.  While I nodded meekly, Yi Ruda directed his blue eyes behind my back. Still flaunting a vibrant smile, he said, “It’s you, sunbae, right? Though you look withered and old……”


  Even though Yi Ruda dissed Hwang Siwoo right in front of him, Hwang Siwoo just nodded absentmindedly for some reason.

  “Huh? Uh, yeah……” replied Hwang Siwoo.

  Yi Ruda asked, “Would you follow me for a sec?” Speaking that way, Yi Ruda crumpled something in his hand.

  A moment after Yi Ruda and Hwang Siwoo left for the hallway, I noticed that it wasn’t a paper or a beverage can but the doorknob of our classroom. Standing still in a daze, I soon sent a knowing glance at Ban Hwee Hyul, who was stooping slightly between his desk and chair, then murmured, ‘My second year in this school won’t go that smooth too.’


  Those who opened the door and stepped into the classroom heard my remark and spoke one after another.

  “Indeed, he’s a badass sent from the States and raised by us, Class 1-8……”


  “American weapon never fails.”


  The look on my face turned weird upon the comments blurted out from Yoon Jung In and Kim Hye Woo. ‘Badass and American weapon……? Are you guys talking about Yi Ruda?’


  I had no idea since when they started to treat Yi Ruda so harshly. Yi Ruda used to be the smiling angel in our class though. While I reminisced the good all times, Kim Hye Hill, beside me, struck a retort.

  “What kind of bullsh*t is that from the first day of the new school year?”


  Yoon Jung In shrugged and replied nonchalantly, “Hey, there’s someone who dragged a senior outside the classroom from the first day of the new semester. Why are you acting so mean to us?”


  “That’s because that guy deserved to be dragged away from the classroom,” replied Kim Hye Hill.

  While Kim Hye Hill and Yoon Jung In began to quarrel, I glanced around. As if the term, ‘We,’ that Kim Hye Hill dropped at the staircase implied the Four Heavenly Kings of Sukbong Middle School, Yoon Jung In, Shin Suh Hyun, and the Kim twins were all in this classroom.

  Besides, Lee Mina was also in the same class. Resting her chin on her palm while placing her elbow on the desk as always, she was paying attention to us and bursting into laughter once in a while.

  It suddenly felt so thankful to be in the same class as Mina too. The class atmosphere would be more cheerful; above all, I wanted to avoid being on the opposite side of Mina during a dodgeball match or other games.

  You know there was always a kid who made us think it was so fortunate to have that person in our team while participating in class versus class matches in the PE class. Recalling the memories of Lee Mina playing the games, I trembled for a second, but suddenly Kim Hye Hill called me.

  “Ah, right, you know at the stairway earlier……”


  “Huh?” I asked.

  She replied, “I’ve said at the staircase that I’m very excited and looking forward to having fun in our sophomore year……”


  “Oh……” I nodded. Now I had come to think of it, our conversation ended out of the blue since we had to search for our classroom. Kim Hye Hill made an eye gesture toward the group of kids sitting together.

  She uttered, “Well, not only just the four of us, but I’m so glad that Mina and Ruda are also in our class.”


  “Why?” I tilted my head.

  Kim Hye Hill pointed the class with her chin while saying, “The overall atmosphere would be settled.”


  “Oh……” I nodded in agreement. What she just said was true. For some reason, this class had quite a lot of kids with threatening auras including Hwang Siwoo, who got dragged out of the classroom by Yi Ruda.

  So Hyun High School was definitely the most selective private schools in this neighborhood. Thus, I could never tell how those bully-like kids were able to enter this school although there wasn’t an inverse relationship between academic performance and fighting skills.

  Kim Hye Hill added in a low voice, “However, I guess this year…… it seems difficult to get along with all our classmates……”


  I nodded again. It had been so excited during our freshmen year since everybody was so close. What a bummer……

  At that moment, the classroom door flung open and those who had been waiting for all appeared at once. A young teacher having the roll book between his arm and side came in through the front door; Yi Ruda and Hwang Siwoo from the backdoor.

  Looking in that direction while standing in front of the teacher’s desk, the teacher said, “Try to be on time from now on.”


