about Yoo Chun Young that much.
He lifted his blue eyes under his golden lashes and glanced upon Yoo Chun Young then he moved toward
the sink. When he turned the faucet all the way to the end, the water gushed out. He then washed his lips
like crazy.
Being flummoxed, Yoo Chun Young looked at Yi Ruda, who washed his mouth five times. He then lifted
his head in a flash and stared at Yoo Chun Young while directing the entirety of his face at him.
Yi Ruda’s face shone brightly under the pouring sunlight through the narrow window.
His crescent moon-like brows, straight nose, and red lips looked soft and weak at a glance; however,
when looking at his confident blue eyes, no one could dare say that he had a tender and frail appearance.
As Yoo Chun Young had those thoughts in mind, he opened his mouth.
“What?”
He was observing Yi Ruda, but it was also unpleasant for him to be observed by Yi Ruda at the same
time. Of course, it was not the first time for others to look at him that way; however, Yi Ruda’s gaze on
him felt even more obnoxious.
Soon after, Yi Ruda put a twisted smile on his face. When he burst out something like a sneer, Yoo Chun
Young became more annoyed.
“I asked, why are you looking at me,” he asked.
“You look handsome.”
A pretty looking bastard saying such a thing with a smile made it hard for Yoo Chun Young to figure out
whether it was a touch of sarcasm or a compliment.
While Yoo Chun Young was at a loss of words, Yi Ruda turned on the water to wash his mouth again. He
then spoke like a murmur.
“Hmm… is that why Donnie acted like that?”
“What?” Yoo Chun Young reacted instinctively but soon blenched at his aggressiveness. Still, Yi Ruda
had seemingly offended him, and the fact that he called Ham Donnie without her last name annoyed Yoo
Chun Young.
Besides, he seemed to grab Donnie’s hand recklessly. What surprised Yoo Chun Young, even more, was
that Ham Donnie didn’t refuse Yi Ruda’s hands and accepted them like nothing special. Ham Donnie
used to get startled when Yoo Chun Young stretched out his hand to her. However, how could she
become so close with this bastard within a month?
Their three years of friendship seemed to be caught up in a flash. It was truly unpalatable.
As Yoo Chun Young kept his gaze at Yi Ruda, he wiped out his wet chin relaxedly and raised his head.
When their eyes met, Yi Ruda spoke with a smile. It was still hard to distinguish what he meant with his
tone.
“Hmm… don’t you get it?”
“What? What do you want to say?”
“Come on, I got aware of it within a month, but how could you guys not notice it? I mean, for real? Are
you all entirely senseless?”
“Be straightforward. I asked, what are you trying to say?” Turning into a bad temper, Yoo Chun Young
raised his voice.
The only thing he could think of was Ham Donnie’s disappearance, which happened a year ago. Yi Ruda
wouldn’t know such a thing like that already. Then, what was he trying to talk about?

.
Regardless of Yoo Chun Young’s urging gaze, Yi Ruda smiled cheerfully yet with a relaxed face.
“Hmm… You still don’t get that… the reason why Donnie didn’t tell you guys the truth of the car
accident. Do you really don’t get it?”
“…”
“Yeah, I can tell it from your face that you really do not understand. You know, it makes me wonder. You
guys have been friends for over three years… but why didn’t she tell you the truth? Why can’t you guys
figure it out…?”
Leaning against the wall, Yi Ruda paused his words then put on a twisted smile.
“And why did she tell that only to me, whom she has known less than a month?”
“What do you want to say?”
“We’ve been sharing many secrets. She told me the reason. Why, do you also want to know? Are you
curious?”
After making that remark, Yi Ruda kept his gorgeous smile, which looked seemingly beautiful enough;
however, You Chun Young felt the urge to punch him in the face.
If the place they were at wasn’t a bathroom, Yoo Chun Young would have done that. Fighting inside the
bathroom would result in him rolling on the dirty floor, which Yoo Chun Young would hate to death;
besides, he had a photoshoot today. If his face gets hurt, he could hardly imagine how harshly he would
get scolded.
Yoo Chun Young didn’t react at all but just clenched his fist tightly. Yi Ruda showed a grin again. He
wasn’t asked for a response, but Yi Ruda continued his words.
“She lacked confidence.”
“…?”
“She said that she wasn’t confident about herself; she couldn’t ensure if she was a precious friend to you
guys. She was afraid to make you guys worry about her and spend time for her. This made me wonder
about something…”
With no words, Yoo Chun Young lifted his eyes to stare at Yi Ruda. Yi Ruda smiled at him then kept on
his words.
“You guys were always together since you’ve been in the same class for three years in middle school,
right? Oh, Donnie didn’t tell me about this. I found a few things by myself out of personal interest. It was
quite well known that Ban Yeo Ryung and Ham Donnie were best friends since they were born, and you
guys were all in the same class.”
“So?”
“Do you know how Donnie looks when she’s apart from you guys? You guys would never know since
you all have never stayed away from her. Am I right?”
Yoo Chun Young wrinkled his brows. He wasn’t sure what Yi Ruda wanted to talk about. Yi Ruda,
however, continued.
“So far, from what I’ve seen, Donnie doesn’t seem to be comfortable in taking the center stage. She
seems to be very unfamiliar with it, you know what I’m saying? I find nothing lacking about her, but she
still acts like that. She also doesn’t seem to look proud of what she has achieved even it’s a satisfactory
result in other’s aspects. Also…”
“…?”
“You guys don’t seem to be aware of it, but Donnie shows a lack of self-esteem only in front of you guys.
Get it? The dump truck accident… she told me everything about what happened. That is, she only feels
uncomfortable telling the truth to you guys. Isn’t it strange? You guys were friends for over three years,
but she’s feeling such a pressure to share the truth to her best friends…”
“So, what’s your point?”
Yi Ruda giggled.
“Why do you think Donnie lacks confidence, feels uncomfortable about others’ attention, and pushes
herself too much? Who would be in charge of that?”
“…”
“I’ve thought about it and the answer is obvious. She would have definitely felt less confident when she
has so many overwhelming people around her. Everyone’s eye is bent on them and not on her, so she
will, of course, not get used to people’s attention on her. The reason she is pushing herself too hard is that
she wants to be together with you guys.”
Yoo Chun Young bit his lips. Yi Ruda drove a wedge in with a smile.
“It’s all because of you guys.”
Yoo Chun Young’s fixed gaze at Yi Ruda slowly dropped to the floor. Yi Ruda, however, didn’t let Yoo
Chun Young drop his head.
Yi Ruda took a step toward Yoo Chun Young. When their eyes met, Yi Ruda grinned while bending his
eyes. Yoo Chun Young bit his lips harder.
“So I really wondered… how did you all become friends when she was still feeling uncomfortable about
you guys regardless of the three years of friendship? Based on her character, she wouldn’t have
approached you guys first, would she?”
“…”
“Did she ever reach out her hands first to you guys?”
Yoo Chun Young, biting his lips firmly, frowned his eyes before staring at Yi Ruda.
Regardless of Yoo Chun Young’s threatening gaze, Yi Ruda smiled as if he felt satisfied. He might have
read the answer in Yoo Chun Young’s face.
No, she did not. She never reached out her hands first.
Did Ham Donnie ever reach out her hands first to him? No, not at all. It was Ban Yeo Ryung and the four
boys, who always tried to step closer to Donnie.
When Yoo Chun Young lifted his gaze, Yi Ruda’s face came into his sight. The smile on his face looked
different from the previous one; it was a bittersweet grin that a grown-up man would put to soothe a child.
As Yi Ruda’s face suddenly got closer, Yoo Chun Young almost freaked out; however, he didn’t step
back.
Yi Ruda spoke from a near distance so close that they could feel each other’s breath.
“Okay, this was what Donnie told me before. She said that she’s the problem and I agree with her, too. In
this situation, Donnie is bad for not believing you guys. Didn’t you all try your best? Reaching out your
hand is difficult than holding someone’s hand, and you all tried that out, like, endlessly, right? So, you
guys did nothing bad. It’s Donnie, who refused those hands.”
“…”
“In my opinion, continuing this relationship is not good for both Donnie and you all. It will just make you
guys fed up in the end. Think about it, it has been three years. You all tried your best for three years to
open her heart, but it didn’t work. What difference will it make to keep on doing this for another few
years then?”
Giving a pause to listen, Yoo Chun Young slowly closed his eyes. He then pouted his lips in anger to ask.
“So?”
“Why don’t you just give up now?”
Yoo Chun Young’s eyes were still closed. What Yi Ruda said was nothing but the truth, so it made him
painful. Yi Ruda’s fiercely keen insight resembled that of Woo Jooin. His soothing whisper-like voice
continued to ring around his ears.
“I think Donnie will simply give up if you guys turn away from her since she never reached out her hands
first. Don’t you think so? That will make you all stay comfortable. Donnie will gain confidence from after
getting surrounded by run-of-the-mill friends and you guys… don’t have to beat a dead horse anymore,
right?”
“…”
“Aren’t you tired? Don’t you feel fed up? Wouldn’t it be better to just give up this relationship?”
Yoo Chun Young opened his eyes. Yi Ruda was still smiling with his gaze fixed at him. His last words
came into his years at a slow pace.
“Wasting three years is enough. You’ve done your best. I opened her heart within a month which you
didn’t manage to do for over the last three years. It just speaks about everything you’re doing wrong,
doesn’t it?”
A long pause enveloped both of them when his speech ended. Yoo Chun Young glanced over the side. A
few sophomores looked confused about the ongoing conversation, and Yi Ruda still smiled with ease.
At that moment, Yoo Chun Young found the sign of conviction in Yi Ruda’s eyes. It displayed Yi Ruda’s
belief that things would turn as he desired.
Yoo Chung Young breathed out quietly and slowly. He saw Yi Ruda’s eyes sparkling stronger.
Yoo Chun Young opened his mouth, “Thanks for a piece of advice.”
“…”
“But it pisses me off.”
“What?”
“Who do you think you are to say sh*ts about us? Get the fu*k off.”
Looking at Yoo Chun Young’s flaming eyes and cold-hearted voice, Yi Ruda inhaled deeply in surprise.
Just a moment ago, Yoo Chun Young looked frigid but a little loose which wasn’t that threatening.
This enabled Yi Ruda to push Yoo Chun Young overconfidently into the corner. He thought that just
saying a few words would be enough to make Yoo Chun Young give up his friendship with Ham Donnie.
However, what… ‘Did he just curse at me?’
Yi Ruda would never know, but it had been a year since Yoo Chun Young last cursed someone.
In front of Yi Ruda, who was blinking his eyes in bewilderment, Yoo Chun Young was scowling behind
Yi Ruda with a grimace.
Yi Ruda turned his head to look back in surprise, but he saw nothing. Yoo Chun Young, from across, then
flung a question.
“Oh, I can’t help it anymore. Right teeth or left teeth, which one is weaker? Pick one.”
“What?”
“I’m not gonna ask twice.”
‘What are you going to do, if I choose one…?’ At the very next moment, Yi Ruda grasped what action he
should take when he saw the sharp glare in Yoo Chun Young’s blue eyes.

.
***
I raised my hand. Do I really have to do this…? Instead of saying what I had in mind, I just stared at Eun
Hyung, but he strictly shook his head, which showed no signs of a negotiation. I sighed and spoke at last.
“I swear. In the event of a personal threat, I, Ham Donnie, will report it immediately to the Four Heavenly
Kings, Ban Yeo Ryung, or at least to the local police station. 2010… what’s the date today?”
“17th,” Ban Yeo Ryung responded. Oh yeah… I continued in embarrassment.
“March 17th. Ham-Donnie!”
“Wow, mama. Now two times left.”
As Woo Jooin noticed me kindly, I just gave him a faint smile. It didn’t comfort me at all. I can’t believe I
must do this humiliating oath two more times… I felt like a kindergarten kid repeating, ‘I should ask a
staff around me when I lose my mom.’
Since Eun Jiho had a stinging gaze at me, I said, ok, and heaved a sigh. It was then when I heard a noise
from the bathroom connected to the stairway.
What’s going on…? With a frown, I stared at the direction, where the buzz came from. Then Eun Hyung
suddenly turned his head.
Eun Jiho asked, “Why?”
“Um… nothing… did I hear it wrong?”

As soon as Eun Hyung murmured in suspicion, wrinkling his face, Jooin, who raised his head in a flash,
responded.
“Hold on, I think I also heard it. Yeo Ryung, don’t you hear that?”
“What? Oh, wait.”
“What’s wrong?”
Am I having a bad ear or are the Four Heavenly Kings and the female protagonist also having good
hearing? While I had those thoughts from feeling ridiculous, Eun Hyung mumbled in a pale face.
“Oh, my god. I’m not hearing it wrong.”
“What’s up?”
“It’s Chun Young’s voice.”
“What’s wrong with that?”
What is so strange about Yoo Chun Young’s voice ringing around? Before I was about to ask back with a
grimace, Jooin replied immediately. His words made me turn stiff.
“I never heard Chun Young yelling like that.”
“…”
“Me, too,” Ban Yeo Ryung responded then glanced over me.
When I turned my head to look at the bathroom, the front was crowded with sophomores willing to see
what was going on.
Oh, lord… I looked at the clock with frustration. Only 3 minutes were left until the start of the next class.
The buzz of the sophomores in front of the bathroom even reached this space. They were all screaming in
surprise.
“Hey, were there freshman that good at fighting?”
“Oh, the blond hair! Good, nice attack! Awesome skills.”
“That blue hair is also incredible. He just got up after the attack. How does he react so quickly?”
“Are they even humans?”
Eun Jiho, who was listening to the conversation seriously, tilted his head in wonder then turned to see
Eun Hyung.
He asked, “So far from what I heard, it seems that Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda are fighting?”
“I guess it’s true,” Eun Hyung replied in a pale blue face.
It was reasonable for him to be that shocked since Yoo Chun Young seldom had a fist-fight against
someone; besides, the place where the physical encounter was happening was inside the bathroom. How
could that clean-freak Yoo Chun Young have a brawl at the bathroom?
Jooin then murmured, “Wait… didn’t Chun Young say he has a photoshoot today?”
“Right!”
As Ban Yeo Ryung made an agreeable response, we all exchanged eye contact and dashed out of the
classroom. Since the fight took place in the boy’s bathroom, Ban Yeo Ryung and I waited from a distance
while Kwon Eun Hyung and Eun Jiho smoothly pushed their way through the crowds.
A moment of silence prevailed among the crowds as they assumed that Kwon Eun Hyung and Eun Jiho
were the popular freshmen from their fancy hair colors. Then, Yoo Chun Young’s voice penetrated the
sudden stillness and flew into my ears clearly.
“Who the fu*k are you to break in between us? Sh*t, you fu*king know nothing!”
Yoo Chun Young cursed… My face turned bloodless. When I glanced aside, Ban Yeo Ryung and Jooin
also looked as surprised as I was. Yi Ruda soon let out a piercing shriek that struck around me.
“Fu*k, I advised you because I couldn’t stand this!! Isn’t it too hopeless for such a relationship of 3
years?!”
“All you see is what you want to see. What do you know about us?”
“Geez, everything’s so obvious?!”
“No, you know nothing. Watch your mouth. Don’t talk like you know everything about Ham Donnie!”
Yoo Chun Young gave a pause. I was sure that someone interrupted or attacked him.
The words soon continued. Yoo Chun Young’s uniquely flat voice; it seemed that he regained his
composure than before.
“It’s not as simple as it looks, and I don’t want to attempt too much. I’m taking a steady step; I’m ready to
wait. So no excuse for your sh*tty advice. You’re crossing the fu*king line! Get off me!”
“Yoo Chun Young. You’re going too far.”
Eun Hyung’s calm voice made me surprise. I never saw Yoo Chun Young getting pissed off that much, so
I wondered if I were about to see the two boys fighting in front of me for the first time.
Yoo Chun Young’s words continued. It sounded relaxed than before.
“I told you to get off me. As you’ve said, it’s me not you who endured for the last 3 years, but why are
you telling me what to do out of the blue… gosh, get off!”
“I don’t know what exactly happened but I know that you don’t pick fights. You got caught up in the heat
of the moment. This is the sophomore’s bathroom, not ours and you have a photoshoot today. Does that
sound enough to chill?”
“…”
No one talked for a while then soon the buzz was all gone. The first one who showed up through the
sophomores, who were standing in a circle, was Yi Ruda.
As if she took off Eun Jiho’s hands from her, she was gasping in anger and her face looked awful. She
even had some bruises on her face. What surprised me more was that she had a fist-fight in the boy’s
bathroom but showed no signs of hesitance.
She seemed to walk toward this side, pushing her way strongly through the group of boys, but when she
met Ban Yeo Ryung’s eyes, Yi Ruda frowned her face. She then glanced at me for a second and just went
upstairs.
Geez… While I blinked my eyes, I saw Eun Jiho stepping toward me with a tired face.
I asked, “Dude? What happened? Why did Yoo Chun Young fight?”
“No idea. Wow, do you know what I’ve thought? I think I saw Yoo Chun Young getting pissed off a few
times, but compared to what just happened, those were just like turning sulky.”
“…”
“Once the person who always stayed chill turns aggressive as hell, it’s hard to get him to calm down
again. Wow, so scary.”
“What about Eun Hyung?”

“Yoo Chun Young went blind at first but I don’t know. He’ll come out if Kwon Eun Hyung makes it
happen.”
What if he doesn’t make it happen…? Ban Yeo Ryung mumbled in a pale face, standing next to me.
Eun Jiho shrugged then came next to my side. He didn’t look that nervous at all, which seemed like he
was thinking Eun Hyung will successfully handle the situation. Eun Jiho swept down his lips and said to
himself as if he was feeling the difficult situation.
“Oh, Yoo Chun Young… Since he’s a well-known model, we told him not to come after school but how
could he fight in such a place?”
“…”
While listening to what he said, I fixed my gaze at Eun Jiho. After school means after class. What are you
guys trying to do after class…? As if he noticed my gaze, Eun Jiho turned to look at me. He then became
surprised but soon concealed his emotion by putting a serene look.
He asked nonchalantly, “What? Why? Why why why…?”
“Oh, I totally forgot. Dude, what’s with that number song? I’m dead? Do you want to die?”
When I punched his side, Eun Jiho, who would usually exaggerate pain, remained silent, however. He
was hesitant for a moment then pulled up the corner of his brow and laughed naughtily.
“Dude, was it too cute to die?”
“It freaked me out! Do you know that song? The black carriage passes the entrance… The ghost story that
says about a carriage passing such places then arrives at where the last person sings.”
“Oh, I know that,” Ban Yeo Ryung responded from aside.
While I punched Eun Jiho a few more times with a grimace, I heard a noise coming from the bathroom
entrance. As soon as I turned my head to see that direction, I saw Eun Hyung and Yoo Chun Young
walking out together. Gosh…! When I saw Yoo Chun Young’s face, I fetched a sigh in spite of myself.
Yoo Chun Young might have gone through a lot as I realized Yi Ruda’s amazing fighting skills ever since
she jumped out of the second-floor window. She also had some bruises on her face but so did Yoo Chun
Young. They both seemed to attack and counterattack at the same time.
As my mouth got wide opened at his swelling blue cheek, Eun Hyung came over to me while dragging
Yoo Chun Young.
He then said to us, “The class is gonna start. Go in ASAP. I will take Chun Young to the nurse’s office.”
“Hey, hold on.”
When Eun Jiho called them to stop in a hurry, Eun Hyung turned back to look at him.
“What’s up?”
“Why did you fight?” Eun Jiho asked while casting his gaze at Yoo Chun Young, who was standing
silently behind Eun Hyung.
Yoo Chun Young’s blue eyes looked serene as usual, which relieved me. He glanced over at me then had
his eyes on Eun Jiho to respond.
“Because Yi Ruda degraded the three years we spent with Ham Donnie like nothing.”
“…”
“I tried to chill… but I couldn’t help myself, so I punched him.”
“And as a response, you got one back and came up with a friendly give-and-take,” Eun Jiho replied with a
slightly pale face. Yoo Chun Young, who kept quiet without a response, reminded me of the maxim,
‘silence gives consent.’ In this regard, was I the reason why they fought?
My face exhibited the feeling of complication when looking at Yoo Chun Young’s back. He then turned
back to see me before he followed Eun Hyung.
When my eyes widened in surprise as our eyes met, Yoo Chun Young heaved a sigh and strode toward
me.
He said, “Don’t you get why we looked after you for 40 minutes while skipping our lunch break?”
“Huh?”
“You can let us worry about you. It makes me upset, and I feel suffocated when I think that you’re
suffering alone, get it?” Yoo Chun Young said in a faster and emotional tone than usual. Before I had the
chance to reply, he turned back and descended the stairs.
***
Yoo Chun Young’s brow met in the middle. That was when the brush on the antiseptic bottle cap swept
just above his brows.
Regardless of the pain, that Yoo Chun Young displayed on his face, Kwon Eun Hyung moved his hand to
finish applying the ointment. He then smiled as he turned the cap to close it. It was a soft grin that he
usually had.
Eun Hyung asked, “What are you gonna do with today’s photoshoot?”
“I must call now that I can’t make it today… to give a notice at least 3-hours in advance.”
“What if they ask you why?”
Rubbing his stinging brows, Yoo Chun Young lifted his eyes to see Kwon Eun Hyung.
Under the sunlight, Eun Hyung’s reddish hair and the smiley green eyes below it were heading toward
Chun Young. He looked into his eyes carefully then fetched a faint sigh.
He replied, “I’m not gonna think I did something wrong even if you stare at me like that.”
“There’s no intention in my gaze. I was just wondering how far you were thinking,” Kwon Eun Hyung
said with a smile. His eyes were somewhat stricter than before, which made Yoo Chun Young heave
another sigh.
Kwon Eun Hyung’s attitude was nothing new. From an early age, Yoo Chun Young tended to suppress
his anger but just the smallest trigger pressed the button at last, which made people around him become
befuddled by his demeanor. Whenever that happened, it was Kwon Eun Hyung, who picked up the
pieces.
Geez… Yoo Chun Young swept down his hair with a sigh.
He said, “Am I Woo Jooin to think any farther than this?”
“Well, it’s not only the brilliant’s virtue to handle the aftermath.”
“If I were to think like that, I might have beaten him up after a week.”
“Yeah… you’re slow,” Kwon Eun Hyung replied with a smile. He then stretched out his hand to pat Yoo
Chun Young’s hair. A moment after, Yoo Chun Young, who was dropping his gaze at the floor, became
surprised then soon stared at Kwon Eun Hyung, who was just smiling speechlessly.
“What’s that look?”
“I mean. This seems like…”

A compliment… Yoo Chun Young, however, just swallowed the last word in silence.
Whenever Yoo Chun Young presented his explosive anger, Kwon Eun Hyung never praised him for that
negative actions. That was because most situations were enough easily solved verbally with a calm
demeanor. Ever since Yoo Chun Young expressed so much anger, it was his first time to receive a
compliment from Kwon Eun Hyung than to get severely reprimanded.
When Yoo Chun Young blinked his eyes in surprise, Kwon Eun Hyung burst out laughing as if it was
funny. He then said with a soft smile.
“I’m proud of you even if you have not reflected on yourself; though you’ve calmed down after a while.”
“What’s that about?”
“The fact that you aren’t reflecting on yourself even when you’ve calmed down implies that the situation
truly provoked you. The heat of the moment didn’t carry away you.”
“…”
Yoo Chun Young closed his mouth, feeling a little strange.
Kwon Eun Hyung’s remark logically made sense; however, he felt that Kwon Eun Hyung looked
strangely brighter after Chun Young beat Yi Ruda. ‘Am I getting it wrong… Or does Kwon Eun Hyung
also dislike Yi Ruda as much as I do?’ Chun Young fell into consideration.
Ham Donnie’s face came across when Yoo Chun Young thought about Yi Ruda. Her dark brown eyes
that were looking at him in wonder when he cast out some words and tried to turn back revolved around
in his head.
Yoo Chun Young asked, “What happened to Ham Donnie?”
“Oh, you mean that…” Kwon Eun Hyung replied with a smile.
“We just made her swear. She will never keep silent or be alone when she’s in danger… something like
that.”
“Did you ask why she didn’t tell the truth?”
“No, because it’s obvious.”
After that response, Kwon Eun Hyung’s eyes became cold-hearted.

“Obvious… What do you mean?” Yoo Chun Young asked in wonder.
“Shared joy is a double joy; shared sorrow is half sorrow… but she might have wanted to only share
something good although she would go through some inner struggles alone.”
“…”
“In this aspect, do you know that you and Donnie are alike? Both of you never tell your hardships before
someone runs you guys to the earth.”
After his remark, Kwon Eun Hyung laughed as if he realized that he had spoken something ridiculous,
which made Yoo Chun Young upset.
“We’re not alike,” Yoo Chun Young spat out like he was shooting the words out to Eun Hyung.
“What?”
“Those I didn’t tell were problems that I couldn’t solve, but Donnie’s case is different. If she confessed
that she was almost dead because of those bastards, we could solve her problems. Why didn’t she open
up?”
“…”
Kwon Eun Hyung tapped Yoo Chun Young’s head with mellow eyes. It looked like he understood what
Chun Young wanted to say. Yoo Chun Young closed his mouth.
He didn’t like talking long. It scared him. Unlike his light and fragile nature, words sometimes drew
heavy situations unexpectedly.
Yoo Chun Young asked after a moment of hesitation, “Eun Hyung.”
“Huh?”
“Ignorance is bliss…”
“Yeah,” Kwon Eun Hyung nodded while putting his generous smile that relieved people.
Do you believe in ‘ignorance is bliss…’ Yoo Chun Young shook his head while stopping himself to
continue the words. He then pointed at the door with his chin.
“Never mind… I’ll tell my uncle that I can’t make it to the photoshoot today. Go back to class. You
shouldn’t miss it.”
“It’s been a while since I last skipped a class. Not bad though.”
“Come on, it’s early in the semester.”
Yoo Chun Young’s words made Kwon Eun Hyung stand up and leave the nurse’s office. Before he
stepped out of the door, he shortly nodded then closed the door.
When the door closed, he heard not even a footstep from the hallway. Yoo Chun Young lifted his hand
slowly to sweep back his hair but frowned when his hand touched the wound above his brows.
Everyone would find out after spending time with Kwon Eun Hyung that he wasn’t that stubborn but
quite flexible despite his attitude of strictly observing the rules.
Whenever Eun Hyung felt stuffy, he often wandered around parks or streets. Ever since Yoo Chun Young
saw Eun Hyung leaving the house, he went out for a night walk together with him.
They did nothing special. All they did was to lean against the bench inside the park while enjoying the
lake breeze and tilting their head toward the back to watch the sky darkening.
Kwon Eun Hyung hated stuffy feelings; however, he always contained a perfect attitude to school
schedules or his chores. It looked like an obsession to Yoo Chun Young.
‘When you grew up too fast, do you behave like that?’ Chun Young thought about Kwon Eun Hyung
while looking up at the ceiling then took his phone out from the pocket.
He opened his phone and pressed the call button; the person he was calling didn’t answer the phone for
quite a while. ‘Should I give up… Before making that decision?’ Chun Young tried again, and this time,
he heard someone picking up the phone.
“Hey uncle, I can’t make it to the photoshoot today.”
Holding the phone with both hands, Yoo Chun Young waited for a response. A moment later, a sigh came
over the phone, and it seemed like a smile accompanied it.
‘Yeah, it may sound ludicrous,’ Yoo Chun Young dropped his gaze while pressing the middle of his
forehead.
The photoshoot scheduled after school was with Yoo Chun Young’s cousin, Yoo Jang Woo, a well-
known fashion photographer who introduced Yoo Chun Young to the modeling industry. Thus, instead of
sending an apology for the cancellation to a random person, Yoo Chun Young felt less uncomfortable to
attempt it to his uncle; however, he still felt sorry anyway. Besides, among the people Yoo Chun Young
knew, Yoo Jang Woo was the busiest man, and he would be leaving the country after a week.
Both Yoo Chun Young and Yoo Jang Woo didn’t say a word for a while; therefore, the silence that hung
between them went longer. Then, at last, words through the phone accompanied by yet another sigh.
“Geez, what’s going on? I’m hearing you speak well, which seems you’re not dead. Are you sick then?”
Yoo Jang Woo was famous as a genius photographer, which seemed to be true when Yoo Chun Young
found his uncle as an eccentric, a mark of genius. Rubbing his forehead speechlessly for a while, Yoo
Chun Young opened his mouth.
“My face is a mess.”
“Why? Did you have noodles last night?”
“No.”
“Then why? Did you… fight? For real? Is it true???”
Yoo Chun Young also didn’t expect himself to lose temper when knowing that he had an upcoming
photoshoot.
While Yoo Chun Young remained silent, closing his lips tightly, he heard a burst of laughter over the
phone.
“Ha… you’re truly under the stormy period of adolescence!”
‘I’m over that phase,’ Yoo Chun Young tried to respond like that, but he considered it would be better to
just shut up for a while.
While Yoo Chun Young kept his silence, Yoo Jang Woo began to nag about his cousin’s erratic
behaviors. He then flung a question when Yoo Chun Young started to feel a pain in his head.
“Okay, cool. How bad do you look? If we could cover it with makeup, then just come over. Your uncle’s
busy.”
“Terrible, so I can’t.”
“How bad?”
Hmm… Yoo Chun Young raised his head to stare at the mirror in front of him. He had a blank gaze at his
reflection in the mirror while perching on the bed. His face looked like… Yoo Chun Young carefully
chose the most suitable word.
“I look like rotten garlic.”
“What?”
“A rotten garlic because I turned blue.”
After a while, a response returned from the phone in a dumbfounded tone.
“Hey, Chun Young. Do you know that your words are deadly unique sometimes? Why don’t you try
writing some poems?”
“How so?”
“I think you’ll be good at it. Let me know why then. Why did you fight? You wouldn’t forget about a
shoot today, right? What made you lose your temper? What happened?”
Instead of expressing his anger, Yoo Jang Woo now sounded like he was truly wondering his reasons.
Including Yoo Chun Young, most of the Yoo family was patient and clearly drew a line between their
public and private lives. The only weakness they had was that they were vulnerable at sleepiness. Yoo
Chun Young looked up the ceiling while his thought absorbed him.
The so-called Ham Donnie’s new friend made an invidious remark to take them away from Ham Donnie.
He said that he didn’t manage to open her heart for over the last three years, which he did within a month.
This just spoke about everything that he was doing was wrong, and for this reason, he should give up.
After quite a while, Yoo Chun Young blurted out a response.
“I couldn’t go beat him up tomorrow.”
“What?”
“I couldn’t just say that I had a photoshoot yesterday but today I’m off, so take this.”
Yoo Chun Young responded after careful consideration, but Yoo Jang Woo gave him a bland reaction. He
clicked his tongue a few times then replied apathetically.
“Never mind. If you don’t want to talk about it, then don’t. Chun Young, it’s me who will decide if it’s
okay to shoot with your face, so send me a picture.”
“Of who?”
“You. Send me a selfie.”

“I never tried that before,” Yoo Chun Young responded while feeling a little puzzled. ‘A selfie? Why
would I take a picture of myself to keep?’ Yoo Chun Young wasn’t a narcissistic person; however, what
he heard sounded frigid.
“Hey, enough. You already dropped points for fighting with someone. Shhh! I’ll give you 5 minutes.
Send it to me.”
“Uncle.”
“You know, selfies are also like portraits drawn by artists. It’s a reflection of self-consciousness and a
way to introspection. If you want to be a great model, you should try to take pictures of yourself. This is a
chance for you to do that. I already gave you 5 minutes for a single picture, got it?”
Yoo Chun Young, who was listening to Yoo Jang Woo’s speech, began to look strange.
‘If that’s the point, then those who upload their selfies every day on social media would find great
enlightenment through constant introspection.’ Yoo Chun Young had this thought in mind, but he didn’t
speak it out.
Before he tried to say something, the phone was hung up. Yoo Chun Young called his uncle a few more
times in confusion, but he never answered. It was obvious that his uncle was picking up the things he
threw all over his place in his anger. If not, he would have read Yoo Chun Young’s confusion and would
avoid the call until Yoo Chun Young sends the selfies.
Scratching his head with a sigh, Yoo Chun Young fiddled his phone. He even found it difficult to locate
where the camera app was since he rarely used it. After quite a while, he finally discovered the camera
app then held up the phone.
This was the first time for him to take a selfie, so Yoo Chun Young felt very awkward. All he saw was
Ban Yeo Ryung and Ham Donnie taking their selfies for a few times while almost hugging each other.
‘Am I doing it right?’ Yoo Chun Young said then when he stretched out his hand in the air while looking
at the camera lens with an awkward face.
Creak.
The door opened without a sign of people being around. Through the opened door, a pair of vibrant blue
eyes directed this side. Yoo Chun Young sat still for a moment then soon opened his mouth. It was Yi
Ruda.
Sweeping his bright blond hair, Yi Ruda came toward with no words. His face was as swollen as Yoo
Chun Young’s. Yi Ruda nodded shortly then yelled to the door.
“Donnie!! Yoo Chun Young is taking a selfie…”

“Shut up.”
Without even thinking, Yoo Chun Young held the pillow beside him and smashed the back of Yi Ruda’s
head. He beat Yi Ruda too much before, so this time, he attempted a lighter attack.
Yi Ruda, however, might have not felt so pleased about Yoo Chun Young’s consideration. He snatched
the pillow with a roar and threw it away. He then stared at Yoo Chun Young with a huff.
Yoo Chun Young cast his glance over Yi Ruda’s shoulders despite himself, yet Ham Donnie’s face
wasn’t in his sight.
‘Cool.’ He lifted himself from the bed and wiped his blood-clotted lips. When he threw a fierce glance
over his hand, Yi Ruda seemed to flinch for a second; however, Yi Ruda soon had an unpleasant sneer
and pushed his face into Yoo Chun Young.
‘Why does this bastard like to push his face into me?’ Yoo Chun Young thought while looking at Yi
Ruda’s shiny face.
Their distance was so close that their nose could touch each other easily… This would make Yi Ruda
hardly elude his punch; however, the problem was that they weren’t sure when Ham Donnie would come
in.
‘Should I punch him again? What should I do?’ While Yoo Chun Young seriously considered his next
action, Yi Ruda smiled naughtily, bending his eyes.
He said, “Why? Do you think you look great today in the mirror after the fight? Well, that happens a lot.”
“…”
“Hey, it’s lucky that I got smashed first. What if Ham Donnie walked in right away?”
“Do you want to get punched again?” Yoo Chun Young said while feeling intolerable. Yi Ruda shrugged
as if he expected Chun Young’s agitated reaction. He then pulled back his head.
“If others hear this, they may think I’m the only one beaten up. Hey, you never got professionally trained,
right?”
“Yeah.”
“Well… it was pretty good for someone who wasn’t a professional.”
When Yi Ruda finished his words, he suddenly stretched out his hand and grabbed Yoo Chun Young’s
arm. It happened in a flash.
‘What the…’ Before Yoo Chun Young could speak and shook off his hand, Yi Ruda already rubbed
down Chun Young’s arm twice. Regardless of Yoo Chun Young’s perplexity, Yi Ruda spoke while tilting
his head.
“Hey, you really don’t have any traces of systematic training in martial arts.”
“What are you going to do with checking that?”
Yoo Chun Young snapped at Yi Ruda but soon lifted his head as he found something strange. Yi Ruda
blinked his vividly blue eyes.
Yoo Chun Young thought, ‘how could he know whether or not I worked out regularly just by touching
my arm muscles?’
Since Yoo Chun Young started his modeling career lately, he managed to work out frequently; however,
it wasn’t something intense but mostly cardio and weight training. As Yi Ruda said earlier, Chun Young
never got trained for martial arts, which used kicks or punches.
Despite all that, how could he know if he used his muscle for fighting or not just by touching his arm?

.
Yoo Chun Young soon became baffled. Still, Yi Ruda was dropping his gaze at him. He moved his lips
that had a crooked smile on it and spat something like a sigh. Yi Ruda then took a step behind.
Smiling quietly, he said, “Oh, are you wondering how I knew that? Well… I don’t like physically harsh
activities, but I had to get trained since when I was young for some unavoidable reasons.”
“Then those who get trained from a younger age could figure that out?”
“No, I’m just different from others,” with those remarks, Yi Ruda’s eyes turned narrower.
When a chill air flashed across Yi Ruda’s blue eyes, Yoo Chun Young encountered a reversed sight.
Raising his body in a flash, Yi Ruda flipped back Yoo Chun Young while pressing Chun Young’s
shoulders. Pow! As soon as Chun Young’s body dove into the bed, something solid hit the spot beside
Chun Young. A pair of black trousers in the school uniform… it was Yi Ruda’s knee.
A black shadow soon blocked Chun Young’s sight. Yi Ruda’s blond hair, reflecting the ceiling light, was
waving right in front of Chun Young’s forehead.
It was a sudden subdual.

Yi Ruda, who easily threw down Yoo Chun Young, stood still while putting his one foot on the floor and
the other knee on the bed. His hands brutally pressed down Yoo Chun Young’s head to the bed, and he
bent his head to face Yoo Chun Young right in front.
Yi Ruda’s lashes fluttered for a moment then the blue eyes below them gently curved into an arc-like
shape.
It was difficult for Yoo Chung Young to find out what Yi Ruda was thinking. For a moment, he turned
violent like a beast, and for another moment, he acted like a kid who had his favorite candy in his hand.
At some point, he looked like a child who ripped his disliked friend’s doll while the adults were out of
sight. Yi Ruda kept an innocent yet a heartless expression at the same time.
While Yoo Chun Young had those thoughts in mind, Yi Ruda, who closely put his lip to Chun Young’s
ear, whispered gently.
“Don’t mess with me. I can knock you down without a punch.”
“You seemed to kill time earlier…”
“Or else Donnie will get sad to see I beat you up to death. Do you know how hard it was to control my
strength?”
“…”
Before continuing the conversation, Yoo Chun Young raised his blue eyes to glance upon the ceiling. He
then said nonchalantly, while showing no signs of agitated feelings in mind.
“I don’t know what your game is.”
“Game? Interesting…”
“Why are you being so desperate about Ham Donnie?”
“Desperate? Do you think I’m being desperate?” When Yi Ruda asked back, he swept around his lips
with his finger.
Yoo Chun Young’s voice, following along, was still cold-hearted.
“What you said in the bathroom earlier sounded quite logical, but the motive you had was wrong from the
beginning. It meant that I should stay away from Ham Donnie. What do you gain from that?”
“Hmm…”
“Do you want to monopolize her?”

“Well, it’s true that it’s a win-win when you guys stayed away from Donnie. I just wanted to let you
know the truth because it’s heartbreaking to see Donnie undergoing her inner struggles alone and…”
Putting a twisted grin on his face, Yi Ruda, whispered in a lowered voice.
“Isn’t it possible to win somebody over to be in a relationship with them, especially between a man and a
woman? Am I wrong? Why are you talking negatively like monopolizing her is bad? Donnie isn’t public
property, you know?”
Yi Ruda’s words made Yoo Chun Young’s face suddenly change frigidly.
He replied, “What you said sounds like you have a crush on Ham Donnie?”
Yi Ruda laughed at Chun Young’s response. He then answered back in a warm voice as if he was
rewarding Chun Young with a prize.
“You have some sense compared to how you look, but isn’t it also you who’s being desperate about her?
Who’s the guy constantly sticking up for the person who never opened her heart for the last three years?”
Yoo Chun Young’s cheek turned pale. At that very moment, the nurse’s office door opened with a
creaking sound.
Lifting himself halfway up from the bed and still facing Yi Ruda in a close distance that their bodies were
almost attached, Yoo Chun Young turned his head to look at the door.
A brown-haired girl just shoved herself into the door and said, “I spoke with Eun Hyung outside. You
have a photoshoot today…”
“…”
“Umm…”
When Ham Donnie spat a perplexed sound from her mouth, Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda then realized
their postures. Yi Ruda, almost looked like he was riding Yoo Chun Young and even had his nose closely
attached to Yoo Chun Young’s. ‘Oh, lord…’ Both of their faces turned pale like a sheet of paper. ‘No
way…’ When they both thought the same, Ham Donnie stepped back while putting a forced smile on her
face.
“I… don’t have any stereotypes…”
‘What stereotypes?’ They wanted to ask like that but nothing came out of their mouth. Almost frozen like
ice, they both became at a loss of words. They all just stared at Ham Donnie. Then the door closed
without a sound.
As if nothing had happened, it was silent around the closed door again. Yoo Chun Young gazed at that
empty space for quite a while then, at last, gathered back his senses.
“Ham Donnie!!! Where are you going!?” He yelled in surprise.
As soon as Yoo Chun Young screamed out loud, Yi Ruda also shrieked while recovering his
consciousness.
“Donnie!! Donnie, no!!! You’re getting it wrong! We’re not like that!!! Come back!!!!”
Yi Ruda screamed while standing still then he dashed out of the nurse’s office. Yoo Chun Young, who
sprung himself up from the bed, ran after. Both their faces were crazily in a hurry.
After a few seconds, they finally caught Ham Donnie with each of their hands.
***
Feeling crestfallen, I touched my hands hesitantly. Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda, who were both
standing in front of me, looked dark and stiff. ‘Someone please explain why they both have those serious
faces…’ While I said this to myself, Yoo Chun Young pulled out a chair for me to sit on and glanced at
Yi Ruda. He then perched on the bed.
Yi Ruda asked, “Why is there no chair for me?”
“You can sit on the floor.”
“Never mind, I’ll sit on the bed, too.”
Yi Ruda then put her butt right next to Yoo Chun Young’s. It surprised me to see Yoo Chun Young
having an annoyed look in his eyes, which I rarely saw, to give a sidelong scowl at Yi Ruda.
She would be the first one to draw this much attention from Yoo Chun Young in such a short time.
As if the bed was hers, Yi Ruda, crossed her arms comfortably and spoke to me, “First, we both looked
weird in the bed, right?”
“Don’t get me wrong,” Yoo Chun Young said in an unusually hurried tone as soon when Yi Ruda broke
the ice. Yi Ruda and Yoo Chung Young looked at each other with hate in their eyes and soon turned their
heads to me. Both seemed to be truly desperate.
Yi Ruda continued, “It’s not really what you think. It’s that… anyway, you’re getting it wrong.”
“True. It’s not what you think.”

They looked so serious in trying to emphasize their words that it made my jaw drop out of perplexity. ‘I
mean, what are they thinking about me?’
Let’s clarify this out. Earlier, Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda roared at each other; however, they
successfully made out enthusiastically. Isn’t this obvious that they are the couple-to-be in a web novel?
Law of the Web Novel Article 9. In the novel, the female protagonist would end up as a couple with the
person she first kissed. The first guy she made out with was the real protagonist and the other guys in the
novel were all there to serve supporting roles.
To specify what a supporting role is… it’s a guy who becomes tearful when the female protagonist says,
‘I can’t say yes to you because my boyfriend and I will be in love for a century!’ He would then respond,
‘would you then come to me after a century…?’ and dreams of a romance in his next life.
I imagined how Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda would react afterward.
At first, Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda had quarreled, but after they made out, strange chemistry buds
between them…
Yoo Chun Young: You’re a boy… but why am I being so confused?
Yi Ruda: (Heart throbbing)
Yoo Chun Young: Let me hug you to figure out this feeling.
Yoo Chun Young would then hug Yi Ruda like a man. The tickly feelings filling his chest confirmed that
this was love.
Yoo Chun Young: I don’t care if you’re a guy!
Yi Ruda: I’m actually a girl.
Yoo Chun Young: What? Did you trick me? Do you know how much I agonized about this!? But… this
is good.
Yi Ruda: LOL
Yoo Chun Young: Let’s get married.
Yi Ruda: Ok
Oh, lord. This imagination of mine made me blush. Such thoughts made me cover my face out of
embarrassment.
I didn’t know why but Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda suddenly grabbed my hand. Yoo Chun Young then
asked me with a serious look.
“What are you thinking about right now?”
“It’s not what you think, for real!”
“Okay, okay… I understand it’s not what I think. I just dwelled on something else.”
My words brightened Yi Ruda’s face at last.
She repeatedly asked, “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, nothing’s going on between you guys.”
‘Not yet… because these guys were at a shifting stage, from quarreling to budding, strange chemistry,’ I
thought with a nod.
Yi Ruda fetched a sigh then perched on the bed again. Beside him sat Yoo Chun Young, who crossed his
arms for the whole time.
He asked me, “Did you meet Kwon Eun Hyung outside?”
“Yeah, Eun Hyung told me to go with you today. Are the kids going somewhere?”
“…”
“I got a message from Ban Yeo Ryung, and it’s kind of weird.”
I took out my phone from the pocket. At that moment, Yoo Chun Young suddenly stretched out his hand
and grabbed my shoulder.
‘What the…’ When I blinked my eyes in surprise, Yoo Chun Young turned his head to Yi Ruda and
spoke in his usual dry and flat tone.
“Hey.”
“Why?”
Taking a few band-aids from the desk, Yi Ruda turned to look at this side. Her bright blond hair dazzled
my eyes. Yoo Chun Young, however, said in a calm voice that did not contain any agitated feelings.
“Leave the room. We have something to talk about.”
“Hmm, really?”
Yi Ruda’s blue eyes, that were wandering around Yoo Chun Young’s face, soon directed at me. It was
somehow an odd glance that looked soft but blade-like sharp at the same time.
The moment I felt his gaze continued quite longer, she then took off her eyes from me and lifted her head.
She stared at Yoo Chun Young and spoke.
“Think about who was the most desperate.”
“…”
Yoo Chun Young’s face turned serious, whereas Yi Ruda looked much more lighthearted than before.
She raised her hand to tap his shoulder before leaving the room. I repeated Yi Ruda’s remark inside my
head and stared at Yoo Chun Young’s profile face.
‘Did you… already become so desperate about Yi Ruda? Although it’s fate, aren’t you guys moving too
fast?’
As if he noticed my gaze, Yoo Chun Young faced me in a flash then asked me, “What?”
“No,” I responded shortly while turning my head.
Perching on the bed, Yoo Chun Young stared at me while sitting on a chair across from him.
We remained silent for a while. ‘Hmm…’ I dropped my gaze on the floor. When I got to think about the
current situation, I did something wrong anyway.
Didn’t Yoo Chun Young send me a threatening text of ‘dump truck’ when I hid the car accident that
happened to me?
While I fixed my gaze at the floor out of embarrassment, Yoo Chun Young broke the ice.
“I believe in the words… ignorance is bliss.”

