Eighteen’s Bed Novel Completed - Chapter 192 Eighteen's Bed

After the rain had completely stopped, a damp dawn remained on the ground. As I descended the front steps, I discovered a dead centipede. Its movements, whether rigor mortis or its last breath, made its dozens of legs seem to be pressing piano keys. I sensed it was the prelude to an unfortunate requiem that would soon descend upon this mansion.

Before heading to school early, I turned back and stared at the mansion enveloped in fog.

Centipedes had started appearing three months ago. Even pest control didn’t reduce their numbers. Not just the sewers. Centipedes lurked in every unseen corner of this mansion. I moved my tongue, caressed my sharp canine teeth, and smirked.

Soon, I’ll be eaten by bugs.

Third year of middle school, Go Yohan, heard some bullshit right before graduation.

It was when I was fervently lecturing about Thomas Edison, who committed all sorts of evil deeds and finally died a hero. My fervent lecture began from desires I hadn’t yet expressed.

Won’t anyone get caught? I cracked my finger joints, looking around. The inside of the classroom, into which winter frost had crept, was eerily silent. It felt like something was about to happen. A loud thwack sound came from my finger joint as it snapped.

“…That bastard Edison was half-crazy from the start. They say he fed hydrogen to a friend who wanted to fly.”

As I continued speaking, I kept glancing around. I was just waiting for someone to catch my eye. Then, my eyes met with ‘Cheese,’ who was intently watching me. He was a bastard in the milk distribution business.

The crowd in the classroom had already scattered, leaving only about seven people. It was the aftermath of graduation being so close. For some reason, that bastard was the only one who stubbornly remained in his seat. Arrogance blazed like fire in his puffy, monolid eyes. It was a torch that ignited in an instant.

I ran a finger over my lips, greedily watching a rat coming into the trap.

“Go Yohan, listen.”

“No.”

“Don’t joke around, you bastard. I’m serious, don’t misunderstand. I’m fucking serious.”

“Serious?”

“…Do you like men?”

The rat hit the trap with its thin tail. The trap let the rat go. Fuck. I lightly bit my tongue in disappointment.

“Me?”

But the bait the rat left behind looked so delicious.

Me? Did I do that?

The hand that had been caressing my lips slid down to press my chin, then dropped, lightly poking my neck. My hand, caught on my collarbone, clunked down, then smoothly slid to the center of my chest. Interesting. I instantly grabbed the rotten cheese the rat left behind and crushed it. I tapped my chest with a bent finger and asked.

“Did I do that?”

Hiss. I took a rough breath and cracked my jaw once. I’ve never done that.

“No? No, right? Of course not, right?”

“Of course not. You dickhead.”

“You son of a bitch. I didn’t believe it either! I was just asking, you bastard.”

The rat spun around near the trap, barked like an animal, then backed away into the darkness and disappeared. Scratching near my chest with my fingers, I asked Cheese.

“Why did you think that?”

“Ah, actually…”

Cheese pointed his sharp snout and whispered. “Jo Jaewook said so.”

“Who’s Jo Jaewook?”

I asked.

“Him.”

Cheese blurted out just one word loudly, then leaned closer to me and spoke in an even smaller voice.

“His dad just got elected as the local district assemblyman, didn’t he? Candidate number 2, Jo Gyeongcheol.”

Cheese’s voice was heavy and dark, like a rock in the mountains at midnight. It also sounded like the rustling of leaves in the dawn mountain and the spreading sound of a distant stream. Ah. Only then did I realize and nod my head. Something interesting is happening.

I lifted my head and smiled.

“I know him. Ah, I know.”

“Anyway, he said it. That you like men.”

“That’s an interesting idea.”

That was my impression of the rumor that had spread about me.

What did Jo Jaewook think of me to spread such a story? I’m curious. The spring that held the trap in place made an ear-splitting noise as it opened its jaws again. In that state, it waited for new prey from the ceiling, dusty corners, and dark places.

I hooked my finger on my shirt collar and pulled the shirt down. The collar at the nape of my neck pressed hard against my back. I thought about something else for a moment, then asked Cheese.

“Jo Jaewook?”

Cheese nodded his chin a few times. I yanked my collar hard a few times and then stood up. I should go meet Jo Jaewook.

