SMNTCERR, Chapter 3 <1> #3.
[NonPaddler 3 is Calling…]
Sangwoo noticed the text displayed on the screen simultaneously, and at that moment, the ringing sound from the other party’s mobile phone became louder. The young man picked up his phone from his jacket pocket with a calm expression before bursting into laughter. Sangwoo himself saw that the other party had saved his name as something amusing.
[The Scoundrel is Calling!]
Sangwoo was startled to the point of forgetting to pick up his notebook and other belongings. He then rushed out of the meeting room, so caught up in the moment that he didn’t even think to turn around and see if the other party was calling him or just sitting there.
Twenty minutes ago, he lost his train of thought of that time frame. When he returned to the room, Sangwoo locked the door behind him and took a moment to catch his breath. He stumbled as he ran up the stairs, feeling a sharp pain in his knees. His body felt exhausted as he walked over to the refrigerator, opened it, and grabbed a bottle of water to quench his thirst.
“Fucking hell.”
It was all a blur. Sangwoo had locked himself out of his own phone until he finally managed to unlock it with trembling hands. He saw that there were no incoming calls, just a contact named ‘NonPaddler 3.’ Then, messages and missed call notifications started popping up. Five days ago, ‘NonPaddler 3,’ or Jang Jaeyoung, had sent a message asking for understanding and requesting to meet Sangwoo. He admitted fault without directly telling the group leader anything but informed other members within the group. The messages seemed threatening.
[NonPaddler 3: You will regret this_2:00 yesterday.] That was the last message.
Sangwoo quickly scanned the text before returning to his chilling thoughts. He considered himself a talented designer, but deep down, he knew he had a bad personality, made mistakes, and lacked conscience. It was fortunate that he realized this before starting the project. Although he felt some regret after seeing the other party’s artwork, he had high expectations but ultimately had to make a firm decision. He had no intention of collaborating with one of those troublemakers. Likewise, that senior probably didn’t want to work with him either.
‘I didn’t do anything wrong.’
Although having a fight with the other party was beyond expectations, Sangwoo was confident that it was all the senior’s own fault. Nevertheless, the suffocating feeling in his heart didn’t dissipate. There was no logical reason for him to feel this way, but Sangwoo continued to brood over his phone before eventually falling asleep in the dark morning. …
The next morning, the message notifications were already waiting.
[NonPaddler 3: Sangwoo-ya, let’s talk [1]_08:56.]
Sangwoo rubbed his eyes, still half-asleep, and glanced at the screen of his mobile phone. When he was a child, people in the neighborhood used nicknames to address him, so he grew up without a real name. In college, he became StudentSangwoo, the senior Sangwoo, and then Chu Sangwoo. When he entered the military, he became Private Chu, Sergeant Chu, Lieutenant Chu, Captain Chu, and the person they called Sangwoo-ya. In this world, there were only his parents and himself.
[Wrong number, dude_09:01.]
- [NonPaddler 3: Chu Sangwoo, 25 years old, Computer Engineering Third Year, took leave to work at the government office and just returned to study in September, not part of any clubs, doesn’t participate in student activities_09:02.]
- [NonPaddler 3: If you don’t want to make things worse, let’s talk while I still intend to speak nicely_09:02.]
The content seemed a little scary. Sangwoo stared at his phone, reading the message repeatedly. In the meantime, new messages kept coming in.
[NonPaddler 3: Today, meet me at the university’s main gate at 6 o’clock_09:05.]
[NonPaddler 3: I won’t punch you_09:06.]
“It’s a joke.”
Sangwoo held his phone tightly, suppressing a cold laugh. He hadn’t done anything wrong, so why should he believe the other party?
“Did he investigate me? Should I report it to the police?”
Sangwoo belonged to those who relied on the power of the state. He knew well what situations should be reported to the police.
He slowly read the messages on his phone screen again. Although he didn’t know what would happen when they met, the threat was clear. However, he wasn’t afraid because there was no way for the other party to harm him. Sangwoo was a dedicated student, focused solely on his studies. He never got involved in any other university activities. The only ones who could attack him within the university were the professors.
return 0;.
Three days passed. Sangwoo thought that the intense conflict had come to an end, but that was just his foolish thinking. He was working at an internet cafe near the university. How long could he avoid meeting students from the same institution? Think about it realistically, and you’ll know.
While Sangwoo was organizing pastries into boxes, a mischievous group of friends walked in through the door. When he saw Sangwoo, the tallest person in the group slowed down.
“What a coincidence, just having a meal together… that’s it.”
