1st in Class Hides Regression - Chapter 78

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Ranked 1st in School
Hides Her Regression
78
Seo Jae-gyeom’s daily life.
Always arrives at school cutting it close, sometimes late. (Though lately he’s been coming earlier. What’s gotten into him?)
His uniform is sometimes neat, sometimes a complete mess—whatever suits him.
During class, he rests his chin in his hand and does other things.
He only glances at the teacher when something interesting comes up; otherwise he mostly reads his textbook alone or stares out the window.
After lunch, he plays basketball.
He attends hagwon. According to Ji-su, he does other things there too. Seems like he gets private tutoring as well.
On weekends, he hangs out with friends playing soccer or going to PC bangs. Not every day, but he often wanders around alone watching movies or visiting exhibitions.
He reads books—buys them and reads them. He flips through the cover carelessly and starts reading, then throws them away if they’re not good. Is it because his house is so spacious that he can get away with it?
He knows how to do a lot of things but gets bored quickly.
In Seo Jae-gyeom’s daily routine, there was no instance of him dragging friends into a dark corner behind the Main Building.
‘Four of them.’
Those kids came to our class earlier.
But why are they sneaking around like that, glancing nervously?
Don’t tell me.
“Seo Jae-gyeom, are you smoking?”
Sua voiced the suspicion I’d been harboring.
“Probably not…?”
“But why are they going back there? That’s where kids like Song Yeor-eum go to smoke.”
“Yeah, seriously.”
The suspicion that had been creeping up solidified into certainty when the last one turning the corner swept his surroundings with an anxious gaze.
I jumped to my feet.
“Let’s go.”
Teenagers shouldn’t smoke.
Actually, adults shouldn’t either.
Tobacco is completely harmful. Tobacco is hopeless; we say NO to cigarettes.
Do you really think it looks cool blowing out cigarette smoke, young people?
It doesn’t!
You’re just wasting money and becoming a smelly person!
I bolted up and headed behind the building where Seo Jae-gyeom’s group was going.
My friends followed behind with amused looks in their eyes.
Se-in whispered.
“But aren’t Kang Da-hye and Seo Jae-gyeom getting along really well, considering what happened between them?”
“Right. I wouldn’t have known if no one said anything.”
“Seo Jae-gyeom even switched seats with her.”
“And he said if Kang Da-hye becomes class president, he’d be vice president.”
“Plus Seo Jae-gyeom hit Park Su-hwan the other day.”
“I’d almost believe it if someone said Seo Jae-gyeom confessed to Kang Da-hye.”
I don’t know.
“He seems like a pretty cool type. When I said I don’t like him anymore, he said let’s just be friends instead.”
As long as someone isn’t bothering him by liking him, he doesn’t seem to care.
I answered without thinking much and turned the corner of the building.
The moment a lighter appeared in Seo Jae-gyeom’s hand, I planned to slap his back. With that intention, I poked only my head around the wall—
“…Huh?”
What I saw behind the building was far from what I expected.
Seo Jae-gyeom, his brow furrowed deep enough to crease his nose…
was doing separate trash collection.
They appeared to be leftover boxes from when the teacher’s office purchased supplies for the sports day. Seo Jae-gyeom’s friends stood behind him with their hands together like they were about to be scolded.
When one of them timidly reached out to help, Seo Jae-gyeom slapped his hand away. I strained to listen and caught his voice.
“The girls releasing that to KakaoTalk was for public interest…so what’s your excuse?”
“…No, we just….”
“If you saw that, you should’ve been trying to catch whoever the sick bastard was who leaked it, but instead you’re passing it around having a laugh? Is that fun for you?”
“It’s just….”
“How did not a single one of you think, ‘Oh, this is private, we should keep it quiet’? You’re rotten to the core. Why? While you’re at it, why don’t you go around sharing other people’s secretly filmed videos too?”
“…Sorry….”
“Get out.”
Seo Jae-gyeom was angry.
“Don’t be such a coward.”
Seo Jae-gyeom’s friends, who’d been about to make excuses, fell silent and stepped back without a word.
‘Irritated? But he said he wasn’t irritated with me.’
I was irritated. And angry, too.
Though not at who I’d expected.
“Later, go apologize to Kang Da-hye and Ji-su. Don’t just say sorry to me and call it done.”
“Right! Of course!”
