Ch.19My Side or Their Side (1)

A week after the entrance ceremony and the start of the new semester,

our class was finally beginning to establish some order.

“Attention, bow.”

“Thank you.”

Our Class 1-1 now had a proper class president.

Her name was Ahn Seong-kyung.

Unlike Do Ha-min’s slightly smudged glasses that looked a bit greasy,

she was a girl characterized by shiny red horn-rimmed glasses so polished that they reflected the face of whoever was looking at her.

From the very first class president election, she boldly nominated herself and declared her desire to become president.

The students of Class 1, including myself, cast our votes as if enchanted by Seong-kyung’s eloquence and those intellectual red horn-rimmed glasses,

and Ahn Seong-kyung was elected by an overwhelming margin.

Judging by how her voice became more forceful as soon as she became class president,

she seemed like the type who had been eagerly claiming the class president position since elementary and middle school,

the kind of kid who loves to meddle in everything.

Every class had one of these when I was younger.

Girls with eye-catching colored glasses frames and a no-nonsense personality.

I wonder if she’ll still wear those red horn-rimmed glasses when she’s an adult.

Whatever else, she’d probably write a good movie review.

“Thank you for your hard work, teacher.”

“Ah, yes. By the way, tell that student dozing off in the back to go wash their face in the bathroom.”

“Ahem.”

“Ban Do-young, is that you again?”

A piercing gaze shot through those red horn-rims.

Ahn Seong-kyung’s fierce glare turned toward me even faster than the teacher’s.

“Ah, Do-young. So annoying. You’re getting drool all over your desk.”

“Yaaawn… I’m sorry. It wasn’t intentional.”

“Haaa… seriously.”

“…”

Since becoming class president, Ahn Seong-kyung would heave a deep sigh whenever classmates were reprimanded by teachers,

as if making sure we all heard it.

Her gaze was especially sharp when directed at me.

“Sorry, teacher. I stayed up all night over the weekend.”

Of course, I had no excuse, so I had to bow my head and apologize quietly.

Even if I had my reasons, I had fallen asleep, ignoring the content the teacher had carefully prepared.

“You’re not the only one who’s tired and sleepy. I studied until 2 AM last night. While you were staying up all night playing around.”

“…”

“Hey, enough. Enough. What’s the point of saying that when class is already over? Just stay awake for the next teacher so they don’t feel embarrassed.”

“Yes, sir. Absolutely, sir.”

I saluted the math teacher who had forgiven me, showing my respect.

I added exaggerated gestures to smooth things over without hurting anyone’s feelings.

“Seriously… everyone’s so lenient with Ban Do-young. Especially the male teachers.”

However, that seemed to only further provoke Ahn Seong-kyung’s anger.

“Sorry, Class President. I’ll really stay awake next time. Just let it slide this once.”

“…”

Ahn Seong-kyung is someone who flaunts her model student status even more than Do Ha-min.

Kids like Ban Do-young, who supposedly don’t care about studying and just fool around, must be quite the thorn in her side.

Well, I understand.

What angers rule-followers the most isn’t the lack of reward for following rules,

but when rule-breakers don’t receive appropriate punishment.

Since I was the one who did wrong, I had no right to say her criticism was excessive.

From Ahn Seong-kyung’s perspective,

I must look like a student who receives favoritism from teachers despite not following the rules.

Simply because I’m “pretty,” or if not that, because I’m the “heroine” of this world.

“Well, I’m off. Good work, everyone.”

“Thank you for your hard work, goodbye!”

During the break after the second period math class,

I finally started cleaning up the mess on my desk that had accumulated while I was asleep.

“Here’s your math workbook.”

“Ah, thanks. When did it end up over there? Did you catch it?”

“Well, it fell onto my desk.”

Do Ha-min handed me my math workbook that had somehow fallen to the floor.

Fortunately, he seemed to have caught and kept it before it fell somewhere farther.

“It’s a bit damp with drool in places. You didn’t lick it, did you?”

“I-I wouldn’t do something like that. No matter what. I just set it aside because my notebook would have gotten wet too if I’d left it there.”

“Hey, you could have just woken me up. Are you trying to be the only model student here?”

“Well… I thought about waking you, but you looked like you were sleeping not because you disliked the class, but because you were really exhausted.”

That was a somewhat unexpected answer.

This Do Ha-min guy. Had he been carefully observing Miss Ban Do-young’s sleeping face?

“So now you can tell what state I’m in just by looking at my face? Hmm, not bad.”

