# Chapter 13
Maeng Moa looked back and forth between the empty plate and the glass that Moon Seoheon had carelessly put down, then asked me:
“So what did you eat?”
“Huh? Fish. With wasabi and garlic on…”
“Wow, the wasabi smell is intense!”
Maeng Moa, who had come close to me, panicked in the middle of my sentence and covered his nose with his finger. Feeling awkward, I stepped back slightly, and Kwak Junhee approached from the side.
“It must have been really spicy. Is your stomach okay? Do you want some water?”
“No, I’m fine.”
Despite my refusal, Kwak Junhee told me not to be modest and ordered the lighter-looking High Class guy to bring water, almost like a command. The guy, who had been acting so relaxed in front of me earlier, now stiffly handed over a water bottle, all traces of his former composure gone.
“Drink it.”
“No, I’m really fine…”
I raised both hands to decline as I really didn’t want to drink water, but then I spotted something noticeable among the drinks on the table and stopped talking.
“Give me that one?”
Moon Seoheon asked, noticing what I was looking at. I hesitated, then nodded. Moon Seoheon naturally took the drink from the table and handed it to me. After thanking him, I told Kwak Junhee that I’d drink this instead of water.
“…That one?”
“Yes.”
Afraid he might insist further, I immediately opened the can and drank. The cool menthol taste refreshed my mouth, making my stuffy insides feel pleasant. Without stopping, I gulped it down in one go, then wiped the drink flowing down my mouth with the back of my hand while letting out a satisfied sigh, but the expressions of those watching me were strange.
I finished the pine needle drink and crushed the empty can in my hand. Thinking I should get away from this place quickly, I held up the crumpled can and said:
“I should go throw this away. So… enjoy your meal, everyone.”
I immediately thought it was a stupid thing to say. But looking at their deflated expressions, like flat cola, it seemed this was the only opportunity to escape. As I hurried away, almost running, back to my original table, I made eye contact with Yoon Taean, who was standing near the main table.
His slightly contorted expression was peculiar, but I didn’t think much of it and just flopped down in my seat. Oh Seulbi, seeing me exhausted as if my tension had finally released, hesitated before asking:
“Yoon Taeho, are you close with The Four?”
“Why would you think that?”
Oh Seulbi didn’t seem like the type to be interested in the main characters like Jo Youngmin. So to me, it was an absurd question, and I asked incredulously. Oh Seulbi said never mind.
“It’s just that they were acting like they know you well.”
“No, it’s not like that.”
With my throbbing head, I reached for the dessert I had brought but hadn’t eaten yet, saying I needed something sweet. Unlike earlier, I demonstrated a good combination by spreading strawberry jam inside the castella. Nevertheless, Oh Seulbi and Kim Yuna’s expressions were still strange.
“It’s weird. Yoon Taeho is eating so well.”
“He never ate any of the bread I brought…”
How poorly must I have eaten for them to react like this? I said we should eat together next time, then stabbed my chocolate cake with a fork and put it in my mouth. That’s when it happened.
“Hyung!”
Suddenly Yoon Taean was running toward me with an extremely flustered expression. With the fork still in my mouth, I stared at him with wide, surprised eyes.
We had made eye contact earlier, but he hadn’t said anything. Why is he acting like this now? Feeling like I was going to go crazy with no quiet moment, I inwardly wailed, and then he came over and said:
“What’s wrong? Are you suddenly feeling unwell?”
Huh? What’s he talking about? I stared blankly at him, bewildered by his reaction as he rushed over and worried about my body out of nowhere.
Yoon Taean, who had rushed over urgently, looked at the plate in front of me once, then at my face. Then, seeing my blank stare, he finally started to calm down.
“…”
We quietly looked at each other for a moment. Furrowing his brow at my dumbfounded expression, Yoon Taean sighed and said:
“I’m asking if you’re okay, hyung?”
“I’m fine, why?”
Seeing my puzzled expression, Yoon Taean approached me with a rather perplexed look. He turned his head this way and that, examining my body, then stepped back after finding no obvious problems.
What’s going on? I wondered why he was acting this way. But clearly there was something I didn’t know again, and I felt so frustrated I could burst, unable to even ask.
Instead of me, someone who came over due to the commotion asked what was happening. It was Kwak Junhee.
“Taean, what’s going on?”
“Ah, I’m sorry. I was just startled because of my brother.”
It seems everyone had come over because of the commotion this time. I vaguely heard someone say, “Is it him again?”
When I turned my head, Byeon Seungha was looking at me with an expressionless face that wasn’t particularly displeased or pleased. I quickly straightened my head before our eyes could meet.
Kwak Junhee sat in front of Yoon Taean and looked at me, slightly hunched, with wide eyes.
“Taeho is… Taean’s brother? Ah, I did hear he had an older brother.”
“Come to think of it, their names are similar.” Kwak Junhee added, looking at Yoon Taean and me with a gentle smile. I felt like things were just getting more complicated. I shivered slightly with a creepy feeling, and Kwak Junhee, observing me, turned to Yoon Taean and asked with a pleased expression:
“So, what did Taeho do that surprised you?”
“Ah, well…”
Yoon Taean glanced at me with an uncomfortable expression, then quickly composed himself and continued in a calm tone:
“He was eating sweet food that he doesn’t usually eat.”