“Where are you going?”

“Me? I don’t know either.”

Because I don’t know where Jo Jaewook is. Of course I don’t know.

However, I knew this rumor would undoubtedly lead to an unpleasant incident. It was my gut feeling. My gut feeling was always good, and nine out of ten times it was right. And I had a premonition that something very interesting would happen because of this. Feeling it again, my gut feeling is really good.

My humming didn’t stop as I walked down the hallway. My footsteps were light, and I even bounced along the dry wooden floor. Then, if I made eye contact with anyone, I would block their path and ask.

“Do you know Jo Jaewook?”

Surprisingly, every kid I asked knew Jo Jaewook.

My impression of Jo Jaewook was roughly from about a year ago. A bastard who was two spans shorter than me, and a bit chubby. I remember him bouncing around because his father was running for parliament.

But I wasn’t particularly close to him.

What on earth did he think of me to spread such a ridiculous rumor? Of course, I’ll have to go find him and clear up the misunderstanding.

“Anyway, what a narrow-minded bastard.”

I exhaled into the air. My hot breath turned into white smoke as it met the cold air. In fact, my mood was steadily declining. I had just asked out of curiosity, but when I asked the passing kids if they knew Jo Jaewook, I read disdain in their eyes towards me.

Crazy. Those sons of bitches.

“…An interesting idea must have spread quite far.”

The key in my hand chilled my palm. Before leaving the classroom, I had arbitrarily taken the classroom key. The person on duty probably couldn’t lock the door because of me. It was a bit rude.

But isn’t my business more important? What does it matter to me if some unknown bastard can’t go home? I tossed and caught the key, which made a loud jangling sound in my hand. And as soon as I got right in front of Jo Jaewook’s classroom, I grabbed the arm of some random guy passing by.

“Huh? Uh, why…”

“Do you know Jo Jaewook? Where is he?”

I suppressed my anger, baring my teeth as much as possible, and smiled. It’s good to look friendly, right? Fortunately, this bastard seemed quite pleased with my friendliness and pointed somewhere with a very kind face.

“He’s him.”

“Ah, thanks. Bless you.”

I lightly patted his arm and looked in Jo Jaewook’s direction. There was a surprisingly clean-cut tall guy there. Oh, he’s handsome. His height is probably only about a finger shorter than mine now. I thought he was some kind of loser since he spread such a ridiculous rumor. I clapped my hands in admiration at his unexpected appearance.

Then, the friendly group chatting while leaning against the window all looked at me. Wow, look at them staring at me. A chilling joy ran down my spine. I was a little dissatisfied that their expressions hardened, but I generously forgave them and spread my arms towards Jo Jaewook.

“Jaewook!”

“Go, Go Yohan?”

“Nice to see you. It’s been a long time. To meet you here of all places. We went to the same kindergarten, didn’t we!”

“Uh, hi.”

He’s awkward. He’s quite shy. I tightened and then relaxed the bridge of my nose, smiling even brighter. As I approached with open arms, Jo Jaewook hesitated a bit but then stood up. As expected, greetings should be bright and cheerful to be liked. Right? I gave him an eye-smile, and Jo Jaewook seemed to agree. However, that son of a bitch frowned and asked me.

“…But were we in the same kindergarten?”

“No?”

I moved my open hand as it was and struck Jo Jaewook’s lower jaw upwards. I felt a distinct sensation of my hand sinking into the soft spot between his jawbone and neck bone. It fit perfectly. There wasn’t even a small scream. The sight of him collapsing with his eyes rolled back was so funny I couldn’t stop laughing. What are you asking me for? I watched his rigid body fall backward, and spread my hands again. With a thud, his stick-like body hit the floor headfirst. I waved my hands wildly at the fallen Jo Jaewook.

“I’m homeschooled, you fucking bastard.”

Silence filled the hallway. Everyone was looking at me, so I rolled my eyes and responded with a smile.

“So what?”

“The mansion is truly beautiful, isn’t it?”

My mother’s voice in the early morning was like a needle scratching a blackboard. Her clear voice, which had never experienced hardship, clawed at my eardrums as if to tear them. In the direction my mother pointed, there was a mansion whose fence seemed to stretch endlessly.

