Chapter 7: The Price of Avoidance

Kang In stared down at the glass of alcohol in front of him.

He was troubled by the thought of whether he really had to drink.

“Hey, cheers.”

Kim Hyunsu raised his glass first, and everyone else followed.

“You know how to drink, right?”

He looked at Kang In suspiciously as he asked.

“Uh… yeah.”

Clink!

The glasses rose toward the ceiling.

Kang In took a breath and drank.

“Gulp.”

A bitter taste spread across his tongue.

Soon, a burning sensation traveled down his throat and settled into his stomach.

Kang In’s face twisted for a moment, but he quickly acted as though nothing had happened.

No, he had to.

He couldn’t make a big fuss about it right from the beginning after coming all the way here.

As he quietly exhaled, Kim Hyunsu watched him with amusement.

“By the way, how did Kang In become friends with Hyunsu?”

Lee Hyojin looked back and forth between Kim Hyunsu and Kang In as she asked.

Yoo Suyeong also seemed curious about that part, glancing sideways at the two of them.

“What do you mean, how did we become friends? It just happened.”

Kim Hyunsu chuckled.

“Yeah, we’re just in the same class.”

Kang In also agreed while drinking a glass of water.

“Hmm, really?”

“Why are you asking that?”

“I don’t know. It just seemed a little surprising~”

Kang In looked down at his glass.

Well, it made sense.

Anyone could see that he was completely out of place in a place like this.

There was a strange sense of pressure and tension in the room.

Honestly, it was extremely awkward and uncomfortable.

He would rather have gone to a PC bang or karaoke room with his usual friends.

“By the way, what happened to that guy last time? Yoo Jonghyeok or something?”

Kim Hyunsu nodded toward Gong Chansu as he asked.

“Ah, that bastard? We beat him half to death. Fucking bastard.”

“Good. There’s no answer for bastards who try to stand up to us. You have to beat the shit out of them.”

“Fuck, can’t you make your friends run a few errands for you?”

“If they just listen, they won’t have to get hurt. There are always idiots who create problems for themselves.”

Harsh words were exchanged.

Violent stories flowed naturally through the conversation.

Since it wasn’t merely empty boasting, Kang In couldn’t dare to join in and simply listened quietly.

The bitter taste of alcohol continued lingering in his mouth.

“You don’t really like listening to them talk, huh?”

Before he knew it, Lee Hyojin had moved right next to Kang In.

“Huh? Ah, well. I don’t really know what they’re talking about.”

“Are you good at studying?”

“What?”

“I asked if you’re good at studying.”

“Just average, I guess? Why?”

“I was going to ask you to tutor me if you were good at studying.”

“Ahh.”

Kang In understood.

To these friends, that was the kind of image he had.

Then again, if he weren’t that kind of person, why would they have brought him along?

“Hey, you have to be better than her, right?”

Kim Hyunsu had already started teasing Lee Hyojin.

“Of course. If you’re worse than her, are you even human? You got two points in math, you idiot. Getting Question 1 right was probably the bare minimum your conscience could manage.”

Oh Mincheol joined in, and everyone burst out laughing.

Soon, Kim Hyunsu and Oh Mincheol slapped their palms together.

“Ah, fuck.”

Lee Hyojin frowned, clearly annoyed.

“Why are we suddenly talking about studying? Don’t be annoying. Are you planning to betray us and go to college?”

Gong Chansu glared at Lee Hyojin with a threatening expression.

“Yeah. I’m going to college, you fucking idiots. If I stay with you guys, my brain is going to rot.”

“No, it’s already rotten. You’re hopeless.”

Lee Hyojin raised her middle finger at her friends.

The atmosphere became lively and friendly in its own way.

Surprisingly, Kang In thought it wasn’t that bad.

Looking at them like this, they simply seemed like ordinary high school students their age.

Their language was rough, but this much was bearable.

“Haha.”

Kang In laughed along with his friends.

At that moment—

“……”

Lee Hyojin suddenly stopped smiling and stared directly at Kang In.

The atmosphere instantly became cold.

Then she immediately smiled at Kang In again, and the mood changed once more.

