A small, carelessly torn piece of paper handed to me by Mina.
When I saw the cute handwriting on it, a small smile crept onto my face.
[ Are you okay? ㅜㅜ ]
I glanced up at the teacher, still diligently giving the lesson, then subtly reached to my right and took Mina's pen.
Not snatching it, but gently, brushing her hand as I did.
Mina's eyes widened as she looked at me, awkwardly twirling her hair.
I casually scribbled a reply on the note she'd given me.
[ Yup, I'm fine lol ]
Handing back the note with its half-hearted, consonant-only reply and the pen, Mina let out a small chuckle.
Maybe I looked more okay than she expected.
Only then did she turn her attention back to the lesson.
The anger that had been boiling inside me finally simmered down, cooling my head with calmer emotions.
(Who would've thought I'd have to deal with this kind of crap from day one?)
Since I'm a "guy" who's supposed to be protected here, I thought there wouldn't be any direct physical contact.
(Guess it's because we're both guys. No hesitation in his hands, huh?)
I touched the reddened skin around my eyes, which I could tell was bruised without even looking, and waited for the class to end. I'd need to check a mirror in the bathroom.
The jerk teaching at the front of the class was so infuriating I could barely stand to look at him.
(Now that I think about it… Hyemin, was it? Jung Hyemin?)
At first, I didn't like the way she stared at me like she wanted to devour me, but she actually seemed like a decent person.
She even stepped in to help me.
There's no such thing as kindness without a motive, so she probably wanted something, but whatever it's fine.
(Maybe it wouldn't hurt to get a bit closer to her.)
I casually glanced over at where Hyemin was sitting.
She wasn't even pretending to listen to the lesson, and our eyes met.
She grinned and waved her hand enthusiastically. I gave her a small smile before turning away.
"Alright, see you next time. And you, in the back Ryu Sehwa."
Before I knew it, the class was over, and the teacher put down his laptop, calling my name.
"Yes?"
"Do your greetings properly next time. I'm letting it slide since it's your first day, but there won't be a next time."
(This bastard. Greetings are for those who deserve them. The moment you mentioned my parents, I decided you're not a teacher in my book.)
Despite the rage bubbling inside, I flashed a bright smile and said, in Russian:
"I'm letting it slide this time, but next time I might just kill you, you pathetic little runt."
The entire class turned to look at me, stunned.
Mina, who understood Russian, stared at me, her face pale.
"What? Did you just insult me in your language?"
"Oh, sorry. My Korean's still rough, so it slipped out. I'll be more careful next time."
The teacher gave me a suspicious look before turning sharply and leaving the classroom.
As soon as the bell rang for break, Mina leaned in with a low, urgent voice.
"Hey… why'd you do that?"
"He pissed me off by bringing up my parents. I can tolerate a lot, but not that."
Mina's eyes wavered, as if realizing her mistake, and she let out a small sigh, fidgeting with her fingers.
"Still… don't do that. It'll only make things harder for you."
I patted Mina's slumped shoulders lightly and stood up to leave the classroom.
As I did, Hyemin and Suyoung, who had been sitting by the door like gatekeepers, jumped up and made a fuss.
"Sehwa, you okay? Ugh, that crazy jerk. He's just throwing a tantrum because a younger, prettier guy showed up. Don't let it get to you."
"Wanna go to the nurse's office? I can take you."
I shook my head slightly and ran a hand through my hair.
"No need to worry. And Hyemin."
"Yeah?"
"Thanks."
I gave a small smile, speaking softly, then left the classroom to head to the bathroom.
The hallways were crowded with students, probably because it was break time.
Ignoring the whispers and stares, I kept walking.
"Hey, who's that? A transfer student in the next class?"
"Wow… insane."
Ignoring the gawking, I entered the bathroom and looked in the mirror.
As expected.
The skin around my eyes, where my lettering tattoo was, was red and swollen.
(Ugh, damn it… this sucks.)
I turned on the faucet, splashed some water on my face like a cat, and headed back to the classroom.
There, I saw a familiar face a homeroom teacher with a gloomier expression than before.
---
**Earlier**
Seungmin was in the staff room, trying to calm down an angry man Teacher Minho, who had just taught his class.
"Teacher Minho, please calm down…"
"Calm down?! How am I supposed to calm down?! That delinquent… ugh, Seungmin. A guy with tattoos, and he even altered his uniform! That's a disgrace to the school's reputation!"
"Yes, yes… just go back to your class. You have another lesson, don't you?"
After the commotion settled, Seungmin brought Sehwa to the staff room.
"Sehwa, this is my powder. Try putting some on your face."
"Uh… okay."
Sehwa reluctantly took the powder and applied it to his face.
It looked ridiculous. The white powder over the yellow-tinted skin made him look like a clown.
"Maybe… try a bandage too."
It was no use. When Sehwa closed his eyes, the bandage crumpled and failed to do its job.
Seungmin gave up on covering the tattoo and decided to ask another teacher for leniency.
"Alright… just keep it covered elsewhere and go back to class."