“Even though it went to auction, the price of that mansion was enormous.”

No one answered. Gorosa simply lay in the back seat, resting her head on my mother’s lap. The car climbed a hill. The driver’s driving was always perfect, and my mother and Gorosa were engaged in a silent war of nerves. Of course, it was a war of nerves that Gorosa always had to lose.

“Rosa.”

“…Yes.”

“Moving was a good choice. You know that house kept having bugs. And, you know, the new house is a little smaller than the old one, but there’s a big cathedral nearby. The neighborhood atmosphere is nice too. It definitely feels like a young neighborhood. House prices in this area are skyrocketing these days.”

“…”

“…Rosa.”

“What?”

“How long are you going to be angry?”

“…”

A chill settled in her calm voice. Only then did Gorosa draw out her words.

“I’m tired. I have to wake up an hour earlier to go to school.”

“The driver takes you anyway. Rosa, try to think positively. Why are you so negative about everything?”

“…I am.”

“Are you going to talk about your brother again? Are you going to use your brother as an excuse again?”

Why always? As Gorosa mumbled softly, my mother grabbed her beloved daughter’s arm and squeezed. Gorosa and I met eyes in the rearview mirror. Her cool face swept over me and the driver, then she sharply turned her head away.

“Okay. I’m sorry.”

“Rosa. Your brother is kind, that’s why he tolerates your childishness. If you were in any other family, you’d be in big trouble.”

Born the youngest of three sisters, what do you know? I just want to vomit everything out. I hate the smell of gasoline. I hate the smell of asphalt, and when I smell hot tar, I feel like sticking my nose in lava and dying. I hate the smell of leather seats too. That disgusting nauseating smell. I rubbed the back of my head against the dirty leather seat.

The move, which took place at one in the morning, was quiet and secretive, like bugs crawling on the floor without the owner’s knowledge. My mother, whose main food was carrots, pointed to the darkness outside the window with shining eyes and said.

“Look, look again. How is it? Pretty, isn’t it?”

“…”

“Rosa, look. Huh? Over there, that room with the window is your room. You can see the whole view of our garden. Don’t you know your room is the biggest and prettiest in this house? Mom chose it for you.”

That ignorant little brat is too busy glaring at me to even see where her room window is.

Go ahead and glare all you want. Will the world change?

On Christmas evening, I impulsively threw a stone at the sky in a fit of rage, but what returned was not freedom and liberation, but only oppression and a heavy hammer. Only one thing changed. I became a bug.

“Huh? My puppy. Cheer up.”

Through the rearview mirror, I saw the image of my benevolent mother gently caressing Gorosa’s cheek. Gorosa looked at me and contorted her face. I want to kill that bitch. It’s sickening to death how she’s jealous of me, not even knowing she’s baby Jesus.

Nevertheless, I kept my mouth shut and sat in the front seat, staring blankly ahead. I deliberately didn’t even look at the new house. What idiot would want to see a house they might have to live in for half their life even a minute or a second earlier? Ah, here’s one. The Virgin Mary trapped in the rearview mirror. My mother’s reflection in the rearview mirror was exactly like a girl looking at a dollhouse with shining eyes, glued to the window. Still lost in fantasy.

Anyway, a bug’s destination is the trash can. Crushed by white tissue, bursting to death, spitting out the blood it sucked from humans, and dying spectacularly without a peep. That’s my life. So that house must be a trash can.

“Yohan, your room is there too. How is it? The window is wide, isn’t it? See that house next door? From your room, you’ll be able to see the magnolia tree blooming at the edge of that house’s garden. I heard from the person who introduced the house that they deliberately planted expensive magnolia saplings in that house. So, every spring, a picturesque scene unfolds.”

Ah, fuck, that’s going to be so pretty. And I get to spy on someone else’s house. Two birds with one stone.

Well, it’s better to look at a house with magnolias blooming than to look at a sewage dump I’ll be stuck in for the rest of my life. The magnolia tree, illuminated by the streetlights, was white and pure. So much so that I wanted to tear it apart and defile it. I don’t want to fall into hell alone.

Damn it, I wasn’t born to live like this, Go Yohan.

Now there’s only one thing I believe. Edison was also a bug in the beginning. So am I.