Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 215

215

A little later.

Hyun-sung came into the room from the kitchen, holding a pot.

“You haven’t had dinner either, have you, Teacher?”

“I haven’t eaten, but…”

“I made plenty of ramen, so let’s eat together.”

“Shall we then?”

The four of them started eating the ramen, placing the pot in the center of the table.

Hyun-sung looked at Lee Jin-woo and said,

“Jin-woo, eat a lot. I hope you eat a lot and your cold goes away.”

“Thanks, Hyung [older brother or male friend].”

“What are you thanking me for? You must be hungry, so eat up.”

As soon as Hyun-sung finished speaking, Lee Jin-woo began to devour the ramen.

How much time had passed?

It was when they had almost finished the ramen.

Hyun-sung looked at Lee Min-woo and said,

“What are you going to do in the future?”

“Well, honestly, I don’t really know. I need to find a way somehow, even if it’s just for Jin-woo, but I don’t see a way with my abilities.”

“Did the class president say anything?”

“He actually came by a few days ago, but he just said he felt bad that there was nothing he could do administratively.”

Winter is coming soon. Moreover, it’s a rural area in Gangwon Province. At least from next week, they would have to start heating.

Hyun-sung asked again.

“I saw in the kitchen earlier, and there were no briquettes…”

“That’s what I’m saying. Usually, we would have already brought in briquettes [compressed blocks of coal dust used for heating] by this time last year, but we haven’t been able to this year because there’s no subsidy. They say it’s going to get cold from next week, so I’m worried.”

“You need at least two briquettes a day, right?”

“Of course, it would be nice if we could, but we can’t afford to burn that much in our situation. Three briquettes for two days is enough. It’s possible if you adjust the damper well.”

The moment Hyun-sung heard that, he couldn’t help but feel bitter. It was because he thought it was too heartbreaking for those words to be coming from the mouth of a mere high school sophomore.

It was something you couldn’t say unless you had experienced it firsthand.

Then Shin Min-ho, who had been listening from the side, said,

“Do you not have any relatives?”

“We do have a paternal uncle, but he doesn’t come around because he didn’t have a good relationship with my father. We only saw him once at Dad’s funeral.”

“Still, they’re his nephews…”

Shin Min-ho trailed off. He figured, what’s the point of relatives in a situation where they’re being neglected to this extent?

“Haa…”

Shin Min-ho let out a deep sigh, feeling suffocated.

Then Lee Min-woo said,

“So I looked into delivering newspapers, but they said there were no openings.”

“Even if you delivered newspapers, that amount of money wouldn’t be enough to live on for a month…”

“That’s true, but I had no choice… But even that has no openings, so…”

Lee Min-woo lowered his head.

Lee Jin-woo, who was watching him, said,

“Hyung, then what are we going to do?”

Lee Jin-woo looked like he was about to burst into tears any second.

Despair.

All that could be felt from his eyes was despair.

Hyun-sung’s worries deepened as he watched him.

The problem is that this isn’t something that can be solved by temporarily helping out for a month or two. In order to live a normal life, they need a job that they can work at continuously.

Hyun-sung looked at Lee Min-woo.

He couldn’t find any hope in his lowered head.

All he could feel was fear.

Fear of the world.

After thinking for a while, Hyun-sung called out to Lee Min-woo.

“Min-woo.”

“Huh?”

“If there was something you could do after school, would you do it?”

“Of course. But is there anything I can do in this rural area?”

Lee Min-woo looked at Hyun-sung with pleading eyes.

Then Hyun-sung said again,

“How about working part-time at our store? It’s until 7 PM after school, can you do it?”

“Is that for real?”

“Il-soo is working, but we need one more person.”

“If that’s the case, I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

It was the moment when Lee Min-woo’s eyes sparkled more than ever.

Hyun-sung continued,

“The salary is 60,000 won a month.”

“60,000 won? You’re giving that much?”

“It’s not that much compared to the number of days you work. But there’s no choice since the working hours per day aren’t that long.”

“That’s a lot. You only work for about 2 or 3 hours a day, right? Moreover, you get Sundays off.”

“That’s true, but it’s a small amount on a monthly basis. Instead, there will be a bonus of about 20,000 won.”

Lee Min-woo tilted his head.

He couldn’t understand even at first glance because the salary was 60,000 won, but the bonus was 20,000 won.

“What are you talking about?”

“Of course, it’s not fixed. We’re giving bonuses in proportion to sales, and looking at last month, I think we can give 20,000 won a month.”

“So, in the end, it means it’s 80,000 won in total.”

“That’s right.”

Hyun-sung nodded.

Then Lee Min-woo said again,

“80,000 won is more than enough for me and Jin-woo’s living expenses. We’ve been living on 30,000 won so far, so that’s enough to not worry about winter briquettes.”

“I’m glad if that’s the case.”

Then Lee Jin-woo, who had been quietly listening to the two of them, looked at Hyun-sung and said,

“Hyung, are you that hyung?”

“That hyung? What are you talking about?”

“There were a lot of stories about hyung in our class.”

Hyun-sung chuckled and looked at Lee Jin-woo. He was curious about what he meant.

Then Lee Jin-woo immediately continued,

“Do you know what my classmates call hyung?”

“What do they call me?”

“They call you a monster.”

“Monster?”

Hyun-sung tilted his head, hearing it for the first time.

Then Lee Jin-woo smiled and continued,

“Don’t worry, it’s not a bad meaning.”

