# Chapter 80
“We’ve arrived.”
In the midst of the confusing situation after ending the call abruptly and trying to accept the unbelievable words, the driver’s voice rang clearly. Reflexively looking out the window, I hurriedly gathered my things when I saw the familiar apartment complex.
“Thank you.”
Since Baek Han had called the taxi and already paid, I just greeted the driver and got out. I paused briefly to properly hold both my bag and Kwon Dojin’s bag, a total of two.
“Habin.”
A familiar voice called me from behind as arms wrapped around my shoulders. The way he took the schoolbag from my hand was very natural.
“Why are you out here?”
When I tilted my head back to look at Kwon Dojin behind me, he smiled as he hung the bag on his shoulder.
“I thought it would be around time for Habin to arrive. So I came out earlier.”
I almost blurted out asking what he would have done if we had missed each other, coming out without any plan. But since Kwon Dojin wasn’t a child, and he probably wouldn’t feel good hearing such things, I deliberately swallowed my words.
When I took a step forward to escape from Kwon Dojin’s embrace, I hesitated upon noticing something unfamiliar on his arm.
“I heard you weren’t badly injured?”
“Huh? Ah-, it’s nothing.”
I pulled on Kwon Dojin’s arm as he tried to step back. Caught off guard, he instinctively grabbed my shoulder to maintain balance.
“Since when is wearing a cast ‘nothing’?”
What on earth did he do to need a cast? They say children grow through injuries, but shouldn’t he be behaving more sensibly as a first-year high school student? Or considering his position as second-ranked, was this level of injury really nothing?
Seeing the solid cast, I could understand why there had been screams during class. Calling for the school nurse made sense too.
The only question was how people knew he had a bone injury when it usually wouldn’t be visible. Or was the situation that dangerous?
“They say it’ll come off within a month.”
Kwon Dojin, who was awkwardly leaning his upper body forward because his cast arm was being held, rested his head on my shoulder.
“You hurt your bone? A fracture?”
“Yeah. A little.”
“Scrapes and cuts don’t even count as injuries for you, huh.”
I clicked my tongue seeing that he had injured his right hand of all places. Although I didn’t know exactly which part was injured, judging by the plaster covering up to his palm, it seemed like he would struggle not just with writing but even with using chopsticks properly.
“This will make studying difficult. For the time being, use copies of my notes.”
“The first thing you mention when you see me is studying?”
“What’s more important for a high school student who plans to go to college?”
“Mmm-, I’d prefer if you worried about me instead.”
Kwon Dojin, who was complaining like a child, completely rested his cheek on my shoulder with a faint smile on his lips. When I deliberately maintained silence, he slowly blinked his large eyelids, urging me to respond.
“Let’s go inside first.”
“You used to worry even about small things-, I think you’ve changed.”
I deliberately looked away from Kwon Dojin, who was pretending to cry about feeling neglected. Of course, I was worried, but there was nothing for me to do in a situation where all necessary measures had already been taken. If I had just wanted to show moderate concern, I would have briefly asked how he was doing via text or phone; I wouldn’t have come in person.
I looked at Kwon Dojin with bewilderment as he now had his arms around my waist and his face buried in my shoulder. He wasn’t protesting about being upset, and he had no intention of moving from his spot.
No, maybe he really was upset.
“I was worried, a lot.”
I gave Kwon Dojin the answer he wanted with a light sigh. It was somewhat embarrassing to say out loud, but it wasn’t a lie.
“Really?”
“Yeah, really.”
Glancing at Kwon Dojin, who was beaming at my brief response, I adjusted my bag that was slipping from my shoulder.
“Now let’s really go inside. My bag is heavy.”
“Should I carry it for you?”
Kwon Dojin, who had quickly stepped back, reached for my bag. I lightly hit the back of his hand to stop him, thinking why would someone with an injured arm try to carry someone else’s bag when he should just carry his own.
“It’s fine, let’s just go inside.”
I headed toward Kwon Dojin’s place with a lighter body, and he followed behind. As we walked side by side, I suddenly noticed that the sensation against my arm felt heavier than usual, so I slightly lowered my head.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing… It just feels awkward.”
Every time the cast touched my skin, I was reminded ‘he’s injured.’ Having to wear this for at least a month, with summer approaching, it would probably be doubly difficult. Besides, just because he was injured, the fights that came looking for him wouldn’t stop.
“So. Why did you get hurt?”
“I thought we had cleared everything up and let my guard down. I tried to dodge, but there was someone else behind me, so I couldn’t avoid it and ended up blocking wrong.”
“A metal pipe? A wooden club?”
“…A wooden club.”
Kwon Dojin spoke as if it was nothing significant, but I found it impressive anew. Conversely, it meant he was relaxed enough to be mindful of what was behind him when someone was charging at him with a wooden club.