Seungmin said, covering his face with both hands.
Sehwa quietly bowed and left the staff room.
---
"Hey, Mina! You're not dating Sehwa, right? He's not your boyfriend, is he?"
Hyemin, bursting with excitement, was practically bouncing. Mina, looking deflated, responded.
"Yeah… we just hung out for a bit, that's all."
"Sweet! Yo, Suyoung, did you see that? Sehwa smiled and thanked me earlier!"
"Ugh, this idiot's already planning a trip to a motel."
Suyoung looked at her with pity, and Hyemin proudly showed off her middle finger.
"Shut up. I'm gonna charm that white horse. You're just jealous you missed your chance, huh?"
"Damn it… I was gonna help him too."
Mina wanted to laugh and tell them to snap out of it, but she held back.
Sehwa might seem like one of them on the surface, but he wasn't the type to throw himself around carelessly. Probably.
(We've barely known each other for a day, but…)
"Mina, do you have Sehwa's number?"
"Huh? No?"
Hyemin's sudden question caught Mina off guard, and Hyemin grinned ear to ear.
"Nice. No competition then. Suyoung, let's go smoke with Sehwa later and get his number."
"What's gotten into your brain for once… wait, no, you idiot. How do you know he even smokes? And going up to a guy like that out of nowhere will make you look bad. Take it slow."
"Bullshit. You think he cares about stuff like that?"
As Hyemin and Suyoung bickered, flaunting the metaphorical "goblins" on their chests, the door slid open.
*Drk.*
Sehwa walked in.
He looked puzzled as soon as he entered the classroom.
Mina, Hyemin, and Suyoung were standing in a triangle, huddled together.
(Why are they all gathered like that?)
---
"So… you're asking if I smoke?"
"Ah! Don't take it the wrong way. I just want to get closer to you, Sehwa. I swear it's not with bad intentions."
I was pretty dumbfounded.
I was already mentally and physically drained from getting beaten down all day, and now a girl was asking me to smoke with her.
(Come to think of it, isn't it bad for a guy to hear stuff like that in this world)
Whatever. It's not a bad idea, I guess.
I'm a smoker too.
But I'm way too exhausted today.
"I do smoke, but not today. I'm kinda tired."
"Oh, right. Because of that crazy jerk… haha."
Hyemin's coarse curse almost slipped out before she caught herself.
Suyoung didn't miss her chance to jump in.
"Sehwa! Can I get your number then?"
"Sure."
I answered without hesitation why not?
The two of them gleefully held out their phones, while Mina stared at me with wide eyes, clearly surprised.
We exchanged numbers, and as I sat down, Mina hesitantly came over and sat next to me.
"Hey, why'd you give them your number?"
"No reason not to, right?"
"I mean… they're girls. You gave it out that easily?"
(I get what you're worried about, but that kind of common sense doesn't apply to me.)
I smiled, brushing off Mina's concerned tone.
"If you're that worried, why don't you protect me?"
"…Don't tease me."
I chuckled again as Mina turned away with a pout. Finally, some payback for all the teasing I'd endured.
In this world, when a guy asks a girl to protect him, it's supposed to make her heart flutter and it seemed to work, even if it didn't go exactly as planned. Still, a small victory.
The anger that had been eating at me earlier was momentarily pushed aside as I endured until the final class ended.
…It was torture.
(Seriously, I didn't understand a single thing. Is high school this hard?)
Then again, I've always been more about sports than studies, so how would I know what's easy or hard?
Since I didn't even bring a bag, I got up to leave the classroom empty-handed.
"Sehwa."
Mina called out to me.
"What?"
"We live close by, so… wanna walk home together?"
(Why's she acting like this all of a sudden?)
I glanced at the tattooed duo staring at me with gleaming eyes and ran a hand through my hair.
I could guess what was going on, but I was still a bit puzzled by Mina's offer.
"Sure. How do you get home? I feel like walking today."
"Oh! I walk too. See, we've got something in common!"
Seeing Mina bounce back to her usual self stirred a strange feeling in me.
Ignoring the odd sensation, I started to leave the classroom with her when Hyemin spoke up.
"You two going together?"
"Yup. Our houses are close."
"…Hmm. Alright, see you later then."
After saying goodbye to the tattooed duo, we left the school and passed through an intersection.
kThere are a lot of buildings when you walk. Didn't notice since I took a taxi.)
They weren't as tall as the skyscrapers in Gangnam's city center, but the buildings here were still pretty high and densely packed.
"How is it? Way more people than our neighborhood, right?"
"Yeah, tons. And a lot of academies too. Must be because it's near the school."
While answering Mina, my eyes were busy searching for something.
Guess the stress really piled up today, huh? I didn't even realize I was looking.
"Sehwa, you looking for something?"
Mina asked as I kept glancing around, but the moment I saw it, the pent-up frustration and suppressed longing inside me exploded, lifting my spirits.
It left me speechless.
All because of the words glowing in neon on that building's sign.
_________________________________________
Translated by Reversalmanhwa.web.id
/ Reversalnovel.web.id