If his gaze hadn’t been so sharp, Sangwoo probably wouldn’t have remembered who that person was. They exchanged glances as if time had stopped, and then the eyes behind the big glasses blinked before narrowing. At that moment, the background image seemed to disappear. Suddenly, thoughts like “End it already.” “I’m annoyed.” “I want to escape from here.” flooded his mind. Sangwoo felt inexplicably tense, causing the bag of pastries to slip from his hand.
In Sangwoo’s mind, he prepared himself for the fight, but Jang Jaeyoung acted as if he didn’t know him and just took a service card and walked away.
As all five of them disappeared into the smoking area [2] Sangwoo returned to sit at the counter once again. Although his eyes were fixed on textbooks and notebooks, he was absent-minded.
When he looked up, he saw Jaeyoung’s head emerging from the screen slightly. Sangwoo glanced at the other side’s screen to see what game he was playing or which website he was browsing. Jaeyoung had opened a website with information about a game and entered an online RPG. He was hunting monsters for a couple of rounds to gain experience. Then he switched to playing FPS games, two matches. Meanwhile, the other side switched to playing an MMORPG. Sangwoo was reading a book but didn’t turn the page.
‘Are you just going to let it slide like this?’
Seeing the threatening message, he considered using force, but judging by the calm demeanor, it seemed like Jaeyoung intended to bury the issue. And Sangwoo thought that this might be the best conclusion, but it was merely wishful thinking.
[Order from customer number 32: Explosive Spicy Ramen.]
‘Alright then.’
Sangwoo took a deep breath and got up to cook the explosive spicy ramen. He measured 450 milliliters of water according to the recipe and took more time than usual to boil it. He broke the noodle block in half and put it in the pot while waiting for the soup to boil. It occurred to Sangwoo that in the past, when he had issues with someone, their anger would often engulf him, leading him to spew out insults or even resort to violence. But this time, he didn’t let his emotions run wild. Instead of responding to aggression with aggression, he chose to take a step back and notify the police. That’s what he planned to do this time.
The smoking area was filled with cigarette smoke. Sangwoo held a tray under the cup and walked over to stand in front of table number 32. The young man sat leaning back in the chair, smoking a cigarette. When Sangwoo placed the tray down, the other side turned the chair around and looked at Sangwoo with narrow eyes. Today, he was wearing a red letterman jacket with a pattern on the chest, and just by looking at him, one could tell he was crazy.
His appearance truly resembled a jester.
‘Don’t you like me at all.’
Sangwoo turned around. The other side spoke up.
“I didn’t know you, a loyal and honest hubaenim was working here.” Jang Jaeyoung mumbled, flicking his cigarette ashes into the ashtray. Then he slowly shifted his gaze back to Sangwoo.
“Why did you ignore my call? Are you worried?” Sangwoo didn’t know how to respond. No matter how intimidating or threatening someone might be, he was confident in his ability to handle it with courage. But he had never encountered an opponent who chose to provoke him in such a calm manner.
“Sangwoo, why did you not answer my call?” The tone of Jaeyoung’s voice was softer than expected, not inviting conflict. Sangwoo decided to take a step back and reveal his true intentions.
“Please speak directly if you have any business.”
“Let’s talk face to face.”
That’s not a difficult request, Sangwoo raised his head and locked eyes with the other side. This time, that person averted their gaze, took out another cigarette, lit it, and remained silent for a while, surrounded by smoke. Then they made eye contact with Sangwoo again and extended their right hand abruptly.
“Shall we play a game together first or shall we make peace up?” The large hand reaching out felt insincere. Sangwoo felt uneasy.
“How can we make peace if we’ve never fought? Besides, I don’t work with seniors.”
Jaeyoung just laughed without saying a word, keeping his hand withdrawn.
“Why do you think I wanted to meet you?”
“I don’t know.”
“You lack imagination.”
“sunbaenim, just because we meet doesn’t mean your scores will change. sunbaejim, you smart enough to get into university. At least try to understand that.”
Jaeyoung hugged himself, revealing a twisted smile.
“What scores? It’s been a long time since the score correction period ended.”
“If that’s the case, why bother leaving me waiting and picking a fight with me?”
“I don’t know.”
“You lack imagination.”
“Once I encounter you, it’s true that the scores of the senior class will change. The seniors are smart enough to get into university, at least they should understand this matter.”
Jaeyoung hugged his chest and revealed a twisted smile.
“Scores? It’s been a while since the score adjustment period ended.”
“If that’s the case, why bother keeping me here and looking for trouble with me?”
