SMNTCERR, Chapter 16 <11> #3.
The playground path they walked on still had the sign that said, ‘Drama Club Filming in Progress,’ pinned up as usual. Even though it had been a fake sign for three days, now he knew the truth… Sangwoo kicked the sign until it broke and then threw it into the trash bin.
When they walked on the snatched path, tranquility visited them. Even with Jaeyoung by his side. Sangwoo took out a coffee can and sipped from it, walking on the path where he could close his eyes.
“You’re not too brave, are you?”
Sangwoo hurried his steps a little, not wanting to be disturbed. Of course, Jaeyoung followed and walked at the same speed.
“Do you know what I’m going to do with just the two of us like this?”
“Are you a delinquent?”
“…What harsh words!”
“If you’re not a delinquent, then don’t worry about it. I’m just asking if you’re a delinquent, that’s all. Do you have a black heart?”
“If you want to gather 191 people, the ones you like, it will take time, so be careful.”
He clenched his teeth and spoke. Sangwoo smirked and looked at
Jaeyoung, who was wearing a nice coat. He had a tall, slender body, but didn’t look as strong as those fighting athletes.
“Sunbae, you don’t seem very skilled in fighting.”
“Oh, really? Then, are you working out?”
Sangwoo used to learn taekwondo a long time ago, but since entering high school, he prioritized his studies. Besides cycling around his neighborhood or to the university, he hadn’t done any other exercises.
“I used to. But now, not so much.”
“Next time, play basketball with me. I won’t let you touch the ball at all.”
“No, thanks. And also, please stop increasing the number of other people’s family members.”
At the end of the path was the soccer field under construction. Sangwoo walked up to the Faculty of Natural Sciences automatically, stood in his usual spot, aimed at the can, and threw it into the trash bin. The can curved beautifully into the second leaf of the bin. Sangwoo felt relieved as if he had built a card castle again after being blown down by someone.
Next was the library. Sangwoo sat in his reserved seat, while Jaeyoung sat next to him, not borrowing any books this time, and twirled a pen. Sangwoo took out his study book and notebook. As he hung his bag on the chair, Jaeyoung took the notebook away.
“Give it back. That’s stealing, you know.”
Jaeyoung glanced boredly and flipped the back cover of the notebook, looking at the price tag. Then, he reached into his leather wallet, taking out two banknotes and placing them on Sangwoo’s desk. Sangwoo was speechless. If it had been an important notebook, he would have reported it to the police, but it was just a practice book. Instead of wasting time arguing with Jaeyoung, he took out a similar-looking notebook from his bag instead.
From now on, the disturbance would start again because one heart was waiting for the sound of flipping paper. He picked up the earplugs, which were the third round of ammunition, from his backpack and put them in both ears. Then he didn’t hear the disturbing sound anymore. Even though he was puzzled by Jihye’s first two instructions, the third one might work.
It was a bit uncomfortable wearing the earplugs, but the advantage was that it blocked out the sound for real. He felt that he would be able to concentrate for several days and read a book. But before he could read a single page, he could feel eyes staring at him.
When he looked to the right, he found Jaeyoung sitting there and drawing something in the notebook. He sat with a professional attitude and occasionally glanced between Sangwoo and the concealed notebook, shifting the pen in his mouth.
‘Behaving strangely again.’
Sangwoo opened the partition on the right and turned his face back to the book. After a minute passed, he looked sideways with concern and noticed that the partition had been silently folded down because he couldn’t hear it due to the earplugs. He set up the partition again, but Jaeyoung put it down again. It had been like this for three rounds. Sangwoo was about to explode. He thought he would be able to read a book today, but it seemed like he would miss out again.
After setting up the partition again, he used his right arm to hold it firmly so that it wouldn’t fall down and continued reading. At first, it was okay, but after a while, he could feel the piercing gaze again. This time, Jaeyoung stood up, swept his gaze diagonally at Sangwoo, and drew a picture.
‘That crazy guy.’
Sangwoo cursed silently, realizing he needed group work assistance. He prepared a cup of coffee with compassion and even left a pathway for walking. In the end, he just kept writing the script until the professor scolded him, and he stared beside him without any concentration.
Although it would be better than wearing a red duck feather jacket, the green coat was still annoying. Sangwoo decided to move and read the book at home. Even though the table at home was not as big as the library table, and the light was dimmer, if he stayed here and couldn’t do anything like this, it would be better to go home and read.
He pulled out the earplugs forcefully, preparing to put them in his bag. At that moment, he heard a loud tearing sound from the side. After putting the textbooks into his bag and turning back, Jaeyoung had moved the paper to the front.
