BHB 32

“Taejoo never caused problems like this.”

“Why are you bringing up Taejoo? He’s been different from the start.”

It was the same old routine. After hurling insults and contempt, they would start comparing him to his older brother Lee Taejoo. The gifted child who graduated top of his class from law school, never involved in any scandals or controversies, the proud bloodline of this family.

“Your eyes are insolent from the start. There’s no fear in your eyes when you look at your parents. No respect, nothing at all.”

His father’s eyes were blazing as he stared directly at Lee Taegang, who was kneeling. Even with age, his intensity was no different from that of young people. With personal trainers and therapists coming to the house daily to look after his father and mother’s health, and playing golf overseas, there was no way his fierce demeanor would subside.

“If it looks like there’s going to be a problem, we’ll send you abroad right away.”

His father briefly ordered, hitting Lee Taegang’s head with the English magazine he was reading. His mother continued speaking with a deep sigh, as if annoyed.

“Your homeroom teacher will be changed starting tomorrow.”

It wasn’t particularly surprising news.

“Thanks to you, we’re spending money and just accumulating weaknesses. Do you know what your father does when you act like this?”

“……”

“What if rumors spread that the son of a four-term congressman is going around scratching teachers’ cars?”

“……”

“Do you think we can buy back the image you’ve tarnished with money?”

It was a boring story. These were words he had heard so often since he could remember that they had formed calluses on his ears. He remembered hearing them even when he fought with a classmate in kindergarten. Don’t act recklessly. Behave properly like the son of a distinguished legal professional, like the son of a righteous congressman. But Lee Taegang himself had known since he was old enough to understand. As their parents said, he was different from the start. He couldn’t be ordinarily kind, and there was no trace of righteousness in his personality.

Only after hours of lecturing could Lee Taegang leave his seat. He suddenly noticed blood seeping through the bandage. He repeatedly clenched and unclenched his palm where the bloodstain had appeared, then looked out the window of his room. From his second-floor room, he could see Han Yeowon’s house next door. Of course, he couldn’t see inside, but occasionally he could make out Han Yeowon’s silhouette or hear faint sounds of loud play.

Han Yeowon’s house was fully lit up. From the first floor to the second. Just as Han Yeowon knew Lee Taegang’s parents well, Lee Taegang also knew Han Yeowon’s parents well. Her parents rarely came home, and Han Yeowon would still be hanging out with his crowd. Lee Taegang rested his chin on the windowsill with his bloodstained hand, watching Han Yeowon’s house. He could sense the bustling presence of people.

But when those uninvited guests disappeared, that house would be engulfed in a terrifying silence and stillness as if nothing had ever happened.

“Stupid bastard.”

No matter how much he struggled, they were just ephemeral insects. Han Yeowon was pathetic for craving affection from such losers.

Nevertheless, Lee Taegang didn’t take his eyes off the neighboring house until it went dark. Only after the crowd had left, the lights went out one by one, and he felt the air become frighteningly quiet did Lee Taegang lie down on his bed. By then, the bandage had become messy with seeping bloodstains. He had no intention of changing it.

**

The atmosphere at the breakfast table was miserable. Even without Lee Taegang’s extraordinary actions, breakfast time was generally like this. His father was discussing work-related matters with his aide, while his mother was checking his work on a tablet. His older brother had been living independently for a long time and rarely visited the family home, so his seat was empty.

Lee Taegang calmly continued eating, sipping the bean sprout soup prepared by the housekeeper who had been taking care of the family’s household for a long time. The air was heavy enough to suffocate anyone else, but everyone present was accustomed to this atmosphere. Lee Taegang finished a bowl of rice, got up, and left the house. The driver who always accompanied him for commutes skillfully opened the back door of the car and escorted him.

Seated in the back, Lee Taegang sat by the window, looking at the quiet house next door. The driver, who was always responsible for Lee Taegang’s commutes, didn’t start driving but quietly maintained his position, as if used to this routine.

Lee Taegang leaned back in his seat, keeping his gaze outside the window. He just stared intently at the black iron gate, identical to his own house’s. After about 30 minutes had passed, hurried footsteps could be heard. Soon after, Han Yeowon appeared, running out with his school uniform hastily put on and his bag barely grasped.

