By Zephyria 
A face as handsome as the Four Heavenly Kings’ instantly sucked everyone’s attention like a black hole. I could faintly hear gasps of “Wow…”
However, my gaze immediately bounced off upon noticing the numerous piercings adorning his ears.
‘The number of ear piercings!’
Anyone could tell he was a delinquent. A visual that, from 200 meters away, I should have immediately turned and avoided! I didn’t want to get into trouble for no reason!
He was on par with the Four Heavenly Kings. I absolutely didn’t want to get involved.
“A while?”
Lee Beom bared his teeth and let out a short, sarcastic laugh in response to the other’s greeting. His jet-black hair shimmered. The students watching nearby shrieked.
“Well. It feels like I saw you yesterday too.”
“Even one day feels long to me. I won’t go easy on you today, but I’m scared of you, Beom.”
“Pfft, when did I ever go easy on you and lose? Jeseong High’s Do. Yun. Hyeok?”
“You’re complaining even when I go easy on you.”
Wait, Do Yun-hyeok?
Amidst the cheesy lines, I heard the name I had desperately tried to avoid. I snapped my head around and looked at his face again.
‘Do Yun-hyeok… is that him?’
No wonder I didn’t want to run into him! A shiver ran down my spine from the revulsion.
Do Yun-hyeok was, among all the characters in this novel, the polar opposite of my personality and values.
He was a thug with not an ounce of interest in studying, he lacked a sense of justice to the point that even I, who prioritized self-preservation, would frown, he made immoral choices beyond common sense, and his emotions took precedence over logic…
And that’s just to name a few.
Yeon Su-hwan, who stood beside me like a shadow, let out a crooked snort. His face, frozen cold, observed the standoff at the school gate.
Just then, Seong Hae-min suddenly lunged forward.
“Who is it. Who is it that… touched our Hae-jun.”
Seong Hae-min ground his teeth and glared at the Jeseong High group. The last words were almost spat out. The Jeseong High group flinched at his murderous gaze, and I put my hand to my forehead.
‘Why is he mentioning my name!’
I wanted to ask if he was crazy. Why was I enduring this disgrace instead of just going home? The fact that I was being supported as if held by Yeon Su-hwan, watching this situation unfold, doubled my self-loathing.
“Y-you, Seong Hae-min! Even if you do that, d-do you think anyone will be s-scared?!”
A hulking student stepped forward hesitantly. When I saw his face, it was the same bulky guy from before. His courage, speaking while trembling, was commendable. In response to the bulky guy, Seong Hae-min raised only one corner of his mouth and smiled coldly.
My eyes widened at this sight. I thought he was someone who just smiled like a (^-^) emoticon all the time, but he could make that expression? Seeing my expression, Yeon Su-hwan chuckled and whispered low in my ear.
“Know that Seong Hae-min is serious when it comes to your affairs.”
“Ah. Yes.”
I gave a perfunctory “Yes, yes” with a face like I’d bitten into a bitter persimmon, and looked back at Seong Hae-min. Yeon Su-hwan kept chuckling. I couldn’t figure out when this man had started looking at me with such intense eyes, considering he barely knew me.
“You’re really cute, you know. You really… remind me of…”
“What?”
“Nothing. Heh.”
My arms, shoulders, and armpits. Every part of me touched by Yeon Su-hwan’s arm sent shivers down my spine. I struggled a bit, wanting to break free from his support, but he was as stable as a rock.
“Ha… Is it you?”
Just then, Seong Hae-min, with a cold smile, moved faster than light and punched the bulky guy in the face.
“Huh…?”
Even seeing it with my own eyes, I couldn’t believe it. Was this a modern fantasy novel, not an internet romance novel? Can a person move that fast? Seong Hae-min mercilessly beat the bulky guy.
‘Is this allowed? Shouldn’t he stop?’
I felt an involuntary twitch in my hand, as if I should intervene. The excessive violence made me frown.
Some people around pulled out their flip phones (!!) from their pockets to film the scene, but Jeon Jae-hyung, who had approached unnoticed, lightly snatched those mobile phones and deleted all the photos.
Seong Hae-min finished the one-sided beating and casually shook his head. As if his sweat glands were blocked, his face was clean, not a drop of sweat. Fortunately, the bulky guy, holding his head, managed to preserve his face. His face was clearly crestfallen.
“If anyone touches our Hae-jun, I’ll kill them.”
“Calm down, Seong Hae-min.”
Lee Beom restrained Seong Hae-min, who was baring his teeth and growling. He wasn’t the leader for nothing. Seong Hae-min took a breath and glared at the Jeseong High group. His gaze was still murderous.
