BHB 35

When Taegang finally returned to the classroom much later, he bowed politely to the subject teacher in the middle of the lesson before taking his seat. Myungchan, sitting next to him, glanced at Taegang and his eyes widened. There was a scab on the corner of his mouth, and a red bruise around his eye. As if he had been in a fight somewhere.

“T-Taegang. Did something happen?”

When Myungchan whispered quietly so as not to disturb the class, Taegang opened his textbook without answering. Then he started to focus on the lesson as if nothing had happened. Myungchan looked at Taegang with a dumbfounded expression before averting his gaze.

Although he withdrew his attention, thinking Taegang disliked interference, Myungchan couldn’t easily shake off his curiosity as Taegang was his main interest these days. Taegang was known as the most diligent model student in the school. He was always the top student, came from a good family, and his good looks made him stand out everywhere.

Myungchan’s mother always urged him to be close friends with Taegang. He had wanted to be friends with Taegang even before his mother said so. After all, associating with him could only be beneficial. However, becoming Taegang’s friend was never easy.

Despite securing the seat next to him by asking the teacher, talking to him every day, and offering gifts that weren’t quite bribes, Taegang’s interests lay elsewhere. Because he observed Taegang frequently, Myungchan knew well enough where those interests were directed.

“Who wants to come solve this problem?”

The teacher asked after writing a factorization problem on the blackboard, but no one volunteered. The teacher scanned the classroom as if choosing prey.

“No one? Then… the one on the far right.”

The teacher’s eyes fell on Han Yeowon, who was sleeping soundly with his head down. The class president in the front row woke Yeowon, who was still sleeping despite the teacher’s call. As the president urgently shook Yeowon’s arm, he got up with a drowsy face, feeling the attention focused on him, and looked around to assess the situation.

“You were sleeping so soundly, Yeowon.”

Yeowon was already famous among the teachers. As an unfaithful student with not the slightest interest in studying. But despite this, thanks to his mild-mannered and flexible personality, even the teachers couldn’t entirely dislike him.

Yeowon stood up abruptly and wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth awkwardly.

“Come and try to solve it.”

“…I’m sorry.”

Yeowon apologized as if he couldn’t possibly do that. His friends around him giggled.

“At least try to solve it.”

“…Would you rather I stand outside with my hands up?”

“Sigh, how can you sleep when you’re like this?”

The teacher scolded but still laughed. Yeowon’s serious question was quite funny, and laughter erupted again from here and there.

Watching this, Myungchan’s face twitched as if displeased. It seemed like that thug bastard was ruining the class atmosphere. It was truly strange. He couldn’t understand why a delinquent who did nothing but cause trouble and make noise was loved by the teachers and liked by the classmates. Moreover―.

“……”

Myungchan glanced at Taegang, who was smiling slightly. With his face resting on his hand, he was smiling almost imperceptibly. Myungchan looked back and forth between Taegang and the awkwardly standing Yeowon, then twisted his face in displeasure and nervously chewed on his pen.

As soon as the class ended, Myungchan left the classroom with steps full of resentment. He had no place to vent his anger, so he just stormed out of his seat, but all he could do was go to the bathroom. As he headed towards the end of the corridor with a sulky face, the atmosphere in the hallway was unusual. Boys and girls alike were gathered around the men’s bathroom, and everyone was murmuring as if something had happened. Myungchan quickly approached and asked a student from another class he knew:

“What’s going on? Why is everyone gathered here?”

“I’m not sure… but they say someone’s passed out.”

“Who?”

“Don’t know. The teachers went inside and kicked out all the students who were in the bathroom.”

Just as he heard this, the PE teacher urgently came out carrying someone on his back. It was just a fleeting moment, but Myungchan clearly saw with his bespectacled eyes. A swollen face, either from being beaten or hitting something, and a school uniform splattered with blood. He didn’t know who it was, but it was a gruesome sight. As Myungchan turned back towards the classroom, shuddering at the unfortunate incident, he suddenly remembered Taegang, who had arrived late to class with injuries. Even his right hand holding the mechanical pencil had been covered in thick scratches.

