6
As soon as he opened the door, his eyes met with Gu Wanjae’s. He seemed to have an expression of surprise, as if he really didn’t expect him to come up to the second floor. It was an expression that made the observer feel more embarrassed. Wasn’t it an invitation to follow? Since he mostly went around alone, he was clumsy at detecting people’s inner thoughts or hidden meanings. Wondering if he had misinterpreted it, Taein grabbed the door handle behind him. It wouldn’t be difficult to leave.
“Are you good at singing?”
“What.”
“Singing. Do you sing well?”
“Ah, I don’t sing.”
“Then only I’ll sing?”
“Do whatever you want.”
It was an awkward conversation, but it didn’t seem like he meant for him to leave. Taein, reading the atmosphere, perched on the sofa right next to him. It was a seat close to the door. Gu Wanjae flipped through the songbook for a while and reserved one song. He didn’t press start, so no accompaniment came out. He just made a reservation and tapped the table with the microphone.
“You bastard. Aren’t you kind of funny?”
“What.”
“If you’re not going to sing, why did you come to a karaoke room?”
“……”
There wasn’t really anything to say. Gu Wanjae continued speaking while laughing intermittently. It wasn’t a good-natured laugh. It was a mocking laugh, somehow unfocused. From middle school’s closing ceremony day, to the first day of school in April, and until now. The laugh he made was consistent. It was strangely unpleasant, but he seemed to originally speak while mocking people. It wasn’t just toward him, but he had that same face fairly toward all the guys.
“His looks too, he’s fucking unique. This bastard.”
Gu Wanjae, who got up while cracking his neck from side to side, grabbed the microphone. The song he selected was a popular song that was often heard these days.
Gu Wanjae sang that song and then sang another song consecutively.
The second song was actually pleasant to listen to. It was the first time hearing the song, so he quickly forgot the title.
Taein just played the role of spectator, but raised his head when Gu Wanjae tapped the table with the microphone. A tearing noise came from the speaker.
“Why don’t you sing something?”
Saying that, he bumped the microphone against the table again. This time an even louder noise was heard. It was such an unpleasant sound that it was annoying enough to make him irritated. Taein, who unconsciously brought his hand toward his ear, frowned while making eye contact with Gu Wanjae.
“Why don’t you sing ‘School Bell’ or something.”
Recommending ‘School Bell’ without any change in expression didn’t look particularly pleasant. Taein just made a serious expression at the microphone that came rolling toward him. What should he sing? He had been living in facilities since childhood, which he couldn’t even remember, so karaoke itself wasn’t unfamiliar. Sometimes they would book karaoke rooms for the kids to have fun. Each time, Taein would just sit in the corner like a borrowed barley sack. Even when they urged him so much to sing that he grabbed the microphone, he would sing half-heartedly.
Suddenly, Taein, who remembered the song he sang back then, flipped through the karaoke songbook with slow gestures.
The song Taein selected was a carol.
A carol that started with “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” It was a song that everyone knew. Whether it was a carol or anything else, Taein had no prejudice against songs, so he didn’t find it strange to select a carol. Only Gu Wanjae next to him was dying of laughter. He didn’t know how loud the voice heard between the accompaniment sounds was.
Isn’t this guy completely crazy?
Fucking funny.
Did you plan to make me laugh?
Taein sang the carol roughly while occasionally glancing at Gu Wanjae’s face.
Did air get into his lungs? Whether he was someone with a low threshold for laughter, he would giggle and make a fuss at anything. Taein just had a brief thought and turned his eyes completely to the screen.
A carol wishing for a happy Christmas was ringing out incongruously in some karaoke room in spring.
* * *
The next day, Gu Wanjae came to school around eleven o’clock. He wondered why he came to school two days in a row. Since it was during class, he just had that thought and looked elsewhere. It wasn’t at the teacher. Somewhere between the wall and the blackboard. Then his gaze went toward Gu Wanjae. The guy didn’t appear all wet like yesterday, nor did he lie down sprawled out right away. He just sat with his large upper body straight, looking only forward. Then he flicked the forehead of the guy sitting in front.
Ah.
The guy who turned around with a pained expression made eye contact with Gu Wanjae and laughed like a crazy person.
The guy’s name was Choi Seonyeong. He was someone who had been following Gu Wanjae around since he first came to school.
Gu Wanjae watched Choi Seonyeong laugh with his shoulders shaking, then suddenly slapped his cheek. The smack sound was loud enough to be heard all the way to the corner of the classroom.