From the students behind, I could hear shrieks of “Wow! Even fighting looks so cool!” but I tried my best to ignore them.
“Whoa. I haven’t done anything yet? I just came to see my twin brother because I heard he was here. Right, Hae-jun?”
Do Yun-hyeok, who raised his hands lightly as if surrendering, maintained his relaxed smile despite one of his lackeys being defeated, true to his villainous character.
“Don’t play dumb.”
“I’m telling the truth. My hubae made a mistake a while ago without recognizing you. Right, Hae-jun?”
Do Yun-hyeok suddenly addressed me. As a result, all eyes were fixed on me, who was being held in a very humiliating position by Yeon Su-hwan.
It was a public execution! I swallowed my curses.
‘As expected, he’s a monster!’
My eyes met Do Yun-hyeok’s. The guy with wine-colored hair, so handsome he could rival an idol, looked at me and narrowed his eyes. Then he tilted his head askew, as if waiting for my answer.
Right, the important thing wasn’t that bastard Do Yun-hyeok. It was that I was receiving the attention of all the countless people gathered here. My breath caught in my throat.
“Um…”
As I opened my mouth, people’s eager gazes were fixed on my face. I spoke as if I were facing my impending death.
“Everyone, please calm down… Let’s just go home… This is a school, a place for studying…”
I wished I could faint.
My voice grew weaker and weaker. Exhausted, I mumbled words without even realizing what I was saying, and a cold silence swept over the school gate.
“……”
“……?”
“……”
“…Heh.”
“Hahaha! As expected of our Joonie!”
It was Yeon Su-hwan, who was supporting me, who broke the silence with laughter. Min Si-hu burst into laughter along with him. He started laughing so hard he bent over, holding his stomach and giving a thumbs-up. As I drew everyone’s attention, my face flushed bright red. My ears felt like they were burning too.
Damn it… All I could do was curse.
I just wanted to escape this situation more than anything. My stomach felt like it was being pricked by extreme stress, and my head felt the same. Stomachache and headache. I wanted to run away somewhere comfortable and sleep. My vision was blurry with fatigue. Cold sweat broke out.
“Alright! Hae-jun looks tired, so we’ll be going.”
After a moment of silence, Do Yun-hyeok smiled and waved. His long, almond-shaped eyes stared at me.
“See you again, Hae-jun.”
Do Yun-hyeok, who had bid farewell, led the Jeseong High group and disappeared leisurely. I stood there blankly, watching the backs of the bad guys who had thrown a pile of dung at me and then made a cool exit as if nothing had happened.
As soon as the Jeseong High group vanished, Seong Hae-min, his stern expression softening, rushed straight to me.
“Well done, Seong Hae-min.”
“Thank you, Sunbae.”
“Here, your brother. I’ve been cherishing him so he wouldn’t wear out.”
“Are you okay, Hae-jun?”
Yeon Su-hwan carefully handed me over to Seong Hae-min, and the guy who was my twin grabbed my shoulders and scrutinized my face.
“Haa… Hae-min, let’s go home…”
“Hae-jun, Hae-jun!”
And then, leaving Seong Hae-min with a single word, I promptly fainted.
❖ ❖ ❖
When I opened my eyes, I was home. My forehead felt damp, so I touched it and found a wet towel placed there. What inconsiderate person would put a wet towel on someone who didn’t even have a fever? I sat up, annoyed, and picked up the towel.
Drip, drip. Water droplets ran from my forehead down my cheek.
Just then, there was a knock, and Seong Hae-min entered the room. Seeing me sitting up, Seong Hae-min rushed over in surprise.
“Hae-jun! Are you okay?”
I felt like I’d been asked “Are you okay?” a hundred times today. I nodded. As I clumsily wiped away the water droplets from my forehead, the overly dramatic Seong Hae-min fussed, pointing at my sweat and asking how sick I was.
“This isn’t sweat.”
“Hae-jun. You don’t have to pretend to be okay…”
“It really isn’t.”
But Seong Hae-min, lost in some misunderstanding, looked at me with a wistful gaze, his eyes glistening, and gently placed his hand over mine.
“Hae-jun.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll always be by your side. I’ll never leave. I’ll always protect you.”
“Huh?”
Seong Hae-min poured out his heart, and I sat there like someone who’d gotten lost watching a melodramatic romance movie and was confusedly catching up after the plot had moved on.
I knew he was always a bit much, but why was he acting like this all of a sudden?
“Is Jjuni awake?!”
Following Seong Hae-min, the rest of the Four Heavenly Kings and Yeon Su-hwan came in one after another. I looked around the space I was in again. It was my house.
‘But why are these guys here?’