A Scorching Day Chapter 36

His fingers hesitated over the screen. But having held back for so long, his hand moved quickly from there on. He opened the messenger and blankly followed the conversation history with Ki Joon.

Ki Joon

[What are you doing?]

Ki Joon

[Did you eat lunch well?]

Ki Joon

[Can I call you later tonight?]

Three messages had been sent at several-hour intervals. To which he had sent only one reply.

[I’m studying. I don’t think I can call. Train well and come back.]

He’d debated whether to add that last sentence, but in the end, he sent it anyway. No matter what became of their relationship from now on, he couldn’t deny the feeling of wanting Ki Joon to finish his training safely without getting hurt.

Reading through the trivial messages, he scrolled up and up in reverse order. A faint smile played at the corners of Gawon’s mouth as he meticulously examined every single message.

It was painful, yet also good. While warmly recalling the cozy comfort that guy had offered him, it also stung like a thorn caught in his chest.

Then, at some point, Gawon’s hand stopped dead.

He saw the photo Ki Joon had sent to clear up the misunderstanding on the day he’d misinterpreted the cat’s name, Sunny. The events of that day flashed before his eyes like a panorama.

You, who waited for me in front of my house for hours. You, who never once blamed me despite the misunderstanding. You, who apologized because you’d hurt my feelings anyway. Your face, sitting across from me, eating udon and smiling brightly as if there wasn’t a single thing in the world to regret…

“…”

His heart ached so much he couldn’t keep looking at the messages. Gawon sighed deeply and put his phone back in his pocket.

Ki Joon, who had hidden the note detailing his mother’s shame in case someone might see it, had been so earnest in trying not to hurt his feelings.

And yet, here I am….

Remorse stained his heart in a tangled mess. For the sole reason of not wanting his own feelings for Ki Joon to be broken, he had feared a moment that hadn’t even come yet. So afraid of getting hurt himself, he’d been so absorbed in hiding away that he had mercilessly pushed Ki Joon’s heart away and fled with his back turned…

Gawon, who had received the heart Ki Joon had so preciously offered, took out that moment and mulled over it countless times. The more he revisited it, the more poignant and beautiful it was, and it granted him a realization.

My feelings are the same as Ki Joon’s.

I… liked Ki Joon.

How could he like a classmate, and a boy at that? How could he like someone taller and bigger than him? How… could he like him even knowing about his family?

All those questions were useless before the warmth Ki Joon had shown him. The power that the person Ki Joon possessed was so great and strong that it was enough to shatter the shields Gawon had long built against the world’s common sense.

That’s why he felt even more sorry and pained. Because he had hurt Ki Joon, who was so precious to him. Because he regretted that he had been so cowardly. And because, even realizing his own feelings, he couldn’t recklessly approach Ki Joon.

His mind was in disarray. The chaos brought another fear. What if Ki Joon, who had been mercilessly rejected by him, no longer wanted to see him? What if, seeing him draw the line saying ‘let’s leave it at that,’ he had completely lost all affection for him?

If he now hated him. If he said he didn’t even want to be friends with him anymore. How was he supposed to face that guy from now on….

He never knew that having no experience in untangling a knotted thread with someone, confirming each other’s feelings, and exchanging warmth could feel so bewildering. Gawon felt like a lost child at this very moment.

‘…For now… when Ki Joon comes back.’

Tomorrow was the last day of training, he’d said. He’d probably train until the evening and come back at night. Then the day after, he’d be able to see him at school….

He didn’t know what to say when he actually met him, but still, Gawon had no choice but to wait for the day after. He just missed Ki Joon. In truth, he missed him a lot, very much.

∞ ∞ ∞

Inside the empty bathroom. Gawon, sitting on the toilet, quietly sighed and tilted his head back.

The way Heo Yeonggyu’s group had been picking a fight today seemed ominous. The way they’d been whispering and laughing at him from the morning also bothered him.

And since they had tormented him more severely and viciously during the long lunch break, Gawon had already given up on the school lunch and hidden in the bathroom. It was a shame for Gawon, for whom the school lunch was his main source of nutrition, but it couldn’t be helped.

Gawon took out the bread and milk he’d bought in the morning. He put in his earphones and turned on English listening. Focusing on the listening made him forget this shitty situation too. As he slowly chewed on a piece of bread and listened to the questions, he tossed the now-empty bread wrapper into the trash and was about to open the milk—

A cold splash of water struck the top of his head.

“Aagh!”

At the unpleasant sensation that poured down on him, Gawon couldn’t help but scream. Water, soaking his head and shoulders, dripped down to the floor.

Gawon threw aside his now-wet English book and instinctively grabbed the bathroom door tightly. The boisterous laughter erupting from outside the door made it all too clear who was responsible.

“Hey, drag that bastard out quick. I’m so fucking excited, shit.”

Heo Yeonggyu drawled in a commanding tone. His voice was full of anticipation, as if he was enjoying himself immensely. The sense of foreboding doubled. Just as he desperately grabbed and clung to the doorknob, he saw a face peeking over him from above.

“Hey, this bastard set up house here? Eating milk and studying.”