“A gift.”
The other party drew a cartoon-like picture in the notebook. It was a realistic sketch that resembled a political cartoon character in an American newspaper. A puffed-up cheek, squinted eyes, pointed finger, black-painted lower part under the eyes, downturned mouth, and a disproportionately large black cap. Sangwoo tore the picture into pieces right away.
“Too much.”
He ignored Jaeyoung’s mumbled complaints and picked up every piece of paper in his hand, then stopped by the trash bin and threw them away while walking out.
“Do you know how much money I make by illustrating for magazines?”
“And what does it have to do with me?”
“I’ll tell you that it’s not something you can easily tear apart.”
“I tore it because sunbae, you are the one who drew it. Not because it wasn’t beautiful.”
“But you’re still drinking the coffee I gave you.”
“Senior is not the one who made it.”
“Just say what you want to say.”
He left the library at 1:32 PM. It was a complete waste of time. As Sangwoo hopped on his bike, Jaeyoung shouted from afar.
“Sangwoo!”
“What is it?”
“Even though it’s a bit early, have sweet dreams.”
It’s a meaningless phrase whether spoken in the scorching midday or whispered in the dead of night. He had no way of feeling pleased to hear it.
“Wish bad dreams for you, sunbae.” With that said, he pedaled down the slope. return 0;
The next day turned out better than before. On Friday, there were only elective classes. Jaeyoung dozed off on his desk during the first and second periods. Sangwoo absentmindedly picked up the pen he left behind the day before and thought about the incident that made him upset. At the same time, he tried to focus on his studies. Even though he sat next to Jaeyoung, he managed to maintain a usable mood.
“Want me to treat you to lunch again today?”
After school, Jaeyoung offered to treat Sangwoo to a free meal without any reason, just like before. If it were someone else, Sangwoo would probably accept, but because it was the other party, he pondered in his head first.
[1.) Accept.
Profit in monetary form, Y / Stress, Y = Minimal damage.
2) Reject. – In the case that Jang Jaeyoung follows me to the cafeteria.
Profit in monetary form, N / Stress, Y = Significant damage.
3) Reject. – In the case that Jang Jaeyoung suggests going to a different restaurant.
Profit in monetary form, N / Stress, N = Maintain the status quo.
If he agrees, he has to eat with Jaeyoung 100% and there will be stressful issues. But if he refuses, Jaeyoung will follow him. Apart from not getting a free meal, there will be more stressful matters depending on the reaction of the other party. Therefore, he couldn’t do anything but gamble and see what happens.
“No, thank you.”
“Then shall we eat at the cafeteria today?”
“Yes.”
“I’m a fan of the university cafeteria, you know.”
Fortunately, the lucky number was 3, after Jaeyoung went somewhere else.. Sangwoo went to the cafeteria alone, got Korean food as usual, and walked to sit quietly in a secluded corner to enjoy his meal, relieved that it was slower than usual by just one minute, so it was still considered good. But when he came out, he found Jaeyoung waiting at the exit of the cafeteria.
“Oh.”
Obviously, it was a ‘black-hole.’ Sangwoo took a can like before, checked the condition on the outside and shook it. When he saw that there were no problems, he opened the can. While taking the first sip, Jaeyoung asked strange questions.
“Do you want to perform a short drama?”
“Of course.”
“In that case, let’s go together for a while.”
If you want to perform a good short drama, do you have to go to a specific place? It’s a really strange instruction.
“Where should we go, sunbae?”
“Let’s go find our costumes.”
“Why do we need to do that?”
“We have to play as rival dynasty merchants. Otherwise, are we to wear tshirts with English prints or something?”
“But this is our free time to hang out.”
“We can do that later.”
Jaeyoung made a bored face and finally pulled Sangwoo’s wrist to make him follow along.
“This is using force. I will report it. I said I would report it.”
Sangwoo shouted while holding the phone in his other hand. Jaeyoung frowned, snatched the phone, and put it in his own pants pocket. The other party was stronger than he thought.
“Today, I’ll make sure you get a red line drawn [1].”
“This narrow-mindedness, what makes you think I need help like this? If it’s done from here and you still feel threatened, just let me know. No restrictions.”
Do you really want to help? Sangwoo wondered, but he decided to trust the other side’s words. When he agreed, Jaeyoung released his grip.
“So you’re a merchant, right?”
“Yes.”
It’s certain. Merchants have a lot to say, and the possibility of getting a good score is high as well.
“So I’m just a customer being fooled over the phone, huh?”
