By Zephyria 
Не wondered whаt оn earth hе was talking аbоut. Не hаd сheckеd his рhоne sevеral times throughоut the wеekеnd, but therе had bееn nо contаct frоm Jun-seong. Not а call, nor еven a messаge.
“……Whаt?”
“Сontact, things like that……”
Вut as he spоkе, it fеlt strаngе. Since thаt daу whеn Jun-seong hаd оffered an abruрt aроlogy, hе hаdn’t rеасhed оut аt all. It wаsn’t as if he didn’t have the number; thеy werе even still in thе group chаt for thе team рrоject.
“Whаt are уou tаlking аbout? I’vе сontасted уоu sо many……”
“‘Sо mаny’?”
Suddеnlу, Dо-hуun cut in. With an expressionless face, Do-hyun looked down at Jun-seong and spoke.
“What could there possibly be to contact him about so many times?”
For a moment, a possibility flashed through Woo-yeon’s mind. But before he could even harbor a suspicion, a cold voice interrupted his thoughts.
“You should have only contacted him when doing the team project.”
The atmosphere was ominous. Do-hyun and Jun-seong glared at each other as if they were about to devour one another. After clenching his teeth for a brief moment, Jun-seong turned his gaze toward Woo-yeon.
“Hey, let’s talk, just the two of us.”
“……I have nothing to talk about with you.”
“Fuck, Seon Woo-yeon!”
A terrifying pheromone erupted. It came from Do-hyun, not Woo-yeon. Flinching, Jun-seong stepped back, his expression twisting violently.
“Ha…… this is fucking bullshit.”
His gaze changed. A look filled with spite passed over Do-hyun and landed on Woo-yeon.
“Are you dating?”
“What?”
Woo-yeon thought this was truly the most random thing he’d heard yet. Whether he was dating or not was not Jun-seong’s business to interfere with. Especially not with a face so full of betrayal.
“Fuck, he acted like he didn’t give a damn on his own.”
“What? What is he saying?”
He heard Ga-ram asking in a small voice. Not stopping there, Jun-seong curled his lip into a crooked smirk.
“This person doesn’t know, right?”
There was no need to ask what he didn’t know. ‘Well, of course, he’s acting like this because he doesn’t know.’ Muttering that, Jun-seong let out a short scoff and tilted his chin.
“You were a fucking pig, weren’t you?”
The three sets of eyes turned toward Woo-yeon. The subtly sinking air carried a different atmosphere than before.
“If they knew Seon Woo-yeon from middle school, they wouldn’t be dating him like this. Right?”
With a triumphant face, Jun-seong looked around at Woo-yeon’s companions. After staring at all four of them, he looked at Woo-yeon and spoke.
“I don’t know if you fixed your face with money, but you can’t fix your shitty personality with money.”
“…….”
“Don’t your friends know? That you beat me like a dog and then paid me off to keep it quiet?”
Woo-yeon couldn’t say a word and clenched his fists. It wasn’t because Jun-seong’s words were true, but because he didn’t have the confidence to look back. Gaining confidence from that reaction, Jun-seong took a step forward.
“I guess these people are staying by your side for the money too……”
But Jun-seong couldn’t finish his sentence. The moment he stepped closer, Do-hyun released his pheromones. The crashing wave of pheromones sharpened its edge solely toward Jun-seong.
“Why? Keep going.”
Do-hyun spoke while spraying a chilling pheromone. His eerie voice was colder than ever. When Woo-yeon looked back, he saw a cold face without a trace of emotion.
“Kang Jun-seong?”
“…….”
“Right…… I think that was the name.”
His pitch-black pupils flickered fiercely. The gaze that was always gentle was now covered in violent rage. With the corner of his mouth tilted up, Do-hyun began to speak in a low voice.
“You.”
Jun-seong’s shoulders trembled. Though he was standing on his own two feet, his complexion suggested that even that was a struggle. It was a relief that he wasn’t drooling like he did when Woo-yeon released his pheromones.
“If you want to say you didn’t do it, you should start by saying ‘what’ you didn’t do.”
“…….”
“Who would believe you if you just mention middle school and say you didn’t do it?”
The soft voice was as calm as always. The abundance of pheromones was rational in its own way. After confirming that Jun-seong was gasping for air, Do-hyun spoke in a flat tone.
“If you’re going to explain, just explain. If you’re going to pick a fight, just pick a fight. Don’t annoy people by flipping back and forth.”
He saw Jun-seong bite his lower lip hard. Putting strength into his jaw until his lips turned white, he stared at Woo-yeon with trembling eyes. It was a look of utter unfairness.
“……I didn’t upload the photos.”
“…….”
“It’s true. Fuck…… I’m not even signed up for that site……”
Woo-yeon found it surprising that he actually looked ‘wronged.’ He had assumed Jun-seong was the culprit regardless of what anyone said, but this sounded too sincere to be a lie. Just as Woo-yeon was about to part his lips to speak, Do-hyun responded dryly.
“Then you must have been the one who took them.”
Jun-seong’s face turned pale. His ghostly pallor was that of someone who had been hit right on the mark. While everyone was shocked, Do-hyun evaluated him nonchalantly.
“Stupid bastard.”
As if he wasn’t worth another word, he grabbed Woo-yeon’s hand. He didn’t forget to pull his pheromones back while loosely interlocking their fingers. Just as he was about to turn away, Ga-ram grabbed Jun-seong by the collar.
“Fuck, it was you?”
“Noona!”
Seon-kyu hurriedly grabbed Ga-ram. Woo-yeon tried to stop her too, but he couldn’t because Do-hyun wouldn’t let go of his hand. Without looking back, Do-hyun led Woo-yeon away.
