Kim Yeonwoo looked at Jaeyoon in panic. Jaeyoon wiped the blood flowing down his cheek with the back of his hand, his expression indifferent. The cut from the fingernail seemed deeper than expected, as quite a bit of blood was flowing out. Kim Yeonwoo’s hands trembled. Flustered by the stares directed at him, he shouted:
“It’s not my fault! You tried to grab me out of nowhere… Yeah, it’s because of you…!”
“Hey.”
Kim Yeonwoo flinched at the low, gruff voice. Jaeyoon strode toward him and firmly grabbed his shoulders. When Kim Yeonwoo tried to swat his hands away in surprise, Jaeyoon seized his wrist to restrain him. Slightly lowering his head to meet the trembling brown eyes, he spoke:
“Enough, Kim Yeonwoo.”
“?!”
“It might be convenient to blame others, but I’m not going to accept that.”
Jaeyoon released the wrist he’d been holding and walked past the frozen Kim Yeonwoo. Returning to the classroom while wiping away the still-flowing blood with his hand, Jaeyoon checked the clock, flustered by the stares directed at him. Ah! An exclamation escaped his lips. The homeroom teacher’s thick eyebrows furrowed. While he’d been talking with Kim Yeonwoo, the bell must have rung—class was already in session.
“Lee Jaeyoon, how long has it been since class started… Wait, what happened to your face?”
The homeroom teacher’s face, which had been ready to scold Jaeyoon, gradually distorted. He strode over to Jaeyoon and examined his cheek closely.
“…Where did you get hurt?”
The teacher’s eyes narrowed. He must be suspecting someone hit me. If a student comes late to class with a bleeding cheek, any normal teacher would naturally think that. I was hit, but at least it wasn’t intentional. After rolling his eyes briefly, Jaeyoon awkwardly smiled and answered:
“I got scratched by paper.”
The homeroom teacher’s brows knitted together. His expression clearly said, “Don’t give me that nonsense.” Jaeyoon added more to his excuse:
“I was carrying the test papers the English teacher asked for, and accidentally got scratched by them…”
Teacher Doyoung…? The homeroom teacher’s expression softened slightly. He must have thought Jaeyoon wouldn’t involve a teacher in his lie if he were making it up.
“Teacher, the English teacher keeps making Jaeyoon run errands. Could you, as his homeroom teacher, resolve this issue?”
When Heejun raised his hand and spoke, the homeroom teacher’s expression finally relaxed, and he turned to Heejun.
“What do you mean ‘making him run errands’? Teacher Doyoung just likes Jaeyoon and treats him well.”
“I don’t think that’s the case.”
“Be quiet and open your books! And Lee Jaeyoon, go to the nurse’s office to treat that wound and come back.”
“Yes.”
Jaeyoon glanced at Heejun. In response, Heejun tapped his own cheek with his finger, signaling that Jaeyoon should explain later. Nodding in acknowledgment, Jaeyoon left the classroom.
Sunbae will be worried. Jaeyoon frowned as he touched his cheek. Opening the nurse’s office door with a hint of irritation, he noticed a bright red head of hair.
“…”
“…”
An uncomfortable silence fell as their eyes met. Jaeyoon closed the nurse’s office door as if nothing had happened. I guess I can just apply pressure with a handkerchief to stop the bleeding… Just as he was about to leave, the nurse’s office door burst open and Im Hangyeol rushed out.
“What the hell? Why did you close the door again?!”
Jaeyoon let out a small sigh at the sight of Hangyeol protesting with his red hair flying. About to shout at Jaeyoon, Hangyeol belatedly noticed his cheek and exclaimed in shock:
“What happened to your cheek?”
“I got hurt. Is the school nurse inside?”
“No, honestly, I’m not even sure the school nurse exists. How have you never seen their face since enrolling?”
How do they even get paid? Grumbling, Hangyeol rummaged through the nurse’s office drawers and pulled out antiseptic and cotton. Naturally sitting in the nurse’s chair, he pointed with his chin to the chair in front of him as Jaeyoon stood there blankly.