It was obvious he would be late if he took the bus to school at this hour. Han Yeowon rushed to school like this two or three times a week without fail. Only then did Lee Taegang tell the driver to start driving. The black sedan carrying Lee Taegang slowly started following Han Yeowon’s hurried steps. The reason he didn’t offer him a ride first was that he had been rejected several times before. He said it was embarrassing to draw attention by getting out of a foreign car in front of the school. Thanks to that, Lee Taegang occasionally stole glances at Han Yeowon’s commute like this. It was amusing to see his rush in the same way every time.

Only after confirming that he had barely managed to get on the bus did the sedan carrying Lee Taegang finally pick up speed. Despite having plenty of money, he diligently used public transportation every time. That’s why Lee Myungchan’s words made even less sense. How could that guy who didn’t even know how to properly spend money be showing off as if he had it all?

Arriving at school earlier than Han Yeowon, Lee Taegang was immediately summoned to the faculty office. It wasn’t the regular faculty office, but the principal’s office. The principal was an old man who had a close relationship with Lee Taegang’s father. Having served as the Minister of Education, the well-connected principal was equally cunning. As if he had heard about yesterday’s incident from Lee Taegang’s parents, he called him in separately and checked on his mood, asking if he was upset. Despite the fact that Lee Taegang was the one who had done wrong, the homeroom teacher was being changed, and the elderly principal was carefully tiptoeing around a mere fifteen-year-old student, smiling vapidly.

Feeling suffocated by the artificial atmosphere, Lee Taegang unbuttoned his shirt collar that was buttoned all the way up. Nothing was functioning normally. It wasn’t right for the principal of a school with high educational authority to be fawning over a fifteen-year-old student, nor for the adults in his family to encourage such behavior.

After roughly concluding his talk with the principal, Lee Taegang entered his classroom feeling tired. However, the atmosphere in the class was noisy. As he naturally turned his gaze towards the source of the commotion, he saw Han Yeowon surrounded by students. Han Yeowon, seemingly embarrassed, was scratching the back of his head and telling off his group who were jeering at him to stop.

Lee Taegang frowned involuntarily at the scene, unable to understand the reason. Lee Myungchan, perhaps thinking this was an expression of displeasure at the noise, whispered as if disgruntled:

“Lim Chaeyeon from the next class got Han Yeowon’s number.”

He didn’t know who Lim Chaeyeon was, but he listened to Lee Myungchan’s words.

“I didn’t think Lim Chaeyeon was like that, but she’s got really low standards.”

“Who’s Lim Chaeyeon?”

“You don’t know Lim Chaeyeon? You know, the piano prodigy. She’s really pretty.”

Lee Myungchan chattered on, revealing his inferiority complex distorted by envy.

“What’s so good about that bastard…”

Lee Myungchan muttered as if he really couldn’t understand, flipping through his workbook.

Lee Taegang turned his head and saw Han Yeowon being bombarded with questions by the group. Her embarrassed and shy appearance was unusual, but an unpleasant feeling crept up his skin.

An unexpected, disgusting discomfort welled up in his chest. He took a deep breath and gripped the pages of his book. Not only the worms, but now a girl? It was a development he hadn’t even considered. Because of this, the English sentences didn’t register in his eyes. His attention was focused solely on the noisy chatter from behind. Amidst the useless words like “Did you get a message?”, “Do you like her?”, “When are you meeting?”, “I’m so jealous”, Han Yeowon’s answer rang out clearly.

“…I’m not really thinking about dating right now.”

At this distinctly audible voice, Lee Taegang’s grip on the book pages loosened a bit. But the following words made him unconsciously clench his jaw.

“But… maybe I’ll meet him once.”

It was just a voice tinged with a bit of curiosity, but Lee Taegang’s nerves were on edge. A dirty sensation, as if every brain cell was reacting sensitively, flowed down his spine.

Lee Taegang looked down at the bandage he still hadn’t changed and gritted his molars in misery. He couldn’t understand why he felt so miserable, but a vague anger arose. Lee Taegang abruptly left his seat and headed towards the bathroom. Just as he was walking quickly, intending to wash his face with cold water, “Lee Taegang!”

Han Yeowon’s distinctly clear voice caught his ankle. His steps stopped, but he couldn’t easily turn around.

“Hey, are we on for my place today?”

Lee Taegang’s eyes twitched at the unexpected question.

“You couldn’t come yesterday, right? Want to come today? I’ll make you ramen.”

Han Yeowon was innocent. Lee Taegang clenched his fist with his bandaged hand at his excited, smiling question.

“…No.”