Speaking of which, a wooden club again? It seems in the school hierarchy world, weapons like metal pipes and wooden clubs are inseparable from delinquents. Should I be relieved they’re not using knives?
“Baek Han said it was partly his fault too.”
“It was in the area he was responsible for. He probably feels he was at fault for not checking properly.”
“Ah, I see. So that’s why.”
That sounded like Baek Han. No wonder he seemed to be taking care of details he normally wouldn’t bother with.
“And the person behind you wasn’t hurt?”
“He’s fine. Though I heard he cried a lot.”
As long as all his limbs were intact, that’s what mattered. Crying is in the realm of emotions, so there was no reason to worry about that. From my perspective, Kwon Dojin had done his duty by preventing injuries.
“Did you really worry a lot?”
“You weren’t answering my calls. Plus, there was no one who knew exactly what happened, and no one I could ask.”
There’s a saying that no news is good news, but in a situation where I had heard screams and it looked serious, that saying couldn’t apply.
“I’m sorry. I was too preoccupied to check my phone.”
“These things happen.”
Since he injured his right hand, it would have been difficult to send text messages. Before the cast was put on, there wouldn’t have been anything to stabilize it, so it would have hurt to bend his fingers.
When I nodded to show I understood, Kwon Dojin revealed a faint smile and stepped closer to hold the tips of my fingers. In contrast to the rough texture of the bandage against my skin, the hand holding my fingertips was soft.
“What are you doing?”
“This is more inconvenient than I thought.”
Kwon Dojin stared intently at the hand he was holding and complained, raising his eyebrow. It was obvious that a cast would be inconvenient, so his reaction was surprisingly new. Moreover, to feel inconvenienced about holding hands of all things.
“You’re really something.”
When I shook my head, Kwon Dojin grinned softly and acted slick. After staring at his face for a moment, I pulled my hand away.
“Come to the other side.”
“…Huh?”
“You said it was uncomfortable.”
He tilted his head but soon smiled brightly. Then he quickly moved to my opposite side and naturally took my hand. This time, I couldn’t feel the rough bandage or hard plaster.
“As expected, Habin is so kind.”
“Right. Let’s just go with that.”
There’s no point in denying it anyway; he wouldn’t even pretend to listen. Having given up easily, I raised our joined hands to indicate he should open the front door. In response, Kwon Dojin pressed the keypad extremely slowly with his cast hand.
Since his intention was very transparent, I turned my body to face the wall with a half-teasing mindset. Kwon Dojin waved his hand gently, signaling me to look at him, but I gracefully ignored it.
“Didn’t you say you only have about an hour? How long can you stay?”
I entered Kwon Dojin’s house, which was as familiar as my own, put down my things and claimed the sofa first. I knew I should wash my hands first, but I wanted to indulge in a little rest.
After checking the clock at my question, Kwon Dojin made a completely hardened expression. After running his left hand over his face once, he sighed and took the seat next to me.
“We have about 40 minutes left.”
“Really? Not much time left.”
“Should I not go?”
It seems he has to go somewhere at 6 o’clock. Otherwise, there would be no reason to ask “should I not go.” However, since I didn’t know where he was going, I rolled my eyes to look at Kwon Dojin.
Meeting my gaze, he sighed once more as he leaned his body against me, collapsing. That sigh felt like a lament, which increased my curiosity.
“Where are you going?”
“…The main family house.”
Reflexively, I nodded saying “I see,” then flinched. Is there any reason to mention going to his family house in such a dull voice?
In a short moment, numerous thoughts crossed my mind. For instance, settings that often appear in school hierarchy manhwa, like being the son or grandson of a famous group, but having a bad relationship with the family elders due to some misunderstanding.
“You don’t want to go?”
“It’s not that-.”
Kwon Dojin trailed off, rubbing his cheek against my shoulder with his face buried in it. The heavy weight felt familiar. As if choosing his words, he hesitated for a long time before opening his mouth.
“I won’t be able to see Habin tomorrow.”
“That happens sometimes.”
“But I don’t like it.”
I slowly patted Kwon Dojin’s thigh as he whined. I was curious about what was happening at home that made him miss a full day of school, but I didn’t ask since it might be sensitive personal business.
“Then will you come to school the day after tomorrow?”
“Yes. I’ll definitely come.”
Seeing him constantly muttering about not wanting to go to the main house, he must really dislike it.
“Why do you hate going so much?”
“Because I won’t be able to see Habin for a day.”
Since it was nonsense, I gracefully ignored it, and Kwon Dojin pretended to cry. He insisted I should believe him and complained about feeling neglected, but when I patted his thigh again, he stopped as if nothing had happened.
“…And I don’t like being nagged.”
Ah. So this is the real reason.
I was certain from the casually added remark. All that talk about being sad because he couldn’t see me tomorrow was just an excuse.
Even with his status as second-ranked, moments like these showed he was still just a kid.
