Chapter 19: A Rainy Morning and Unwanted Advice

Thanks to that, we were able to gather supplies with relative ease — chargers, Kim Ji-ho’s lenses, phones, blankets, and gym clothes.

Yoon Soo-ah and Han Bo-bae had already changed into comfortable gym clothes before coming out.

The store wasn’t the small neighborhood mom-and-pop shop I had imagined.

True to the school’s affluent reputation, a major convenience store chain had set up shop not far from the cafeteria.

For reference, the cafeteria had been completely locked since the first boss battle. No matter how much we tried to unlock it, the door wouldn’t budge.

Then a warning popped up: ‘Do not explore areas not related to the quest.’ With a sense of unease, I quietly pocketed the cafeteria key.

Even on the way to the store, the kids had been terrified, constantly asking if there really were no ghosts.

But when nothing happened even as they poured water into their cup noodles, they all relaxed and started chattering.

“I thought I was going to starve to death.”

“But is it okay to eat without paying?”

“If we get out alive, we can pay double then.”

With their tension relieved, the kids cleared out the burgers, bread, and milk, devouring everything — as if cup noodles and triangular rice balls weren’t enough.

I also grabbed a few chocolates as a snack and headed to the auditorium.

The auditorium had large, plush mats, blankets, power outlets, and even a water dispenser.

We rubbed our full bellies, plugged in our phone chargers, and lounged around.

Finally freed from his broken glasses, Kim Ji-ho breathed a sigh of relief as he put in his contacts.

I let out a loud sigh at the sight. What was I going to do with that troll… Earlier, when Yoon Soo-ah was being dragged away, if I hadn’t shouted, he would have just kept trembling in the back.

With a disapproving glare, I scanned Kim Ji-ho. He glanced at me cautiously and rolled to the far end of the mat.

Just looking at him made me frustrated, so I turned my gaze from him to the ceiling.

“Jae-yoon, if you’re tired, get some sleep.”

As I lay sprawled on the green mat, my eyes half-closed and blinking slowly, Seo Yi-han gently covered my eyes with his hand and whispered softly.

Captivated by that pleasant low voice, I succumbed to unconsciousness without resistance.

***

The soft blanket smelled of sun-dried warmth. It was thick and cozy, and I had no desire to kick it off and get up.

I kept my heavy eyelids shut and wrapped the blanket around my entire body. The pillow, mattress, and blanket were all plush and soft.

I let out a satisfied hum and turned to the other side, feeling the cool touch of the sheet that hadn’t yet absorbed my body heat.

“Ha… I don’t want to go to school.”

Outside the window, I could hear the pitter-patter of rain. Maybe I should just convince Seo Yi-han to skip and go on a field trip.

It didn’t seem like heavy rain, so I could ask the driver to take us for a drive in the suburbs…

“Jae-yoon.”

With a light knock, Seo Yi-han opened the door. Speak of the devil — that scoundrel never missed a chance. As always, he rushed to my room right at 7:30 and woke me up.

Seo Yi-han called my name softly and gently shook me. Wrapped in the blanket like a caterpillar, I was helplessly jostled by his touch.

The blanket that had been up to my chin had slipped down to my chest.

“Don’t wake me up… Let’s not go to school today.”

I grumbled, pulling the blanket back up over my head. From outside the blanket, I heard Seo Yi-han chuckle softly. Then the cheerful sound of him opening the window.

As a result, the room filled with the damp, fresh smell of a rainy day — my favorite scent.

Only after opening all the windows in the room did Seo Yi-han come over to my bed and sit on the edge. The right side of the bed sagged under his weight. At the same time, my body tilted slightly to the right.

Because Seo Yi-han was pulling the blanket down and messing around, I had no choice but to open my bleary eyes. His grinning face filled my vision.

“Grandfather won’t let it slide.”

“He’s here? At this hour?”

“Yeah. And hyung too.”

At Seo Yi-han’s words, my face, already crumpled with sleepiness, tightened. Grandfather, what a surprise. He must have skipped his usual morning hike because of the rain.

And Seo Yi-han’s older brother… what was he doing not at work at this hour?

Seo Yi-han’s brother, Yoo-han hyung, is quite a bit older than him. After finishing his studies abroad in the US last year, he parachuted into the family company. To avoid criticism, he always went to work early and came home late.

Thanks to that, I could count on one hand the number of times I’d seen him on weekdays since moving here. We had a rule to eat breakfast together on Friday mornings, so I only saw him on Friday mornings and weekends.

