SRW | Chapter 03

“Hey, Sun Eunsoo, where are you going? Are you pissed because I ignored you?”

“I’m going to take a shit.”

Take care. You guys are going to die first, second, and third. Even if you survive the monsters after the days of darkness, you’ll probably end up dead at the hands of Cha Yuhyeok with personalities like those. Just like me… damn it!

Before heading to class, I went to the restroom. Standing in front of the urinal in the empty restroom, I unbuckled my pants. As I did that, someone walked in and stood next to me.

I looked up to see who it was and locked eyes with… Kim Jaeyoung.

“Ah! Get out!”

Startled, I missed my aim and got a little on my hand. I quickly pulled up my pants and rushed to the sink, scrubbing my hands with hand sanitizer. Why the hell is this guy staring at my face while taking a piss?! I cursed inwardly. Kim Jaeyoung had finished his business and came over to wash his hands. He then spoke softly.

“Are you feeling better now?”

“Huh?”

“You didn’t come to school for a few days. You looked really sick back then.”

When his voice carried a tone of concern, I got goosebumps. This feels like an act… I observed Kim Jaeyoung from head to toe in my dream. I couldn’t shake the feeling that his behavior and tone were fake. Not that he went crazy after the days of darkness, but that he was always a weirdo. The thought that him coming into this restroom might not have been a coincidence made the back of my neck tingle.

“Uh… I’m fine.”

“You always wear that necklace.”

Kim Jaeyoung smiled. It was the same beautiful smile I’d often seen in my dream. My body stiffened as I forced a nod. The sensation of the necklace against my skin suddenly felt awkward.

“It suits you, Eunsoo.”

I could finally breathe after Kim Jaeyoung left the restroom. In short, I was terrified. Wow, I’ve never been this scared in my life… He’s really terrifying. Even though I could kill him right now with my awakened abilities, I couldn’t even breathe properly. If I ever meet Cha Yuhyeok in real life, I might just faint.

“…Wait a minute. There’s no rule saying the future has to play out exactly as I saw it, right?”

I died because, reason one: I lived a garbage life. Reason two: I met Cha Yuhyeok. That means if I don’t live like trash and avoid Cha Yuhyeok… the chances of dying should go way down.

“Damn, that’s huge. Why did it take me so long to figure this out?”

Plus, the same Kim Jaeyoung who even Cha Yuhyeok couldn’t kill… seems to like me. Even if I do meet Cha Yuhyeok, maybe I can survive if I had Kim Jaeyoung by my side? He went to such lengths to avenge me, killing my family and Cha Yuhyeok’s comrades… If he likes me that much, maybe he’ll protect me?  

“But what if he demands something in return?”

I stood in front of the mirror, scrutinizing my face. When I was younger, people often said I was good-looking. Lately, I’ve been getting more comments about why I always look so angry. I guess I look intimidating because I’m always scowling. Still, compared to the ugly guys I hang out with, I had some confidence in my looks… but I never thought my face would appeal to a guy.

“Sigh, I’m not gay… but fine. I’ll pretend not to notice as much as possible. If he catches on, I’ll just give him a kiss or something.”

Guys as pretty as Kim Jaeyoung are rare. If I think of him as a girl, maybe a kiss wouldn’t be so bad. Alright. No matter what it takes, I’ll stick to Kim Jaeyoung like glue. If I’m with him, not only will I be safe from Cha Yuhyeok, but I won’t have to worry about dying to monsters either. Of course, I’ll do my best to protect him until he awakens his abilities. It’s a win-win situation.

I left feeling excited after figuring out a way to survive long after the days of darkness. I hummed a tune and walked into the classroom. As usual, I slammed the door open, drawing annoyed glances from the seniors studying. But no one dared to say anything. I strode to the front row and rummaged through my pocket.

“Here, eat this.”

Thud. What I placed on Kim Jaeyoung’s desk was a pack of cigarettes. Ah, shit. Wrong one… Flustered, I took the cigarettes back and pulled out a box of caramels from my other pocket. I then placed it on his desk.

“Uh… thanks for finding my necklace the other day.”