“N-no. It’s not just you specifically. My mom sometimes collapses into sleep like that after finishing her night shift. It feels wrong to wake her up at times like that.”

Do Ha-min’s observation wasn’t wrong.

I had been cleaning the dojo with my dad since Saturday afternoon without a wink of sleep.

It’s only natural that I’d show the same haggardness as someone who’d worked an overnight shift.

“The class president kept giving us looks from behind. The math teacher let it slide, though.”

“Do-young, you missed it! During class, the math teacher wrote a college entrance exam problem on the board as a joke, saying no one could solve it, but Ha-min solved it right away!”

“Really? There was an event like that?”

While I was asleep,

apparently there had been an event in this world that showcased Do Ha-min’s intellectual abilities.

After staying up all night cleaning for a mother I’ve never even seen,

I, who am possessed by the main heroine, missed a stage where the protagonist could have shined.

“Only the class president and Ha-min raised their hands, but the president got it wrong and Ha-min got it right.”

“Huh…”

“You really don’t know, Do-young. This is pretty serious.”

“Well anyway, she gave up on math back in middle school. She probably wouldn’t know even if she’d been awake.”

“I’ll admit that.”

So you weren’t even trying hard in middle school either?

This Ban Do-young girl.

“So? Let’s hear what exactly you did over the weekend to be in such a pitiful state.”

Sa-hyang and Hye-rang turned their chairs toward me and Ha-min, resting their elbows on my desk.

“What were you doing all weekend without contacting us that has you looking like this in the morning?”

“Huh?”

“Being late was common in middle school, but I thought you’d improve a little in high school.”

“Did something happen after Saturday?”

“Ah… well, you see.”

“Hey, Ban Do-young.”

Just then, Class President Ahn Seong-kyung, who sat in the front row near the teacher’s desk, adjusted her red horn-rimmed glasses and approached me.

“Ah, Class President. Sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to do it on purpose, it just happened.”

“Listen, how about showing some self-restraint? Our class already has troublemakers like Jung-gyu from Seongdong Middle School making it hard to create a good study environment.”

As expected.

By Ahn Seong-kyung’s standards, I was being lumped together with guys like Jung-gyu.

“Not everyone here is like you, just going through the motions at school. There are many of us who want to study properly and find our path. Being the ‘goddess of Bulsa Middle School’ with your looks and connections might have worked in middle school, but not anymore. Don’t you agree?”

After hearing the class president’s words,

I glanced sideways at Do Ha-min.

It seemed that when Ahn Seong-kyung referred to those who came to school with the purpose of studying,

she was talking about Do Ha-min beside me.

“Ban Do-young, I know you’re a local here, and I know all the teachers have known you since middle school and treat you with kid gloves, but tone it down a bit. Honestly, messing around with and distracting a guy who’s less assertive than you when you’re not even interested—it doesn’t look good, you know?”

“Hey, Ahn Seong-kyung. Does being class president mean you can say whatever you want? Do-young wasn’t the only one sleeping during math class—”

“Choi Sa-hyang. I appreciate it, but just stay out of this.”

“Do-young…?”

“She’s not saying anything wrong. Just wait.”

I gently pressed Sa-hyang’s shoulder to keep her from jumping out of her chair.

Up to this point, it was criticism that could reasonably come from a class president and someone who diligently fulfilled her student duties.

“I admit I was wrong about earlier. I couldn’t sleep because something came up over the weekend.”

“Hmph… I bet you were just running around playing with some guy. Slut.”

“Hey, Ahn Seong-kyung!”

“Apologize to Do-young for what you just said, now.”

“What, did I say something wrong? At least guys like Jung-gyu don’t come to school much. You’re here disrupting people who are trying to study. If you’re just going to mess with Do Ha-min who’s not even interested in you, making weird jokes, why don’t you just go outside with guys like Jung-gyu—”

“Fine, then let’s just ask directly without wasting words. Whether I’m a disturbance or not.”

*Thump*

Right in front of Ahn Seong-kyung, I put both my legs on Do Ha-min’s knees.

“Ban Do-young… you!”

“W-wait a second. Why are you on my knees again?”

“Hey, model student. Do you dislike having me next to you? Am I a hindrance to your life?”

“If you suddenly ask something like that…”

“No, let me just ask you this way.”

Crossing my legs at an angle where my white lime-patterned panties were subtly almost visible,

I asked Do Ha-min:

“Are you on my side, or someone else’s?”