Eighteen’s Bed Novel Completed - Chapter 51

Nevertheless, Han Taesan would blush and look embarrassed every single time we met by chance. Or he would gaze vaguely as if he had something to say, then eventually give up and close his mouth repeatedly. I didn’t bother to pay attention.

The losers of life who interfered with my studies—Lee Seokhyun, Kim Minho, Kim Seokmin, Park Dongcheol, and others—were not seen anywhere near the school. Occasionally, trivial messages or photos would be uploaded in group chats. Lee Seokhyun and Kim Seokmin seemed to have traveled to nearby Japan, and Kim Minho cursed them as bourgeois, scolding them. Japan travels being bourgeois. Their standard for bourgeois is quite low.

Go Yohan is now the only obstacle in my school life. My phone and cohabitation. The carrot and stick Go Yohan gave me. My vacation, which had been weighing between the two, ended. It was a short, short winter vacation.

And,

“…Damn it.”

As Go Yohan wished, he and I were in the same class. I secretly clenched my fist as I looked at the class assignments posted on the wall. My wish was miserably shattered.

Class 3-1. Surprisingly, among Go Yohan’s group, only the two of us were in the same class.

Is God really on Go Yohan’s side? Otherwise, such luck wouldn’t be possible. Go Yohan’s friends, who were called ‘losers of life,’ including Han Taesan and Han Junwoo, all drifted away. Fortunately, Han Taesan barely made it into the middle class, though. Go Yohan and I were assigned to the very first class, while the others were assigned to the very back. Consequently, the building was also divided into the West Wing and East Wing.

The homeroom teacher remained the same. Perhaps he hated being in charge of third-year students so much that he grumbled from homeroom, “Well, I’m the youngest and a new teacher, so I guess I have to.” Still, his expression was bright. He glanced around the class once and then grinned, showing his teeth.

It made sense. Strangely, there were no problem students in Class 3-1. It was full of kids known for having good grades in each class.

In such a situation, only one thought came to mind.

“Did they perhaps put only the top-ranking students together?”

It was something I had heard somewhere. I also agreed and looked around.

The suspicion turned into certainty during Korean class. The Korean teacher, who was talkative and perfunctory about everything, confirmed it when he entered the classroom.

“As expected, the air in the elite class is different. I wish I could teach only Class 1 and Class 2 forever.”

Ahn Jisu went to Class 2. And at the very front of our classroom’s podium sat the 3rd highest-ranking student in the entire school. I realized. Class 1 and Class 2 alternated between the top-ranking students. And that was based on the final exams. I don’t know how other classes distributed students, but the distribution method for Class 1 and Class 2 was blatant. The classes other than Class 1 and Class 2 were completely abandoned. At least, that’s how it was in this school.

I turned my head to look at Go Yohan. Go Yohan always sat in the back row. He was so tall and broad-shouldered that his view would be blocked even if he sat in the middle. Not only that, his legs and arms were long, so he stood out with just a slight movement. In contrast, I, who was a bit taller than average, got a middle seat.

Go Yohan pressed the tip of his pen against his long neck. Go Yohan holding a pen, Go Yohan studying.

A conundrum, Go Yohan.

In the end, Go Yohan surpassed Han Taesan’s grades. Well, of course. Although Han Taesan was 7th and Go Yohan was 9th in the first semester’s final exams, disaster struck Han Taesan in the second semester. Conversely, Go Yohan was superficially smooth sailing.

On the day classes began after vacation, the new live-in housekeeper finally arrived. She must have been in her late 30s. The new housekeeper, who looked younger than I expected, was quite formal. Unlike the previous housekeeper, who meticulously worried about my mood swings, the new housekeeper would return to her quarters once her assigned tasks were done.

Thanks to that, Go Yohan had more space to lie down. He wasn’t the type to care much about others anyway. Still, he must have said something to my parents. Even though I hadn’t said anything, my parents knew that Go Yohan was coming to our house. They had subtly asked me about it during a previous phone call.

