Chapter 352: Chapter 352
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Thick horn-rimmed gla.s.ses under messy hair and a pair of red eyes emitting vibrant light like a gem over those gla.s.ses… Observing those features, I murmured to myself, ‘Why are you here…?’
As soon as I grasped his ident.i.ty, a breathtaking pressure struck my nape and, at the same time, the instinct for survival woke up inside me like a flash of lightning. I sprang up from the spot and quickly dashed toward the storage door. ‘He would have not seen my face, would he?’ With that thought in mind, I almost threw myself to the door.
The problem happened afterward. The door should have swung open with pouring sunlight, but now I had come to think of it, this door had to be opened in the opposite direction.
“AHHH!”
I collapsed as soon as I was b.u.mped against the wall very hard. Something behind me seemed to move falteringly, but once I fell to the ground, he halted his steps. Meanwhile, I pulled the storage room door in toward me while raising myself.
However, something else happened again; since I had pushed the door too harshly before, it seemed stuck between the door frame or broken. No matter how many times I pulled it in, the door didn’t open. Hanging on the door with a great deal of grunting and groaning, I finally released my hand with a shrug.
Feeling a fierce glance showering behind my head, I fell into despair.
I met someone, whom I didn’t want to run into the most these days, at the most unwanted place. Describe how would I be feeling at this situation. (open-ended question 10 points)
Nah, let’s stop talking nonsense to escape reality.
“…”
While there was a moment of silence, I slowly turned around, at last.
Meeting the pair of red eyes, I shrieked to myself and plopped down on the ground almost leaning on the door.
Disheveling my hair severely again, I yelled in my thoughts, ‘Argh, why is he sleeping here!? This is too much coincidence!’ However, I shoved my face onto my knees with tears while recalling the law of web novels.
‘No, it’s my fault…’
Ever since I decided to accept this world as my real life, it was my first time in a while to… urgh, I could argue on the laws against the nationwide Number 1.
Anyway, according to the law of web novels article 28, the nationwide Number 1 was always sleeping in the storage facility, music room, or on the rooftop. In other words, those three places should be avoided to lead a normal school life.
Thus, it was my fault to forget this obvious rule… I lowered my head while blaming myself.
For now, I thought as composedly as possible about how Ban Hwee Hyul would be accepting this situation. He was having a nap but woke up from someone, who was clumsy––it was, of course, me––tripping over him. In this case, he could react in two different ways.
One, grabbing my chin, he would say, ‘You even look dumb, but…’ then fall in love with me since I was prettier than he imagined, However, my appearance should look as gorgeous as Ban Yeo Ryung to suit this case, so we should move on to the other reaction.
Second, this had the highest possibility, which was Ban Hwee Hyul venting his anger on me since I disturbed his nap. He would then appoint me to his slave role such as his personal delivery man for getting snacks from the cafeteria or holding his backpack on his way to school.
Hmm, this made more sense… However, there was one problem; both of those reactions wouldn’t fit in my case. That was because Ban Hwee Hyul and I had already met each other a few days ago. Besides, he even called my name while saying, ‘I memorized it.’
In the end, I decided to first apologize. With an awkward smile, I lowered my head and uttered, “I’m very sorry to disturb your nap. I’ll leave then…”
Pulling the doork.n.o.b while adding, ‘Thank you, bye,’ the door didn’t move at all. ‘Ah, gos.h.!.+ Why are you so tactless? Your wit can save a person’s life,’ urging the door to move, I was pulling the doork.n.o.b a more few times.
There was a remark coming from the darkness, which made me close my eyes tightly. ‘Geez, I knew it would happen!’
“Hey, I told you I would memorize your name.” His following words made me gape. “Ham Baknoon.”
‘What did you say, sir?’
“I memorized it.”
‘No, you didn’t at all,’ I shouted to myself. Clasping the hands that were pulling the doork.n.o.b, I murmured shortly, ‘Dear G.o.d, thank you so much.’
