# Chapter 96
Moon Seoheon opened and closed his eyes several times. His slow movements allowed me to see all the various changes in his eyes.
His iris, which had seemed to have a greenish tint, changed to a reddish-brown color when he finally spoke.
“Yes.”
It was a plain answer. His expression was also so indifferent that I wondered if my question had been different from what I’d intended to ask. Or maybe he had interpreted the question differently.
“…Yes?”
“Yeah.”
Even though it was a brief answer, it felt like it was choking me, pressing on my windpipe. So I couldn’t ask Moon Seoheon if I had heard him correctly.
When I asked if he liked me, he said yes. Since “liking” someone can have various meanings, I didn’t understand if he meant he liked me as a friend or if he liked me in the way a man and woman have affection for each other.
Just as I was about to ask again to be sure, I felt Class 9’s classroom becoming noisy. I peeked up to see students getting up from their seats, as if the final roll call had just ended.
Soon after, the front door opened and the teacher came out. The teacher paused briefly upon noticing me and Moon Seoheon standing side by side near the classroom window. I reflexively nodded in greeting, and the teacher raised a hand in response. Then, seeing my name tag, the teacher’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Ah, you’re Yoon Taeho. I heard you fell with Hyoin—are you okay?”
“Ah, yes. I’m fine.”
“That’s good. I was about to tell your homeroom teacher about it, but now we can go together.”
“What?”
As I voiced my confusion, students coming out of the classroom glanced at us as they passed by.
“Since our class student made a mistake, we should discuss it. Come with Hyoin.”
I stared blankly at the teacher’s back as they left before I could say anything. I snapped back to reality when I heard Class 9 students whispering to each other as they passed by.
Jung Hyoin had told me not to worry and that he’d handle it separately, but honestly, I hadn’t been convinced. It seems he had spoken to them well after all. My plan to report to the student affairs office and the teacher in charge had fallen through. I was momentarily dazed, unsure whether to consider this fortunate and move on.
For now, I turned around to wait for Jung Hyoin. Though the conversation I just had with Moon Seoheon was bothering me, I decided to think about it later. Somehow, I felt relieved.
As I watched the front door, waiting for Jung Hyoin to come out, I felt a gaze from behind stabbing into my side.
I bit my lip, afraid I might blurt out something unnecessary. Just standing there quietly, still, when gentle hands from behind grabbed my shoulders and softly turned me around.
It wasn’t a strong force, yet my body turned easily. Trying to act normal as I turned around, I met Moon Seoheon’s eyes directly. He pointed behind me with his thumb. I tilted my head, looking past Moon Seoheon who was blocking my view, and saw Jung Hyoin coming out of the back door, approaching us after noticing us.
“Ah.”
Right, there was a back door too. I felt slightly embarrassed as I recalled how I’d been staring intently at the front door, assuming he would come out that way.
“What brings you here?”
Jung Hyoin looked slightly surprised to find us waiting in front of his class and glanced at both of us as he asked.
“It’s about the presentation. Our team is short one person. Taeho has agreed to join us.”
At Moon Seoheon’s words, Jung Hyoin looked at me with wide eyes. Beyond the surprise, his eyes showed that he found it unexpected, and I just smiled quietly in response.
Just then, Son Gyucheon passed by. The guy, with his deadpan face, saw me and frowned deeply. When I calmly met his gaze, he chewed his lip as if holding back curses that wanted to escape. Then, seeing Moon Seoheon and Jung Hyoin staring at him expressionlessly, he passed by with a stiff expression.
Jung Hyoin, after watching Son Gyucheon’s back for a moment, turned to us.
“I need to go to the faculty office. Let’s talk later.”
“Ah, I need to go too. Your homeroom teacher asked me to come along.”
At my words, Jung Hyoin raised his eyebrows. After I explained what had just happened, he soon showed an expression of understanding.
So the three of us ended up going to the faculty office together. We decided that Moon Seoheon, who wasn’t involved in the incident, would wait outside the faculty office while Jung Hyoin and I went in.
Inside the faculty office, Class 9’s homeroom teacher was already with our homeroom teacher, as if the situation had been explained. They were sitting at a large table in a space separated by dividers. But besides those two, another teacher was also sitting there. From my memory, it was probably the homeroom teacher of Class 3.
In front of the teachers sitting side by side was Son Gyucheon, sitting alone. I could somewhat understand how the situation was developing.
“Taeho, you should have told us if something like this happened.”
My homeroom teacher spoke with a concerned tone as I approached. I was a bit surprised at the genuine expression. I thought they would just find this kind of thing annoying, but it seems they actually cared about their students.
“I heard you weren’t hurt. Is that true?”
“Yes. I just got scraped a little, but Jung Hyoin probably got hurt more than I did.”
