# Chapter 16
After listening to their confrontation for a moment, I poked Seong Haemin’s back repeatedly. Haemin, who had been arguing with Do Yunhyuk, immediately put his hand on my shoulder and examined my face to see if I was hurt. Behind him, Yunhyuk was grinning and waving at me.
Seeing his carefree attitude, I was certain that his brain was made of rocks. What kind of person is he?
“That bastard didn’t do anything weird to you, did he? Are you okay, Haejun?”
“Um… I’m fine, let’s just go home.”
“Sure. Let’s go home and rest.”
At Haemin’s kind response, Yunhyuk mocked:
“Yeah~ Let’s rest~”
“Shut up.”
“See you next time, Haejun. Dream of me.”
Yunhyuk smiled broadly and waved. As if Haemin didn’t need to respond to him, he grabbed my body and pushed me into the apartment entrance.
“Haejun! Let’s meet in our dreams!”
Yunhyuk shouted his final greeting from behind, but as soon as Haemin shut the apartment door firmly, the sound faded away.
I sighed with great relief that we had safely returned home. It felt like I’d experienced many unsettling things today, but… now that we’re home, let’s forget about it!
However, during the elevator ride up to our apartment, Haemin had a deeply thoughtful expression.
“What happened with the group date?”
“Oh, after you left like that, I explained to the others and we parted on good terms.”
At least that went well. If the group date wasn’t the issue, then Haemin’s serious expression must be because of Yunhyuk.
With a ‘ding’ sound, the elevator doors opened, and I followed Haemin as he got out first and headed toward our apartment.
In front of the door, Haemin held the doorknob but stopped and stood still. I gave him a puzzled look from beside him.
“What are you doing? Aren’t we going in?”
“Haejun.”
“What?”
“Yunhyuk didn’t say anything strange to you, did he?”
At Haemin’s serious question, I recalled all the things Yunhyuk had been babbling about all day.
He did say strange things. Nonsensical stuff about being a match, or marking me, or whatever—but somehow I felt that if I mentioned this, Haemin and the Four Kings’ already excessive protection would become even more intense, so I deliberately didn’t bring it up.
Instead, I asked in return:
“Why do you ask?”
“Just…”
Haemin’s eyes clouded over for a moment, then he sighed and continued:
“Haejun, do you know why Yunhyuk is called the ‘mad dog’?”
“…Because he’s crazy?”
Since he was truly a madman, I answered simply. I couldn’t think of any other reason. He’s called a mad dog because he acts like one.
Haemin stroked his chin with a serious expression after hearing my answer.
“That’s right. But he’s not just an ordinary crazy guy.”
I stared blankly at Haemin, not intuitively understanding the expression “ordinary crazy guy.” From my perspective, both the Four Kings and Yunhyuk seemed similarly insane, so if he wasn’t an ordinary crazy guy, did that mean he was especially crazy? I was thinking trivially that there must be ranks even among crazy people.
“Yunhyuk is called the mad dog because once he marks someone, he’ll get them even if he has to die for it.”
“Huh…?”
“The reason we declared Jeseong High our enemy but still haven’t taken over their territory is because we’ve been biding our time. That bastard’s obsession with what he considers his is no joke… I was worried he might have said something to you. I’m glad he didn’t.”
“……”
Haemin exhaled in genuine relief and smiled brightly. I vacantly stared at his back as he opened the door and entered the hallway.
‘I’m screwed. Was that “marking” really about marking my head…?’
My future life, which was already concerning, began to worry me even more seriously.
In the end, I couldn’t sleep properly.
What if Yunhyuk is waiting in front of our house when I wake up tomorrow? What if he guards the school gate when we leave? What if he suddenly comes during lunch break? What if he drags me to a karaoke room again? Oh right, he said we wouldn’t go to karaoke. Then what if he tries to take me to a club? What if he was actually trying to use me to do something to the Four Kings?
I don’t want to associate with him!
What about my studies!
I spent almost the entire night tossing and turning with all kinds of worries. Even when I briefly fell asleep, Yunhyuk appeared in my dreams, causing me to wake up repeatedly while screaming for him to leave me alone.
However, contrary to my concerns, very peaceful days followed.
Unlike my expectation that he would follow me around constantly and be annoying, Yunhyuk didn’t come to Seoyeon High, as if everything he had told me was a lie. Only I remained on edge like a resident living in a danger zone, not knowing when a bomb might drop, never letting my guard down.