“What?”
“Sometimes, ignoring the truth becomes bliss, so… If it’s a problem that we can’t solve, then there’s no
need to talk about it, but if we can, then tell it to us. That’s all I wanted to say.”
“…”
I clenched my fist tightly with no words. Chun Young and the other kids, who tried to share my concerns,
were truly thankful. As much as I liked and cared about them, I didn’t want to bother them at the same
time. That was why I couldn’t tell them the truth.
While I put a faint smile with a short sigh, Yoo Chun Young’s voice came over from across. Instead of
talking to me, it sounded like he was murmuring to himself.
“Why was it supposed to be us?”
I raised my head in surprise. The gloomy energy that accompanied his voice was something out of the
common. I never heard such a voice like that from him.
Yoo Chun Young heaved a sigh then lifted his eyes to see me. He didn’t look angry at all. It wasn’t that
tearful, but he just looked at me with a melancholic face.
“Have you ever wondered why the people who vanish away from this world… is no one else but us?”
“…”
“Why is it so hard for us to live normally in this world? Why should it be us?”
As soon as he finished his speech, Yoo Chun Young slowly sighed. His blue eyes that were under his
long lashes cooled off as low as it could get. I opened my mouth but closed it again.
The reason those who vanish away from this world was no one else but these guys, the Four Heavenly
Kings and Ban Yeo Ryung… I knew why.
Because they were all characters inside a novel, those who shouldn’t exist in my reality; however, I
couldn’t confess this to them. The moment I shut my mouth tightly, Yoo Chun Young continued his
words.
“They say ignorance is bliss, so I just said that because I’m feeling stuffy.”
“…”
“Why is everything so difficult for us?”

When Yoo Chun Young smiled after that, I could hardly smile back.
***
As Yi Ruda and Ham Donnie left the space one after another, the whole nurse’s office submerged into
dark silence. Yoo Chun Young, whom they left alone, sat on the bed and fell into thought then he took out
the phone from his pocket.
He opened the flip phone and checked his inbox. There he saw the texts he shared with Woo Jooin in the
middle of the night a few days ago.
Sent by: Woo Jooin
When Yeo Ryung disappeared, mama said she checked her phone. Nothing was changed. Yeo Ryung’s
name was there, so was her phone number, but why did Donnie try to call us immediately for a
confirmation? She never said she did that to others.
Sent by: Woo Jooin
Because we are the closest around? When she said that Yeo Ryung slept in Donnie’s living room, it
means her parents weren’t at home. Instead of calling her parents, why did Donnie think about us and
make a call? It’s strange.
Sent by: Woo Jooin
Mama knows something, a common ground that ties Ban Yeo Ryung and us.
Yoo Chun Young dropped his gaze at the floor for quite a while. He heaved a sigh and closed the phone
with a slam. He then put it back into his pocket.
Ignorance is bliss… Chun Young knew what it meant from his experience; however, he couldn’t bear the
anxiety inside him.
‘I failed to find out the answer from Ham Donnie, eventually…’ Yoo Chun Young murmured with his
eyes dropped to the floor. He didn’t expect her to respond easily. Another sigh burst out through his lips.
The truth that Ham Donnie was hiding… maybe everything existed behind that. The reason the world
changed and why they were vanishing away… The answers might be hiding inside the truth that Donnie
tried to conceal.
Yoo Chun Young swept back his blue-black hair with a short sigh. He only hoped for just one thing. That
the world would remain as it is, with no changes and no disappearances. This was all he wished for now.
Article 10. That Person Is Perhaps… the Legendary Number 0?

Sun Jin High School was famous for its large schoolyard and the empty lot, larger than the schoolyard,
behind it. Surprisingly, this school had a large vacant lot covered with gray concrete, way bigger than the
artificially turfed schoolyard. High walls, which were useful to have in a group fight, surrounded the lot.
When people asked the students for the reason why the empty lot existed, a few kids replied, “Well,
maybe the board president made it for them to have a group fight?” asserting the board president as a
devotee of group fights. Other kids addressed, “The school doesn’t have specific plans. They might have
just bought the property and built the buildings roughly,” claiming that the founder had no idea.
For whatever reason it was, Sun Jin High School’s empty lot achieved fame for a group fight-attraction.
Those who walked across the lot, with heroic looks on their faces as the dusk deepened, were indeed the
ones getting ready for a fight.
Three shadows stretched long over the burning sun. It was Woo San, who was walking in the middle with
a naughty face, and his right-hand man and left hand-man, Hwang Hae and Suh Jin Woon.
The kids leaving the school glanced at them in fear and admiration. Woo San was, however, absorbed in
his phone call. To be precise, he was sending a lovely gaze at the phone he was speaking over. As the call
kept on, Hwang Hae and Suh Jin Woon’s faces showed a sign of annoyance.
“Yeah, Jooin. Don’t worry. Bro is with you and will handle everything for ya~”
As soon as he put a silly accent at the end of the sentence, he received some reactions from both sides.
Hwang Hae said while covering his mouth, “Yuck, sh*t!”
“Eww!” Suh Jin Woon retched in disgust. Both looked pale, which made them think they could die before
the fight by consuming their strengths from having the dry heaves. It turned out that it was not so
different in real life.
Chapter 100: Chapter 10.
If possible, Suh Jin Woon wished to beat up Woo San as much as he could and hang him on the rooftop.
When he tried to retrieve his strength while looking blankly at Woo San, his gaze then moved to
something Woo San was hugging from a while ago.
He said, “Dude, stop talking on the phone. I think I asked you, like, 50 times a while ago. Hey, are you
listening?”
“Yeah, Jooin. Oh, of course, I’m your number one bro. Hey, is Rinara the best or am I the best?” Woo
San was, again, saying some bull shits over the phone.
‘Are my words that useless?’ Suh Jin Woon voiced out in anger.
“Holy sh*t! Would you listen if someone’s speaking? Is Woo Jooin the only human in your eyes and are
we are all just a piece of sh*t?”
“What?”
Woo San, at last, took his eyes off the phone and stared at him slowly.
Suh Jin Woon stretched his hand to grab the broom that Woo San held in his arms from a while ago. It
made Woo San yell out in surprise.
“What is wrong with you? Why are you touching my broom?”
“Isn’t this made of a shrubby bush clover? The huge broom that grannies use in the countryside to sweep
the yard.”
Suh Jin Woon was right. The broom Woo San had in his arms was so big that it reached over 150cm long.
The overall volume also looked tremendous.
‘Where did he get this scary broomstick, and why did he bring it here?’
Regardless of Suh Jin Woon and Hwang Hae’s bewildered feeling, Woo San patted his broom as if it
looked pretty to him. He then responded with a bright smile on his face that received compliments for its
adorable look.
“Isn’t my broomstick so gorgeous?”
“F*cking mad… I’ll understand if you carry an umbrella just like your name implies, but what’s up with
the broomstick? Do you want to change your name to Woo Broom?”
“Was that a joke? Do you want to get beaten up with this?”
When Woo San held up the broom with a smile, Hwang Hae soon stepped back as if he felt dejected.
Looking at the two, Suh Jin Woon fetched a short sigh and spoke to Woo San.
“Okay, let’s say I understand the fact that you’ve brought a broomstick here, but man… this is a group
fight. Would you please leave that somewhere now?”
“Nope.”
“You, crazy bastard! It’s humiliating, so get that thing out!” As if he felt stuffie with the unnegotiable
Woo San, Hwang Hae increased his voice at last. Woo San frowned his light-brown eyes then turned his
head to see Suh Jin Woon while holding the broom tightly in his arms.
Suh Jin Woon shook his head while saying no. Woo San pouted his lips before responding.
“No~ I can’t. I’m participating in a quidditch game tomorrow.”
“…”
“…”
A chilly wind, blown from somewhere, swept through their hair.
Suh Jin Woon and Hwang Hae opened their mouths wide from after feeling dumbfounded. ‘What did this
crazy asshole say right now?’ ‘I have no idea, dude.’ While they shared a conversation through their
gazes, both soon fetched a sigh. ‘Yeah, Woo San surely deserves his fame of being such a dork.’
A moment after, Suh Jin Woon said, “Go get him a shopping cart. Let him take a ride to smash on
platform 9 ¾.”
Hwang Hae put in a helping word, “Yeah, try to smash as harshly as he can.”
“The belief of passing through the platform is the key.”
While listening to Suh Jin Woon and Hwang Hae’s friendly chat, Woo San’s face soon turned apathetic,
which made him throw the broomstick on the ground. Instead of being obsessed with the broom itself, he
was enjoying Suh Jin Woon and Hwang Hae’s roaring reaction toward him.
Looking at the broom thrown on the ground, Woo San muttered, “Son of b*tches… not accepting my
joke.”
‘Do you think your joke is acceptable?’ When Suh Jin Woon and Hwang Hae tried to ask that, someone
over the phone burst out laughing. No wonder it was Woo Jooin who was sharing a cheesy conversation
with Woo San until a minute ago.
Suh Jin Woon scratched his cheek. He didn’t like it when Woo Jooin talked on the phone, like, forever
with Woo San, but strangely, listening to the sound of him laughing was never hateful.
It even felt like having a little brother like Jooin would not be that bad. Just by listening to his voice made
Suh Jin Woon cheer up, a great talent that Woo Jooin had. He could understand the reason why Woo San
loved his brother, Jooin.
Woo Jooin soon stopped laughing. He continued his words but hardly suppressed the laughter coming out
intermittently.
“Bro, I want to be that, the owl. I want to be the owl.”
Woo San’s face turned bright immediately. He held the phone up firmly.
“Why?”
“To go to school with you.”
“Oh, my lovely little bro.”
Hwang Hae, who was listening to their ongoing chat, slowly opened his mouth. He said in a blasé tone.
“I’ll be Lord Voldemort then.”
“What’s up with you now?” Woo San said with an uncomfortable look to show how unpleasant he felt for
Hwang Hae intervening in their conversation.
Hwang Hae replied nonchalantly, “He’s the one who kills the main character, right? Because I want to
kill you.”
“…”
“Get some anabada-cadabra!” Hwang Hae shot his last remark gallantly to Woo San, who became at a
loss of words. Suh Jin Woon thought, ‘although Hwang Hae talks abruptly, he wasn’t this bad… Perhaps,
Woo San has aggravated him too much…’
While Suh Jin Woon nodded with these thoughts in mind, he saw a group of people walking across the
vacant lot from far apart.
With the high wall and the burning twilight behind, the shadows approaching this side stretched farther
like a nightmare.
The group consisted of at least twenty people. ‘The sophomores of So Hyun High School are here.’ The
one who led the group was, surprisingly, not Hwang Siwoo, just as what Woo Jooin said before.
When the temporary sophomore leader walked toward this side, Woo San suddenly burst out a giggle. His
unexpected and weird laugh surprised Suh Jin Woon as he turned his head to him.
Woo San was laughing like crazy as if he heard a funny joke. He then gathered back his senses and spoke
to Hwang Hae.
“It’s abracadabra, not anabada! Are you trying to reduce, reuse, and recycle? Bahaha!”
“Oh, shoot!” Hwang Hae replied shortly. He then became speechless while hiding his face in both his
hands out of embarrassment. Suh Jin Woon, who was staring at them, soon turned his head and found out
the temporary sophomore leader gazing at him in silence.
Suh Jin Woon opened his mouth involuntarily, “I hang out with these idiots, but I’m not an idiot.”
“What?”
“Please remind me that they are the only idiots.”
In the back, Woo San was still teasing Hwang Hae with a full smile on his lips.
“Bahahaha, get my anabada-cadabra! Hahaha!”
“Oh, Woo San you son of a b*tch!”
“It’s true that they are the only idiots here. Don’t think I’m the same.”
The sophomore showed a sign of perplexity as Suh Jin Woon kept on with his excuse. His straightly
lifted, waxed hair sparkled red under the setting sun.
Suh Jin Woon asked, “So, where’s Hwang Siwoo? Why isn’t he here?”
“Well, you’re gonna remember the name ‘Kim Hyun’ instead of Hwang Siwoo.”
Kim Hyun then put on a twisted smile at Suh Jin Woon. Most of the So Hyun High School sophomores
also had a confident look on their faces.
It was reasonable for them to have that reaction since there were only three Sun Jin High School students
left in the vacant lot. Suh Jin Woon, Hwang Hae, and Woo San were those three who came out to fight.
Compared to them, the group had an advantage since there’s 20 of them.
Suh Jin Woon, however, displayed no sign of fear on his face but turned his head to look at those who
were chilling around on his back.
He asked, “Kim Hyun? Hey, Woo San, have you heard that name?”
“Nope!”
“See?” Suh Jin Woon replied with a smile. He then saw a sudden kick from his peripheral vision, but he
simply avoided it. He stretched out his hand in a flash and twisted the leg immediately.
With a painful shriek, Kim Hyun’s body collapsed to the ground. Suh Jin Woon then pulled him by the
collar and punched him in the face. He then knocked Kim Hyun down.
The fight was over within a few seconds. Everyone at the lot, who wasn’t ready yet for the brawl, looked
at each other in surprise. A faint tension flashed across their eyes. Sun Jin High School kids were tough
opponents.
However, there were only three of them. With that thought in mind, the group of boys looked around, Suh
Jin Woon was rubbing down the back of his neck in a straight face; Hwang Hae was throwing a sneer to
their side; Woo San was chatting on the phone while holding it between his ear and shoulder. Soon, the
group of boys burst cries of outrage.
“Fu*k, beat them up!”
“There’s only three of them!”
The group fight began with those battle cries. So Hyun High School kids sprung out at the three boys with
horrible shrieks.
Meanwhile, Hwang Siwoo was sweeping his hair out of anxiety. He was standing in front of the platform
which was close to the empty lot. Inside his head, the scenes of himself confessing his affection towards
Ban Yeo Ryung after school and getting knocked down by the Four Heavenly Kings hovered around.
‘Son of a bi*ch,’ Hwang Siwoo bit his lips. He was still at a nonplus when thinking about that time.
‘How caddish were they to surround and deal with a single person… That is why they defeated me like
that without keeping my head up!’
After that happened, Hwang Siwoo and a group of boys gathered around the school entrance and attacked
the Four Heavenly Kings, which turned out to be a horribly failed attempt. They even ran into Ban Yeo
Ryung’s friends at the intersection in front of the supermarket chain, but again, a boy named Kwon Eun
Hyung knocked them down terribly. These memories were, however, erased in Hwang Siwoo’s mind.
What existed inside his head was how that Kwon Eun Hyung had no respect as a freshman and a fu*king
bastard with no basic groundings as a human being. He only knew how to gang up on someone. These
were the only things Hwang Siwoo had in mind.
He heard about a girl who almost died while being involved in that incident. ‘But what does it have to do
with me? I didn’t come out in front; it was my henchman’s mistake. She didn’t die or get injured
eventually but came to school as usual. Everything’s okay, then.’ Hwang Siwoo decided to think like that.
As if the examples he showed had worked a little, Ban Yeo Ryung, at last, reached him back today.
Sweeping his hair again in anxiety, Hwang Siwoo opened his flip phone. He read the text over ten times.
Sent by: 010-xxxx-xxxx
Hi, Siwoo sunbae, I’m Yeo Ryung. After treating you like that, I went through so many things lately and
thought I misbehaved to you. It seems to be an honor for me to be your crush, so please accept my
apologies for behaving like that. If you still have a good feeling toward me, I’d like to go out with you. If
you do, please come to the platform at Sun Jin High School at 6 pm. I’ll be waiting for you then.
Hwang Siwoo, who slowly went over the text, had put a smile on his lips. He then closed his phone and
shoved it into the pocket.
He murmured, “Yeah, you should have behaved like this to avoid any hassle that day. You bitch
awakened to the fullest of your mind at last.”
Hwang Siwoo recalled Ban Yeo Ryung’s face that he saw a few days ago inside the classroom where
burning twilight shone over the window. The backlight was too strong for him to see her appearance, but
he clearly remembered her dropped long lashes, shiny lips, and the pale purple eyes gazing at him.
Ban Yeo Ryung’s long black hair that waved along with her moves also came across his mind. She
looked insanely gorgeous. Although she lived up to her looks, her message seemed to have resolved
things.
‘Why can’t a person understand even when they talked nicely? If she behaved well from the beginning,
her friend wouldn’t have faced such a thing.’ It was at that moment when Hwang Siwoo had those
thoughts while patting his chin.
There was a figure walking across the schoolyard. A long black hair and a slender silhouette at a glance…
Hwang Siwoo grinned with satisfaction. His eyes, however, opened wide suddenly.
Someone was next to Ban Yeo Ryung. ‘That bastard is…’ Hwang Siwoo’s face stiffened immediately. It
was Kwon Eun Hyung!!
The red hair that was shining like a flame under the sunset and the green eyes glaring below it had an icy
cold atmosphere. It looked different from what Hwang Siwoo had seen before.
Maybe he should call it a thirst for blood. Kwon Eun Hyung, who was walking toward Hwang Siwoo
against the sunset, seemed like the angel of death.
‘Bi*ch!!’ Hwang Siwoo looked at Ban Yeo Ryung in anger and, at the same time, Kwon Eun Hyung’s
calm and low voice rang around his ears.
“Don’t even say a word.”

“What?”
“You will not make her ears rot with your words. Never let things happen from outside of your
responsibility.”
With that said, Kwon Eun Hyung showed a refreshing smile at Hwang Siwoo. He strangely feared it more
than the psychopath murderer he saw in a movie. Kwon Eun Hyung, who was lifting a guy way bigger
than himself, came across Hwang Siwoo’s mind like a scene in a movie.
‘No…’ Hwang Siwoo murmured while suppressing his urge to leave. ‘Regardless of his fighting skills,
over twenty of our kids gathered here in this schoolyard.’
According to the message he received just now, only three students greeted them. ‘3 vs 20? Then one
person should handle almost seven people at once. Even 1 vs 2 is a tough situation, so 1 vs 7 is
ridiculous!’
Hwang Siwoo kept on his thoughts with a sneer. ‘Sun Jin High School kids would have already fallen on
the ground right now; my group of twenty members would wait for me with only a few injuries.’
Once they finish the brawl and come over to this place, Kwon Eun Hyung must deal with, at least, ten of
them.
‘Cool!’ It was then when Hwang Siwoo tried to open his mouth in confidence.
A groovy melody rang around between them, Kwon Eun Hyung was standing in a correct posture;
Hwang Siwoo was staring at him.
Bam bam bababa bam, beat them up~
The rap song ‘Monster’ had the usual thick intonation that a rapper has while putting emphasis on the
‘beat them up’ part with a heavy accent.
While Hwang Siwoo became dumbstruck, Kwon Eun Hyung took out his phone from his pocket. He still
had a bright grin on his face.
He said, “Oh, I’m sorry. I like Drunken Tiger, so I had to wait for this call.”
“What?”
“Oh, San hyeong. Yeah… yeah, all done? Really?”
There wasn’t much conversation between them, but Kwon Eun Hyung nodded his head as if he
understood what the person on the other side of the phone said. He then suddenly stretched out his hand
to give the phone to Hwang Siwoo. ‘What the…’ Hwang Siwoo took the phone from Eun Hyung’s hands
and place it on his ear involuntarily.
At the very next moment, the voice coming through the phone struck Hwang Siwoo dumb.
“Oh, my~ Siwoo oppa~”
He was beyond surprised. Hwang Siwoo got so flabbergasted that he was about to throw the phone away.
A guy was imitating a child’s voice with his thick masculine voice, which was enough to make Hwang
Siwoo tongue-tie.
Although he felt thunderstruck, Hwang Siwoo luckily didn’t drop the phone. He soon gathered his senses
then yelled out.
“F… fu*k! Who the fu*k are you!!”
The voice over the phone was still soft and shameless. He kept his voice with no hesitation and continued
his words.
“Oh my~ I am a fan of you, Hwang Siwoo oppa~ I fu*king waited to see you so much. Oppa, where are
you? We should meet now!” A puking sound and some swear words came from somewhere far at the
other side of the call faintly–
“What… Fu*k!?”
It was then when Hwang Siwoo tried to hang up the phone in perplexity. The voice over the phone
suddenly grew frigid.
“Oh, you’re not really gonna answer, are you? No, you don’t have to. I know where you are.”
“What?”
“You’re at the platform in our school, right? Hey, come over here ASAP. Many people are waiting for
you here. Dude, count them. How many are they?”
“Exactly twenty-three,” someone responded in an apathetic voice from the other side of the call–
“Hey, twenty-three people are waiting for you, got it? Twenty-three people waiting for 5-minutes each
equals to a total of 115 minutes.”
‘Twenty-three?’ While losing himself in confusion, Hwang Siwoo used his brain to understand roughly
that it was the same number of people he sent to Sun Jin High School for a brawl.
‘Then… then they are…!’ Hwang Siwoo, at last, realized what happened.
He yelled in shock, “Are you the guys from Sun Jin High School?!”
“Yey, correct. Oppa, you’re just as stupid as I’ve heard. My type LOL–”
“I’m really gonna kill you,” a calm voice roared from the side–
Hwang Siwoo’s jaw dropped after having a ludicrous feeling at the overall situation. How could a group
of twenty-three people lose against only three people? Before Hwang Siwoo repeated the thought in
mind, Eun Hyung snatched the phone back and said a few words on the phone.
While they made a short conversation through the call, Ban Yeo Ryung fixed her shiny black eyes under
her long black lashes serenely at Hwang Siwoo.
Captivated by her beauty, Hwang Siwoo didn’t realize until now that her face looked stiff as a statue. At
first, he thought she just had a blank face, but now, it looked furious one way or another. When he noticed
that, Hwang Siwoo came up with the thought that he might have taken a wrong path before he even knew
it.
Perhaps, he took a shortcut to the stairway to hell…
Before Hwang Siwoo tried to say something, Eun Hyung stepped closer to him with a smile.
He said, “Siwoo sunbae, twenty-three people are waiting for you.”
“You… you bastard! You always try to gang up on someone, so this time you brought Sun Jin High
School kids!”
“Aren’t you going to take them?” Lifting his eyes frigidly, Kwon Eun Hyung interrupted Hwang Siwoo’s
words. Hwang Siwoo gasped while biting his lips then finally decided to head to the vacant lot quietly.
Ban Yeo Ryung followed the boys with a stiffened face.
Hwang Siwoo thought, ‘Instead of here, it would be better to do something where there are twenty-three
of my guys.’ Until now, he denied the fact that the chance for him winning a 1:1 battle with Kwon Eun
Hyung was likely to be zero. He now knew that it was true.
***
The board president’s office fell into silence after school. The person leaning comfortably on the
president’s leather chair was not a middle-aged bald man.
He was even a young boy in a school uniform, probably around twenty at best.
It wasn’t hard to guess his name, Eun Kyum, the cousin of the board president and the captain of So Hyun
High School.
He liked to contemplate alone after school. To be precise, he was continuously thinking about some
trivial things inside his head.
The happening during the last winter break came across his mind. It made Eun Kyum furrow his brows.
Recalling that time was still a pain in his ass.
She was such a beauty, hardly seen in TV shows or movies and even throughout his entire life. Unless the
girl, who was along with her like a maid, didn’t interrupt him, he could have gotten the beauty’s phone
number and maybe they could have made a good relationship.
‘No… If that red-haired boy didn’t show up and beat us to death…’ It was when Eun Kyum gnashed his
teeth in a rage. Someone dashed into the board president’s office out of the blue.
Eun Kyum lifted his head in a flash. The office was dark with the lights turned off, which made it hard for
him to see the stranger’s appearance.
Through the dim light from the window, there stood a person with a narrow jawline along with slender
arms and shoulders. The brown hair on the person’s head and the school uniform the person wore looked
messy as if the person rushed to this place in a hurry. He could barely see the stranger’s name tag but a
person who could intrude this office would likely be a member of the school gang.
The stranger’s face looked quite familiar that Eun Kyum considered if the person was a freshman. As
soon as he had that thought in mind, the stranger called his name.
“Eun Kyum sunbae!”
The stranger, who called his name with a gaze, had adorable golden eyes. ‘It would have been better if he
was a girl…’ Eun Kyum thought while heaving a sigh.
He asked, “What’s up?”
“Sun Jin High School kids and the sophomores in our school picked a fight!!! They are having a brawl at
the vacant lot!”
“I know that,” Eun Kyum replied apathetically.
‘Who does he think I am? Is he considering that I don’t have that much information as a school captain?’
His continued words, however, surprised Eun Kyum.
“They already lost.”

“What? I heard that they began to fight at 6 pm.”
Eun Kyum saw the clock in surprise, which turned out to be only 10 minutes past 6 pm. As if he found it
difficult to breathe, the boy gasped harshly and kept on his remark.
“Sun Jin High School bastards got big-headed after defeating us and bluffed that our school captain is
also a piece of cake to them…”
“Huh??”
“They said that it’s just a matter of time for them to take over the rank of 72nd place. Hwang Siwoo
sunbae blamed himself for staining your reputation. He wants revenge, but he doesn’t think he’s strong
enough now…”
Eun Kyum grimaced this time. What they spoke about, which was taking over the 72nd place, directed at
Eun Kyum himself. ‘They are exactly aiming at me. What the fu*k!?’ Eun Kyum scratched his hair then
suddenly raised his head.
He said to the boy, “Are they still with those bastards in Sun Jin High School?”
“Yes, yes!”
“Geez…” Eun Kyum fetched a short sigh then took out his phone to press some buttons.
He put the jet-black uniform jacket placed on the sofa on his shoulders and strode out the office at a fast
pace.
“Oh, shoot! My motorcycle key!”
That was the last words the boy heard from Eun Kyum. He lifted his cold eyes to stare at the door where
Eun Kyum left in a hurry. He then slowly dropped his gaze and adjusted his uniform.
Shoving his hand into the tangled hair, he swept them back neatly and took out the phone right after.
When a familiar voice came over from the other side of the phone, he then let out his bright smile at last.
“How are you Jooin?”
“Yeah, he’s gonna go there by his motorcycle. You have 5 more minutes left to wait, hyeong.”
Looking up in the air, Woo Jooin reminisced the fact that he knew about Eun Kyum.
Eun Kyum usually hung around with a group of seven boys, including himself, so those who spoke
through the phone just now would be those six boys. Jooin expected that he would never be there alone,
anyway.
Woo Jooin fetched a low sigh and smiled. The key to this plan was Kwon Eun Hyung’s fighting skills.
Yesterday, Woo Jooin asked Kwon Eun Hyung, “Eun Hyung, can you beat everyone in Eun Kyum’s
gang? It’s 1 vs 7, so if you can’t really make it, I’ll try to make them come over one by one.”
“No, you don’t have to.”
“Don’t push yourself too much.”
Yoo Chun Young replied with a concerned look, but Kwon Eun Hyung smiled shortly instead of
addressing what they said. He fixed his gaze at Eun Kyum’s photos that they spread on Woo Jooin’s desk.
Eun Hyung’s smile looked strange somehow, which made Jooin ask in wonder, “Why?”
“Oh, Jooin. Please don’t worry,” with that said, Eun Hyung grinned softly yet firmly while gently
bending his greenish eyes. He then continued, “Because I’ve already fought and won before.”
***
When it became dark in the evening, a chilly wind blew around the vacant lot. The dry breeze that
accompanied the sand dust of the schoolyard made a few guys furrow their brows.
Exactly, only three boys frowned their eyes. Those, who stood confidently like a king in the middle of the
twenty-three knocked down boys, were no one else but Woo San, Hwang Hae, and Suh Jin Woon.
“…” Hwang Siwoo drew in his breath.
He had already heard that they defeated his boys, but he never expected that his group would lose against
them this much horribly. All he could think of was that once he was here, he could help others to proceed
with the second round.
‘How could only three people completely defeat all of my twenty-three boys?’ Hwang Siwoo had this
thought in mind, which hardly made him imagine that the trio of Sun Jin High School was that much
monstrous.
“Hey, you guys…”
Barely holding their consciousness, those who scattered on the ground moaned in pain.
“Sorry…”
“They are so strong…”
Hwang Siwoo, whose jaw dropped in perplexity, heard Kwon Eun Hyung’s refreshing voice from behind.
“Then choose one from them.”
“Wh… wha…. What???” Being so dumbstruck, Hwang Siwoo could hardly respond. It made Woo San,
Hwang Hae, and Suh Jin Woon giggle one after another.
“Wow, oppa also has a speech disorder. You’re truly my type~!”
“Would you stop that oppa sh*t?”
“He’s bad at fighting, talking… what are you even good at?”
‘Those fu*king bastards!’ Hwang Siwoo couldn’t control his rage but soon realized he should first
ingratiate them. While Hwang Siwoo bit his lips at a loss of words, Kwon Eun Hyung said to him again.
“I said choose one, come on.”
His voice turned colder than before. Hwang Siwoo quickly raised his head in surprise. Kwon Eun
Hyung’s half-opened green eyes, which was glaring like a beast inside the dim dark, were on Hwang
Siwoo himself. He felt his legs trembling.
‘Gosh, this bastard…’ Hwang Siwoo murmured to himself, ‘What the heck is he…?’
When he encountered him yesterday at the school entrance, he handled a group of seventeen boys alone.
Now he was with Sun Jin High School kids, who looked like they were at Kwon Eun Hyung’s service.
Hwang Siwoo never saw Kwon Eun Hyung at the ranking battle. How could he remain as a normal
student with that insane fighting skills?
It was unbelievable. Before Hwang Siwoo tried to say something while looking at his defeated boys,
Kwon Eun Hyung pressured him with a gentle voice.
“I’ve tolerated you long enough.”
“Wh… what?”
“I’m restraining my impatience to punch you, but now I’m reaching my limits. You should have been
careful about whom you offend,” Kwon Eun Hyung said with a warm smile which made Hwang Siwoo
swallow his breath in fear.
He responded, “Wh… at do you want? Who do you want me to pick?!”
Hwang Siwoo’s voice sounded like a scolding as he tried to conceal his fear. Still grinning, Kwon Eun
Hyung pointed the group of twenty-three boys with his chin.
“The one who attacked me at the Sung Sam apartment intersection.”
“What?”
“The one who pushed the girl to the road. Pick him from them.”
“…!”
Hwang Siwoo, at last, stepped back falteringly when he realized one thing. Until a moment ago, he
thought Kwon Eun Hyung reacted like that because Hwang Siwoo himself hurt Ban Yeo Ryung’s
feelings, but something seemed strange.
‘You should have been careful about who you offend.’
What Kwon Eun Hyung said earlier sounded like Hwang Siwoo had provoked his Achilles’ heel. He
would have not made such a remark just because Hwang Siwoo confessed his affections toward Ban Yeo
Ryung. Then the next thing that came across Hwang Siwoo’s mind in a flash was the thing that happened
at the crosswalk a few days ago.
“She… looked like she was calling the police, so I tried to snatch her phone and…! They didn’t seem to
know each other though.”
‘Yeah, it’s because of that… One of my boys, who attacked Kwon Eun Hyung, pushed an unrelated girl
to the crosswalk.’
With that thought in mind, Hwang Siwoo bit his lip so hard that it began to bleed. ‘They didn’t seem to
know each other…? What kind of bullshit is that! If it was true, then that bastard would have not grilled
me with that frightening face.’
Ban Yeo Ryung wasn’t the one he provoked. Their real Achilles’ heel was the girl. Hwang Siwoo
clenched his fist. He then heard Kwon Eun Hyung’s voice resonating around his ears.
“Come on.”
It was then when a chilly sandblast blew along with a vrooming sound of a motorcycle breaking the
silence. The sound came exactly from the schoolyard. ‘Motorcycle? Then…’ Hwang Siwoo’s face
brightened immediately.
He glanced across to check Kwon Eun Hyung’s face. He looked nonchalant as if he did not understand
what would happen soon. Even the loud engine sound of the motorcycle didn’t seem to further his mind.
‘Isn’t he an idiot?’ Hwang Siwoo yelled to himself.
‘You guys are all dead! Those riding seven motorcycles who were showing up at the schoolyard at this
timing would only be Eun Kyum’s gang of So Hyun High School!’
As if they all thought the same, those who remained collapsed on the ground soon looked rosy.
“It’s Eun Kyum sunbae!”
“Definitely!”
With a loud vrooming sound, the seven motorcycles raised a cloud of dust and stopped right in front of
the vacant lot.
A guy then took off the helmet, swept his hair, and walked toward this side.
Woo San mumbled, “Isn’t he Eun Kyum?”
Suh Jin Woon then asked back in a bitter tone, “Hey, aren’t you being too carefree?”
“What? Why should I overreact after seeing Eun Kyum?”
“Holy sh*t! The entirety of Eun Kyum’s gang showed up! What if we all lose against them?”
Hwang Hae’s urgent voice sounded as if he didn’t predict that Eun Kyum would appear in this place. It
made Hwang Siwoo grin with satisfaction.
Not only did Eun Kyum came, but all of his boys came as well. Compared to the seven boys, there were
only four of them: Hwang Hae, Suh Jin Woon, Woo San, and Kwon Eun Hyung. This was enough to
reverse the situation.
‘But…’ Hwang Siwoo grimaced as he realized something, ‘Where is Ban Yeo Ryung?’
While he gazed around in wonder, Eun Kyum, who walked toward Hwan Siwoo, slowly turned his head
to face Woo San. Eun Kyum’s eyes looked icy cold. Behind him, those who took off their helmets at once
stepped closer with a fast pace.
A cold wind, again, swept through them. While a strange tension hung around, Woo San and Eun Kyum
fixed their gazes at each other for a while.
It had been two months since Eun Kyum last saw Woo San again. As of now, he still showed no signs of
fear. His softly bent brown eyes were on Eun Kyum with a bright smile. His large monolid eyes looked
innocent like those of a child yet merciless at the same time.
With his head held high, Woo San displayed his confidence on his face. Eun Kyum didn’t like that look
and attitude for a long time. ‘Maybe we should bring an end to this now,’ he thought.
The one who first greeted the other was Woo San. He waved his hand with a full rich smile.
“Hi, long time no see.”
Eun Kyum pulled the corner of his lip upwards and asked in anger.
“I’m a senior and I have a higher rank than you, so why don’t you be politer?”
Still, with a refreshing smile, Woo San scratched his head and responded, “Haha, such a pussy.”
“What?”
“Honestly, Eun Kyum, you’re not really at the level where you should be the one asking me for my
politeness.”
When Woo San asked him, “Are you?” with a wink, Eun Kyum nearly stomped out of the situation.
Hwang Siwoo, who yelled earlier to himself triumphantly the words ‘you guys are all dead,’ was about to
faint now.
‘How could Woo San be that confident? Doesn’t he have any fear or notion of assessing the situation?
Such a pussy? What a crazy ass…’
While Hwang Siwoo trembled in angst, Eun Kyum took off his gloves and pointed at the guys standing
behind him in line.
“Let me introduce them. They are the ‘Rainbow,’ who will knock you down.”
“…”
‘What the…?’
Kwon Eun Hyung blinked his eyes in wonder then stared at Woo San, who was asking something to
Hwang Hae just in time.
“What did he just say? A rainbow?”
“Didn’t you know that? Gangs in every grade have names.”
“Before getting beaten up, Kim Hyun introduced themselves as ‘Hwang Siwoo and the 23 Thieves.’
Don’t you remember?”
“Oh, really? I thought it was a joke, but why don’t we have one?”
Hwang Hae and Suh Jin Woon shared the same thought, ‘Because you will bring up something
ridiculous!’
As if he found the overall answer from the strange look on the two boys’ faces, Woo San turned sulky
and looked at Eun Kyum again.
He said, “We are RFK.”
“What?”
“Respectively, we are the Runner, the Flier, and the Knower. Nice to meet you, rainbows.”
‘Shoot, he truly made something weird…’ Hwang Hae and Suh Jin Woon both had their heads in their
hands out of frustration. Looking at the two, Eun Kyum fetched a sigh. He thought, ‘Why are these
bastards never serious?’ Lacking the sense to know the gravity of the situation was also the reason Eun
Kyum disliked Woo San. He braced himself with effort and responded to him.
“Okay, so it’s been a while since I took part in a ranking battle. 102nd place Woo San and 72nd place Eun
Kyum. If I lose, our ranking will be reversed.”
“Nope, I will not fight~”
“… Are you kidding me?”
While Eun Kyum tried hard to hold his temper, Woo San still looked carefree. He then glanced at his side
while pointing at someone. Kwon Eun Hyung, who stared at them with a bit of apathetic face,
straightened his posture and nodded shortly.
Eun Kyum narrowed his eyes to observe him. Kwon Eun Hyung’s face seemed invisible within the
darkness. Only his hair stood out red under the sunset. When Eun Kyum saw the warm green eyes under
the burning hair, he just froze like ice.
He knew that killing green eyes and so did the rainbows.

As if they successfully recalled the memories of that day, they all turned pale like those who saw a ghost.
When Eun Kyum tried to open his mouth, Kwon Eun Hyung greeted him refreshingly at the same time.
“Hi, we’ve met before.”
“…”
“I’m sorry that we’re always involved in bad situations, but I need something you have.”
When Kwon Eun Hyung smiled politely with that remark, Eun Kyum came to a thought.
‘What that bastard needs are hopefully not my eyeballs, any of my internal organs, or my heart.’
Hwang Siwoo and the collapsed boys blinked their eyes vacantly. They thought the situation was already
over when Eun Kyum showed up; however, they had no idea where things were heading toward right
now.
‘Why are the almighty rainbows turning pale like those who’ve seen a ghost in the daytime when they
saw Kwon Eun Hyung? Why are they stepping back when Kwon Eun Hyung is stepping forward?’
Looking at the change in their actions, Woo San burst out laughing, eventually. He grabbed his tummy
and giggled hard.
“Bahaha! Hey, Eun Kyum! What the hell are you doing?”
Listening to that laugh, Eun Kyum straightened himself as if he couldn’t back off. He thought, ‘What
happened last time can be a coincidence. Perhaps we’re not feeling well that day. I mean, to be honest,
does it make sense for one person to defeat seven guys?’ Murmuring to himself, Eun Kyum clenched his
fist. He then stomped out of the spot and pulled his fist while dashing toward his target.
Then, at the next moment…
The person, who fell onto the ground with a deadly sound, was someone they least expected.
“…”
Hwang Siwoo and the gangs’ jaws dropped. They, at last, realized that the other side planned something
crazy. At the vacant lot in Sun Jin High School, a battle took place under the sunset like a scene within an
action movie. Looking in front, they thought, ‘Did we just come at that guy? At those bastards?’
‘Did we try to knock him down? That bastard, who’s dealing with the almighty seven gang members like
a joke alone…’ Suddenly, Hwang Siwoo felt his fatigue seizing his body. He wanted to go home badly.
‘No, this isn’t the right time for this!’ Hwang Siwoo quickly turned his head. He saw a boy who barely
stood up and tried to get out of the vacant lot totteringly.
He yelled, “Hey, is that the asshole who pushed the girl? Get him!”
‘We should catch and hand him over to live!’
As if he heard that scream, the boy’s pace increased. ‘Holy shoot,’ Hwang Siwoo looked around the other
boys while biting his lips. They were all collapsed on the ground while lacking the strength to even get
up.
Hwang Siwoo began to run after him. It was, however, getting too dark, and he wasn’t sure if he could
catch him. Once he got out of school, there existed a possibility to miss him due to the complicated alleys
outside.
‘No…! When Kwon Eun Hyung, dealing with the seven boys with ease, learns that the boy ran away, he
can do whatever he wanted to me. That can’t happen!’ It was then when Hwang Siwoo reached out his
hand urgently.
***
“…”
Dae Lisa thought it was the first time for them to be silent for this long.
They were all gathered at the equipment room in Sun Jin High School, where they had a meeting before.
Even without the rays of the sunset pouring through the small window, the room was already brightly lit
with the lights open. Inside the space, they lined the chairs the same way they did before, and in the
middle, there sat a girl.
She had straight black hair and beautiful, slim, pale limbs. She had her head dropped to the ground to hide
the outline of her face, but her overall look was a piece of art.
Looking bewildered, Dae Lisa turned her head to check the guys around her. She then concluded,
‘They’re still unconscious’
‘I’m gonna send a person there, listen to her testimony, and decide the level of punishment to give.’
The message she received from Woo San lately was like that. He also added that the girl was close to the
victim who almost had a car accident, witnessed the incident right before her, and fully knew about the
victim’s wounded heart. According to the girl’s remark regarding the severity of the situation, they could
decide how much punishment they could conduct on the bastard.
They accepted Woo San’s suggestion insignificantly about a few minutes ago. Gong Haru, Gang Han,
Dae Lisa, and Kim Pyung Bum sat down at the recently gathered equipment room with apathetic faces
and arms crossed. At that moment, they heard a knock on the rusty door.
Dae Lisa said, “Come in.”
The first thing that appeared through the door was a straight, jet-black hair. ‘What a gorgeous hair,’ Dae
Lisa thought nonchalantly. The thin long white fingers that were grabbing the doorknob looked pathetic
somehow. When her eyes, at last, reached the girl’s face, Dae Lisa’s jaw dropped out of surprise.
The girl was unbelievably pretty. To explain how pretty she was, Dae Lisa never imagined that a girl with
such a beautiful face would exist in the world. Only a girl was standing in front, but the entire shabby and
somber room seemed to brighten up.
It was not only Dae Lisa who got dumbstruck. Gang Han, Gong Haru, and especially Kim Pyung Bum,
who didn’t have a girlfriend, became at a loss of words. They couldn’t even close their wide opened
mouth.
Her feather-like, delicate, soft brows and her transparently black eyes under them were on Dae Lisa.
Then, at the next moment, a glass bead-like tears fell from those silent black eyes. Dae Lisa felt the time it
took for the tears to fall on the floor was like forever.
“Help…”
“Of course!” Captivated by the girl’s beauty, Dae Lisa responded immediately. Beside her, Gang Han,
Gong Haru, and Kim Pyung Bum replied one after another, “What happened?” “Okay, just tell us,” “My
ears are fully opened for you.”
They were all serious. Tears truly were the most powerful and manipulative weapon one could wield.
***
A hand popped out from the side and seized the escaping boy by the back of his neck. Hwang Siwoo, who
was about to fetch a sigh of relief, felt thunderstruck. A boy with watercolor-like, rich, purple hair was
there; it was Gong Haru, the nationwide Number 2.
Hwang Siwoo heard of him as a character who hated to fight, but as soon as he saw Gong Haru’s
frighteningly grimacing face staring this side, Hwang Siwoo revised his mind.
‘He looks like he really loves fighting.’
Behind the terrifying Gong Haru, a few people gathered around; Hwang Siwoo thought that they looked
familiar. As a school gang member himself, Hwang Siwoo knew their faces very well.
It was Dae Lisa, Gang Han, and Kim Pyung Bum!
When he took a closer look, he saw that they were talking to someone whom they surrounded. He saw a
long straight jet-black hair in a glance, but he couldn’t see the person’s face at all. Maybe it’s a girl?
Dae Lisa said in an urgent look, “Don’t worry. Unnie will teach the bastards some lessons!”
“Yeah, no worries. Just believe this unnie and oppa. Oh, if anything happens again, would you like to call
me? Do you have a number?”
“Yeah, let me give you mine. Call me if something happens.”
Hwang Siwoo felt that he was about to blank out. ‘What is all that? Who the hell is she to make Dae Lisa,
Gang Han, Kim Pyung Bum, and the Number 2, Gong Haru, stick around her?’ As if he read Hwang
Siwoo’s thoughts, Gong Haru called his name.
“Hey! Did you just chase this bastard?”
“Ye… s, sir!”
“Take him,” Gong Haru said. He then trudged toward Hwang Siwoo and handed the boy over to him. The
boy looked as if he had given up everything. Hwang Siwoo scowled at the boy then raised his head to see
them.
The four fearsome people were still babbling something while surrounding a girl in the middle. ‘What
the… is there a pep rally for the school captains around here?’ Their voices were so loud that Hwang
Siwoo clearly heard their conversation.
“We should break them into pieces.”
“Definitely.”
“Don’t cry, just believe this unnie.”
“Believe oppa, too.”
Hwang Siwoo gave up identifying who the girl was.
As he went back to the lot while grabbing the boy’s neck, he knew that the situation was already over.
Woo San declared, “From now on, the 72nd rank is Kwon Eun Hyung.”
He had already knocked down the seven guys, and in the middle, there stood Kwon Eun Hyung, who was
dusting off his hands twice with a composed face. As if he went out for a morning walk, Kwon Eun
Hyung looked refreshed and warm just like before. It made Hwang Siwoo’s fear against him grow. He
then heard Woo San murmuring in a pale face.
“Wow, I can’t beat him.”
“What?” Hwang Hae asked back in surprise. Woo San still looked pale. He continued while shaking his
head.
“I can’t beat him. Where did my little brother find such a skilled fighter like him?”
“You can’t beat him? Are you kidding me?”
“Didn’t you see him fighting until now? He didn’t have any unnecessary or big and fancy movements. It
completely looked like an actual fight. He could never have such skill unless he fights every day,” Woo
San mumbled while staring at Kwon Eun Hyung with a pale face.
“What kind of life did he go through?”
“…”
While Hwang Hae and Suh Jin Woon stood still with flabbergasted faces, Kwon Eun Hyung suddenly
turned and faced Hwang Siwoo with a smile.
When Hwang Siwoo stepped back staggeringly in surprise, Kwon Eun Hyung spoke with a refreshing
grin.
“I’m now the 72nd rank.”
“Oh… ye… ah?”
“Hey, you.”
Kwon Eun Hyung stretched out his hand to point at the boy whom Hwang Siwoo was holding. Kwon Eun
Hyung glanced down at his nametag. ‘Kim Sa Hyuk.’ He knew that he was a freshman just by looking at
the color of the name tag.
Kim Sa Hyuk dropped his gaze at the ground with a pale face. Who might have known this event would
spiral out of control into this? When the girl fell on the road, it surprised him but he didn’t want to raise
her up. He just thought things were getting a little annoying. Fearing the responsibility he might take,
Kim Sa Hyuk left the spot with his members in a hurry. What if people made him stay there while he tried
to raise the girl up? He, therefore, escaped immediately from the troublesome situation that he caused.
He felt a little anxious while thinking, ‘What if… what if she’s really dead…?’
‘Well, but it’s okay since she’s alive, right? Although she might have been killed, I didn’t want to take
any responsibility, but…’
He never thought that such a thing could turn into something this big.
Kim Sa Hyuk looked up at Kwon Eun Hyung in full tension and waited for his words; however, what
came out from his mouth was something unexpected.
“If you fight with me and win, I’ll disregard that incident.”
“… What?”
His remark came out with no hesitation that it seemed unbelievable. ‘What? If I fight with him and win,
he would disregard the incident?’ Since he saw Kwon Eun Hyung fighting so far, he knew that he stood
no chance against him; however, it was a good deal for Kim Sa Hyuk to resolve the incident as if nothing
had happened.
Before he even noticed, Kim Sa Hyuk was already clenching his fist tightly.
Instead of saying nothing and just getting beaten while crouching down, it might be less humiliating and
less painful to fight against him. Hwang Siwoo, at the side, whispered in surprise.
“Hey, you crazy bastard. Do you think you can win?”
“…”
Kim Sa Hyuk refused to listen and did not stop clenching his hands.
Meanwhile, Kwon Eun Hyung was checking his phone as if he received a text.
The fights held in the ranking battle normally began with no starting signals, so was this fight; there was
no need to notify that it was beginning. ‘When Kwon Eun Hyung spat those words, the fight had already
begun!’ With that thought in mind, Kim Sa Hyuk threw a punch in a flash.
Hwang Siwoo stepped back while drawing in his breath. Those collapsed on the ground also had their
jaws dropped in surprise. While Woo San, Hwang Hae, Suh Jin Woon, and everyone in the lot remained
silent, Kwon Eun Hyung took his eyes off of the phone and turned his head. Then, at the same time, a
fierce punch stroke Kwon Eun Hyung’s cheek.
Pow!
Suddenly, there was a long pause as if time had stopped.
Kim Sa Hyuk dropped his gaze at his fist with shivers.
He punched his face, but the attack was so smooth and seamless that even he felt how unbelievable it was.
‘Hold on, did I really punch his face? That monstrous bastard?’
Kwon Eun Hyung rubbed his stinging cheek while staring at Kim Sa hyuk with his green eyes. He looked
quite surprised.
He then suddenly said, “Ow, it hurts… a lot.”
“…?”
“I lost.”
“…??”
“Now you’re the 72nd rank.”
“…???”
Feeling dumbfounded, Kim Sa Hyuk’s jaw dropped. ‘W… hat…’ The one who felt even more surprised
was Hwang Siwoo and the other gang members while looking at the whole situation. ‘Wait, Kim Sa Hyuk
beat Kwon Eun Hyung? He even got the 72nd rank because of it? What the heck is he talking about?’
Regardless of the confusing gazes around, Kwon Eun Hyung just walked out of the lot while touching his
cheek. ‘… Leaving? Is he… for real…?’ While everyone looked at Kwon Eun Hyung disappearing, new
guests showed up out of the blue.
Those who looked at the triumphant new faces soon struck dumb. ‘Holy Christ! Dae Lisa, Gang Han,
Gong Haru, and Kim Pyung Bum… why did they come all the way to this place? What would have
brought those top rankers here?’
While all eyes were upon them, Gong Haru, who scratched his dark purple hair, glanced at Woo San and
said, “Hey, is he somewhere among them?”
“Yup, it’s him,” Woo San nodded while pointing Kim Sa Hyuk, who stood still in the middle of the lot
blankly.
As soon as Kim Sa Hyuk raised his head after Woo San pointed at him, Gong Haru asked while fixing his
gaze at him.
“Hey, don’t you know the common law of school gangs? School gangs hang out with only other school
gangs. You should never threaten an outsider kid’s life. Don’t you know that?”
Kim Sa Hyuk became at a loss of words with a pale face. Gong Haru glanced around then continued his
words.
“You almost killed a girl by pushing her to the road, right? A dump truck nearly squeezed her to death.
Her friend just stopped by. She burst into tears while testifying that in surprise until now. Many of you
forget that common law lately, so we would like to give an example of what happens if you break it.”
“Hey, what’s your rank?” Dae Lisa, who was listening to Gong Haru’s words while standing behind him,
asked abruptly.
The higher the rank, the stronger the punishment. Regardless of that, they were about to beat him up to
death since Ban Yeo Ryung’s tears affected them so much.
While Kim Sa Hyuk remained silent, Woo San responded out of the blue, “72nd.”
“Oh, really? Much higher than I thought, but doesn’t it belong to Eun Kyum?”
“He’s now the 72nd. Isn’t that right, witnesses?” Woo San, who answered back to Dae Lisa, smiled at the
collapsed boys. Hwang Siwoo and the groups of other gangs, at last, realized what was going on.
‘I see. Everything about him, getting punched to his rank changing, was so strange, but that was why…!’
Twisting her neck to the side with a cracking sound, Dae Lisa lifted her fist. She then spoke with a glare
in her jet-black eyes.
“Like master, like man. The higher the rank, the better the example, am I right?” She smiled.
“Are you ready to get punished for attempting such a crime with a high rank of 72nd place?”
When she finished her remark, the Number 2 Gong Haru, Gang Han, Kim Pyung Bum, and those who
stood behind him, all stepped forward. Their eyes, engraved with Ban Yeo Ryung’s sorrowful tears, were
all glaring with a thirst for blood.
Kim Sa Hyuk’s face turned pale like a sheet of paper while looking at them getting closer to him without
any expression. Hwang Hae, who looked at the situation, opened his mouth.
“Hey, the last time I asked you if your little brother is actually very scary, didn’t you say no?”
“Uh-huh.”
“How can you say that after all these?”

