Seeing him up close, he was in a sorry state.
Gauze pads were taped all over his face, and his knees, exposed by his shorts, were wrapped in thick bandages.
Furthermore, it looked like he had just scraped his knee against the back of a truck while falling, as blood was oozing from an open wound.
“Are you okay?”
I asked, thinking I might help him if the situation called for it, but the man just stuttered and bowed his head.
Even when I reached out a hand, intending to help him up, he trembled and wouldn’t even consider taking it.
It was as if I had just threatened him.
Jingi put the alarm clock back into the box and handed him the items that had fallen on the floor.
The man slowly raised his head. I saw his bleached hair sticking out in every direction.
Tilting my head because he looked familiar, he suddenly blurted out words like he was having a seizure.
“I-I’m sorry. I, I was just trying to move, move out today! I’m sorry for moving, moving so late! It was, it was hard to find a house… I, I promised I wouldn’t be seen again, but preparing to move took a long time, so, I, I’m sorry. Please, please don’t tell that person, please don’t.”
The man, who had been stuttering out apologies, began to speak faster and faster, eventually bowing his head and tearing up.
He didn’t seem to be in his right mind.
Only then did it dawn on me where I had seen him.
As I took a slight step back, the man was terrified, clutching his limping knee and bolting inside his house.
“I’m sorry, I won’t be seen again!” Jingi stood there blankly for a moment after hearing his final shout.
He took a few steps backward, then turned his body and walked back toward the mart.
Jingi recalled what had just happened.
Putting aside the fact that he was injured from a fight, he had no idea why the man was apologizing to him, or who “that person” was.
The man was the same person who had asked for my number at the study cafe.
Back then, Joo Unyoung had asked in passing, “Do you want to get an apology from that bastard?”, but I had refused, thinking I wouldn’t be able to get a proper one anyway.
…What is this?
Did something happen?
For some reason, I felt uncomfortable.
It wasn’t like Joo Unyoung was the type to do such a thing, but a ridiculous assumption crossed my mind—could he be the one who inflicted those wounds?
Something out of a movie or drama.
Jingi groaned, deliberating, then let out a deep sigh.
He had arrived at the mart, and he figured nothing would change just by thinking about it.
Besides, even if Joo Unyoung got angry sometimes, he wasn’t the type to beat people up.
I could be sure of this because I had read the original story.
There was nothing strange in the novel, which, although in the third person, followed Joo Unyoung’s perspective.
Joo Unyoung was a gentle, kind person.
After successfully finishing the errands, I bought a soft cake on the way back that I thought my mother would like.
I also bought a few snacks to eat on the bus during the school trip.
They were all snacks for Baek Jaehui.
Returning home like that, Jingi rolled around on his bed.
After playing mobile games for about an hour, he felt a slight sense of shame and took out the study notes he’d brought home to skim through them.
It was truly miraculous how things were saved into his brain just by reading them a few times.
With his past life’s brain, he wouldn’t have been able to memorize them even after reading them ten times.
After dinner, his mother bragged to his father about how delicious the cake was.
Seeing his father, who had returned home after working through the weekend, looking a bit pouty, I thought I should buy him one next time, too.
Now that I was possessed in this body, I intended to work hard at being a filial son on Jingi’s behalf.
After finishing the meal, I followed my father for a walk around the neighborhood. I couldn’t think of anything to say, so we walked in silence, but my father seemed a bit sad about that and asked carefully.
“Is everything okay at school?”
He cleared his throat, then turned his head away as if shy.
In the past, whenever I heard a question like this, I had nothing to say and would just reply, “Yes.”
However, there had been so many things happening to me lately that it was hard to summarize.
Jingi pondered deeply and summarized it in one line.
‘The senior who helped me when I was about to be pickpocketed was the brother of the friend who liked me, that older brother likes his own younger brother, and there are two more kids who like that friend.’
No, that won’t work.
It was a basic fact that my father knew I attended an all-boys high school.
“My studies are going well, and I’m getting along with my friends.”
“Is that so? Well, how is Yeol doing?”
“Yes. He’s training hard, too. He scored a lot of points by himself in a practice game this week.”