“…No way.”

However, Myungchan couldn’t even imagine the Taegang he knew doing such a thing. He returned to the classroom with a bewildered face and quietly observed Taegang, who was still looking at his workbook during break time. The more he looked, the more incomprehensible Taegang seemed. Suddenly, Taegang turned his head to look at the back of the classroom. At the end of his gaze was Han Yeowon, who seemed to have fully woken up and was now excitedly chatting in a noisy group.

Three seconds. For that brief moment, Taegang’s hand tensed. He gripped his plastic mechanical pencil so tightly it shook slightly, then immediately focused back on solving problems as if nothing had happened.

“What is going on…”

Han Yeowon was one thing, but Taegang’s very existence was puzzling. Myungchan shuddered slightly, his skin crawling from the gruesome scene he had just witnessed. Even while thinking it couldn’t be possible, he wondered: what if the culprit was Taegang? Myungchan tapped his pen repeatedly as he considered this possibility.

Who would have thought that Taegang, a model student with good grades, would also be good at fighting? With such a gentle face. These were qualities that boys might envy. Especially Myungchan, who had a secret inferiority complex bordering on envy towards students who were good at sports or had good physiques, as he was physically weak from being cooped up studying all the time.

He wanted to be friends. Despite being rejected multiple times, Myungchan cast envious glances at Taegang sitting next to him. But Taegang never once looked his way. Although this was disappointing, Myungchan had a more persistent personality than one might expect. There was a reason he always ranked in the top 5 of the school despite not being particularly smart. It was because of his tendency to obsess over things that interested him.

“Um, Taegang.”

Just as Myungchan was about to casually start a conversation…

“Have you ever dated a girl?”

Taegang suddenly asked first.

“A girl? A girlfriend?”

“Yeah.”

This was the first time Taegang had initiated a conversation, so Myungchan was momentarily flustered. He stammered for a moment, then, sensing an opportunity, quickly replied:

“Uh… in, in elementary school?”

“What do you do when you date?”

“What, what do you mean?”

“I’m asking what you do when you date a girl.”

Unable to understand the intent behind the emotionless question, Myungchan still looked perplexed and hesitated.

“Well, I’m not sure. I haven’t dated much myself…”

“You don’t know?”

“No? I do know.”

When he answered confidently, Taegang nodded as if to say “go on.”

“First… you go on dates…”

Myungchan answered while pondering.

“And do things like kissing.”

Myungchan looked quite embarrassed to be talking about such things in front of Taegang.

“And these days… they say people also do… that.”

It was a topic that adolescent boys had all discussed at least once with their friends. At an age where they went crazy just seeing a girl, Myungchan too had these conversations once or twice when gathering with his cram school friends.

“Why? Do you like someone?”

Myungchan asked naturally. He had been hesitating to start a conversation and get closer, but didn’t have a topic. Thinking this was a good opportunity, Myungchan casually asked:

“Have you done it?”

But Taegang asked back without answering.

“Huh? Me?”

“……”

“Ah, no… I haven’t…”

Myungchan rubbed the back of his neck, looking a bit hurt in his pride. He hadn’t expected to be put on the spot like this.

“Do you want to?”

“…Of course… right? Isn’t that how all guys are?”

It was clear that if you looked into the brain structure of most middle and high school boys, probably 80% would be thinking about that. Even Myungchan, who was so focused on grades, was crazy about this topic.

“You’re not?”

“……”

“I heard Song Youngmin has already done it…”

As Taegang frowned as if to ask who that was, Myungchan nodded slightly towards the back of the classroom.

“You know, the guy who’s close with Han Yeowon.”

“……”

“Han Yeowon has probably done it too, right? They’re always together.”

“……”

“Besides, he’s clearly a delinquent…”

Myungchan knew that Taegang had a strange interest in Han Yeowon, so he deliberately brought up Yeowon. He thought it might make the conversation flow more smoothly.

“But why are you suddenly asking about this?”

“……”

“Did you really start liking someone? Who? Which class?”

Taegang quietly stared into space with his dark eyes as if thinking, then briefly answered.

“Lim Chaeyeon.”