Woo San looked around. There were twenty-three boys who remained collapsed on the ground with the
addition of the seven boys, while Hwang Siwoo was standing far from them and Kim Sa Hyuk, who was
beaten to death, was among them. He then seemed to start wondering for a moment but smiled shyly
because of whatever he was thinking.
He then said, “Hmm… I think I forgot the word ‘smart’ after the adjectives cute, lovely, and adorable.”
Hwang Hae and Suh Jin Woon looked as if they were about to throw up immediately.
***
He saw her leaning on the school entrance with her long black hair. Outside the school, the streets were
covered with a veil of darkness. Kwon Eun Hyung called her in a loud voice.
“Yeo Ryung, how was it?”
As if she sensed his presence, Ban Yeo Ryung turned her head to see him; however, she looked quite
empty.
Kwon Eun Hyung asked in wonder, “Wh… at’s up?”
“Eun Hyung…” She spoke with a sad face.
“What’s wrong?” Kwon Eun Hyung patted her head while waiting for her response. What she said was,
however, ludicrous.
“I’m so upset. I wanted to smash him with my hand at least once.”
“What?” Kwon Eun Hyung opened his mouth a little but soon burst out laughing.
“Those unnie and oppas think I’m very soft and weak. They kept taking their padded jackets for me as if I
were feeling cold, so I did nothing. Oh, I’m so upset. I couldn’t come forward to hit him at that moment.
Geez…”
Ban Yeo Ryung swept back her hair while heaving a sigh. It made Kwon Eun Hyung laugh again. He
then walked together with Ban Yeo Ryung.
She asked, “Are you okay with the punch? It looked painful.”
“Oh, well…”
Based on Eun Hyung’s standard, this wasn’t even a punch. Ban Yeo Ryung also knew that well, so
although she glanced at him in concern, she soon looked relieved.
Kwon Eun Hyung took out his phone and checked the message.
Sent by: Woo Jooin
Sorry,,, looks painful,,,,really sorry,,,
Kwon Eun Hyung smiled shortly then moved his finger to type a response.
To: Woo Jooin
You didn’t punch me, so why are you the one asking for forgiveness? All’s well that ends well, right?
After he pressed the send button, Kwon Eun Hyung put his phone inside his pocket with a smile. He then
thought, ‘Everything went according to Woo Jooin’s plan.’
He defeated Eun Kyum and the rainbows alone in front of Hwang Siwoo and the twenty-three thieves.
Unless they go crazy, they wouldn’t attack Kwon Eun Hyung anymore. From this experience, they would
also not irritate Ban Yeo Ryung too; Ham Donnie would also stop encountering any dangerous situations.
When he recalled Ham Donnie’s sad face while supporting his body, Kwon Eun Hyung fetched a short
sigh.
‘You should have been careful about who you offend.’
Anyway, Kwon Eun Hyung became the 72nd rank while going through this situation; however, he just
returned it, so it was not something he should involve himself into anymore.
‘Donnie always reacted strangely when hearing such a word like rank or ranking. Luckily, it was
something we shouldn’t involve ourselves in anymore. Donnie could now go outside safely with relief,’
Kwon Eun Hyung thought.
However, he never expected that rumor would spread out soon.
***
I scribbled on the textbook with my pencil but soon raised my head to look outside the window. After
being engaged in a deadly chase with the Four Heavenly Kings and Ban Yeo Ryung, unexpectedly, my
school life continued peacefully.
I kind of thought, ‘this is the school life without Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings in my
class.’ In the case of Yi Ruda, she was still jumping off the second floor, but other than that, we’ve been
good friends. Now that I had thought about it, the most unexpected thing about all of this was something
else. I knitted my brows and tilted my head to the side.
What happened to Hwang Siwoo? I recalled his attitude when he was confessing his affection toward Ban
Yeo Ryung and the stinging words he poured out to her inside the classroom that was sparkling with the
setting sun’s rays. He then ordered his group of gangs to attack us, but one day he disappeared clearly and
quietly. I had no idea what happened. Suddenly, Eun Hyung’s low voice came across my mind.
“I’ll make things okay now.”
I remembered the words he said after I nearly got into a car accident while he showed symptoms of
hyperventilation. Rubbing around my tearful eyes, he talked like that.
“…”
‘No, it won’t be what I’m thinking right now,’ as I had those thoughts in mind, the bell rang to announce
the end of class. The Korean history teacher then left the classroom. As the duty student of the week went
to the front to erase the board, Kim Hye Hill came beside me and perched on the chair.
Her straight black hair and her bluish eyes always attracted me. As if she had nothing really urgent to say,
she just rested her chin on her palm. Then when our eyes met, she spoke like a murmur.
“Our school gangs are quiet these days.”
Oh, what a coincidence. I was thinking the same as you did.
“Oh, yeah? I also thought the same.”
It happened then when I opened my mouth with a brightly lit face. An apathetic voice intervened from the
side.
“Recently, some school gangsters knocked them out brutally.”
“Huh?”
I looked up with my eyes wide opened. Kim Hye Hill’s twin brother, Kim Hye Woo, continued with a
shrug.
“They say the ranking also changed.”

“…?”
Kim Hye Woo’s nonchalant words struck me dumb. ‘Hold on, a ranking? What is he talking about?’ I
saw the end of my fingers trembling out of anxiety. I raised my head. Luckily, they didn’t notice my
abnormal behavior. Instead, they were talking about the subject, ranking, in very serene faces.
“What do you mean by the rank changed? Are you talking about Eun Kyum?”
“Yeah, the nationwide Number 72nd.”
“No one in our school would have taken over Eun Kyum’s rank; is it someone else outside the school?
Who?”
“Um, hold on!”
As I yelled out those words, at last, while lacking the patience to hear them out, the Kim twins turned
back to see me at the same time in surprise. They were indeed twins since their facial expressions looked
exactly alike.
I drew in a big breath then asked, “R… anking? What is that?”
“Don’t you know what it is?” Rounding her eyes, Kim Hye Hill asked me back instead.
When I saw her face, suddenly, I knew about everything. Although the Kim twins belonged to the
relatively normal side in this world, the word ‘ranking’ was completely understandable to them since they
were characters inside a web novel. Still, I could hardly believe it. I hid my face in both my hands with a
sigh. It was the moment when the Kim twins shared glances at each other as if they couldn’t understand
my reactions.
Yoon Jung In, who was beside me, cut in out of the blue, “Oh, ranking? I know what it is.”
“What?” Kim Hye Hill pulled her brows upward and asked.
I put my hands down and looked up to see them. Yoon Jung In responded with a cheerful face as usual.
“Eun Kyum’s gangs fought and lost against the kids of Sun Jin High School which had the 102nd
ranker.”
Even Yoon Jung In took out the word ‘rank’ so easily… ‘Oh, let’s just give up. I should have given up
earlier…’ I, at last, braced myself and raised my head. Then I heard the continued words, which Kim Hye
Hill asked in wonder.
“102nd ranker? You mean, Woo San? I heard he’s a pacifist, so he won’t pick any fights. Am I wrong?”
“Well, his character isn’t that pacifistic… anyway, that’s not the point. Woo San is in that school, but the
person who beat Eun Kyum is someone else from what I heard of.”
Yoon Jung In shrugged while remarking. The Kim twins’ eyes glared out of interest. I was the only one
who listened to the conversation while shivering my shoulders; however, I felt much more relieved than
before.
While the Kim twins gazed in excitement, Yoo Jung In dropped his words.
“According to the rumor, the person is…”
“The person is…?”
“The hidden, Number 0.”
A moment of silence took place. Kim Hye Hill and Kim Hye Woo exchanged glances in the meantime,
which I figured out the meaning was ‘yeah, why not.’ They then turned back to get out of here without
hesitation. Yoon Jung In kept on his words urgently.
“Why you guys don’t believe me?”
“Would you even believe what you said? Number 0… what kind of bullshit is that?”
“Isn’t that something like an urban legend?” Following her brother, Kim Hye Hill also asked
apathetically. It made Yoon Jung In respond while swinging his hand.
“No, this time it really existed! Based on the rumor, Number 0 appeared at Sun Jin High School when
Eun Kyum’s gangs were overwhelming others. He then knocked Eun Kyum and his boys down alone. 1
vs 7, can you believe that? Besides, among the opponents, there was also Eun Kyum, the 72nd rank!”
“Is that true?” Kim Hye Hill asked back as if she could hardly believe it. Feeling stuffy, Yoon Jung In
fetched a sigh.
He then continued, “Yeah, why can’t you believe me? I heard this information directly from a senior. The
gang members who saw the scene are in panic while saying that they saw a real evil.”
“How does he look like?” Kim Hye Woo asked with an agitated face, “The guy who is the Number 0.”
Her sudden question made Yoon Jung In furrow his brows. He scratched the back of his head.
“Um… the testimonies are all different but what exactly is sure is that he had bloody-red hair.”
“What?” I, who listened to their talk from aside, asked back in surprise.
Yoon Jung In turned his head to see me. His eyes beamed with mischief.
“Why are you so dumbstruck? Is there anyone from who you know?”
“Um… no…”
As I got to think about it, Eun Hyung’s hair is close to a soft wine shade rather than a bloody red color.
He, however, had the reddest hair among the people I knew. ‘No way…’ I smiled while shaking my head,
‘Come one, how can Eun Hyung be the nationwide Number 0? It’s ridiculous…’
“What they found out was that Eun Kyum’s gang irritated the nationwide Number 0’s girlfriend. They
pushed her to the road or so…”
Yoon Jung In’s sudden remark made the Kim twins looked back to see me at the same time. I dropped my
gaze at the floor for a second then looked back up. Regardless of our reactions, Yoon Jung In kept on as if
it was a matter of no importance.
“What’s more surprising is that both the nationwide Number 0 and his girlfriend go to our school. That is
why Eun Kyum’s gangs no longer run wild.”
With that said, Yoo Jung In suddenly left the classroom as soon as someone called his name. The three of
us lapsed into the whirlpool of silence. I said to myself, ‘It might not be him… Eun Hyung… how could
he…’
Whoever the person in the rumor was, our school truly became peaceful and quiet because of him, so I
decided to quit thinking about it. Regardless of that, the gossip about the nationwide Number 0 spread
around the school for quite a time.
Article 11. Things That Change and Don’t Change After Time
The days changed gradually; the season finally turned spring.
Warm days continued for us to go to school with light cardigans instead of thick jackets. As soon as
springtime greeted us, however, there followed our midterm. Well, Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four
Heavenly Kings rarely studied for the exams, so it was only me who was encountering the ghost of the
midterm exams.
I should, therefore, study for the exams but… what is this situation?
I rubbed my drowsy eyes then stared at the human figures in front.
“Um… it’s midterm, but…?”

“Oh, I thought I rarely came to my house.”
After the response, Eun Jiho stepped into our house with an unaffected attitude. Whenever I got to think
about it, I truly had no idea where Eun Jiho’s strangely confident remark of ‘Your house is my house’
came from.
While I stopped myself from looking at him with my jaw dropped, I seized him by the back of his neck.
He was just about to walk into our living room after taking off his shoes. Perhaps my actions took place
too late. When I turned back, Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings already came into our house
while closing the entrance door.
Eun Jiho, who gently held my hand grabbing his neck, said to me, “Hey, but it’s really been a while since
we last came to your house. That’s why we’re here.”
“I mean, it is because we only have a week left till the exam.”
“Oh, really?”
The one who asked while opening his eyes wider was Yoo Chun Young. He looked as if he knew the fact
just now. ‘What is going wrong with you? You’ve been diligent so far.’ As I asked him those words
through my glance, Yoo Chun Young avoided my eyes as if he felt a little embarrassed.
‘Oh, I see. You began to work as a professional model now, so there’s no need for you to study because
of your busy schedule.’
While I had a burned-out gaze at him, Ban Yeo Ryung pushed Eun Jiho’s back and shoved herself
between us.
She stood right in front of me then made a cute gun-shooting gesture.
“Donnie.”
“…”
“A-ing~ Donnie~♡”
She, again, pulled the trigger at me with a wink. ‘What is wrong with her now?’ I looked at her while
feeling dumbfounded. Then I turned my head to see Eun Hyung.
“Eun Hyung, did she eat something bad?”
“Um, no. I don’t think she had something bad.”

“What’s wrong with her then?”
Eun Hyung shook his head and put on a hollow smile as if he also had no idea. Jooin then suddenly burst
out laughing. He began to giggle while bending his waist. Ban Yeo Ryung acted charming, which looked
awkward to me. Looking at her doing that, Eun Jiho pretended to puke then Yeo Ryung smashed his
back. Yoo Chung Young frowned as if it was he who felt the pain. Eun Hyung leaned his body toward me
to ask if I wanted to eat something.
Watching all these happening for a while, I later realized that I was sitting on the living room couch
comfortably with them.
Yeah… Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings occupied my house at the weekend naturally as
always.
Ban Yeo Ryung and Woo Jooin, who were both rummaging something in my room, soon came out with a
small object in excitement. Eun Jiho, who was sitting down on the living room floor, crawled toward
them with his knees. He then tilted his head to check the thing in their hands. I asked in wonder.
“Hey, what is it?”
“A digital camera! Isn’t this the one in your house a year ago? I think it’s the same.”
“Oh, yeah, you’re right,”
Jooin, who took short and quick steps to lean his body on Eun Jiho’s back, observed the object and
responded like that. I, at last, remembered the digital camera that my dad bought about a year ago. Like
most of the electronic devices in my house did, the digital camera soon disappeared somewhere and got
out of our sight. Every time I had to shoot pictures sometimes, I would find myself unable to find that
camera anywhere.
I asked, “Where did you find it?”
“It was between the photo album. Surprised me as well. It says that if you connect this with a USB cable,
then you can see the pictures and videos on TV. Hold on.”
With that said, Ban Yeo Ryung looked through a box that contained a lot of tangled USB cables all over.
How many did she try to connect the camera with the TV… Jooin then carefully stretched out his hand
while grabbing a cable.
“Try this one.”

“Oh, okay. Yay, it’s working!” Letting out an exclamation, Ban Yeo Ryung ran in front of the TV in
excitement then kneeled. Jooin laughed at her as if she was acting funny. He then suddenly strode toward
the couch and buried himself in it while sitting next to me. I patted his cute brown hair. In the meantime,
Ban Yeo Ryung and Eun Jiho kneeled in front of the TV while showing their expectations on their faces.
The TV that we installed in the middle of the wall displayed gray noises on the screen a few times.
Eun Hyung asked, “Should I turn the lights off?”
“Turn it off! Now!” Yeo Ryung said while pressing the remote control enthusiastically.
As soon as Eun Hyung turned off the lights, he threw himself on the couch, across from us, then smiled. I
could hear Yoo Chun Young and Eun Hyung’s chat from here.
“Don’t they look like a nice brother and a sister?”
“Um… I don’t think so.”
As if Yoo Chun Young’s serious response sounded funny, Eun Hyung laughed loudly. I leaned on the
sofa apathetically while staring at the TV screen full of gray noises.
How many times did the external inputs and Channel 1 change with flickers? Suddenly, the screen turned
bright with a spark. Ban Yeo Ryung and Eun Jiho stood up from their seats at the same time and emitted a
whoop. They then came closer to us to sit in front of the couch. Ban Yeo Ryung, who sat right in front of
me, leaned her head against my knees. I stretched out my hand to pat Ban Yeo Ryung’s head too.
The TV screen was yet out of focus. While looking at it like that, I flung a question to Ban Yeo Ryung.
“But what’s this video about?”
“Maybe something you shot before…? Well, I have no idea either.”
“What?”
While I asked back in confusion, a voice came from out of the TV suddenly. A bright, refreshing, and
quite a unique tone, it was no one else but Jooin’s voice.
The screen exhibited our dining table then it showed Jooin’s face. He, inside the TV, looked very
delighted. His light-brown hair was a little tangled, but he looked way younger than now. He was also a
little shorter.
Suddenly, I felt strange when I glanced at Jooin who was beside me. When our eyes met, Jooin spoke
with a grin.
“I think that was when I was a sophomore in middle school, mama.”
“Oh, yeah. I thought you looked young.”
“Woo Jooin is so cute there,” Eun Jiho, who was sitting in front, said slyly.
Jooin, inside the screen, talked excitedly.
“Hello! Let me introduce my family.”
“… What?”
From somewhere at the side of the video, there came out a little surprised yet warm and composed voice.
No wonder it was Eun Hyung’s.
‘Was Eun Hyung in the kitchen at that time?’ As soon as I had that thought in mind, Eun Hyung, who put
on my mom’s pink apron, showed up inside the screen.
Eun Hyung, who looked younger than now, with a pink flower-patterned apron on, had a shy face like a
newlywed bride. ‘How can he look so pretty and gorgeous with that apron?’ When I thought that way, I
heard a burst of small laughter from the side.
“Hehe.”
Covering his mouth, Jooin buried his face in my shoulders. Perhaps he wanted to hide his laugh after
seeing Eun Hyung.
In front of the couch, there was already a fuss. Hitting each other’s arms, Ban Yeo Ryung and Eun Jiho
were laughing like crazy. As I slowly turned my head to see Eun Hyung, I found out that he looked quite
uncomfortable, so I turned my head to the front quietly. ‘Let’s say nothing from now on.’
Not even a minute seemed to pass since the video started, but it was already proving to be quite a
dangerous clip.
Inside the screen, Eun Hyung covered the camera with his hands out of embarrassment. The TV suddenly
darkened for a moment but soon brightened.
“Oh, don’t shoot. It’s not the right time.”
“Let me introduce him. He’s my mama. Mama! Mama! What is today’s menu?”
Regardless of Eun Hyung’s disconcerted protestations, Jooin attached himself to Eun Hyung while
jumping in joy. The camera, that was shaking up and down, soon focused a richly boiling red soup.
Eun Hyung looked as if he had given up now. A low voice continued.
“Never mind. Shoot if you want, but I was wondering from a long time ago… why am I also mama? Isn’t
it Donnie your mama?”
“Oh, multiple mamas are also available.”
“What? Is it like plural voting or something?”
“Anyway. Eun Hyung-mama, what is today’s menu? Please explain!”
“It’s tteok-bokki. Open your mouth and say ahh~”
In front of the camera, there I saw a spoon full of red soup. The camera then shook intensely. Jooin’s
surprised voice came along.
“Ow! It’s so… so hot!! What is it so spicy?!”
“Yeah, that’s why I let you try it.”
“Huh…?”
“Why? Something wrong?”
“Did you just say you let me try it because it’s hot…?”
“Are you gonna call me mama again?”
“No, sir.”
‘Good boy.’ As soon as I heard a kind voice, Eun Hyung’s hand passed the screen at the same time.
Maybe Eun Hyung was patting Jooin’s head.
Why does Eun Hyung’s kind voice saying, ‘good boy’ frightens me? With that thought in mind, I turned
my head to see Eun Hyung. He now looked quite comfortable. I, again, turned my head to watch the TV
screen.
A long black hair appeared on the screen with a twinkle. A girl with doll-like, delicate limbs and a
beautiful appearance from behind stood quietly in our living room. The scene itself looked like a
masterpiece painting that I drew in my breath for a moment from its perfectness.
The girl, Ban Yeo Ryung, then turned back to see the camera. The silence inside the screen which seemed
like a magic spell broke at last. Ban Yeo Ryung rounded her eyes in surprise and ran toward the camera at
once. She looked younger than now.
“Wow, where did you get this?”
“Mama’s dad gave me to play with it.”
“Donnie’s father? I guess he really likes you, huh? Oh, hold on. Are you shooting right now?”
“What’s up?? What’s all the fuss?”
I soon heard a familiar voice then a hand popped out to snatch the camera. The one who dropped his aloof
gaze at the camera lens was Eun Jiho.
His platinum blond hair melted into the transparent air under the bright light. His gentle gaze at the screen
looked black like the eyes of a dead fish.
Compared to the present, Eun Jiho, at that time, was way more expressionless. As if it wasn’t only me,
who thought Eun Jiho looked outstandingly different before, I heard Yoo Chun Young asking him from
the side.
“Hey, did you look like that in the past?”
“Like what?”
Eun Jiho turned his head in a flash to look at us. Placing his elbow on the corner of the couch, Yoo Chun
Young asked back.
“You look very… expressionless than now. Are you usually like that?”
“Yeah, true. I also thought it wasn’t Eun Jiho at a glance. Dude, you were quite handsome back then.”
Listening beside him, Ban Yeo Ryung helped Chun Young’s words like that, which made me burst out
laughing. Jooin also giggled while stomping his feet. I heard Eun Jiho asking in bewildered feeling.
“What do you mean by that?”
“Huh? Don’t you understand?”
“That sounds strange… I was, am, and always will be handsome.”

Furrowing her face, Ban Yeo Ryung flipped off to Eun Jiho. Jooin, and I put my arms around each other’s
shoulders and laughed our asses out.
Jooin, who giggled for quite a while, rubbed his eyes then said, “As far as I remember, I don’t think Eun
Jiho has ever changed that much. Maybe in the middle of his sophomore year in middle school? It was
then when his character began to change a lot. Don’t you remember? When you were a freshman in
middle school, you looked as icy cold as Chun Young.”
.
“Oh, that’s true. I remember that. Why did I think Eun Jiho was like this ever since he was born?”
“Again, it sounds strange. What do you mean by I was like this?”
“Well… it’s just like… Eun Jiho-ish?”
Making that response, no signs of joke appeared on Ban Yeo Ryung’s face. When Eun Jiho asked back
about what Eun Jiho-ish is, they both began to quarrel while something else was happening inside the TV
screen.
Eun Hyung, who was in the kitchen, voiced out to call his ‘son.’
“Jooin! Won’t you go out and get me some soy sauce? There isn’t any.”
“Yes, mama! Anything else you need?”
Jooin, who was calling Eun Hyung mama casually, made Ban Yeo Ryung burst out a giggle. Compared to
the two boys, Eun Jiho was less expressive of his feelings back then. These days, he would have laughed
loudly while bending his waist; however, inside the screen, he just put a small grin on his face.
A response came back from the kitchen.
“Ask Donnie and Chun Young what they would like to eat.”
“Yes, mama!”
“And once you come back, test out the taste again.”
“I’ll be back, Eun Hyung.”

Jooin gave up on calling him mama after he heard about another test out. I giggled at his funny reaction.
All those happened just a year ago, but I truly felt like it was from a distant past.
The shaking screen moved along the house then stopped in front of my room for a moment.
“Mama! Do you want to grab something?”
“Me? Hershey’s chocolate!”
“Me, too.”
The short response after me was from Yoo Chun Young. I blinked my eyes while feeling befuddled then
stuck out my neck to see Yoo Chun Young, who was sitting at the opposite end of the couch.
“Did we ever study together?”
“I can’t remember.”
A short response returned but, fortunately, as the door opened, it soon solved my question. Yoo Chun
Young and I were, for real, studying together inside my room.
Inside a room filled with yellow sun lights through the large window, I was sitting in front of the desk
against the door. Behind me, Yoo Chun Young sat on the floor while working on the questionnaire book
placed on a low side table.
With a clicking sound, the screen fast-forwarded. It looked like Jooin threw the camera on the bed. Inside
the chaotically shaking screen, someone soon came into focus. When taking a closer look at it, I realized
that it was Chun Young. The camera, that was thrown on the bed, focused on Chun Young coincidentally.
Eun Jiho, who sat in front, murmured, “Whoa, is this Yoo Chun Young’s solo TV show?”
Ban Yeo Ryung laughed out loud while hanging down her head. Along with Woo Jooin, Ban Yeo Ryung
said, ‘We’ll be back soon,’ all the noise then disappeared from within the screen.
There were only the sounds of scribbling with a pencil and flipping over the page. Yoo Chun Young,
inside the screen, fixed his blue gaze silently at the book with no movements for quite a while.
“…”
All of us, who were watching the screen in the meantime, felt a strange ambiance surrounding us. I slowly
detached myself from the couch and opened my mouth.
“I should go study now. That’s really motivating. I should watch that whenever I don’t want to study.”
“Dude, are you really leaving?”
“Thanks for the inspirational video. I enjoyed it.”
As I got up after saying that, someone grabbed my waist. When I turned back to see who it was, it turned
out to be Jooin. When I was about to say that the video truly inspired me to go study, the screen kind of
changed, displaying something else.
At the edge, someone with a brown hair scuttled toward Yoo Chun Young and sat across. The person who
looked polite like a student asking a question from a book was no one else but me. My hair was longer
back then, which was waving around my chest.
Eun Jiho said, “Dude, grow your hair again.”
“I am.”
Pointing something inside the questionnaire book, I, inside the screen, asked Yoo Chun Young.
“Teach me how to solve this. I can’t help myself anymore. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. Geez, I
think I’m applying the right formula though.”
“Which one?”
I, inside the screen, handed over my notes to Yoo Chun Young. He then went back and forth between the
questionnaire and my notes repeatedly. Looking at the scene made me continue the words I said before.
“Hey, that really makes me want to go to study!”
“Oh, mama. Stay here. Before you leave, just watch that.”
When I tried to reply, ‘Okay,’ to Jooin, Yoo Chun Young, inside the screen, came up with the answer.
“Oh, it’s here. It’s a square.”
“Oh, really? Now I get it. That was why the formula didn’t work. The numbers came out in fractions and
so on. Thanks.”
Ham Donnie inside the TV got up with her book and notes then disappeared out of the screen. ‘I’m
studying quite hard,’ I said within my head as I looked at myself in admiration and kept on watching the
screen.
The problem, however, came up next. The screen remained silent for quite a while, but something strange
began to ring around. ‘Oh, hold on… is it…?’
“Oh, my god. It really works. Donnie, you might be a genius. Wow!!”
“…” The Ham Donnie, inside the screen, said nothing.
“…” I did the same as I watched.
Inside the screen, and also in reality, a cold silence prevailed the space. Yoo Chun Young, inside the
screen, stopped working on his questionnaire book and stared at my direction. While looking at the scene,
I slowly turned my head to avoid it.
‘Oh, it’s embarrassing,’ with that thought in mind, I hid my face in both my hands. ‘Yeah, that was what
happened.’ Ever since I was young, I had friends who behave uncooperatively when studying; therefore, I
had a habit of talking to myself when I study.
In front, Eun Jiho was gazing at me with a sneer.
‘Why? What’s wrong?’
I tried to brace myself. That was just a level of narcissism Eun Jiho had like every moment, a so-called
daily narcissism. Wouldn’t it be okay for me to have the same level of self-love sometimes? It was at that
moment when I tried to voice out these thoughts. After all, a song came out from the screen.
“Can I square you~ Can we begin our love~”
“…”
The second round of silence soon took place. Jooin, who sat beside me, also fixed his gaze at me with a
loss of words. That happened when he wasn’t at home, so the scene also didn’t exist in his memories.
I covered my face with both hands then stood up saying, “I’ll go have some water.”
I left the living room in a hurry then headed to the kitchen. When I was just about to pass the dining table,
loud waves of laughter burst out behind me all at once.
The laughter that took the lead was from Eun Jiho. Staring at my side, he said like a scream.
“Hey, Ham Donnie! Bahaha! Can I… can I watch you studying? Hahaha, I’m dying.”
The others didn’t make any loud noise. Jooin, however, might have felt difficult to keep a straight face. I
soon heard him punching the couch. Eun Hyung, who seldom made loud sounds, burst out a cheerful
giggle.
At least Yoo Chun Young wouldn’t laugh since he already went through it that day. When I thought like
that, the laughter from the living room subsided. ‘What’s going on?’ Escaping to the kitchen, I decided to
have a cup of water. ‘Is there something weird on the screen?’ As the thought came across my mind, Yoo
Chun Young suddenly stepped into the kitchen at a quick pace.
I tried to go back to the living room, but he called to stop me.
“Have another cup of water.”
“What?”
“Come on, here.”
He then snatched the cup out of me and filled it with water. ‘What is he doing?’ While I became confused
about what was happening at the moment, he handed out the cup as if forcing me to drink the water. I
took it over eventually and gulped it out. It was just drinking another cup of water but it felt like taking
poison.
When I finished the cup and came back to the living room, the scene had already changed. Woo Jooin,
who went outside to get soy sauce, came back and took the camera in his hands.
Jooin, who was now sitting at the couch, asked me with a smile.
“Mama, you came back?”
“Yup. What was in the video earlier?”
“Mmm… well…”
‘Was there really something going on?’ I waited for his clear response to clarify the situation, but Woo
Jooin just smiled while narrowing his eyes.
Not only Jooin but everyone had a weird glance. The one who looked the strangest was, by far, Yoo Chun
Young. When our eyes met, he suddenly turned his head away from me in surprise.
‘What the…?’
.
Inside the TV screen was the same scene as it was now, the Four Heavenly Kings and Ban Yeo Ryung
gathered in the living room while watching TV. As if we were having a break, Yoo Chun Young and I,
who both went out of the room, was sitting alongside in the living room. When Eun Hyung gave us
chocolates from the bag, I enjoyed the crunchy taste while sitting on the couch.
Eun Jiho, inside the screen, came towards me without constraint then sat right in front of me. ‘Why is he
sitting right in front when there are other seats?’ As soon as I had that thought in mind, I, inside the
screen, spoke sulkily.
“Dude, I can’t see. There are other seats.”
“Are you that short?”
“Bastard!”
I, inside the screen, kicked Eun Jiho’s back with my toe. Regardless of my aggressive reaction, Eun Jiho
was just smiling naughtily. When looking at that face, I realized Eun Jiho inside the screen was indeed the
same as the Eun Jiho now.
Yoo Chun Young, however, just chewed the chocolates then opened his mouth while watching the TV. It
drew everyone inside the living room’s attention toward him.
“Oh, that looks like…”
“What?”
A famous TV show was on air on the TV inside the video. A big, furry, white dog appeared in that show.
While looking at the cheerful big dog inside the screen, Eun Hyung turned back to see Yoo Chun Young
before flinging a question.
“You mean, that dog?”
“What was that… was it a Dutch dog?”
“…?”
“Netherlands? Were there also dogs other than cheese as their specialty?”
Eun Jiho, inside the screen, asked Yoo Chun Young in confusion. The way he talked was quite similar to
that of him right now. Yoo Chun Young continued while furrowing his brows.
“… Alexander’s dog? The dog of the Alps?”
A short silence prevailed the space. In the end, Eun Hyung’s low voice rang around. He, inside the
screen, asked Yoo Chun Young in the most careful attitude.
“Um… you’re not talking about A Dog of Flanders, are you?”

“…”
A heavy silence hung in the air. A burst of laughter soon took place inside the screen just like earlier.
Ban Yeo Ryung and Woo Jooin laughed crazily with tears welling upon their eyes, whereas Eun Hyung
sent out a mixed glance at Yoo Chun Young with a concerned look on his face. Eun Jiho was just
grimacing his face.
At that moment, I, who stayed calm inside the screen, suddenly spat water out of my mouth.
“Pffffft—!”
The water, of course, then rushed towards Eun Jiho’s hair and back, who was sitting right in front of me.
There was a big commotion from aside. Eun Jiho threw a question while touching his wet hair.
“Ham Donnie, what’s wrong with you?”
“I just realized what it means right now. Geez, Eun Jiho, is your hair okay?”
“Aren’t you seeing this?”
I, inside the screen, ran out to find a towel in a hurry. Looking at me in a fuss, Eun Jiho swept his hair
back.
Jooin, who was watching us besides me, made a remark.
“So moist than ever. Han Donnie’s facial mist.”
“Hey, I don’t have any extra shirt with me.”
[Oh, yeah… mama doesn’t have any brothers.]
“I’ll bring my oppa’s clothes then.”
With that said, Ban Yeo Ryung left the living room.
Eun Jiho swept his wet hair back in a grim face which looked quite charismatic and masculine than him
right now. I touched my lips and fell into thought.
‘It’s already been a year since that time…’ I noticed nothing strange after Yoo Chun Young’s remark of
Alexander’s dog or Dutch dog. It was after a while when I burst into laughing alone and finally spat water
out to Eun Jiho.
As I hung my head down after feeling a glance, Eun Jiho, who was sitting next to Ban Yeo Ryung, was
looking at me. He then asked me with a sneer on his lip.
“Hey, do you even remember that?”
“Yeah, I just recalled it soon as I watched that. I mean, it was so funny at that time.”
Eun Jiho replied with a nod.
“When watching Yoo Chun Young, he seems to have something like a speech disorder. He often makes
word mistakes.”
“Alexander’s dog was such a legendary episode of his. What else is there?”
“Oh, you know, the Pirates of the Caribbean… He said the Pirates of Columbia.”
Jooin, who was almost attached beside me, responded. As I nodded to agree with his words, Ban Yeo
Ryung, right in front, said while raising her head.
“There’s something else. Professor Severus Snape in Harry Potter, he said it as Professor Snake.”
“Didn’t he say Professor Steak?”
“Oh, yeah, it was that,” Ban Yeo Ryung replied to Eun Hyung’s words.
We, then, burst out laughing again while stamping our feet. The more we laughed, the darker Yoo Chun
Young’s face turned. He then said to us with a glance.
“Isn’t that something everyone finds confusing?”
“Nope.”
“Okay.”
Eun Jiho’s determined answer made Yoo Chun Young turn his head. It looked as though he became
sulky. Inside the screen, Ban Yeo Ryung handed over her brother’s shirt to Eun Jiho just now.
Then suddenly the camera screen changed.

“Ah, ah… this is Ham Donnie, the reporter of ‘Unanswered Questions.’ I will… what was it… anyway
will be interviewing president Eun Jiho. Hello, president Jiho?”
The camera was fixed in front of my room. No answer returned from within, but I just opened the door.
‘Ahhhh!’ Ban Yeo Ryung roared out of surprise in front of me. Jooin also looked surprised. He asked
with his eyes on me.
“Mama, did you suddenly open the door when Jiho was changing his clothes?”
I made an excuse desperately, “No. Perhaps at that time, I felt nothing since I already saw Yeo Dan
oppa’s body before.”
“Why did you see hyeong’s body in the first place?”
“Um… it wasn’t that I wanted to see, but it just happened, you know… but after I saw Yeo Dan oppa’s
body, Eun Jiho was… his body looked like a baby’s body.”
“Eventually, you saw both hyeong and Jiho’s bodies, right?”
“Hey, you’re being too radical,” as soon as I responded like that, Eun Jiho appeared on the screen.
Out of bewilderment, he quickly took down the new shirt rolled up to his chest. Eun Jiho, who was
looking at my direction, was blushing like there’s fire fuming on his face. He then shouted while looking
at the camera.
“Dude, Ha… Ham Donnie! How can you just come in like that!?”
“President Eun Jiho, we heard that you recently committed a crime, is that true?”
“Just get out!”
“Why are you refusing the interview? Is something throwing you off your rockers?”
“Oh, gosh!”
Although Eun Jiho was yelling frantically, he, however, had already changed his clothes.
He took the wet shirt that was put on the back of my chair before he stepped out of the room; he then
stood still and stared at somewhere. I guess he was probably looking directly at me.
His face, which looked serious and different from now, felt somewhat unfamiliar. As he blinked his jet-
black eyes twice, he soon opened his lips.
“Ham Donnie.”
“Okay, okay. I was just playing. You weren’t changing your pants, so…”
“Topless is nothing?”
“I’m sorry. Don’t get so angry.”
[No, I mean…]
Eun Jiho, who fetched a short sigh, didn’t look mad as what he just said. I, inside the screen, asked in
wonder.
“Then why?”
“You… Do you not see me as a man…? Is that the reason why you’re doing this to me right now?”
Pausing, Eun Jiho lifted his hand to dishevel his hair twice. He then raised his black eyes to fix his gaze at
me. As if they were colored repeatedly with a black crayon, his eyes were serious with no speck of light
inside.
‘Did Eun Jiho have that face back then?’ His face inside the screen looked different from that inside my
head. As I dropped my gaze while feeling odd, I knew that Eun Jiho wasn’t looking at me then.
I, inside the screen, responded with no hesitation.
“A male… friend?”
“Oh, yeah…?”
His reply sounded a little disappointed. He, inside the screen, then suddenly threw something to me. It
was his shirt that got wet after I spat water on it.
I, who remained still for a moment, then cried out suddenly.
“Hey! What the hell is this!?”

“What’s wrong? You drooled on it.”
“It’s still disgusting! Yuck, what the hell.”
Then Ban Yeo Ryung’s pale face came toward me inside the screen. She might have seen me covered
with Eun Jiho’s shirt that he just took off. Blinking her eyes in a pale face, Ban Yeo Ryung then had her
eyes on Eun Jiho and cast a question to him.
“You… threw the clothes that you just took off to Donnie?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Gosh… so promiscuous…”
“Koff, koff, khakk!”
Leaning on the door, Eun Jiho coughed harshly while he stopped stepping off my room. ‘What is she
saying?’ With that thought in mind, something also went down the wrong pipe inside me.
I felt Jooin, who was beside me, grabbing my arm tight. He then said something like a whisper.
“Mama, Yeo Ryung seems to use words strangely too.”
“For sure.”
“Maybe she also has a speech disorder.”
“True. I was so surprised at the time when she said that. How can a middle school girl say a word like
that?”
“Pfft!”
Eun Jiho’s remark made Ban Yeo Ryung turn her head in a sulk. Inside the screen, Eun Jiho started
hitting the ceiling to reveal how victimized he felt. He spoke to Ban Yeo Ryung.
“Dude, promiscuous…? Do we normally use such a word in this kind of situation? Aren’t you going too
far?”
“How could you throw your clothes that you just took off to a girl… and you walked out of the room with
Donnie just now… Did you change your clothes in front of her?”
Hiding her face in both her hands, Yeo Ryung led me out of my room, and that was the end of the screen
as it soon showed a black screen. All of us: Ban Yeo Ryung, the Four Heavenly Kings, and I just watched
it in perplexity.
‘Is that the end?’ As soon as I murmured to myself, Eun Jiho said, “I think the video is over…”
As if he got awakened from dizziness, at last, Jooin, who buried his face on my side, mumbled in
confusion.
“That was intense.”
“Are we just like that a year ago?” With that said, Yeo Ryung turned her head to see me with a sad face.
It looked so funny that I laughed hard for a while before I turned my eyes on Eun Hyung to ask his review
of the video.
“What do you think, Eun Hyung?”
“Hmm…”
He had a complicated smile on his face, which displayed how he was feeling right now. He then folded
his eyes tenderly and gave us a soft smile. Eun Jiho and Ban Yeo Ryung leaned their bodies toward Eun
Hyung in wonder. Yoo Chun Young, who looked a little pale, also turned his head to see Eun Hyung.
“The difference between a human and a beast is that humans evolve endlessly.”
“Yeah.”
“Huh…?”
“Maybe we aren’t humans.”
“Bahaha!” Eun Jiho, in front, laughed while tapping the couch. He soon got so excited that he pointed at
me and said, “You’re making no progress.” As a response, I flipped off.
I then said, “Dude, you also belong to the non-human category.”
Listening to our quarrel with a few blinks, Ban Yeo Ryung opened her mouth.
“But we truly didn’t change at all except for Eun Jiho. When I saw the scene of us watching TV in the
living room, I thought a security camera was here.”
“Oh, me too, me too.”