  “Yes, sir,” said the two boys. Both Hwang Siwoo and Yi Ruda just bowed their heads without saying anything else.

  Yi Ruda, who was soon glancing around, walked toward this side. He then took a seat diagonally behind me.

  Sticking out my head to the back, I whispered, “Thanks for helping me earlier, but what did you two do outside?”


  Hwang Siwoo didn’t look anywhere hurt, so they didn’t seem to have a fistfight at all. However, he looked so pale as if he had met the angel of death.

  Resting his chin on his palm, Yi Ruda smiled naughtily and replied, “I taught him a lesson of life.”


  ‘Oh, lord. Hwang Siwoo is clearly a year older than you……’ But leaving those words unspoken, I just turned my head away from Yi Ruda. Our teacher was dropping a remark just in time.

  “.…… So there isn’t anything special I’m looking forward to you guys…… Would I expect you to reach the first place in test scores among all the classes? Come on……”


  He then lifted his finger and pointed at the classroom right beside us. If he was talking about our neighboring class, was it Class 2-7?

  He continued, “And now I come to think of it, I guess the sophomore top class in test scores is already fixed. You know the classroom right next door, Class 1-7, huh? The first and second students for grades are all there.”


  ‘Ah……’ I nodded with a look that I was aware of what our teacher meant. He would be definitely implying Ban Yeo Ryung and Eun Jiho.

  ‘But this time they’re right beside my class. I can, at least, see their faces while moving classes or during the PE class.’ While I had those thoughts in mind, the teacher walked toward the students with big strides. With a shrug, he uttered cheerfully.

  “So, all I want our class is to stay safe and healthy. That’s it. Any questions?”


  Meanwhile, the class became silent. I observed the teacher.

  Ever since I started dating Yeo Dan oppa, my eye level reached as high as it could get, but as I took a closer look at our teacher, he looked quite impressive and handsome enough to attract attention outside the school. His black hair was neat and composedly covering his forehead; he looked intelligent with his silver frame glasses.

  If Ban Hwee Hyul also wore something like that instead of his thick, horn-rimmed glasses, his existence wouldn’t be gone. Feeling quite pathetic for a second, I continued observing our teacher.

  Even though he looked athletic, his skin was white and flawless without a tan; the veins in his arm stood out under the folded-sleeves. His decent face was flaunting a slight grin for the whole time.

  I checked the blackboard. Even his name sounded handsome. ‘Noh Min Chan…… hmm, he would really be very popular? He might have heard that he resembled an actor…… What was his name?’


  While I rambled those things in my head, a question popped out from the girls.

  “Teacher, do you have a girlfriend?”


  “No,” he replied with a refreshing smile.

  The girls shrieked at his response while screaming, ‘Oh my God, that’s awesome!’


  I stared at them nervously. It was a common thing to admire a young and handsome teacher in our age; however, those reactions seemed a little far from admiration.

  At the beginning of my freshman year, a few girls asked me obsessively about whether I was close with the Four Heavenly Kings or not. That memory entered my head.

  ‘No, let’s don’t jump the gun…… Don’t be judgemental……’ The moment I shook my head, the teacher cleared up the situation.

  “So that was my self-introduction. Those who want to be the class president and vice president, would you like to come out here? I’d like to quickly go through it in the morning so that they can bring our new textbooks.”


  I thought there would be much noise from pulling the chairs, but the class was very quiet. When I turned my head back, none of the kids were standing except for Lee Mina and Yoon Jung In. The teacher showed an enigmatic expression.

  “Eh? Only the two of you? Which position are you each applying to?” asked the teacher.

  Yoon Jung In replied composedly, “I would like to be the class president, and she the vice president.”


  “Really? Cool, then follow me to go get the textbooks,” said the teacher.

  “Yes, sir.”


  Yoon Jung In and Lee Mina exchanged eye contact shortly then left the classroom immediately. Staring in that direction for a moment, my face soon stiffened at the sudden whisper.

  “Jesus, just to improve their grades and college chances……”


  ‘Just to improve their grades and college chances? What’s so bad about sophomores in high school to participate in extracurricular activities?’ I said to myself in bewilderment.

  When I turned my head aside, a few bully-like kids, who looked as naughty as Hwang Siwoo, came into view.