Which is why we usually only ever ate breakfast together, just the two of us. Anyway, realizing that skipping school today was out of the question, I grumbled and got up.

As I roughly shook out the blanket and got out of bed, Seo Yi-han picked up the blanket and stood. Then he walked over to the open window and shook the blanket out vigorously.

“It’s raining, so I can’t air out the blanket.”

“It’s fine.”

It wasn’t like it was his job, but that guy aired out my room and hung the blanket by the window every morning. Anyone would think he was a housekeeper, not the young master of the house.

I was the one living here as a guest, yet he waited on me so assiduously that it sometimes made me uncomfortable.

In fact, every time Yoo-han hyung saw Seo Yi-han doing this, he would nag him with a very displeased face.

But Seo Yi-han would always talk back with a smile, saying things like, ‘Jae-yoon is a guest, so of course I have to take care of him,’ never backing down.

That guy never backs down, even from his own brother.

I ran my hand through my messy bedhead and yawned lazily. Maybe it was because the sky was dark for the time, but strangely, I didn’t feel any urgency to hurry and get ready for school. All I felt was a desire to play hooky.

When I showed no sign of moving to wash up, Seo Yi-han grabbed my shoulders and pushed me toward the bathroom. He was already fully dressed in his school uniform.

With a sulky expression, I was dragged to the bathroom door, and Seo Yi-han’s pleasant voice reached my ears.

“You can’t skip school entirely because of Grandfather. But how about attending just the second period and then leaving early?”

“And say what for leaving early?”

“There are plenty of excuses. Is there somewhere you want to go?”

I shook my head at the question. It was one thing to skip school and go out to play, but I didn’t want to bother attending two periods only to leave early. Going out in my school uniform didn’t appeal to me either.

“Forget the early leave. Let’s just go to class.”

“Okay. Then go wash up and come straight down for breakfast.”

Seo Yi-han closed the door and left. Honestly, I didn’t want to sit at the table across from Grandfather… but there was no helping it. He was the master of this house.

He used to always smile kindly, but ever since Seo Yi-han and I turned 18, Grandfather’s nagging about college entrance exams had increased significantly.

He wasn’t like that only with his own grandson, Seo Yi-han — he showed unusual interest in me, another family’s son, as well.

He often acted like a career counselor, asking, ‘Jae-yoon, do you have a specific goal? Is there a reason you’re set on business administration?’

The reason I was set on business administration was because it falls under the business and economics field, which has good job prospects. The university I was aiming for was the best one I could reach with my current grades.

When I answered that way, the light in Grandfather’s eyes would go out. Then he would lament that young people these days had no dreams or ambition.

Every time I heard that, I felt wronged. The university I was aiming for was quite prestigious, and among its departments, business administration had the highest cutoff. So naturally, I was studying quite hard.

But to say I had no dreams or ambition — if studying for a goal wasn’t a dream-filled act, then what was?

‘If anything, the one without dreams or ambition is Seo Yi-han.’

Top-tier grades, a family background that made job worries unnecessary. And even if his future weren’t guaranteed, he had the face and physique to become a successful actor.

Despite having all of that, he was the kind of guy who would say ‘okay’ to anything and everything. That was Seo Yi-han.

Maybe it was because he grew up in an environment where he never had to worry about anything, but he was overly optimistic and carefree.

Well, Grandfather knew that too, so he probably wanted Seo Yi-han to be more motivated by seeing me, his friend…

The problem was that I wasn’t the type to live anxiously either, so in Grandfather’s eyes, we both seemed like listless youngsters.

I dried my wet hair with a towel, shaking it vigorously. As I sauntered down the stairs, the delicious smell of food hit my nose.

And I saw Seo Yi-han, Yoo-han hyung, and Grandfather sitting around the long table. Seo Yi-han gestured for me to come and sit quickly.

“Good morning, Grandfather, hyung. It’s not Friday, so what’s the occasion for eating breakfast together?”

I pulled out the chair next to Seo Yi-han and sat down half-heartedly, but Yoo-han hyung clicked his tongue.

“You haven’t even dried your hair… Aren’t you going to be late?”

“Hyung, we have school at 9. It’s different from your time.”

Seo Yi-han replied with a sweet smile, but I knew his way of speaking. That was a dig.

The intended meaning was probably something like: ‘You’re old, so you wouldn’t know? It’s completely different from when you attended. Unlike you, we have it quite easy.’

And Yoo-han hyung, understanding Seo Yi-han’s cleverly irksome tone, struck his rice bowl with his spoon. Only the innocent rice grains splattered onto Yoo-han hyung’s tie.

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