It was then when Jooin replied like that while sticking his head out. Yoo Chun Young, who remained
silent ever since he asked me to drink some water, suddenly threw out his remark.
“But isn’t it good to stay unchanged… like this? I like it though.”
“…”
When he said that, the air giving off some noise within the living room changed into something a bit
different. Then, what surrounded us next was a soft and comfortable silence.
When I heard what Yoo Chun Young said, I truly felt it. The fact that things were unchanged seemed to
turn into something good and cool. We would always remain the same and our connection from our
former selves, which was a year ago, would never cease; we gathered in this place again as we did in the
past.
Suddenly, I felt so touched that I couldn’t say anything. Everyone might have shared the same feeling as I
did. A small grin was on all of our lips. Eun Jiho soon glanced at my side and spoke in joy.
“Yeah, it’s good but can’t you imagine that? We could still be like this after a few years too. You know,
like people gathering in someone’s house…”
I quickly replied to his words, “Wish that it’s not at my house.”
“Why? Your house is my house.”
“Shut up. Just say that after you build one for me.”
As I made that response, Ban Yeo Ryung burst into laughter. She then said to Eun Jiho triumphantly.
“Well, Donnie and I are gonna live together, so I’ll especially let you step inside up to our shoe rack.”
“Huh? Why are we living together?”
“Why not?” Ban Yeo Ryung asked back with her eyes wide open.
‘Why is ‘Ban Yeo Ryung and Ham Donnie Living Together,’ which I never considered for my future,
inside your plan?’ As soon as I felt ludicrous, Eun Jiho asked in wonder.
“Aren’t you gonna get married?”
“Oh, I don’t know. I just don’t have that planned yet.”
“For real? Are you gonna live alone without a husband and children?” Jooin asked back in surprise.
As if she read the seriousness of the question, Ban Yeo Ryung turned bewildered and responded while
scratching the back of her head.
“Isn’t it cool? I’m still living my life, anyway. I don’t know, it’s yet a distant future to me. I’m just gonna
live with Donnie.”
“I want to get married,” with that said, I gently pushed Ban Yeo Ryung’s face away from me.
Anyway, Ban Yeo Ryung surely received many confessions from boys, which might have made her less
interested in dating other guys. Before she even opened her heart, most of the boys would have already
wanted to get closer to her. I would have even behaved the same as Ban Yeo Ryung if I had those
experiences; however, how could she willingly turn herself into a voluntary celibate?
However, it wasn’t that bad when she said she wanted to live with me even when we get older. It was fun
to think about the future of me staying together with Ban Yeo Ryung. I blinked my eyes then smiled as
something good came across my mind.
I said, “Let’s also travel together again the same way we did when we were seniors in middle school.
Let’s continue to hang out often like that even when we become older.”
Unless I don’t disappear in this world… I swallowed the words.
Whenever I promise something about the future, my heart seemed to submerge gradually. Like a boat
with a hole in the bottom, I felt my whole heart sinking into the dark deep sea. As I bit my lip, Yoo Chun
Young replied from aside.
“Let’s do that.”
“Even when we get old.”
Speaking those words softly, Eun Hyung stretched out his hand to pat my hair. His touch was warm-
hearted than usual, which made me feel a little odd, so I became hesitant but soon grinned, eventually. I
just wanted to smile. Eun Jiho then asked from the opposite side.
“But if we all get married, then we should bring all our kids which would be at least twenty people…
would it be okay?”
“Geez, that’s true.”
When Ban Yeo Ryung responded in surprise, Eun Jiho continued with a nod.
“Hey, if we’re there alone, people would get it wrong.”

“Hmm… well then we could be couples and get married.”
Ban Yeo Ryung said those words too easily that I got dumbstruck. I almost choked on my words. ‘What
did you say, girl?’
Those who reacted more severely were Eun Jiho and Yoo Chun Young. Yoo Chun Young coughed
harshly and Eun Jiho looked back and forth between me and Ban Yeo Ryung.
Eun Jiho then murmured, “Gosh, there’s no one to choose…”
“Do you want to die?”
Shooting the words to Eun Jiho, Yeo Ryung smashed his back. She then raised her head to keep on her
words. As if she was explaining something very easy and clear, she spoke like this while pointing at
herself and me.
“Donnie and I are gonna marry; you and Jooin will marry; Eun Hyung and Chun Young will marry.
Cool? It’s done then. See? If we get married like that, then we have no problem hanging out altogether.”
“Are you…”
Eun Jiho paused his reply out of bewilderment. When he saw Ban Yeo Ryung, who was showing a face
full of a rich smile, he then seemed to notice that she was just joking. Eun Jiho soon giggled. He then
scowled at her and kept up his words.
“Dude, do you know that you have a weird sense of humor? Sometimes, I’m confused if I should laugh. I
think that you’re still doing these weird jokes because of the way I laugh…”
“Oh, come on. What’s wrong with my joke?”
“Who says a joke as seriously as you? I almost believed you,” Eun Hyung said in a voice filled with joy.
As if she was asking for an answer, Ban Yeo Ryung looked at Yoo Chun Young with a sad face. He then
just coughed in response to her request. It looked so funny that Jooin and I laughed while holding our
hands.
We can get married, give birth to a child, live next door, and hang out often; all our kids can even run
around the front yard. Getting old together and traveling along together… these words filled my heart
with nothing but emotions.
I dropped my gaze and came to a thought.
I was still here.

Only the strange silence remained where the Four Heavenly Kings and Ban Yeo Ryung swept away like a
storm. Feeling lonely, I stared at the empty living room, which never seemed crowded with any noise
before. Then I plugged the USB into the side of the TV to play the video again.
I buried myself deep into the couch and stared at the screen with no movement. It was a way to engrave
their smiles profoundly within my mind—only the noise I made while breathing permeated silently on the
lonesome air.
My eyes then stopped at a scene I missed because of Yoo Chun Young.
“Can I square you~ Can we begin our love~.”
The Yoo Chun Young inside the screen stopped the movement of his pencil. He then sunk his head on his
chest. From his gently shaking shoulders, I could tell that he was obviously suppressing a laugh. As if he
couldn’t sustain the feelings he had been keeping bottled up within himself by just hanging his head
down, Yoo Chun Young then covered his mouth and nose with his hand.
His smiling eyes were on the workbook for a while, and then he raised his head. His gaze was at my back.
I thought he would be soon focusing on studying again; however, I was wrong.
As the long pause continued, the Yoo Chun Young inside the screen didn’t take his eyes off of me for
quite a while. His smiling eyes seemed to twinkle with an unknown emotion. His lips that revealed
through his long, white fingers collapsed softly.
Yoo Chun Young was sitting there with a face that I never saw before. Resting his chin on his hand, he
was staring at my back.
“…”
‘Oh, so Yoo Chun Young has that kind of face when no one’s watching him,’ I thought. That face was
what he tried to hide away from me. I felt a little strange.
“Are you an idiot? Are you blind? Does he care about you? Of course, he does so much! The cold bastard
becomes so soft and gentle, but how come you don’t get it?”
‘He becomes soft and gentle,’ I repeated Eun Jiho’s remark within my head. I put my arms around my
knees then fell into thought. My head went blank when Yoo Chun Young stared at me with those gentle
eyes.
‘Maybe there’s no other meaning behind it other than just him caring about me,’ I thought while gazing at
my knees. Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda were spinning inside my head.
It was a ludicrous, delightful, and again, lonely day. I raised my hand to grab my head. When I first fell
into this world, it was outlandish, but now, I am pleased. Then I get afraid if they will eventually leave me
in this solitary space again in my lonesome. This situation, therefore, seemed like seeing my last glimpse
of them, which made me dizzied with an accompanying pang of pain.
Article 12. They Say It’s a Confession Trip Than a Retreat? (Part 1)
I dreamt again. While holding each other’s hands, Yi Ruda and Yoo Chun Young were spinning round
and round inside a bright church where light endlessly poured. Having this dream over and over, I could
notice that it was a dream just by seeing Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda appearing before my eyes. It felt
too real like I had just reached the level of a lucid dream.
Sitting at the very front of the guest seat, I crossed my legs and watched their wedding apathetically.
When I looked at the sky, a pair of white pigeons flew round and round as if they were blessing them.
From my longtime experience, I knew that Yi Ruda and Yoo Chun Young wouldn’t stop their dance
unless I woke up from this dream. Instead of wasting my mind while looking at them, it seemed better to
continue my concerns about the real world.
The midterm was over, and Ban Yeo Ryung won her fame again by being the top of the entire school with
her excellent scores. Eun Jiho took second place, and Eun Hyung was the third. What surprised me was
that Kim Hye Woo took the fourth-highest score, and Kim Hye Hill nabbed the fifth.
Ever since middle school, Woo Jooin had a weird hobby of mismarking the answers in a test, so he
ranked about the 50th in the whole school this time as well. My rank was like that of Jooin, which
prompted me to cease thinking about it.
Anyway, we could grasp a thing from these facts. It was that the highest to the fifth-highest scorers were
all the Four Heavenly Kings.
‘Should I quit studying?’ I thought while looking at the sky. I could convince that I studied 50 times
harder than Ban Yeo Ryung; however, why is this world giving me such an unfair ordeal? I looked in
front of my eyes then.
Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda, who went through the wedding ceremony for, at least, 50 times inside my
dream, was still spinning round and round with delighted expressions. ‘Gosh,’ I closed my lips firmly
from feeling sick.
Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda getting married was also a rule this world had enacted so that it wouldn’t
change. The chance of Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda not tying the knot would be the same as the chance
of myself replacing Ban Yeo Ryung’s top student status of the school.
‘Okay, I got it,’ I lifted my hand to scratch my head. Honestly, the fact wasn’t that shocking since I
imagined things when I was in middle school, as written below.
Eun Jiho: Ban Yeo Ryung… be my wife. Live with me until we turn 100.
Ban Yeo Ryung: Ok.
Kwon Eun Hyung: Yeo Ryung, then… when you turn 101, would you come to me?
Yoo Chun Young: Ban Yeo Ryung, who are you to keep glimmering in my eyes, so bothersome…
Woo Jooin: Aww… Yeo Ryung, I like you. Would you be my girlfriend? I’d be good for you, would
you?
Ham Donnie: Can someone come to me?
However, for some unknown reasons, not only the entire Four Heavenly Kings, but Eun Jiho also didn’t
show any signs of confessing his love to Ban Yeo Ryung until the end of our senior year. During the
second semester of our senior year, Eun Jiho even committed an act of brutality by seeing many
girlfriends. As far as I recollected, Eun Jiho, around that time, made new girlfriends every two months.
For some reason, he dated a girl for a month then had a month break. He repeated that process for about
four times.
‘Why is no one confessing their love to Ban Yeo Ryung?’ I wondered, but as I saw her face, I thought,
‘No, it can’t be. It’s impossible that she isn’t the female protagonist. If she isn’t the main role, someone
else more marvelous may exist, but how can that happen? Ban Yeo Ryung is even beyond the level of an
ordinary human being from the very beginning. If someone exceeded her, then wouldn’t that person be a
3rd species? Or a neoanthropinae?’
According to this reason, I believed Ban Yeo Ryung was the female protagonist so far.
I, however, tweaked my thought a little because the female crossdresser Yi Ruda, who would undeniably
take the role of a protagonist in other novels, appeared.
In this regard, I imagined the further situation that could take place soon.
Eun Jiho: Ban Yeo Ryung, I like you.
Ban Yeo Ryung: I like you too.
Yoo Chun Young: Hold on, Ban Yeo Ryung, I also…
Yi Ruda: Yoo Chun Young, I hate you!
Yoo Chun Young: I hated you too… but now I like you.
Yi Ruda: I do too.
‘Indeed, a web novel should be like this,’ I nodded; however, this world could shock me more than I had
initially thought. Otherwise, I would have figured out earlier why Yoo Chun Young and Yi Ruda was
getting married over 50 times within my dreams. ‘Oh, I really want to wake up from this dream already.
Let’s get up! Please!’
It was then when Yi Ruda suddenly took Yoo Chun Young’s hand away from her. She then ran toward
me while waving her gold blond hair and a long white dress. She then slowly opened her mouth.
“Donnie! Wake up!”
“We are going to a retreat.”
At the very next moment, I rose out of the water as if I was caught in the net. My consciousness grew
colder and clearer.
When I opened my eyes, Yi Ruda’s face was a few inches away from my ears. Although she was a girl,
our distance was so close that it was enough to perplex me. The reason her voice seemed outstandingly
loud was probably that she spoke close to my eyes.
As I barely nodded while moving my stiff neck, she removed her face above me so I could get up. I lifted
my upper body to look around then had a puzzled face.
We were still in the middle of the class, but the teacher was nowhere to be found. Instead, the person who
stood in front of the podium was our class president, Yoon Jung In. I scratched the back of my head in
wonder.
“Is it already lunchtime?”
Yi Ruda opened her lips to reply, but someone cast a loud response ahead of her. The straightforward and
playful tone was from Yoon Jung In.
“Hey, Ham Donnie. Had a good sleep? Pay for your stay. I might charge you bills.”
When he said those words to me like that, the kids around us burst into laughter. Geez, I showed a subtle
frown but soon changed it into a smile.
I replied with a wink, “Hmm… how about paying the bills with my sleeping face?”
“…”
“Shin Suh Hyun, what do you think about her remark?”
I heard Yoo Jung In’s subdued voice piercing through the sudden silence. As I turned my head back to
look at Shin Suh Hyun, he was sending me a serious look through his glaring eyes.
Before I could say that I was just joking, he opened his lips. His calm voice broke the silence.
“Even a sane person turns like that when they’re hanging out with you.”
“Bahaha, Shin Suh Hyun! You’re so straightforward.”
“Wow, Shin Suh Hyun, what a gangster!”
“Cool, Suh Hyun oppa!”
Kids in the classroom blew whistles and laughed while tapping their desks. Even Kim Hye Hill and Kim
Hye Woo, who rarely emitted uproarious laughter, held their desks tight to repress their bursting smiles.
In front of the laughers, Yoon Jung In expressed his gloominess in his facial expression.
He then said, “Hey, would you all stop laughing?”
“Bahaha, ahahaha!”
“It hurts me, too, you know?!”
When the laughter kept on regardless of his protestations, he pouted then flung the class diary down onto
the podium.
“Gosh, I’m not doing the class conference anymore,” he said on his way back to his seat.
Kids exclaimed as he strode toward my direction. ‘Yoo Jung In oppa, you’re so cool! You are a true
leader! Yoon Jung In! Yoon Jung In!’ Through their teasing noises, I stared at him pulling his chair to
take a seat right across me.
Yoon Jung In, however, took his butt out of the chair to stand up again. He had a grin on his face, which
looked funny that it made others burst into laughter. I also exchanged laughs with Yi Ruda, who sat
beside me.
After going through a series of processes, Yoon Jung In finally returned to the podium. He then took out
white chalk and tapped it on the board. Long streaks of dazzling sunlight shed on his knuckles.
“So, let’s start the conference for the class competition talent show. Any ideas?”
The silence prevailed on the space for a moment, but soon, kids poured out what they had in mind. The
casual atmosphere provoked the kids to shout out their thoughts without raising their hands to wait for
their turn.
“How about Ring Ding Dong?”
“Oh, Ring Ding Dong. Yeah, that’s a good one.”
Yoon Jung In scribbled ‘Ring Ding Dong’ on the board. He then looked back at us. Someone else shared
his opinion.
“Heartbeat!”
“Isn’t the human pyramid choreography kind of difficult? Did anyone here ever tried dancing in middle
school?”
“Oh, yeah. Anyone who took part in talent shows in middle school, please stand up.”
The noisiness of the class skyrocketed once again. At that moment, Yoon Jung In showed a stern look on
his face, which rarely happened. A few kids seemed to notice the weird atmosphere, which made them
cease their immature squabbles and diverted their focus back on the topic at hand in front of the class.
Yoon Jung In asked, “Hey, do you know what kind of final boss we have to beat in this thing?”
“Who is it?”
“Oh, hold on. I know who it is.”
“Yeah,” Yoon Jung In gave a heavy nod and heaved a sigh with downcast eyes. He then opened his eyes
wide and said, “It’s Class 1-1.”
“…”
“Even if the Four Heavenly Kings and Ban Yeo Ryung were each in different classes, it would be such a
competitive challenge, but how could we even have a chance against them if they’re all in the same class?
Isn’t it insane?”
A cold silence hung in the air which felt suffocating.
‘What the…’ My shoulders trembled for a moment. The sunlight pouring through the window also
flipped into a chilly blue gradient. I slowly looked around. All the kids in the classroom murmured with
gloomy faces.
“Geez, Class 1-1 can easily win just by Ban Yeo Ryung standing on the stage doing nothing…”
“The Four Heavenly Kings could easily beat us by just existing, what more if they would stand on stage.”
‘This is being too pessimistic…’ It was then when something came across my mind. As I suddenly raised
my hand, Yoon Jung In glanced at me.
“Hey, but…”
“Yeah,” Yoon Jung In nodded.
“Are you sure the Four Heavenly Kings and Ban Yeo Ryung will go up the stage? As far as I know, they
won’t take part in this since they hate that kind of stuff.”
“…!”
The kids then gave strange gazes at me. ‘What’s going on…?’ As I trembled, those who were sitting on
their seats thronged into me and surrounded my seat. It was Yoon Jung In who took the lead. Before I
could ask about the overall situation, Yoon Jung In shouted out loud.
“Oh, yeah! You’re from Ji Jon Middle School, right?”
“Did you forget that?”
While I asked in perplexity, a boy standing beside him pushed me for a prompt response.
“Dude, come on! Did the Four Heavenly Kings and Ban Yeo Ryung ever stand on the stage?”
“Um… hold on.”
Feeling puzzled, I rolled my eyes and counted what was on my head with my fingers. The kids
surrounding me were so densely packed that my sight darkened since they pretty much blocked the
sunlight off my skin.
“During our senior year, Ban Yeo Ryung went on stage to perform the dance duo ‘Trouble Maker’ with
Yoo Chun Young.”
“Trouble Maker? Wow, that seems unbeatable!”
“Oh, and there was once a challenge that called all the class presidents to come up to the stage. At that
time, Eun Hyung showed his shuffle dance to the song ‘I Got My Eyes on You.’ His killer moves won the
first place.”
“Wow… is there anything else?”

“Other than those… no.”
“What about this time? Wait, aren’t the other classes also discussing what they would do in the talent
show right now?”
Yoon Jung In, who fell into deep thought with his arms crossed, nodded to the immediate question. He
then opened his mouth.
“Correct. All of them are having a class conference.”
“Then call them to ask what they’ll do on the stage.”
“Would they tell me about it…?”
“Better than doing nothing.”
“Come on!”
The kids encouraged me to call. ‘Hold on,’ feeling confused, I stopped pressing the button then glanced at
the girl who asked me the boys’ number before.
I told her I just knew their numbers; however, after wondering what to do, I finally entered Eun Jiho’s
number and pressed the call button.
If I spoke with Yeo Ryung, the Four Heavenly Kings would intervene in our conversation; besides, Eun
Jiho had a good sense of thinking when it comes to grasping the overall situation.
The kids nervously watched me taking the phone while a logo that indicated the words ‘calling’ flashed
on the screen. They watched in wonder as I placed my phone onto my ear. Within a few seconds, a voice
came through the phone.
“What the…”
“Hello? Is this Eun Jiho? Hi, I’m Ham Donnie, who went to the same middle school as you.”
‘Act like we don’t know each other that well,’ as I embodied this message in my words, a moment of
silence prevailed over the phone. I carefully waited for his response.
As I raised my eyes to look aside, Yi Ruda showed a mysterious gaze at me. I did not understand why her
blue eyes showed a sign of wonder and sympathy for me. After quite a while, I heard a reply.
“O… k… what’s up?”

His cold and calm voice, which revealed a distance between us, was what I expected from Eun Jiho. As
his voice rang in the air, I heard someone murmuring, ‘Wow, what a cool voice.’ Eun Jiho spoke in a tone
that I never heard after our sophomore year in middle school since our group had already grown closer. It
surprised me a little, but soon, I continued what I wanted to say.
“Um… are you guys also taking part in the talent show for Class 1-1?”
“You guys…?”
“I mean anyone in the Four Heavenly Kings and Yeo Ryung?”
“Uh-huh.”
Before I could express my gratitude, the call ended out of the blue. Feeling a little weird, I dropped my
gaze at the screen that had a ‘call ended’ sign flashing onto it. Meanwhile, a conversation went on beside
me.
“OMG, did you hear his voice? Doesn’t it sound so amazing?”
“Very true. He sounded like a cold-hearted, sexy metrosexual…”
“Such a straightforward guy!”
“Hey, that’s not the point for now. Not only the fabulous Eun Jiho, but at least one of the Four Heavenly
Kings and Ban Yeo Ryung will be on stage for the talent show! Geez, this is getting serious!”
When Yoon Jung In said like that in perplexity, the two girls stopped talking then stomped around while
holding each other’s hand.
“Oh, gosh! That means we can see them dance!”
“Hey, we’re gonna lose; don’t you understand?!” When Yoon Jung In asked while looking disconcerted,
a boy from aside replied apathetically.
“Dude, we already lost. Let’s just relax and have fun.”
“Oh, that’s a good idea! Yeah, it’s good just to let it go. What’s the point of winning first place, anyway?
All we’ll get is just a few snacks and some beverages.”
“Are you sure…?”

Yoon Jung In, who asked back, soon became chilled out. It looked as though he gave up already. Well,
even I thought we stood no chance of winning the talent show. I recalled the performance of Ban Yeo
Ryung and Yoo Chun Young last year.
They changed the original choreography to avoid the extremities of how physically explicit the real steps
were, which eventually made it look fancier with a sophisticated allure to it. I knew that Yoo Chun Young
was quite athletic, but I never thought he would be such an expert dancer.
I had the same thoughts regarding Ban Yeo Ryung, who danced along with him. She seamlessly
performed even the difficult moves with her slim and long limbs. Whenever she moved her body, her jet-
black hair waved on her back while shining an orange hue under the light.
‘Yeah,’ I nodded, ‘if Yoo Chun Young and Ban Yeo Ryung are on stage again, no one can beat them.’ As
I had that thought in mind, Yi Ruda, from aside, suddenly opened her mouth. She remained silent until
now, maybe because she did not understand the retreat in Korea; therefore, when she broke the ice,
everyone turned their heads to look at her.
She blinked her blue eyes once then said, “Hmm, as far as I know… as a reward for participation, if there
are more people on the stage, then the score would be higher, right? That’s what I understand, at least.”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“Then what about doing a play so many of us can participate? Let’s do something hilarious. If many
people are on stage, we only have to remember just a few lines while getting a higher score. As far as I
hear from you guys, we already expected most of the other classes to do dance performances.”
“Sounds nice!” said Kim Hye Woo. He then looked at Yoon Jung In.
“Good idea. Then should we go for that?” Yoon Jung In replied with a nod.
He glanced around the kids as if asking for their agreement. No one refuted it; instead, most of the kids
responded positively.
Yoon Jung In smiled to show his satisfaction and nodded before looking at Yi Ruda.
“I also realized that we have a person who could go toe-to-toe against the Four Heavenly Kings.”
“What?”
“Hey, let’s make Yi Ruda the protagonist. What do you think? Don’t we have a chance to win now?”
When Yoon Jung In said that with a full smile, Yi Ruda’s jaw dropped out of surprise, she even looked so
pretty with that look on her face. A light blond hair covered her white forehead.
‘Gosh, such a beautifully surprised face! Unbelievable…’ As I dwelled upon her face with a wistful and
yearning glance, she suddenly moved her blue eyes to look at me.
I was surprised, but she gave me an unexpected grin, which made me feel weird. I mean, it was more than
just an odd feeling. Something like a sense of anxiety seemed to crawl within my stomach.
The Yi Ruda I knew would have said, ‘What? Hell, no. Why should I?’ or ‘Not me, please.’ She,
however, didn’t say any of those words but diverted her blue eyes with a mysterious glare on me instead.
When I noticed how she subtly perked up the corners of her lips, her calm voice rang out of her mouth
while looking back at Yoon Jung In.
“Ok, if no one wants to play the main role, then I’ll take that.”
Her remark made Yoon Jung In ask her immediately, ‘Sir Ruda, would you like to have something?’ with
a serious face. While everyone burst out laughing at Yoon Jung In’s comical reaction, Ruda had her eyes
back on me.
“But on one condition.”
An awkward silence suddenly dominated the noise within the classroom. Every eye that pointed toward
Yi Ruda’s lip revealed a sign of tension.
She then continued, “I’m in only if Donnie plays my counterpart.”
On her red lips, she put on a dark vibrant smile.
***
“A dance performance as always.”
On our way back home from school, Ban Yeo Ryung replied in a relaxed face.
Well, there was nothing else to do other than a dance performance. If someone sings a soft ballad in a
talent show, it will never work unless the person is such a great singer. The best is to show something
visually fancy to draw other people’s attention. As I nodded to her remark, Ban Yeo Ryung flung a
question.
“What’s your class doing?”
“Um… a play.”
“A play? Who are playing the roles?”
“Almost everyone? The concept of our class is to flood the stage with everyone in the class.”
“What? Flooding the stage?”
Bending her eyes with a smile, Ban Yeo Ryung asked back as if she thought it was funny. When she
smiled, her dazzling jet-black eyes twinkled like a star. It reminded me of Yoo Chun Young’s eyes that I
saw earlier in the home video, which made me anxious somehow. Yoo Chun Young’s eyes on me were
like those of Ban Yeo Ryung right now, shining brilliantly.
I never saw Yoo Chun Young having such eyes like that. While I lost my mind in thoughts, Ban Yeo
Ryung threw another question, which surprised me.
“But aren’t there any main roles?”
“Yeah, Ruda will do the lead role.”
“Yi Ruda?”
“Uh-huh, I heard that they would use Ruda’s face to compete against you guys.”
“Makes no sense.”
Ban Yeo Ryung responded briefly, then closed her mouth. She looked particularly upset whenever Yi
Ruda was our topic. Hearing her name alone had already made Ban Yeo Ryung reveal her discomfort. I
recalled the conversation that went through earlier today.
“I’m in only if Donnie plays my counterpart.”
A moment of silence hung between us. Yi Ruda said something like this before and made the air turn a bit
off a few times. She patted my head or put her jacket on me when I was asleep. When it happened, kids in
our class gave a naughty gaze at us. It was nothing serious, so everyone just accepted it until they grew
familiar with it; however, the sudden silence that prevailed on the class earlier was maybe because Yi
Ruda’s blue eyes looked unusually serious.
I blinked in perplexity before saying, ‘Don’t put too many lines or else I’ll bomb on stage.’
‘Are you gonna take the role?”
I responded with a nod to Yoon Jung In’s question.
‘Uh-huh, but are you guys gonna hate me when I make a mistake?’
‘Not really, but I’ll probably boo you to death with a stone,’ Yoon Jung In replied with a giggle which
made Shin Suh Hyun smash his head. Kids burst into laughter again, and I watched them with a smile too.
At that moment, someone said from aside.
‘Hey, why don’t you accept it already?’
‘Huh?’
‘Yeah, why don’t you stop playing hard for Yi Ruda to get you, huh?’
‘Gosh, what the…!’
I swung my hand in the air, but the voices didn’t cease. Instead, some kids began to agree with a nod.
‘Oh, Ham Donnie, you such a bad girl.’
‘True. We should be careful.’
Geez… I scowled at them while pouting my lips against their misunderstanding. They all looked very
excited as if joking to show the truth in their hearts.
Of course, I knew how others would regard the repeated situations. Wouldn’t it look like Yi Ruda was
continually trying to win my love while I’m playing hard to get?
Feeling uncomfortable with their misunderstanding again, I carefully observed Yi Ruda’s pretty and
delicate profile face. First, she doesn’t have Adam’s apple. Second, she reaches over 170cm, which is tall
for a girl, but how come I’m the only one who understood that she is a female crossdresser? As I
demonstrated a sign of stuffiness on my face, Yi Ruda spoke to me with a stare.
‘Donnie.’
‘Huh?’
‘Let’s make it happen.’
Yi Ruda’s face then showed a beautiful grin, which captivated me just to give her a nod. At last, the other
kids went back to their seats. Looking at Yi Ruda’s fixed gaze and smile at me, I fell into thought.
Where would she stay during the retreat? It would be very uncomfortable for her to change clothes and
sleep with other boys. For both Yi Ruda and the boys, it was not a good thing at all; however, something
came across my head that seemed to ease my mind.
In a novel with a female crossdresser, the girl never gets caught even if she lived in the same dorm and
the same room. Others didn’t know that Yi Ruda was a crossdresser, so they wouldn’t find her although
she stayed with the boys. Alright… I nodded out of satisfaction.
‘Ok, let’s make it happen,’ I replied.
This was the overall conversation between us.
‘Hmm…’ I wondered while furrowing my forehead. ‘Should I tell Ban Yeo Ryung that Yi Ruda pointed
me out to be her counterpart?’
While I took a moment of consideration, I soon shook my head. Her face had already looked so upset just
because Yi Ruda was the lead role; however, if she were about to know that the counterpart was me, she
would undoubtedly stop me from playing the part with a solemn look on her face.
Before going inside the house, I asked Ban Yeo Ryung while watching her entering the passcode on her
door lock.
“Yeo Ryung, what dance are you performing?”
“Oh, it’s a secret!”
“…”
While I became dumbfounded, Ban Yeo Ryung smiled brightly with a wink then ran into her house.
‘What the…’ I flickered my eyes and thought, ‘I’ll never tell her that I’m on the stage for the play. Let’s
see who’s gonna get more surprised.’
The next day during the class conference, I could barely hide the look on my face out of perplexity. I
came to realize, at last, how unified our class was.
“Hey, look. When Ruda says to you, ‘Hey, be my wifey,’ then…”
“Oh, no. That’s too cheesy.”
“And the two hug each other tight…”
“Oh, come on! What’s wrong with the script? Why is it all about love confessions and hugs?!”
Regardless of my roars, they were deeply into writing a script about Yi Ruda and I falling in love.
I picked up the ripped scripts scattered around the floor, crushed them together, and threw it to their backs
a few times but there were no reactions at all. They were busy wondering and discussing ‘how to put
more cheesy lines in the script.’
I stopped murmuring then walked toward Yi Ruda, who sat in the corner of the classroom looking
relaxed. Her face turned immediately bright as she found me getting closer.
I snatched her arm and said, “Hey, they are putting all kinds of weird lines.”
“Like what?”
She seemed curious as I spat the words, weird lines. I continued with a grim face.
“You know, it’s like, ‘Be my wifey. You’re mine. I’ll be there for you…’ They are writing stuff like
these.”
“Are you sure the script is full of those lines?”
“What if we both throw up while acting?”
I trembled my body while thinking about Yi Ruda and I looking at each other but soon puking on the
stage.
As if my cheeks turned pale, Yi Ruda lifted her hand to pat my face. She then grinned. A few kids beside
us blew whistles and left. ‘Gosh, again!’ While I scowled at their backs, Yi Ruda spoke in front of me.
“I like it though.”
“…”
‘Are you sure you like us looking at each other and throw up? Why??’
While I had a confused gaze at her, she raised her hand to sweep her blond hair back. Yi Ruda, pulling
her hair back while dropping her blue eyes on the floor, looked genderless and mysteriously attractive at
the same time.
She then said, “They’re writing such a brilliant script, so let me perform the best acting.”
As her smile got deeper, I became anxious somehow. In front of the classroom, they were still talking
noisily about wifey, my heart… things like that.
***
It was such a sunny day like summertime. Kids, who lined up under the blue sky, all looked suffocated.
Looking at the principal’s speech in front of them, they thought with dried eyes, ‘Please… please… you
said from earlier this is the last word!!!’
“Everyone, this is the last word I would like to put.”
‘You already said that ten times!!’ Kids burst out their waves of anger while stomping silently. Teachers,
who gave warnings a few times at first, were now unable to bear the sight of the kids’ resentful faces. All
they could do was to avoid their looks.
‘Principal, please stop!’ Even the teachers felt intolerable that they murmured to themselves. In the
middle of the never-ending, boring speech, only one person stood straight.
Kwon Eun Hyung, the president of Class 1-1, remained silent while standing upright in front of the class.
Someone then tapped his shoulder. As Kwon Eun Hyung looked back, Eun Jiho’s smiling face was right
in front of him.
“Why?”
When he mouthed to ask, Eun Jiho pointed far right with his chin. Following Eun Jiho, Kwon Eun Hyung
turned his head to the pointed direction. He then burst into small laughter.
Inside the group of Class 1-8 kids, Ham Donnie was dozing off while standing up. Having her eyes closed
in exhaustion, she hung her head down deeply, which looked quite dangerous.
“She stayed up late texting.”
Eun Jiho said then handed out his phone to Kwon Eun Hyung. The text was received at 4:20 in the
morning. ‘What did she do until this time?’ Having this in mind, Kwon Eun Hyung fetched a deep sigh.
Sent by: Ham Donnie
Our class is gonna win tomorrow’s talent show~
^^! ^^!! ^^!!!!!
Reading the message, Kwon Eun Hyung quietly burst out laughing then asked in a low voice.
“What did you text back?”
“Like this,” Eun Jiho said briefly and pressed another button again.
To: Ham Donnie
Lol Lol Lol!!!!!
This time, Kwon Eun Hyung couldn’t help himself laughing a little loudly.
While he thought about what Donnie would have been as she received this message, Eun Jiho, who kept
giggling at Donnie, suddenly had a fierce look in his eyes. Looking at the strange tension in his jet-black
eyes, Kwon Eun Hyung turned to see the direction in wonder. He then soon had the same face as Eun
Jiho’s.
“Why doesn’t he just wake her up…”
Listening to Eun Jiho’s low mutter, Kwon Eun Hyung nodded in silence.
In a distance, someone from Class 1-8 was pulling Ham Donnie, who just fell into sleep, inside his arms.
Yi Ruda put his chin on top of Ham Donnie’s head and had his arms tightly around her neck. Hugging her
like that from behind, Yi Ruda was whispering something in warmhearted eyes.
Kwon Eun Hyung’s eyes grew bigger in discomposure. ‘How can she lose her mind like that when a guy
is hugging her from behind? Doesn’t she have any wariness against him?’ Eun Jiho, standing in the back,
tapped the buttons roughly.
Ham Donnie suddenly furrowed her eyes then got out of Yi Ruda’s arms. Without any words, Yi Ruda let
Ham Donnie out of him but knitted his nose as if he felt discontented. He then stared at the back of Ham
Donnie’s head.
Ham Donnie took her phone out of the pocket and turned her head to look at this side. When Eun Jiho
waved his hand in a refreshed face, Kwon Eun Hyung saw her face turning stiff.
“What did you send her?” He asked.
Eun Jiho then lifted his phone to show it to Eun Hyung.
To: Ham Donnie
Wake up
To: Ham Donnie
I said wake up
To: Ham Donnie

WAKE UP
What Eun Jiho sent to her continuously was a bunch of messages that only had each letter of ‘wake up.’
Since the phone rang repeatedly within a second, Ham Donnie could not help herself waking up.
Eun Jiho’s phone screen then flickered with a new message. He opened his flip phone again.
Sent by: Ham Donnie
Why?!
To: Ham Donnie
Is the schoolyard your bed? Huh?
Eun Jiho then typed, ‘Sleep inside the bus,’ but he quickly moved his fingers to delete it. Kwon Eun
Hyung, beside him, asked in wonder.
“Why did you delete it?”
“Wouldn’t Yi Ruda sit next to Ham Donnie inside the bus?”
“Oh.”
Both became silent for a while. As if something came across his mind, Eun Jiho, who was gazing at Ham
Donnie, revealed gradual darkness in his eyes.
Kwon Eun Hyung stared at Eun Jiho. Feeling Eun Hyung’s gaze, Eun Jiho soon raised his head. He then
said with his eyes still submerged in darkness.
“Why?”
“I mean, you…”
Kwon Eun Hyung paused then shut his mouth. He rarely left his words unfinished but right now he didn’t
know what to say.
They were friends with Ham Donnie for three years, which meant they were physically intimate at some
point. Kwon Eun Hyung or Yoo Chun Young often pat Ham Donnie’s head. Woo Jooin didn’t hesitate to
hug her waist or neck. Eun Jiho put his arm around her shoulders too.
Now that they were in different classes, Ham Donnie could have a friend being physically intimate like
them. Eun Jiho’s reaction was, however, suspicious that he…
As if he read Kwon Eun Hyung’s mind, Eun Jiho, who was staring at Eun Hyung’s eyes, raised his silver
brows. He then lifted the corners of his lips askew. His jet-black eyes still swayed in darkness. Before
Kwon Eun Hyung tried to continue his words, Eun Jiho broke the ice.
“I can hardly let her go to you guys who’ve seen her for three years. But how can I give Donnie to a
bastard who I met in my life for the first time? I can’t accept that.”
“You mean…”
Kwon Eun Hyung couldn’t keep up his words. Instead, he closed his mouth again. While Eun Jiho stared
at him, Kwon Eun Hyung turned himself back to look front.
Kwon Eun Hyung was confident about how well he could read other people’s emotions. It, somewhat,
resulted from his childhood background. If he had a strand of hair that was out of place, he would receive
severe criticism wherein people would say, ‘It’s because he wasn’t raised in a complete family.’
Therefore, to avoid the reproach, he had to read other people’s mind and behave upon that.
Since he lived that way, Kwon Eun Hyung thought that he was aware of Eun Jiho’s emotions to some
degree. ‘Have I been wrong?’ Eun Jiho’s eyes just now were, however, such an unseen thing to Eun
Hyung.
Yoo Chun Young’s soft glance and Eun Jiho’s deeply submerged eyes… Kwon Eun Hyung closed his
eyes with a frown.
Suddenly, a strong premonition struck him. A long time ago, in the past, he sensed something crawling
awkwardly within him when he saw the vividly red car disappearing into the fog at a slow pace. The
strange feeling that he had at that time was now speaking to him; the retreat will be a turning point for
their relationships wherein they would have a complete fallout.
I carried a heavy bag on the bus and sat beside Kim Hye Hill, in front. We thought it would be better to
avoid any motion sickness by sitting closer to the forepart of the bus; however, as soon as I sat down,
someone pulled my arm. When I turned my head, Yoon Jung In came into my sight. I asked him with a
dumbfounded expression.
“What’s up?”
Yoon Jung In smiled naughtily at my response then pointed at the back of the car with his chin. Before I
could ask Kim Hye Hill for help, he dragged me all the way to the back and made me sit. Yi Ruda was
also forced to sit beside me without knowing the reason. Sitting side by side, we both looked at each
other, while blinking our eyes, then we looked Yoon Jun In at the same time.
He perched in front of us while his one hand was placed on the back of the seat. Laughing naughtily, he
grabbed a bunch of papers in his hands. It was then that we noticed what he was thinking. Yoon Jung In
spoke with a wink.
“Hey, how are you faring with remembering the script? Tomorrow is the night, so shouldn’t you guys
perform a rehearsal?”
Once we heard him say that, we heard other kids blowing whistles, booing, and roaring wickedly within
the bus. Gosh… I furrowed my eyebrows.
‘I did remember it, but the script is a total mess…’ With that thought in mind, Yi Ruda said something
besides me.
“I’m ready. What about you, Donnie? Will you be fine?”
“Oh, you are such a prepared man!” Yoon Jung In said with a smile then looked back at me.
Knitting my face, I turned my mouth up slightly to resemble the hint of a smile. Of course, it was a fake
grin. I barely opened my mouth to reply.
“I did remember the script, but…”
Precisely 10 minutes later, I stammered my lines then lifted my head to look around inside the bus. No
one had their heads up in the air properly. Some kids had a weird look on their faces while holding each
other’s hands. A few kids buried their faces on the back of the chair in silence. Aside from me, Shin Suh
Hyun and Kim Hye Hill were gazing horribly at me.
Kim Hye Hill, who seemed to hesitate for quite a while, carefully opened her lips as our eyes met. She
then flung her words to me.
“Do it over again.”
“…”
“Let’s just first read it correctly.”
“Um… I did remember the whole script, though.”
It was true that I had every line inside my head; however, the acting was a different story. As I raised my
eyes to look at Yi Ruda, she gently nodded while staring at me. She then directed her eyes onto Kim Hye
Hill.
“From where?”
“Hmm, let’s start from Yi Ruda pushing Ham Donnie onto the wall and locking her inside his arms.”
When Kim Hye Hill read that line in a calm voice, I felt a shiver crawling up my spine. While I tried to
rub the back of my chilly neck, a hand stretched out from aside then held onto the wall right next to my
face. Yi Ruda soon turned her body to look at me closely.
We weren’t on the stage but were inside a bus, so this was all we could do; however, it was still such a
small distance. Yi Ruda’s knees almost touched mine, and her nose was within a 30-cm distance away
from me. Her hand could easily reach me once she stretched them out.
The sunlight coming through the curtain shone the tip of her refined nose. Her dazzling eyes looked
somewhat colder than usual.
The silence between our lines seemed particularly longer than usual. After a good while, Yi Ruda,
dropping her gaze at me, opened her lips.
“Do you… want to be mine?”
Her soft and sweet voice soon prevailed in the silent space. At that very moment, everyone within the bus
seemed to stare at Yi Ruda while holding their breaths. I wasn’t getting it wrong. She indeed had a unique
vibe that allured people.
As I dwelled upon her with a captivating glance, she just kept her gaze at me. The longer our silence
prevailed, the more uncomfortable it would make me feel to be close to her; however, she didn’t push me
at all. I gathered my senses back but became distressed as my next lines came across my head. I felt like
she had snatched my heart away from my fragile chest.
I tilted my head diagonally for a bit to avoid her gaze. If I wouldn’t do this, then I would never be able to
pull my lines inside of my head. At last, I opened my mouth.
“Heart… p…ound…”
“…”
A cold silence hung among the audience again. Soon, a person got up from his seat out of the blue, which
broke the ice. Needless to say, it was Yoo Jung In, who was sitting in front of us.
He shouted at me, “Hey, Ham Donnie! Do you have a speech impediment? Come on! It’s just two words,
‘heart pound.’ Is it hard for you to just speak those two words correctly? Hold on, there’s another one.”
Yoon Jung In then flipped the script in his hand nervously. He then continued his words.
“Hey, this part, ‘I can’t love someone anymore because I only have one heart. My heart was already taken
by Yi Ruda, so I don’t have anything left.”
“Dude, hold on. Don’t read that out loud!”
As soon as I cried out, a few kids retched while turning pale. Yoon Jung In, who devastated many of us in
a flash, however, responded in a guiltless expression.
“I mean, why can’t you say this simple line? Don’t you know how to read it? Do you want me to show
you? ‘I… can’t lo…ve some…one anymore… because, cough, I only have one… heart… cough, gosh…
what’s it got to do with heart and love?’ Geez…”
“You know, it’s weird!”
“Oh, just get over it and move on. What did you say? ‘My he…art was already taken by Yi Ruda…, so I
don’t ha…ve anyth…ing left. Cough. How can I be alive without a heart?’ Hey, stop stammering! Why
do you keep adding unnecessary fillers?”
“Dude, honestly, the script is too…”
I paused with a grimace then scowled at a few kids who wrote the script. As they saw my angry gaze,
they pretended to be indifferent while looking up at the ceiling. Sigh… I dropped my head and swept my
hair back. I then opened my mouth.
“Hey, who says ‘heart pound’ out loud instead of just blushing? Do you have your mouth on your
heart?!”
“You’re not ready to blush.”
“It would be way easier than saying ‘heart pound’ out loud! Let me do that.”
“Is it that hard for you?”
Listening to our story apathetically, Kim Hye Hill, who perched her arm on the armrest, suddenly
stretched her arms out.
She then effortlessly snatched Yoon Jung In’s script out of his hand and slowly went over it while leaning
her body to me. I also bent myself to her. Her jet-black hair shone a bluish hue under the sunlight.
“Let’s see… ‘Pound. What are you talking about? We just met each other earlier. What? No, I won’t.
Geez, what a weirdo…’ Hmm.”
A few kids tried to cover their ears out of the freakiness of what she was saying, but they soon looked at
us in wonder. I did the same as I felt how unexpected this thing turned out to be.
Surprisingly, the lines coming through Kim Hye Hill’s calm and even tone weren’t cheesy at all. The only
problem was…
“Hey, Kim Hye Hill, stop that. Are you reading a book?”
“Come on, oppa. Do you want me to put some emotions in here?”
“No, since it would make all of us cringe here. Hey, just stop reading it for now.”
“Okay.”
Kim Hye Hill replied while closing the script neatly before handing it over to Yoon Jung In. She then
returned to her seat and buried herself there.
Yeah… the problem was that Kim Hye Hill’s acting literally sounded like she was reading a book.
As I knitted my brows speechlessly, someone from aside spoke gently.
“But I think it’s fine,” said Shin Suh Hyun.
Yoon Jung In then asked in wonder, “What do you mean?”
“I mean, acting as if you’re reading a book or a cue card is totally fine. Isn’t it quite funny the way it is?”
When Shin Suh Hyun said that while blinking his brown eyes, a few kids inside the bus soon voiced out
their agreement to him, ‘Yeah, that was pretty cool!’ A girl then spoke with her eyes on me.
“True, it was quite funny when she read the cheesy lines with an expressionless face. Hey, Donnie, do
what she did.”
“Huh?”
“Just do what Hye Hill did before.”
‘Okay…’ I hurriedly flipped the pages of the script inside my head. The part that I was about to do was…
“Heart pound. What are you talking about? We met just now. What a weirdo.”
“Oh, now you ain’t stammering!”
“Look, it’s pretty nice, right? I think showing the contrast between Yi Ruda’s serious performance and
Donnie’s terrible performance would be really interesting.”
Shin Suh Hyun continued his words when Yoon Jung In rejoiced others’ reactions. Everyone soon turned
bright enough to say how cool it was, but in my point of view, they looked delighted once they stopped
hearing those painful lines.
The bus kept running for quite a while after the end of the rehearsal. Kim Hye Hill and I tried to return to
our front seats. Yoon Jung In, however, wanted us to stay with him, so we had to remain sitting on the
back with no way out.
The back had five seats connected to each other. Kim Hye Hill, Kim Hye Woo, Yi Ruda, Shin Suh Hyun,
and I sat alongside. Although they said that they weren’t so close in middle school, graduating from the
same school indeed made them share many stories together.
While munching some chips, my eyes grew bigger in surprise from the story ringing around me.
I asked, “Kim Hye Hill has a boyfriend?”
“Didn’t I tell you?”
“No, you didn’t.”
As if she felt embarrassed, Kim Hye Hill scratched the back of her head then responded shortly, ‘I see,’ in
a blank face.
My voice might have been loud since some kids who were talking in front turned back to look at us. I
could see the shock in their eyes. We then heard a burst of booing throughout the bus.
“What…? Kim Hye Hill has a boyfriend?”
“For real?!”
“Hey, Kim Hye Woo! You should’ve told us that!”
Suddenly facing the complaints, Kim Hye Woo also scratched his head. It looked the same as what Kim
Hye Hill did earlier; they were indeed twins.
Kim Hye Woo looked at his sister and asked in a cold tone.
“You guys still didn’t break up yet?”

