My little argument with Sooho didn’t last long, as we were used to having fights. It was resolved over a plate of tteokbokki, of course.
I walked into class, but immediately frowned at the very tense atmosphere.
"Don’t put your hands on my shoulders," Boemsoek said, flicking Sooho’s hand off in an almost protective manner.
"What?" Sooho blinked, confused and a little annoyed.
Without another word, Boemsoek walked past me,slightly bumping his shoulders with mine. He didn't even look back
I watched him leave the class, then turned to Sooho with a raised eyebrow. "What’s wrong with him?" Sooho asked, half-amused, half-concerned.
I took a deep breath, calming myself before replying. "I know it’s not true," I said, my tone softer but still firm. "But sometimes, it does seem like that, you know? I mean that day at the cafe you ditched hon after giving your order expecting him to pay for all your stuff. For some reason he doesn't like Youngyi which to certain level I understand.' I said sighing.
But I glared at him hitting g him with each word 'You. Have.To.pay.for.your.own.shit'
"Ouch, ouch," Sooho winced, rubbing the spot where I'd smacked him. "That hurt, you know!"
I smirked, folding my arms. "Maybe that'll teach you to think before you act."
He shot me a playful glare. "Alright, alright, no need to smack me again," he said, raising his hands
Sooho was teaching Sieun some basic boxing when I tried calling Boemsoek one last time, but he still didn’t pick up. I sighed looking up from my phone, I saw Sieun sprawled on the floor while Sooho helped him up. I stood up and walked over to them.
"One could mistake you two for a couple," I teased, raising an eyebrow.
We finally reached Boemsoek’s house, and wow—he definitely looked like he came from money. After finding the right door, I knocked.
"Why is your phone switched off?" Sooho asked immediately.
"I didn’t realize it was. Come in," Boemsoek sighed, stepping aside. Yeah, I wasn’t buying that.
Sooho kept questioning him while I just observed, taking in the place. The moment I stepped inside, I truly understood just how rich he was.
"Damn, no wonder you’re so slim. Just walking around this house is a full workout," Sooho muttered.
I smacked him before he could say anything dumber.
Sieun and I stood beside Boemsoek, the air thick with unspoken words. Before I could ask anything, I noticed Sooho wandering around like he owned the place.
"Sooho, get back here," I whispered, trying to drag him back. But of course, he was too busy gawking at everything.
Stopping in front of a family photo, he tilted his head. "Wow, your family all look alike."
"They’re not my family," Boemsoek said flatly.
Silence.
Sieun and I exchanged glances before turning to Boemsoek, waiting for an explanation.
"They adopted me. My dad made it public when he became a politician. It was all a strategy."
Silence. None of us knew what to say.
"Want something to drink?" Boemsoek asked casually, as if he hadn't just dropped a bomb on us.
As we sat waiting for him, I found myself bickering with Sooho, trying to get him to act a little more mature. But, of course, that was like asking a cat to swim.
"Because of them, I had to go to therapy. I even had to change schools in between. And now, after that night, they keep calling me, asking me to come out."
"Why did those bastards bully you? What did you even do wrong?" Sooho snapped, anger clear in his voice.
Boemsoek let out a bitter laugh. "You know how kids are. They bully others to bond, to feel superior. I never did anything—never in my whole life," he said, frustration evident.
"It's okay Boemsoekah. You did nothing wrong" Siuen said
I sighed, moving to sit next to him before gently pushing his shoulder.
"Call them," Sooho said, making us all turn to look at him. "Call those bastards and make them apologize to you."
That's how we ended up standing outside the karaoke room.
We found their room, and Boemsoek was the first to enter. The room reeked of cigarettes. As we walked in, the others shot us glares, clearly pissed that Boemsoek had brought his friends with him.
"Apologize to me," Boemsoek said, his voice calm but unwavering.
"Ya, apologize. Before I beat you up,'"
Sooho said, almost verbatim to what
Sieun had said earlier. The tension in the
room was thick, and the smell of
cigarettes made everything worse. The
guy stood up, walking toward Boemsoek
with that same arrogant look
'Apologize for what? You wanna remember the good old times when we used to-" he started, but Sooho didn't let
him finish. He grabbed the boy's ear,twisting it with a firm grip, making him
yelp in pain.
I moved back, leaning against the wall, watching as Sooho made the guy stand upright in front of Boemsoek. "If you're really sorry, let me hit you once," Boemsok said, catching me completely off guard. I didn’t expect him to say that, but then again, the guy deserved it. Dooho looked at me I just shrugged.
Boemsoek didn’t hesitate. “I’m really sorry,” the guy mumbled, but before anyone could react, Boemsoek landed a small punch on his face. It was impressively.
The guy slapped Boemsoek back, sending him stumbling slightly, but Boemsoek didn’t back down. His glare was fierce as ever. I quickly pushed myself off the wall, rushing over to him. “You good?” I asked, picking up his glasses that had fallen to the floor.
Before Boemsoek could respond, Sooho had already shoved the guy up against the wall. The tension was thick, but Boemsoek grabbed the mic, ready to belt out a song, as if nothing had happened. Sooho wasn’t having it, though, and blocked his path, trying to stop him from making any rash moves. Boemsoek wasn’t having that either, attempting to get past Sooho.
I signaled to Sooho to take him out. Sooho wasted no time, pushing the guy out of the room with force.
Sieun stepped forward, his voice cold and firm. “Listen, don’t ever call Boemsoek again,” he warned, before walking out of the room and pulling me along with him.
As I walked toward the other two, I could see things were getting heated. Boemsoek was glaring at Sooho, his voice sharp. "Why should I listen to you? Am I your gofer? You think you can just order me around and I'll listen?"
Sooho scoffed, stepping closer. "When did I ever say that?"
Boemsoek’s tone was full of frustration. "I even skipped my part-time job to come help you, and this is how you treat me? What’s your problem?"
The tension was thick, and just when it seemed like things might calm down, Boemsoek snapped, "What, you want me to pay you for your part-time job too?" The words stung, and before I knew it, Sooho was on him, grabbing him by the neck and shoving him roughly against the wall.
I froze, watching as the anger in Sooho's eyes flared, his grip tightening. "Don’t ever speak to me like that again," he growled, his voice low and dangerous.
"Sooho, hand off," I said, stepping forward but not wanting to get too involved. He hesitated for a second, his eyes still burning with anger, but slowly released his grip. His expression said more than words ever could.
Boemsoek shot us a cold glance, clearly not pleased with the situation, before turning and walking away.
Sooho exhaled sharply, still clearly irritated. I met Sieun's eyes, giving him a subtle nod, and without a second thought, he moved toward Boemsoek, determined to sort things out in his own way.
I watched them for a moment, silently hoping they’d work it out. It felt like one fight after another, but it was far from over.
As Sieun walked after Boemsoek, I turned to Sooho, who was still fuming. "You good?"