The teacher’s eyes also turned toward where the sound came from.
Nothing happened.
The teachers at this school didn’t scold students much and never pointed things out. They would just hit the back of their heads once and jokingly say “be human.” It was a school that valued graduation over college entrance exam scores, and employment over studying. Neither students nor teachers had any sense of responsibility. How else could the math teacher have said, “You guys have just one thing to do. See over there? Just don’t set foot in there.” The place the teacher pointed to through the open window was the police station. Taein thought the teacher was exaggerating, but in just two months, over twenty guys had been in and out of the police station. The guys called during morning announcements were mostly such cases.
In such a school where there was never a peaceful day, Gu Wanjae was actually on the quieter side.
It was because he didn’t come to school at all, but he had never been called in for causing trouble.
He had only come to school a total of three times so far, so who knows about later.
Thinking about it that way, Gu Wanjae’s attendance record itself was funny. Would it be better if he caused trouble instead? He didn’t really know about that either, and while thinking so, Taein touched his mouth with his hand. He laughed while slightly lowering his gaze, and when he raised his head, his eyes met with Gu Wanjae’s. It seemed like he had looked this way while stretching. Taein was the first to turn his gaze away.
After singing the carol at the karaoke room yesterday, neither of them sang anymore and just had trivial small talk.
Is school fun? I’m going to drop out.
Who do you hang out with? I’ve never seen you with anyone.
Gu Wanjae was mainly the one asking questions. Taein answered those questions as best he could. It’s not particularly fun. I don’t really hang out with anyone. Being alone is comfortable.
Gu Wanjae said “This guy is weird” several times.
Then about 30 minutes later, Gu Wanjae got up first. He gestured to leave while answering a phone call. Taein also immediately got up and headed to the counter, but Gu Wanjae went outside and threw down a ten-thousand-won bill at the counter before leaving. The part-timer, as if this wasn’t his first or second time experiencing this, just waved his hand saying “Hey” to Gu Wanjae and “Take care, Wanjae’s friend” to Taein.
When he went out toward the external stairs, Gu Wanjae was already standing in front of the crosswalk.
Taein also stopped paying attention to Gu Wanjae and returned to the facility. That was the end.
Even until the lunch bell rang, Gu Wanjae just sat in the classroom. He seemed to mainly talk with Choi Seonyeong, Lee Jihoon, and Kim Jaeuk. Though his hands moved before his words. The forehead flick he gave during class seemed gentle compared to the tremendous force with which he now flicked their foreheads. The three guys stayed attached to Gu Wanjae’s side, grinning even when their foreheads swelled red. From a distance, it was a completely incomprehensible relationship.
Usually Choi Seonyeong, Lee Jihoon, and Kim Jaeuk would rush out of the classroom as soon as the lunch bell rang. But today, even when Taein, who usually left last, stood up, they were just sitting there getting stupid forehead flicks.
Taein pretended not to see them and left the classroom. The hallway was already empty. Only a few guys who weren’t eating lunch or were planning to do something else could be spotted here and there. In middle school, no matter what happened, he ate in the cafeteria, but in this school it was difficult to do that every day. First of all, the cafeteria was rather cramped, making it impossible to sit spaced apart, and sometimes he would end up squeezed between random groups. How uncomfortable it was when they talked with him in the middle.
Still, if he killed as much time as possible, the cafeteria would become more spacious.
Taein, who walked slowly with long strides, stepped on the stairs leading to the basement floor.
Soon the smell of food and the coolness unique to the basement floor touched his whole body.
Taein stood at the end of the shortened line and looked at the inside seats.
It wasn’t as empty as he thought, but he figured that would be enough to avoid getting embarrassed by being squeezed between guys he didn’t know.
Taein, feeling at ease, passed through the widely opening cafeteria glass doors.
He picked up a tray and received rice and side dishes. Now that he checked, today’s menu was curry rice. The side dish compartments contained kimchi, corn salad, and fried squid. The soup he received last appeared to be ordinary soybean paste soup. There weren’t many contents other than a few green onions floating in it.
There happened to be one empty table right in front. Taein took a seat in the corner of that table.
The taste was ordinary. It was the same curry rice and side dishes he usually ate. While eating, Taein didn’t talk or look at anyone. Once he started eating, he only looked at his tray until the meal was over. Today was the same. As if by habit, he kept his head deeply lowered and concentrated only on eating.
How much time had passed? A noisy sound came from the front.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
