/
Chapter 9.2: Only You(1)
Now that all the grueling afternoon classes and afternoon homeroom were done,[1] Kang Chan wanted to go home as soon as possible.
He was about to leave the classroom when Kim Mi-Young called out to him.
“Wait for me.”
The other students were watching them. If he were to treat her harshly in front of them, Kim Mi-Young wouldn’t approach him ever again. However, all of the attention from the other students wasn’t the reason why Kang Chan didn’t do it.
As much as Kim Mi-Young was comfortable around him, he was starting to feel the distance between them closing. Naturally, it wasn’t that important, but he didn’t want to lord over her in front of those students.
“Hurry, let’s go.”
As soon as he agreed to leave the school with her, Kim Mi-Young’s face lit up, and the ambiance within the classroom changed dramatically. He wasn’t going to be attending classes from next week onwards anyway, so he felt it would be good to leave it at that.
However, Kang Chan’s mood was instantly ruined after walking out the back door. It was Eun-Sil and her three worthless minions. Kang Chan calmed himself down and looked at Eun-Sil. She had dark bruises on her face, neck, arms, and just below her skirt.
“Give me a couple of minutes.”
She was evidently afraid. It was certain from the fact that she kept her eyes on Kang Chan’s right hand the entire time. But what was more important than her fear of him?
Kang Chan glanced over at Snow White first.
“Shall I wait for you in the classroom?”
“You don’t have to go to hagwon?”
“Yeah.”
She was a slow-witted child that lacked self-respect.
‘Could she possibly have fallen for me?’
Kim Mi-Young went back into the classroom, looking both anxious and somewhat jealous.
“Let’s go to the rooftop.”
Kang Chan smirked.
“No, it’s really not what you’re thinking.”
“It doesn’t matter what it is, but if it’s some bullshit, it ends here.”
Kang Chan watched Eun-Sil shake her head vigorously, then followed her up the stairs. The three useless minions stopped in front of the stairs like faithful dogs. The rooftop was as crowded as before, but the students smoking all over the place immediately rushed out.
“I’m Heo Eun-Sil.”
Heo Eun-Sil stood by the railing that overlooked the field, and the first thing she announced was her name. Why wasn’t she wearing a name tag, though?
“Don’t be mad and listen to what I have to say. I’m really not trying to piss you off.”
“Okay, so just get to the point.”
Heo Eun-Sil took a deep breath and spoke with much difficulty.
“The guys from yesterday… told me to bring you to them.”
Heo Eun-Sil quickly looked at Kang Chan’s right hand.
“If I hadn’t done that, they wouldn’t leave Ho-Jun and me alone…”
Tears rolled down her face, which was still caked with makeup.
“They said they would sell me off. They’re more than capable of doing that.”
She looked absolutely frightened and terrified.
“Report them to the cops.”
Heo Eun-Sil looked flustered after hearing Kang Chan’s suggestion.
“When you and Ho-Jun bullied the other students, weren’t you relying on those thugs to back you up? Have you ever considered the feelings of those students you bullied? Did you even consider the feelings of the guy that jumped off the building? Cut the bullshit. Regardless of whether you sell your body or get beaten into a pulp, it’s up to you guys to figure it out for yourself.”
Heo Eun-Sil looked desperate. His subordinates used to have the same look on their faces whenever they were completely surrounded by the enemy. She was hoping he would do something about it or give her the solution to her problem.
“If I don’t take you to them within the day… I’ll have to face them all head-on today.”
Kang Chan smirked.
What kind of bullshit is this?
The women that ended up getting entangled with the Sunnites were pitted against approximately fifty men, and they had their noses and ears cut off before being hung on a tree under the guise of committing the cardinal sin of sexually arousing men.
“Please help me. I’m begging you. I’ll do anything you say if you help me.” Heo Eun-Sil clasped her hands together, begging Kang Chan.
“I’ll do it whenever you want to, and I’ll do it with anybody you ask me to. Please don’t let them sell me off. I’ll die if they ship me off to an island. Please.”
This was what happened when one was terrified of violence. They would burn with the desire to escape that very moment and would do anything they could to save themselves, not knowing that there was something more terrifying awaiting them.
Heo Eun-Sil looked at Kang Chan’s cold eyes and slumped down against the parapet wall. At the rate this was going, there was a 70% chance she’d jump off the building.
There had been times when recruits committed suicide. They would die if they lost a battle, and would live if they won. Nevertheless, while there were aggressive guys like Dayeru who yelled and attacked the enemy, there were also recruits that pulled the trigger on themselves in a bid to reduce their suffering after watching the enemy stab his comrades to death countless times.
The battles on Blackfield were vicious, and close combat between a comrade and an enemy was as brutal as could be.
When Kang Chan saw the pink underwear between Heo Eun-Sil’s thighs as she was squatting, he shifted his gaze far away to the field.