I scratched the back of my neck awkwardly and spoke. I quickly turned around and walked back to my seat without waiting for his reply. This should make him like me even more. Seeing a study freak like him freeze mid-study to clutch a box of caramels, it seemed like a pretty successful move.

……Well, that’s how it went.

After multiple attempts of pretending to be close with someone whose true feelings are hard to read, we’ve become somewhat closer. We’re not exactly best friends though. When I think back to how I used to bully him just because I kept hearing his name around… ugh, I want to tear my mouth out. Thankfully, he doesn’t seem to hold grudges about the past. Honestly, back then, he didn’t even react, so it wasn’t even fun.

“Kim Jaeyoung, want to come to my place?”

“…What’s with the sudden invite?”

“Aren’t you tired of just studying all the time? Let’s play some games.”

“…Okay.”

When Kim Jaeyoung smiled softly, it felt like the surroundings brightened. How does a guy taller and broader than me have such a pure vibe…?

“Wait for me after class. Let’s go together.”

“Okay.”

As usual, his ears turned bright red.

*

The biggest fear was not knowing the exact timing of the days of darkness. All I knew was that it would happen before summer break. As the break approached, I felt more and more drained. It was unfair that I was the only one carrying this despair. Should I just refuse to go to school and stay home? Maybe I could squeeze in with my family, who all survived… No. I don’t even know if changing the future is possible, or if there’s some penalty for it. With the future being so uncertain, taking unnecessary risks is dangerous. If something terrible happens, like my family dying because I changed the future, I wouldn’t be able to handle it. In all the fear and anxiety, the only comfort I had was the thought of Kim Jaeyoung protecting me.

“Why have you been acting like this lately?”

“Like what?”

“Why are you hanging out with that loser? Shouldn’t you be studying?”

Lately, I’ve been hanging out with Kim Jaeyoung. It seems my previous friends seemed to have built up some resentment and called me to the back of the school. They all looked serious, but it just felt like a squid farm to me. ¹

“Studying? Please.”

“Then what’s the reason?”

“Even if I did want to tell you, my mouth won’t open.”

“You think this is funny?”

You guys are all going to die soon, you know? And Kim Jaeyoung is crazy strong. I’m sticking to him so I don’t die… I wanted to say that, but I literally couldn’t open my mouth. What am I supposed to do?

“I’m serious.”

I chuckled. It seems they thought I was joking and started puffing themselves up. Especially the big pig squid at the front, who suddenly rolled up his sleeve in a threatening manner, revealing a shitty blue tattoo covering his arm.

“Sun Eunsoo, you better get your act together while I’m being nice. If you’re branded as a disloyal bastard, you won’t enjoy what little school life you have left.”

Even with his tough-guy act, I knew he wouldn’t actually touch me. Just like adult fights, kid fights are all about money. The pig squid has seen how I’ve been throwing money around for the past year. Deep down, he knows attacking me would only hurt himself. And now, even if all seven of them came at me at once, I’m confident I could win.

“Sigh… guys… stop doing this and live a good life, okay? Help others, be constructive, work hard. Even if the world ends tomorrow, there’s that saying about planting a strawberry tree, right?² “

“What? Are you crazy? And it’s apple trees, not strawberries.”

“Apples, strawberries, whatever. I don’t have time for this, so I’m leaving. Take care.”

“Hey, hey! We’re not done talking!”

As I turned and walked away, the pig squid shouted. I winced at the noise but didn’t stop. I could hear them whispering behind me. “What are we going to do?” “Park Changjin, you said we could intimidate him as a group.” “Idiot, it’s not working.”, “You know we’ll be screwed without Sun Eunsoo, right?”, “Ugh, even the girls won’t hang out with us without him…”, “Do you really think that reckless bastard would be scared of this?”, “Park Changjin, get rid of the tattoo. It’s not scary at all.” and so on… It seems like they’re starting to blame the pig squid among themselves.

“Sun Eunsoo!”

The pig squid’s pride was hurt, so he called me again. I grimaced and turned around. I need to get to Kim Jaeyoung quickly. Why are they being so annoying? Should I just punch him?

“Don’t look at me like that!”

The pig squid picked up a small rock and threw it at me. He couldn’t bring himself to throw a punch. He didn’t have the guts to throw a brick either, so he settled for a small pebble as a compromise.