CH 404

“Maaaan, what a horrible day it was…”

Han Jin-Seong's mind was in a state of exhaustion. That meeting inside the toilet with Kim Dong-Min in the morning was the start. And then, real problems began after that.

'I'm not a member of the secret police or something, so why...'

After Kim Dong-Min left, Han Jin-Seong's classroom was bathed in eerie silence as if an agent of the National Intelligence Service had descended among the students. Thanks to this heavy silence, Han Jin-Seong even learned that the second hand of the classroom's wall clock actually made ticking noises!

That was that, but what about his classmates? From the look of it, it seemed they were having a tough time figuring out why the status quo had changed so quickly and radically.

However, if only things had ended there, Han Jin-Seong wouldn't feel this exhausted. The real problem reared its head a couple of hours later.

Han Jin-Seong headed to the school's cafeteria to get some lunch, and when he found an empty table to sit down... He suddenly realized his surroundings were rapidly filling up with other kids. At first, he didn't think too much about it, but something seemed wrong when these kids kept asking him weird and trivial things. Besides, these kids had never even talked to him before, either. Indeed, something seemed really fishy about this situation.

But that was merely the beginning.

“I… I still can't think straight…”

Han Jin-Seong groaned while holding his head.

Why were those kids so curious about… everything?! And how did they hold themselves back until now if they were dying of curiosity?!

They weren't even… performing census for the government, so why were they asking Han Jin-Seong all sorts of questions when he was minding his own business? He honestly thought someone might even ask him about the color of his bloody underwear at some point!

Han Jin-Seong was 'harassed' by other kids during every single break since lunch. The first thing he did once the school ended was grab his bag and escape from his class as quickly as possible.

“...Gimme a freaking break!”

Han Jin-Seong just couldn't get used to this since he had never experienced anything even remotely similar to this situation before.

Obviously, he understood why everyone was acting this way. Kim Dong-Min suddenly entered the class in the morning, then Yoo Da-Bin failed to show up to school after Kim Dong-Min's gang summoned him yesterday... No wonder the kids were curious about what happened. Even so...!

Just before Han Jin-Seong could frown, a sharp honk of a car registered in his ears first.

Honk!

Han Jin-Seong raised his head to look, only to discover Kang Jin-Ho exiting a flashy supercar parked next to the school gate.

'Dear God! Please stop, hyung! Please!'

Please don't show up here in your Lamborghini to pick me up! Please! Everyone can see us, you know?!

“Over here!”

When Han Jin-Seong heard Kang Jin-Ho, he seriously pondered how much impact the act of ignoring that guy and walking right past would have on his life.

After racking his brain for some time, Han Jin-Seong groaned and trudged toward Kang Jin-Ho and his flashy supercar. “...Jin-Ho hyung?”

“Yeah?”

“Did you know there is a term, 'gaudy,' in this world?”

“Huh?” Kang Jin-Ho tilted his head as if he couldn't understand where Han Jin-Seong was going with this.

Han Jin-Seong frowned slightly. “Normally, you call something gaudy if it's gone beyond the level of flashy or glamorous.”

“Okay? So?”

“Hyung, didn't you think about how gaudy this car might look while dumping a truckload of red paint on it? This Lambo is so flashy that people will still notice it even after slathering it in a stealthy black hue, you know?!”

Kang Jin-Ho's expression hardened. “I did express my wish to drive in something less conspicuous, at least in its color.”

“Okay? What happened?”

“And I was told that is a cowardly compromise.”

Han Jin-Seong cocked an eyebrow. “Who would say that?”

“It was Chief Jo Gyu-Min.”

“...Urgh, that uncle is also beyond help, isn't he!” Han Jin-Seong grumbled even as his face blushed from all the gazes landing on him.

However, he couldn't help but wonder. Were all these people mystified by Han Jin-Seong standing next to a flashy red supercar? Or were they 'praising' his bravery for standing next to Kang Jin-Ho when his face looked like a squid's?

Before his face could become even closer in resemblance to an invertebrate, Han Jin-Seong hurriedly climbed into the red Lamborghini. Kang Jin-Ho chuckled at that and entered the driver's side.

“Okay, we're setting off.”

“Yes, hyung.”

Kang Jin-Ho gently depressed the accelerator.

Vroooooom!

