GBH 7

The head teacher noticed Song Yi-heon’s frown and cleared his throat, discreetly hiding the ruler behind his back, then pressed on with his questioning.

“Where’s your name tag? What grade and class are you?”

This also upset Kim Deuk-pal. The uniform Song Yi-heon used to wear had become tattered due to bullying, requiring a new purchase. Excitedly returning home, he took out the new uniform and discovered that the name tag read ‘Kim Deuk-pal.’

It made sense why the uniform shop owner had double-checked the name. After living as Kim Deuk-pal for 47 years, he was well aware of how people reacted to his name. Even among peers, it was an unusual name, but these days among teenagers, it was treated as fodder for ridicule. Though it hurt to tear the name tag with a cutter knife and pull out the sewing thread, he resolved not to make mistakes tomorrow when he returned to school. Song Yi-heon, Song Yi-heon. His name is Song Yi-heon, not Kim Deuk-pal.

When Song Yi-heon’s spirit returned, the maintained distance, consciously preserved for just a single The deliberate distance Kim Deuk-pal had maintained, intending to return this body to Song Yi-heon’s soul when it returned, began to crack, all because of something as small and trivial as a name tag. It was such a minor change that he hadn’t even realized it.

“I’m sorry, I’ll put it on right after school!”

Kim Deuk-pal bowed deeply and shouted as if serving a boss. Getting caught on the first day of school wasn’t exactly a great start, but how could a student dare to step on the shadow of his teacher? In Kim Deuk-pal’s upbringing, teachers were “learned people” who everyone in the village had to respect greatly.

Perhaps the head teacher was impressed by the student’s genuine reflection, as he cleared his throat again.

“Ahem, ahem. Did you eat a steamed train for breakfast? Your voice is so confident.”

The head teacher, who had spent 30 years leading efforts to reform delinquent youths, had a soft spot for students with a sincere sense of respect. But he wasn’t about to let the student go without a bit of a lecture, so he continued with his hands clasped behind his back.

“Do you think I stopped you just for the name tag on the first day of school? What kind of kid rides all the way up to the school gate in a car when they’re not even a teacher? Huh? What if another student got hurt? Are you thinking, or not?”

“I will make sure such incidents don’t happen again.”

Kim Deuk-pal lowered his head, reminiscent of his days in the dark alleys of the gang. He wasn’t defying the words of a boss or a teacher. There was no end to the limits when the higher-ups took charge. From experience, admitting mistakes quickly and reflecting on them was the best strategy.

It seemed that the tactics he learned in the organization worked in school too, as the head teacher stopped scolding and nodded his chin.

“That’s fine. I won’t give you a demerit, so stand there for about ten minutes and then go up to the classroom. Just tell them I said not to write down your name.”

“Thank you!”

The spot the head teacher pointed to was where the students from the disciplinary committee were taking down the names, grades, and classes of the students who had been caught. Even though it was the first day of the semester and they weren’t catching names with name tags, the students who lined up were notably distinctive with their unusual dyed hair, noisy piercings, and uniform alterations far beyond school regulations.

Kim Deuk-pal stood slightly away from the line, holding onto his bag strap and waiting for time to pass by blankly. At the end of the line, a male student with bleached yellow hair called out to Kim Deuk-pal.

“You idiot, aren’t you supposed to be in line over there? Stand here.”

He gestured over his shoulder. Kim Deuk-pal looked at the impudent newcomer. With bleached yellow hair, it was clear why he stood out—a messy head with bad hair and a loose mouth, an unshaven stubble with a slightly greenish chin. He looked like a fledgling chick eager to join the organization.

“Can’t you hear me talking to you?”

When Kim Deuk-pal just stared at him, the bleached-hair kid seemed to take it as an insult and turned his body to glare at him. But Kim Deuk-pal wasn’t the type to back down. The boy’s expression grew even fiercer as their eyes met.

“Hey! You on the motorcycle! You’re freshmen, aren’t you? Why aren’t you standing there?!”

The head teacher’s voice rang out loudly as he brandished his 30-centimeter ruler and dashed out of the school gate. His thinning hair flapped in the wind as he ran down the hill, followed by a few of the disciplinary committee members.

