The apartment was quiet. From the corner, only the old refrigerator was making a sound.
Ho-jin was sitting at the little kitchen table. His mother had come home late from work, but even like that, she had found time to make dinner. The stew in the middle of the table was still hot. Steam was coming from the bowls, and the warm smell of the food had filled the little room.
Ho-jin had his spoon in his hand, but he was not eating. He kept looking at the red broth. Ji-hun standing in front of the lockers would not leave his mind, especially the way he had looked at him with fear and sadness. Ho-jin was tired. The anger from earlier was not there anymore. Now, when he thought about it, what he felt was regret.
His mother was watching him from the other side of the table. She was still in the clothes she had worn to work, and after seeing him move the food around without eating, she said, "You haven't taken a single bite. Is the food bad?"
Ho-jin left his spoon on the table. "No, it's good, Mom. I'm just not hungry."
"Why are you like this?" she asked. "Is it because of what happened at school?"
For a moment, he did not answer. He did not want to make her worry more because she had already been stressed enough after the teachers called her. "No," he said. "It's just... I said some really bad things to that kid today."
His mother stopped eating. "What happened?"
"I was really angry, and I told him to get lost," Ho-jin said. "I also told him I never wanted to see him again." He took his water and turned the cup between his hands. The glass was warm. "I know he caused a huge mess," he continued. "But he didn't do it because he wanted something bad to happen. When I think about it now, he was actually trying to protect a girl. He thought I was bullying her. It's not even like he was trying to be some hero. He just didn't know the whole story."
Ho-jin's eyes went to the wall behind his mother. "He's stupid," he said quietly. "But he wasn't trying to hurt me."
Across the little table, his mother kept looking at him. She was tired after working all day, but when she spoke, her voice was calm. With her spoon, she pointed at his bowl. "You can talk to him tomorrow and fix it. Go to school, and when you're not this angry anymore, talk properly and clear it up."
Ho-jin looked down at the table. After a moment, he moved his head in agreement. "Yeah," he said. "I guess you're right. Thank you, Mom."
After that, he did not talk much. The kitchen became quiet again, except for the spoons touching the bowls. In the end, Ho-jin started eating and finished what was left of his dinner.
—
Later that night, there was no sound in the apartment at all. Ho-jin was lying in bed, and the room was dark except for the light coming from his phone.
The phone moved in his hand when a message from Min-ji arrived.
Good night, Oppa¹ 🩷
🩵 Good night, Min-ji
A second later, another message came from her, this time a sticker. It was a cute cartoon fox sleeping while curled into a ball.
Ho-jin looked at it and found it funny for a moment. Sending something like this was very Min-ji. But soon Ji-hun came back to his mind. He remembered him in the hallway, sitting on the floor with his camera bag.
For a few more seconds, Ho-jin kept looking at the fox. "Yeah," he said to himself. "He's a fox."
He did not really know why this thought had come to him. Maybe because Ji-hun was always quietly watching everything. Or maybe it was because he tried to act clever sometimes, but then somehow ended up caught in his own trap.
Ho-jin put the phone on the floor beside his mattress and lay on his side. He pulled the blanket up to his shoulder, then closed his eyes. "I'll fix this tomorrow," he whispered. "I'll just talk to him."
The tension he had carried all day finally started to go away. After some time, his breathing became slower, and he fell asleep.
—
The next morning, Ho-jin went to school already knowing what he would do. He only needed to talk to Ji-hun. It was just one conversation, and then they could clear everything up.
As soon as the bell rang for the first break, he left. He went directly through the corridor toward the first-year classrooms, and when he reached Ji-hun's class, he stopped at the back door. His eyes moved over the desks while he searched for the dark hair he already knew.
But Ji-hun's seat was empty.
Hae-sol was near the window, so Ho-jin went to him. "Hae-sol, hi. Do you know where Ji-hun is?"
Hae-sol looked up at him. "Hi, sunbae. Ji-hun didn't come to school today. He didn't answer my texts this morning either."
Something strange dropped inside Ho-jin's stomach when he heard that. He moved his head once, then left.
The next day, nothing changed. Ji-hun's desk was empty again.
By the third day, Ho-jin's worry had become something that would not leave him alone and was starting to annoy him too. Waiting without doing anything was not possible anymore.
When the last bell rang on Wednesday, he found Hae-sol again. "Hae-sol, do you have Ji-hun's address?"
—
Later that afternoon, Ho-jin was standing in front of a little apartment building. He checked the number on his phone one more time. He had come to the correct place.
After taking a deep breath, he knocked hard enough on the metal door.
At first, nothing happened. Then he heard feet moving inside and the sound of a lock opening. A moment later, the door opened, and Ji-hun was there.
He was not in his school uniform. Over an old T-shirt, he had a light beige apron on. White powder covered his hands, and in one hand, there was a wooden rolling pin. Some flour was on his nose, and there was more on his cheek.
Like this, he looked completely different. He was nothing like the gloomy kid Ho-jin knew from the Photography Club.
The moment Ji-hun saw him, his body became still. His eyes opened wider, and his face lost its color. "S-sunbae?"
Even his voice came out wrong.
Ho-jin looked at the apron first, then the flour. He did not understand what Ji-hun was doing, but he tried not to show too much of his confusion. "Hi, Ji-hun."
Ji-hun looked at his clothes, then at Ho-jin again. "Why are you here? How did you find my house?" he asked. His voice was not very steady.
"You didn't come to school for three days, so I got worried," Ho-jin said. "I asked the teachers and your friends, but nobody knew anything. You didn't tell anyone either. That's why I came to see if you were okay. Is everything okay?"
"My dad was sick," Ji-hun said. "I had to stay home and take care of him. I'll come back to school on Friday."
Hearing this, Ho-jin felt better. "That's a relief. I mean, I'm glad you aren't sick. I'm sorry about your dad. What happened to him?"
"It's nothing serious. He just caught a cold."
After saying this, Ji-hun looked toward the door. "Sorry, but I have things to do. I need to close the door now. Thanks for coming, sunbae."
"Wait a minute, Ji-hun," Ho-jin said.
He stayed quiet for a second before continuing. "That day, I was angry, and I was too harsh with you. I'm sorry. Please don't leave the Photography Club. Also, if you ever want to talk to me, you can."
"Okay. Thanks," Ji-hun said. "I have to go now. Have a good day."
Then he closed the door.
For a while, Ho-jin stayed where he was. Of course, he had not expected Ji-hun to welcome him warmly, but he also had not thought Ji-hun would act this cold.
"He really hates me," he said to himself. "It's fine. He only has to see me for two semesters anyway. After that, he won't ever see me again."
Then Ho-jin turned around and walked away.
—
¹ 오빠 (oppa) A Korean term used by a woman for an older brother or an older man she is close to.