“We will!”
“And.”
“Y-yes?”
“I’m not curious who spread this KakaoTalk first, and I don’t want to dig into it. Since you’re all accomplices, you handle the cleanup yourselves. The moment I hear about this again, I won’t hold back.”
When have you ever held back?
…That’s not the point.
I felt oddly thrown off.
It was a side of Seo Jae-gyeom I hadn’t expected to see.
I thought he’d get annoyed that it was on his lips, complain that I was making trouble. I expected his irritation to land on me.
‘I thought I had him all figured out.’
I’ve never seen him like this before.
The strange feeling kept me silent.
After a few quiet seconds, Se-in poked her head out from beside me and whispered.
“Um. But Da-hye.”
“Yeah?”
“Did Seo Jae-gyeom really dump you?”
“Yeah… very cold and cruel about it, too.”
My heart’s got a hole in it and it’s still bleeding. I rubbed my school uniform over the name tag. Ga-eun tilted her head from beside me.
“For a rejection…”
“He’s being way too nice to you.”
Even a boyfriend wouldn’t do that. Ga-eun, frowning, picked up the thread.
“Maybe he just flicked you away lightly, and you flew way too far?”
“That’s not it.”
He told me to read between the lines, he did.
Come on. I’m ranked first in Korean—do you think I can’t read between the lines?
I shook my head firmly.
I spoke to my friends with that weird look in their eyes.
“Honestly, lately he’s been treating me so well that sometimes I catch myself getting confused about it, but I can’t let that cloud my judgment.”
Because.
Seo Jae-gyeom is the type who treats people well depending on his mood, then hurts them just the same.
Today he likes Ji-su, but tomorrow he won’t, and that’s how it goes.
If I let myself fall for that, I’m the one who bleeds.
* * *
“Kids are terrifying.”
“Tell me about it. Ji-su, are you okay? Nothing else in the messages bothering you?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Though I’ll admit I’m a bit anxious.”
Ji-su laughed with a pale face.
“I really have no idea who did it.”
“Yeah.”
For me, only the conversations Ji-su and I had were seen by others—but from Ji-su’s perspective, someone rifled through her entire KakaoTalk.
Everything she’d talked about with other people got exposed too. They could’ve seen months’ worth.
Right now, Ji-su must be the most anxious.
Ji-su bit her lip and asked me.
“Will you catch whoever did it?”
“There’s no way to catch them, is there?”
“If you trace back from whoever has the screenshot—ask who they got it from—you could track it backward.”
“Oh.”
That’s a good idea.
“Do you want to catch them, Ji-su? I’ll help.”
“No, it’s fine. I just want to let it go.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I’m worried you might be the one who wants to catch them.”
“If you’re okay with it, I’m okay with it too.”
From now on, let’s make sure to log out properly. I patted Ji-su’s shoulder when someone waved frantically from across the way. I raised my hand back to Bang Eun-ji, who was gesturing enthusiastically.
‘Good eyes. There are only a handful of people in this auditorium.’
She’d come in with that strange eyeliner again today, so I pointed it out, and a KakaoTalk message arrived.
Bang Eun-ji
Pretty, right? I can draw yours too lol
I have a computer pen
12:58
12:59
You’ve been drawing eyeliner with a computer pen this whole time?!
That’s disgusting!
“Hello, Da-hye.”
A shadow fell over my head as I started in surprise.
Our class’s student teacher—who never failed to show off that ridiculous height—had made a point of greeting me specifically. When I turned around, the other student teachers were lined up at the very back of the auditorium.
He’d come all the way down here just to say hello to me, of all people.
“Do the student teachers have to sit through the Gender Equality Awareness Improvement program too?”
“Apparently so.”
“Then why…”
“I just came down to say hello to a promising junior.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Heh.”
In this life, I really do want to become your junior, teacher.
The student teacher chuckled at the sight of my blurred gaze, then pointed to Ji-su.
“Is she a friend?”
Ji-su hesitated slightly at the question before answering with a smile.
“Teacher, you came to our class earlier, remember? I’m from Class 1.”
“Oh, did I?”
“Yes, you did.”
“Sorry. I haven’t gotten to know all the students yet.”
“That’s not fair. You remember Da-hye.”
Ji-su swept her hair back and looked the student teacher straight in the eye.
“I’m not exactly forgettable, am I?”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————