Seol Minsu's hard expression finally softened just barely. For the first time that night, a flicker of concern showed in his usually unreadable face.
Seol Hyorim sat down on the low ledge nearby, shoulders slumped. When she looked up, her brother was still standing there, eyes on her."I'll go later," she muttered. "So just... go in first."
Minsu frowned. "Where do you think you're going at this hour? You're not planning to meet those bastards, are you?"
"Ah, I'm not going anywhere! Come on, please," Hyorim said, waving her hands weakly. "I just need some air. I'll come back soon, so just leave me alone."
For a moment, Minsu just stared at her in silence, jaw clenched. Then he finally sighed and turned away."...Don't stay out too long."
He walked toward the school gate, his footsteps fading into the night.
At the entrance, he paused. Leaning against the wall was me, watching him quietly.Our eyes met for a brief moment no words, just tension and something unspoken before he looked away and left without saying a thing.
Once I was sure he was gone, I went back inside.Hyorim was still sitting on the ledge, the faint glow from the streetlight catching in her hair.
She looked up at me tiredly."...Why are you still here?"
The others scrambled kicking dirt over scattered wax, snuffing out the broken candles, gathering half-crushed drinks. Nervous chatter lingered, but no one dared speak too loudly. One by one, they drifted away into the night, leaving the courtyard empty.
Soon, the echoes of footsteps faded, and it was just me and her. The smell of burnt wax and smoke still hung in the cool air.
Seolhyo stood a few feet away, arms crossed tightly, as if trying to hold herself together. Her shoulders were trembling. I could still see the redness in her eyes, but her face had hardened into something unreadable.
I let out a slow breath, legs giving way as I sank down at the corner of the steps. My body ached from the fight, my knuckles stung, and there was still the faint ringing in my ears from Minsu hits. Still, I forced a crooked grin.
"Your brother's crazy strong." I muttered, dragging a hand through my hair. "Feels like I just went a few rounds with a bulldozer."
Seolhyo blinked, then let out the faintest laugh half disbelief, half relief. She wiped quickly at the corner of her eye, trying to hide it.
"You're insane," she whispered, voice trembling. "Nobody dared to face him like that."
"Yeah, well," I leaned back against the wall, smirking despite the sting in my jaw, "guess I'm nobody, then."
Seolhyo stepped closer, her eyes sweeping over the bruises blooming across my cheek, the scrape on my lip, the redness on my knuckles. Her brows knit together, her earlier frustration replaced with worry.
"Are you… okay?" she asked softly.
I gave a small shrug, forcing a crooked smile. "I've been better."
Her lips pressed tight, clearly unimpressed with the joke. Then, with a sharp exhale, she crouched in front of me.
"Let me treat it," she said sharply, meeting my eyes. "Don't act tough right now. Just… let me do it."
For a moment, I forgot the ache in my body, caught instead by the rare gentleness in her voice.
The two of us walked side by side in silence, the night air cool against the heat of my bruises. The neon glow of the nearest convenience store washed over us, and without a word, Seolhyo slipped inside first. She came back with a small plastic bag swinging from her hand.
"Sit," she ordered, pointing to the bench just outside the store.
I obeyed, watching as she dug into the bag and pulled out a first aid kit, her hands moving quickly but a little clumsy. She snapped open the box, pulling out antiseptic and cotton pads.
"Hold still," she muttered.
The first sting made me hiss through my teeth.
"Sorry," she whispered, eyes flicking up to mine for a second before darting away. Her cheeks flushed, but she kept working, dabbing carefully at the split on my lip, the scrape on my cheek. The closeness made it impossible to ignore the faint scent of her shampoo, the warmth of her breath against my skin.
I caught myself staring, but she was already focused, her lips pressed thin in concentration.
When she finished wrapping a bandage around my hand, she paused, sitting back just slightly.
Then, after a beat, she added quietly, "Thank you. For… stepping up back there." I blinked, momentarily thrown by the sincerity in her tone.
A faint smile tugged at the corner of my lips despite the ache.
I watched her quietly as she focused on tending to the bruises on my arm."Don't mind it too much," I said softly. "It was my decision to step up, so don't feel too guilty about it."
Seol Hyorim paused for a second, then let out a small sigh. "Still… thanks to you, the guys didn't get beaten up too badly."A faint, almost mischievous chuckle escaped her lips. "Good thing you stepped in before Ji Suwon got smacked. I swear, he'd be spitting teeth by now. Hehehe."
Seeing her mood lighten, even just a little, I couldn't help but smile faintly too.
In another corner of the neighborhood, far from the Naguk middle. The yellow glow of a streetlamp fell over their bruised faces. Cigarette smoke mixed with the sour tang of sweat and blood.
"Damn it," Seong Heejun spat, kicking a soda can so hard it clattered down the gutter. Clang, clang, clang. "This is bullshit. Why the hell do we gotta get our asses handed to us like this?"
Seong Heejun, his face ache from the slap. "Those siblings are insane."
Kim Jiseong barked out a broken laugh. "Monster's right. One hit from him and I thought my lungs collapsed."
"Still can't believe it," he muttered, almost spitting the words. "Seojin… he stood his ground. He actually fought back against Minsu-hyung. Fought him!"
The words cut through the air like glass.
The group fell into silence. Cigarettes dangled forgotten between fingers. Their bruises throbbed, but it wasn't the pain that had them quiet it was the memory.
That clash replayed in their minds over and over: Seojin trading blows with Minsu, not folding, not cowering. A high school kid daring to fight the one person they'd all feared for years.
Seong Heejun, trying to lighten the gloomy atmosphere, looked at Yang jinsu crouching on the ground smoking and forced a laugh.
"Okay, hey, don't be so down. I mean…" he grinned, waving a hand. "You didn't even date for a second, lol. Can you even call that 'getting together' if Seolhyo never answered?... well we could say you two dated she accepted the flowers for 30 seconds Hahaha. I thought three days was the shortest anyone ever lasted, but you? Barely a second!"
"The thirty-second romance! HAHAHA!"
"LOL, thirty seconds HAHAHA!"
"LOL!"
Their laughter echoed through Jinsu ears, but Daegyu, Jiseong and Park Dong just stood there, visibly uncomfortable.
Seong Heejun, realizing what he'd said, awkwardly scratched the back of his head."...Was that too much? Sorry, man."
Beside him, Woori, who was clinging to his waist, frowned. "Oppa, that was kinda mean."
"I was just trying to lighten the mood," he muttered defensively. Then he noticed Yang Jinsu still glaring at him, unblinking.
"...What? It was just a damn joke," Heejun said, his tone sharpening. But Jinsu didn't move, his glare only deepening.
Heejun let out a dry laugh. "Heh, I'm gonna die from secondhand embarrassment, Jinsu."
The tension thickened. Heejun voice started to rise, irritation spilling over. "Uh-hah? You gonna keep staring like that?"
Park Dong finally stepped between them. "Yo, what the hell are you doing?! Cut it out already! What's your problem now?"
Woori buried her face against Heejun chest. "Oppa, I'm scared..."
"No, seriously he's a freaking lunatic," Heejun snapped, glaring past Dong.
Jiseong sighed heavily. "...Enough already."
Daegyu nodded. "Yeah, just stop, man."
Heejun clicked his tongue. "Why's he angry anyway? We should be the ones pissed we're the ones who got hit even though we were helping!"
Park Dong's patience finally broke. "I said drop it already!"
"...."