BHB 31

“What? Hey, you to your friend…”

“I did it, so why are you pretending you did?”

“…Did you really scratch the homeroom teacher’s car?”

Instead of answering, Lee Taegang responded with a brazen face. Then he bowed to the trembling teacher and pulled Han Yeowon out. If Lee Taegang’s guess was right, the foreign car was probably a gift from his mother. The watch the teacher wore was clearly also something he had greatly benefited from thanks to his mother.

The reason a newly appointed teacher could already afford a foreign car and be covered in luxury goods was obvious. It would be stupid not to know, having seen the phenomenon of homeroom teachers becoming extravagant and wealthy for several years now. Among the students they were in charge of, only his parents had such influence, and using people to control their child was part of their habit.

“Hey, is it okay to leave like this?”

Han Yeowon asked in confusion, limping. Although he looked like he couldn’t grasp the situation, Lee Taegang had no intention of explaining and changed the subject.

“How many times were you hit?”

“What?”

“I asked how many times you were hit.”

“…I don’t know. I lost count. It hurt like hell.”

Han Yeowon kept rubbing his buttocks and groaning.

“And yet you interfered.”

“What else could I do? You were bleeding profusely.”

“You’re making a fuss over just a cut.”

“Did you go to the nurse’s office?”

To Han Yeowon’s repeated question, Lee Taegang silently fidgeted with his bandaged hand.

“Good. Hey, you should treat wounds immediately. They’ll leave scars.”

“……”

“We can’t have scars on those pretty hands of yours.”

Han Yeowon lightly laughed and put his arm around Lee Taegang’s shoulders.

One of the reasons Lee Taegang wasn’t dismissed as just a bookworm was his unusually large build and height for his age, and Han Yeowon was the only one with a similar stature. Their shoulders touched as they walked side by side, and Han Yeowon’s curious voice came close.

“But did you really scratch the teacher’s car?”

Han Yeowon asked with a face full of curiosity, as if he still couldn’t believe it.

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

“Because he was acting as a spy.”

“What do you mean?”

“He was in cahoots with my mother.”

“What does ‘in cahoots’ mean?”

Being from a time when his knowledge was close to zero, Han Yeowon asked back with a stupid face. Lee Taegang sighed briefly and continued.

“My mother knew about my midterm exam results.”

“…And why is that a problem?”

“What?”

“You ranked 4th in the school this time, right? That’s really good.”

“…I was 1st last time.”

“Don’t tell me you got scolded for that?”

“Well, I did do worse.”

“…Wow. I’ll never understand the world of model students.”

Han Yeowon shook his head as if disgusted and casually scratched his nose.

“I don’t even know my rank…”

As he clicked his tongue and looked embarrassed, Lee Taegang suddenly said:

“I’m coming to your house today.”

“Huh? Suddenly?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

At the sudden question, Lee Taegang unknowingly twisted his face. Did he need a reason? Just because they didn’t hang out as much as before, there was no reason he couldn’t go to Han Yeowon’s house where other guys were allowed to visit.

“…To eat ramen.”

It was a ridiculous reason, but it was something they always did. The things they did at Han Yeowon’s house were all pointless activities. Eating instant food, reading comics, playing games, or just lying around. He had never thought these things were enjoyable, but they weren’t unpleasant either. He didn’t dislike Han Yeowon who got along with him so casually.

Han Yeowon awkwardly smiled and rubbed his nose at Lee Taegang’s stiff response.

“What’s going on? You haven’t been hanging out with me much lately.”

Because you hang out with those low-class losers.

Lee Taegang swallowed hard, suppressing the words that were about to burst out.

“But I can’t today.”

“…Why?”

“Those guys I play basketball with are coming over. We’re gonna play games at my place. No, wait, do you want to come too? Let’s hang out together.”

Han Yeowon, seemingly intent on connecting him with that group, laughed excitedly as if he had a brilliant idea and wrapped his arm around his shoulder even tighter. He had no intention of being on the same level as those guys. Besides, he wasn’t just going there to play games anyway.

“No thanks.”

As Han Yeowon pouted his lips in disappointment at his cold rejection, they had already arrived at the classroom.

“…Well, I guess it can’t be helped then.”

Han Yeowon entered the classroom, leaving behind just a simple regret without any lingering attachment. He quickly sat in his seat after politely apologizing to the teacher for interrupting the class. As soon as Han Yeowon appeared, the leeches started whispering and showing interest in his as if they had been waiting. Han Yeowon was always at the center. The center among useless leeches. A foolish kid who takes care of and embraces all those leeches.