—

As the students gossiped, unsure of what was happening, the bleached-hair kid and the others in line started snickering. It was easy to guess what was going on outside the gate, and they exchanged comments amongst themselves.

“It’s Yeong-ju. Crazy. They’ve lost it. I heard he got fired from his delivery job and stole a motorcycle. Did he really ride it to school?”

“Those crazy bastards.”

“Why are they like this from the first day of the new school year? These guys have no sense.”

There was no difference between those outside and inside the gate. Only the male counselors who looked messy remained at the gate, contemplating how to escape.

“Hey, since the head teacher’s gone, should we just go?”

“Should we?”

While the group agreed on running away, the bleached-hair kid, dragging his feet in a swagger, started approaching Kim Deuk-pal. He had been holding back because of the head teacher, but now that he was gone, he stepped closer to intimidate Kim Deuk-pal.

“Are you a first-year student? Which middle school did you come from? Do I know you?”

“…”

“I’ve seen you somewhere. Damn, I can’t remember. Hey, where do you live?”

The guy was talkative and annoying. Kim Deuk-pal wasn’t interested in the delinquent youth. Besides, he seemed quite young. Kim Deuk-pal couldn’t be bothered to reply, but the yellow dyed hair persisted. He grabbed Kim Deuk-pal’s chin.

To Kim Deuk-pal, who showed signs of irritation, the yellow dyed hair moved his chin left and right as he pleased.

“Your face is something else.”

“…”

“But seriously, where have I seen you before?”

The male student stared at Kim Deuk-pal’s face as if observing it head-on. It looked familiar, especially the line drawn from the jaw to just below the ear. When his gaze fixed on the thin lips, he thought of someone, but then denied it. It couldn’t be Song Yi-heon. Apart from his appearance, the frail kid couldn’t stand straight in front of him.

When he thought of Song Yi-heon, whom he had been ignoring all winter vacation, the male student’s mood soured and he became aggressive. His tone, mixed with curses and harsh words, suddenly turned threatening.

“What’s wrong, cat got your tongue? You should be saying, ‘Wow, senior, you’re incredibly handsome!’ instead. Are you out of your mind, freshman? Want me to straighten you out? Make your school life a living hell?”

The yellow dyed hair believed Kim Deuk-pal was a first-year student and threatened him, unable to remember where he had seen him. Mimicking organizational culture in front of a gathering of people seemed quite cute.

Meanwhile, Kim Deuk-pal grabbed the wrist of the yellow dyed hair, who was swinging his chin as he pleased. He had tried to be lenient with him when he was young, but if the kid kept pushing, he was ready to step in. He released the hand holding his chin and gave the yellow dyed hair the face comment he wanted.

“You’d make a great nightclub bouncer.”

The yellow dyed hair, who was absent-mindedly watching the line drawn on his cheek by the thin lips, belatedly understood the meaning of the words. At that moment, the hotheaded yellow dyed hair’s temper rose sharply in his neck.

“What, you son of a b1tch!”
—

The bleached-hair kid didn’t hold back. His mouth was as rough as his hands. He didn’t care that they were at school or that the disciplinary committee members were just nearby. He immediately grabbed Kim Deuk-pal by the collar and swung his fist. Or at least, he tried to. As he yanked Kim Deuk-pal forward by the collar and aimed his punch at his cheek, Kim Deuk-pal’s palm quickly covered the bleached-hair kid’s face, blocking his vision.

“Ugh-!”

Although Song Yi-heon’s body lacked muscles and was physically inferior, he was agile. Combined with Kim Deuk-pal’s skills, it was quite effective. Momentarily blinded and confused, the bleached-hair kid found himself slammed against the wall by Kim Deuk-pal, who now had him by the collar. The pain from hitting the solid brick wall radiated from his back and spread through his chest.

“Urk…”

“Bouncer, how about you just quietly go to school?”

Kim Deuk-pal hit the yellow-dyed hair, pinned against the wall, on his spine with a fist. The resisting yellow-dyed hair groaned and buckled his knees. Other gang students and student disciplinary committee witnessed the fight with fiery eyes but were overwhelmed by Kim Deuk-pal’s intense presence and didn’t intervene.