“Seonbae, wait a second. Seonbae!”
With a panicked face, Woo-yeon put strength into his legs. The noise of the crowd was growing louder, but Do-hyun showed no sign of letting go. Not only Ga-ram and Seon-kyu, but even Jun-seong’s friends who had chased after them late. A crowd began to gather around them.
“Hey, let go. This bastard, today I’ll……”
“Noona, you can’t do this!”
“Ah, why are you doing this! Hey, Kang Jun-seong, hey! Wake up!”
Eventually, Woo-yeon pulled Do-hyun with all his might. Stopping in his tracks, Do-hyun slowly looked back at Woo-yeon. Woo-yeon was frowning, looking toward where Ga-ram was.
“How can we just leave like this! We have to stop Ga-ram Noona!”
“Why stop her?”
“What?”
Woo-yeon asked back as if wondering what he meant. Do-hyun looked down at him blankly.
“Mungaram is good at fighting. If anything happens, she’ll be the one hitting, not the one getting hit.”
“No, that’s not the problem. Even if someone’s getting hit, I should be the one doing it.”
If she ended up getting sued, it would be quite troublesome. Woo-yeon could just pay the settlement money, but causing an incident at school was a different matter.
Only then did Do-hyun nod with a face of understanding.
“Ah…… right, that’s true.”
Do-hyun left Woo-yeon where he was and walked back with steady strides. He walked so fast that a bewildered Woo-yeon could only stare blankly at his back.
Approaching them in one breath, Do-hyun peeled Ga-ram away without any effort.
“Hey, fuck, you too, Kim Do-hyun……”
And then, something unbelievable happened. Grabbing Jun-seong by the collar, Do-hyun swung his fist with all his might. With a thud, Jun-seong’s head snapped to the right.
“…….”
“…….”
The surroundings became completely silent, as if cold water had been poured over them. Not only Woo-yeon, but even the highly agitated Ga-ram stood with her mouth agape in shock.
Amidst the silence, Do-hyun let go of the unconscious Jun-seong and looked at his friend.
“Memorize this instead.”
“……What?”
“If you can’t memorize it, take out your phone and write it down.”
010, the numbers began and continued until a total of eleven digits. The friend, who received the number as told, looked up dazed. Do-hyun shook his right hand and frowned slightly with one eye.
“When he wakes up, tell him to contact that number.”
“…….”
“Whether he wants to sue or ask for settlement money, if he contacts Woo-yeon, I won’t let it slide.”
Well, not that he’ll even be able to receive it anyway. Muttering that, Do-hyun looked at Ga-ram and Seon-kyu. Then, looking at the blank Ga-ram, he spoke nonchalantly.
“If someone’s going to hit him, it should be me.”
* * *
Woo-yeon had never once imagined a ‘Teacher who hits someone.’ Since the always gentle and kind Do-hyun was a person who never even said a harsh word to Woo-yeon, let alone got angry. So, he naturally thought he would stop Ga-ram and settle the situation.
“But why did you hit him, Teacher!”
In the car heading home, Woo-yeon scolded Do-hyun incessantly. To be precise, it was worry, but seeing that complacent face kept making him angry. The fact that he looked a bit tired, and that his right hand was slightly red, made him feel incredibly distressed.
“What are you going to do if he actually sues? Are you going to pay settlement money? Do you have a lot of money at home, Seonbae?”
“I don’t know…… if I can’t, I’ll just earn it by tutoring.”
“Ah, Teacher!”
Do-hyun only smiled tenderly as usual while looking at Woo-yeon. He smiled even when told he was crazy, and he smiled when Woo-yeon worried about what would happen if rumors spread.
There was only one time he couldn’t smile, and that was the moment Woo-yeon spoke in a deeply upset voice.
“What is this, all because of me.”
“…….”
Frowning slightly, Do-hyun drove the car into the apartment complex. It was the place where Do-hyun lived alone, where they had spent the last few days together. Woo-yeon let out a deep sigh and scanned Do-hyun’s right hand with his eyes.
“I kept telling you I was fine. It’s not like he’s only done that for a day or two……”
“Yeon-ah.”
The soft voice was gentler than ever. The sweet voice, enough to make his throat ache, slowly calmed his anxious heart. Do-hyun parked the car in the spacious parking lot and turned toward Woo-yeon.
“Do you want to stay at my place for a while?”
Do-hyun smiled softly. His gentle eyes curved as if tempting Woo-yeon. Woo-yeon’s ears turned red as he replied in a pouty voice.
“……Are you hitting on me right now?”
“I’m glad if it looked like I was hitting on you.”
Unbuckling his seatbelt, he reached out to Woo-yeon. He gently stroked the back of his head and ears, and leisurely rubbed his clear cheek. Every time Do-hyun’s hand touched him, it felt as if his fine hairs were standing on end.
“He’s so persistent……”
Though he grumbled, Woo-yeon rubbed his face against Do-hyun’s hand. At the behavior like a well-trained puppy, Do-hyun let out a soft chuckle.
“If it’s persistence, I’m confident in myself too.”
It was a very bold statement. As if it were absurd, Woo-yeon only looked up at Do-hyun. Soon, a low voice flowed out with a sigh.
“I guess so, I thought you weren’t like that.”
Woo-yeon’s reflection was visible in Do-hyun’s eyes. The clear, pitch-black gaze slowly scanned the fair face. Gently rubbing Woo-yeon’s earlobe, he asked softly.
“What is?”
“Kang Jun-seong’s number.”
Woo-yeon replied lightly and met Do-hyun’s eyes. He wasn’t certain, but for some reason, he had a feeling he was right.
“You blocked him, didn’t you, Seonbae?”