What did the owner of his body, or the person that gave him his new life, truly want? Did they want him to put an end to bullying, like what Dayeru mentioned? Did they send a man who had died in Africa thousands of miles away to this place just for that reason?
All of a sudden, Kang Chan desperately craved a cigarette.
“Will you really do what I order you to do?” he asked
Heo Eun-Sil’s eyes sparkled as she fixed her gaze on Kang Chan and got up to her feet.
“Do you want to do it now?”
Heo Eun-Sil didn’t know what the right answer was. She pulled up her skirt, revealing her pink underwear.
Kang Chan raised his hand as though he was going to hit her. “Don’t be stupid and get me a cigarette.”
Heo Eun-Sil stared blankly at Kang Chan with her skirt pulled up.
“You're not gonna bring me a cigarette?”
“I can! My girls have it. I’ll get it for you right away.”
She pulled her skirt back down and ran off.
“Ugh, I got myself involved in some mess.”
When he looked up at the sky, Yoo Hye-Sook’s face suddenly came to Kang Chan’s mind. He recalled what she said in the living room while she was crying, and the look she had on her face when she looked at him while trying her best to walk on eggshells around him.
Rattle.
Thud.
Perhaps because her skirt was too tight, Heo Eun-Sil fell amid her rush to get up to the rooftop.
What a mess.
“Here you go, oppa.”
Even though she had grazed her knees and palms, and they were bleeding, Heo Eun-Sil took out a cigarette with a happy face and flicked the lighter. It wasn’t her first or second time doing this––she was very proficient at it.
Chk chk.
“Hooo.”
What kind of school was this? He was having an equally hard time here as he did in Africa.
Heo Eun-Sil watched him with sparkling eyes as he smoked.
“You smoke, right?”
Heo Eun-Sil nodded in response.
“Give me one more and smoke one too, if you want.”
“Really? Thank you, oppa.”
Heo Eun-Sil placed a cigarette in her mouth and exhaled smoke with ease.
“Where should I go?”
“Huh? Hoo hoo.” Heo Eun-Sil hastily exhaled the smoke. “If you say you’ll meet them, they’ll tell me the location.”
“Stop calling me ‘oppa’.”
It was giving him goosebumps.
“Then what should I call you?”
“Just call me by my name. Don’t call me ‘oppa.’ It’s gross.”
Heo Eun-Sil hesitated, but it was not his concern.
“I’m busy this entire week. Can I meet them on Monday?”
Heo Eun-Sil’s face fell immediately. Indeed, why would these bastards even listen?
“Oppa…no, I mean Chan… maybe if you call them, they might agree to it.”
It was cumbersome.
As soon as Kang Chan nodded, Heo Eun-Sil hurriedly ran off again. This time around, she returned to the rooftop without falling and with a phone in her hand. She dialed a phone number, looking very nervous. Shortly after, she spoke, her voice shaking.
“Hello? Oppa? It’s me. Kang Chan said he’s busy today…”
The person on the other end of the line started swearing.
Kang Chan grabbed the phone from her and put it to his ear.
–– You crazy bitch, you wanna die?…
“I’m Kang Chan.”
Sudden silence enveloped the call.
“I’m busy, so I’ll see you on Monday. Give me the location.”
–– You better show up on Monday, then. If you don’t, the students will get seriously hurt.
The person on the other end of the line was unexpectedly more civil than he expected, even though he spoke in an inarticulate voice, just like every other gangster.
“Cut the crap and just tell me where to go.”
–– I’ll tell that bitch Eun-Sil by Monday. She’ll let you know.
When Kang Chan glanced at her, Heo Eun-Sil gulped.
Oh my, this poor girl.
“Fine. And I have a favor.”
Silence ensued once again.
“From today onwards, Eun-Sil will be with me. Text her the location instead of calling her. It ruins my mood.”
The person on the other end of the line started laughing out loud.
–– Okay. Pass the phone to Eun-SIl.
Kang Chan handed the phone back to her.
“Yes, oppa. Yes. Yes. I’ll be sure to take care of it. Yes, oppa. No, it’s really Kang Chan. Yes, talk to you soon, oppa.”
It was full of crap.
After hanging up, Heo Eun-Sil seemingly eased up.
“Thank you.”
Perhaps because she was no longer as tense as before, she stumbled. Naturally, Kang Chan didn’t catch her.
“Give me your number.”
Heo Eun-Sil did as instructed.
“Here. If there’s anything you want me to do, give me a call.”
If the womanizer Smithen were still alive, they’d be a match made in heaven.
“Stop talking nonsense, and don’t wear any makeup to school on Monday. That goes for you and those half-witted girls.”
A mixture of emotions could be seen on Heo Eun-SIl’s face. After giving her that order, Kang Chan left the rooftop and went down.
Are they transgender people?
The three worthless minions flinched and backed away.
Kang Chan didn’t know what exactly he was getting from doing something like that.
1. Schools in Korea typically have two homerooms –– one in the morning before classes start, and one in the afternoon, after all the classes are over. ☜