“A monster, though?”

“Hehe, it’s a monster, but it means you’re capable. After hearing that hyung got first place in the last midterm exam, the kids started calling hyung that.”

“That’s what a monster meant?”

Hyun-sung chuckled and asked.

Then Lee Jin-woo, as if excited, continued,

“If you think about it, it’s not wrong. Your business is the best in this neighborhood, and now you’re even first in studying, so that’s the nickname you got. And also, I heard that hyung took over the Lawn Clique, is that true?”

“What? The Lawn Clique?”

“Yes, the Lawn Clique at Seo-myeong Middle School. They used to only do bad things in the past, but one day they started studying. And I heard that the reason is because of hyung.”

“It just happened…”

“So that was true?”

Lee Jin-woo’s eyes looking at Hyun-sung were definitely different from before.

But what was funny was Lee Jin-woo’s attitude.

He had already knelt down in front of Hyun-sung.

Seeing that, Hyun-sung asked,

“Why are you kneeling all of a sudden?”

“I want to join the Lawn Clique.”

“What?”

“You’re the leader there, so please let me join.”

Hyun-sung was the one who was embarrassed by the conversation that suddenly changed in a strange direction.

As Hyun-sung was embarrassed, Lee Min-woo stepped in.

“Hey, what are you doing all of a sudden?”

“Hyung, I want to join there. Can’t you talk to this hyung for me?”

Lee Min-woo was just as dumbfounded.

But he couldn’t just scold him unconditionally.

“Why do you want to join there so badly?”

“They’re the most popular these days.”

“What are you talking about?”

“They’re not doing bad things like they used to, and they’re studying really hard, and they’re even doing volunteer work these days. Anyway, they’re the best in school.”

Lee Min-woo was just dumbfounded.

Of course, he knew roughly about the Lawn Clique. Until two months ago, they were notorious as a delinquent circle. But he heard that the nature of the group had changed sometime. But he didn’t know that Hyun-sung was at the center of it.

“Hey, Lee Jin-woo. How can you be so persistent like this?”

“It’s because this hyung is the leader.”

Lee Min-woo had no choice but to look at Hyun-sung.

“Hyun-sung, you need to say something.”

“It’s no use talking to me. Myung-soo is in charge of the operation anyway. And the important thing is that they’re not recruiting people anymore.”

“Lee Jin-woo, did you hear that?”

Lee Min-woo said, looking at Lee Jin-woo.

Then Lee Jin-woo looked at Hyun-sung and said again,

“Can’t I do it with hyung’s connections?”

“I’m sorry, Jin-woo. That’s not something I can do.”

“You’re the leader, aren’t you?”

“That’s not true either, and there’s no need to go there. You can just study hard at school. Right?”

“Still…”

Lee Jin-woo couldn’t let go of his lingering feelings, as if he was still disappointed.

Then Hyun-sung asked again,

“Jin-woo, are you good at studying?”

“…No.”

“What’s your rank?”

“…I’m about 10th from the bottom.”

Lee Jin-woo barely managed to say, as if he was ashamed.

Then Hyun-sung chuckled.

“What to do, if you’re 10th from the bottom, I can’t even talk to them for you…”

“Does that mean you might talk to them if I study well?”

“Originally, I wouldn’t. But I was thinking of considering it because you’re my friend’s younger brother, but I don’t think I can do it. You know that the Lawn Clique kids are studying hard these days, right?”

“Of course. Then what rank do I have to be for you to talk to them?”

Lee Jin-woo was quite serious.

Watching him, Hyun-sung said,

“Not 10th from the bottom, but 10th from the top, that’s about the level this hyung can use his influence.”

“10th from the top?”

“Why, does it seem difficult?”

“Ah, that’s a bit…”

Lee Jin-woo’s expression began to darken rapidly.

Then Lee Min-woo, who was next to him, glanced at Hyun-sung and said,

“Jin-woo, no matter how you think about it, that’s impossible, right?”

“Hyung, just let me think for a moment…”

Lee Jin-woo covered his head with his hands, as if he was thinking about something with a serious face.

Just for a moment.

As if he had made a decision, Lee Jin-woo stared intently at Hyun-sung.

“Hyung, you’ll definitely keep your promise, right?”

“Of course, if Jin-woo gets within the top 10, this hyung will try to use his influence no matter what, so don’t worry about that.”

“I trust only hyung.”

“I know, I know.”

“Okay. Then I’m going to study hard from today. If I work hard from now on, it might be difficult this year, but it might be possible next year.”

It was the moment when Lee Jin-woo’s eyes shone particularly brightly.

Then Lee Min-woo, who was next to him, smiled and nudged Hyun-sung’s shoulder.

“Thank you, please take good care of our Jin-woo.”

“Okay. By the way, you can start working tomorrow, right?”

“Of course. But how can I repay this gratitude?”

“Just work hard. And I’ll give you a month’s advance tomorrow, so make sure to buy food and briquettes right away.”

“Can I receive this without even working and without shame?”

Lee Min-woo looked at Hyun-sung with an apologetic expression.

Then Hyun-sung smiled and continued,

“It’s just giving it in advance anyway. And I’m glad that this is something that can be resolved like this. At first, it was really dark.”

“I was really in a state where I wanted to die. Thanks to you, our two brothers lived. Thank you, my friend.”

Lee Min-woo held Hyun-sung’s hand tightly.