Family on paper
Love Maze 02
“Hey, could you please swap seats with me?”
여주
“⋯?”
“Oh, it’s nothing else… I have something to tell Taehyung!”
여주
“Why don’t you do it during break time?”
“The break time is too short⋯.”
It was the female student who was called a "nouveau riche." Looking at her name tag, her name was Jin Ye-na. Despite asking such revealing questions, Jin Ye-na showed no sign of embarrassment.
Not wanting to drag out the needless arguing, I gathered my books and pencil case and stood up. At the same time, Jin Ye-na's face brightened, and I chuckled in frustration. There's going to be another crying baby.
“Thank you, lady!”
"I should be grateful. I thought I was being stabbed in the back of the head."
Jin Ye-na's seat was at the very back of the hallway. It was right in front of the door, so it was noisy, but she was quite satisfied just to be out of Kim Tae-hyung's sight.
“What, you switched seats?”
여주
“Yeah. That friend asked me to. If it’s uncomfortable… should I move to a different seat?”
“No. Sit here. It smelled so bad and I felt like shit, but this is much better.”
여주
“⋯Huh?”
I almost let it slide. Why would you say something like, "I ate toast this morning," with a light laugh?
I looked at him with startled eyes, quickly regained control of my expression, and picked up my pen. Then, I felt a fierce gaze from the side. My right cheek felt as if it had been pierced by a laser.
박지민
"Are you Kim Yeo-ju? I'm Park Jimin. We're in the same class, but we've never talked before."
여주
“Uh… really?”
Honestly, I didn't care. Whether it was her dislike of the wealthy Jin Ye-na or her refusal to talk to me, it was all about that. I couldn't be bothered to keep responding to her pointless comments, so I just gave a vague response.
Park Jimin didn't immediately ask another question, perhaps having nothing to say to my bored reaction. "Should I just study now?" I ignored Park Jimin's gaze and adjusted my pen.
박지민
"Are you good at studying? The vice president keeps asking you questions about things you don't know."
여주
“I’m not very good at it. I just do what the kids do.”
박지민
“Oh… You know how unlucky you were just now? If the other kids heard, they’d swear at me. Think I was being lenient on you-.”
‘⋯Should I say thank you here?’
Park Jimin's sly words left me pondering for a moment. Perhaps it was because most people around me were reserved, but this was the first time I'd ever heard someone talk so incessantly.
I thought he'd stop talking after that playful remark, but I was wrong. Park Jimin kept talking to me before I could even look back at my book, and his words were all useless. Of course, judging by his reaction, I think it was just me.
박지민
“What do your parents do?”
여주
“⋯Why are you curious about that?”
박지민
"Why are you curious? Isn't it strange that people at Hwayang High School aren't curious about their parents' jobs?"
여주
“⋯.”
Park Jimin was right. This place, Hwayang High School, was a gathering place for only the children of the most prestigious families. Parents' occupations defined their class, and that, in turn, defined the class structure among the children.
I couldn't answer Park Jimin's question directly, so I mumbled. Hansung Group was unequivocally the number one group in South Korea, but to say "Hansung Group" here would be to betray the fact that they were family and brothers.
Of course, the fact that they were not biological family also held me back.
여주
“⋯Just do IT business. Just be normal.”
박지민
"Now that you mention it, I'm even more curious. Aren't you going to tell me the names of the companies? Where were the companies with daughters? Gold? Jere?"
여주
“That’s not all. You… What do your parents do for a living?”
I never thought I'd ask this question in my lifetime. No matter how I framed it, it was clearly intended to divide the class. I tried to change the subject, but immediately regretted it.
Park Jimin doggedly followed my gaze, seemingly oblivious to my face as I tried to avoid his gaze. His eyes, sparkling in the light, didn't appear entirely clear, and I felt a little nervous.
박지민
“My parents also just run a clothing business. Just normal.”
Is it just my imagination that I feel a sense of deja vu?
여주
“What is the name of the company?”
At my question, Park Jimin smiled in an incomprehensible way and placed his index finger on his lips.
박지민
"secret."
Forget the previous posts... This is real now.