Childhood Friend Edification Theory - CHAPTER 4.4

04.Edification – Part 4

“Oh, sorry. But you didn’t have to shout. It’s not like we’re strangers.”

He looked around quickly, checking their surroundings. She was so taken aback that she felt almost numb. He had returned to school this year, and they had only met for the first time at the end of the first semester. Although they’d exchanged a few words in the second semester due to overlapping classes, they certainly weren’t close enough for him to act so familiar.

“Isn’t that your fault? You were the one who grabbed me first.”

Haea snapped back, her frustration obvious.

“You talk funny, don’t you?”

He took a step closer. The threatening demeanor of the tall, physically imposing stranger made Haea tremble with fear. Although she had snapped at him in anger, her naturally timid nature caused her eyes to glisten with tears.

“I… if you keep threatening me like this, I’ll report you to the police!”

Despite her fear, she stiffened her neck and gripped her phone tightly, remembering the security service connected to Jaeha.

“This is ridiculous. You’re acting like I did something to you…”

Realizing that she couldn’t handle the situation any longer, she started to step back and reached for a button on her phone. Just then, a shadow loomed over them, long enough to cover Jung-woo’s head.

“Who are you?”

A warm hand gently wrapped around her shoulder, reassuring her. The familiar scent of sandalwood drifted over her – it was the cologne Jaeha always wore.

“Jaeha!”

She turned quickly and hugged him. The steady heartbeat she could hear through his thin shirt comforted her.

“What’s wrong? Were you crying?”

His soft voice brought tears to her eyes, showing how frightened she had been.

Although she felt wronged, the relief of having him there made her emotions begin to settle. She was also confused – while Jung-woo had indeed been threatening, she wasn’t sure if it was really something that warranted calling the police. Haea glanced at the CCTV camera at the cafe’s entrance and shook her head. Since Jung-woo was a senior in her school, it seemed best to let it go quietly, but she was still prepared to report him if things got worse.

“The CCTV probably caught everything, so don’t even think about lying. You grabbed my wrist first. If you keep behaving like this, I really will report you.”

Haea spoke quickly, her words tumbling out, but then she flinched slightly, frightened by the way Jung-woo looked at her.

“Let’s go.”

Jaeha followed her quietly. His car was parked right beside them. While she thought about how the rear dash cam footage might have captured the incident, he opened the passenger door and helped her into the seat.

“Stay here for a moment. Lock the door.”

“Where are you going?”

“To get the CCTV footage, to make sure.”

“Oh... really?”

“Honestly, Yun Haea, you never finish things properly.”

Jaeha gently stroked her hair, handed her the car keys and turned away.

Haea pressed her hand lightly against the window and peered out as she watched him walk away. But Jaeha knew very well that she would never leave the car without him after being scared once.

The alley he was heading for was a blind spot, not visible from the car. If he disappeared first, Jung-woo might take the opportunity to strike again – but Jaeha was lucky.

Jung-woo was in the alley, smoking and talking on the phone. The alley was narrow because it was near a university on a hill, and the university street was quiet because it was the weekend.

“Yeah! That Ferrari b*stard! I’ll spread the rumors. Today he came in a Maserati Quattroporte. D*mn, he doesn’t even look remotely like her cousin. The b*stard is huge – I’m sure he’s a gangster. That Yun Haea is probably moaning under that b*stard for the bag she is carrying… Ugh!“

A big hand suddenly reached out from behind and snatched Jung-woo’s phone.

“W-what the h*ll are you doing?!”

“Where does this dirty little pest think he’s sticking himself?”

Jaeha quickly scanned the eleven digits on the phone’s screen. Having memorized the number in an instant, he ended the call and threw the phone against the wall.

“Aah!“

Jung-woo, who thought it was aimed at him, ducked down and covered his head as he collapsed to the floor. The phone, its screen shattered, landed in front of him. A black shoe stomped on the broken screen, destroying the phone completely.

“Bill me for the phone, you b*stard.”

Jaeha pulled a cheque out of his wallet and, after tapping it in Jung-woo’s face in an insulting manner, threw it in his face.

“C-crazy b*stard?!”

Jaeha expected Jung-woo to react with anger, but instead Jung-woo turned to run away, either intimidated by the size difference or lacking the courage.

But Jaeha grabbed Jung-woo’s shoulder and pinned him against the wall.

“Aaaaah!“

The loud crash might have been from hitting the wall, or maybe from his arm being twisted behind him. His nerves were on edge at the sound of his crude screeching.

“Ah, f*ck. This son of a b*tch really pisses me off.”

