MOON Ch 7

Standing in front of the school’s main gate, Chaeon took a breath with a determined look on her face, like someone who had firmly made up her mind about something. Seeing Chaeon’s solemn attitude—as if she were entering a battlefield—several students on their way to school glanced at her suspiciously as they passed by.

She had wished break would be even a little longer… This time, too, she just hoped all this time would pass quickly. As always, she could get through it with that wish in mind. Wearing her usual indifferent expression, Chaeon stepped over the threshold of the school gate.

It was right around the end of her first year of high school when Chaeon transferred here. Having decided to quit the piano and having no reason to stay at the arts high school any longer, she had a career counseling session.

‘Chaeon. Are you really planning to quit the piano like this? A kid with your level of talent, quitting just like this is…’

‘I’m sorry.’

‘…’

‘I’ve already decided, teacher.’

At Chaeon’s calm and composed reply, the homeroom teacher couldn’t bring themselves to urge her further and closed their mouth.

For Chaeon, she had chosen the most realistic path available to her given her current situation. She couldn’t make Heejung suffer any longer just because she had talent, and she had no choice but to transfer to a general high school and quickly set a new direction.

Later, when Im Soyoung found out that Chaeon had quit the piano, she meddled nosily, making a big show of whether or not she would get the principal to write Chaeon a letter of recommendation, putting on all kinds of airs.

‘Honey. They say they’re accepting Chaeon because her grades are good enough, but you know, right? This school isn’t a place that accepts just anyone based solely on grades. I created this opportunity because I care about you, honey. You know how I feel, right?’

The only person who could make Im Soyoung’s exceedingly picky mother-in-law eat even a spoonful more of food was Heejung. Around that time, Heejung had already become famous for being so good at her job that people everywhere were eyeing her; perhaps anxious that Heejung might change her mind, Im Soyoung used the condition of helping Chaeon transfer to a good school as a hostage.

A few words from someone with money could create an opportunity to step over the threshold of a school that others found difficult even to enter. Im Soyoung’s boasting made Chaeon uncomfortable as always, but in the end, people were helpless before the reality facing them. Having changed course late, she had no choice if she wanted to raise her grades even a little. Reluctantly, Chaeon accepted the transfer to the school Im Soyoung offered to introduce.

‘Hey, you’re fucking pretty. What school did you go to?’

‘Didn’t they say she transferred from Sunmyung Arts High School or something?’

‘Woah. Hey. Then you must have done ballet or piano or something? It suits you like crazy. Why did you quit?’

Was it because transferring during high school wasn’t very common? On her first day of school, the kids who swarmed around her like a flock of bees expressing all sorts of curiosity quickly lost interest and goodwill at Chaeon’s dry response and annoyed attitude.

Since almost all the kids attending that school were from pretty wealthy backgrounds in the neighborhood, the flow of conversation and the overall vibe were completely different from her imagination.

It was a daily occurrence for expensive foreign cars to line up in front of the school gate on the way to and from school, and the flow of conversation was filled with nothing but the smell of money. The moment the boasting desire typical of teenagers was added to it, it went without saying that it became an arena for subtle bragging.

Those who occasionally talked to her persistently to wring out a word or two in reply were mostly boys, and Chaeon didn’t try to get close to anyone.

The expensive bags, cardigans, accessories, and all kinds of belongings wrapped around those kids’ entire bodies. Because she felt like she was suffocating from the smell of wealth emanating from those things.

From time to time, as soon as they arrived at school, girls gathered in groups of three and five would talk about shopping for expensive items with their parents who allowed them to be born with a silver spoon in their mouths over the weekend, or about going somewhere that Chaeon could hardly even dream of setting foot in; whenever that happened, she pretended not to hear even if she heard it.

Those were all things Chaeon couldn’t have, and she didn’t want to be close to things she couldn’t have. Even if she mixed in over there anyway, Chaeon ultimately wouldn’t be part of them. She wouldn’t be able to relate to anything, and conversely, no matter what story she brought up to those kids, it would be difficult to draw empathy. Belonging to a different origin in the first place meant that kind of thing.

As she had experienced watching her mother, to people who enjoyed everything, those who relatively couldn’t were merely entertainment and nothing more than pitiful targets to show off their patronizing attitudes. She didn’t want to feel that kind of thing from those kids’ attitudes toward her and constantly have her sense of defeat confirmed.

And, not long after she transferred.

‘Hey. Yoon Chaeon over there, I heard her mom works as a housekeeper or something at some house in Hannam-dong? Kim Yookyoung’s mom found out when she went to visit that house. They said the mistress of that house said, our maid’s daughter goes to that school too, so tell Kim Yookyoung to take good care of her, something like that?’

‘What? Then she’s a housekeeper’s daughter? She’s acting fucking haughty when she lives off the money her mom earned by catering to others, how obnoxious.’

‘Why on earth do boys like that kind of girl? I’ve never seen her say more than ten words at school.’

Ah, that woman again…

Thanks to Im Soyoung’s annoying meddling, the rumor that Chaeon’s mother worked as a housekeeper spread throughout the school in an instant, and at that moment, Chaeon had only one thought. If someone legally gave her a chance to do a bad deed just once, she wanted to go and sew Im Soyoung’s mouth shut right away.

Fortunately, it seemed Im Soyoung’s husband wasn’t just some useless nobody; since he regularly made donations to the school and exercised considerable influence, she was able to avoid unfair trouble. Seeing that a mere housekeeper’s daughter was pushed into this place, they probably thought that family and Chaeon’s household had some kind of relationship.