At those words, I looked at the half-eaten chocolate cake. Oh Seulbi and Kim Yuna had also looked at me strangely for eating well, so I guess that’s why he was so surprised. But isn’t that an overreaction?
I wasn’t the only one who thought so, as Kwak Junhee tilted his head. It was a gesture asking for more explanation.
“He would skip meals saying he was on a diet, or exercise excessively and collapse frequently. Today he was strangely eating well, and now he’s even eating this kind of thing and doing things he doesn’t usually do, so I was startled and made a scene without realizing it. I’m sorry.”
“Ah, no. There’s no need to apologize. But diet…”
“Diet? Does Taeho need to diet?”
At Moon Seoheon’s sudden question, not only I but everyone else turned their heads toward him. Looking around, I noticed that all the students were now watching us. I was already confused, and I wished they would all go away.
“Ah, my brother was… quite heavy when he was young. That’s why he’s sensitive about eating.”
Yoon Taean said this with reddened cheeks as if embarrassed. No matter how much he likes Moon Seoheon, how could this bastard talk about his brother’s personal details like this?
I was actually glad to learn information I didn’t know. But I was starting to resent Yoon Taean for causing such a commotion over something so trivial.
Moon Seoheon looked at me briefly after Yoon Taean’s words, then made an expression suggesting something was definitely strange.
“Well… that’s why he often seemed weak, but the Taeho I’ve seen today is a bit different.”
I swallowed hard at his probing expression. So what, is he saying it’s unpleasant? Since he’d already publicly apologized and taken it well, that probably wasn’t it, but his intense gaze, as if he wanted to split open my insides and examine them, made me feel like I might start sweating.
“Sensitive about eating… but he ate strange things without any problem?”
Surrounded by people and inwardly cursing, I heard Maeng Moa say this while looking at me.
By “strange things,” is he referring to the drink I had? Is he dismissing minority preferences? I felt a little indignant, but wanting to escape this awful situation where everyone, including The Four, was focusing on me, I slowly stood up.
“My head feels a bit sore…”
“What, really? Does your head hurt a lot?”
Oh Seulbi asked rapidly, seemingly alarmed by my words. Was she concerned because of the Middle Class guy who had dragged me away earlier? Touched by her sincere worry, I nodded, hiding my awkward inner feelings.
It was half true; I did feel genuinely unwell because of the uncomfortable situation. My naturally pale face must not have looked like a lie, as Kwak Junhee came closer and said:
“Is it serious? Should we call an ambulance? Or I know a doctor I could call right away…”
I flinched in surprise and waved my hands frantically. Who calls a doctor to school? His extraordinary decisiveness befitted a wealthy family’s son. While thinking his scale was impressive, I became more frightened because he was being so nice.
“I’m fine. I just need to rest a bit. I think it would be best if I rest in the infirmary before going home.”
I wanted to leave school early, but having been late this morning, I felt uncomfortable doing so. It seemed best to spend time there and leave with everyone else at dismissal time.
“Really? Should I go with you?”
“No. I’ll go by myself, please continue enjoying yourselves.”
I declined with an expression suggesting I didn’t want to inconvenience anyone, then left through a gap where there were no people. If I stayed any longer, who knows what might happen. Among the students who were glancing at me, I vaguely heard someone ask who I was.
It was while I was opening the door to leave. In that brief moment, through the door crack, I made eye contact with The Four, Moon Seoheon, and their group. The chilling sensation at the back of my neck kept me standing still for a while even after the door closed.
“Whew, what a mess…”
* * *
“Rest well before you go.”
“Yes.”
“I have some business, so I won’t be back until around dinner time.”
“Alright.”
At the infirmary, I claimed a bed by pretending my head hurt. The school nurse was initially alarmed, thinking I had been injured again, but seemed relieved at my explanation. She just gave me some medicine and left the infirmary. Since I wanted to be alone, this was actually fortunate.
But left alone, my troubled mind kept me tossing and turning even while lying down. I had experienced so many things since arriving here. I was tired from it all, but I also regretted not finishing the chocolate cake and bread I had left behind.
As I absentmindedly rubbed my stomach, Yoon Taean’s words stuck with me.
“He actually looks a bit thin, why would he diet?”
If he was heavy when he was young, maybe he obsessively worked harder out of fear of gaining weight. Is that why he acted so prickly about everything? Though I’d only seen him being prickly toward Moon Seoheon in the anime, I felt somewhat sympathetic.
More importantly, what should I do now? Should I continue being Yoon Taeho here? With these complicated feelings, I closed my eyes. It seemed best to take a nap.
I don’t know how long I slept. My mind was drowsy and my head felt heavy. Rubbing my eyes that wouldn’t open easily, I tossed and turned, then finally opened my eyes to the sunlight pouring in.
Turning my head to look out the window, I saw the sun was setting. Coming to my senses at the sight of the burning red sunset, I jumped up.
“I slept for quite a while.”
I had intended to close my eyes for just a few dozen minutes, but more than an hour had passed. Thinking it must be dismissal time, I quickly got up and headed to the classroom. By now, club activities should be over, and everyone would have left.
Would students staying for night study still be there? I had no intention of staying at school late, so I planned to just grab my bag and go home to rest. Despite having napped, my body felt more tired.
I reached the classroom and opened the door to find just one person standing by the window in the otherwise empty room. The sight of Moon Seoheon turning his head at the sound of the door opening was like a scene from a drama.