As if his question was worthless to respond, Kim Hye Hill just heaved a short sigh. She then stretched out
her hand to grab a pack of snacks and smashed Kim Hye Woo with it.
When the fuss cooled down, Yoon Jung In soon continued his words.
“Have you been dating him for about 6 months? You guys went out from late December, and now it’s
mid-May, so yeah… less than 6 months.”
“For six months?!”
“Her boyfriend goes to our school. His name is Lee Jihan in Class 1-4. He’s a kid who sucks at
everything except for running.”
As I asked in wonder, Kim Hye Woo responded to those words. He said while massaging his arm that got
smashed with a pack of snacks. Listening to his remark, Shin Suh Hyun flung a question while furrowing
his forehead.
“A kid who sucks at everything except for running… what an introduction.”
“He looks run-of-a-mill and maybe a bit tall? Oh, but Kim Hye Hill had short hair until middle school,
almost like a boy?”
“True, I had short hair during middle school.”
Kim Hye Hill touched the end of her dark blue hair as if she felt embarrassed. She also didn’t have that
long hair now, which was almost about to reach her shoulders… she had even shorter hair than this?
After rolling his eyeballs in the air, Kim Hye Woo continued his remark.
“She had long hair until elementary school, but when she entered middle school… a boy who liked her
put gum all over her hair, so she had to cut everything off. It was then when she found out how
comfortable it is to have short hair…”
“He liked me?”
“You didn’t notice that?”
“Of course, I didn’t. He never said that, so how should I know?”
“Anyway, one day, Lee Jihan told me that he’s dating my sister. At first, I was like, ‘How can you go out
with a tomboy like that?’ Then Kim Hye Hill smashed me again, and… they still have a good
relationship?!”
Kim Hye Hill glared at Kim Hye Woo. Yi Ruda and I burst into laughter while watching the twin’s
quarrel. Since I didn’t have any brothers, I stared at them in envy, then Shin Suh Hyun, from aside,
opened his mouth.
“Oh, I remember that.”
“What?”
“Yoon Jung In, don’t you remember the campfire during our junior retreat in middle school?
“Huh…”
Yoon Jung In rolled his eyeballs in wonder then soon turned pale. He pulled up the corner of his lips and
smiled awkwardly.
“Dude, how can you still remember that?”
“If you ask that to the whole school, at least half of them will clearly remember.”
“Hey, hold on. I know what that is.”
Kim Hye Woo, who enjoyed the blowing wind through the opened window, intervened out of the blue.
Yoon Jung In then backed up his body a little in surprise.
Without hesitating about everyone’s attention, Kim Hye Woo rubbed his chin nonchalantly before
continuing again.
“It was probably at the campfire during our junior retreat in middle school. Watching the dying bonfire,
the instructor said to us, ‘Guys, this is your parents. They are sacrificing themselves like this dying fire to
burn the flare, which is you guys…’ I still remember those words.”
The air inside the bus suddenly grew solemn. At that moment, Kim Hye Woo lifted his hand before
opening his mouth.
“Yoon Jung In was the class president back then too. You know, class presidents are in front of the class
during the retreat with a microphone in their hands. Yoon Jung In, however, forgot that he was holding a
mic and spoke…”
“What did he say?” As I quickly asked, Kim Hye Hill continued her brother’s words in an intimate tone.
“He said, ‘Come on, how dare you compare my parents to a dying bonfire?’ in the middle of the solemn
campfire.”
“…”
“Everyone hung their heads down as they held a cup with a candle inside. Some kids were sobbing while
thinking about their parents, but Yoon Jung In spoiled the mood. As a punishment, his class had to walk
while squatting for 5 laps.”
A moment of silence seemed to prevail the space, but soon, a burst of laughter took place. ‘Yoon Jung In,
what a guy!’ Kids teased him naughtily, which made Yoon Jung In open his mouth in a grumpy face.
“Come on, let’s be real! How dare they compare my parents to a dying fire?! My mom and dad are still
burning fiercely like the sun!”
“Oh, boy! How could you say that on the mic?”
“Yeah, when everyone’s crying and so on…”
Just when Yoon Jung In was about to say something in a sulky face, a robot-like woman’s announcement
came out through the speaker. It made all of us raise our heads.
“We’re going to stop for about 15 minutes at this rest area. Please go to the bathroom during the break.”
As the bus wheel rolled into the parking lot smoothly, we began to leave the bus. At last, the bus stopped,
and I jumped down the stairs after the kids did. It was somehow delightful when my sneakers bumped on
the ground.
Since it was in the morning, the weather was beautiful and sunny. Under the vast blue sky, many colorful
buses stood in the parking lot, which showed that it wasn’t only us who came for the retreat. As soon as I
had that thought in mind, a group of boys who wore the same gym clothes passed by.
‘Geez, almost freaked me out!’ I thought.
Kim Hye Hill then mumbled while looking at the boys, “Are they members of an athletic club?”
“Yeah, maybe. Let’s just go to the bathroom quickly.”
“Okay.”
Replying shortly, Kim Hye Hill moved toward the bathroom. Meanwhile, I looked around to locate where
our classmates were. However, instead of seeing them, those who came into my sight immediately were,
funnily, the Four Heavenly Kings.
They easily stood out in front of the snack bar full of students. Their fancy hair colors, especially Eun
Jiho’s platinum blond hair, dazzled under the sunlight. As if Kim Hye Hill also thought the same, she
remarked while looking at them.
“They would be dead tired too.”
“Yeah… Oh, look. Isn’t that crowd picking up?” I asked while snooping around that side to see them
better.
It was true that a few girls were getting closer to the Four Heavenly Kings. As they had their hands inside
their pockets and was standing like a model–maybe unintentionally–the girls handed out their phones to
them. What they were asking for was obviously noticeable.
‘Picking someone up at a rest area really happens!’ I didn’t know that fact during middle school.
As I peeped around that direction busily, Eun Jiho shook his head and said something to the girls. Eun
Hyung also reacted the same but with a fierce smile. Yoo Chun Young just tilted his head without any
response then looked somewhere else. Even Woo Jooin smiled quietly as usual, but he didn’t give his
number to anyone at all, no matter how much they tried.
‘Well, it’s not the first time they dealt with that kind of situation…’ As I understood what was going on, I
decided to look where Ban Yeo Ryung was.
She was talking about something with a bright face to some girls in her class. The reason why I wasn’t so
concerned about her after our classes differed once we were in high school was that she was not an
unsociable person at all. The only thing that lingered in me was the fact that there would always be a girl
who would get jealous of Ban Yeo Ryung and try to pull some stupid trick on her.
Only three years and a few months passed as we got closer, but it was already three times since I last saw
her struggling with such situations. Baek Yeo Min, a girl in our class when we were freshmen in middle
school, was an example of someone who always smiled and acted like Ban Yeo Ryung’s best friend.
However, she ended up talking smack behind her back eventually. Although kids in high school tend to
be more mature than they were before, no one could convince them that there wouldn’t be anyone
bitching Ban Yeo Ryung behind her back.
I looked at her with mixed emotions before stepping inside the bathroom. I then kind of saw a group of
kids who were wearing a school uniform getting closer to Ban Yeo Ryung’s direction.
When I left the bathroom, the scene changed a little. The rest area was still crowded with people. In front
of the snack bar with steam rising above its roof, kids chit-chatted in excitement while grabbing paper
cups with snacks inside. At a distance, a few buses rolled into the parking lot again. Some students were
looking at the things on the stall.
Then… most of their eyes were bent on somewhere.
In the middle of their gazes, there stood Eun Jiho, who was saying something to Ban Yeo Ryung with a
smile. As if he teased her as usual, Ban Yeo Ryung flew into a rage, and soon, Eun Hyung intervened to
arbitrate their quarrel. Yoo Chun Young grinned at the funny situation, then Woo Jooin winked at my side
as if he noticed me from far apart. A few kids turned to look in this direction, so I pulled the corners of
my lips up slightly to resemble the hint of a smile as a response.
I saw that a group of boys couldn’t get closer to her but was just standing still apart from Ban Yeo Ryung.
I then finally grasped the overall situation. They probably would have approached Ban Yeo Ryung to get
her number, but the Four Heavenly Kings might have interfered to stop them. Since the four boys guarded
Ban Yeo Ryung safely like that, no one would dare flirt with her at all. ‘Hmm…’ As I nodded like
nothing extraordinary had happened, the next situation then stiffened my face.
A group of girls in school uniforms stepped closer to Ban Yeo Ryung bravely. The leader standing in
front was a girl with wavy curls. Blushing her face, she handed out her phone to Ban Yeo Ryung. Kim
Hye Hill, who suddenly stood beside me, whispered in a low voice.
“Now, what the heck is that?”
“I know that Ban Yeo Ryung is pretty, but that’s…”
‘A girl wants to get Ban Yeo Ryung’s number? Why?’ As I stared at their direction with a complicated
face, something substantial fell on my shoulders. When I turned back to see who it was, there stood the
shining Yoon Jung In.
He handed over some sweet potato sticks for me to try, so I had a few. Shin Suh Hyun, who was standing
behind him, asked while looking at the fuss apart.
“Something’s going on there.”
“Yeah, the Four Heavenly Kings and Ban Yeo Ryung, as usual.”
“Oh, guys, we might be running late. Let’s return to the bus.”
As soon as Yoon Jung In said that, Kim Hye Hill and I snapped back into reality. ‘Wouldn’t they be late?’
When I glanced at Ban Yeo Ryung in concern, our eyes met. She then smiled at me.
When she smiled, her eyes curved into a crescent moon-like shape. Her gorgeous eyes then captivated
other people. While gazing at her with their jaws dropped after seeing her beauty, I smiled back while
waving my hand to her then boarded the bus.
As I sat on my seat for a while, I felt the vibration inside my pocket. I took out the phone then checked
the screen. ‘Eun Ji-goddamn-ho,’ the four words twinkled silver on the screen. I opened my flip phone.
“Hey, what’s up?”
“Dude, stop sleeping.”

‘…What the hell is wrong with him?’ I began to wonder.
***
What a sunny day! Ban Yeo Ryung, who rested her chin on her hand, raised her head when she heard a
slight exclamation coming from aside. Woo Jooin, who sat before her with a Pepero stick between his
lips, handed out another one to her. She was hesitant for a moment but soon took it with a smile then gave
it to a friend sitting next to her.
Donnie’s face overlapped onto her friend’s. Although Donnie was not doing anything else other than
riding a different bus, Yeo Ryung felt a little weird. ‘It’s just that I can’t get used to a trip without Donnie
beside me,’ Ban Yeo Ryung said to herself, ‘So yeah, that’s what it is.’
She knew how much she was relying emotionally on Donnie. ‘I only have Donnie,’ she often thought;
however, she grew anxious about the fact that she couldn’t accept anyone as a friend forever.
Ban Yeo Ryung carefully observed her friend’s face beside her. Her round forehead slightly tangled
bangs, and a shoulder-length black hair resembled Donnie.
Her name was Choi Yuri, one of the few whom Ban Yeo Ryung decided to open her heart to in the class.
Yuri, who was dropping her gaze at the floor, lifted her eyes as she noticed Yeo Ryung’s stare. She then
put a grin on her face.
“Hey, why?”
“Nothing,” Ban Yeo Ryung said with a smile to put down the seriousness. Feeling cute, Yuri looked at
her then began to talk about something.
Ban Yeo Ryung listened to her story, chit-chatted with Woo Jooin in front of her, and said a few words to
Eun Jiho who was sitting right across her. It was a smooth start of the trip.
At the rest area, a situation that always happened retook place. When she came into a crowded spot, Ban
Yeo Ryung grew scared rather than getting excited or cheerful. She hated drawing others’ attention, and
especially, she felt so uncomfortable when people asked her for something with greedy eyes.
Ban Yeo Ryung frowned then stretched her hand out from aside. When she reached someone’s arm, she
then felt relieved. She pulled her arm and linked hers through it. Choi Yuri, who was beside her,
chuckled.
“Yeo Ryung, what’s wrong?”
“There are too many people.”
“Let’s go to the bathroom and head back. Oh, look over there. Someone’s asking Jooin’s number.”
Like other girls in their class, Choi Yuri also felt that Woo Jooin was comfortable. As what she just said,
Woo Jooin, who was standing in front of the snack bar, showed an awkward grin to a girl. They were at a
close distance from here, so she clearly heard his response.
“Sorry, I have a girlfriend.”
“Can you just give me your number? I want to be friends with you…”
“My girlfriend doesn’t like that.”
His friendly brown eyes looked mysteriously sharp and steady. Choi Yuri mumbled in surprise from
aside.
“Jooin gave out a flat refusal; that was very unexpected.”
“Uh-huh! That’s him, usually.”
When Ban Yeo Ryung replied like that, she was perplexed by the lasting silence between them. Choi
Yuri, beside her, sent a gaze that revealed a thirst for something. She looked as if she wanted to hear more
about Woo Jooin, but Ban Yeo Ryung refused to do so. It never went well for Ban Yeo Ryung when she
got involved with a girl about the Four Heavenly Kings.
When Ban Yeo Ryung put a mixed smile on her face, Choi Yuri also responded with a grin then pulled
her arm.
Luckily, it was a sunny day. Ban Yeo Ryung’s mood got gradually better too. When she encountered her
classmates and chatted with them before the women’s bathroom, a group of boys walked toward their
direction from a distance.
They all looked determined while their eyes shone with a desire in their minds. Ban Yeo Ryung stepped
back unconsciously. One of the boys came closer and flung a question.
“Excuse me… do… do you have a boyfriend?”
“…”
Ban Yeo Ryung rolled her eyeballs but couldn’t figure out what to reply. As she remained silent, a few
girls around them sent a naughty glance at her. Some looked excited, whereas some looked jealous.
Ban Yeo Ryung hesitated to respond. If she said no, it was obvious what would happen next; however,
she wasn’t even a good liar to affirm them. At that very moment, a hand stretched out from aside out of
the blue. It was then laid on her shoulder. She turned her head to see who it was.
A familiar face came into her sight. A boy with a beautiful silver hair then spoke to the guys before her.
“I’m her boyfriend. I’ll take her with me.”
Eun Jiho’s icy cold lips and jet-black eyes that was resembling his characteristically condescending
attitude looked heavily subdued than usual.
What Ban Yeo Ryung felt from Eun Jiho during her freshman year in middle school was that
overwhelming behavior. No one could cope with that look and the way he talked. Indeed, the boys, who
blocked her, soon stepped aside in perplexity.
“Oh… yeah… okay…”
“Let’s go,” Eun Jiho said to Ban Yeo Ryung briefly then strode along in front of her. Choi Yuri, looking
at Ban Yeo Ryung’s back, was slowly getting farther away from them. At a distance, Eun Hyung was
chatting with Yoo Chun Young, but when their eyes met, he grinned at her. He swept his red hair back
and went closer to her.
“Oh, Jiho. Good job. Are you okay, Yeo Ryung?” Kwon Eun Hyung asked to relieve her.
Well, it was already three years since they became closer. They knew how much she struggled with guys.
Therefore, they were aware of how much she feared and hated strangers approaching her. Ban Yeo Ryung
grew a bit embarrassed as she replied while rubbing her hair.
“Huh? Um… yeah…”
“Good.”
After replying with a soft tone, Kwon Eun Hyung patted her head with his big, warm hand as usual. Eun
Jiho’s loud voice then protruded.
“Hey, Ban Yeo Ryung, why can’t you just lie? All you have to do is say, ‘Oopsie~ I have a boyfriend~’
and call any of us.”
“I don’t know. I just can’t.”
“Geez, that’s beyond my power, but thank god you have a friend like me beside you.”
Eun Jiho threw his icy cold face away then showed a vibrant smile at her. His unique, frivolous voice was
so funny that Ban Yeo Ryung burst into laughter. A voice suddenly came over from behind her.
“Yeo Ryung, instead of giving yours, why didn’t you just give my number? It’s fine.”
“Really? Can I?”
“If they called my number and found out that it was a guy, then they would be like, ‘Oh, this girl just gave
me a random number.’ What’s the big deal about that?”
“I never thought about that. Still, I don’t want to trouble you guys.”
“We’ll just receive a few curses,” as if it was nothing, Woo Jooin said with a shrug.
Seemingly, he looked friendly and courteous, but sometimes, he surprised people by showing his
unexpected character.
Woo Jooin and Ban Yeo Ryung were alike on the aspect of giving their full hearts to the people in their
circle of friends. However, they would be frighteningly indifferent to those outside the zones. Ban Yeo
Ryung stared at him for a moment but soon turned her head to look beside her when someone touched her
arm, so was the Four Heavenly Kings.
From her school uniform skirt, the person who handed Ban Yeo Ryung their phone number in a blushing
face was indeed a girl. ‘What is going on?’ Ban Yeo Ryung soon felt dizzy and confused. The girl then
slowly detached her lips.
“Um… if it’s okay with you, would you please give me your number? I want to be fr… iends with
you…”
Ban Yeo Ryung could hardly respond. Instead, she looked at the girl with a complicated gaze. This was
such an unexpected situation that she couldn’t figure out what to do. Even the Four Heavenly Kings and
Eun Jiho, who was full of resources in an emergency, grew speechless and just watched the situation.
After hesitating for a while, Ban Yeo Ryung carefully picked up her phone.
When it was time to leave the rest area, Ban Yeo Ryung saw Donnie, who was getting on the bus before
meeting her eyes. As Ban Yeo Ryung showed a face full of vibrant smile, Donnie also showed a sweet
grin at her. She then waved her hand to Yeo Ryung.
When Donnie disappeared from her sight, Ban Yeo Ryung stomped her feet in joy. Although the four
boys were staring at her in wonder, she kept smiling for quite a while.
When she returned to the bus with the Four Heavenly Kings, Choi Yuri hadn’t returned yet. Ban Yeo
Ryung sent her a message to ask where she was before sitting down. It was, again, Donnie’s face that
came across inside her head when she found herself sitting alone.
‘I miss Donnie,’ while she had those thoughts in her head, she heard Eun Jiho, sitting across her, speaking
on the phone.
“― Dude, stop sleeping.”
“…?”
Ban Yeo Ryung raised her body a little to lean toward Eun Jiho.
She then asked, “Eun Jiho, who are you talking to?”
“Ham Donnie. Dude, it’s because you’re bored… you’re bored, aren’t you?”
“Me too. Let me speak to Donnie too!”
Ban Yeo Ryung stretched her hand out to him, but Eun Jiho pushed her forehead away. She had never felt
this desperate to hear Donnie’s voice, so she stretched her arm out a few more times. Still, Eun Jiho
tightly attached the phone to his ear. He didn’t even respond to Ban Yeo Ryung this time.
‘Shoot…’ Ban Yeo Ryung sat on her seat again while pouting. She then stared at her phone with a
saddened expression.
‘I also have a phone… I should’ve called her. You looked so happy with other kids, so I didn’t call you…
Even if I call you right now, I won’t get connected since you’re on the line with Eun Jiho.’
When she fell into her own thoughts for a while, her phone suddenly vibrated. A text message arrived.
‘Who is it?’ Ban Yeo Ryung then opened her flip phone in wonder. The Four Heavenly Kings was sitting
beside her, Donnie was talking to Eun Jiho through the phone, and Ban Yeo Dan wouldn’t use his phone
during class hours due to his school’s strict policy.
When she dropped her gaze at the phone screen, her face darkened. As if he noticed that something
serious was going on with her, Kwon Eun Hyung, who was sitting beside Eun Jiho while staring at her,
lifted his body.
“Yeo Ryung, what’s up?”
Ban Yeo Ryung didn’t respond as she grabbed her phone tightly.
Sent by: 010-4857-xxxx
Hey, princess~~ lol you so fu*king high to be treated like a ho? What a slut flirting with all the guys! Yo
pretty face bitching all around you whore as fu*k lololol beat the sh*t out of you laughing like a cunt
surrounded by boys… Bitch plz fu*k off!!!
She felt her heart pounding a little faster. Looking at the screen, her sight grew so blurry that she slowly
closed her eyes.
This wasn’t the first time she faced a thing like this. She heard this kind of sick and tired bullshit since
middle school; therefore, it would be odd if she would still cry about these things. Despite all her bad
experiences, Ban Yeo Ryung was still heartbroken and felt dizzy after seeing the message.
Every word turned into a dagger and stabbed her deeply. Biting her lips, she heard a cold voice coming in
front of her.
“What is this?”
It was Woo Jooin. His voice didn’t reflect any of his usually delightful and positive tones but was
severely cold as ice.
Before Ban Yeo Ryung could say something, someone snatched her phone out of her hand. She raised her
head. Eun Jiho, who suddenly came closer to her, stared at the screen with a grim face.
His black eyes that were observing the screen thoroughly soon revealed a sneer. He put a twisted smile
before pressing the call button before Ban Yeo Ryung could fling a question.
“What are you doing?” she asked out of perplexity.
“Hold on. Hey, who the fu*k do you think you are for sending this kind of bullshit to my phone?”
“Excuse me? Who… who is this?”
The volume of the call was loud enough for Ban Yeo Ryung to hear the voice over the phone. The sound
quality wasn’t great, but she could easily notice that the voice belonged to the girl whom she met at the
rest area. The girl had an outstandingly unique and robust tone.
Eun Jiho didn’t hesitate to respond immediately. Unlike his usual tone, he spoke aggressively.
“The person who received your retarded text. I own this number.”
“What? Doesn’t it belong to a girl?”
“Are you deaf? You motherfu*king bitch… text me that bullshit again and see what happens. I have your
number and your network. Play me again, and I’ll dox your ass. You hear me, bitch? Watch the fu*k
out!”
Eun Jiho then pressed the end button before the girl could reply. He walked toward Ban Yeo Ryung, who
was blinking in surprise and returned her phone to her before asking in his usually relaxed expression.
“How was it?”
“Eun Jiho, are you okay?”
As if Ban Yeo Ryung wasn’t the only one who became dumbstruck at his aggressive tone, a few kids at
the back asked in wonder. Eun Jiho waved his hand in the air like nothing had happened.
“No, nothing. Some stupid kids have found my number. They sent me a load of swears.”
“Oh, I see. You almost freaked me out.”
“Yeah. I had to be aggressive to stop them.”
“Well done.”
The person who said that was Yoo Chun Young, who was asleep during the whole time.

.
When he spoke with a sluggish voice, everyone within the bus burst into a peal of laughter. While saying,
‘Yoo Chun Young, now you got up,’ kids poured out words of blessing to him. They knew now that his
personality was looser than they had expected.
“But, it’s weird…” Woo Jooin, who furrowed out of confusion in front, spat his thought bluntly.
“What do you mean?” Eun Hyung asked. Woo Jooin responded, still knitting his forehead.
“Yeo Ryung didn’t give her phone number to anyone.”
“Yeah, I tried to give it at first, but… wasn’t sure if the school was co-ed or not, so I decided not to give
mine.”
“What the… I thought you gave them yours. How did they send that text to you then? This is impossible,
you know.”
At that moment, a few girls dashed into the bus. One of them was Choi Yuri’s dark brown, short hair. As
she returned to her seat, she handed out her juice to Ban Yeo Ryung.
“Do you want to sip?”

“No, I’m fine.”
“Really? Oh, Chun Young, did you just woke up? Do you want to have some?”
Yoo Chun Young, who hated to receive things that others touched or ate, didn’t respond but just turned
his head away. Besides, he found it particularly tricky to treat girls.
‘How can he get along so well with Donnie?’ Ban Yeo Ryung thought while remembering the text she
saw earlier. Eun Jiho then said from aside.
“Hey, don’t delete that text for now. If something happens, we must know that number to figure out what
we can do about it.”
“Got it.”
Listening to their conversations, Woo Jooin, who rested his chin on his palm in front of them, opened his
mouth.
“If someone texted her that message, doesn’t it mean that someone else told Yeo Ryung’s number to the
sender?”
After his remark, a cold air surrounded them. Ban Yeo Ryung quietly dropped her gaze at the floor with a
sigh as she felt that his words were reconfirming the fact that she already knew. Eun Jiho remained silent
with a grim face, and Kwon Eun Hyung looked at Ban Yeo Ryung with a spine-chilling gaze. Maybe he
wasn’t directing his eyes at Ban Yeo Ryung. It looked as if he were staring at Choi Yuri. His green eyes
were so deep and dark that Ban Yeo Ryung could barely figure out where he was looking at.
“Why? Something happened?” Choi Yuri asked. Her voice sounded bright and innocent.
Ban Yeo Ryung shook her head and smiled, “No, nothing special.”
“Come on, what’s up?”
“Oh, seriously, it’s nothing.”
“Hey, you’re making me curious,” Choi Yuri then laughed naughtily. Her face reminded Yeo Ryung of
Donnie somehow; however, she still wasn’t Donnie.
While Ban Yeo Ryung dropped her gaze at the floor again, Eun Jiho, who sat beside her, took his phone
out then called someone. What came out from his mouth was brief and straightforward.
“Hey, Ham Donnie. Ban Yeo Ryung says she needs you.”
“…”
“A lot.”
***
I thought this retreat might go smoother, but it didn’t. Feeling puzzled, I asked immediately.
“Um… I… I just…”
Ban Yeo Ryung was then at a loss of words. Those short utterances were enough for one to grasp that her
voice was soaked in tears. ‘Shoot, what happened this time…’ When I grabbed the bus strap a bit tightly,
Yi Ruda, who was beside me, showed a sign of wonder while looking at me.
I asked, “Did something happen? Again?”
“It’s just that… someone sent me a message full of curses. I think it’s one of the girls I met in the rest
area. It was really nothing special, though.”
Girls in our age could hardly be generous to strangers who abuse them verbally. However, Ban Yeo
Ryung spoke in a calm voice to say that it was nothing special. She had gone through these kinds of
things a lot.
She didn’t say anything. I could clearly see an image of Ban Yeo Ryung rubbing her forehead with her
fingers with an exhausted look. I asked her again while furrowing my brows.
“But how did they know your number? Did you give them yours?”
“No.”
“Then someone might have ratted your number.”
“Yeah… I just don’t want to care about it anymore. Eun Jiho dealt with it for me, so they won’t send me
those messages again. Maybe someone gave my number without ill intention. They would probably feel
bad once they learned that I received those messages.”
This was the usual way she would interpret things like this. She would never judge that people were
harboring ill-intentions towards her rashly at any given circumstances. She believed that humans are
naturally good beings. I knitted my brows again.
‘How should I perceive this? Should I think of her as a sweet person or an idiot?’
Ban Yeo Ryung was quick-witted about other’s situations but was, strangely, turning into an idiot when it
came to her own issues. Hesitating for a moment, I opened my mouth.
“But if someone keeps giving your number to others, then you’d receive those texts again, won’t you?”
“Oh, yeah, so I’m wondering… Geez… I think I’m just being too sensitive about such a trivial thing.”
“Hey, you’re actually not thinking that, right?”
“…”
Ban Yeo Ryung remained quiet for a while. Her prolonged silence proved that it was true, which made
me heave a deep sigh. She stayed concerned about something else.
Perhaps she was afraid that a person had pretended to be her friend but would actually slander her behind
her back. She might be worried that this incident would reveal this person’s identity. This was not the first
time she had gone through this kind of situation, for this is the fourth time something like this happened.
Why would such a thing happen to Ban Yeo Ryung? My brows met in the middle.
The funniest part about this was that those kids were such great actresses that even I, who was with Ban
Yeo Ryung, couldn’t feel their malicious intent at all. They should have been actresses instead if they had
those talents instead of harassing Ban Yeo Ryung. I clicked my tongue then continued my words.
“Yeo Ryung.”
“Huh?”
“Hypocrites like them would keep talking behind you but pretends to be nice when you’re around. It’s
worthless to understand what they think about you. These people would pay for what they had done to
you someday.”
This was true. Why should we understand their thoughts about us? It was meaningless and worthless.
A moment of silence went on, then a fading voice responded over the phone.
“Yeah…”
“Just ignore all that and treat people with the goodness of your heart as you always do. Only think about
the friends you truly care about. Those who are true to your sincerity will remain.”
“Donnie.”
“Huh?”
“Love you.”
“Eww, what the…”
I laughed out of embarrassment, followed by refreshing laughter over the phone. The sound of her smile
was enough to give me joy.
As if she was feeling better, she hung up the phone, saying that the other kids wanted to play games. I
followed her laugh then closed my flip phone. When I finished the call, a few kids gazed at me.
Yi Ruda did the same. She showed a mysterious excitement in her blue eyes. ‘Why…?’ Before I could
say something out of perplexity, Yoon Jung In, who was in front, broke the ice.
“What was that? You looked kind of cool.”
“Yeah, it sure was.”
Surprisingly, Kim Hye Hill replied with a nod of agreement along with those words. ‘Oh, god,’ I laughed
while blushing.
“Come on, stop it.”
“No, you were so lit! You’re making my heart flutter.”
“Stop it.”
As Kim Hye Hill did to her brother, I picked up a pack of snacks and smashed Yoon Jung In. He finally
grew quiet. Inside our bus, we also began to play a game that heated the air with hullabaloo.
Resting my chin in my hand, I watched the buzz of excitement and fell into thought.
‘How many two-faced people are there in this world? How can we avoid the pain they give while dealing
with them?’
No matter how many times I thought, the only way I could think of was to treat someone with all the
goodness of my heart every minute. When I learned about the other side of someone, the only way to
comfort myself was to think that I had done my best to show my heart to that person.
To be honest, there was no way I could avoid getting hurt when we confronted those things.
I thought about Ban Yeo Ryung and how much she deserved to be loved. She got heartbroken so many
times but never stopped thinking about the good side of others. She was a person who held people in such
high regard because she felt that her negative feelings would ruin someone. She never dropped her
positive way of thinking.
Instead, she later fell to pieces and cried her eyes out. Once the tears had subsided, she would trust and
love people again like such things never happened. She would love others like as if her heart never
sank… as if she was a virgin to love. How incredible, pathetic, and delightful she was!
With my chin resting in my hand, I thought that people could never stop loving her, the real protagonist.
In this world, we never went to places where building conditions were terrible, even for a retreat.
Although this was a wealthy elite private school, couldn’t we go somewhere casual and humble for this
retreat? These thoughts went through my mind while looking at the building in front of me.
‘Casual and humble my ass…’ The white building stood like a castle against a background of gloomily
waving ocean. The summer breeze felt quite chilly here, maybe because of the tall trees that were
surrounding the place. As I pouted my lips while the grandeur of the building overwhelmed me, we were
assigned to teams in the auditorium and received the room keys.
My room was #203, a sunlight-washed, clean space as if no one ever used it before. There were beds and
a TV inside. Even the bathroom looked so delicate that I would believe it to be a suite in a hotel. Besides,
the instructors could never be so excellent like this. Following the announcement, we gathered in front of
the building and warmed up ourselves with some stretches. No disciplinary punishments took place at all.
When we finished all the afternoon schedules and had dinner, we continued to have a never-ending break
time. ‘What’s going on? Is this really a retreat or what?’ I had those thoughts in mind while massaging
my legs inside the room filled with crimson sunset.
As I sat on the floor like that, Kim Hye Hill and other girls, who went to the cafeteria, handed out some
snacks to me. They pushed the bags scattered on the floor away before gathering around me to open the
packs of snacks. Having a bite of Kim Hye Hill’s Melona, I asked in wonder.
“Is this what a retreat normally is? I feel like I just took a nice walk.”
“I thought the same. My retreat in middle school wasn’t like this. Didn’t you experience something like,
‘if you get it wrong, we’re gonna start over’ or anything that was a typical situation during a retreat?”
When Kim Hye Hill threw out that topic, each girl began to share their stories.
“True. You’re so good at mimicking it. There’s another one, ‘Are you out of your mind? Get it together,
or you’ll all get punished!’ You feel me?”
“Totally. They also force us to do push-ups! The instructors here don’t make us do that, though.”
“Oh, maybe it’s because the sons of Hanwool Group and Balhae Group are in our grade.”
Kim Hye Hill’s sudden remark made me so surprised that I almost spat the strawberry cone out my
mouth. As I barely swallowed it and looked at her, she blinked her eyes then continued her words.
“Eun Jiho and Yoo Chun Young in Class 1-1.”
“Oh, I know them. They are super handsome. Yoo Chun Young is also a model!”
‘Oh, yeah, he was a model,’ as I realized the fact, I also grew apologetic of Yoo Chun Young for a bit,
just a little bit. Another girl then went on to talk about the two boys.
“There’s a rumor that the instructors aren’t harsh because they know about their existence. If this keeps
on, then they won’t be checking us at night too.”
“Wow, geez. That sounds fantastic!”
“Me too. If that happens, then let’s hang out at night!”
We all held our hands together and waved them out of excitement. A few girls soon came into the room
and sat on the floor comfortably to watch the TV.
The room was quite messed up with leftover snacks while we left our belongings from the bags scattered
around. The lights weren’t even open. Regardless of the overall situation, our postures couldn’t have been
more comfortable. Leaning on the wall, I glanced at the clock. It was 8 in the evening.
Time flew. Once we finished watching a recently popular drama, it was already past nine.
“Are we having our break time from now until tomorrow morning?” I asked.
“Since they aren’t calling us, maybe it is so. Don’t they usually call us around eight if they have to?”
The one who responded was Kim Hye Hill. Everyone around us stood up with a bright face. If it was said
to be break time from here on out, then we were all ready to stay up all night just to hang out. We had a
hint of pleasure plastered all over our faces.
“Should we go to other rooms?”
“Why not?”
While Kim Hye Hill and I spoke back and forth, we heard someone knocking the door out of the blue.
‘Who is it…?’ I wondered with big round eyes. Another girl asked, furrowing her forehead.
“Oh… come on, it won’t be a sudden gathering?”
“That’s shouldn’t happen…”
As someone replied, I got out of my seat and walked toward the front door in short and quick steps. When
I opened the door carefully, a familiar face came into my sight.
‘What the…’ I stared at him for a while then asked, blinking my eyes.
“Yoon Jung In, why are you here?”
“Hey, are you insane! How dare you come inside the girls’ room?!”
There were screaming noises in the back. ‘What’s all the fuss when we all have our clothes on?’ I thought
nonchalantly; however, I became speechless when I turned back to see Yoon Jung In.
He was wearing a short, black shirt and a fuzzy pair of pajama pants; it was difficult to say that he dressed
properly. Luckily, I was wearing a shirt and short pants. Through the slightly opened door, I came out of
the hallway and closed the door tightly. Then I looked before me.
The moon was already high up in the night sky. Since the place had a hotel-like view, the moonlight
poured down through the glass windows and brightened the hallway. Leaning on the wall with his arms
crossed, Yoon Jung In was wearing a comfortable-looking short-sleeved shirt and pajama pants. His
exposed arms looked cold in the air.
“Oh, I was asked to come here. Hey, Lee Mina!”
As soon as he said that, a girl who looked like she changed her clothes hurriedly, dashed out of the room
while waving her uncombed, tangled hair. She received a black plastic bag from Yoon Jung In then
smiled brightly. ‘What’s going on?’ I looked at them.
“What is that?” I asked.
“Alcohol! We’re gonna drink anyway, so I asked Yoon Jung In to get us a few bottles.”
“Oh, my god…”
I was at a loss of words as she responded with a face filled with conviction. While I pouted in shock, Lee
Mina took out a few bills from her pocket then handed them to Yoon Jung In. She then asked me
delightfully to return inside our room. I told her to go on ahead then stepped closer to Yoo Jung In.
“Wow!! Hey, where did you get those?” I asked, putting my face closer to him.
“The convenience store on the 1st floor.”
I asked again, “So they sold alcohol to you?”
“I gave the bottles to the cashier without hesitation. He didn’t check my ID and just let me out with
them.”
“Holy cow, how bold are you!? What were you thinking? What if you got caught?”
“I was about to say that it was just a joke and run out of the store immediately. You know, I’m good at
those things.”
We got to know each other for only three months, but I already knew him enough to accept what he had
just said with a nod. Not only me, but others would also nod after hearing his words. Yoon Jung In had an
exceptional talent for making people believe him. As I tried to ask a few more questions, the door beside
us suddenly opened.
The one who came out this time was Kim Hye Hill. She hid her face deep inside the baseball cap.
Sweeping back her blue-black hair under the cap, she fixed her serene gaze at him.
“Unbelievable, you truly made it! Yoon Jung In never fails.”
“Yoon Jung In never fails? It feels like I’m the leading figure in drinking culture.”
“Am I wrong?”
“No, I’m not. Hey, other rooms are all drinking too. Oh, Ham Donnie!”
“Huh?”
When I replied, Yoon Jung In suddenly showed a cheesy look on his face and winked at me.
“Later, if Yi Ruda gets drunk and says that he loves you on the phone, just let him do it. It’s all because
you didn’t accept that he has a crush on you.”
Being unclear about what to answer back, I stood still blankly for a while. Kim Hye Hill, beside me, took
out her cap and handed it to me, so I smashed Yoon Jung In a few times with it. He pretended to escape
out of the fuss I was making but kept bursting out laughing.
‘Oh, that bastard…’ I scowled while looking at his back that was getting farther away from me before
returning the baseball cap to Kim Hye Hill. She dusted off and reorganized her hair that was pressed
under the cap.
“I think it’s true that other rooms are all drinking now,” she said.
“Oh, really?”
“Oh Soo Jung went next door just now and found out the kids were walking on all fours in a group.”
“…”
‘Walking on all fours in a group…’ I murmured the words she said. As I came back to the room, I closed
the door and promised myself that I would never walk on all fours like them.
When I stepped inside, everyone was showing a heroic expression on their faces. Oh Soo Jung, who was
usually talkative and rambunctious, held a glass out to me in silence.
I carefully took the glass so I wouldn’t let any drop slip. A few hands that were holding the same glass
came out from the side all at once. The night of the retreat was deepening just like that.