That brief moment of tension had left a strong impression on Kang In.

That’s right.

They weren’t actually friends yet.

Kang In decided that he needed to be careful.

“Hey, drink, drink.”

Someone suddenly filled his glass again.

Kang In also poured alcohol into Kim Hyunsu’s glass.

“Bottoms up.”

“Ah, fuck. What’s with ‘bottoms up’? You sound like such a poser.”

Lee Hyojin made a disgusted face as she drank.

“Hey, Yoo Suyeong, say something too. You’ve been staring at your phone this whole time.”

“Wait.”

Tap, tap, tap.

Yoo Suyeong’s fingers moved rapidly.

“Hey, drink. Drink.”

Yoo Suyeong eventually picked up her glass and drank as well.

Hyunsu narrowed his eyes.

“Who are you talking to?”

“None of your business.”

“Another guy?”

“It’s not like that.”

“Yeah, right. Fuck—Hey, Kang In, she has a shitload of guys.”

“That’s not true, you idiot.”

“Hey, forget it. Let’s go to Gapyeong next week.”

Gong Chansu suddenly changed the subject naturally.

“Gapyeong?”

“Yeah. Let’s invite some more people and go hang out. Aren’t you guys sick of sitting around here all the time?”

“Hey, somewhere else?”

“Wow, seriously? You’re calling this place boring when we’re here?”

“I’m already sick of you guys~”

“Hey, doesn’t that girl in Class 3 at Youngshin Girls’ High School look pretty good?”

“I need a cigarette.”

The conversation was chaotic, with everyone randomly talking about whatever they wanted without any real connection between the topics.

Meanwhile, Kang In simply sat quietly in one corner.

No one was particularly trying to include him, so he was basically just Person Number One sitting nearby.

Meanwhile, his glass kept getting refilled.

Kang In slightly bit his lip.

This was getting a little dangerous.

It was his first time drinking alcohol, so he had no idea how much he could actually handle.

It was difficult to refuse in an atmosphere like this.

Can I really keep drinking like this?

Do I eventually have to get drunk?

How am I going to get home?

He had already told his parents that he was studying at a study room with his friends, but he needed to leave at a reasonable time.

Kang In carefully looked around.

The bathroom. Where’s the bathroom?

He found it.

Fortunately, the bathroom was outside the building.

That meant he would at least have a legitimate excuse to step outside.

By now, he had drunk his ninth glass.

Kang In decided that this was his chance and stood up.

“Where are you going?”

“I need to use the bathroom.”

“Really? If you run away, you’re dead.”

Kim Hyunsu threatened him jokingly.

“Yeah, I’m not running away.”

Kang In deliberately answered in a playful tone before going outside.

The moment the cold wind entered his mouth, his mind became clear.

He raised his head and noticed a tall building nearby with office lights shining through its windows.

His bag was currently sitting in a corner of the establishment.

How can I get my bag and leave this place?

Do I have to wait until everyone gets drunk?

But there was no guarantee that he would still be fine by then.

“Phew.”

When smoke suddenly drifted toward him from beside him, Kang In instinctively turned his head.

Yoo Suyeong was leaning against the wall, smoking a cigarette while tapping away at her phone.

Perhaps because of the streetlight shining on her, she looked especially beautiful.

“Oh.”

Their eyes met.

“I was going to the bathroom.”

Kang In answered on his own, as if he had been caught doing something wrong.

“Hey.”

“Yeah?”

“You’re not really their friend, are you?”

“Huh? No, I am.”

“Pfft. Bullshit. You don’t fit in with them at all.”

“……”

Kang In couldn’t think of anything to say.

The thought that he didn’t belong here, which had been sitting in the back of his mind, was slowly becoming impossible to ignore.

“Those guys would never hang around with someone like you.”

Yoo Suyeong moved her eyes up and down, looking over Kang In from head to toe.

“You don’t really look like their lackey either. Are they threatening you or something?”

“No, nothing like that.”

“Whatever. Just go home.”

“Home?”

Smoke came out of Yoo Suyeong’s mouth as she frowned.

“Yeah. Go home. You don’t belong here anyway.”