I looked briefly at the back of my hand where the scrape was. It wasn’t a severe wound, but the small red lines on my hand would make anyone realize I was injured. The teachers sighed softly, noticing where my gaze was directed.
“Is Hyoin not hurt?”
Our homeroom teacher then examined Jung Hyoin. It was a voice full of concern, just like when they had asked me, but somehow with a more cautious attitude.
“No.”
Seeing Jung Hyoin nod lightly, my homeroom teacher sighed in relief before leaning forward to look across the table.
“But why isn’t the Class 3 student here yet?”
“They’ll be here soon. They’re a bit late because they’re temporarily away due to club activities.”
The Class 3 homeroom teacher answered my homeroom teacher’s question as they checked the doorway. Given that Son Gyucheon was here, the “Class 3 student” must surely be Ye Abin. It seems Jung Hyoin had reported the incident quite thoroughly.
I sat at the edge, avoiding Son Gyucheon, and glanced at Jung Hyoin beside me. He raised the corner of his mouth slightly. At his expression that seemed to say “well done,” I gave an ambiguous smile. Since it was the right thing to do anyway, I gave him a nod that meant “good job.”
After a brief silence, as expected, Ye Abin entered the faculty office. Like Son Gyucheon, he had a deadpan expression, suggesting he knew exactly why he had been called. That’s what you get for picking fights. Of course, it seemed like tripping me was Son Gyucheon’s idea alone, so I couldn’t say this guy was at fault.
It seemed he was called in because he was there with Son Gyucheon, but I wondered if he would just get a simple counseling and be done with it. While I was quite pleased with the current situation, hoping they would be properly scolded so this wouldn’t happen again, I also felt uneasy. It was obvious they would only receive minimal punishment.
Since things had gone this way, I hoped the truth would be properly discerned in case those guys decided to lie. I organized my thoughts well to explain the situation clearly if the teachers asked.
Just as Ye Abin had taken his seat and the Class 9 homeroom teacher was about to speak, the sound of the faculty office door opening was heard, and someone approached our area.
Everyone turned their heads with puzzled looks, and there stood Moon Seoheon. Behind him was Kwak Junhee, whom I hadn’t seen in a long time.
“Junhee? Why are you here?”
The Class 3 homeroom teacher looked around at the sudden appearance of the two. Kwak Junhee smiled gently and greeted everyone before taking something out from his pocket.
“I came personally to deliver this. As I mentioned yesterday, this is part of the CCTV footage from Class 1 that we checked after a report came in.”
“Ah, that. So was there really something?”
“You’ll see when you look at it. I have a meeting right now, so Seoheon will explain on my behalf.”
“Alright. Thank you for your work. Go ahead.”
At the teacher’s words, Kwak Junhee bowed his head and turned around. During that brief moment, he gave me a glance and reached out to firmly pat my shoulder. I’m not sure if it was meant as a greeting or as an encouragement. Seeing how he patted me lightly a few times, it could be considered a gesture with some concern.
After Kwak Junhee left the faculty office, an even deeper silence enveloped the surroundings. Soon, breaking the silence, the Class 3 homeroom teacher held up the external hard drive that Kwak Junhee had handed over.
“So this contains the CCTV footage installed in Class 1? What kind of report came in for us to check this?”
Their expression showed confusion as to why CCTV footage had appeared in the current situation. I felt the same way.
Each homeroom teacher would have heard roughly what had happened between us, Son Gyucheon, and Ye Abin. Since the place where we were harmed was the hallway stairs, it would make sense if it was footage installed there, but it was strange that Class 1’s footage suddenly appeared as evidence.
The homeroom teacher seemed to know, and Moon Seoheon, who had suddenly appeared, also looked like he knew something, so everyone alternated between looking at the two.
“I reported it because of the chain letter incident that’s becoming popular again.”
“Chain letter?”
“Yes. The footage shows someone deliberately entering our class to place letters. If you watch the video, you’ll see who did it.”
At Moon Seoheon’s words, the Class 3 and Class 9 homeroom teachers looked dumbfounded. I furrowed my eyebrows as I recalled a note I had momentarily forgotten. A low sigh escaped me as I remembered the paper that claimed to be a chain letter but actually sent curses, which I had found in my desk drawer.
I stared at Moon Seoheon, wondering, and he took something out of his pocket and placed it on the table. It was that very note I had crumpled and thrown in the trash. Moon Seoheon looked at me with my mouth gaping open for a moment before speaking to the homeroom teachers.
“When you watch the footage, you’ll realize that what happened on the stairs today wasn’t simply an impulsive act. Like the filming incident in the student council, this too should be considered a clear crime, and those two should be properly punished.”