***
What Yoon Jung In said was not a joke. Class 1-5, 6, and 7, the classes who already knew that our break
time began earlier, were literally walking on all fours. Some kid was deeply asleep while burying his head
on the couch. Another boy was in dreamland with his head shoved under the sink.
Class 1-1 and 1-8, the classes located at both ends of the hallway, was the last to learn about what was
happening, but it wasn’t that long since Class 1-1 started drinking. Rolling his eyeballs, Eun Jiho sipped
his drink alone.
He didn’t turn on the light in the first place to prevent instructors from unexpectedly surprising the room
by any chance. The only light open within was a faint, orange lamp. The bright moonlight that was
pouring through the terrace had stained their drowsy faces into a pale glow.
Eun Jiho took out his phone and checked the time. It was 11:20 at night, and there were only seven
survivors among the eleven members in the room.
When the drinking party started, Woo Jooin spoke with a grin on his lips.
“There’s a small room there, and we are in the living room.”
“Uh-huh,”
“Later, when once you awakened and you realized that you’re inside the small room, just imagine that
you were a corpse last night.”
After hearing his words, the kids burst into laughter, wondering who will be the ones sleeping in the small
room tonight. And in less than an hour, four of them were thrown into the small room.
Thinking about these in mind, Eun Jiho then heard a thudding sound on the wall. Those who thought, at
first, that it might be the instructor knocking the door turned their heads to the direction of the sound with
tension written obviously on their faces. However, they soon fetched a sigh of relief.
“Hey, maybe someone next door is sleep talking. Go get him tied up with a blanket,” someone said.
“Bahaha, that’s funny, yeah. Let me go take a look.”
A boy replied, then stood up. The rest of the boys looked at each other for a second. The person who got
the most attention was none other than Kwon Eun Hyung.
He always looked neat, and he would behave well. Besides, he mediated between fights, so other boys
were mindful of the possibility of him being against students drinking alcohol. Kwon Eun Hyung,
however, didn’t say anything at the black plastic bag full of drinks but asked with a smile to take a few
bottles out to enjoy.
As if he felt the attention towards him, Kwon Eun Hyung lifted his eyes to glance around. A boy moved
his butt back out of surprise. It made Kwon Eun Hyung burst out laughing.
“Why?”
“I mean, honestly, your usual image is… I thought you wouldn’t let us drink.”
“Why? What’s my usual image?”
“Like a mother?” Woo Jooin, who listened to their talk, replied from the side.
“Come on, dude.”
With that said, Kwon Eun Hyung gently pushed Woo Jooin’s forehead. He chuckled before sitting up
straight.
Kwon Eun Hyung continued, “Hmm, I just saw… tomorrow’s breakfast menu on the cafeteria wall…”
“What?”
Those who didn’t focus on the conversation turned their heads toward him to listen. Kwon Eun Hyung
turned his mouth up slightly to resemble a hint of a smile.
“… and there was bean sprout soup, the best hangover cure.”
“That’s all?” Someone else asked.
Kwon Eun Hyung responded casually with a shrug, “What else do we need?”
A moment of silence prevailed in the small space. Soon after, two boys jumped into Kwon Eun Hyung
abruptly then tried to hug his shoulders. Being startled, Kwon Eun Hyung took a defensive posture at first
but soon released the tension in his arms as he read no malice in their tipsy faces. As a result, he and the
two boys fell together with a thump.
Woo Jooin, who was across them, burst into laughter.
“Dude, are you drunk?” Eun Jiho asked.
“I don’t know. What do you think?”
Woo Jooin replied while rubbing his cheeks. Eun Jiho observed his face for a second. He soon shook his
head to say no and sat straight.
The one who did not control his alcohol intake and filled a whole glass with liquor was none other than
Woo Jooin. A few kids followed his lead, but they eventually ended up being flaked out in the small
room. Regardless of how insanely fast he drank, Woo Jooin didn’t show any sign that he was already
drunk. This made Eun Jiho look around others while developing a groundless assumption of ‘high
intelligence, less drunk.’
Other than blinking his eyes out of drowsiness, Kwon Eun Hyung didn’t seem to have any problem. Yoo
Chun Young, who was drowsy in the morning but sleepless at night, looked excellent. His blue eyes
moved back and forth between Kwon Eun Hyung and the liquor bottles. When Eun Jiho tried to get up
from his seat to check himself if he was already drunk, a boy who sat across him suggested a game.
“Hey, let’s play Truth or Dare! We should clear out these leftovers.”
“Cool! I’m in,” Woo Jooin, who was always into exciting things, responded with a bright smile.
“Oh, boy.”
As if he felt dumbfounded, Kwon Eun Hyung spoke those words with a chuckle; however, he didn’t seem
to be against them playing the game. The other kids didn’t say something special at all, so everyone soon
sat around the empty soju bottle that they laid down in the middle.
At a distance, the TV turned on, showed some noise on its screen. Eun Jiho broke the ice.
“So, who’s gonna ask first?”
“Let’s just do one round first. If the bottle points at your direction, just ask the person to your left.”
“Cool,” Yoo Chun Young sat straight as he replied shortly.
Inside Eun Jiho’s head, the scene he saw on the TV screen at Ham Donnie’s house flashed through his
memories. Yoo Chun Young’s decent look that occupied the camera lens alone, and the gaze he had at
Ham Donnie’s back while resting his chin in his hand… Recalling these scenes, Eun Jiho soon looked at
Yoo Chun Young’s eyes, who turned his head to look at his. Their eyes met in the air for a moment.
The one who avoided the gaze first was Eun Jiho. He spun the soju bottle cheerfully as if nothing had
happened. The bottle then pointed to someone. Meanwhile, when he glanced at Yoo Chun Young, he was
just tilting his head expressionlessly.
The Truth and Dare game continued until 1 in the morning. At first, the seven boys didn’t seem to have
any questions they have in mind, but the game went on endlessly regardless.
‘What the hell is this?’ Eun Jiho swept his hair back in exhaustion. As if he wasn’t sleepy yet, Yoo Chun
Young was just staring at the soju bottle with his bright blue eyes. It was then when he heard someone
crying out like an animal in the hallway.
Eun Jiho looked at the front door in surprise.
Someone murmured, “Is there a wolf inside this building?”
“Gosh, you’re freaking me out.”
“Don’t you hear that sound…”
The boy who said that paused. He then put his finger on his lip.
When the noise lessened, only the breathing sound continued. The orange light from the lamp cast deep
shadows on each other’s faces.
A moment after, Eun Jiho could hear a faint voice.
“Yoon Jung In, do you want to die? Do you want to get dragged to the instructor’s room?”
“Oh, my Suh Hyun! What a beautiful name! Suh Hyun noona! I’m a wolf, and you’re the beauty!”
“Geez, why do I have a friend like you…”

His words then ended with a sigh. Eun Jiho listened attentively to the conversation. As soon as he met
others’ eyes, everyone burst out laughing at last.
As if it was hilarious, Kwon Eun Hyung, who seldom laughed out loud, giggled while covering his
mouth. Eun Jiho wasn’t sure if he was laughing out of excitement or if he was just tipsy.
The bottle then stopped spinning and pointed exactly at Eun Jiho. He stiffened with a grin on his face.
‘Shoot,’ as soon as he murmured, the one who looked at the soju bottle shouted out loud.
“Oh, yeah! Eun Jiho! It’s your turn, at last!”
“How lucky were you. How come this is the first time you got caught after so many rounds?”
“Yay, so excited! Now, we can learn about your private life!”
As if they had been watching for a chance, the kids smiled naughtily while doing high fives. Eun Jiho
lifted his eyes to glance around. Compared to others, Kwon Eun Hyung, Woo Jooin, and Yoo Chun
Young looked apathetic. Indeed, since they knew each other from middle school, what else would they
like to know about Eun Jiho?
Eun Jiho heaved a sigh of relief while thinking, ‘They won’t be asking me anything weird.’ That was
when he had that thought in mind. A boy’s bright voice rang in Eun Jiho’s ears.
“Ahem, Mr. Eun Jiho the handsomest! Have a girl ever dumped you?”
‘Why that question?’ Eun Jiho suddenly got annoyed. He seemed to be losing touch with reality. ‘Am I
getting drunk…’
He soon heard kids laughing uproariously from aside.
Someone else responded, “Dude, do you think that makes sense? How can he get dumped unless the girl
is blind or something?”
“Hey man, who knows? Maybe he dated a celebrity before, and she dumped him?”
“Eun Jiho looks way better than the celebs.”
Listening to their continuous chat, Eun Jiho couldn’t bare his headache. When he put his palm on his head
and groaned in pain, their eyes changed. Not only Woo Jooin but the other two Heavenly Kings also
stared at him in interest.
The boy who flung the question swallowed hard and asked again.
“Jiho… have you actually been dumped?”
“…”
Eun Jiho remained silent for a second. ‘Oh, shoot,’ he murmured to himself again then rubbed his
forehead with his hand. It looked like they already read Eun Jiho’s mind from the look on his face.
The silence prevailing in the dark space seemed very eccentric. Then, in the next moment, they sent up
rousing cheers. The boy who asked the question stuck out his blushing face.
“Dude, come on! What happened?”
Eun Jiho glanced at the side. The rest of the Four Heavenly Kings were now speechless with grim faces.
The wind blowing from the terrace shook their hair. Eun Jiho then opened his mouth, which was purely
and simply a very impulsive act.
“There was a girl I liked when I was in middle school.”
“For how long?”
“About a year and a half?”
“Whoa.”
While their jaws dropped out of shock, Eun Jiho lifted his eyes again to look at the other Four Heavenly
Kings. It was understandable that they all looked stiffened.
When it was about the time in middle school, they would surely know who Eun Jiho had a crush on at
that time. Since he got along with only a few girls, the scope of the subject became significantly reduced.
‘Who would pop up inside their head?’ With that thought in mind, Eun Jiho’s black eyes revealed a
deeper glow. At that moment, a question returned from across.
“Why did she dumped you?”
“…”
Eun Jiho thought for a while then clenched his fist with a smile. It was a question that he honestly didn’t
want to answer.
As if they read his refusal to answer after reading his face, the boy pulled his body slightly back to give
up on getting answers from Eun Jiho. It was then that Eun Jiho detached his lips.
“She doesn’t even know it’s a confession.”
“What?”
“She still doesn’t know it’s a confession. I said to her, it was just a joke.”
‘Because I don’t want our relationship to get awkward,’ Eun Jiho mumbled to himself. He then raised his
eyes to look at the others.
The first one who understood what Eun Jiho meant was none other than Woo Jooin. Looking at his face
turning pale, Eun Jiho moved his eyes to check Yoo Chun Young and Kwon Eun Hyung. They also
looked as if they were now aware of Eun Jiho’s remark.
On that day, when Hwang Siwoo confessed his love toward Ban Yeo Ryung, a casual conversation went
through between Eun Jiho and Ham Donnie. They were standing beside each other near the classroom
back door.
“Dude, you received a confession!”
That day, Ham Donnie looked as if she genuinely had no idea. ‘I’d rather be glad for that reaction,’ Eun
Jiho thought while touching his lips quietly. It was what he intended, but when she really didn’t
remember anything about it, he felt quite upset.
The attention he was receiving still stung Eun Jiho’s chest. All of their faces were pleading him to tell
more about what happened between him and the girl. Under the dim light, Eun Jiho forced a grin.
At that moment, someone from across rubbed his eyes and rose from the floor. He spoke with his eyes
full of drowsiness.
“Oh, I can’t stand this anymore.”
“Well, we have to wake up at 6 in the morning. Should we then go to bed?”
“I’m going to a different room.”
“Yeah, let’s wrap it up.”
Kids hid the empty bottles into the narrow space behind the couch and threw the leftover snacks into the
trash can. Then, they got up one after another.
One went inside the master bedroom, and the other two roughly wore their shoes to head to the next door.
Watching them leave, Eun Jiho heard someone calling his name. He turned his head with a smile.
Inside the dark room, Woo Jooin showed a sign of seriousness in his eyes, which seldom happened.
Kwon Eun Hyung, who was about to get up from the floor, furrowed his brows out of the headache. He
didn’t look that sleepy, though.
He then found Yoo Chun Young staring at him. His blue eyes penetrated the darkness, directing Eun Jiho.
“What?” Eun Jiho asked with a grin.
“Nothing.”
It was Kwon Eun Hyung, who replied first. He didn’t look that surprised. He swept his tangled red hair
back then left for the bathroom to wash his face. Woo Jooin tilted his head with a smile. He then said to
Eun Jiho.
“Hmm, if you don’t want to talk further about it, then you don’t have to.”
“Who says I don’t want to?”
“Your face says it all. We don’t need to interrogate you just because you have a crush on a girl.”
With that said, Woo Jooin also moved his steps toward the small room. Perhaps he was going to bed. Eun
Jiho stared at his back then turned his head. Now the only two facing each other in this dark space were
Eun Jiho and Yoo Chun Young.
Yoo Chun Young looked curious, but he also seemed to be not that interested in listening to his story. A
moment later, he dropped his blue gaze onto the floor then walked past him.
It was then that Eun Jiho opened his mouth.
“Yoo Chun Young.”
“Uh-huh,” with a short response, Yoo Chun Young’s blue eyes directed this side. Eun Jiho then said with
a smile.
“You must listen. I think no other than you should listen.”
“…”
“You were wondering anyway. No?”

“I don’t want to bother you and listen.
“I’m the one who wanted to talk about it.”
Yoo Chun Young hesitated for a moment but soon walked after Eun Jiho.
‘What a beautiful view,’ Yoo Chun Young thought while looking at the scenery below his feet. The
building was unbelievably decent for a retreat.
The sea at a distance now sank deeply into the darkness. The terrace was unusually large. Since it was
summertime, many rooms opened the terrace doors to cool down the heat. Through the open windows, he
could hear people giggling in high tones from downstairs.
‘If I close my eyes and listen, I might hear all the sounds of the world… What floor is Donnie’s room
on?’ Pausing his thoughts there, Yoo Chun Young took his phone out of his pocket. That was when he
wondered whether he should text Donnie or not, who could be in bed.
He heard the terrace door sliding open from behind. It was Eun Jiho, who entered the space. He brought
two bottles of water from the fridge and handed one out to Yoo Chun Young.
“Our body needs to rehydrate for alcoholysis.”
“…”
Yoo Chun Young grabbed the bottle from Eun Jiho without another word. When he took a sip, he felt that
his body would’ve been thirsty.
The two boys leaned on the balustrade and enjoyed the breeze in silence. Standing like that for a while,
they realized how unbelievably refreshing that night was for a summer evening. The touch of the metal
shafts felt cold. How long were they doing that? Eun Jiho broke the ice at last.
“I knew liking someone doesn’t need to have a reason.”
The talk began suddenly. Yoo Chun Young was surprised, but he tried not to show it. Thus, he didn’t
look at Eun Jiho’s face.
A moment of silence went by in a flash. Meanwhile, a blackbird flew in and passed right before them. It
caused a gush of wind to flow at them. Eun Jiho’s words continued at a slight interval.
“But as I began to like her, oh, for god’s sake…. when I woke up one day, I found out just by looking at
her.”
“Her?” Yoo Chun Young asked and turned his head to face Eun Jiho.
Under the darkness, his face looked somehow more unrealistic. Yoo Chun Young could understand a bit
why other girls became captivated by his appearance.
Waving his colorless, almost pale, white hair in the wind, Eun Jiho’s expressionless face was truly non-
human. A look of bitterness appeared on his jet-black eyes.
“Ham Donnie.”
When that answer came, Yoo Chun Young wasn’t surprised at all. He just stood straight by leaning
against the balustrade. How could he not know that? From the video that he watched at Donnie’s house,
anyone who saw Eun Jiho’s gaze at Ham Donnie would notice that he had a crush on her. Yoo Chun
Young closed his lips tightly.
Eun Jiho smiled shortly then turned back to lean against the railing. The boy’s room was on the 3rd floor,
so it could be quite frightening, but Eun Jiho didn’t show any signs of fear. He just lifted his chin a bit
and cast his gaze upon the dark room.
“Do you remember when Ban Yeo Ryung, Ham Donnie, Woo Jooin, and I went to the same class in our
sophomore year in middle school?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Shortly after that, I fell into her, so my crush began since my sophomore year in middle school. That was
why I went to her house very often. You know, her dad still asks every male stranger if he is me, Eun
Jiho.”
“Yeah.”
Eun Jiho looked up at the sky then heaved a short sigh.
He continued, “I’ve been pretty obvious, but she really has no idea. How can she not notice that for the
whole year? When Woo Jooin hugs Ham Donnie, I tell him not to do that because he can break her bones.
I show Donnie how much I hate how he does that to her. I even went to her house that often, but she
never noticed my crush on her. She just thinks that I’m hanging out at her house because I’m free. Isn’t
that funny? You know, I once ate ice cream Ham Donnie just had, and Ban Yeo Ryung almost killed me.
Still, she is completely unaware of my acts. How can she be so dense?”
“…”
“As I get to learn more about her, I can clearly tell what she likes and hates just by looking at her face.
You know how honest her facial expressions are. Do you remember when Jooin told me that I changed so
much after my sophomore year in middle school?”
“Yeah.”
Eun Jiho swept his hair back to show his embarrassment.
“I changed because of Ham Donnie. She couldn’t stand me acting cool or talking flauntingly, so I
changed myself to speak comfortably. Later, I also found how convenient it was. I admitted that I was
trying hard to mimic my father before. What’s funny is that I changed a lot about myself because of her.
Still, she thought that I’m doing it for my reputation. Isn’t that so ridiculous?”
After that remark, Eun Jiho heaved a long sigh. Yoo Chun Young couldn’t respond at all. No one would
dare say that Eun Jiho was ridiculous when he changed his behavior and the way he talked just to please
Ham Donnie, whom he liked.
Yoo Chun Young recalled that Ham Donnie would often tease Eun Jiho by calling him Jekyll and Hyde.
In Eun Jiho’s point of view, it would be such a speechless situation.
Eun Jiho swept his hair back as if he was hesitating a bit. He then continued his words.
“So, I thought I should tell my crush on her. I really should do that but… I didn’t know what to do at all.
That was the first time I fell for someone so much. Why do I have to care about how I should confess or
when the best timing is? Therefore, I was just vaguely thinking about telling her that I had a crush on
her…”
“Uh-huh,” Yoo Chun Young answered shortly with a nod. When he lifted his eyes to glance at Eun Jiho,
he had his eyes closed in a grimace. His sliver lashes shone under the moonlight. Eun Jiho continued with
his eyes closed.
“Do you remember Yoon Sarah?”
“I do,” without adding any comments, Yoo Chun Young replied briefly. Her name was also quite
familiar.
Regarding Eun Jiho or the other Four Heavenly Kings’ fame, there were always female followers. Yoon
Sarah, however, went a little too far. Wandering around his house, she finally bumped into Eun Jiho over
ten times. Every morning, she called Eun Jiho to come outside and gave gifts to him; therefore, it was
such a pain in the ass for Eun Jiho to deal with her.
One day, when Kwon Eun Hyung asked Eun Jiho quietly if he was okay, Eun Jiho sighed and said, ‘My
father told me to never treat a woman bad… but no matter how many times I tell her in a good way, she
never seems to understand. What should I do, for real?’
‘Jesus…’
Since Eun Jiho was young, his father’s words were like a bible to him; therefore, Kwon Eun Hyung
couldn’t help but smile ambiguously.
Then one day, she didn’t appear anymore, so everyone just thought that Eun Jiho successfully escaped
from her. Later, when others asked, Eun Jiho showed an uncomfortable look on his face without any
words.
His eccentricity continued afterward. He began to date a girl and had a relationship for about two months.
He then broke up and stayed single for a month then repeated the same process. Eun Jiho did that with
three girls. When the other boys asked him about what they did, he said he walked around the streets
while holding hands, but nothing special happened other than that. ‘For what reason?’ Yoo Chun Young
furrowed his brows.
For a while, it was kind of uncomfortable to mention the overall situation, so no one really asked him
about it. As a result, people seemed to forget the entire thing. Now, Eun Jiho began to talk about it
directly, which was unbelievable.
Eun Jiho put a smile on his exhausted face.
“Yoon Sarah. The girl followed me in the hallway on that day too. She kept asking me, ‘Why are you not
dating me when you’re not seeing anyone.’ So, I replied, ‘I like someone else,’ as always. She then told
me to bring that girl in front of her. She added that I couldn’t because I was lying.”
“Uh-huh,” replying to Eun Jiho, Yoo Chun Young tried to recall the exact time as to when this happened.
Yoon Sarah almost stalked Eun Jiho a few months after they became seniors in middle school. In this
regard, this happened exactly a year ago from this day.
Eun Jiho continued with a smile.
“Then I saw Ham Donnie walking toward us from the other side of the hall. Luckily, she was alone,
which could be my only chance to get away from Yoon Sarah, so I grabbed Donnie impulsively. Ham
Donnie looked surprised as if asking me why I was suddenly grabbing her when she was about to just say
hello and walk away from us. Why is she so… cute… you know?”
Eun Jiho paused and sighed. He then raised his hands and covered his forehead. In a tired voice, he kept
on with his story.
“I hugged her shoulders in my arm and told Yoon Sarah, ‘Look. She’s the one I’m into.’ Yoon Sarah then
scowled at us for a while then strode away. Ever since then, she didn’t follow me anymore. When she left,
Ham Donnie looked at me to ask me what I was doing. Do you know what she said to me after that? The
first thing she said was, ‘Hey, do you think it’s okay to use a person as a tool?’ So, I replied, ‘I wasn’t
joking. I really like you,’ sincerely.”
“Uh-huh.”
“She kept on telling me not to lie, so I tried to express her a few more times just how much I like her. I
want to tell her that I’m not joking around. I’m serious about her.”
Eun Jiho’s eyes were on the other side of the waving ocean. From the sigh mixed with his words, it was
evident that saying those words were very difficult for him. He, however, raised his hand to dishevel his
hair sometimes out of anxiety but never stopped telling his stories.
“After quite a while, Ham Donnie, at last, looked as if she understood what I meant. You know, her face
told me that she realized how serious and sincere I was. She stared at me with her eyes wide open. I
waited for her answer, but do you know what she said?”
“What did she say?”
“She said, ‘I have to go to the hospital,’ out of the blue.”
Yoo Chun Young frowned while wondering, ‘Hospital? Why?’ Eun Jiho then kept on.
“Dude, can you believe that? She heard my confession then told me that she should go to the hospital
immediately. How on earth could someone respond to a love confession like that? I became so puzzled
that I thought I should first grab her and tell her not to go. Ham Donnie then tried to say something to me.
I was like, now you’re gonna give me a clear answer, but do you know what she told me?”
“…”
“She said that she would go see a doctor check if she has cancer, but she could have a car accident on her
way. In that case, she could suffer from amnesia too. If she encountered a loss of memory, then I should
tell her to go check if she has cancer. Can you understand that?”
While talking about that time, Eun Jiho’s voice began to heat up. The conversation he had with Donnie
that day was still clear and vivid to him as if it was yesterday.
He confessed his love, at last, after having a crush on her for a year and a half; however, the response he
heard was so ludicrous that he could never forget. In fact, more outrageous things happened next, which
he didn’t tell Yoo Chun Young.
The sunlight from the wide window in the hallway poured into Ham Donnie. Her hair and eyes shone a
bright brown color; however, her face turned so pale that she looked like a dead person.
After pausing, she blinked a few times then continued her words.
“Oh, maybe I would not suffer from amnesia after a car accident, but I could be a little sick mentally.”
“What?”
“Cancer cells are also life, living things. I should give my cancer cells the right to live, so I don’t want to
receive chemo treatments… if I say something like these, beat me to get the treatment.”
“What!?”
“I’m really going to see a doctor.”

Eun Jiho refused to think further but fetched a deep sigh. Something seemed to be pounding in his head,
and he continued while furrowing his forehead.
“Her attitude was so serious that when she turned back to leave, it looked as if she was seriously heading
to the hospital right away. If she saw me… as a guy, at least sometimes, she would never say something
nonsensical like that. That’s why I yelled and told her that it was just a joke.”
“How did she react?” Yoo Chun Young asked, knitting his brows a little.
Eun Jiho shook his head then showed a face, and one could hardly tell if he was smiling or crying.
“Just smashed me a few times. She told me that her heart almost fell off and never say such a joke like
that… My heart was about to fall off too.”
Eun Jiho ended his story there then shoved his face into the arms placed on the balustrade. As his silver
hair swept down, he revealed his white neck under the moonlight. He was like that for a while.
Yoo Chun Young didn’t know what to say. He also had no idea why Eun Jiho opened this story up. It was
then when Yoo Chun Young tried to figure out the reason while throwing his glance at the sea far apart.
“It would be tough.”
“What?”
Eun Jiho’s voice changed a bit from when he poured out his past into a lamentable tone. His deeper and
darker voice made Yoo Chun Young turn his head to see him.
Eun Jiho was now looking at him. His face was as dark as ever with the moonlight giving him a vivid
shade; however, he was still smiling.
“Having a crush on Ham Donnie. It’d be tough,” he said.
“What the…”
Yoo Chun Young tried to ask what the heck he was talking about, but as he saw Eun Jiho’s face, he
closed his mouth. Just by looking at his dark face, Yoo Chun Young knew that he couldn’t fling a
question like that.
Eun Jiho smirked, “Did you think we had no idea? Eun Hyung and Woo Jooin… they might have already
noticed from earlier. Ban Yeo Ryung is slow at this kind of thing, so she may not know, though. If we
had no idea we would have bounced off the wall when we saw your gaze at Donnie inside the video that
we watched at her house.”
“…”
“Those things are hard to hide, you know…”
Eun Jiho then paused for a while. When he opened his mouth again. His voice turned lower and darker.
“I don’t know why, but she doesn’t see us as men at all. I really have no idea what kind of special reason
lies within her head, but she doesn’t seem to believe that we’ll ever like her. Luckily, she applies that rule
or standard to other guys who are handsome or unusual. For instance, Yi Ruda…”
“Then the reason Ham Donnie doesn’t respond at all when Yi Ruda hugs her is…”
“She doesn’t see him as a guy at all. I only looked at Donnie for a year and a half, so wouldn’t it upset me
less to gain insight like this?”
“…”
While Yoo Chun Young remained silent, Eun Jiho slowly dropped his gaze at the floor and sighed.
“Mind control isn’t easy. When that happened, I decided to give up but still had a crush on her for over
half a year. Woo Jooin hugging Donnie while calling her mama… Kwon Eun Hyung patting Ham
Donnie’s head… and you gazing serenely at her sometimes when no one’s watching… Do you know how
much I hate and get irritated to death when you guys act like that?”
Eun Jiho quietly smiled after his remark, but Yoo Chun Young could hardly do the same. Eun Jiho
continued in a low and calm voice.
“If having a crush on her took place suddenly, my feelings should lessen quickly, or so I thought, but it
doesn’t work like that. I was so annoyed at first, but the only thing that comforted me was this. No matter
how many times you guys act like that to Donnie, she will never see you all as men. This… only this
comforted me. I hate myself for being such a loser by relying on that to console myself. Still, how you
guys acted like that is even worse, so I guess I’ve gone through my stormy period of adolescence quite
enough.”
“…”
“The person you are now and the person that I was back then weren’t so different. You should get
yourself well together.”
“What are you talking about?” Yoo Chun Young, at last, moved his lips quietly.
Eun Jiho smiled with a shrug as he continued.

“Ham Donnie wouldn’t see you as a man at all too.”
“…”
Although it was expected, listening to those words directly from Eun Jiho felt quite different. As Yoo
Chun Young frowned his forehead, Eun Jiho, who was beside him, stood up straight.
Something like tobacco smelled through the breeze. Maybe someone was smoking. Well, there were
always some high school students who smoked. Eun Jiho continued what he was saying.
“Why does she strongly believe that we won’t like her as a girl… I don’t know since I’ve never seen
anyone among us break that wall yet. As a person who had a crush on her, I just wanted to say that you
should prepare yourself to experience your inner struggles.”
“That means…”
“Dude, do you know what’s really funny?”
Eun Jiho interfered Yoo Chun Young’s words with a grin. Yoo Chun Young lifted his blue eyes to look at
him while Eun Jiho was still smiling.
“I was confused about whether I still like her or not, so one day in the morning, I went into her room and
found out that she was asleep. I grabbed her hand, and… I really thought I gave up all my feelings on her,
but…”
“…”
“My heart was still pounding fast and hard… you know what I mean? I’m still like that… I don’t know.
Maybe my body seems to remember what I felt about her since I lived like that for so long.”
Yoo Chun Young didn’t respond. Eun Jiho showed a smile once again.
“Dreadful, it is. What’s so special about falling in love with a person anyway? How can I be so miserable
like this even after I tried to give up my feelings for half a year?”
Eun Jiho, who spoke like that in a faster tone compared to earlier, turned back to open the terrace door
and went back inside before Yoo Chun Young tried to respond. Yoo Chun Young, who was standing
alone in the terrace, wondered whether he should follow him to go inside or not. He, however, closed the
terrace door then leaned against the balustrade.
He had a lot on his mind. It felt like he happened to open a drawer and discovered an enormous secret
hidden within, although he didn’t mean to find such a thing.
He heard Woo Jooin and Eun Jiho laughing about something in the room. Kwon Eun Hyung was stepping
out of the bathroom just now with a towel on his wet hair. Watching them from the terrace, Yoo Chun
Young shoved his hand inside his pocket and took his phone out. He pressed the button firmly to find
Ham Donnie’s number from the contacts. His finger was on the send button for a while. He then
murmured, ‘I like you.’
‘Those things are hard to hide, you know… They might have already noticed from earlier,’ Yoo Chun
Young repeated Eun Jiho’s words in his mind.
He also hated how Yi Ruda acted like he knew everything about Donnie. He was so mad when he found
that there were only two of them together inside the empty classroom and when he saw Yi Ruda holding
Donnie’s hands.
Everything annoyed him. As Eun Jiho said, Yoo Chung Young hated those things badly, and it irritated
him to death. There was a reason why he, who seldom used violence and was aware of the upcoming
photoshoot that was scheduled that day, picked a fight with Yi Ruda. It was all because he really disliked
Yi Ruda’s behavior. Yoo Chun Young raised his hand and slowly swept his hair back.
Yi Ruda, whom he met again at the nurse’s office, put a twisted smile on his face. So many conversations
took place in a day, which seemed hardly memorable for one to remember every detail. However, only
the conversation he had with Yi Ruda came across his head clearly.
“What you said sounds like you have a crush on Ham Donnie.”
“You have some sense compared to how you look, but isn’t it also you who’s being desperate about her?
Who’s the guy constantly sticking up for the person who never opened her heart for the last two years?”
Sticking up… Yoo Chun Young reiterated those words. What Yi Ruda said wasn’t wrong. Yoo Chun
Young’s gaze wandered at the nine letters, ‘Ham Donnie,’ on his call list.
Pressing the call button was nothing but an impulsive action. He just wanted to hear her voice while
looking at the cold ripples on the night sea. It was strange that his reaction wasn’t new to him.
He slowly burned up and gradually cooled down. It applied to everything. Sometimes, the process was
too slow that he didn’t perceive it from time to time.
Yoo Chun Young, at last, recognized that every action he had done to her involved a certain degree of
impulsiveness. It always did. At least for Ham Donnie, he behaved on a whim. Things with her always
made him that way.
Quite some time passed since he pressed the button. Yoo Chun Young then regretted what he had done. It
was over 2 in the morning, which was enough for her to be deeply asleep.
However, it happened when he was about to press the ‘end call’ button. The dial tone disconnected, and at
the same time, Ham Donnie’s voice came over the phone. It sounded half-awake as if she just got up from
sleep.
“What’s up? Why aren’t you asleep yet?”

.
“Um…”
“You guys also drank, didn’t you… that would be the only reason why you’re not asleep. Oh, I’m
thirsty.”
Yoo Chun Young then heard a rustling noise in the background as if Donnie was getting out of bed. He
waited for a while quietly but held the balustrade in surprise when a short scream suddenly came over
from the phone.
“I mean…”
Her voice sounded bitter. It looked as though she saw something unbelievable.
“Holy shoot! When I opened the door, someone walked on all fours out of the blue.”
“Walk in all fours…?”
“Yeah. Oh, I thought I was watching the Exorcist. What’s up, anyway? If you’re calling me 2 in the
morning, is there an emergency?”
“I just… wondered if you’re in bed.”
“Uh-huh, I just got up. I’ll go back to sleep after drinking some water.”
Her voice revealed how drowsy she was. After the call, she would definitely go back to sleep
immediately. It made Yoo Chun Young a little nervous while thinking, ‘before she hangs up, I should say
something…’
Such an outlandishly silent darkness pressed him down. Inside his head, something seemed to fly around
chaotically, but at the next moment, he felt like blanking out. He was about to say something meaningful.
However, nothing came out in the few utterances that were coming out of his lips at all. After a prolonged
silence, Yoo Chun Young broke the ice.
“I have a question.”
“Uh-huh.”
Fortunately, Ham Donnie’s voice sounded cheerful. Yoo Chun Young spoke slowly.
“If what someone said about me keeps popping in my head…”
“Yeah.”
“Does it mean that the person was right?”
“Hmm… well, it could happen when the words they said left such an impressive mark on you. Oh, maybe
it hit the right marks, which made it memorable. So, you may be right.”
“I see,” Yoo Chung Young replied shortly while pouting his lips.
Rather than an actual answer, he felt fine just by listening to her voice for quite a while. When Yoo Chun
Young was about to hang up the phone in consideration of Donnie’s drowsiness, she asked back,
unexpectedly.
“Who said what to you? It’d also be different depending on the person.”
“Who said what…” Yoo Chun Young fell into thought for a second then soon responded, “Yi Ruda.”
“Good night.”
Ham Donnie’s voice darkened immediately. ‘What’s wrong? Is she feeling tired now?’ While Yoo Chun
Young had those thoughts in mind, Ham Donnie hung up the phone. It happened in a flash that he didn’t
have any chance to say goodbye.
He returned to the room and dropped his gaze at the phone for quite a while. Still, he couldn’t understand
what Ham Donnie meant at all.
Article 13. They Say It’s a Confession Trip Rather Than a Retreat? (Part 2)
The next day, I brought the kids, who walked on all fours out of their minds, to the cafeteria. There, I
witnessed a rare sight. As if what Yoon Jung In said was true, no one inside here could barely open their
eyes properly. Even a kid started to retch while getting his food, which made everyone around him step
back out of astonishment.
‘What a mess,’ I thought as I found an empty table to sit with my girls. Someone then came closer and sat
beside me. Looking at the empty hand without a tray, I raised my head to see who it was.
The person who grimaced as if he still had a hangover was none other than Yoon Jung In. ‘Whoa,’ as
soon as he came into my sight, I asked with a smile.
“Dude, I heard you weren’t human last night?”
“What? Who says that?”
As if he understood clearly while having a hard time pulling himself together, he furrowed his face even
more before answering. I shrugged and pointed across the table with my chin.
Shin Suh Hyun, whom Yoon Jung In had a savage gaze at, showed no signs of fear on his face. He
swallowed the food in his mouth, then said nonchalantly.
“How’s your conscience doing?”
“What? What about me? Why am I not human last night?”
“Geez, don’t you remember how you were yelling and singing loudly on the boy’s floor and calling me
noona?”
“…”
Yoon Jung In grew silent for a moment then turned his head to look at Kim Hye Woo, beside him.
“Did I?”
“Yeah.”
“For real?”
“You also did something truly exceptional too. Do you want to hear it?”
Shin Suh Hyun intervened and continued his words. Lee Mina, who was sitting across, burst out laughing
so hard that she couldn’t swallow her food. Kim Hye Hill was staring at Yoon Jung In with serene eyes.
Yoon Jung In rolled his eyeballs twice in perplexity.
He asked, “Wh…at… did I do…?”
“You lost your phone yesterday and asked people where it was. As you searched for it all over, someone
found and gave it to you saying, ‘Here’s your phone.’ But do you know what you answered back?”
“What did I say?”

“This ain’t a phone. You kept saying that, so I asked you what it is if it’s not a phone.”
“So?”
“So, you said, ‘Magic Hole~’ with a bright smile and fell back. That was when you fell asleep. Don’t you
remember?”
“…”
Magic Hole was the model name of Yoon Jung In’s flip phone. As I quietly dropped my gaze at his
phone, he carefully put it in his pocket.
Yoon Jung In, who shoved his phone in his pocket, suddenly laughed out loud.
“Guys, bon appetit!” he shouted.
“…”
His voice was so loud that even the kids, who were filling their trays with tipsy eyes around him, looked
at us. The overall situation reminded me of something. I glanced around the cafeteria.
Since Yoo Chun Young called me at 2 in the morning, the other boys might have drunk together;
however, I couldn’t see any of their fancy hair colors around. While I chewed the food in my mouth, Yi
Ruda came to me from the side.
“Hey, Donnie.”
“Good morning.”
Her face looked brighter and fresher in the morning. Her wet, golden hair tangled on her forehead, and
her smiling eyes were shining pure and blue. Among the kids with sunken eyes, her refreshing face
looked so delightful that I welcomed her more warmly than usual.
As soon as Yi Ruda patted my hair with a grin and walked away with other boys, Yoon Jung In, who was
right beside me, leaned his body toward me. He whispered like a tease.
“What a sweet couple from early in the morning. Any phone calls last night?”
“Nope.”
“Well, who knows if he surprises you with a love confession on the stage today?”
“Oh, come on. We’re nothing like that.”
“Maybe not to you, but he looks pretty obvious. Hey, are you saying that seriously?”
Yoon Jung In’s question made me shut my mouth in awkwardness. ‘He looks pretty obvious? Hell,
yeah…’ The phone call with Yoo Chun Young last night came across my head. At the same time,
something like damp air and bright lamplight seemed to entwine and rose before me.
I thought about his voice that rang around my ears and scattered away. It sounded cold as usual yet
prudent enough.
‘Yi Ruda.’
I took out a spoon of rice from the bowl then soaked it in the bean sprout soup in a grimace. Yi Ruda,
who was beside me, asked in surprise.
“What an appetite from early in the morning!”
“Yeah, I’m hungry.”
“Other kids don’t even feel good.”
I did too; however, I had to shove the rice inside me to get away from this subdued feeling.
Things that were happening around them were, for me, like a storybook, and I already knew the ending
even before I opened it. I, therefore, didn’t want to flip the pages. I didn’t feel curious. Regardless of what
I felt, some damn thing wouldn’t let me take my hands off of this storybook. I closed my eyes with a sigh.
I felt nauseous.
As if it was a given sequence, I had an upset stomach. Doing some outdoor activities seemed okay for me
to feel better, but I was wrong.
I was utterly wiped out, at last, around lunchtime, so I just sat on the cafeteria table without eating
anything. Yi Ruda asked me in surprise while walking pass me by.
“Are you okay?”
“Um, no. I’m just not feeling good.”
“Can you be on stage?”
“I should. What else can I do? I’m not the only one on stage.”
When I replied that, Yi Ruda furrowed her forehead then tapped my shoulder to comfort me.
The same thing happened at dinner. I couldn’t eat anything at all. This time, I didn’t go downstairs to the
cafeteria. Instead, I leaned against the wall inside the empty room, which was darkening alongside the
sunset. There, I sat on the floor and texted a few messages.
You’re not the leading role on the stage? Then do it ASAP and take a break.
Actually, I’m the lead.
What a joke
Gosh, this sun of a beach! I tapped the keyboard in rage.
For real, stay tuned!
Eun Jiho didn’t reply to me for quite a while. Perhaps he would be moving to the auditorium with the
instructor. With that thought in mind, I put my phone back into my pocket.
A moment after, Kim Hye Hill and the other girls went up to my room and called out my name. With a
nod, I wore my shoes roughly before leaving.
The lights of the building weren’t entirely open, so the bottom of the stairs was pitch black like I was
looking at a lump of enlarged coal from out of a monster’s mouth. As I slowly descended the staircase
while feeling each step I took with the sole of my feet, the brightly glowing auditorium over the yard
came into my sight.
Scattered stars shone in the lilac evening sky. The breeze was cold enough for summer.
I, then, furrowed my eyes when I saw the person on stage.

‘What the… why is that bastard over there?’ When those thoughts came into my mind, Yoon Jung In,
who was on the stage, saw me and yelled at the mic.
“Latecomers! Go run five laps on the track!”
The burst of laughter around us reached the high ceiling of the auditorium. Most of the students already
arrived and gathered inside.
The girls seemed to be running late since they picked me up. Kim Hye Hill, who was wearing the same
baseball cap that she wore yesterday, lifted her hand then flipped it off to Yoon Jung In. People then burst
out laughing again.
“Dude! Is she your girlfriend?! Mad pretty!”
Someone shouted those words from among the boisterous laughter. Before I joined the queue of Class 1-
8, I glanced around. There I saw a fuss over a boy at Class 1-4. I turned my head to look back at the stage
again.
Wearing the same comfortable outfit as before, Yoon Jung-in, who was holding the mic, looked well-
suited for his role as a host since he was handsome and decent-looking. It was indeed a novelty to be able
to amuse the beholders just by standing there.
When a pale light poured down with a thud, Yoon Jung In smiled playfully and bowed 90 degrees to this
side. He then stood up straight again and spoke to the people in the auditorium.
“Good evening. This is Yoon Jung In, the host for tonight’s retreat talent show.”
When he finished his introduction, mysterious roars burst out from everywhere. As I stepped back in
surprise, Kim Hye Hill, in front, grinned. Kim Hye Woo was also standing beside her before I even knew
it.
Someone then placed their hand on my shoulder, so I looked back. It was Yi Ruda. She stared at me with
a smile.
“Hey?” I said.
“Everything good?”
“Uh-huh. We don’t need to rehearse anymore, do we?”
“Dude, please no more. We’re gonna puke again,” kids in the back said sulkily.
Yi Ruda and I then sat as per Yoon Jung In’s request. Most of the kids looked at Yoon Jung In, who had a
full circle of acquaintances, with twinkling eyes as if they knew him well. They fixed their trustful gaze at
him regardless of his verbal diarrhea on stage.
“Um, there must be many of you who was wondering why I am the host tonight instead of the student
president. In my point of view, it’s because… I’m handsome.”
“Boo!”
“Get him off the stage!”
Many kids yelled out those comments, but no one really attempted to drag him out of the stage. Yoon
Jung In laughed like crazy and took out a long, vertically folded paper from his pocket. He then waved it
in the air. My attention followed that paper spontaneously.
The air blew a hot streak of breeze on my face as I smelled the mixture of the odor of old trees and sweat
coming from somewhere. Scratching his cheek, Yoon Jung In continued his speech.
“So, everyone, this paper is a list of team names for the talent show; however, the list is not arranged in
order, which means that I can choose which team goes first.”
When Yoon Jung In said that, a loud commotion of people booing burst out through the heated air. Kim
Hye Hill, who was in front, smiled while hanging her head down, and Shin Suh Hyun sighed while
resting his chin on his hand. Meanwhile, Yoon Jung In stretched his hand out to make a dissuading
gesture.
He cleared his throat twice then kept on his speech with a wink.
“Oh, of course, I was joking. I can choose which teams go first, but it’s life-threatening… so, let’s do a
quick game.”
“What?”
“Is he talking about his own idea or based on the script?”
The Kim twins asked one after another. They both looked at each other for a while before turning their
heads towards the stage. It seemed that they also couldn’t find the answer.
Both of their round backs looked alike under the lighting. Their outlandishly jet-black hair, white necks,
and overall vibes were strangely serene. As I stared at them, Yoon Jung In spoke further.
“The game will be… ahem… endurance game!”

