Chapter 22: Doki Doki literary club

“Phew…”

I slipped off my sneakers, which still bore faint red stains, and entered the foyer.

The overhead light turned on automatically, casting a yellow glow.

A deep sigh escaped me as I recalled the day’s events.

My body was tired, and my mind was frayed—truly the worst state to be in.

After somehow assaulting that person, I vaguely explained the situation to Seon-a and then we parted ways.

Thankfully, Seon-a seemed to understand my exhaustion and didn’t press for details, which saved me some trouble.

But the problem still remained.

No matter how you looked at it, I had landed a straight punch on the face of a chaebol heir.

And I’d hit him so hard that I could still picture him flying several meters through the air.

Even though it was to stop a fight, the back of my hand that connected with his face still throbbed.

If this world were still a game, I might have expected a “You’re the first person to hit me!” kind of development.

But this world was harsh reality, and such romantic plotlines didn’t happen in reality.

Besides, I wasn’t as pretty as the heroines in romance genres.

I wished the problem would resolve itself smoothly.

What if the police came and dragged me away? What if he demanded an exorbitant amount of settlement money? For a rich person, a few months in the hospital would be nothing.

Then there would be settlement money, medical bills, legal fees… My hands trembled just thinking about it.

No, it was even scarier because it was just imagination.

It was a sigh-inducing situation, but what could I do about something that had already happened? I had to take responsibility.

Since I was the one at fault, I didn’t want to drag my family into this.

I could only hope we could settle it quietly between ourselves.

I didn’t know for sure, but it would probably cost a lot of money, so I’d have to work hard at a part-time job.

Even if I skipped the school semester, I’d have plenty of time during the holidays.

My grades might drop a little, but it couldn’t be helped.

“Are you back?”

“…Yeah, I’m home.”

My sister came out to greet me, breaking my train of thought.

Hiding my awkwardness, I walked into my room. It felt a bit uncomfortable to see my sister’s face right now.

[Around 7 AM, a sanitation worker on duty discovered the body of Mr. Lee, an office worker, in an alleyway. Based on the traces on the body, the police have concluded that this is the work of the serial killer who has been rampant recently…]

As usual, unpleasant news was playing in the living room.

I let the unpleasant noise pass through one ear and out the other.

I was very tired today, so I planned to go to bed a little earlier.

“The clothes I bought you yesterday, do you have to wear them?”

“I’ll wear them even if you don’t say anything…………probably.”

“What’s that supposed to mean!”

And so the night passed, and the sun rose. 

A difficult day passed, and a peaceful tomorrow arrived, as if nothing had happened.

I suddenly lifted my head and looked up at the sky.

Pink cherry blossom petals, fitting for spring, were fluttering about, and the cloudless sky was a piercing blue.

The air I breathed felt refreshingly clean.

The sound of the gentle breeze in my ears became a silent song, and the subtle scent of flowers was sweet.

Students in the same uniform as me filled the streets, and next to me, Seon-a chattered happily. It was a typical morning commute to school.

My worries from yesterday had mostly faded, and a sense of refreshment filled my empty chest.

Matching my pace with Seon-a walking beside me, I habitually patted her head, which was about a handspan shorter than mine.

Her hair was always soft. Perhaps she was used to it now, as she accepted my touch calmly.

However, that peace was soon shattered.

“…Hey, Seon-a. Can you go to the classroom first?”

“Huh? Why… Oh, then I’ll go ahead and wait.”

At that moment, someone came into view in the distance. I stopped walking and sent Seon-a ahead.

Since I had vaguely explained the situation yesterday, Seon-a looked in the same direction as me and then walked ahead without a word.

I stood there for a moment, as if rooted to the spot, then slowly walked towards that figure.

His black hair, far from being dull, was glossy, and his features were like a well-sculpted marble statue.

His body, clad only in a shirt and a blazer, had ideal proportions and physique.

Even the sight of him sitting on a bench, leaning back, looked like a scene from a movie.

But there was one flaw in his near-perfect beauty: his right cheek was bruised a vivid blue.

Seeing the wound, which didn’t suit him at all, pricked my conscience painfully.

Sensing someone approaching, he snapped the book he was reading shut.

“It’s only been a day. About yesterday…”

“I’m so sorry!”

At first, I wondered how to start, but in the end, there was only one thing I could say, so my deliberation wasn’t long.

As soon as his gaze met mine, I bowed deeply, like a salesperson.

Although I had no sales experience, it was an instinctive action.

My vision filled with the dirt ground. I couldn’t see his face, but I heard his flustered voice.

“…What is this nonsense?”

“About unintentionally hitting you yesterday, Senior, I’m truly sorry! I’ve committed a crime worthy of death! I was foolish, so please, please don’t report me to the police! If it’s a settlement, after school, in a quiet place…”

“I asked, what is this nonsense.”

At his angry voice, I straightened my bowed back.

As expected, his face was contorted with anger. I stammered out an excuse in a trembling voice.

“So, um… I wanted to apologize…”

“Ha, you hit me knowing things would turn out like this? Bending that stiff back of yours?”

“That’s, um… yes.”

“How absurd.”

He said, laughing dejectedly.

He then stood up from the bench, came right in front of me, and looked directly into my eyes.