Crunch. A grinding sound came from his shoulder being twisted. A little more force and his shoulder would dislocate. Jung-woo’s face turned bright red as he frantically hit the wall with his free hand, screaming.

“Aaaaah! Stop! Stop!”

“You were the one who got her drunk that night, weren’t you?”

Jung-woo’s eyes wavered slightly. Haea usually controlled her drinking to avoid getting too drunk, so it was strange when she passed out. Jaeha’s suspicion was now confirmed.

“No wonder your f*cking face disgusted me.”

“W-what are you talking about…?”

“You had an end of term party, didn’t you? You remember every detail about my car, but you forgot about that?”

Jaeha grabbed Jung-woo’s hair with one hand and was about to slam his head against the wall.

“Aaaaah! I remember! Ferrari TC4 Lusso! I remember!”

Jung-woo’s head stopped inches from the wall.

“You think Yun Haea is an easy target? Even I can’t even do anything to her. So who do you think you are, trying to mess with her? It makes me feel like sh*t…”

“No! Haea and I are nothing…!”

As soon as Haea’s name left Jung-woo’s mouth, Jaeha grabbed his hair again and slammed his head into the wall.

“Aaaaah! I was wrong!”

“If I hear Yun Haea’s name out of your mouth one more time, I’ll tear your face apart.”

“Yes! Yes!”

“If you want to report me, go ahead.”

Jung-woo was easy to read. His eyes wavered again.

“No, I won’t report you. Never…”

“Wouldn’t it be easy to make it look like an accident?”

Jaeha looked into the trembling eyes in front of him and let out a small, mocking laugh. His hair swayed gracefully to the side of his tilted head.

Despite having a face more beautiful than most celebrities, the deep shadow that fell over him was chilling. Jung-woo, who stood at 180 centimeters, had always been proud of his height and used it to look down on shorter people.

But in front of this man, he was nothing. The overwhelming intimidation, the pitch black eyes that resembled those of a top predator, were as cruel as a demon’s abyss.

The thought flashed through Jung-woo’s mind that he might actually be killed.

“P-please, I won’t report you. Please… please spare me!”

“I don’t want to waste my energy on a worm like you. If you just keep your mouth shut, won’t it be easier for both of us?”

Jaeha covered Jung-woo’s mouth and nose with his palm. He didn’t let go until Jung-woo’s eyes started to roll back as he suffocated. Jung-woo’s face turned pale, tears and snot running down his face as he struggled.

“Mmmph! Mmm!“

“She’s easily spooked, once she’s scared she’ll stay scared for a long time. Whether you take a leave of absence or re-enlist in the military, just make sure she doesn’t see you again. Got it?”

Jung-woo could only nod repeatedly.

As he tightened his grip on Jung-woo’s choking jaw, Jaeha smiled again.

Even with his life flashing before his eyes, this smile sent a shiver down Jung-woo’s spine.

* * *

At that moment, Haea was glued to the car window as he looked out. Even though he had locked the doors tightly, she still felt a little uneasy. She imagined all sorts of scenarios, like Jung-woo coming back with something like a baseball bat and smashing the windows.

“Why is he taking so long?”

She was thinking about going to the cafe or calling him when she saw a tall man coming out of the cafe. Haea pressed her forehead to the window, scrutinizing him carefully, worried that he might be hurt. While she was worrying, he noticed her and looked up with a chuckle. Haea quickly pressed the unlock button and waved him over.

“Hurry up and get in!”

Jaeha got into the driver’s seat, looking completely unharmed.

“What took you so long?”

“I had to wash my hands.”

“Your hands?”
“I accidentally touched something dirty.”

Jaeha said casually as he handed her a USB drive that supposedly contained the CCTV footage.

“Oh. But we probably won’t need it. That guy from earlier apologized and said he wouldn’t bother you again.”

“Senior Jung-woo?”

“Yeah.”

“He didn’t seem like the type to do that…”

She mumbled extremely confused. It was strange that someone who had been so brazen would suddenly change his mind. He wasn’t the type to think about the fear or threat he had caused her.

“Maybe he likes movies.”

“Movies?”

“Yes. Our country makes great gangster movies, doesn’t it?”

“What are you talking about? Did he give you a movie ticket as an apology or something?”

Instead of answering, Jaeha just smiled slightly and started the car.

The following Monday, after a flawless presentation, Jung-woo took a leave of absence without saying a word to Haea.

Although she mentioned to Jaeha a few times that the whole thing seemed strange, she soon forgot about it when Jung-woo disappeared. In the end, the matter became an unsolved mystery that only remained in Haea’s mind.