Kim Deuk-pal checked his wristwatch and stepped back. The bleached-hair kid, his legs giving out, slid down the wall and clutched his stomach.

“Urrgh…”

“Jae-min…!”

The students called out in surprise to the beaten student. Unfazed, Kim Deuk-pal adjusted the bag that had slipped off his shoulder. Ten minutes had passed. It was time to head to class.

—

Class 3-1. Kim Deuk-pal looked at the plaque protruding horizontally from the door frame and rolled his lips to suppress the urge to look up. According to the information provided by the woman known as ‘Housekeeper,’ Class 3-1, seat 12, was Song Yi-heon’s seat.

The woman who had come to Song Yi-heon’s hospital room as expected was Lee Mi-kyung, the ‘Housekeeper.’ She was appointed by the chairman to monitor and manage the hidden affairs and the life of the illegitimate child to prevent them from being exposed to the public. Lee Mi-kyung despised Song Yi-heon and his mother, but she faithfully obeyed the chairman’s orders.

She handled the aftermath of Song Yi-heon’s accident. She negotiated with Kim Deuk-pal’s subordinates and lawyers who were trying to uncover the truth of the accident, and notified the school of Song Yi-heon’s absence from supplementary lessons due to a traffic accident. Thanks to her, he barely avoided falling into neglect.

Lee Mi-kyung’s indifferent handling of affairs and her little compassion only extended to subtly hinting to the homeroom teacher that Song Yi-heon’s traffic accident was related to suicide.

If it had been the original Song Yi-heon, he would have been hurt by Lee Mi-kyung’s indifferent treatment, but Kim Deuk-pal was grateful. Thanks to her, he could attend school without any suspicion. He composed himself before the classroom of Class 3-1, ready for the decisive moment. Breathing deeply to maintain calm, he pushed open the door.

Ssshh. The laughter and chatter of students who had entered first abruptly stopped. The fierce eyes of the students gathered in the classroom focused on the open door. Seeing that it wasn’t the homeroom teacher who had come in, the students continued talking as if Kim Deuk-pal hadn’t even been there.

The groups that had already built familiarity didn’t pay attention to outsiders. Although the odd-numbered group showed subtle interest in Kim Deuk-pal, it was still in the stage of assessing the new face.

“Uh….”

Kim Deuk-pal stammered, taken aback. It had been a long time since he’d faced such cold indifference. He wondered how to make friends with these fresh-faced kids. He realized he had underestimated the situation. Even when he attended elementary school, he had never tried to make friends in a new semester. The only social skills he knew involved soju and grilled eel, but unfortunately, this was a school.

He couldn’t just stand blocking the doorway forever, so he entered the classroom. He tried not to stare too intently at the students as he made his way to the very back seat in the first row. Just walking across the room left him feeling drained, as if he’d aged five years.

Without realizing it, Kim Deuk-pal started shaking his leg. He wasn’t trying to spy, but his eyes kept drifting toward the other students, and his mouth went dry. The kids seemed to have already bonded, chatting and laughing without any reservations, leaving Kim Deuk-pal to sit like a withered reed in the bustling room. Was this the loneliness of being in a crowd? He suddenly understood the paradox he had never grasped before.

When he was outside the school gate, he thought that once he got to school, his life would unfold like a beautiful youth film on a smooth road. But now that he was actually at school, it was nothing but tension. He started picking at his nails, wondering if he had made a mistake and if he could really fit in with these kids who were so much younger.

But just as the years he had lived weren’t in vain, Kim Deuk-pal didn’t let the harsh reality get him down. Noticing that there were students sitting in front of him, he decided to take a step forward. He cautiously tapped the shoulder of the girl sitting in front of him. His touch was as careful as if he were handling a precious child. The girl, who had been happily chatting with her friends, turned around with an irritated look, causing Kim Deuk-pal to flinch.

“What?”

She’s got some temper for such a small thing… Kim Deuk-pal forced a smile, his mouth twitching with the effort. He’d rather be fighting with guys than dealing with girls, no matter their age. But since she was so young that she didn’t even feel like a woman to him, he managed to maintain a semblance of forced friendliness.

“Hey, friend.”

He thought he was being friendly, but the girl’s expression soured.