His lake-blue eyes rippled before me like gentle waves. It was a truly unstable and truly captivating resonance.

“I just thought you were thoughtless or fearless, but it doesn’t seem like that’s the case. What would you do if I demanded a hefty settlement?”

“…I’d have to earn it, and pay it back.”

“Why should you have to do that? Didn’t you hit me for those scumbags?”

“Still, still, you know very well that it was a situation where I had no choice, Senior.”

Of course, even if I had ignored him then, those thugs wouldn’t have died.

No matter how messed up he was, he didn’t seem that crazy.

But it was clear that if I had left him alone then, he would have inflicted injuries serious enough to affect someone’s life.

Even to my inexperienced eyes, the level of violence he was dishing out was excessive.

It was a punch thrown solely to stop him from crossing the line.

However, I had no intention of appealing to his sympathy.

I didn’t like the feeling of admitting defeat, and while I did think I should have hit him a little softer, even now, I didn’t regret the choice to hit him.

At that moment, when he had lost his senses, there was no other way to stop him than such shock therapy.

Even if I went back in time, my choice wouldn’t change. I could say this with certainty.

Considering my thoughts, it was definitely the right choice.

But like everyone, his thoughts and mine would be different. In any case, I wanted to take proper responsibility for the harm I had caused him.

So I wouldn’t run or hide.

I looked straight into his eyes as he looked down at me. The ripples in the center of his blue eyes deepened.

“No, I still don’t understand. Why do you have to go to such lengths to save trash like that, even if it means getting hurt yourself? Do you really think their nature will change just because you saved them? They’re not worth saving. They’re literally trash. If you just keep ignoring beings who only harm society, you, being intelligent, should know well enough what will happen later.”

“That might be true. No matter what anyone says, a creature called human never really changes. I do think your violence, Senior, was to some extent self-defense.

“However, don’t you think the violence you inflicted then clearly crossed the line? Just because you were wronged, if you retaliate in an equally bad way, doesn’t that make you trash too, Senior?”

“Besides, isn’t it too much to not even give them a chance at rehabilitation, saying their personalities won’t change anyway?”

I thought about it a lot last night while I couldn’t sleep. Was he entirely wrong? At first, I had unconditionally rejected him.

It was because he had arbitrarily looked down on me as a person.

But looking back, I had also disparaged and avoided him based on my knowledge of him from the game.

Of course, it was partly because his presence was too overwhelming for me, but if asked whether there was no prejudice based on his game image at all… I’d have to say no.

“I’m sorry, Senior.”

“…What now?”

I said, bowing deeply again.

His bewildered gaze turned to me.

“Not about hitting you. About consciously avoiding you at first.”

“Hmph, so you do know.”

“Instead, you should also apologize to me properly, Senior. You were the one who approached me with impure intentions first, weren’t you?”

“What? How is that…!”

Hmph, so he’s protesting, is he? Then I have no choice either. Still bowing, I looked up at his agitated face from below.

At the same time, I gently curved the corners of my eyes, and his words stopped.

I continued the interrupted conversation in a slightly teasing voice.

“Wow, Senior, you’re surprisingly petty.”

“W-Wait. No matter what, that’s…”

“For your information, I really dislike petty people.”

“Kugh…!”

His lips, which looked soft despite him being a teenage boy, pressed together tightly. His internal conflict was so obvious that I let out a small laugh.

He then opened his mouth, as if with great difficulty.

He stammered a little, unused to the situation, but it was clear enough to understand.

“…Alright. I apologize. I was wrong.”

“Hehe, good job.”

Only then did I straighten my bent back and smile brightly.

He turned his slightly flushed face away with a huff, as if he didn’t like my smile at all.

Still, the fact that he didn’t say anything mean anymore was quite cute, even though he was a boy.

An insincere appearance.

Was this what a real tsundere was like? This was the first time I’d seen one in person.

“Well then, I’m going.”

Was it because he had unintentionally shown a disheveled side of himself? He suddenly turned his back and started moving his long legs.

Huh, what about the settlement then? Was he just going to let it go like this?

“Wait, do you have time today?”

“Yes? I do…”

“Then let’s talk separately sometime today. I’ll send you a text later, so check it.”

“Yes? How do you have my phone number?”

“I may look like this, but I’m the vice president of the student council. I have the contact information of all the class presidents.”

Talk separately later, huh? So he was planning to bill me for the hospital fees after all… What a surprisingly petty rich kid.

Slightly miffed, I resentfully followed his coolly departing back.

“Huh? What are you doing?”

“Nothing. Just checking if there’s anything strange on our Sia’s phone. Like secretly taken photos, for example…”

“Huh? There’s no way something like that would be on there.”

During the short break after the last 7th period.

When I returned from the bathroom, I slapped Seon-a’s hand, which was freely fiddling with my phone.

Seon-a then handed over the phone readily with a sly smile.

Really, why was she looking through someone else’s phone without permission? A little annoyed, I checked if there were any new messages, and a red ‘1’ icon was displayed on the screen.

“12 AM, that park, huh…”

“What did you say?”

“No, nothing.”

What was wrong with her today? Seon-a suddenly said something unintelligible and then smiled even more profoundly than before.

I tilted my head at her somewhat alien appearance.