“Looking for trouble? You’re the junior that Sooyeong recommended. Now, what about the project we have to do? I just wanted to talk about that, that’s all. I’m trying to listen to your reasoning and correct any misunderstandings so that things can go smoothly.”
“I don’t want to talk to you, sunbae.”
“Then just say it straightforwardly.”
Sangwoo felt that the other party’s tone became more aggressive.
“What? Sangwoo realized, where did your manners go?”
Sangwoo felt uneasy about the calm and composed way the other party insulted him. He kept tapping his phone to quickly retrieve it and call the police when he saw the situation turning sour, but this was too light. He didn’t really know how to respond.
He thought that if he apologized right here, the matter would probably end. But Sangwoo continued to act according to his settings. He gave the command to the other party as “enemy.”
“I don’t understand why this is my fault.”
He had argued with a teacher like this before and ended up being rebuked. Later, he was warned repeatedly that if he wanted a good life, he should improve himself. Since then, he had been controlling himself all along, but now he couldn’t hold back. That’s why Jaeyoung replied without caring.
“If you didn’t talk nonsense with the teacher, wouldn’t I have graduated? Because of you, I had to give up on studying abroad. Because of those two credits.”
“That’s not my fault.” Sangwoo responded.
“Sangwoo-ya.”
“Don’t act like we’re close. If someone else marks the attendance and you can still graduate, then the students who attend class must be really stupid.
And I’ll be considered easy just because I’m willing to put down the name of someone with a bad attitude hoping to get a score without doing anything in the report. Is that who I am?”
Sangwoo’s disagreement didn’t seem to surprise Jaeyoung in the slightest.
“That’s just who you are.”
“Can I go yet? sunbaenim?”
“No. I’m not done talking.”
He took a deep drag of his cigarette and exhaled the smoke.
“You don’t need to judge me. Who do you think you are? A prince, a police officer? Don’t act all authoritative. You damn brat.”
“Understood, sunbaenim. Then feel free to keep treating yourself like trash from now on and don’t contact me again.”
“Damn it, you’re so full of yourself.”
Jaeyoung stubbed out his cigarette and looked at Sangwoo with a cold expression.
“Did I ask you to kneel down and apologize? Did I ask you to go ask the teacher for a score for me? If you want things to end nicely, shouldn’t you be a little more remorseful? Hey, I did all this just so you could catch me in the act, didn’t I?”
Sangwoo looked puzzled by the other party’s vulgar words.
“I don’t understand what you’re saying, sunbaenim. If you want me to do something, just tell me straightforwardly.”
Sangwoo didn’t mean any harm, but Jaeyoung’s face turned as if he was being attacked. He opened his mouth hesitantly before raising his hand to hug himself and turning his back, clearly displaying his dissatisfaction on his face.
“Say that you’re truly sorry for causing me to miss out on good opportunities to study abroad.”
That wasn’t difficult. Sangwoo kept his mouth shut confidently because that statement contained some falsehoods.
“First of all, sunbae, you didn’t graduate because you didn’t attend classes and didn’t submit assignments. It’s not because of me. And secondly, I don’t feel sorry.”
When the feedback [3] was returned the words would transform into, ‘You missed out on good opportunities to further your education.’ That would be an explanation based on the truth, and it worked. No harm done, but the reproachful tone became louder.
“You’re crazy, damn it!”
Sangwoo had heard such words many times before, so he didn’t feel anything at all. Jaeyoung swiveled his chair back towards the computer screen.
Then, he picked up a cup of ramen with chopsticks.
“That’s enough. Take it.”
He pushed the tray with the cup of ramyeon back towards Sangwoo.
“Keep it.”
Sangwoo took the tray without saying a word, intending to leave. But Jaeyoung called him back.
“Hey.”
“What is it?”
“We shouldn’t see each other again.”
That was the best news Sangwoo had heard since he started listening. It felt like driving away an enemy unintentionally, as the other party raised his hands with a bitter expression.
“I finish work at 4:00 AM. You can come out after that.”
“You nerve-wracking idiot.”
Sangwoo cursed inwardly and left the smoking area. return 0;
________________________________________
- The ‘-ya’ in ‘Sangwoo-ya’, it is a suffix used to address family members or close friends, used as a suffix for names that do not have spelling. If the name has spelling, ‘-ya’’ is used.
- Smoking area in an internet cafe. In Korean internet cafes, the rooms are divided into smoking areas for customers who want to smoke while using the service, and non-smoking areas for customers who do not smoke and do not want cigarette smells.
- Feedback. In this context, it refers to data that is the result displayed by a computer program, and there is a command to input the resulting data back into the program during a certain period of time.
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