Seongjo thought he shouldn’t say a single word about how he had come looking for him, clinged to him with words he couldn’t tell were clinging or not, and ultimately disappeared leaving only threat-like words.
Because he couldn’t even imagine what kind of feelings she’d have hearing those words. It would be bitter that there was no contact even though he came to this apartment, and it was obvious she’d feel even more sorry for Seongjo who experienced such a thing.
“Understood. Then… if you send me the date, I’ll adjust and attend.”
Along with awkward words, he hung up the phone just like that. Perhaps hesitating because of feeling sorry, it was only after about two hours that he could receive a photo of a school newsletter including the date and time.
Yeongbeom and Yeongeun, and their mother. It would be impossible to completely separate them, but still Seongjo tried to think of them separately in his head.
While recording the date of the class observation, he filled his head with other thoughts. For instance, imagining the appearance of math teacher Yujeong teaching.
Should he contact Yujeong in advance to let him know?
The conclusion came quickly. Naturally, toward not telling and just showing up.
<Jo Yeongeun>
[I bragged to the kids that uncle is coming!!!!!]
[I absolutely won’t call you Seongjo oppa at school hehe]
[(pinky promise emoticon)]
Such a message from Yeongeun arrived the day before the class observation.
Even until then, Seongjo hid from Yujeong the fact that he was going to school in the capacity of Yeongeun’s guardian. They still had dinner together every evening, so even though there was plenty of time to say it.
Seongjo checked once more the message he’d received from Yeongeun just before departing for school. Last night he’d substituted all answers by sending just the word ‘okay’ along with one basic emoticon, but now he was thinking of sending one more message. Saying ‘I’m going now.’
He didn’t know if Yeongeun, who would be at school, could check the message before Seongjo arrived though.
Did they say it started from 3rd period? Since he left home late in the morning, Yeongeun had long since finished going to school, and Yujeong had long since finished commuting to work. Thanks to that, there was no worry about being caught by Yujeong on the way to school.
Clearly he hadn’t decided he absolutely had to keep it secret, but once he kept quiet, now he was very much looking forward to Yujeong’s expression when he didn’t tell him until the end.
Yeongeun’s school, in other words Yujeong’s school, felt familiar thanks to having visited several times already. However, today there was a difference felt in that there were many parents who came to school because of the class observation.
Seongjo drew the gazes of people around him all the way heading to the classroom. He was originally eye-catching in appearance, but among mostly mothers or fathers of middle school students who came to school, Seongjo’s appearance being too young to be someone’s father couldn’t help but draw even more attention.
When he entered Yeongeun’s class classroom, other parents were already filling the back of the classroom. When Seongjo passed through them, the parents each tried to make space beside them to create a place for Seongjo to stand. He couldn’t know if it was conscious action or unconscious behavior, and he wasn’t very interested.
Seongjo looked around inside the classroom to find Yeongeun. Yeongeun was sitting in a very moderate and ambiguous seat, the third seat from the front in the middle row. Seeing two female friends together beside her, it seemed the friend relationship problems had improved a lot since then. It was something to be relieved about.
When Seongjo waved his hand toward Yeongeun, Yeongeun brightened up and raised both hands high and waved them.
“Is that person your uncle?”
“He’s handsome…”
“He doesn’t look like Yeongeun at all though?”
Thanks to Yeongeun’s friends chattering in quite loud voices, those voices reached Seongjo in the back faintly too.
Hearing appearance compliments wasn’t anything new… but to be hearing it from middle school girls was quite embarrassing. Still, Seongjo maintained a composed expression pretending not to hear.
“What do you mean by that?”
At the words ‘your uncle is handsome, but he doesn’t look like you at all,’ Yeongeun was getting angry. Seongjo covered his mouth pretending not to laugh at all while ignoring everyone else’s gazes.
Looking around the classroom, the feeling was new in many ways. First, the electronic blackboard hanging large in the center front caught his eye. If counted by when he took classes, Yujeong would be the same generation as Seongjo, but since he was a teacher, that scene unfamiliar to Seongjo would be familiar to him.
‘Let’s see, the schedule is…’
He carefully looked at the schedule attached to the right of the blackboard. Today’s 4th period was supposed to be math time, but since math was also divided into several detailed subjects, it wasn’t just one. It meant he couldn’t know if the math teacher coming to today’s class was really Yujeong.
However, Seongjo was somehow caught up in the groundless thought that Yujeong would come in. The reason was simple… because Seongjo was someone who prided himself on being lucky.
* * *
And that premonition came true this time too.
Yujeong walking into the classroom holding a textbook was no different from what Seongjo usually saw. Perhaps his hair was just a tiny bit neater than when seen in the evening? His outfit was also no different from usual. Even the wrinkle-free clean shirt was the same.
However, perhaps because of the power the place gave, or because he could clearly know through the textbook held in his hand that he was a teacher, Seongjo felt he looked different.
It wasn’t that he didn’t focus on the 3rd period class either. He couldn’t space out thanks to Yeongeun who was conscious that Seongjo had come to watch and eagerly raised her hand to present. But Yujeong’s appearance had a different feeling itself from that.
Seongjo stared intently at Yujeong’s face standing in front of the teacher’s desk as if to bore through it. And… their eyes met.
Until entering the classroom, there was no change in Yujeong’s expression. Even knowing numerous parents had come, he seemed not very nervous. But the moment he discovered Seongjo, that expression changed noticeably.
Eyes that opened wide as if surprised… and lips that parted slightly as if flustered. Though he managed his expression as if quickly aware of where he stood, he definitely saw it. The face full of surprise and fluster.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he came here to see that expression, so Seongjo was sufficiently satisfied.
The content of the class and such didn’t really matter. Even if he listened carefully to the content, with a bit of exaggeration added, it didn’t seem like he could recall what he learned almost twenty years ago. So Seongjo focused only on Yujeong.
On his appearance teaching math formulas, reading numbers, writing on the electronic blackboard. And on the resonance his voice had.
When class ended, he thought it would be okay to attend middle school again if he could see this every day.
Would Yujeong make a disgusted expression again if he told him this story?
With Seongjo’s satisfaction soaring to the ends of the sky, Yujeong’s class ended and break time came. Seongjo, who felt thirsty, went out to the hallway to find a place to drink water.
Though the direction where the water fountain was located was indicated, because Seongjo was the type who valued cleanliness, he didn’t want to bow his head in front of the school water fountain and drink water. While caught in contemplation, a clamoring sound came from the classroom direction.
When he turned his head, people were crowding in front of Yeongeun’s classroom door. In the middle was Yujeong.
“What kind of teacher is this young.”
“Teacher, are you seeing anyone? Our eldest daughter happens to be exactly a college student, I think the age range would be just right.”
It seemed Yujeong, who finished class, was caught in front of the classroom door unable to return to the teachers’ office. Would it be a misperception if his face receiving a barrage of questions surrounded by several parents looked a bit pale?
It would be natural for attention to pour on a young, good-looking, and tall teacher, but who would have thought there’d be this many people directly approaching and talking to him. Probably empowered by one person’s approach, other parents each flocked together and that situation occurred.
The problem was the content of the words the parent with the loudest voice among them was very actively spitting out. Words about introducing her college student daughter to Yujeong.
A college student? It was words that made him inadvertently let out an empty laugh. Naturally, Yujeong was politely declining that proposal. It was also interesting that his attitude when dealing with parents was equally calm and seemingly cold at a glance. But more than that… perhaps the feeling of being bothered was greater.