However, starting from the day her mother’s occupation was revealed, Chaeon, who was already virtually isolated, was treated like an invisible person by most of the kids. How dare someone not even on our level mix in here. Complete ignorance, as if they were saying just that.

Still, up until then, she was rather glad. Because there were no incidents like physical harm or throwing slurs like in school violence in dramas or movies. Of course, occasionally, while Chaeon was away, there were times when she had to face trouble because she had no friends to inform her of very minor things, like the location of a special class changing or the period for a moving class being rescheduled.

It was enough to just ignore that level of gently picking at her nerves. Having experienced Uicheol continuously glaring at her in the house while making drunken scenes or taking out his anger on her until she was sick of it, Chaeon was thoroughly used to ignoring aggressive attitudes directed at her or deliberate attempts to get on her nerves.

Just like that, all the way until graduation, she intended to get by floating like oil without mixing with anyone.

∞ ∞ ∞

Even after school opened, when she was continuing her extremely dry school life as usual, a crack appeared in Chaeon’s daily routine. Truly without any warning whatsoever.

“Hey. Yoon Chaeon. Kang Gyuhwan is calling you.”

“…”

A girl in her class with whom she had never properly exchanged a word touched Chaeon’s shoulder with a reluctant face. Taking out her earphones, Chaeon slightly narrowed the space between her eyebrows.

“Who?”

“Kang Gyuhwan is calling you. He says he’s waiting behind the gym.”

At that single phrase, a moment of silence fell inside the classroom. The gaze of a girl who belonged to the so-called popular group—who was in the middle of using an eyelash curler while holding a hand mirror—also flew toward Chaeon.

Hey. Didn’t she just say Kang Gyuhwan?

Why is Kang Gyuhwan looking for Yoon Chaeon?

Gasp. Hey, no way… There was a rumor circulating recently that Gyuhwan found someone he likes.

Whispering sounds could be heard here and there.

“Who is that?”

“Ah, fuck. Hey. If you don’t know, can’t you just go see for yourself?”

Snapping and showing her displeasure as much as possible, that girl ended up glaring sharply at Chaeon before returning to her seat. So many things to get pissed off about. Looking at her with an indifferent face, Chaeon lightly ignored those words. Because she had no intention of meekly responding to being called by someone she didn’t even know.

However, regardless of Chaeon’s will—which expressed through her entire body that ‘I don’t know who you are and I don’t want to get involved with you’—Kang Gyuhwan ultimately came all the way to the classroom.

“Yoon Chaeon.”

A fairly tall height and friendly eyes. Looking at his face, she could tell at once. Because quite a few times, whenever he passed the hallway, she had seen girls glance at him with flushed faces or forcefully start conversations with useless topics.

Since his family background was good enough to be famous even at school and his appearance was handsome, it was understandable for girls to admire him. However, perhaps because she had already encountered two incredible faces that far exceeded the average appearance of men at Songbaekwon, Chaeon didn’t feel any particular emotion toward him.

Rather than that, the fact that all eyes in the classroom were pinned on her was intensely uncomfortable. Her presence, which had been ignored like air all this time, couldn’t be clearer than at that moment.

Over Kang Gyuhwan’s face, the face of a person who—especially these days—went out of their way to greet her warmly whenever they bumped into each other at Songbaekwon and kept acting friendly overlapped.

This person or that person. Why are they so desperate to get involved with me inside and outside? Just as she was about to leave the classroom while letting out a sigh, her wrist was caught by Kang Gyuhwan.

“Ah.”

As she looked up with her eyes slightly creased, Kang Gyuhwan asked with a smirk, like a person who didn’t care about her mood at all.

“Why didn’t you come out? I was waiting.”

“Let go.”

Well, that’s because I didn’t even know who you were back then. She didn’t want to bother giving a tiresome supplementary explanation either, but right now, she felt like she was going to go crazy from discomfort due to the gazes pouring in stingingly from all directions.

“I called you out because I had something to say.”

Thinking that the atmosphere was somehow turning weird, Chaeon tried with all her might to twist her wrist and pull it out.

“If you call me saying you have something to say, do I have to go there when I don’t even know you well? Let go of this…”

“I like you.”

Ah…

“I called you out to confess.”

Finally.

She could feel with her whole body that the atmosphere cooled down in an instant, as if someone had poured cold water inside the classroom. Chaeon, who couldn’t realize what had happened for a moment, narrowed the space between her eyebrows at the sound of the boys shouting strange noises, unsure whether it was boos or cheers.

Ah. How on earth can someone be this thoughtless and inconsiderate? In front of all the kids in the classroom watching and listening, Chaeon was forcibly confessed to. And by the most popular boy in school, at that. It was a confession so rough that no other word came to mind except the expression ‘suffered.’

Was it because Chaeon’s face, looking up at him pale, didn’t look like that of a person who had received a confession at all? Only then did Kang Gyuhwan feel that something was strange, and he let go of her wrist.

“Yoon Chaeon?”

The emotion that arrived after the embarrassment settled was anger. Someone might think that confession was quite romantic and dramatic, but Chaeon only felt irritation rising toward Kang Gyuhwan for making her receive such a stupid confession in front of everyone without her consent.

Who are you to throw a stone into my quiet daily life? The only thing coming to mind was just that kind of thought. Letting out a hollow laugh, Chaeon swept back her hair while trying to calm her anger.

“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

“What?”

“I won’t accept it, your confession.”

Since she received a public confession regardless of her own will, Chaeon also rejected him publicly. Coldly and firmly.

She thought that if she just kicked the confession away without making it hers, everything would become as if it never happened. That she would be able to live quietly, just as she always had.

Really, naively so.