-I heard Chairman Go’s son often comes to play at our house?

I had only said he was a friend from next door, but Go Yohan’s father was mentioned. I secretly resented my parents for not telling me that the Go family lived next door.

“Yes. It turns out he’s a classmate. We somehow became close.”

-My goodness. That’s great!

It was a completely different atmosphere of response than with Han Junwoo. A bright laugh was heard from the other end of the phone.

-Oh, my son, as expected. He chooses good friends to befriend. No, I’m actually a little worried about my son. Other kids, if left alone, go astray and do things, but my son doesn’t know how to have fun at all. What’s he going to do when he goes out into society later?

Words not from the heart. The words blaming me were, on the contrary, full of affection. A sneer involuntarily formed on my face. Indeed. What will I do when I go out into society? If going astray is lucky. Your son is a gay man who gets hard just by looking at handsome men. It’s not just going astray; it’s practically rebellion.

After listening to a speech full of praise for their son, I entered my room. Go Yohan, whom I expected to be in the room, wasn’t there. I moved my steps to look for traces of Go Yohan. I heard the sound of water from the bathroom attached to my room. He seemed to be showering. I turned my steps back to the room with the bed. I was lying there, touching my phone, when a bell rang somewhere.

I uncomfortably got up and looked around. The phone at the edge of the bed was blinking. I reached out my hand. It was Go Yohan’s.

‘Father’

The screen showing the caller turned off. At the same time, previous records appeared. 9 missed calls. All from ‘Father.’ I was about to check briefly when the bell rang again. I guess I should answer this one. The 10th consecutive call is ominous. Especially when the caller is a parent, it usually leads to bad news. I got off the bed and went in front of the bathroom.

“Yohan.”

I knocked, but there was no response. I knocked again, but only the sound of falling water answered me. My hand had already reached the doorknob, but I couldn’t bring myself to open it. Knowing the sight I would see if I opened the door. I wasn’t confident I would be okay seeing Go Yohan’s naked body. Kang Jun is subtly lustful.

In the end, I decided to answer. That would be better. I, who had been trained by Han Junwoo, had an amazing talent for excuses. After the 10th missed call ended, the 11th bell rang again. I went back to the room, took a breath, and answered the phone.

“Hello…”

-You son of a bitch. Where are you wandering around? What kind of trouble are you going to cause again? Do you know how much I’ve lost face with President Han because of your actions?

What? Now?

I took the phone away from my ear at the absurd words and looked at the screen again. Just in case I had misread the name. But the voice definitely belonged to ‘Father.’ I recalled the polite middle-aged man from before. The gentle authority figure instantly became a vulgar gentleman. At least, that was my impression.

Is this something to say to your son? And so abruptly. Does that mean Go Yohan has been hearing such words all the time? I had never experienced it, nor did I understand it.

“I…”

What’s wrong with Go Yohan? Go Yohan is smart, quick-witted, always commits only minor transgressions, and is a good kid with a subtly kind side. At least, that’s what I think. Even when I disliked Go Yohan, I thought he was better than Han Junwoo more than once or twice. So I finally opened my mouth. Honestly, I think I got a little defensive.

“Excuse me… I’m Jun, Yohan’s friend. Kang Jun. Yohan’s classmate.”

Silence. And then more silence. The call was filled only with silence. He must be embarrassed. A gentleman who cursed at his own son’s friend. He must feel like his true self has been exposed.

“Do you remember? We met at the cathedral then…”

-Oh, it’s you.

A flustered middle-aged voice was heard. It made sense. He had just cursed abruptly, and the person who heard it wasn’t his son, but the neighbor’s son.

“I’m sorry.”

I listened contentedly to his low, quickening breaths and voluntarily offered an apology. This much teasing was appropriate for an adult I couldn’t contend with. Just a mischievous child’s prank. Enough so that if he thought about it before bed, he wouldn’t be able to stand the embarrassment and wouldn’t be able to think badly of his son.

