Wrong Meal 73

# Chapter 73

Fucking hell. The curse slipped out instinctively.

Even without looking, I recognized that familiar voice, and my eyes shut tight. Someone appearing suddenly in a closed space where we were having a conversation that shouldn’t be overheard. It was all too familiar. I slowly raised my eyelids.

Byeon Seungha was looking down at us, arms crossed, leaning slightly against the doorframe. Meeting his gaze directly, I bit the inside of my lip. How does this guy manage to pop up during these exact situations every single time?

Could this be another ability of the main character? Unless he’d been monitoring me from the beginning, there was no way he could appear like this.

Feeling stifled, I let out a measured breath. I quickly lifted my lowered head and forced myself to straighten up.

Looking straight ahead, I caught sight of Ye Abin’s clenched teeth. While not as troubled as me, he too had a face that showed plenty of discomfort.

“What are you doing, not answering?”

Byeon Seungha asked, addressing us as we stood there stiffly, keeping our mouths shut. His quiet tone was surprisingly gentle, as if talking to someone close to him.

I looked at Byeon Seungha with my furrowed brow relaxing. Examining him closely, I couldn’t detect any anger in his expressionless face. I’d expected him to exude the same menacing aura as when we’d encountered each other in the Ace bathroom, but his calm face made him look like a different person.

Maybe that’s why I felt even more tense. Back then, he’d been in a state of violently expressing his fury through his entire body, but now he seemed to be temporarily holding back an uncontrollable anger, as if he couldn’t do anything about it. This quiet stillness felt more frightening, like a ticking time bomb that could explode at any moment.

In the end, I was the one who broke the silence.

“I don’t know how much you heard, but this time I really didn’t do anything to hurt Moon Seoheon.”

So please just leave. If you’re curious about what Yoon Taeho usually does, I’ll tell you later. Honestly, I couldn’t actually speak about the real Yoon Taeho’s behavior that even I didn’t know. But the mistakes that had been made were already in the past, so there was nothing to be ashamed of.

Even if he’d heard everything from the beginning, there wasn’t anything strange about it. And if he asked why I took pictures of Moon Seoheon, I could say I hadn’t taken them secretly—he knew about it—so I had my defense ready. If storing daily photos on my phone became an issue, I was willing to delete them too.

Unlike last time when I couldn’t even make excuses, I was confident I could accept his anger and move past it amicably this time. Though I was a bit scared he might kick my shin again or even throw a punch.

But Byeon Seungha didn’t hit me, nor did he get angry.

“I wasn’t asking you.”

After briefly giving me a glance, he looked at Ye Abin. As Byeon Seungha uncrossed his arms and stepped over the threshold, Ye Abin flinched. It was a reaction to realizing that Seungha’s question was directed at him.

Even with an awning installed above, staying out too long would get you wet from the rain and wind. Byeon Seungha came further inside like someone seeking shelter from the rain and stood at a slight distance from us.

The air, already gloomy, grew even chillier under his shadow that seemed to envelope both Ye Abin and me. Byeon Seungha irritably pushed back his slightly damp hair.

“Not talking? What’s this about how this bastard usually behaved last year?”

His calm tone had turned authoritative. Ye Abin’s expression, biting his lips tightly as if in a predicament, grew increasingly pale.

I alternated glances between them, feeling slightly bewildered. The question was about me, but I was relieved he was asking Ye Abin instead. Since it was something I needed to know anyway, regardless of what Byeon Seungha was thinking, I decided to listen first and looked at Ye Abin.

“Well… exactly what I said. He originally disliked him, but these days he’s pretending not to.”

Ye Abin spoke while maintaining his composure, only glancing at me briefly. I could sense a slight awkwardness similar to before, but to anyone who didn’t know better, his tone made it sound like I really had some kind of ulterior motive.

I naturally looked at Byeon Seungha. His furrowed eyebrows bothered me, but at least his fists hadn’t been raised yet. Instead, he gestured at me with his chin and asked again.

“So he’s acting right now?”

“Well, that’s how I see it…”

“You think he’d stoop so low as to take pictures and spread them around while pretending to be friendly with Moon Seoheon?”

That accusation felt unfair, and words spilled out of me before I could stop them. You heard it too! Moon Seoheon knew about it and let it go!

“No, I never took pictures forcibly.”

Byeon Seungha whipped his head toward me at my protest. Then he took a step closer and grabbed my shoulder, making me shrink slightly. Whether I stared at him blankly wondering what he was doing or not, he continued speaking.

“Do you think he’ll do the same thing again because of that incident where he got hit by that sunbae?”

“…What about it?”

Byeon Seungha asked, briefly glancing at me. Ye Abin looked back and forth between us with an anxious expression, as if wondering why he was asking such a thing.

“Just for filming a performance video?”

Ye Abin’s body jolted noticeably at Byeon Seungha’s words. Seeing him bite his lips tightly, I felt a refreshing satisfaction, like drinking a fizzy soda. The fact that it came thanks to Byeon Seungha gave me mixed feelings, though.

“That video was of the sunbae’s girlfriend, so that’s different. It’s strange to film someone completely unrelated.”

Ye Abin spoke confidently, smoothing his furrowed expression. When I widened my eyes at his words, he seemed to think there was nothing to fear and answered with an even more assured tone.

“That’s why the sunbae was angry too. He had a right to be upset if someone filmed his girlfriend.”

Byeon Seungha remained silent for a moment. Ye Abin, with an increasingly triumphant expression, let out a light sigh and added one more thing.

“Right?”