“I guess you’re right. I know that too. This is my first time somewhere like this.”

Kang In didn’t panic.

He decided to face reality.

Since he was already here, he decided to talk to Yoo Suyeong a little longer.

“Yeah, you really don’t fit in. Why did you even follow them here?”

“Don’t you know Hyunsu and Mincheol well?”

“Are you scared they’ll beat you up? Yet you still followed them all the way here, idiot.”

“I was curious about what a place like this was like.”

Yoo Suyeong looked at Kang In with an irritated expression.

“You wanted to see how fucking stupidly delinquents like us hang out?”

“Well, it’s not that bad.”

Kang In didn’t deny it.

Honestly, he didn’t think it was that bad.

“Hah.”

Yoo Suyeong let out a small laugh.

She seemed to find him rather bold.

Thud.

A thick arm suddenly landed on Kang In’s shoulder.

The moment he felt the heavy weight, Kang In’s breathing became tight.

“Yo~ What’s going on with you two?”

Oh Mincheol’s face suddenly appeared beside Kang In.

“You said you were going to the bathroom, but you’re out here hitting on her, you bastard?”

“Hey, Oh Mincheol. It’s not like that.”

Yoo Suyeong exhaled cigarette smoke with an annoyed expression.

“Yeah, right. Hey, Kang In, you lied to Hyunsu, didn’t you?”

“No, I just met her on the way to the bathroom and we were just talking…”

Squeeze.

“Kgh.”

Oh Mincheol’s huge hand pressed hard against Kang In’s cheek.

“Ah, this bastard’s drunk. Don’t take too long. Come back in~”

Yoo Suyeong dropped her cigarette on the ground without any interest in what was happening, crushed it beneath her shoe, and went back inside.

“Gulp.”

The atmosphere had seemed pretty decent, so perhaps Kang In had been wrong to expect that she might help him even a little.

His gums hurt terribly.

It felt like all his teeth were going to break.

“Hey, couldn’t you wait even that long before hitting on her? Is that what you do just because you’re a man?”

“…I told you, it’s not like that.”

Kang In grabbed one of Oh Mincheol’s fingers.

It wasn’t the little finger this time, but the ring finger was still something he could probably bend.

Should I just use my ability right now?

Kang In was caught in a moment of hesitation.

He wanted to overcome this situation without using his ability.

But could he really handle the hell that would obviously follow this?

Even if he managed to escape this place right now, what about tomorrow?

Would the day after tomorrow really be any better?

At some point, he would have to use violence against people like these.

He hadn’t experienced it yet, but he had a feeling that once he started using violence, he would never be able to escape that cycle.

If that happened, situations where he could save his ability would gradually become fewer and fewer.

Kang In tightened his grip around Oh Mincheol’s ring finger.

If he applied enough pressure to make it feel like he was about to break it, perhaps Oh Mincheol would have no choice but to let go.

However—

Squeeze.

There was no sign that Oh Mincheol’s strength was weakening.

Oh Mincheol’s face had turned bright red, and he was extremely excited from the alcohol.

This isn’t going to work.

I have to use my ability.

This time, it seemed like using it was the right choice.

It would be stupid not to use an obvious way to avoid a problem when he had one available.

Kang In tightly shut his eyes.

Flash!

“Where are you going?”

“Huh?”

He had returned to five minutes earlier.

Kang In looked at Kim Hyunsu in surprise.

“Where did you say you were going?”

“Ah, I’m just going to the bathroom.”

“Really? If you run away, you’re dead.”

“Yeah, I’m not running away.”

Kang In naturally went outside.

This time, he already knew that Yoo Suyeong would be smoking beneath the utility pole, so he approached her in advance.

“Oh.”

Their eyes met again.

Kang In gave her a small nod to acknowledge her and walked past her toward the bathroom.

“Hey. You, stop right there.”

A sharp voice came from behind him.

“Yeah?”

Kang In instinctively turned around.

He couldn’t bring himself to ignore someone who had called him.

But Yoo Suyeong’s expression was deeply twisted.

The cigarette between her lips pointed sharply upward.

“You fucking bastard! Are you ignoring me?”

“…Huh?”