Yeah, honestly, I probably overreacted, and that thought made me angry again. Do I have to suffer from this nervous exhaustion because of him?
Logically speaking, why would Yunhyuk like me?!
I didn’t believe that nonsense either!
“Why have you been looking around so much lately, Jjuni? Did you commit a crime?”
Min Sihu tilted his head. Despite my consistent non-responses, he smiled at me as if he’d received an answer.
“Don’t worry! If Jjuni goes to jail, Sihu will use his connections to get you out! Just trust Sihu!”
“……”
I thought, “That’s illegal,” but then I understood. Right. These guys commit crimes on a regular basis. I quietly ignored Min Sihu.
I knew my attitude would seem strange. Just as I found the cringey Four Kings weird, they would find my sudden vigilance odd. But I didn’t want to further ruin my already bumpy life.
Of course, that wasn’t something I could control.
Life-changing events happen very suddenly.
Like when the elderly woman you help on the street turns out to be the chairperson of some conglomerate, suddenly changing your life’s fortune. Or when your day is ruined by bird droppings landing on your head while walking to school. Or when a kicked can accidentally hits the head of a tough guy from the neighboring commercial high school, starting a romance. Or when the lottery ticket you bought out of habit unexpectedly wins one day.
Similarly, Seong Haemin’s traffic accident happened very suddenly.
It was an ordinary weekend after days of the usual routine of being surrounded by tough guys during the commute to and from school. Haemin left the house in the morning, telling me to go to bed first as he would be coming home late. I went to bed early as Haemin instructed. Had someone not urgently pounded on the front door in the middle of the night, I would probably have been peacefully asleep until morning.
I woke up because of the loud banging on the door.
‘What kind of crazy person would do this in the middle of the night?’
I tried to continue sleeping by pulling the blanket over my head and ignoring it, but after what felt like 30 minutes of continuous knocking, I finally gave in.
I got up grumpily and trudged toward where the house phone was located. I had no intention of opening the door, of course, and was planning to call the police.
“Jjuni! Jjuni! Are you sleeping? Jjuna!!”
But the voice calling me from outside somehow seemed familiar. The only person who calls me “Jjuni” is Min Sihu.
After hesitating, I headed to the front door. Looking through the peephole, I confirmed it was indeed Min Sihu.
Why is he doing this in the middle of the night? It’s tiresome for both of us.
I thought about ignoring him and crawling back to my room, but feeling that ignoring him would make my life even more troublesome, I sighed and opened the door.
As soon as I opened the door, Min Sihu dragged me outside without warning and put a motorcycle helmet on my head. Then he held the helmet and brought his head close to mine.
What’s he trying to do?
Maybe because I was sleepy, my brain was working terribly slow. My eyes, still drowsy with sleep, blinked slowly.
Between Min Sihu’s face and mine, there was only a transparent acrylic shield. His pupils shone with determination from a very close distance. In the dark surroundings lit only by streetlights, his facial features weren’t clearly visible, but his light brown irises reflecting the orange streetlight were directly fixed on me. It felt like heat was rushing through the helmet.
“Haejun, brace yourself and listen carefully.”
I frowned at his uncharacteristically firm tone. I looked at Min Sihu through the transparent acrylic. Even though I was wearing a helmet, Min Sihu’s slightly trembling voice was clear.
“We’re going to the hospital now.”
“…Hospital?”
“Yes. The hospital.”
“…Why?”
“Haemin got hurt. Don’t cry. Let’s go.”
Just like that, still in my pajamas, we headed to the hospital.
On the motorcycle speeding at an incredible pace, I tightly hugged Min Sihu’s back, which was damp with sweat, as we arrived at the emergency room.
‘Seong Haemin… got hurt?’
‘Emergency room? Is it serious?’
‘What was he doing at this hour? Why?’
‘Did Seong Haemin get seriously injured in the original novel too?’
My mind still felt like I was dreaming. Like weeds growing haphazardly, my thoughts wouldn’t come together.
After seating me next to Lee Beom, Min Sihu left to park his motorcycle, and I sat on the chair in a daze.
“…Are you okay?”
“Huh?”
“……”
“Ah… I really didn’t hear. What did you say?”
I turned to look at Lee Beom in my dazed state.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