“Sit.”
“I can do it myself.”
“Just sit down already!”
If Kim Yeonwoo saw this, he’d probably pick another fight… But unable to reject the goodwill, Jaeyoon swallowed a sigh and sat down on the round stool in front.
“This will sting.”
With those words, cotton soaked with antiseptic touched Jaeyoon’s cheek. His brow furrowed automatically at the throbbing pain. After glancing at him, Hangyeol discarded the used cotton and carefully began treating the wound with fresh cotton soaked in antiseptic.
“You’re quite skilled.”
“I’ve done this so many times, I’ve gotten used to it.”
“Stop getting into fights.”
“Shut up! Want me to stop treating you?”
“I didn’t ask you to treat me in the first place.”
“Seriously!!”
Despite his irritation, Hangyeol applied a square bandage to Jaeyoon’s cheek. After putting away the antiseptic and used cotton, Hangyeol addressed Jaeyoon, who was touching the bandage.
“Take care of it. Otherwise, it’ll leave a scar.”
Jaeyoon nodded. Then he expressed his gratitude. It wasn’t something he had asked for, but Hangyeol had treated him with care nonetheless.
“Thanks.”
“Huh? …O-Oh!”
Jaeyoon lay down on the nurse’s office bed. Haah, a sigh escaped his lips involuntarily. Feeling fatigue washing over him, he checked the time with a glance. I’ll rest for just 10 minutes before going back. If the homeroom teacher asks why I’m so late, I’ll make the excuse that I had to wait because the nurse wasn’t there.
“How did you get hurt?”
Hangyeol, sitting on the opposite bed, asked Jaeyoon, who was staring blankly at the ceiling. Jaeyoon blinked slowly, then let out a sigh-like response.
“Got scratched by paper.”
“Paper?”
“Yeah.”
Hangyeol narrowed his brow slightly and stared at Jaeyoon’s cheek.
“…Not fingernails?”
When Jaeyoon turned to look at him, Hangyeol clicked his tongue and muttered as if he’d known all along.
“That jagged cut is exactly what a fingernail scratch looks like. What do you mean, paper…”
“…You know a lot from all your fighting.”
Pretending not to notice Hangyeol’s grimace, Jaeyoon turned his head and covered his eyes with his arm. He wanted to take a nap right there. It felt like his tangled thoughts might clear up if he did. But since this period was his homeroom teacher’s class, he reluctantly got up from the bed. As Jaeyoon brushed back his bangs, Hangyeol, who had been quietly watching him, spoke up.
“That guy… is it related to your sunbae?”
“What?”
As Jaeyoon looked back with a puzzled expression, Hangyeol awkwardly scratched his head and replied.
“The cut on your cheek, is it because of that sunbae guy?”
Though the word “guy” bothered him, he decided to let it slide since Hangyeol had at least called him “sunbae.”
“It’s nothing like that.”
“Really…?”
This kid is always so suspicious. If I had to blame someone, it would be Kim Yeonwoo, the one you’re so fond of. Swallowing the words that had risen to the tip of his tongue, Jaeyoon nodded. Hangyeol muttered with a sullen expression.
“Today, everywhere I went, people were buzzing with talk about that sunbae guy. I thought maybe someone was jealous that you’re close to him and scratched your cheek…”
‘Except for the reason not being sunbae, you pretty much got it right.’
But instead of confirming his words, Jaeyoon smoothed out his wrinkled uniform. After straightening his disheveled tie, he said to Hangyeol:
“I’m heading back now. Are you going to keep skipping class?”
“I’m not skipping!!”
“Then what?”
“…”
Hangyeol couldn’t answer and kept his mouth shut. Jaeyoon stared down at the black roots showing between the red dyed hair—it seemed about time for a touch-up. Then he met Hangyeol’s eyes and said:
“If you don’t have any special goals, it’s good to study. You might not have something you want to do or a dream job right now, but it could come to you later in college. You wouldn’t want your academic background to hold you back then, right?”
“You’re a high schooler too, but you’re talking like you’ve been to college before.”