Unfortunately, the Italian engine had other ideas. It wasn't as gentle as Kang Jin-Ho's foot. It roared like a dragon to alert the entire neighborhood that it was about to leave and began spinning the supercar's four humongous tires.

Han Jin-Seong's face reddened even more.

'Aaaah! I'm so embarrassed, but… But I also feel a little proud, and… And a little sheepish, too… How am I supposed to describe this feeling?!'

Since no one would be listening to him anyway, maybe Han Jin-Seong didn't even have to bother?

Han Jin-Seong finally breathed a sigh of relief once the Lamborghini left the school grounds. “...Uh-hew. Jin-Ho hyung, why did you come to fetch me today?”

“I was told to.”

“By whom?”

“Chief Jo Gyu-Min.”

Han Jin-Seong suddenly had an epiphany. That Jo Gyu-Min... was the culprit! He was behind everything!

This detailed net surrounding and entangling Han Jin-Seong for the last few days couldn't have come from the brain of Kang Jin-Ho or Park Yu-Min.

'Right! My hyungs are… nice guys in some sense… And naive idiots in another sense, after all!'

If there was a problem, they were the types to rush headlong into the thick of it and flip everything on its head. However, they simply didn't have the intellectual capacity to solve problems like this! This Chief Jo Gyu-Min, as mentioned by Kang Jin-Ho, must be the one who schemed everything.

'If that's true… Holy cow, he must be a scary person!'

The fact that Jo Gyu-Min accurately analyzed every 'tool' available in Kang Jin-Ho's arsenal, utilized all he could to their fullest, and then led the situation to this point... That alone proved how scary-amazing this Jo Gyu-Min really was. Besides, Han Jin-Seong was personally witnessing that greatness, wasn't he?

“So? Has it become better now?” Kang Jin-Ho asked.

“...”

When Han Jin-Seong didn't reply, Kang Jin-Ho chuckled and continued to speak. “I'm asking because you still don't look so good.”

“Mm…” Han Jin-Seong pondered his answer before answering Kang Jin-Ho. “It's gotten better, hyung.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. Maybe it's gotten a little out of hand? It's a bit burdensome and kinda annoying, too… But, if every day is like this, I think going to school will be fun. That's how much better things have become.”

“I see. However...?” Kang Jin-Ho sensed that Han Jin-Seong still hadn't said what was really on his mind and quietly waited for the boy to finish.

“But, hyung...?”

“I'm here.”

“Honestly, I… I don't feel as good. I'm not sure how to describe this feeling, too. Even though my situation is getting better, it feels like a rock is inside my chest now. It's… heavy and uncomfortable.”

“Why do you say that?”

“...I'm not sure.”

Kang Jin-Ho didn't urge Han Jin-Seong and gently spoke to him. “Only you can figure out why you feel bad, Jin-Seong. You know yourself the best, after all.”

Han Jin-Seong nodded. “I'm not very good with words, so my explanation might get a bit messy, hyung…”

“It's fine. Take your time.”

Han Jin-Seong furrowed his brow while silently staring out the windshield. Eventually, though…

“What do you think has changed, hyung?” Han Jin-Seong quietly asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Between yesterday's me and today's me.”

“...”

Han Jin-Seong sighed. “I… I haven't changed at all. The 'me' who got laughed at for being an orphan and the 'me' who became the center of attention today are still the same person, hyung. But why is the treatment so different? What has changed about me?”

Kang Jin-Ho didn't say anything and continued to listen.

“I'm not saying I hate it, hyung. I don't hate it at all, but… But I'm still skeptical. All these kids suddenly acting friendly are doing that not because of who I am but… They are looking at me differently because of the things around me, right? Am I wrong? If that's not it, they must think they might gain something by hanging around me.”

“That could be true.”

“Am I supposed to feel happy that everyone's approaching me? Even though that's not because of who I am but things around me? Those kids, they... They'll stop paying attention to me once these extraordinary things around me disappear.”

Kang Jin-Ho silently nodded away.

Han Jin-Seong continued to stare out the windshield while whispering quickly. “That's why I feel this way, hyung. The fact that I know Miss Choi Yeon-Ha, that you're my hyung, and that I know someone who's good at fighting... Are those things actually important to me? Are they, to other kids? Enough for them to change their attitude completely like this?”

Han Jin-Seong's voice was trembling faintly.

Unfair.

