Ch.22My Side or Their Side (4)

Just moments ago, An Seong-kyung had been sitting with her skirt gathered in front of the gymnasium entrance. Somehow, she had now made her way into the gym storage room that had been opened to retrieve the balls.

*Click*

And An Seong-kyung, avoiding the eyes of the other students, locked the door from inside the storage room.

“…Didn’t the teacher give the storage key to the vice class president earlier?”

“I got it back. I told him to give me the key and that I’d stay behind to close and organize the storage room, so he could go play futsal with the others like he wanted. That bastard Hyun Myung-soo. He was so happy he just tossed the key at me and left. He didn’t want to do it. Such a bothersome task.”

“Well… it’s understandable to feel upset when work is suddenly and unexpectedly dumped on you.”

“I don’t see it that way. Getting the storage key from the teacher, opening and closing the door, managing it—I think these are things I should naturally do and take responsibility for as class president.”

“…”

“If I lock it from the inside, no one can come in anyway, even with a key.”

The dimly lit gym storage room was now sealed off from outside intrusion. Through the barred windows, faint sunlight filtered in, illuminating the damp dust particles floating in the air.

“Sniff, sniff. Ugh. That musty smell. Exactly the kind I hate. Like the damp odor from boys’ shirts when they come back after running around the playground during the ten-minute break, claiming they were playing soccer.”

“You know it in detail.”

“W-well, because it stinks!”

An Seong-kyung pinched her nose at the smell rising from the sports equipment, then dusted off an old chair in the back of the storage room and sat down on it.

She couldn’t possibly put her school uniform skirt on the storage room floor with its sticky feeling.

“Why did you deliberately come here?”

“You needed a place to talk privately too, right? Somewhere you could speak without worrying about Ban Do-young’s watchful eyes.”

The gym storage room was a place where sunlight barely penetrated, except through the tiny barred windows installed for minimal ventilation.

Because of this, just a short distance away from where the sunlight streamed in, it was impossible to see what was happening inside the storage room.

“You can talk comfortably here without worrying about others, Do Ha-min.”

And now, Ha-min, whom Do-young had been desperately searching for until just moments ago, was also in this gym storage room with An Seong-kyung.

‘Huh? Do Ha-min? No, I don’t know where he is.’

‘When we called everyone for futsal and he didn’t show up, I figured he was hiding somewhere. I mean, he just has that kind of face.’

‘We didn’t call him either. He’s not tall enough for basketball in the first place, right? If he showed interest, we could include him, but it feels awkward to force him if he’s not interested.’

‘The class president…? Now that you mention it, he’s not here. Maybe he snuck back to the classroom by himself?’

‘That’s possible. He was totally embarrassed in math class when he couldn’t solve the problem that Do Ha-min solved.’

While no one knew the whereabouts of Ha-min and An Seong-kyung, the two of them were alone in the dim gym storage room.

.

.

.

“I was a bit surprised. I didn’t expect you to approach me first, wanting to talk.”

The end of An Seong-kyung’s voice lifted slightly, just a little. It had a slightly different feel from the cold tone she usually used when dealing with Ban Do-young’s group. It was closer to the voice of someone feeling nervous when talking to someone they’re interested in, rather than the voice of a class president or superior.

“You were looking at me earlier while running on the field, right? And then you got scolded by Ban Do-young who was standing next to you.”

“Yes. That’s right. I’ve been wanting to talk to you, but I kept missing the chance. The longer I waited, the worse it seemed to get.”

“I know, I know. It must have been especially hard with Ban Do-young nagging and pressuring you from the side. That’s why you wanted to talk separately. I kind of noticed when you were looking at me earlier.”

Her voice had become notably generous. Perhaps she was getting excited talking about Do-young in front of Ha-min, who had sought her out to talk.

An Seong-kyung’s voice lifted a bit more. Though it was still far too quiet to be heard outside the gym storage room, her elevated mood was evident.

“That Ban Do-young. She’s always been annoying in some ways. She’s been like that since forever. I went to the same elementary and middle school as her, so I’ve seen it all. Boys would worship her as the ‘Goddess of Bulsa Middle School,’ and even when she messed up at school, teachers would let it slide because she’s pretty.”

An Seong-kyung was telling Ha-min about the Do-young she had observed in the past.

Of course, Ha-min had no way to verify how much of what she was saying about Do-young’s past was truth and how much was her personal opinion.

“The reason she’s particularly interested in you is probably because you’re like a new toy she’s never seen before. You caught her eye on the first day of school, and now you’re being pushed around.”