Jaeyoung only led him to the student club building without specifying where they were going. When they reached the stairs, Jaeyoung stopped in front of a room labeled “Drama Club.”
When they opened the door, they were greeted with stage props, masks, and scattered clothes. On a small refrigerator, there were canned coffee, blackhole, piled snacks. On the wall, theater season posters were pasted one on top of another. On the sofa, two male students were playing football on a gaming console [2].
“You’re here already, Jaeyoung-sunbae.”
“Do whatever you want. Don’t mind me.”
Jaeyoung didn’t care about those people. He moved the mannequin aside and opened the door behind it. Then Sangwoo followed the path indicated by the other party.
In that narrow room, there were clotheslines on all three sides of the wall. Various types of clothes were tightly hung. Jaeyoung took a wooden stick and searched for clothes, while Sangwoo followed suit by searching the lower rack for clothes that people in the previous dynasty might wear, but it wasn’t easy.
“What’s this?”
Jaeyoung found a set of clothes that could be used among the dozens of sets. It was a yellow jumpsuit with long sleeves from the neck to the wrists, with bands at the waist and sleeves, and a complex pattern in gold on the chest. Then he picked up another set that was similar in style but purple.
“Which set is better, this one or that one?”
“They look the same to me.”
“The edges are different. The lines are not the same.”
“Any set will do. Just pay attention to the short Chinese language drama. It’s strange to care about clothes this size.”
“If you want a full score, you have to do this. I’ll choose this one.”
Jaeyoung chose a yellow set that looked similar in style. “Actually, in
Sangwoo’s eyes, they looked almost identical.” It seemed like he liked that set.
“Try looking for the wig over there.”
Sangwoo did as the other party instructed. He sat and searched through the box intently but found nothing. He reached out to grab another box to continue searching, but suddenly Jaeyoung also sat and stared in the same manner, only focusing on the legs of the other side. Now, he was being replaced by a new face.
“Move back a little.”
“Oh, got it.”
Jaeyoung remained motionless, not even flinching, despite Sangwoo’s words. Sangwoo searched the box with a feeling of unease. Although he found nothing, he felt relieved. When he looked up, he discovered that his own hat was in Jaeyoung’s hand. Sangwoo examined the other side, who remained still like a statue, without any clear indication of what he intended to do. If one were to judge solely based on the hat mentioned since yesterday, Sangwoo guessed that he probably wanted it.
“It’s just an old hat I’ve been wearing for a long time. Please go buy one yourself.”
Jaeyoung simply stared at Sangwoo.
“If from now on, you don’t come to find me, I will buy a similar one for you, sunbae.”
Although Sangwoo proposed with the phrase “If.” he guessed that the other party would not agree. If he were to borrow Jaeyoung’s words, it would mean that if it were a matter that can be solved with a cheap hat like this, it wouldn’t have come to this point.
Jaeyoung’s reaction seemed somewhat peculiar, not at all what Sangwoo had anticipated. Whether it was a scornful smile, a sarcastic remark, or even wearing a hat for himself, it ended up being an outstretched hand held in front of Sangwoo.
“There’s something stuck right here.”
His long, slender fingers slowly moved closer. Although there was time to avoid the touch, Sangwoo became rigid with an inexplicable sense of resistance.
Next, Jaeyoung’s index finger and middle finger gently touched Sangwoo’s forehead, and the moment their fingertips made contact with his temple, static electricity sparked.
Sangwoo tightened the box and pulled back, the sudden intense stimulation causing him to resist with his spiritual energy, which swept away the other party’s hand.
“Give it back please.”
“It’s better not to wear too many hats. Why do you only cover your face and hide your eyes like that?”
“It’s my business.”
He extended his hand, but Jaeyoung still didn’t return the hat, making Sangwoo on the verge of getting angry.
“Please give me back the hat.”
“Why? Let me see your face for a moment.”
“Hey, I said give it back?”
Since he was born, it was the first time Sangwoo spoke without a trace of respect for his seniors. Sangwoo moved forward and snatched the hat from Jaeyoung’s hand. Their chests brushed against each other for a moment before Jaeyoung fell backward, but Sangwoo quickly got up and ran out of the dressing room.
________________________________________.
[1] The red line represents spoken language, indicating a criminal history. In this case, Sangwoo intended to say that he would make Jaeyoung have a criminal history.
[2] A game console, or video game console, is a gaming device that displays images through a screen on the device or television. There are both home gaming consoles like PlayStation, Xbox, and portable gaming consoles like Nintendo Switch.
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