At Hangyeol’s words, Jaeyoon shrugged and smiled.
“Well, I’m off then.”
Giving a quick wave, Jaeyoon closed the nurse’s office door. Left alone, Hangyeol sat blankly on the bed, blinking a couple of times before suddenly jumping to his feet.
“I just didn’t have anything else to do, that’s why I’m going back!”
Making excuses to no one in particular in the empty room, Hangyeol flung the nurse’s office door open and rushed outside.
***
“So, he scratched your cheek?”
“Yeah.”
After Jaeyoon explained the whole story to Heejun, his brows furrowed deeply. Huh… He let out a breath as if dumbfounded and leaned back in his chair.
“Who is this guy who’s got his tentacles wrapped around even the great student council president?”
“Um…”
After briefly contemplating whether to tell him or not, Jaeyoon opened his mouth, thinking Heejun wasn’t the type to spread gossip.
“It’s Kim Yeonwoo, a second-year like us…”
“What…?”
Heejun jerked his head up to look at Jaeyoon. Seeing his suddenly distorted expression, Jaeyoon blinked slowly in confusion. What’s going on? Does he know Kim Yeonwoo?
“Hmm…”
Heejun’s eyes narrowed. He seemed lost in thought for a moment, quickly twirling the mechanical pencil in his hand before turning his gaze back to Jaeyoon.
“Is your brother also one of the people caught in those tentacles?”
“How did you…?”
Jaeyoon’s eyes widened in surprise. He had deliberately avoided mentioning names other than the student council president’s, and now stammered with his lips. Heejun rested his chin on his hand, putting his pencil down on the desk.
“So that’s why you reacted that way back then…?”
“What?”
“At the beginning of the semester, was your bad relationship with your brother also because of him?”
‘You could be a detective!’
At Heejun’s words hitting the mark, Jaeyoon gave an awkward smile. A deep sigh escaped Heejun’s lips.
“Man, you’ve gotten tangled up in something troublesome.”
“Tell me about it.”
Jaeyoon exhaled a long sigh with a dejected expression. Heejun handed him a strawberry milk he’d bought from the school store.
“Here, get some sugar.”
“Thanks.”
Downing the strawberry milk in one go as if he wished it were alcohol, Jaeyoon winced at the throbbing wound.
“Be careful for now. From what you’ve told me, he seemed panicky, like he was cornered? Guys like that always end up causing trouble.”
Jaeyoon agreed with Heejun’s words. People who feel cornered, refuse to admit their own mistakes, and only blame others always caused major incidents. I really hope he didn’t take my warning lightly…
“Are you going to tell Jinhoo sunbae about this?”
“No, I don’t want him to worry about something so trivial.”
If possible, Jaeyoon didn’t want to involve Jinhoo with Kim Yeonwoo or any of the other romance options. Without knowing what triggered Jinhoo to become a villain, it was best to eliminate as many possibilities as possible. Jaeyoon wanted Jinhoo to be happy. Therefore, he would never let Jinhoo become a villain because of them.
“Then we need to think about an excuse for your injury first. You were carrying test papers with Jinhoo sunbae earlier.”
“Do you have any good excuses…?”
He’d been racking his brain, but couldn’t come up with a convincing excuse that would satisfy Jinhoo.
“Say this guy accidentally hit you.”
“Huh? What??”
Jaeyoon smiled awkwardly at Heejun, who was pointing at Sim Jaeha walking by. Recommending he use someone he likes as a scapegoat…
“No way. Sunbae is good at fighting, if he gets angry and punches the class president…”
Jaeyoon stared at Sim Jaeha. He didn’t look particularly sturdy, though not as slender as Lee Jaeyoon. Seeing Jaeyoon shake his head, Heejun muttered softly, Well, that guy does have a weak physique, and let out a sigh.
“What? What are you guys talking about?!”
Completely lost in their conversation, Sim Jaeha drew millions of question marks in his head and covered his chest with both arms as he felt their eyes examining his body.
“Whaaaat?!”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