The lord above, who never responded to me no matter how many times I had sought him, answered my prayer for the first time.
I brought back my memories. Since our encounter was very impressive, the memory of b.u.mping into Ban Hwee Hyul was so vivid as if it happened yesterday.
‘I memorized it, Ham Donnie.’
That was what he said to me before, and he even called my name; therefore, living a normal life afterward seemed utterly impossible to me. However, what had happened to his memory?
Law of the web novel article 29, the nationwide Number 1 was also the nationwide top in academic performance. Even if the person was the bottom in grades at school, he or she would be usually smart. That was how it went in web novels!
For example, we could put it this way.
The female main character heard the nationwide Number 1’s confession that he had a crush on her. Wondering how she could deny his love, she recalled that the nationwide Number 1 was the bottom of the school in grades and test scores!
Female MC: But, you… you’re the bottom of the school! I… I hate who’s dumb!
Nationwide Number 1: Ah, really? Is it okay if I’m not the bottom of the school in grades then?
At the next exam, the nationwide Number 1 turned out to become the top student in the entire school triumphantly… and this was usually the conversation following between them afterward.
Female MC: U… unbelievable, didn’t you cheat?
Nationwide Number 1: Nope, the reason why I’ve been the lowest in test scores is…
Female MC: Is…?
Nationwide Number 1: It’s because I’ve skipped exams.
Likewise, if the nationwide Number 1 was usually the bottom of the school in academic performance, I would put it this way determinedly. That’s because he was using it as a momentum to win back the female main character’s heart with just a different color.
However, now I had come to think of it, I never heard about Ban Hwee Hyul’s name on the list of the top 10 students in our school. How was I being aware of it? Unfortunately, most of the top 10 students, who were showing the highest academic performances in our grade, were those who I all knew.
The top student was, needless to say, Ban Yeo Ryung; the second was Eun Jiho. The two were even monsters, who took the Number 1 and 2 positions in a nationwide mock exam.
From the third to the tenth were Eun Hyung, Kim Hye Hill, Kim Hye Woo, and Yi Ruda. Even Yoon Jung In took one of those top student positions. ‘Hmm, I do have many friends who’re good at studying and tests,’ I thought. Anyway, I was aware that Ban Hwee Hyul’s name wasn’t on that list of students.
I stared at Ban Hwee Hyul, sitting in front of me, with a stiffened gaze. ‘Who the h.e.l.l are you then?’ I wondered. Was he positioning himself as a student, who had mediocre test scores, in order to act like a run-of-the-mill student, just like Jooin?
That also made sense. A nationwide Number 1, who was bad in academic performance? Nah, that could not happen since it was like being a maverick of the nationwide number 1s. As soon as I rambled those thoughts in my head, Ban Hwee Hyul spoke again, “Ham Baknoon, that’s such a unique name.”
I was, once again, having some mixed feelings.
However… if he was pretending to have mediocre grades in school on purpose, did he really have to behave or act to this extent? ‘Ban Hwee Hyul, do you think someone can have a name like Ham Baknoon for real?’
I felt the tension in my body all loosening. As long as he remembered my name utterly wrong, it was difficult to keep the nervous feeling within me. Heaving a sigh, I dared to detach my lips.
“I’m sorry, but my name isn’t Ham Baknoon,” I uttered politely. It was like my last instinct for survival while not forgetting that Ban Hwee Hyul was still the nationwide Number 1 fighter. However, even that instinct seemed to disappear at his response.
“Did you deceive me?”
‘No, it was your memory that deceived you,’ I spoke only in my thoughts. Pointing at myself with my finger, I, once again, enunciated slowly like a nursery teacher, “Han Donnie, that is my name.”
Perhaps, he could burn with rage at my att.i.tude just now, or even drop something like, ‘Your name isn’t Ham Baknoon? Change your name ASAP!’ I was concerned that he could react that way; however, surprisingly, Ban Hwee Hyul remained silent. Without being ashamed of his mistake, he just stared at me calmly.