Kids, who sat down on their comfortable postures, stretched their bodies a bit out to the front while
frowning. Regardless of the overall attention, Yoon Jung In continued to explain the game with a straight
pose.
“Each class will send out a girl and a boy on the stage. When I say ‘Go!” the boy will hold the girl like a
princess. The class who has the first couple to collapse will be the first class to perform on stage. The
couple who would endure until the very end will be the last class who will perform on the stage. Clear?”
“Yessss!!!”
“Then, those from each class, please come out to the front. Ready?!”
While waving the vertically-folded paper in the air, Yoon Jung In finished his explanation. It hyped up
the kids in the auditorium.
Students in each class stood and talked with a puzzled face. Classes with a real couple, luckily, didn’t take
much longer to decide whom they would send out. Therefore, a few couples went up to the stage while
holding each other’s hands tightly.
Yoon Jung In shouted, “Come out, ASAP! The last class to be on the stage will get minus 100!”
“Gosh, what should we do?”
“Hey, who’s gonna be up for our class?”
“Oppa, should we be on the stage?” Kim Hye Hill asked while gently pulling her brother’s short sleeves.
Kim Hye Woo then responded with a grimace.
“We won’t be embarrassed to play the game, but you know, I’m weak when it comes to strength-related
activities.”
As soon as he said that, Yoon Jung In shouted from the stage.
“Oh, yeah, and Class 1-8! Just in case, do not send the Kim twins up on the stage! Kim Hye Woo would
collapse within 10 seconds if he held Kim Hye Hill!”
“Dude, I’m not that weak, though!”
Kim Hye Woo yelled at him with a burst of anger. Still, well… he didn’t seem to hear the protestation
because of how noisy it was inside the auditorium. I tiptoed to glance at the stage.
Except for two or three other classes, the stage already had ‘couples’ that would represent their classes.
Among them, the most outstanding couple was Kwon Eun Hyung and Ban Yeo Ryung, who stood at the
corner, holding their hands.
Doing an up-do with her shiny black hair, Ban Yeo Ryung revealed her white marble-like neck under the
stage lights. She boasted about her long and slim limbs under her T-shirt and shorts.
Kwon Eun Hyung, who was standing beside her, wore jet-black sweat pants and a white T-shirt on top.
Honestly, he looked better when he dressed formally, such as wearing suits or a school uniform. His
twinkling red hair and sweetly shining green eyes were, however, attractive enough to draw admiration
from others.
As I stared at them, I heard other boys talking beside me.
“Hey, Yi Ruda is strong.”
“Really?”
“Then let’s send Yi Ruda up there. What about the girl? Anyone who’s not heavy, please apply!”
“We don’t have much time!”
It was then when someone’s hand overlapped onto mine. As I turned my head to look at the person in
surprise, I saw that Yi Ruda was staring at me with an ambiguous grin on her face.
I asked, “Why?”
“I would like to go up there with you.”
“I… I’m not that light.”
“Hey, don’t hesitate. You’re light enough!”
Someone said those words out loud. ‘No, my bones are quite big and heavy…’ I rolled my eyeballs with
that thought in mind, but soon, I glanced back at the stage in a hurry. Oh, my gosh. Every class was up
there except for two classes. I pulled Yi Ruda’s hand in a flash.
“Yi Ruda, come on! Let go up to the stage.”
“Yeah.”
Yi Ruda put on an unexpectedly relaxed smile before following me quietly. As we jumped up onto the
stage in a hurry, a boy and a girl came up the stage at the same time.
I glanced at Yoon Jung In. He pointed us with his finger and pretended to blow a whistle. ‘Shoot!’ When
I tried to scowl at him, I heard a small shriek from the side. I turned my head to see who it was, and there
stood Ban Yeo Ryung.
“Hey! Why are you here with Donnie?!”
Ban Yeo Ryung was screaming at him in a fury.
Yi Ruda then replied leisurely while blinking her blue eyes.
“I’m a boy, and she’s a girl. Is there a problem with playing the game?
“Shooooot… Eun Hyung, we shouldn’t lose.”
“Okay.”
Kwon Eun Hyung smiled softly after hearing her words then raised his green eyes to look at us. When I
showed a vague smile at him, he turned his head to the front.
Under the lights, hundreds of colorfully shining eyes were piercing through the stage.
Yoon Jung In then held the paper he was holding up high and yelled, “Get set, go!”
At the same time, Yi Ruda gently bent her knees and held me up in her arms. I suddenly felt dizzy, and
my eyes grew blurry; thus, I hugged her neck tightly amid my fright. Her hair entwined between my
fingers. As if she found me funny, her quiet laughter rang in my ears.
Screams and shouts soon burst out from everywhere. Within a second, a boy beside us collapsed with a
roar. Yoon Jung In’s voice resounded from the speaker.
“Class 1-3 is out! The first to be on stage is Class 1-3!”
Meanwhile, I managed to find the time to enjoy the game, so I took my arms out of Yi Ruda’s neck and
looked around. Frankly speaking, Yi Ruda’s posture, while holding me up like a princess, felt so
comfortable. She didn’t waver at all while carrying me in her arms.
I mean, how could a girl like her be this strong? I must have been as heavy as two rice sacks; however,
while I was hanging in her arms like this, I felt like I was lighter than Styrofoam. As I looked up at her
slyly, our eyes met. She then grinned.
“What?”
Her golden hair melted into the light and shone warmly like honey. Furrowing my brows, I spoke as I felt
my delicate heart wavering.
“It’s so comfy.”
“Oh, yeah?”
Yi Ruda replied nonchalantly, then, for some reason, she suddenly threw me up. It wasn’t that high; it
was maybe just about 2~3 cm high. Still, it sent chills down my spine, making me hug her neck tightly.
Yi Ruda burst out a peal of minute laughter.
“I just thought you’re too bored.”
“No, I’m not!”
“Okay, then.”
We then maintained our posture like that for a while. The twinkling gazes directed towards us, Yoon Jung
In’s voice, and the orange lights pouring to the auditorium all seemed like a distant future that would
never come.
There is this moment sometimes when I realize that this scene would be etched within my memory into a
clear image. As I bit my lips while letting myself fall upon the pit of my distant feeling, I heard Yoon
Jung In’s voice from aside, and it seemed like it was coming from a distant dream.
“The second is Class 1-6, the third 1-7, fourth 1-4, fifth 1-2… Oh my god! Class 1-5, you were close.
Wow, only three teams left now.”
His words returned my consciousness back to reality.
I raised my head to look beside me. I then saw that Kwon Eun Hyung was also holding Ban Yeo Ryung
in his arms naturally and comfortably. It seemed like they were just having a leisurely time in their
furniture. His posture didn’t show any signs of stress or burden.
Ban Yeo Ryung, who was looking up at the ceiling as if she was bored while laying on Kwon Eun
Hyung’s arms, moved her gaze toward us. She then scowled at Yi Ruda. It made me giggle.
At that moment, the couple from Class 1-5, who was shaking in an unsettling posture between Ban Yeo
Ryung and us, collapsed at last. As soon as the girl jumped to the floor tactfully, Yoon Jung In shouted on
the mic.
“Class 1-5 is the sixth! Now, only two classes are left here… why are these guys so determined?”
Yoon Jung In’s question made people burst into laughter. Kwon Eun Hyung perked the corners of his lips
up slightly to show his unique, gentle smile. Meanwhile, Yi Ruda was staring at me with the same
naughtiness she had on her eyes as she did before.
Yi Ruda asked me again, “Aren’t you bored?”
I shook my head crazily. Yi Ruda laughed again. Then I heard Yoon Jung In speaking through the mic.
“Class 1-8, you guys aren’t here to date. Both must look in front of you.”
“Bahaha!”
Yi Ruda now laughed out loud, and, at the same time, I heard kids giggling boisterously while blowing
whistles at us.
I was at a loss for words when I looked at Ban Yeo Ryung and Kwon Eun Hyung. Ban Yeo Ryung, who
freed herself comfortably out of Kwon Eun Hyung’s arms with a languid expression, looked as if she was
a sculpted masterpiece. A few kids dwelled upon her appearance with a wistful and yearning glance.
After quite a while, nothing changed still. Ban Yeo Ryung then pulled Kwon Eun Hyung’s arms towards
her. When Kwon Eun Hyung hung his head down to get closer to her ears, she whispered something to
him. At the next moment, Kwon Eun Hyung nodded before carefully putting Ban Yeo Ryung down.
‘Tap,’ as her sneakers touched the floor, it released a rhythmical sound.
‘What?’ Both Class 1-1 and 1-8 watched the scene with widened eyes.
Kwon Eun Hyung then said, “This is not gonna end. We’ll let them take the 1st place. Taking the 2nd
place is not bad for Class 1-1, right?”
“Yeah!”
“Hurrah, our class president!”
“Kwon Eun Hyung, I love you!”
As soon as Eun Hyung said those words to the audience, other youngsters showed an enthusiastic
response. Eun Hyung, who could lead people, surely received great support from his class as usual. While
listening to their joyful shouts, I descended from Yi Ruda’s arms.
Yoon Jung In said, “Cool. Both participants, please shake each other’s hands before going down.”
“What’s this about a handshake?!”
“We don’t have any prizes for the winners, so take it as a reward.”
‘Oh, boy! Yoon Jung In, so funny!’ While kids shouted something like those words and laughed out loud,
Kwon Eun Hyung went to our side with a smile. As I adjusted my hair, Eun Hyung, who came close to
me, spoke in a low voice.
“If we didn’t say we lost, will you be hugging him forever?”
“Huh?”
Once I tried to strike a retort to his question, Eun Hyung removed the rigor in his eyes before reverting
into his generous everyday look.
“Yeo Ryung said that. She wanted me to deliver it to you.”
“…”
‘Oh, my Ban Yeo Ryung…’ As I turned back to look at her, I noticed that she had already gone back to
her class. She then stuck her tongue out towards us. Obviously, she was targeting Yi Ruda.
Yi Ruda smiled ambiguously before responding, “I’m sad.”
“…”
‘Come on, if you say things like that, then the others will misunderstand us!’ When I raised my eyes to
glance at Eun Hyung, his face did not show a sign of joy. ‘Oh, lord…’ I pulled Yi Ruda’s sleeves to tell
her that we should return to Class 1-8. While walking towards my classmates, I heard them yelling.
“You guys look so good together!”
“Go, Yi Ruda!”
Clear whistling sounds popped out of the roaring crowds. As I sat on my seat in exhaustion, Shin Suh
Hyun and the Kim twins, who were sitting in front, complimented me. I smiled back and looked in front
while thinking, ‘Our class is taking the last stage then.’
The lighting above our heads slowly darkened with a thud. Soon, a bright white spotlight shed over Yoon
Jung In’s head.
As the youngsters in front of me had predicted, dance performances filled most of the stages. However,
contrary to my expectations of seeing the typical dance steps, we saw a series of shocking acts on the first
stage.
When the lights opened, I bent my waist and laughed out loud while looking at the stage. In front of me,
Kim Hye Hill burst into laughter while grabbing her brother’s shoulder.
Wearing big cat ear headbands on their heads, four bulky boys were on the stage with their hands on their
waists. The song that came out then was ‘Shy Boy.’
Once they finally danced softly with wavy steps alongside the ‘dubap, dubap’ lyric, the others burst into
laughter. When I looked around, I saw that everyone was about to puke from laughing so hard. Yoon
Jung In, who was crouching on the corner of the stage, was now tearing up after laughing so hard that he
could die.
The climax was when they stopped the deadly cute moves and began to sing along the chorus.
“Shy, shy, shy boy! Oh, oh, oh, my boy!”
“Not that handsome but a warmhearted guy!”
“Ahhhhhh!!!!!”
They threw the entire audience into a massive outbreak. While everyone was feeling that their sides were
splitting, the performance on stage came to a close.
The bright light went on again, and Yoon Jung In, who had dry tears around his eyes, quickly ran to the
stage while holding a mic and stood next to the boys. They were already taking off the headbands at that
time. Their faces all looked miserable. Yoon Jung In then asked with the mic pointed at his lips.
“Why are you guys taking off the headbands?”
“Are you blind or what?”
The one who answered was the boy standing all the way on the left. The whole auditorium fell into an
uproar again.
The next stage performance was a play that had Power Rangers as its motif. When the Power Rangers left
the girl alone and ran away from the strong monsters, the audience sent up rousing cheers and applause.
On the third stage, two girls came out and sang a ballad. This was then followed by a dance performance
and a remake of a trending TV comedy show on the air. As time went by smoothly, it was Class 1-1’s
turn at last.
I exhaled out of nervousness. When I looked around, I realized that I wasn’t the only one who felt the
tension. The others stiffened as they gazed at the stage with high expectations.
.
Suddenly, the white light, pouring up ahead, disappeared, and coal-like darkness prevailed around the
space. Nothing was in sight, even Yi Ruda, who was sitting beside me. I stared directly at the stage.
A bright light then flooded in the stage. A moment after, only a dim red light remained as the whole space
sank into the dark again. It was such a weak light; thus, it was hard to figure out the faces on stage, but, at
least, it was enough for us to see their silhouettes. In front of the slender shadows, there stood a familiar
black long hair shining purplish under the red light.
After a second, the five silhouettes pumped their bodies alongside the rhythms and, at the same time,
shouts of other’s outcry echoed from the crowds.
Someone yelled out loud, “OMG! It’s Boom Boom Pow!”
‘Holy Christ!’ I gazed in front while breathing in deeply. The others selected their talented classmates
who knew how to dance to represent their class in their performance. Thus, everybody on the stage had
great moves; however, none of them were as outstanding as the girl in the middle. Her arms were slim
and slender like those of a bird, but her dance was surprisingly powerful.
When the white lights opened, she finally unraveled the entirety of her beautiful face completely. The girl
in the middle’s beautifully curved pale forehead, small straight nose, and transparently black eyes came
into my sight. The beauty before us was, indeed, Ban Yeo Ryung. The sight of her alone was enough to
take everyone’s breath away, and I heard the very second everyone gasped upon seeing her on stage.
The pouring roars during the dark vanished in a flash, and soon, the entire space grew quiet as if it sunk
underwater. I understood the sudden change in the atmosphere. Ban Yeo Ryung’s magical charm sent the
auditorium as a whole into a deafening silence.
At the next moment, a massive outcry broke the ice. I, however, forgot to cover my eyes and just stared at
the stage.
It wasn’t a sexy dance that girl groups mostly performed; however, Ban Yeo Ryung did wonders in her
moves while following the choreography. Her long hair waved and strewed to the beat. When a bizarre
electronic sound came out, their heads hung down slowly as if someone flipped the switch.
After their time on stage, there was nothing but madness all around.
Someone raised his head and shouted, “Ban Yeo Ryung, marry me!!”
Some kids looked at each other in excitement while chatting about how amazing Ban Yeo Ryung was and
how brilliant she was in doing everything.
The lights went off again. At that moment, a few kids who sat on the corner of the stage ran into the
middle. There were noises similar to that of firm metal hitting the wooden floor, but it soon turned silent.
I bit my lips tightly and looked at the direction of the sound.
When the bright lights opened, everyone screamed at once. This time, the girls shrieked overwhelmingly
to the stage, which was deafening.
“Ahhhhhhh!!!!”
“Wow, can you believe that?”
“How could all four of them be on stage?”
Some kids murmured like that. I agreed to what they said at some point before looking at what was
happening in front again. On the stage stood six chairs, and a boy sat on each of them with their legs
spread open. They had their elbows on their knees while resting their chins on their hands.
Each of them wore jet-black dress pants and a contradicting white dress shirt on top. That was when the
speaker sent out a loud thud. They moved their knees a little before tapping the floor gently with their
shoes.
After a moment, screams poured out of the crowd again.
Wild Eyes, a song by SHINHWA, played on the speakers. This song boasted a legendary dance step that
involved using a chair that each member of this boy group performed.
Instead of showing his face to us, Eun Jiho dropped his gaze at the floor with his characteristic cold gaze,
which he mostly used to strangers. When his feet moved a little again, his silver hair twinkled under the
light. Kwon Eun Hyung, who was sitting beside him, didn’t show any hint of a smile on his face. The
light illuminated Yoo Chun Young’s jet-black hair and spread a spring of blue light all around him.
The one who surprised me the most was none other than Woo Jooin. He was over 170 cm tall now. He
was not short at all, but his adorable character still made me think of him as a small and cute boy.
Wearing the jet-black dress pants, his legs stretched, and his golden eyes under his golden-brown lashes
didn’t show a hint of his usual playfulness.
I always thought that he had friendly eyes, but from the pose he had, while resting his chin on his hand
without showing a smile, he looked like a total stranger. At that moment, his eyes seemed to be directing
this side. The music then started with an intense beat.
The lighting went on vigorously. My ears rang from the prolonged shouts of glee. When I glanced beside
me, I saw Yi Ruda fastening his gaze on the stage. ‘Oh, yeah, since Yoo Chun Young is on there,’ with
that thought in mind, I felt a sense of awkwardness.
‘I don’t know, it’s just…’ I clenched my hand into a fist. The boys on the stage looked so different
compared to how they usually looked that I dropped my gaze at Kim Hye Hill’s back.
‘I don’t know… they can always look and act differently like that no matter what I think…’ That was
why I felt complicated.
“Ahhhhh!!!”
Their performance ended with a shower of screams. Dragging the chair out of the stage, Eun Jiho smiled
at this side as if he felt quite satisfied tonight. Yoo Chun Young, who still looked uninterested at all, fixed
his blue gaze before him, and Kwon Eun Hyung showed a generous grin on his face.
As soon as Woo Jooin returned to his class, a few girls poured out some words to him while grabbing his
arms. Woo Jooin then bent his knees for the girls to talk comfortably. He was especially kind to his
classmates, which was why kids liked him so much. As I looked at Woo Jooin, Yi Ruda, who was beside
me, asked in a cheerful voice.
“Then, should we stand up now?”
“Ladies and gentlemen, the next stage is Class 1-8! The title of their performance is… let’s see… it’s
‘Love & War.’ Wow!”
‘What is he talking about?’ I turned my head to look at Yoon Jung In as I stopped walking after Yi Ruda.
‘Who made that title?’ I asked as I glued my eyes onto Yi Ruda. She just shook her head as if she also
had no idea.
Before I walked up to the stage, I stood at the staircase and took a deep breath out of nervousness. Shin
Suh Hyun, who was beside me, spoke in his usually nonchalant tone.
“Don’t put yourself into too much stress. The script is so bad that it can’t get any worse.”
“True. We already screwed up.”
“We invited danger to this stage.”
“Hey, if you say things like that, then what are we supposed to do?”
Those who wrote the script shouted complaints from the side. Furrowing one of his eyes, Yoon Jung In
introduced us loudly, ‘Our future screenwriters!’ and, at the same time, the crowd burst into waves of
laughter.
We grew a little chilly. I clasped and opened my sweaty hands back and forth. When the stage became
completely dark, we all rushed onto the stage. At last, a white light streamed into our heads.
Grabbing a mic in my hand, I sat on an old desk that looked like it came straight out of the supply room.
Hundreds of eyes were looking at me. I felt like someone was snatching my heart; however, I tried not to
expose how stuffy I felt.
A kid who played the role of a teacher tapped the whiteboard with a pointer.
He said, “Oh, there’s a new student in our class. His name is Yi Ruda, the heir of Songsam Group and the
top-ranking student nationwide. His IQ is 200, so he’s always the top student in school, but he can never
fall in love because of a sad past.”
“…”
A moment of cold silence hung in the space as if it struck a sore note. The boy then continued his lines
while looking behind the whiteboard.
“Okay, come in!”
At the same time, Yi Ruda walked out of the back of the whiteboard. I noticed that not a single strand of
her hair was out of place. She then stood in front of me. The boy then spoke while waving his pointer.
“You, take a seat beside Ham Donnie.”
“Yes, sir.”
With that short reply, Yi Ruda walked toward me before suddenly stretching out her arms and grabbing
my shoulders. Her wild action made everyone inhale deeply. Holding my breath, I stared at Yi Ruda, who
got closer to me.
Standing with her back facing the audience, Yi Ruda spoke on the mic. Her voice sounded like it was
enveloped in profound grief.
“You… you remind me of my half-sister, my first love who passed away.
“Excuse me?”
“Be mine.”
Yi Ruda then pulled my head into her arms without reason. A moment of silence soon spread out
everywhere, then a burst of laughter and shrieks came over from Yi Ruda’s shoulders.
‘Bahahaha, what the hell is that!?’
Some kids said those words with a dumbfounded look on their faces, whereas some just screamed with a
reddened face. ‘Are they really in a relationship? Is that just acting? How can he hug her so tightly like
that?’
Regardless of what they said, I dusted my hair off and got up from my seat.
“What are you doing? We met just now. I don’t like this.”
“Geez, she sounds like she’s reading a book!”
With that remark, people laughed out loud again. Leaving Yi Ruda there, I strode toward the whiteboard.
The boy who was playing the role of the teacher was already gone.
Afterward, I heard quick footsteps coming toward me. Yi Ruda soon hugged me in her arms then pushed
me to the whiteboard. Her hand was touching the top of my head. The crowds roared again.
Yi Ruda’s blue eyes that were directed at me could never be so profound and severe. A moment later, she
opened her lips to utter a few words.
“You… Do you want to be mine?”
I turned my head to the side then responded to him.
“Heart pound.”
Our play was total bullshit.
After a while, Yi Ruda, who went to the hospital, grabbed my hands before whispering, “I love you,”
while lying on a desk.
I replied, halfheartedly, “So do I.”
Regardless of the overall situation, Yi Ruda kept on her blue lines.
“The moment I first saw you… I knew that you would be the last owner of my heart.”
“Yes, I’m your last love. I’ll be with you forever.”
After speaking that line, I raised my eyes to scan the audience that was gazing at us. Ban Yeo Ryung, who
stood between the kids in Class 1-1, could easily be seen among the endless sea of people. There I saw
demonic auras flowing around her shoulders. Those who had a distressed look painted on their faces
similar to that of Ban Yeo Ryung were none other than the Four Heavenly Kings. ‘You guys are already
the main roles of a crazy novel, but why can’t I be one too… on a crazy play?’ I felt a bit wronged.
Meanwhile, our play was heading toward the climax. Yi Ruda whispered to me again in a sorrowful
voice.
“To tell the truth, I’m… terminally ill. I only have two days left before I die.”
“Oh, no!”
“But my test result came out the day before yesterday, so I’m gonna die.”
I blinked my eyes nonchalantly and responded to his sudden revelation.
“Goodbye, my last love.”
“Yeah, farewell. Argh!!!”
Yi Ruda then passed away while writhing in the throes of death.
In the next scene, I stood alone in front of Yi Ruda’s grave while folding my hands behind my back.
Then, someone who had a hoodie covering his face came toward me and spoke in a low voice.
“Excuse me, I’ve seen you for a while. Don’t you want to go out with me?”
I turned my head to look at him then spoke in a cold flat voice.
“I can’t love someone anymore because I only have one person in my heart. I already gave my heart to Yi
Ruda a long time ago, and now, I don’t have anything left to give.”
As I spoke in a tone similar to that of a weather forecaster, the others, again, burst out laughing. The guy
then stretched out his pale hand and pulled his hoodie back. Under the lights, there stood a boyish girl
with dazzling blond hair.
Looking at him doing that, I couldn’t help myself but laugh. ‘Oh, no! My concept is to read my lines like
a book…’ with that thought in mind, I trembled hard with my lips clasped tightly. She spoke to me with a
smile.
“It’s me. Your only heart.”
“Ruda!!”
I shouted her name out loud before jumping into her arms. That was the end of our stage play.
Yoon Jung In then spoke on the mic, which rang through the speaker.
“And that was the end of the stage play of Class 1-8! Thank you!’
A moment of silence went through. Soon, roars of laughter and waves of booing were delivered against
us. Standing on the stage, we flinched but couldn’t hide our giggles at the same time. As I sank my head
on my chest for a while, someone shouted to us.
“Hey, what a crazy script! Who wrote that?!”
“It’s not me, though!”
Yoon Jung In returned his words to the attacker, which made the crowd burst their sides upon hearing his
joke. I looked at him with a smile then recognized that I still didn’t leave Yi Ruda’s arms.
The lower part of the auditorium was so hot and humid, but above felt chilly, surrounded by cold air. I
smelled a grassy and refreshing scent combined with the damp air. ‘Maybe this fresh green scent is from
Yi Ruda…’ I lifted my head with that thought in mind.
I wasn’t sure if she also noticed me coincidentally or was already looking at me from quite a while ago,
but our eyes met. They were such serene and blue river-like eyes. Feeling embarrassed, I grinned and
twisted myself a little to withdraw from her arms. That was when it happened.
She bent her head, then put her lips on my cheek.
Then, all the noise in the world ceased to exist. The boisterous laughter throughout the space and Yoon
Jung In talking about something on the mic… they were all pushed far away by some invisible waves.
Only the empty silence hung between us.
That was all. I couldn’t think about anything else since my head was so dizzy. The feeling of her lips on
my cheek seemed a bit chilly. I wasn’t sure if I felt like that because my cheeks burned with heat.
Contrary to my belief that her lips would be soft and smooth, it seemed that it was a little chapped
instead.
I was not, of course, the only person who saw Yi Ruda kissing my cheek. Although our entire class was
on the stage, the audience fixed their gaze precisely at us. My cheeks felt like it was stinging.
A moment after, Yi Ruda took her lips off my cheek. I could hardly guess how long she had her lips on
my face, maybe a few seconds or a few minutes. That was when I rubbed my cheek blankly in surprise.
“Ahhhhhhh!!!!!”
“OMG!!!!! Wow!!!!!!!!!”
A sudden roar prevailed throughout the whole space. ‘Jesus…’ I raised my eyes, feeling dazed and
confused. Yi Ruda’s blue eyes that were directed at me were still showing a hint of a soft grin.
‘Hold on, this is…’ While I became completely befuddled, Yi Ruda took off her hands from my back. I,
at last, managed to escape her arms, but I hardly could stand straight. As I touched my cheek at a loss of
words, I found aggressively fastened gazes directed at us through the roaring waves of people’s reactions.
While everybody was hyped up with the heat of the moment, I noticed that they were glaring at us with
pale, icy-cold faces like that of a statue. When I lifted my head to look at them, I froze as soon as I found
out who they were.
‘Oh, no!’ I stretched my hand out to the side and pulled Yoon Jung In’s arm. He was shouting in
excitement just now, but as our eyes met, he spoke quietly.
“Why?”
“Hey, are all the stage performances over? Can we go back to our rooms now?”
“Oh, it’s our break now. Right, then can I go to your room…”
“Hye Hill! Should we go back to our room?”
Leaving Yi Ruda’s arms, I asked Kim Hye Hill before turning back to look somewhere else.
There was still a cold air streaming around Class 1-1. Not only Eun Jiho and Yoo Chun Young but also
Kwon Eun Hyung, who rarely revealed his feelings on his face, looked frozen like ice. Moreover, Ban
Yeo Ryung… she was about to run onto the stage. If Jooin and Kwon Eun Hyung didn’t grab her arms
tight from both sides, she would have dashed towards us immediately.
‘Oh, gosh…’ I held Kim Hye Hill’s hand and said, “Sh… ould we, please leave?”
“Okay, let’s go. It’s too noisy in here.”
Kim Hye Hill then held my hand and jumped off the stage. She ran through the gathered crowd so quickly
and easily. Fortunately, the kids were just having a naughty gaze at me but didn’t seem to ask me about
our relationship.
Before I left the auditorium, I turned back to see the fuss going around. In the middle, there stood Yi
Ruda, who was looking at me with a quiet grin on her pale face. When our eyes met, a cold and damp air
touched my face. I raised my eyes.
When the talent show was over, darkness surrounded the whole place. The street lamps in front of the
auditorium cast long shadows on the coarse sands. I closed my eyes for a second to catch my breath. My
head swam. I remembered her lips coming toward me… the warm heat I felt when it touched my cheek…
‘Was that supposed to be a greeting?’ I thought, ‘Wasn’t it too long for a hello? Also, isn’t it too awkward
to provide further meaning to her cheek-kissing? If it wasn’t a way to greet, then what was the purpose
behind it?’
“Do you want to hear what my prediction is?”
As I opened my eyes, Kim Hye Hill spoke while looking at the auditorium. ‘Prediction…?’ She then
continued with a dry tone.
“Tonight, Yoon Jung In and other boys will definitely come to our room, in a group with Yi Ruda.”
“…”
“You’re gonna get in trouble when you’re in our room. Everyone will treat you two as a couple. Is there
any room you can stay for a while?”
Rolling my eyeballs, I fell into thought. Including me, there were only six people from Ji Jon Middle
School present here right now; the other five were Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings.
Ban Yeo Ryung, who was about to dash onto the stage, came across my mind. The Four Heavenly Kings,
who stopped her from attacking us, didn’t look that good, though.
The damp breeze across from the sea waved my hair as it blew away. After a moment, I quietly shook my
head.
“None.”
“Then go inside the small room and pretend like you’re not there.”
Kim Hye Hill suggested while pulling me ahead. Her back look showed her trustworthy character.
Sometimes, she would turn back to look at me on our way up the stairs. It seemed like she wanted to ask
me about something. ‘Maybe it’s about Yi Ruda,’ I thought, but she didn’t ask me about anything at all.
It was such a fortunate thing for me. ‘Yi Ruda is a female crossdresser, so the two of us wouldn’t work.
Besides, Yi Ruda already has a guy for her life…’ How could I say these things to her?
Walking along the empty hallway, we finally arrived at our room. Once we stepped inside, Kim Hye Hill
already started pushing me into the small room. She then opened the lights and went back to the living
room.
Sitting on the bed, I felt bored, so I took out my phone from my pocket and tried to check some messages.
‘But looking at the aggressive Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings in the auditorium…’ When
their faces came across my mind, I furrowed my brow.
I thought Ban Yeo Ryung would send me such messages like, ‘I told you not to make any boyfriends
ᅲᅲ’ or call me right away. The Four Heavenly Kings, in particular, was sensitive about this kind of
thing, especially Jooin. He would have sent me something like, ‘Mama, I don’t need a new daddy ᅲᅲ.’
However, I did not receive any messages. There were no missed phone calls too. That was when I
touched my phone. Of course, it was better to have no messages rather than receiving those texts. The
unexpected tranquility, however, heightened my anxiety. Thinking about the word ‘lull before the storm,’
I stared at the wall quietly.
The bags and personal stuff scattered in the living room were now all moved to the small room; therefore,
I had no space to walk around. The whole area was dark and silent as I closed the light to pretend that
there was no one within. My confused mind started to cool down. I raised my eyes to look at the wall.
What did Yi Ruda think when she kissed my cheek, especially when everybody was looking in front of
the stage?
Wondering about her unexpected act of intimacy, I disheveled my hair like crazy. There were not a lot of
possible reasons for her actions.
First, she lost her sexual identity after cross-dressing for a prolonged period.
“…”
Second, she came here to find her fiancée but discovered my charms instead, so the Four Heavenly Kings
were out of her sight!
“…”
‘Just die, Ham Donnie!’ I held up the pillow beside me and smashed it on my head. While hitting myself
with the pillow, I giggled out of the crazy thoughts I had before repeatedly smashing my head again to
gather my senses. Suddenly, I heard a noise from the front door.
‘Holy cow!’ I quickly dropped the pillow and pulled a comforter over my head. While being in that
position for a moment, the first thing I heard through the comforter was none other than Yoon Jung In’s
clear voice.
“Hey, Kim Hye Hill! Where is Ham Donnie? You guys left together earlier.”
Kim Hye Hill then replied in a smooth voice.
“I evacuated her to a different room to hide her away from your raid.”
“Indeed, you do have an IQ of 140. What unbelievable foresight!”
Another girl from the side, probably Lee Mina, asked in a surprised voice.
“Hye Hill’s IQ is 140?”
“Yeah, in our Sukbong Middle School, we had a special class called ‘Class for the Gifted.’ Only those
with good GPAs could go there. Both Kim Hye Hill and Kim Hye Woo came from that section, so
although we were in the same class, I could hardly see them except during events or so. Isn’t that right,
Kim Hye Woo?”
Kim Hye Woo, who was probably beside them, replied apathetically.
“Why are you asking me? We aren’t identical but fraternal twins, so we have different genes. Maybe we
have a different level of IQ too.”
“Wow, he’s pretending to be not over 140.”
“So, do you have a problem?”
“Not only one but two! Bahaha!”
“…”
In the dark, I curled up myself inside the comforter and listened to their conversations. Yoon Jung In’s
joke almost made me laugh out loud. He was indeed a psycho.
Yoon Jung In’s laughter that rang around the front door, soon paused as if his voice disconnected from its
mainframe. Maybe Shin Suh Hyun restrained him from his verbal diarrhea. ‘Without Shin Suh Hyun, it
would have been so hard for Yoon Jung In to live in this world,’ as I had that thought in mind, Yi Ruda’s
voice came into my ears.
“Where’s Donnie?”
“Why don’t you just come inside? Are you just gonna stand like that in the front door?”
Kim Hye Hill asked in return to change the topic smoothly. Unexpectedly, Kim Hye Hill and Yi Ruda
didn’t share much time together, so both of them might not have been too comfortable with each other.
Kim Hye Hill, however, had a great talent when it came to making small talk with everyone.
Then I heard other kids taking off their shoes as their footsteps went towards the living room. I fetched a
sigh of relief. They would never imagine that what Kim Hye Hill meant by a ‘different room’ was just
beside the living room. Feeling nervous, I wriggled my toes. At that moment, something vibrated in my
pocket.
When I took out my phone, the three words, ‘Ban Yeo Ryung,’ flashed on the screen in the dark. I opened
my flip phone.
Babe~ Do u wanna Netflix & Chill in oppa’s rooooomm?
“…?”
I checked and rechecked the phone repeatedly. There were no damages at all. This time, I rubbed my eyes
vigorously upon seeing the text; however, the name of the sender didn’t change. Ban Yeo Ryung, the
three words of her name, was still on it.
Yeo Dan oppa would never send this kind of message to me. Then, did Ban Yeo Ryung dumped bottles
of soju in her system in just a few minutes? While I wondered seriously, the next message arrived.
Babe~ R u upset about oppa theeese dayz? Oppa wee b thurr soon~lol
“What the heck is this…? Why are all the words in her text spelled wrong when she’s a perfect scorer in
language tests?!’ It was then when I rechecked my phone in wonder.
Suddenly, there was a loud noise that began to emanate from the front door. Someone must have pushed
the door wide open. While I had those thoughts in my mind, someone opened the door of this room out of
the blue.
As I felt the bright light of the living room pouring into the room where I was in, the text message from
Ban Yeo Ryung earlier came across my head. I trembled. ‘Oh, god…’ I carefully lifted the corner of the
comforter.
“…”
“Why are you here…?” The girl, who leaned on the door while looking at me with folded arms and cold
smile, was none other than Ban Yeo Ryung.
Not a long time had passed since the end of her performance, so she still wore her costume on stage:
black shorts on the bottom and a short-sleeved red wine blouse on top. Her ‘on fleek’ makeup was also
yet to be removed from her face, which made her beautiful eyes look even more dazzling with silver
glitters.
She bent her eyes more to show me her gorgeous smile. Someone from the living room then spoke while
looking towards our direction.
“Hey, isn’t she… Ban Yeo Ryung?”
“What? How can Ban Yeo Ryung… it’s really her!”

Hearing my those voices, I could tell that they were from Yoon Jung In and another girl. Ban Yeo Ryung
then stepped closer to me with a refreshing grin and grabbed my hand.
She said, “Donnie, are you hiding here because of Yi Ruda? I’ll save you!”
“What?”
‘How can you save me…?’ Before I could ask that, Ban Yeo Ryung was already pulling my hand as she
strode toward the living room.
I then saw the pouring bright light and the kids sitting around in the living room. Ban Yeo Ryung
sometimes would be daunted by how people would get her wrong. Still, overall, she was accustomed to
have others’ attention directed towards her.
She showed a breathtaking and bright smile on her face before speaking to the kids.
“Hi, guys! Let me kidnap Donnie!”
“What?”
“Bye! Have fun!”
Ban Yeo Ryung bid farewell then strode toward the front door while dragging my hand. ‘What’s going
on…’ as I had this thought in mind, I hurriedly put on my shoes. Ban Yeo Ryung then looked me in the
eyes with a grin.
She said, “Donnie, let me serve you a bowl of noodles. I have instant noodles in our room.”
“…”
This was the day I realized that no one could deny her when she had that beautiful smile on her face.
As I walked alongside her, I heard a burst of laughter behind us. Yoon Jung In yelled as if he was about to
die laughing.
“Bahaha! Yi Ruda, you lost Ham Donnie to Ban Yeo Ryung!”
“Have you seen how energetic and driven she is… so cool!”
A girl commented after Yoon Jung In. Suddenly, I felt dizzy again, and my legs started to turn into jelly.

.
Surprisingly, Ban Yeo Ryung’s room was at #301, located precisely on the opposite side of ours. Since
we were at #318, our rooms were at both ends of the hallway.
Before she opened the door to her room, I started having quite hopeful and positive thoughts. ‘Well, Yoon
Jung In or other kids will ask Yi Ruda about her feelings on me, so I’ll share that and be prepared for it.’
That was when I had those thoughts in mind with a chuckle. As the door opened, the figures I saw
stiffened my smiling face.
Holding the round doorknob, the person who looked at me at the purple-tiled entryway was none other
than Kwon Eun Hyung. His smiling green eyes seemed to be fixed on me. My cheeks started to sting.
‘What the…’ I glanced at Ban Yeo Ryung with wonder while asking, ‘Why are they here?’ Instead of
Ban Yeo Ryung, the one who answered was Kwon Eun Hyung. He pulled my hand as I stood there,
blanked out.
I asked, “Why are you here?”
“Hmm, just to hang out. Anyway, why don’t you go wash your face first?”
“Huh?”
Eun Hyung gave me a crisp new towel and cleansing foam while pointing at the bathroom. Before I could
ask him about his reasonings, Eun Hyung replied with a soft gaze.
“Go wash your face. You got all kinds of viruses while you were outside.”
“Well, then you guys are still…”
They didn’t seem to find the need to wash their faces, too, though. Eun Hyung smiled at me. As soon as I
saw that handsome grin under his red hair, surprisingly, an enlightening thought passed through my head.
‘Oh, Eun Hyung isn’t smiling at all… If I don’t move my butt to the bathroom and wash my face, then
Eun Hyung will wash me instead,’ with that in mind, I dashed into the bathroom. I could barely hear Ban
Yeo Ryung’s voice from afar.
“Nice job.”
“You’re welcome.”
Kwon Eun Hyung sounded warm and serene as usual. As if they were doing a high five, I heard the sound
of palms hitting each other. Filling both my cupped hands with running water, I started wetting my face
and thought, ‘What the hell is going on?’ I can’t even imagine what ridiculous thing would happen next.
When I wiped my face with a towel and went to the living room, I saw Jooin, who was still wearing the
same jet-black dress pants that he wore earlier, was sitting there. His blushed face and tangled hair looked
as if the aftermath of their dance performance hadn’t left his thoughts yet.
As I tried to smile at him in joy, Jooin, who grinned brightly at me, pulled my wrist to his side instead of
giving me the usual, big bear hug. He then made me sit in front of him and took out a wet tissue. He then
used that to rub my cheek gently but with a hint of force.
“Jooin…?”
When I asked him in wonder, he replied, “Mama, sit still,” with a cute smile, so I just sat there, not doing
anything. Ban Yeo Ryung was not the only person in the world who could stun a person with just a
simple smile.
How long did I stay like that? Eun Hyung told me that he would be cooking some instant noodles, so he
stood at the sink in the corner of the living room. At that moment, Eun Jiho, who was leaning on the
couch apathetically, opened his mouth.
“Eun Hyung, I want eggs.”
To be honest, I almost forgot that Eun Jiho was in the room until then. His eyes looked different than
usual. They were so black that it started to appear like it was that of a dead fish. It also reminded me of
the eyes that he had two years ago, which I saw in the home video at my house.
Our eyes met in the air. His hair glowed like silver glitters under the bright light of the living room.
After a few seconds, Eun Jiho was the first to avoid my gaze. Coincidentally, Eun Hyung looked at him
and flung a question.
“Are you gonna have noodles too? Didn’t you say that you don’t want one?”
Ignoring me from afar, Eun Jiho responded as he fixed his gaze at the TV.
“Only the eggs.”
“I only have noodles.”
It was Yoo Chun Young who replied while leaning against the glass door of the terrace. Just like Eun
Jiho, I also forgot that he was actually with us in the room; however, he didn’t seem to know that I was
here too. He never even looked at me.
I heard Eun Hyung answering with a giggle.
“Why? It will be perfect if someone says he only wants soup.”
“Did you answer?”
Out of nowhere, a cold and low voice echoed after Eun Hyung’s joke. It sounded entirely out of place
among the overall atmosphere.
My eyes fastened onto Jooin, who was busy wiping out my face like an artist, but now, I turned my head
to look at Eun Jiho. As he came into my sight, I was dumbstruck. He threw that question to none other
than me.
Woo Jooin also turned his head. Ban Yeo Ryung, who just finished removing her makeup, sat beside me;
she stared at Eun Jiho with a fresh, babyface-like look.
Unmindful of their gazes, Eun Jiho opened his mouth again in the repressively silent air.
“Did you answer!?”
I frowned my brows a bit. It felt weird. His voice sounded too severe and unrelenting that I thought I was
missing something critical hidden within his question.
I asked, “Answered what? To whom?”
“To Yi Ruda! Did you answer to his love confession?”
“…”
While I became at a loss of words, Eun Jiho twisted his head a little to face me. How long had I hesitated
as I froze on the spot? Was it a few seconds or a few minutes? As I felt the scrutinizing gaze coming from
another direction, I slowly lifted my eyes.
At a distance, Yoo Chun Young, who was leaning on the terrace door, stared at me with his blue eyes as
if he knew that I was here from the beginning. I wavered for a moment then laughed.
I said, “What… You mean, Yi Ruda kissing me on the cheek at the end of our stage play? It wasn’t a
confession or anything.”
“No?”
It was Woo Jooin who asked back this time. He knitted his brows a little, which he seldom did. I smiled
before giving my reply.
“Our stage was over, and everybody was watching us. Ruda would have been just playing around to draw
some attention. The kid is from abroad, so that’s like saying hello to someone among them…”
While I continued rambling, Eun Jiho cut my statement. Resting his chin in his hand, he spoke to me as
he glued his eyes on me.
“Have you ever thought about the possibility that he might like you?”
I furrowed my brow. No one here would believe that Yi Ruda might definitely be the heiress of a mafia
family. That was why she became a female crossdresser and would never like me as a girl. I just shook
my head.
“No, you’re just misunderstanding it.”
“Are you convinced about that answer?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, then.”
Eun Jiho, who turned his head after the short response, showed a sign of outlandish satisfaction on his
lips. It seemed like he was saying, ‘Yeah, that’s you,’ to me. He looked delightful somehow, but I could
hardly figure out if it was a sneer or just one of his everyday smile. Sitting in front of Woo Jooin, I stared
at Eun Jiho for quite a while before disheveling my hair. ‘Is it all over now then?’ I thought.
At that moment, Yoo Chun Young stood up and suddenly walked out to the terrace. Before I could ask
him where he was going, the door closed. The breeze from outside was waving through my hair, but as
the door closed, the breeze ceased with it.
‘Maybe he just wants some fresh air,’ with that thought in mind, I turned my head to look at Jooin.
“But why are you guys here?”
“Just to hang out. Well, other kids are inside the small room too.”
“A-ha.”
They were not the only ones who came here. Other girls would also be in the small room. As I understood
the situation, I sat down again.
Eun Hyung placed the steaming pot on top of a dry towel. He then went to the terrace to call Yoo Chun
Young.
“Chun Young, aren’t you gonna have some noodles?”
I, who was fixing my gaze at the soaked noodles with chopsticks in my hand, turned my head absent-
mindedly to the terrace as I heard the familiar name.
The glass window reflected our images, which made Yoo Chun Young, who sunk in the darkness at the
terrace, look like a hazy afterimage. It looked as though he had seen us, but he just stared outside while
shaking his head.
Eun Hyung heaved a sigh with a smile before slipping a chopstick into Yeo Ryung’s left hand.
“Here.”
“…? I have a chopstick in my right hand, though!?”
“You’re the only one among us who uses both hands.”
“So, I’ll have noodles with both hands?” while asking back, Ban Yeo Ryung laughed as if it were funny.
Looking very excited, Woo Jooin, who was beside her, took another chopstick and said, “I’ll also try
having it with both hands. Let’s see who’s better!”
Eun Jiho, who sat across them, had an expression which indicated that the thoughts in his head were
‘These guys have a mind of a 9-year old…’ while looking at the two. ‘Your mental age is not that high,
though,’ I thought.
He then said to me, “Enjoy the noodles.”
“Geez, others will think that you’re the one who cooked the noodles.”
“I mean, enjoy the noodles and grow bigger.”
“…”
“Grow bigger until you’re as big as a pig.”
Eun Jiho then laughed naughtily while putting some noodles in his paper cup. As I glanced at Yoo Chun
Young while eating the noodles, I noticed that he still didn’t have any intentions of leaving the terrace and
coming over to eat with us.
Our noodles ran out quickly within 10 minutes. The ones that were mostly to be blamed for this
tremendous speed were… I scanned the kids who were sitting around the table while leaning on the
couch. I should credit Ban Yeo Ryung on how we finished the noodles in the blink of an eye. She held the
chopsticks with both hands while boasting, ‘I’ll show you my ambidextrous skills.’ Woo Jooin tried to
follow her lead eagerly despite him being a lefty.
We had a lot of outdoor activities today compared to our activities yesterday; therefore, Ban Yeo Ryung
was already drowsy with exhaustion. Woo Jooin buried himself in the corner of the couch while deeply
asleep. Eun Jiho… I wasn’t sure if he was dozing off or not. As he sank his head on his chest, he seemed
to be sleeping.
With a smile, Eun Hyung told me that he would ask the kids in the small room if they also wanted some
noodles, so I nodded and opened the terrace door.
The breeze outside was quite chilly and cold for a summer night. I felt like my whole body was drenched
in freezing water. Over my thin summer socks, I felt my feet touching the purple tiled floors of the
terrace.
Leaning on the glossy silver balustrade, Yoo Chun Young turned back to look at me. I smiled.
“What are you doing?”
If the other party didn’t talk much, then, strangely, I would become more talkative. This also applied in
the case of Yoo Chun Young and I. Well, I didn’t feel uncomfortable about the silence hanging between
us. However, since Yoo Chun Young was a good listener, I became very talkative every time I was with
him.
Today’s silence was, however, a bit odd. I couldn’t talk further, so that was all I asked and turned back to
close the terrace door.
He remained silent. It didn’t mean that he showed no reactions at all until I stood beside him to lean on
the balustrade. His blue eyes under his beautifully- shaped thin brows and blue-black hair were gazing at
me.
His eyes seemed like they were fluttering with unusual emotions. Having that thought in mind, I looked at
his eyes before dropping my gaze at the spot under the terrace. Below the building, ashy and pungent
smoke ascended and scattered away around us. I thought that this smell must have been coming from the
snack bar right downstairs. ‘It wouldn’t be a student smoking though…”
That was when I had those thoughts in mind. Someone’s fingertip reached my cheek. It felt chilly as if it
captured the blowing breeze just now. As I got surprised, I turned my head to look at his side. At that
moment, his other hand stretched out to hold my cheek and pulled my face toward him.
My eyes widened. The first thing that came into my sight was his long bluish lashes. His cheeks looked
pale because of the light leaking through the terrace. Holding my face with both hands, Yoo Chun Young
kissed my cheek, precisely at the spot where Yi Ruda kissed me earlier.
“…”
His lips touched my cheek for a short time. After a second, he removed his lips from me. Still, he held my
face for quite a while.
I looked at Yoo Chun Young from a breath-taking distance. Maybe it was because I cast my shadow onto
him, but I could hardly see his face. Only his jet-black brows appeared, which looked as if they were a
little distorted.
That very moment was when he opened his lips to speak. Our distance was so close that I felt like he was
talking right through my ear.
“You still have no feelings for me, right?”
His deeply submerged voice rang around my ears before slowly scattering away. I raised my eyes to look
at him. Under his long, black lashes, his dimly-lit, blue eyes were directed at me.
“You wouldn’t be nervous at all… even if I do this to you, right?”
“…”
I didn’t respond but just furrowed my brows a little. His hands were still touching the area around my
ears. I lifted my arms to push his hands away. That was when he released my face away from his touch.
Rubbing my face, I looked at him in confusion. Yoo Chun Young was also staring at me without showing
any emotions in his expression. It made me fall into thought.
‘Not nervous? At all? Do you think that makes sense?’ I quietly stretched my hands and seized him by the
collar. When our eyes met, Yoo Chun Young revealed a dumbfounded look on his face. When I pulled
his collar, his head just gravitated to me. I shook him with all the force I could muster from my hands.
“Not nervous at all? Are you out of your mind?”
“What?”
I grimaced as I continued.
“Dude, you… you can’t just do that to me. You’re such an ass!”
“Wh…at…?”
“Not nervous? Do I look like I’m not nervous at all? Are you kidding me?”
“Hold on…”
Yoo Chun Young paused. When I released him from the firmness of my grip, he coughed before backing
up.
I stared at him for a while then opened the door wide. The sliding door bumped against the wall with a
loud thud.
Waking up due to that loud noise, Woo Jooin turned his drowsy gaze to our side.
“What’s up, mama?”
“I’m gonna go back to my room.”
“Okay. Did something happen?”
“No, not at all.”
I responded, then gently grabbed and released Jooin’s hand on my way to the front door. I swept my
tangled hair back before leaving the room with my shoes only partially worn.
I slowly bit my lips while walking across the hallway that was brightened up by the pouring moonlight.
Perhaps I looked too aggressive because a few kids who were walking past me cleared the way for me.
Forcing my stomps crazily to our room, I suddenly stopped after smelling the pungent smell lingering
around my nose.
The piquant and robust smell was a puff of smoke from a cigarette stick. It had the same terrible odor as
the one I’d smelled when I was on the terrace. ‘Was it the kid who walked pass me by just now?’ With
that thought in mind, I looked back.
Her back, which showed her neat, shoulder-length brown hair, looked identical to mine. ‘How can a girl
smoke that badly? I’ve seen some boys smoke before but never saw any girls do it…’ I furrowed my
eyes.
Maybe she went from a place covered in tobacco smoke or something like that. As I stared at her in
wonder, I realized that her back looked quite familiar. ‘She might be someone I know or Ban Yeo Ryung
knows…’ The girl then turned around to look in this direction.
Before I could avoid her eyes, our eyes had already met. Her light brown pupils also looked the same as
mine. No one could deny that her overall face and features resembled mine quite much.
Gazing at me, she began to crumple her brows. ‘Did she recall a bad memory? I never saw her before,
though…’ As I had that thought in mind, I saw her turning back and going along her way. She opened the
door of a room and stepped into it; that room was none other than #301. It was where I had been until
now and where Ban Yeo Ryung and the Four Heavenly Kings were.
Perhaps I whiffed too much smoke from a cig because I felt a little dizzy. Breathing in deeply, I retook
my step to my room.
For some reason, I felt nauseous as I moved my steps further. When I went back to my room totteringly, I
noticed how very silent it was inside. Kim Hye Hill and a few girls were sitting in the living room. They
grew delighted when I came into their sights.
“Donnie, do you know what we’ve talked about while you weren’t here?”
“Did you know that Ruda was here!? Hey, this is insane!”
I scratched the back of my head in embarrassment before taking my shoes off. As I stepped towards their
direction, I responded while feeling the brightness of our room.
“No, Yi Ruda might have not meant that. Ruda makes even meaningless words sound like captivating and
mysterious.”
“No, you dummy! He speaks like that because it’s you!”
As soon as Lee Mina said that, the pack of snacks in her hand opened with a popping noise. The fish-
shaped chips then burst out everywhere.
Kim Hye Hill laughed out loud. The other girls were casting a few looks at Lee Mina, but they didn’t
hesitate to pick up the chips on the floor and eat it. As I looked at them while enjoying the moment, Lee
Mina continued.
“Oh, anyway, listen to this, Donnie! What Yi Ruda said was…”
“Hey, but it was truly insane. Yoon Jung In kept asking him, ‘Why did you kiss Donnie in the cheek?’
and Yi Ruda just said, ‘She looked cute,’ with a smile.”
“The ‘cute’ that he mentioned isn’t the same as the ones we say to a dog or so. You know what I mean!”
“So lovely that he’s gonna die!”
“So cheesy that I’m gonna die cringing!”
When someone said those words, all of us burst into laughter. I heard them talk while smiling too.
Although they were telling the truth, Yi Ruda would never like me as a girl.
As I kept laughing, I suddenly felt unbearably nauseous. I covered my mouth and ran into the bathroom.
Kim Hye Hill, the only person who was controlling herself from dying out of sheer laughter alone, stood
up and followed me.
I skipped lunch and dinner, so nothing really came out when I vomited. As I puked, Kim Hye Hill rubbed
my back during the whole time. ‘Thanks,’ as I said that while standing up to rinse my mouth, Kim Hye
Hill flung a question.
“Did something happen? Your face doesn’t look good when you entered the room.”
“Oh…” I said while wiping the drops of water around my lips. Kim Hye Hill stared at me. Rolling my
eyeballs for a moment, I opened my mouth at last.
“Um… what happened is…”
“Uh-huh,” Kim Hye Hill nodded. The few drops of water that came from my chin scattered upon my feet.
I continued, “A boy kissed my cheek and asked if I wasn’t nervous at all.”
“What?”
Narrowing my eyes, I wiped my chin with the back of my hand.
“I mean, isn’t it like he was asking me if it hurts after punching my face?”
“Hold on for a sec…”
Kim Hye Hill paused me shortly with a severe-looking expression. While I looked at her without saying
anything, she furrowed her brows as she spoke.
“That seems…”
“Uh-huh.”
Kim Hye Hill fell into thought for a while before she hesitantly continued with a suspicious look on her
face.
“He likes you.”
“No, he likes another girl.”