“Yeah, that could be it. I still don’t understand why she treats me that way.”

“It’s not just ‘could be’—that’s exactly what it is. She was embarrassed when she was cursing next to you during the entrance ceremony, she made you run errands for drinks, and then you caught the attention of guys like Lee Jeong-gyu. That’s just what I’ve seen with my own eyes in the past week.”

“Wow… you’ve been watching more closely than I thought. Was it that concerning to you?”

“It would be stranger if Ban Do-young’s actions weren’t noticeable in this school. Even if everyone pretends not to know, like during that witch hunt against me earlier, they’re probably thinking the same thing deep down. That Ban Do-young is a shameless girl who’s ruining our class’s academic atmosphere.”

Ha-min couldn’t refute An Seong-kyung’s words. Her statement about ruining the academic atmosphere wasn’t entirely wrong.

The three-year study plan that Ha-min had set up, even choosing a school far from home with firm determination, was already going off track from the beginning due to his encounter with Do-young.

“Do Ha-min, you’re just stuck with them because Ban Do-young pushed you into it, right? Choi Sa-hyang might get along with you fine, but Yu Hye-rang doesn’t seem too happy about Ban Do-young messing with you.”

“No, she hasn’t really said anything like that.”

“Even if she hasn’t said it, she’s thinking it. Yu Hye-rang has already drawn a line. That you and people like her belong to fundamentally different categories of human beings.”

“…”

“It’s the same for you. Being around those kinds of people won’t help your grades or your life at all.”

It was true that until recently, Ha-min hadn’t known why Do-young kept him close.

Even the reason he had imagined—that she wanted to make him a “friend” of sorts—was just his own speculation.

Unless he heard the truth from Do-young herself, there was no way for Ha-min to know the real reason.

“Hmm…”

Seeing Ha-min bow his head as if in thought, An Seong-kyung gave a damp smile. She felt she was leading the flow of their conversation.

“I heard from Teacher Yeo Mi-so. You applied to Seongcheon Science High School but narrowly missed getting in, so you came here instead?”

“…Ah, yes. Though I’m not sure if it was really that close.”

An Seong-kyung mentioned the name of the school Ha-min had failed to enter, drawing a reaction from him as he had been participating passively in the conversation.

The moment the name of Seongcheon High School—which couldn’t possibly hold good memories for him—was mentioned, Ha-min’s expression darkened slightly.

However, An Seong-kyung, as if she had been waiting for Ha-min’s reaction of lingering attachment to the school he couldn’t attend, continued to push him while seemingly consoling him.

“No, someone like you might have gotten in if things had gone well. Even earlier, when the math teacher jokingly gave us a problem from the senior year college entrance exam, you got it right.”

“No, I just solved it because I’d seen a similar problem in my wrong answer notes from a previous problem bank.”

“Still, you solved it. Anyway, you must regret not getting in every day. Seongcheon Science High School would have completely secured your future. You wouldn’t have to be pushed around every day by someone like Ban Do-young either.”

“…”

“Oh, right! Would you be interested in joining the study club I’m in?”

“Study club…?”

An Seong-kyung proposed that Ha-min join the school study club she belonged to.

“There’s a group where the students who actually study properly in this school gather. If you’re okay with it, let’s study together. With a brain that aimed for Seongcheon Science High, you’re more than qualified. The others would be happy to have you too.”

“…”

“W-what… you don’t like the idea?”

“Thank you. I’ll think about it.”

An Seong-kyung became slightly anxious as Ha-min didn’t readily accept. She thought she had created an offer that would be impossible to refuse under her lead, but Ha-min wasn’t easily swayed by her proposal.

What went wrong? She had made it clear that he was nothing more than Do-young’s plaything, so why?

Was he still harboring false hopes about that group?

*Tap tap*

An Seong-kyung stamped her feet anxiously, becoming increasingly uneasy.

“What kind of response is that? This isn’t a common opportunity, you know? It’s a group of students who maintain an average of 1.2 grade points. You have nothing to lose by joining!”

“Yes, but I think studying is basically something you do alone.”

“D-Do Ha-min… you called me out because you wanted to talk to me, right? You wanted to meet separately like this to show that you and I are on the same side, away from Ban Do-young’s eyes. If that’s not it, why did you want to meet with me alone?”

“Ah… no. I came for a different request.”

“A different request…?”

Ha-min looked at An Seong-kyung with clear eyes and a firm voice.

“What you called her—’slut.’ Apologize for that.”