“I see… At first, his parents were against it so I was worried, but I’m glad they gave in quickly, probably because he’s the youngest son. More than anything, since you say he’s doing well, hmm.”
“They say he might become a national athlete later.”
“Korean basketball is a bit weak, so I hope he does well. I liked basketball quite a bit back in the day, too.”
Once we started talking about Go Yeol, the conversation flowed easily.
Jingi and his father walked widely around the neighborhood and talked about the old days.
Things that were faint or almost non-existent in Choi Jingi’s head—things that weren’t important.
My father remembered them one by one.
By the time we arrived home, Go Yeol called.
Jingi asked for his father’s understanding for a moment and took the call.
My father nodded, looking touched as if the very fact that ‘his son asked for understanding’ was moving.
It was a detail that showed just how rebellious the previous Choi Jingi had been.
“Yeol, what is it?”
— Could you… come out for a moment? In 5 minutes.
“I’m outside right now. Should I walk toward your school?”
— Yeah.
“Okay. I’ll be there soon.”
As I quickly finished the call, my father instinctively wrapped his arm around Jingi’s shoulder and tapped it.
“I’ll head in first. Don’t come back too late, the world is a dangerous place.”
“Don’t worry. Go in and rest.”
“Alright.”
Jingi bowed his head to his father, watched him enter, and only turned around once the gate had closed.
As he strode down, he soon saw Go Yeol in the distance.
Perhaps because he exercised, Go Yeol had good posture and looked even taller.
With his good proportions and broad shoulders and frame, his long limbs were a sight to see.
Surely, once he started playing professionally, he’d gain quite a few fans, and if he were selected for the national team, he’d branch out into a different world than mine, like a celebrity.
Even though we were friends at the same school now, it felt like in the future, he’d become someone so great that it would be hard to even get in touch with him.
It was a thought I’d had in my past life, too.
Kids who wanted something and whose talents matched that desire—so-called ‘geniuses’—lived in a world different from others.
Especially if they continued to put in tireless effort like that.
“Jingi.”
Go Yeol walked over a bit quickly.
Jingi gestured as he entered an alleyway.
Beyond it was a large park.
“You didn’t come here to give me a doll today, did you?”
“…Not a doll.”
“You don’t have to go this far. You’re busy with training, too… I know how you feel.”
The park, dotted with occasional streetlights, was very different from the ones I’d seen in my past life.
It was neat and spacious, as if it were swept and polished day and night.
Jingi walked a bit and then sat on a bench. Go Yeol smelled of shampoo, as if he’d just showered.
His short hair was already completely dry.
“I just wanted to give it to you.”
“I’ll take it only for today. Don’t give me anything else from now on.”
“…Don’t you like it?”
His thick eyebrows drooped. Jingi watched Go Yeol’s face, which had become visibly disappointed, and wiped his cheek with the back of his hand.
‘Well, it’s a bit like that. In a way, it’s like a bribe.’
Go Yeol pondered for a moment, then took something out of his bag.
Lit by the yellow streetlight, the object wrapped in his large hands was clearly revealed.
…Oh my god, damn it. It was a flower.
“…What, why. What’s with the flower…”
“Don’t you like it?”
“No, I mean, I don’t dislike flowers.”
A slightly large purple flower was blooming neatly among baby’s breath.
It must have been in his bag all day, but the flower hadn’t wilted at all.
It felt strange to accept the small flower wrapped in soft cloth.
Flowers between friends. It was a romantic gift, but it was a bit embarrassing.
This wasn’t a flower for a birthday, graduation, or congratulations.
Bouquets were originally given on special occasions.
Between lovers, it was also a way to express one’s heart.
And so, Jingi felt that the meaning was different from the previous gifts.
“Things like this are, well… they’re for someone you like, not me.”
“I wanted to give it to you.”
“Um, well… thanks, but still, you don’t have to do this. I know you’re doing this to me because you’re still uncomfortable with him. Um, so, um, I’m planning to help you work hard too, so you don’t have to do this.”
Go Yeol’s piercing, downward gaze felt stinging.
His dark pupils were deep like an abyss, so it was impossible to tell what he was thinking.
Jingi reflexively avoided his gaze.
Strange thoughts kept coming to mind.
It wasn’t that Go Yeol liked Joo Unyoung… rather…