“Actually, Yohan is at my house right now. It turns out we’re neighbors. So I invited him over first.”

-…Is that so?

“My parents aren’t in Korea for a while, you see. And the housekeeper quit, so I was alone at home, and the weather’s been scary lately, so I just begged Yohan if he could stay with me. So he reluctantly ended up staying with me. I’m sorry if that inconvenienced you. I thought it would be fine since our houses are close… I’m really sorry…”

Here, I unnecessarily brought up my parents. And I even acted pitiful and begged. This is why it’s not bad to have successful parents. It’s to make them a little self-conscious, you see. There’s probably no situation more uncomfortable than scolding someone else’s child who isn’t easy to deal with.

-No.

I heard a slight intake of breath from the other end of the phone.

-I’m sorry. My second son is such a troublemaker that I got angry, thinking he caused some trouble, but this is awkward. You must have been surprised suddenly, are you okay?

“I’m fine. All sons are like that, aren’t they?”

-They’re not all like that.

It was a light agreement, but a denial came back. That was even more uncomfortable. At least Han Junwoo’s father had some hope for his son. But Go Yohan’s father didn’t. Even if Han Junwoo was more messed up, he was still more messed up. Go Yohan’s father was too cold to Go Yohan. That empty paternal love somehow choked me up. I subtly stroked my neck.

-Right. That kid is at your house.

“…Yes.”

-Then send him back quickly. He’s caused you trouble.

Send him home? In the middle of winter, a dark house, Go Yohan in a T-shirt, his thin shoulder blades. All those factors made me pity Go Yohan. It would feel like I was abandoning him.

“Oh. No. It’s fine. It’s lonely being alone, so it’s nice to have someone with me. It wasn’t a bother. We even studied together. Oh, by the way, do you know that Yohan’s grades went up? He even got into the honors class this time.”

-Really?

Surely he didn’t know? Can he be this indifferent? I frowned. Does he even qualify as a parent or not? I desperately listed good things about Go Yohan.

“Lately, he’s even cut off all his bad friends and is only studying. His English grades are top in the entire school. Sometimes I even ask Yohan about English.”

I’ve never asked him. But I said it anyway.

“So I asked him to stay at my house lately to study together. Midterms are coming soon, and I thought it would be better to focus. Having a rival at home boosts motivation, you know.”

There was still no answer. That silence made me anxious.

“And Yohan said he doesn’t go to cram school and that he can’t concentrate because of his family…”

Lie after lie followed. Go Yohan never said such things. However, I chose the answers that adults would like to hear most and would believe most easily. Then the silence broke.

-Has Yohan ever done anything strange to you?

“Anything strange?”

-No.

What exactly was ‘strange’? I wanted to ask, but I couldn’t.

-Still, it seems he’s being reformed by being with an excellent student like you.

‘Reformed,’ what a strange choice of word.

-Then let him stay with you and send him back later. If anything strange happens, I’d like you to contact me immediately. Could you send me your contact information to this number?

“Oh. Yes. Of course. I’ll text it to you.”

-Alright.

I hesitated for a moment, then brought up the words Go Yohan’s father would like the most. Seeing a middle-aged man use strange words like ‘reformed,’ ‘trouble,’ ‘not all like that,’ and ‘son of a bitch’ towards his own son, it seemed he thought his son wasn’t normal. If Go Yohan wasn’t normal, I didn’t know what normal was, but I played along for now.

“Sir. I, I don’t know if I should say this, but Yohan is actually a pretty good kid. I don’t know what’s going on, but whatever it is, I’ll definitely make him normal again, as a friend.”

After my words ended, a small laugh was heard.

-I really like you.

The call abruptly ended with those words. It was truly an anticlimactic end. Go Yohan’s phone returned to the lock screen. I turned the black screen back on. The already saved fingerprint easily unlocked it. I subtly tried to check his contacts but quickly stopped myself. If the old man were to tell Go Yohan that he got my number, then Go Yohan would find out I unlocked his phone. It would probably be better to get his number later with his permission.