Indeed, the emotion bubbling within Han Jin-Seong could be surmised with that single word: unfair.

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All those degrading glares that tormented Han Jin-Seong until now, and all the sneaky and overt physical abuse he had to endure... To think those things could be taken care of this easily… To think something so simple could change all those looks of contempt like this...!

It felt so unfair. So unfair that Han Jin-Seong began shuddering from anger.

Kang Jin-Ho waited until Han Jin-Seong was finished to start his reply. “Okay, so… Nothing about you has changed.”

“Yes, hyung.”

“That means you're the same Jin-Seong from a few days ago.”

“...Yeah.”

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled softly. “That's not it, Jin-Seong.”

“Eh?”

The smile suddenly disappeared from Kang Jin-Ho's face, replaced by an expression that was a little colder. “If people can overlook external appearances, personal connections and other things like financial status and become friends on the strengths of character and humanity, that would be ideal.”

“That's what I…”

“So, do you have a good grasp on the character of all of your friends in the class?”

“...” Han Jin-Seong momentarily felt lost, utterly speechless.

“If other kids in your class showed as much interest in you as you've shown them, would they be able to figure out your intentions or your character? And judge you by those things?”

Han Jin-Seong slowly shook his head. That couldn't be right. No, that sounded unrealistic.

“Listen, Jin-Seong.”

“Yes, hyung.”

“To live in this world, you need to know the difference between what's ideal and what's real. You become an adult once you fully realize that. What you speak of belongs to the territory of ideal. Unfortunately, people can't read what's in another person's heart. The best they can do is to take a wild guess,” Kang Jin-Ho sighed and explained while making a bitter expression. “We can't read each other's minds, so how can we understand others? That is why we look at things like the manner of speech, body language, clothing, and even facial expressions.”

Kang Jin-Ho pressed the accelerator a little harder.

“A person's character and their heart you talked about can only be guessed by talking to them and observing their attitude toward various different incidents. However, that doesn't mean you will know for sure what they are thinking about in their heart.”

“I... I guess so, hyung.”

“That is why people try to improve their outer appearances. They reveal to the world who they are by decorating themselves and their surroundings.”

“O-oh…” Han Jin-Seong looked down.

Kang Jin-Ho shrugged his shoulders. “What we did this time was simply letting everyone know that they had it all wrong. We're telling them you're this kind of person, and they have evaluated you wrong, so they should re-evaluate you and change their attitude toward you. That's it.”

Han Jin-Seong sighed. “That's such a… sad way to deal with this situation, isn't it?”

“Kind of,” Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded. “You'll see for yourself once you join the adult society. Joining society means you must put on a facade. You will have to put on a smiling mask and hide your true feelings. Sometimes that will feel more natural to you. And, once you experience those days long enough… You'll end up forgetting which is which. Is the smile on my face a facade or the real me?”

“Is it because you've been maintaining that facade for too long?”

“Mmhm,” Kang Jin-Ho nodded and spoke in a bitter tone. “It'd be great if people could figure out each other's hearts without trying too hard. Unfortunately, that's just not realistic. That's why we have to do something this cumbersome. If I'm being honest with you… You're right, Jin-Seong. I'd also have preferred solving your problem without resorting to this method. But I'm not talented or smart enough to solve it with other methods. Forgive me on this one, Jin-Seong.”

“No, don't apologize, hyung…”

“...Thanks.”

Han Jin-Seong glanced at the side of Kang Jin-Ho's face as he drove and smiled quietly.

'Jin-Ho hyung can be so dumb sometimes.'

How could he say people couldn't see what was in others' hearts? That sounded so wrong in this case.

Han Jin-Seong could tell simply by being next to Kang Jin-Ho, after all. Not only that, but it was also easy to figure out by looking at Kang Jin-Ho rushing around pale-faced from worry when this matter didn't even involve him.

'Seriously…’

What a dumb big bro Kang Jin-Ho was.

So, so dumb…

Han Jin-Seong turned his head away and stared at the late afternoon sunlight. While basking in the warmth pouring through the Lamborghini's window, he carefully wiped the corners of his moist eyes. “Hyung, I think… our winter is about to come to an end.”

“Mm? What are you talking about? It's still summer, you know? Are you still out of it, Jin-Seong?”

“...”

What an idiot hyung Kang Jin-Ho was.

Seriously now...