“Fuck, what a shitshow.”

Their mocking giggles echoed throughout the bathroom. Gawon’s entire body trembled as he floundered in panic. The guys who had climbed over the toilet from the next stall nonchalantly infiltrated Gawon’s stall.

“What are you doing! Get out! Don’t come in here!”

Gawon shrieked and swung his fists wildly. The narrow, albeit smelly, space where a moment of peace had lingered turned into a complete wreck. The two who had climbed over the stall subdued Gawon’s movements all too easily. The door he had desperately locked swung open effortlessly.

“Sunny, hi?”

Heo Yeonggyu waved his hand with a hateful grin. Then he grabbed Gawon’s chin and twisted it this way and that.

“You’ve been living comfortably lately, relying on that Ki Joon bastard’s backing. Look at your face, all smooth and shiny.”

“Get lost! Why are you doing this to me, what the hell!”

Gawon shrieked and shook off Heo Yeonggyu’s hand. Then Heo Yeonggyu’s nauseatingly smiling face suddenly twisted, and he immediately grabbed Gawon by the hair.

“Why, you shit. I’ve set up a fucking fun game, haven’t I? Let’s go, quick.”

“Let go! Let go, let go of me!”

Heo Yeonggyu put strength into his arm. At the same time, Gawon’s feet, which had desperately tried to hold their ground here, were lifted off the floor. The humiliation of being dragged like a dog and the pain of his scalp feeling like it was being torn apart swirled together in turmoil.

The bastard walked with the triumphant stride of a general who had taken the enemy commander’s head. The crowd filling the hallway instantly parted at the amusing spectacle of a small kid being dragged by the hair. Everyone followed them with curious eyes.

Arriving at the classroom, Heo Yeonggyu led Gawon to the center and shoved him onto an empty desk.

“Hey, he’s here, he’s here!”

“Ah, I’m so fucking excited.”

Gawon, panting, lifted his fiercely glaring eyes. The group of seniors who had been smoking with Heo Yeonggyu yesterday were standing with Heo Yeonggyu’s group, looking down at him. Their faces were full of smiles, as if it was the most entertaining thing in the world.

Suddenly, his trembling gaze caught the vulgar graffiti covering the entire blackboard. Sunny. Whore. Choice. Bar girl uniform. And Yoon Gawon…. Sentences made up entirely of such words rushed at him all at once, branding themselves onto Gawon’s chest like hot irons.

I want to die.

Only one thought filled his mind.

“Hey, grab this bastard.”

One of them grinned greasily and nodded toward Gawon. Sensing danger, Gawon screamed and struggled. He threw punches, scratched, and clawed at the faces of the kids trying to hold him. But outnumbered, Gawon’s resistance was quickly subdued.

“Hey, hold that bastard properly. I got this by asking my girlfriend for it, you know?”

In the senior’s hand, chuckling, was a long, flashy wig. Gawon looked up at it with an expression of disbelief.

“Yesterday, looking at this bastard’s looks, ha, fuck. It’s exactly what his mom must look like, right?”

Laughter burst from the crowd at that. Finally grasping their vile intent, Gawon bit down on his trembling lips. His panting breath caught in his chest. He was breathless to the point of dizziness, and his eyes burned.

How could a person. How could a person do this. How, how could they go this far….

“Let go! Let go, fuck! If you put that on me, I’ll kill you!”

“Ah, shut up and stay still.”

Tears, blurring his vision, streamed down his cheeks. His screaming voice cracked and splintered. His body trembled so much, his limbs so weak, that he couldn’t resist properly. There was no way he could overpower the guys firmly holding both his arms and legs from the sides.

Eventually, the wig was placed on Gawon’s head. But because Gawon screamed and shook his head with all his might, the wig immediately fell to the floor.

Smack! Pain shot through his cheek along with a loud noise. His head rang with the numbing pain. The senior who had slapped him put the wig back on Gawon’s head and secured it firmly.

“Hey, Sunny. You look fucking pretty. Should I send this picture to your boyfriend?”

“Heh heh, right. That pathetic bastard will fucking love this.”

Heo Yeonggyu giggled beside him, continuously taking pictures. Gawon’s tear-streaked face, wearing the wig, was captured on camera.

Just then, perhaps due to a lapse in attention, the grip on his right arm loosened. Gawon immediately twisted his hand free and aimed for the senior’s cheek right in front of him.

“Don’t! You fucking trash! Don’t you dare!”

Along with Gawon’s wailing cry, a tearing sound split the air. The senior, whose face had been snapped to the side from the impact, glared at Gawon with a sullen expression.

“Ah, you fucking… Look at this?”

He turned serious and took off his watch, placing it down.

“You’re dead today. If I called you pretty, you should’ve just crawled between my legs…”

The senior raised his fist. His heart pounded as if it would leap out of his chest. Just as Gawon squeezed his eyes shut and hunched his shoulders—

CRASH—!

At that moment, the senior was explosively shoved and flew sideways. Gawon snapped his eyes open. Everyone fell silent and turned their gaze at the monstrous strength, as if hit by a massive truck.