***

At the middle school entrance ceremony, Lee Taegang received an award on stage as the representative of new students and took the oath. He was already somewhat famous among students due to his well-known parents, but after the entrance ceremony, he became even more of a celebrity. Han Yeowon was simply delighted to see Lee Taegang, who had entered as the top student at this school known for having the highest rate of students advancing to foreign language high schools and science high schools in the district. Being the top entrant at such a prestigious school was almost synonymous with being a genius among peers.

Parents in good school districts start gifted education for their children as early as kindergarten. While there were students like Lee Taegang who showed promise from the start, there were also those for whom it was impossible no matter how hard they tried. This made Lee Taegang an object of envy among parents as well. They envied him, wishing their own children could be like him. This envy was a necessity for Lee Taegang’s parents, something that was expected.

But that wasn’t the only reason Lee Taegang devoted himself so intensely to his studies. While he was naturally gifted, there was also someone he particularly liked.

“You’re the only one among my friends who’s good at studying, you know?”

On the day he stood on the stage at the entrance ceremony, Han Yeowon kept smiling and getting excited. He stuck close to Lee Taegang, happy as if it were his own achievement.

“To be honest, I’m not that interested in studying, but seeing you get awards for being first place looks so cool, you know?”

Han Yeowon chattered away, sitting in front of him. Lee Taegang didn’t actively respond, but he quietly listened to his excited words and found himself smiling slightly without realizing it.

“The other kids are so jealous that I’m friends with you.”

Lee Taegang found such childish praise a bit unfamiliar. In his family, getting high grades was expected, and even when he did well, what he received wasn’t praise but even stricter standards. He had to do better than just doing well, had to become an idol for his peers, had to be a source of pride for his extraordinary parents. Of course, many kids he didn’t know had envied him before, but no one had ever been genuinely happy for him as if it were their own achievement or praised him without any ulterior motives.

“Are you going to Seoul National University later? Or maybe study abroad?”

“Don’t exaggerate.”

Lee Taegang cut his off sharply but smiled slightly.

“Who knows. You better not pretend you don’t know me when you become famous later.”

“Stop saying weird things.”

“Hey, I’m just happy, okay? It’s nice to have a friend who’s so good at studying.”

“That’s childish.”

“To be honest, I sometimes thought you were a bit of a nerd because you study so much, but I guess my thoughts change as I get older.”

“Students should study. You should do some studying too. Stop going to PC rooms all the time.”

“Aw, why? You should still come to PC rooms with me sometimes, you know?”

“We’ll see.”

Lee Taegang responded to each of Han Yeowon’s comments, even while chiding her. It was strange. Boring things became interesting when Han Yeowon was involved. Even things he thought were childish, he found himself doing along with his without realizing it. Just because of Han Yeowon’s small gestures of praise, calling him smart, because of his trivial words, he found himself becoming desperate without knowing why. He would dwell on casual remarks that flowed like waves, turning them over in his mind. Because of that kid, Lee Taegang would do things he didn’t even understand. He only started to realize this fact recently.

Since he began to realize these things, Lee Taegang would sometimes act out. He would play the role of the obedient son as he always had, but occasionally he would act on instinct. The reason for scratching the homeroom teacher’s car was the same. It wasn’t just because he hated the teacher. Maybe he just wanted to do something to attract attention. It might have been a stupid act to imprint his existence, which was gradually being forgotten by Han Yeowon.

Before his absurd thoughts could finish, SLAP! With a crisp sound of friction, Lee Taegang’s head turned. As always, it hurt particularly more than usual when hit by a hand wearing a diamond ring. Was it because of the weight? Lee Taegang genuinely wondered.

“You’re really something else.”

His mother was generally in charge of discipline. His father would appear when the discipline from his mother’s hands was felt to be insufficient. Like now.

Born into a family of judges for generations, having served as a senior judge in the Supreme Court and even as the Minister of Justice, he was now a political heavyweight serving his fourth term as a member of the National Assembly for Seoul. People were really funny. How could they elect someone three times, believing that a man who had only followed an elite course, with a wife who was the CEO of a major law firm, could understand the hearts of ordinary people? Even he, his son who was only fifteen, knew this fact that millions of citizens seemed to be unaware of.

“You’re already causing such trouble?”

His father, seated at the head of the table, looked Lee Taegang up and down with contemptuous eyes.