146 Unsolicited Partnership (1/2)

When morning came, Hyuk left for school as early as possible.

As much as he hated that place, it was the only place where he could go without seeing Yeo Ri. It was like a safe haven for him.

”'Sup, friend!” Ji Yeong Gi came up behind him, slapping his back.

”F*c—” Hyuk glowered at him, feeling his back aching ten times more painfully than it already did. Was this guy trying to kill him? Did he have a grudge on him or something? Hyuk couldn't understand why he was acting this way towards him.

”You actually came to school?” Ji Yeong Gi laughed after seeing Hyuk's expression. He didn't think that the guy would be so hardworking. ”How exemplary~”

”Are you making fun of me?” Hyuk growled, his voice dripping with warning. He sent a glare to the other guy before hobbling away.

Once he reached his classroom, he unceremoniously plopped his head on his desk and closed his eyes to catch up on the sleep he'd lost the night before. Getting into a fight was one thing, but staying in the same room with Yeo Ri made him restless. She was making him think strange things that no brother should be thinking about their sister.

”Hey, wanna hang out with me and my gang later?” Yeong Gi asked as he took a seat on the desk next to Hyuk. They were not in the same class but Ji Yeong Gi insisted on bothering him.

”...” Hyuk, as usual, ignored him. However, Yeong Gi was not flustered. He kept chattering to Hyuk even though he knew the guy would not respond to him.

It was only when the teacher arrived that Ji Yeong Gi finally left, saying, ”Let's hang out together later, yeah?”

Hyuk spent the rest of the day sleeping in class. When lunch break came, he left his seat and headed to his usual spot at the rooftop.

It seemed awfully cliché, but students were not allowed to go to the rooftop so it was empty most of the time. It was a secret, but the door to the roof was actually busted. None of the school staff noticed it so it remained unfixed for some time, which was how Hyuk managed to get to the rooftop.

He sat down by the door and leaned his back on the wall. He was hungry, but he didn't have any money. It was a pity that he had skipped both dinner and breakfast.

Hyuk thought that he wouldn't get disturbed at such a secluded place, but Murphy's Law proved him wrong.

Within ten minutes of him resting, the door burst open, revealing a bunch of delinquents.

”Lee Hyuk, you're dead meat!” One of them announced, grabbing Hyuk's collar and throwing him to the center.

Hyuk hissed in pain, then glared at the group. He didn't recognise them, but judging from the wounds several of them were sporting, there was a high chance that he had beaten them up some time in the past.

”F*ck off!” Hyuk said, spitting out some blood from his mouth. His teeth had grazed his cheek, making the inside of his mouth throb with pain. ”I'm not in the mood to deal with you sh*theads.”

”Lee Hyuk, what kind of thing are you? Hey, *sshole, recognise this guy? You actually dared to beat up my little bro? You've got a f*ckin' death wish, huh?!” The person who had thrown Hyuk said, cracking his knuckles. He had came to look for Hyuk after his little brother complained about getting his *ss handed to him by Hyuk. He was one of the worst delinquents in school and since he was a third year student, not many people could be his match. It was simple to say that he practically ruled the school.

”Who the f*ck are you?” Hyuk frowned. He narrowed his eyes at the 'little bro' before smirking. ”Ah, it's you. The loser who can't even land a single hit on his own. So you've brought your bro with you this time? So f*ckin' cheap.”

”You—!” The 'little bro' glared furiously at Hyuk. This guy was surrounded by his gang, yet he still flapped his sh*tty mouth around like he was above him. He was definitely going to pay for his humiliation from the other day!

”Hyung, just destroy him! This f*cking piece of sh*t!” The 'little bro' screamed, kicking Hyuk who was trying to sit up.

”Tsk, so impatient,” the senior snorted at his little brother. This dumb little sh*t ran away with his tail between his legs. But now that he had his back, the little sh*t actually acted like an arrogant tyrant. What is he, this paper tiger? He was annoyed that he had to clean up the idiot's mess, but it wasn't like he could say no since Hyuk had damaged his reputation after beating up his little brother.

”Get up, sh*thead,” the senior said, dragging Hyuk by the collar. Then, he punched him.

Hyuk was already hurt from his fight the day before, so it was difficult for him to go against the group by himself. He gritted his teeth and mustered the last of his strength to fight them off.

”Yo, having fun without me?” A voice called out from the door. It was Ji Yeong Gi.

He stood by the door with his arms crossed, smiling like a Cheshire cat. He looked as if he was entertained by the situation even though the guy he wanted to befriend was currently being ganged up by several people.

”Who—?!”