In response to Ye Abin’s question seeking agreement, Byeon Seungha straightened his threateningly lowered posture. I noticed his shoulders rising as if taking a deep breath. My mouth went dry, and I swallowed.

I was about to speak up since staying quiet seemed like it would only damage my image further, but Byeon Seungha interrupted me.

“So I…”

“What’s that sunbae’s name?”

I was about to retort that I had apologized and it all ended with me getting hit once, but Byeon Seungha tightened his grip on my shoulder, stopping me mid-sentence.

My face contorted at his sudden strong grip. Though it wasn’t unbearable, it did hurt, so I grabbed his hand with my right hand. I didn’t do this thinking I could remove his hand with my own strength. I just squeezed and tapped a few times to let him know it was painful.

But Byeon Seungha, glancing down at me briefly, ignored my plea mockingly and just stared at Ye Abin.

I muttered “bastard” inwardly and firmly gripped his hand. It was my effort to try to loosen his grip, but that seemed to have been a mistake as he pressed down even harder. Is he trying to leave a bruise?

“…Haa.”

I couldn’t help but sigh heavily, and I heard Byeon Seungha snicker. I glared at him, suppressing my twisted feelings.

Whether I glared at him or not, he raised his eyebrow as if telling me to speak up quickly.

“Why do you want the sunbae’s name?”

“I wasn’t asking you to ask me that.”

At Byeon Seungha’s words, Ye Abin firmly shut his mouth. He looked down at the floor with a troubled expression. It was obviously suspicious behavior, and Byeon Seungha emanated a fierce aura.

“Stop pretending to be well-behaved. You’ve been hesitating from the beginning, and even my patience has limits.”

Ye Abin’s face instantly turned pale. I wasn’t the only one surprised by Byeon Seungha’s meaningful words. Did he know too? That despite pretending to be a model student, he actually wasn’t.

In any case, it was clear he was angry as he put more strength into the hand gripping my shoulder. This time it really hurt, and a groan escaped my lips.

Seeing Ye Abin frozen stiff, he seemed too shocked to answer, so wanting to get out of this situation quickly, I answered instead.

“Lee Seongcheol.”

Both Byeon Seungha and Ye Abin turned to look at me simultaneously. With them staring without saying anything, I wondered if they hadn’t heard me, so I repeated clearly once more.

“Lee Seongcheol.”

So could you please let go of my shoulder now? My vision blurred from the increasing pain, and I closed my eyes tightly before opening them again. When I looked first at Byeon Seungha’s face and then at the hand gripping me, his hold loosened.

He hadn’t completely let go, though, so I swallowed my sigh and remained still. It was because Byeon Seungha’s expression had become grim. He looked like he might really explode at any moment.

I muttered inwardly, wondering why he was being difficult when I’d already told him the name, but knowing how Byeon Seungha would act if he lost it, I kept my mouth shut and just stared at Ye Abin.

My intention was to get him to say something. After all, my conversation with Ye Abin was essentially over the moment Byeon Seungha appeared. But Ye Abin just stood there silently with his lips tightly sealed.

Just as I was starting to find that frustrating, Byeon Seungha, seemingly having calmed his anger, muttered quietly.

“Lee Seongcheol…”

After repeating the name I had provided as if mulling it over, Byeon Seungha asked again.

“Which class?”

What do you want to know that for? Do you want to properly confirm that I’m a piece of trash?

As I looked at him with a puzzled face, Byeon Seungha, who hadn’t been giving me any attention, slowly blinked. His gaze at Ye Abin, who was keeping his mouth shut as if his lips were glued together, grew fiercer.

“Not going to answer?”

Byeon Seungha reached out and grabbed Ye Abin by the collar. Yet even as he did this, he continued to press down on my shoulder with a grip that suggested he’d never let go, causing my body to stagger significantly until I braced myself against the wall. Though it seemed he hadn’t intended to make me fall, as Byeon Seungha did pull me back firmly.

Groans escaped from both Ye Abin and me simultaneously. Regardless, Byeon Seungha, unable to contain his anger, shouted once more.

“I said speak!”

At that bark, Ye Abin squeezed his eyes shut and answered roughly.

“Class 10.”

At those words, Byeon Seungha raised his eyebrows high. When he looked at me with suspicious eyes, I nodded to confirm that the statement was correct. Since he seemed to be in the same class as Kwak Junhee, it must be true.

Only then did Byeon Seungha release both Ye Abin and me.

My shoulder felt numb and ached down to the bone, but I was just grateful that I didn’t end up shamefully crying like last time.

As soon as his collar was released, Ye Abin turned away with a deathly pale face. Though he seemed reluctant to leave just like that, he appeared to be suffering under Byeon Seungha’s unusual intensity.

It seemed like Byeon Seungha’s words had quite an impact on him. As Ye Abin fled the scene, Byeon Seungha stood quietly, apparently having no intention of stopping him. Soon after Ye Abin entered the building, silence settled around us.

I looked at Byeon Seungha while rubbing my aching shoulder.

“What are you thinking?”

It was a sincere question. I was quietly living my life as told, so I couldn’t understand why he kept trying to dig things up. Even if he’d caught a situation that could cause misunderstandings, hadn’t Moon Seoheon said to leave it alone?

At my question, Byeon Seungha’s eyes sharpened. He exhaled softly and shifted his body. Before any cold curse or fierce punch could fly, I spoke first, as if to block it.

“I understand you’re wary and keeping an eye on me because you don’t trust me, but it’s suffocating, so could you stop? Instead of spending time monitoring me, why don’t you focus on making a good impression on Moon Seoheon?”

“…”