“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you sure? Aren’t you getting it wrong?”
I scratched my cheek.
“I don’t think so.”
“Yes, you do. You ain’t getting it right.”
“No, it’s something that I couldn’t possibly misunderstand.”
As I affirmed with those words, Kim Hye Hill finally grimaced her tranquil-looking face before asking
me again.
“… What does it mean then?”
“I don’t get it either.”
“Yeah.”
Facing each other as we stood, both of us looked at each other blankly before sighing. Thus, the retreat
ended just like that while leaving a bunch of unanswered questions.
Article 14. The Female Protagonist Has Only One Friend.
There were really those days where it gets tough to get a wink of sleep. That day was when my head was
banging with dizziness as if something smashed it hard, and my body felt as heavy as water-soaked
cotton. My bed felt like it was floating in the waves of a river while I was lying down peacefully during
one of those lazy days I spoke of earlier.
I was going back and forth from a state of sleepiness to an energized status several times. Every dream
wasn’t terrible or brutal; however, they were all related to my memories; recalling them made me a bit
upset. Notably, the last one left a definite impact on my head.
Ban Yeo Ryung and I were sitting on a comfy purple couch, and there were only white walls around us.
There were no people and no decorations. We were the only ones in the space.
Before us was a glass table, and there was a pair of wooden bowls on top of it. It was empty.
Suddenly, I realized that my body was as feeble as that of a child. Once it came across my mind, I
suddenly felt hungry. Even if it was a dream, the hunger I felt was so real.
‘Is there anything I can eat?’ While I glanced around to get some food, I heard the sound of something
pouring in front.
Beside my empty bowl, something like marshmallows showered down to Ban Yeo Ryung’s bowl. Even
after filling the whole container, they still kept pouring over it until it dropped to the sides.
Putting her hands together neatly on her knees like a good child, Ban Yeo Ryung stared at it nonchalantly.
She then opened her lips.
“I don’t need them.”
Her words were unusually explicit. While I looked at her blankly, Ban Yeo Ryung glanced at me before
speaking to the empty space again.
“Please stop.”
“Why?”
Surprisingly, a question flung from out of nowhere. Before answering, Ban Yeo Ryung grew a little
hesitant. Her attitude was, somehow, similar to that of the Ban Yeo Ryung in the real world.
She, at last, responded to the question.
“Gonna hate me.”
“You? By who?”
“Those who don’t have the things I have.”
Ban Yeo Ryung then rolled her eyeballs to look at me. Her moist, dark eyes shone serenely, and that was
the last scene in my dreams.
Narrow sunlight leaked through the window. It was difficult to see the clock in my bed. I tried to get up
but soon felt the heaviness of my body today, so I buried my face in the comforter instead, staying like
that for quite a while.
Thanks to the sound of someone knocking on the front door, I could avoid lazing away for hours. Getting
myself barely out of bed, I roughly swept my tangled hair back before going outside the living room.
The whole place was quiet. When I glanced at the clock in the living room, I finally realized that it was
already 9 in the morning. It was summer, and the sun rose earlier. Today, the sunlight felt weak, so I
thought that it was about 5 in the morning or so. It might have been just a cloudy day, though. I opened
the front door barefoot, and when I saw the people who were standing in front, my jaw dropped.
Since I just got up the bed, I faced them with tangled hair and unwashed face while wearing a paint-
stained, white t-shirt and shorts. Compared to how I looked like that time, Ban Yeo Ryung and Ban Yeo
Dan were wearing layers of clothes.
Yeo Dan oppa was wearing the most decent outfit that I ever saw. He was wearing a jet-black, slim-fit
suit. A deep blue lining was dimly seen through the pocket on his chest. He wore a less saturated, round t-
shirt inside while he had loafers on his feet. Ban Yeo Ryung, who was standing behind him, wore a cream
sleeveless sweater and a white lace skirt.
Holding the doorknob, I was at a loss of words for quite a while. Yeo Dan oppa then broke the ice while
handing me out something.
“It’s 9, so I thought you’re already awake. Here.”
“This is…?”
As I took it from him, I realized that it was a gift-wrapped chocolate box that looked like the ones sold in
hotel bakeries. As I dropped my gaze at the box for a second, I soon grinned brightly.
“Wow, where did you get this?” I asked, raising my head.
“Got it as a gift from my relatives recently,” he replied shortly.
As if it was the end of our conversation, Ban Yeo Dan tried to close the door. “Oh, hold on,” I said while
pressing my hand into the closing door before asking Ban Yeo Ryung.
“But where are you guys going with those outfits? It’s so early in the morning!”
“Oh, our uncle recently remodeled his store. He’s holding an event to celebrate, so we’re going there.”
I then showed that I understood her explanation through my expression in a flash. One of Ban Yeo
Ryung’s relatives was a famed designer, so I knew what was going on.
They would often invite Ban Yeo Ryung and Ban Yeo Dan to those events. I also went there with them
once when I was in middle school. That was when I became Ban Yeo Ryung and Ban Yeo Dan’s sidekick
at that party. After attending just one party, I promised that I would never join them again, although they
had delicious food with fun activities.
Anyway, as I shook the chocolate box to show my gratitude and closed the front door, the silent house
welcomed me again.
With dim eyes, I stared at the TV, and a pile of laundry before walking out to the terrace and opened the
window. The dark clouds reminded me that the rain would be quite heavy today. Scratching my head, I
went back into my room. On the desk, I saw the book, “Don’t Eat the Marshmallow—Yet! The Secret to
Sweet Success,” thrown out somewhere there. I grabbed it and placed it back into the shelf with a grimace
while thinking, ‘So, the dream about Ban Yeo Ryung and I with a bowl with a bunch of marshmallows
was simply because of this book.’
I didn’t want to think about the dream and apply any meaning to it anymore; therefore, I pushed it as
deeply as possible into the shelf. After that, I picked up my phone and opened it. I then saw that I had
received a few messages.
Eun Jiho, Kim Hye Hill, Yoon Jung In, Eun Hyung, Kim Hye Woo… I went through all their messages
hurriedly, but as soon as I recognized whose name I was looking for, I shut my mouth again. It was Yoo
Chun Young, whom I had been searching through the texts.
It had already been two weeks since that happened. During my long weekend break, I didn’t hear
anything from Yoo Chun Young; however, I just accepted that it was just the way he was.
Honestly, Yoo Chun Young and I didn’t keep in touch often. Well, we were still close friends. I felt
comfortable being together and doing fun things with him, although we weren’t talking as much as I
would with most of my close friends. His strangely naïve character always made me smile. He, however,
didn’t have much contact with other people, and our relationship did not differ from others.
Yoo Chun Young and I were now attending different classes; therefore, the fact that both of us would lose
contact for a few days wasn’t a big deal. However, it was a bit weird that I had not heard from him for the
last two weeks.
After kissing my cheek, Yi Ruda still treated me the same as ever. This was why I thought that he was
just playing with me. If Yoo Chun Young also kissed me with the same reason in mind, then he should be
treating me like nothing unusual happened. Unless he had some complicated inner struggles that he
hadn’t told anyone else?
Delving deep into my own thoughts for a while, I flopped down onto the bed. My room grew dark, but I
didn’t want to open the lights. I carefully closed my eyes after staring at the empty chair. I raised both my
hands and slowly covered my face. ‘Why am I doing this?’ I couldn’t let go of this feeling.
When I first fell into this world, I made a few promises to myself that I wrote on the calendar, ‘the day the
web novel began.’
Never interact with these ridiculous people. I had no idea what would happen to me.
Never show my affection toward them. Characters in the novel were capricious beings, and the author had
full authority on what to do with them, so things were unpredictable.
Once I grew attached to them, these promises that I reiterated in my mind shattered in just a snap; this
happened a long time ago. I bit my lip while thinking about it.
Who wouldn’t accept them as friends when those attractive people poured blind affection and attention
towards them? Who could firmly assert for years that he or she would not build a relationship with them
at all? Therefore, I accepted them in my life as friends. At that time, I never imagined that the world
would flip again.
Once I encountered the ruined construct site, heard the recorded voice message which said that the
number doesn’t exist, saw the stranger next door… And when those who became my everyday life turned
into something surreal and noticed that they could disappear from me at any time, I felt terrified to death.
They, however, became my friends anyway. I laughed out loud a bit while thinking about this. If I told
them, ‘You guys will disappear from me one day, so I won’t accept you all as my friends,’ then how
hilariously would they react? How much contempt would they give me? Therefore, I couldn’t say
anything but continued our relationship while ignoring the growing wave of anxiety within me.
Ever since that incident, during my senior year in middle school, I promised something to myself again. It
was a little different this time.
Never love someone.
Honestly, each of the Four Heavenly Kings was, though it might sound very odd, truly attractive and
incredible.
Why would those people who were smart, rich, good fighters, and top rankers in their school—regardless
of their recreational lifestyles—appear as male protagonists in romance novels? Four of those people
existed around me, and how could I not have a crush on them?
However, I promised something to myself, ‘No matter what happens, never fall in love with those four.’
This was what I pledged to myself in my senior year in middle school. Besides, they had Ban Yeo Ryung
beside them.
Looking at them from aside, I concluded, ‘Oh, I’m fortunate to know that everything here is just a novel.
Unlike others, I could avoid chasing an impossible love because their appearances captivated me. How
lucky was I, then?’ With that thought in mind, I heaved a sigh of relief.
‘However, thinking about it now…’ I slowly dropped my hands that were covering my eyes. ‘Well, I’m
not sure, but was I really fortunate?’
Above my head, the antique clock I got from Woo Jooin that looked like a relic from some long-lost
dynasty era sent out a few ticking sounds. In contrast to the growing quietness outside, different voices
burst out loud within me to the point that I’d felt dazed and confused. I buried my face in my knees while
thinking, ‘Is it really a fortunate thing? I wish I knew nothing like the rest of them…’
‘No matter how much I try, I will never get a piece of sincerity from them as long as Ban Yeo Ryung is
beside them. If I wasn’t aware of this, then shouldn’t I feel elated now? If I hadn’t known that there
wasn’t even a chance…’ I thought.
From the moment I woke up… no, since yesterday… and the day before yesterday… If possible, I wanted
to deny the fact that I had been thinking about Yoo Chun Young for a long time.
I was the only person who knew that it was impossible between us. Still, I was about to start something
absurd now. My eyes stung.
Without any words, I raised my hand to rub my stinging eyes. My phone then vibrated. I opened my eyes
and stretched out my hand to pick up the phone. My vision then grew a bit blurry.
‘Is it Yoo Chun Young?’ I thought, but no, it wasn’t.
Sent by: Dam Eun
Heyyy
‘Dam Eun? She is…’ My eyes widened while thinking, ‘What’s up with her?’ She was a friend who
moved to a different elementary school in Gwangju. Yes, she was the girl whom I confided back then
about my thoughts on transferring to another school. Yoo Chun Young heard me when I said those words
and nearly killed me.
She didn’t message people that much but preferred phone calls to solve things, so it had been a long time
since I last saw a text from her. ‘Is there something going on with her?’ I wondered but hurriedly texted
her back.
To: Dam Eun
Huhhhhh?
Her response arrived soon.
Sent by: Dam Eun
Oh, god lololololololol what a greeting girl
To: Dam Eun
You miss me want to see me huh?
Sent by: Dam Eun
Shut up I’ll miss you forever

Geez, I looked at my phone blankly before rolling over my bed while laughing, ‘Oh, come on!’ I quickly
typed my message.
To: Dam Eun
When did I ever say that you’ll never see me lololol
Sent by: Dam Eun
LOLOLOLOLOL
To: Dam Eun
Oh, you’re fluttering my heart lolololol
Sending that text, I lied on my stomach. Soon, the phone vibrated again.
This time it was a phone call. As soon as I opened my flip phone, Dam Eun spoke in her uniquely abrupt
voice. No, that’s not quite right. It seemed that she’s only using that way of talking to me.
“Hey.”
“Uh-huh,” restraining my laugh, I replied shortly.
She didn’t change a bit, but her voice had a bit of seriousness in it too. Then, something came across my
mind.
We mostly had phone calls when our exams were over or during the holiday seasons, such as Christmas,
New Year, etc. Other than these days, we seldom talked on the phone. We were busy studying and going
to school, so we gave tacit consent.
However, our mock test period in June was about to come. ‘She will be busy studying, but why did she
call me?’ As soon as I had that thought in mind, Dam Eun flung a question.
“Hey, when did you get up?”
“Me? Just now.”
“Did you see the web?”
“No, why? Did something happen?”

“Your friend is on top trending searches… this ain’t why I called you, though.”
Her words made me get up from bed slowly with a grimace. ‘What’s so special about being on top
trending searches, anyway?’ I had been dumbstruck a long time ago when I opened my computer and
found that Yoo Chun Young’s name on top of the trending list. Thus, seeing him there again was nothing
special to me anymore.
Putting the phone between my head and my shoulder, I sat down in my chair and opened the computer.
“My friend, who? Maybe, it’s Eun Jiho or Yoo Chun Young.”
“Yeah, it’s Yoo Chun Young.”
‘What a prompt response! Hmm…’ I fell into thought while slightly nodding. When he was on the most
searched words on the portal before, he came out to the masses that he’s the heir of the Balhae Group.
‘Then what could they be talking about them this time…?’ As I had that thought in mind, Dam Eun
responded in a flash, which made me choke while coughing.

.
‘You know, Lee Nara, right? The actress in the ‘Blue Flame’ and ‘To the Gorgeous Sky.’ Anyway, in her
recent review, she replied to the question about her most ideal type as, ‘A guy who’s closest to the model
Yoo Chun Young.’
“What?”
‘It’s model Yoo Chun… instead of just saying that, why did she have to say that her type was someone
who’s closest to model Yoo Chun Young?’ Anyway, although I didn’t remember the names of actors and
actresses when watching TV dramas, ‘Lee Nara’ was clearly inside my head. A renowned actress herself,
she always took the leading roles in many popular shows.
‘Geez, that famous woman referred to Yoo Chun Young? Because of this, he would be even busier now.
Would it be almost impossible to see his face from now?’ With that thought in mind, I grew a little
nervous.
I, however, felt surprised that I was feeling anxious about it. I then hit my head. Scowling at the monitor
with tearful eyes, I thought, ‘What’s wrong with me? Why was I anxious?!’
The reason why I couldn’t first reach Yoo Chun Young out was that I was afraid of interrupting him
while he was sleeping since I was aware of his weird lifestyle. He was so bad at using electronics that he
would turn off his phone in the theaters or in school instead of putting it into silent mode. I even taught
him how to do it, but he still forgot eventually.
‘At home, he would open his phone to receive calls for the shoot. If I send him a message while he’s
asleep, then the sound of it might wake him up, which would ruin his schedule and so on… Gosh!’ I
rubbed my head. ‘It’s hard to reach him out and even harder to see his face, but if he becomes busier than
now…’ thinking that way, I opened the web and checked the trending searches on the portal.
What Dam Eun said was true. The most searched words right now on the portal were, none other than,
‘Lee Nara & Yoo Chun.’ With both of their names, especially the name of a man and a woman together,
on the trending searches, I knew then that this was bad. It meant that it involved something about love
scandal or ideal types.
As I clicked the keyword of their names and scrolled down, there I saw a few articles that said, ‘Lee Nara
of [Blue Fame] Reveals Her Ideal Type of Guy… Model Yoo Chun?’ ‘Song Ji Hun Didn’t Even Know
About Her Ideal Type of Guy… [Photo: Song Ji Hun’s Confused Smile]’
Song Ji Hun was Lee Nara’s partner in the recent TV drama. He was also a well-known actor, but
compared to her, he was still not good enough. Scanning the article, I murmured with my chin on my
hand.
“Well, “Blue Flame” had recently finished, so, oh… maybe it was an interview for that.”
It was indeed an article written on that interview since it had a photo of Song Ji Hun smiling in confusion
at the bottom.
Lee Nara, inside the photo, had very light brown hair and almost golden eyes, which made people gossip
that she was a mixed-blood. Her pure and refreshing smile was indeed breathtaking while it was on TV.
At the bottom of the article, there was a summary of the interview.
‘… Lee Nara answered the question, ‘Between your previous drama “To the Gorgeous Sky” and the
current drama “Blue Flame,” which partner is closer to your ideal type of guy?’ by saying, ‘I like a guy
who is closest to the model Yoo Chun.’ Her unpredictable response surprised everyone…’
Usually, famous actresses at the level of Lee Nara would escape this sort of questions skillfully. When I
read the comments below, half of them were negative comments speaking sarcastically about how she
was targeting the heir of Balhae Group on purpose.
Scrolling down the comments apathetically, I heard a voice coming through my ear.
“Hey, but that’s not why I called you.”
“Huh? Oh, yeah.”
Since I was focusing on the article too much, I completely forgot that I was on the phone. As I responded
in perplexity, Dam Eun spoke to me in a lower voice than earlier.
“So I remembered your friends and just started thinking if you were still close to them. You know, once
we go to high school, we would often lose touch with our friends in middle school.”
“Yeah, true. That happens a lot.”
“But you said that you were doing fine, and do you remember that time when I found their fan pages?”
“Oh, I do,” I replied promptly.
It was nothing strange to know that the Four Heavenly Kings or Ban Yeo Ryung had fan pages. However,
the problem was that there was an increasing number of paparazzi around them.
Eun Jiho’s family attorney came forward to resolve the issue, which eventually closed all of their fan
pages.
I asked, “Did they open another one?”
“No, this time, it’s not a fan page but a hate club, instead”
“What?”
My jaw dropped out of shock. Dam Eun answered back.
“It’s Ban Yeo Ryung haters.”
“Gosh, an anti-fan? Then, do they write swears about Ban Yeo Ryung on that club? What crazy assholes
are they!?”
When we were in middle school, some kids did something like that, but they did not have a large
following. Were they gathering up because they were bored with doing such things on their lonesome?
Someone said that those who were eagerly leaving negative comments about others were just bored and
had nothing to do with their lives. I ultimately agreed to those words.
I closed the article of Lee Nara’s interview then heaved a sigh. When I searched for it on the web, I found
out that there really existed a club against Ban Yeo Ryung. Over the phone, Dam Eun’s whisper-like
voice continued.
“Ban Yeo Ryung’s fan club or fan pages before had thousands of following, but this hate club only had
45 members. It didn’t seem effective to take action with such a small group of people, so I quietly signed
up and tried to post some comments about how miserable they were to do such things. That was when I
intended to withdraw from the club. Although I wasn’t that close to Ban Yeo Ryung in elementary school,
you were her best friend since you were young.”
“Yeah.”
That made sense. Only 45 members were in that anti-café, and nothing was actively posted there, so
reporting them seemed odd for now. While I thought that way, Dam Eun kept on her words.
“So I registered with that thought in mind, but as I browsed some posts there, I’ve realized that something
was strange.”
“Why? What was strange?”
“I think that the one who made this club knows Ban Yeo Ryung in person. How else could someone
know what Ban Yeo Ryung had for lunch or a snack bar? Geez, they were giving out too much
information, so freaky. I don’t know. Let me just tell you my ID and password, so log in and check it out.
Let’s be in touch.”
“Uh… yeah.”
Putting on a sour face, I quickly picked up a pen and paper to write down the login information. When I
hung up the phone, I entered the club, where I found the ID of the owner.
‘ham310… is this person born on March 10th and has ‘Ham’ for the last name?’ Thinking about it, this
person had the same birthday and last name as me. ‘Well, there’s this usual pattern when creating an ID,
although I’ve made mine with something easy to type,’ with that thought in mind, I entered the board.
Half of the posts were written by ham310, and each had an average of 20 comments, which made it clear
that the board was very activated. I then clicked a random post that came into my sight.
Title: Dude, it’s when Ban Yeo Ryung was in middle school
By: ham310
Date: 2007/06/07
Content: Lolololololol this is something insane about her.
When Ban Yeo Ryung was a sophomore in middle school, a very pretty girl was in her upper grade.
She was such a gorgeous and famous sunbae whom everyone in our neighborhood knew.
She was particularly close to the kendo club members in D middle school.
Almost the girl version of Ban Yeo Dan.
I frowned after reading this part. ‘What the… if the girl version of Ban Yeo Dan existed in our middle
school, then everyone in our school would have gone crazy as many times as they could.’ Anyway, I kept
on reading the remaining post while thinking, ‘Why is this person talking like he or she knows about the
things that happened back then?’
Ban Yeo Ryung might have had a quarrel with that pretty sunbae lol. Not sure, but I guess Ban Yeo
Ryung initiated the fight. Maybe she felt so jealous about that sunbae stealing others’ attention from Ban
Yeo Ryung because of her goddess looks?!
After that fight, that pretty sunbae cried, and her friends tried to cool her down, but the worst thing
happened afterward.
She had an ex-boyfriend who broke up with her soon after their 100th day anniversary… but he confessed
his crush on Ban Yeo Ryung when he broke up with that sunbae.
What a coincidence, right? Can you believe that? Isn’t it too obvious?!
‘Jesus Christ…’ as I read the entire post while holding my breath, I couldn’t help but laugh upon seeing
how ridiculous it was. Furrowing my brows, I looked for other posts. Ban Yeo Ryung cut her bangs, wore
a cardigan to school… something like those were there. ‘Hmm…’ Doubts began to rise and replaced the
anger I had until that moment.
I took my hand off the mouse and touched my chin. Many things weighed on my mind.
While talking about the incident in middle school, it sounded like the person knew about those times very
well. Nonetheless, What they were saying wasn’t true at all. Maybe they were someone who went to the
same middle school as Ban Yeo Ryung; however, how could this person attend the same high school as
her? The only students from Ji Jon Middle School who entered So Hyun High School were the Four
Heavenly Kings, Ban Yeo Ryung, and me. Contemplating for quite a while, I finally gathered my senses
after hearing a voice ringing in my ears.
“Hey, did you see that? Isn’t it obviously the same school as yours? That was why I told you. I also
checked a few other posts and thought that it would be someone among her friends. You know, the plastic
ones… you said that there were a few of them around her in middle school too.”
“Yeah,” nodding my head, I listened to Dam Eun’s words with a serious expression.
“Those bitches could also exist in high school. Honestly, the best way to learn about the identity of this
person is to track their IP address and release the identity. Still, you know that I’m not good at those
things… do you know anyone who can do that?”
“Oh… hold on, I think there is. Thanks so much, Dam Eun. If I didn’t know about this, then it would
be…”
Yes, there was a way to figure out who the person was. First, I checked the date of the post about the
incident in middle school; June 7th, it was today.
The mock test season would arrive in less than a week, so the person who was posting such things around
this time must have a lot of free time unless they genuinely hate Ban Yeo Ryung. How could I leave this
person beside her then?
Repeating my words of gratitude to my friend, Dam Eun, a few more times, I hung up the phone, I then
texted Jooin.
To: Son
Son, do you… know how to track IP addresses?
Sent by: Son
Tracking IP address? I know how to do it, but…
Why? What do you need it for?
Geez, Woo Jooin was indeed brilliant. I sighed while thinking, ‘No one should ever have Woo Jooin as
their enemy.’ After a moment of silence, I typed another text.
To: Son
Kind of complicated… can you just come over?
Sent by: Son
OOK
It was a clear response.
I couldn’t see Jooin while I’m here looking like this, so I washed my face and hair. While blow-drying, I
heard someone knocking on the door. ‘Hold on!’ Rechecking my overall look, I found that there was
nothing particularly weird about how I looked. I then went to the front door.
As soon as I opened the door, I smelled something like rain. A wet breeze came through the open door.
Before stepping inside, Jooin put his umbrella beside our apartment wall. Looking at the number of water
drops around him, I could tell that it was drizzling outside. Jooin’s tangled hair made it clear that he
rushed straight from his house to mine.
I, however, frowned when I saw someone unexpected walking inside our house after Jooin. ‘What the…’
That was when I decided to speak.
“Why are you here?”
“Woo Jooin and I were in his house. What else can I do if he’s not there?” Eun Jiho said with a shrug.
I became at a loss of words. Well, what could I say after that? Besides, it was not that strange for Eun Jiho
and I to stay together with us. As I nodded with conviction, he spat out some words while taking off his
shoes.
“Dude, did you see Yoo Chun Young’s name on the trending searches?”
Eun Jiho then slightly pulled his silver brows up naughtily. His words made Jooin pause his steps while
he was walking towards my room and glanced back. There was a hint of seriousness within Jooin’s
golden eyes. I wasn’t sure if he was sending me an alert or implying something else.
I replied shortly, “Um, yeah, but how did Yoo Chun Young know the actress, Lee Nara? Have you heard
anything about it?”
“Do you need to know someone in person to point out that they’re your ideal type?”
“Oh, that makes sense.”
Woo Jooin, who watched me while nodding, suddenly furrowed his brows before turning his head to look
at Eun Jiho. He spoke in a calm and subdued voice, which I seldom hear from him.
“Eun Jiho, stop teasing mama.”
“Dude, how could I be teasing her?”
Regardless of Eun Jiho’s response, Jooin, who turned his head toward me, flinched one of his eyes as if
he felt a bit awkward. He then continued his words, which made my jaw drop.
“Mama, the person that Lee Nara was talking about wasn’t Chun Young.”
“What?”
“It’s Eun Hyung, not Chun Young.”
The closest guy to model Yoo Chun was none other than Eun Hyung, who wasn’t even a celebrity. Since
I could hardly understand it, I grimaced. Eun Jiho, who was behind me, gesturing at the computer.
When I returned to my chair, Jooin came closer to me and tilted his head toward the monitor. While
looking at his glowing white cheeks in front of the bright monitor, I flung a question again.
“How does Eun Hyung know that actress?”
Fixing his gaze at the monitor, Jooin pouted his lips to reply.
“Lee Nara’s real name is Woo Rinara.”
“…”
‘Hold on, so that means…’ as soon as I said those words to myself, Eun Jiho’s clear explanation
followed.
“Do you think it’s common to have an outlandish name followed by the surname, ‘Woo?’ She’s Woo
Jooin’s cousin.”
“Holy cow.”
“Rinara also has a brother, whose name is Woo Rihon. This family, I swear! Them and their meaningful-
sounding names!”
While my eyes widened in silence, Jooin, who was scanning the monitor, added in a flat tone.
“Rinara noona once had Eun Hyung’s food and fell in love with him so much after that. Sometimes, she
would say that she wants to kidnap and marry Eun Hyung when he turns into a legal marrying age.
“Aren’t we soon turning into that age?”
“Well, Eun Hyung isn’t the kind of guy that someone could kidnap easily, though. Oh, do I need to reveal
the identity of ham310?”
“Yeah,” I nodded.
Jooin’s golden eyes, aimed at the monitor the whole time, became a little narrower, so I left him to do his
thing in his lonesome. As I sat beside Eun Jiho, he asked me with a stare.
“Did you get surprised after seeing their names on the trending searches in the morning?”
“Nope.”
“What a pity.”
“Why?”
Sealing his lips tightly with a vague smile, he didn’t respond. As I learned that he wouldn’t tell me
anything, I raised my head to look at the living room.
There were still no lights there. Sitting inside a silent space with only the sounds of mouse clicking, I
heard the faint noise of the raindrops falling on the windows.
While I gazed at the sharp shadows hanging below the rainy windows, Jooin’s voice came into my ears.
“It seems that they’re only using the ID ‘ham310’ for this club. I couldn’t browse anything else from
this.”
“So?”
“I have a cousin who’s an expert on this, so I think it’ll be better to ask her. Let’s do that.”
“Okay.”
Jooin rose from his chair. The faded white light from the monitor waved on his face, leaving a faint
shadow. Watching his face through the dim light, I noticed that Jooin looked different than usual, for he
seemed a little darker and scarier. He then held the desk and murmured, while tilting his head slightly to
the monitor.
“The numbers and the letters trouble my mind.”
“Huh?”
“Those who know mama’s birthday would think that you own this ID.”
Although I didn’t react that loudly, I was, honestly, quite surprised. I also had that thought in mind but
tried to move on while considering that it was just a strange coincidence; however, it was none other than
Woo Jooin, who pointed out that fact.
In my head, Ban Yeo Ryung and Woo Jooin belonged to the same category. When they were together,
their behaviors and actions matched well, and both of them would act so similarly that one might confuse
them as brothers and sisters.
However, just because the actions and tones that they showed outwards were similar, it didn’t mean that
the qualities that laid within them were also the same. This was obvious from what Jooin just said. Ban
Yeo Ryung had a naïve and good outlook towards the people around her; she would never cast doubt on
someone before she became assured. Jooin, however…

.
Sometimes, his different side made me wonder about something else about him. Could there be another
persona, hardly seen from the outside, hidden behind his cute, innocent face?
As I remained silent, Jooin, who looked beside me hesitantly, opened his mouth again. He spoke with a
smile.
“Mama.”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t feel good about Yi Ruda…”
With my eyes wide open, I stayed quiet for a while. Touching his skinny fingers with prominent
knuckles, Jooin dropped his gaze and continued his words.
“Since he is mama’s new friends in your new class and you like him so much, I wanted to remain silent,
but I just can’t help it. Some men in black are chasing him and… based on what I’ve heard from Chun
Young, Ruda seems to be raised in a family with great fighting skills. Well, I’m not sure if he’s raised
from a mafia family or something.”
After that remark, Jooin lifted his eyes to look at me. He still had those outlandishly sharp glares within
his gold eyes. His words continued in his usual peaceful tone.
“I just wanted to say that you could be in danger with her.”
“…”
Ban Yeo Ryung and Woo Jooin differed from this aspect too. I nodded without saying anything.
When Eun Jiho and Jooin left the house, I sat on the computer chair for quite a while. I frowned while
staring at the monitor. The club banner looked simple enough. Aside from their title, which was ‘Ban Yeo
Ryung’s Haters Club,’ there were neither other texts nor photos in it. There were forty-five people, who
gathered and created this club to hurt and offend Ban Yeo Ryung maliciously, and they were all in front
of me. I rested my chin on my palm while sitting still.
The sound of the rain lingered. I sat for a moment before slowly getting up to open the window. The
cloudy cityscape over my rain-dripped window screen made it seem like the rain had sunk the world
beneath the water. After looking at the scenery, I returned to my chair. With my chin resting on my hand,
I looked outside the window before falling into thought.
The calendar where I wrote the words, ‘the day when the web novel began’ unevenly as soon as I entered
middle school in 2004, didn’t exist anymore. There was a big, 2007 calendar on the wall instead. Three
years… yes, three years had already passed since then. It would have been one of my biggest lies if I said
that never once felt jealous of Ban Yeo Ryung for the last three years. I envied her quite a lot.
I was jealous of her and wanted to stay away from her. However, we still became friends in the end. She
was such a sweet and kind person. Not to mention, she’s also a funny girl. No… I wasn’t trying to repeat
those meaningless words in a row.
Wouldn’t we still become friends even if she didn’t have a sweet personality? When a person likes
someone or befriended them, it was no use to ramble on all kinds of reasons why that was the case;
however, that wasn’t what I wanted to say.
Ban Yeo Ryung couldn’t live without me, and I could see that by reading her attitude, words, tone, and
gazes toward me. I was her last bastion. Even after three years, nothing changed at all. Ban Yeo Ryung
would collapse without me. I knew this very well.
I carefully raised my hand to grab around my forehead. Still, the heavy rain rang through my ears.
I felt miserable for Ban Yeo Ryung for considering me as her last sanctuary. She was the target of my
jealousy, but at the same time, the one whom I loathed the most. Meanwhile, both of us became friends. I
had no idea how this happened… and the possibility of such a thing happening.
From that day three years ago, we had been in an amusing relationship. I felt jealous and miserable
because of my friend, Ban Yeo Ryung. How could this be possible?
Jealousy was useless. Even if a fish envied a two-legged human being, it could never walk with two legs
in just a day; therefore, being jealous of someone way out of my league was useless. It was indeed better
not to envy anyone.
Many people, however, coveted Ban Yeo Ryung, who had everything that they didn’t have, for she had
everything they craved. I was the same as them sometimes… The reason why I promised myself to never
fall in love with anyone was that I was afraid of losing control of myself. If I fell in love with one of the
four boys but noticed that Ban Yeo Ryung had caught their eyes instead forever… Then I would die out
of heart burning jealousy.
I was afraid that if I, the last bastion of Ban Yeo Ryung, would turn my back on her, then she would
collapse eventually.
Although we felt like a nobody compared to someone better than us, we were never entitled to curse,
admonish, and gossip about someone just because they’re better than us. Some people, however, behaved
that way unapologetically as if they had the right to hurt people. This was why Ban Yeo Ryung always
had a hard time trusting anyone.
She couldn’t even trust herself because she would always think that it was, in the end, her fault for having
such a negative side in her that made people hate her. Though she tried to hide those thoughts, it was still
visible and apparent, at least, to me, since I knew her for many years.
I felt dizzy. The sound of the rain kept hitting my ears. Heaving a quiet sigh, I opened the desk lamp. The
room shone a little brighter. ‘Let’s just study for the upcoming mock exam. I’ve gone throughs thoughts
and incidents like this before. It’s just that I saw some anti-fan club of Ban Yeo Ryung, and the owner
seemed like a close friend of hers. Those were what confused me for now…’
Moving around my pencil on the desk, I realized that Woo Jooin and Eun Jiho were hanging around his
house, although the upcoming exam was within a week. It was quite unfair.
On rainy days, my body felt particularly stiff. Maybe I dozed off while solving a math problem. The
inked page seemed to have stained my cheek. ‘Uh-oh…’ I sat straight before rubbing my cheek.
A heavy silence prevailed the space. Except for where the desk lamp was, it was dark everywhere. It
seemed that my parents weren’t home yet. Stretching myself with a yawn, my ringtone rang. I then
frowned.
There were two missed calls. One was from Ban Yeo Ryung, and the other that just got disconnected was
from… Yoo Chun Young. As soon as I understood that, my phone rang again. Surprised, I nearly
dropped my phone. I opened my flip phone in a flurry. No word came on the other side of the phone until
I brought it close to my ear.
‘Did he call the wrong number?’ As soon as I opened my mouth, a voice came over from the other side.
“Hey.”
“What’s up?”
I remained silent for a while. Since he was also at a loss of words for a moment, I think he was also
abashed that we spoke at the same time. Holding my phone in anxiety, I later recognized how funny I was
that I leaned on the back of my chair comfortably.
A calm and flat voice, as usual, broke the ice.
“Were you sleeping?”
“Yeah.”
“Wanna go back to sleep?”
“No, I’m about to study.”
‘Why did you call me?’ I tried to ask that but decided to go against it. Instead, I wrapped my knees with
my arms and sat like that for quite a while.
This was our first phone call after 2 weeks, and his voice was so comforting to my ears; therefore, I just
wanted to chit chat rather than asking the purpose behind this call. For now, that was what I longed for on
the phone. Many people knew him in school, and most of them noticed him, so it had been quite a while
since I had last seen his face.
While my eyes were directed on the ceiling, something unexpected came over the other side of the phone.
“I can’t remember… your face.”
“…?”
‘What?’ His sudden remark struck me dumb. We saw each other’s faces almost every day over the last
three years. How could he forget my face just because he hadn’t seen me for two weeks?
‘Is he asking me to topple him or volunteering to apologize first?’ While I seriously considered what his
words meant, Yoo Chun Young continued.
“I’m in front of your apartment.”
I held my breath for a second.
When I opened the door, a cool breeze blew into my house. Outside the window, the drizzling sound of
the rain continued. I grabbed an umbrella before heaving a deep sigh.
My mind still remained blank even until I got on the elevator. The thing I avoided to think came across
my head at once. My head swam. With a moan, I pressed one side of my eye. The elevator was heading
down at a slow pace. I then fell into thought.
Thinking about Yoo Chun Young got me into a daze. His words entering my ears, his lips kissing my
cheek, his face from a breathtaking distance, his long, dark blue brows under his shut eyes, the yellow
lamplight blending on his white cheek… I had these thoughts in my head until the elevator stopped.
When the door opened, I raised my head.
I had no idea what expression I should show him or what to say; however, as soon as I saw his face, a
vibrant smile hung on my lips almost automatically, and, at the same time, something warm spread
around from my chest slowly, running all over my body.
Yoo Chun Young noticed that I was still not leaving the elevator after a while, so he then flung a
question.
“Are you getting off?”
“Yeah, I am.”
When I said that, the elevator door closed. Yoo Chun Young simultaneously pushed in his foot between
the closing door.
With a rattle, the elevator gently opened. I stepped out with a burst of laughter. I then directed my eyes
onto Yoo Chun Young.
His hair grew longer than before since he stopped cut them once his modeling career commenced. Still, it
looked terrific. Nevertheless, his dark blue hair, his round white ears that were sticking out, and his face
didn’t change at all.
He looked like a still life oil painting. His tranquil face reminded me of a vase submerged in the dark and
some dried roses or chrysanthemums. His blue eyes under his dark blue lashes were directed quietly
towards me. When our eyes met, he furrowed his brows to show his confusion.
‘It is really Yoo Chun Young,’ I thought. Yoo Chun Young was there standing in front of me as if the fact
that he avoided me for the last two weeks were all a lie.
‘Perhaps he was busy these days…’ That was what I thought until I saw his face. Although he looked a
bit exhausted, his face was still so wonderful that I felt a wave of surging anger within me. ‘Bastard, you
could have called me, at least, once,’ with that in mind, I beckoned him grumpily.
“Hey.”
“Sup?”
“Here, look at me. You said you had almost forgotten this face. Look at it as many times as you want, as
much as you can.”
I tiptoed intentionally to shove my face into his line of sight. Yoo Chun Young, however, pushed my face
away from him while looking shocked. It was such a violent and inconsiderate gesture.
Geez… while I rubbed my face with my dropped jaw, Yoo Chun Young, who stepped far away, stood
near the apartment entrance while scowling at me. He even held his hand on the doorknob like he was
about to escape as soon as something happened. ‘What the…’ I asked in shock.
“Hey! You said you’re about to forget my face! Why won’t you look as much as you can then?!”
“I can see you from here too,” turning paler than me, Yoo Chun Young replied shortly.
I, who stared at him for quite a while, then cast my glance over his shoulder. The puddled concrete
ground shone brightly through the headlight.
I asked, “It’s raining outside. Where is your umbrella? You didn’t get rained on, did you?”
“My car is out there.”
Yoo Chun Young, at last, responded in an expression that showed that he had recovered his composure. I
took a step forward since he looked a little mean for not approaching me until the end. As soon as I
assumed that action, he spoke to me with a face filled with alarm.
“If you’re gonna shove your face into me again, then just stay there.”
“Why? Didn’t you say you forgot about me? It has been a while, so recharge your memories. What if you
forget me again?”
“Recharge? Are you a metro card or what?”
Although his remark reflected that I had amused him, Yoo Chun Young still looked like he had finally
cooled down. The proof of this was the usual gentle smile he would show me whenever we were together.
Fixing my gaze at him, I quietly shoved my hands in my pocket while thinking, ‘How long has it been
since we last smiled at each other like this?’ I then took another step forward, Yoo Chun Young,
however, spoke in a grimace.
“I told you not to come close.”
Geez, I thought it was okay since he was already smiling like that. I then returned foot back from whence
it came.
Under the glittering light of the apartment lounge, Yoo Chun Young and I stared at each other. The
distance between him as he stood behind the stair landing, and I, who was in front of the elevator, was
about two meters. I furrowed my brow. Honestly, I had no idea why he was acting like this. After all, we
used to sleep on a desk while we were face-to-face with only a few centimeters of a distance between us
during middle school.
The physical distance between two people wasn’t the only way to measure their intimacy, but… I bit my
lip. We hadn’t kept in touch for the last two weeks.
I scowled at him. Yoo Chun Young’s blue eyes that were frowning on me looked as if they had some
different emotions hidden within.
“Do you really not want me to approach you? Are you sure?” I asked.
“…”
“Did you know that we both haven’t even texted each other for the last two weeks? We never reached out
to each other the whole time. I couldn’t even call you because I was afraid I’d wake you up, and I kept
wondering when you’d call me. You told me that you were now in front of my house, so I was very
excited to see you after a long time, but what did you say to welcome me? Don’t come closer? Are you
asking me to keep our distance or something?”
“Ham Donnie,” calling my name, Yoo Chun Young became silent again.
As his silence continued, I lifted my head to look at him. His voice sounded so warm that it eased my
anger a bit. Yoo Chun Young often surprised me with his unexpected sweetness in unforeseen situations.
Frowning, I turned back.
“Never mind. Come back after two weeks when you forget my face again. If you want to look at me from
apart instead, then what else can I do? I want to see you with my own eyes, but if you don’t want me to,
then fine.”
“… Wait, hold on.”
Although his voice was quickening, I still pressed the elevator button. A red light then flashed through the
gray metal plate.
Crossing my arms, I thought, ‘Alright, fine. Let’s see if I would still say hi to you…’ Although I grew
sulky, we had a situation like this before. As best friends usually did, after about two days, we, however,
acted as if nothing had happened between us. While I waited for the elevator to descend while wagging
my foot, I heard the sound of footsteps out of the blue. I turned back to see who it was.
Yoo Chun Young was the one walking toward me. He looked so determined as he approached me that
this made it seem like his hesitant behavior earlier was nothing but a farce. He left behind some traces of
dotted prints of raindrops along the ground as he rushed towards me.
Leaving only about two footsteps apart between us, he stood still before me. We suddenly got so close
that a shadow fell across his face.
I couldn’t remember how long it had been since I had last seen him at such a close distance. ‘Did he grow
taller during those times that we haven’t seen each other?’ I thought. Still, Yoo Chun Young remained
silent. His blue eyes that were gazing at me looked a little anxious. Once I showed a grin, Yoo Chun
Young heaved a sigh.
‘Hehe~’ I stretched out my hand to grab and shake his arm.
“Dude, you should have done this earlier.”
Looking powerless, Yoo Chun Young allowed me to shake his arms before raising his other hand to
sweep his hair back. He sighed once again and spoke with an exhausted face.
“You’re so good at playing hard to get.”
“Nope, I only know how to play with you.”
“…”
“No one ever tries to get me!”
“How proud you are of yourself.”
Yoo Chun Young giggled before patting my head. I waved his arm for quite long before returning it to
him. As I glanced up at him, our eyes met.
I asked, “Did you grow taller?”
“My height?” asking back, Yoo Chun Young quietly dropped his gaze at the ground. His lamplight-shed
jet-black hair twinkled a blue hue.
“Oh, that was what I heard,” he replied.
“How tall are you?”
“I’m 183 centimeters now.”
It was our senior year winter vacation in middle school when he began his modeling career and reached
over 180 centimeters. During those three months, he grew three centimeters.

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Chapter 85: Chapter 85

“Hehehe, I made up with my mom.”

“I think we’d be on time but alright, let’s walk a little faster.”

“Oh, hold on!”

“To be honest… yeah.”

“I heard someone pushed you? A sophomore at our school.”

“What exactly is the rumor all about?”

“Oh, my screen broke at the crosswalk that day, so I picked it up today.”

“I see. Every one was so concerned.”

Yi Ruda glanced at me then kept on writing.

“Hey, you two!”

“Go outside if you want to make out.”

“I don’t want to hear that. Leave the classroom now.”

“Which part is true and false in the rumor?”

“And that’s why your phone is broken?”

“What do you mean by hiding? Hiding what?”

“Um… that is…”

Yi Ruda nodded in understanding. I kept on with a sad face.

“Oh, what should I do? Any good ideas?”

“Hmm, I’m thinking too but I can’t think of anything special…”

“Hold on. I’m still thinking.”

What… was it? While I felt discombobulated, Yi Ruda spoke to me softly.

“Maybe you just received my messages.” She said with a smile.

Unread Messages: 103/400

Sent by: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho

Sent by: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho

“Dude, kids are totally pissed off LOLOLOLOLOL Wow, you!”

Sent by: Kwon Eun Hyung

Sent by: Ban Yeo Ryung

Sent by: Son

Sent by: Son

To: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho

“Hey, do you think I can survive their attacks?”

Sent by: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho

“No way, you’re dead meat. LOLOLOLOL RUNNNN!!!!!!”

To: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho

“But aren’t you mad??”

His reply arrived immediately again.

Sent by: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho

“Yes, pissed off!”

To: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho

“But why are you being so kind? Advising me to RUNNN”

Sent by: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho

Sent by: Eun Ji-goddamn-ho

“Lol Let me enjoy your last frantic attempt”

“Donnie, are you okay?”

Chapter 87: Chapter 87

“There’s a few. Do you have to go right now?”

“Let’s go together. I’m not afraid of getting scolded.”

Yi Ruda beckoned to me as if she felt satisfied with my response.

Sent by: Son

Sent by: Son

Where are you going? lololol

Instead of replying to the text, I yelled to Yi Ruda while increasing my pace.

“Give… give me your hand.”

Sent by: Son

‘Yeah, you said you will kill him.’ I replied to myself.

“I’m not getting it wrong?”

To: Brother Sanny ♡♡♡

Hey bro, things all good? Are they all there?

Sent by: Brother Sanny ♡♡♡

Yup, no worries. Do you believe me??

To: Brother Sanny ♡♡♡