Return To The Building Owner [EN]: Chapter 259

“…I envied you.”

Lee Cheol-seung spoke with difficulty.

Hyun-sung immediately asked, “What does that mean?”

“I envied the friendship between you, Lee Jung-woo, and Kim Il-soo. The three of you.”

“No, what…”. Hyun-sung was utterly dumbfounded. It was something he had never expected. Of course, he was close to Lee Jung-woo and Kim Il-soo, but he couldn’t understand why someone would openly express envy like that.

Hyun-sung asked again, “Hey, are you perhaps jealous?”

“Jealous?”

“Yeah, you idiot. Is that why you deliberately tormented Lee Jung-woo?”

“It’s not exactly like that, but when I thought about how you and Il-soo were protecting Jung-woo to an excessive degree, it bothered me.”

“That’s because Jung-woo is physically weak, so we paid extra attention to him. But why does that bother you?” Hyun-sung couldn’t understand.

The fact that Lee Cheol-seung was bothered by him and Kim Il-soo taking care of Lee Jung-woo didn’t make sense.

‘Could it be?’ A strange thought crossed Hyun-sung’s mind.

Hyun-sung looked at Lee Cheol-seung and asked directly, “Hey, you’re not into *that*, are you?”

“That? What is it?”

“You know, when a guy likes another guy.”

Pfft.

Lee Cheol-seung suddenly started laughing.

Hyun-sung immediately said, “Judging by your laughter, I guess that’s not it.”

“You crazy bastard, do you take me for that kind of guy?”

“Isn’t that what your actions suggest? Why would you be upset that Il-soo and I are taking special care of Jung-woo? No matter how I think about it, I can’t understand.”

“I told you before, I envied you.”

“You envied us and hated Jung-woo? That’s jealousy. What’s with this between guys?” Hyun-sung still couldn’t understand Lee Cheol-seung’s actions.

Then Lee Cheol-seung continued, “I don’t have any friends.”

“Friends? Why don’t you have friends? You hang out with a few guys.”

“Not those kinds of guys, I mean *real* friends.”

“Real friends?” Hyun-sung tilted his head. Lee Cheol-seung from his past life wasn’t like this. As far as he remembered, his behavior hadn’t changed until he graduated from high school. Like Kim Il-soo, he was the type to bully weaker friends and do all sorts of bad things. Hyun-sung couldn’t understand why he was suddenly acting like this.

Lee Cheol-seung said, “Yeah, like you three, friends like that.”

“Us three?”

“Yeah, I see you three as friends who will be together for life. Like those friends in TV shows or movies.”

“You envied that?” Lee Cheol-seung nodded.

Then Hyun-sung asked again, “So, you deliberately tormented Jung-woo today?”

“It’s embarrassing, but that’s the truth. I wanted to talk to you, even if it was like this.”

“Talk to me? What does that mean?” Hyun-sung couldn’t understand. According to Lee Cheol-seung’s words, he deliberately tormented Lee Jung-woo because he wanted to talk to Hyun-sung himself.

“It’s as I said. I wanted to talk to you in some way. After all, you’re the center of you three.”

“Center? There’s no such thing. We’re all the same as friends.”

“That’s what you think, but that’s not how a third party sees it. No matter what anyone says, I think the reason you three can be so united is because you’re the one holding the center.”

“Okay, let’s say that’s true. What’s this talk about wanting to talk to me?”

Pfft.

Lee Cheol-seung suddenly started laughing. Hyun-sung was just dumbfounded by the sight. The fact that they were sitting side by side and talking like this was awkward in itself. Just during lunchtime today, the two of them were fighting. And it wasn’t just a simple fistfight, they even brandished knives.

But the fact that they were having a casual conversation as if nothing had happened, without saying a word about that part, didn’t make sense. But now, to see Lee Cheol-seung laughing so naturally on top of that, Hyun-sung couldn’t help but be dumbfounded.

Hyun-sung asked again, “What kind of atmosphere are you trying to create right now?”

“Are you stupid?”

“What did you say?”

“I’m confessing to you, you idiot. Don’t you understand what I’m saying?”

“……” Hyun-sung couldn’t say anything for a moment.

When Hyun-sung didn’t say anything, Lee Cheol-seung continued, “Hey, it’s not like I’m into guys, so you don’t have to be so surprised. I just acted that way because I wanted to be friends with you.”

“So, you’re saying all of this was intentional?”

“Yeah, I didn’t think I’d have a chance to approach you otherwise.”

“No, what…”. Hyun-sung was speechless. It was something he had never expected. It was such a contrasting image to the Lee Cheol-seung that Hyun-sung knew.

When Hyun-sung didn’t say anything, Lee Cheol-seung continued again. “Don’t think too complicatedly. I just wanted to be friends with you.”

“You crazy bastard. Does that make sense?” Suddenly, a curse word came out of Hyun-sung’s mouth.

Then Lee Cheol-seung looked at Hyun-sung with a puzzled expression and asked, “Hey, you know how to curse too?”

“Do you think I wouldn’t curse in this situation? What kind of psychopath [a person with a mental disorder] does that kind of thing because he wants to be friends?”

“As I said a little while ago, I didn’t think I’d have a way to approach you otherwise. I made this decision after much deliberation.”

Hyun-sung shook his head. This doesn’t make sense. How can a guy who wants to be friends approach someone by tormenting their close friend like that? And furthermore, Lee Cheol-seung even brandished a knife while fighting. Hyun-sung couldn’t understand it at all.

Hyun-sung said again. “Okay, let’s say everything else is true, what about the knife? How could you brandish a knife in front of a friend? Don’t tell me that was intentional too?”

“My last bit of pride.”

“What did you say?”

“I threw away even my last bit of pride in front of you.”

“Do you think that makes sense right now? What pride are you talking about throwing away?” Hyun-sung couldn’t understand. Knife and pride, what does that have to do with each other?

When Hyun-sung shook his head as if he didn’t understand, Lee Cheol-seung continued again. “I threw away everything. I thought I had to.”

“What does that even mean?”

“I don’t know how you’ll think about it, but that knife is my last bit of pride. The moment I dropped that knife, I knelt before you. Do you still not understand even if I say it like this?”

“Did you perhaps drop that knife on purpose?” Lee Cheol-seung quietly nodded his head.

Then Hyun-sung asked again, “Does that make sense?”

“I didn’t think I could win against you anyway. So, I thought it would be better to get thoroughly beaten in front of my friends rather than lose anyway.”

“So, you’re saying you even brandished a knife on purpose?”

“Yeah, that was the best I could do. I thought that way, my friends would definitely acknowledge you as the best.”

“So, you did that for me?” Lee Cheol-seung nodded again.

Then Hyun-sung said again. “Honestly, I don’t know what you’re talking about right now. Why that’s an action for me.”

“Don’t think too complicatedly. In conclusion, the important thing is that I used a knife but still lost to you, and the important thing is that you’re now the best in our school no matter what anyone says.”

“Why is that important?”

“It’s important. Because from now on, you’re unconditionally the undisputed top dog of our school.”

“Stop talking nonsense about being the top dog. Are we kids? Don’t say things like that. And I’m not interested in that kind of thing, so don’t ever say anything about being the top dog in front of me again. Do you understand what I’m saying?” As Hyun-sung finished speaking, Lee Cheol-seung looked at Hyun-sung and smiled.

“Still, isn’t it good?”

“What’s so good about it?”

“Aren’t you proud to be the representative of our school?”

“What nonsense are you talking about? I told you a little while ago that I’m not interested in that kind of thing.”

“It doesn’t end with not being interested. You’re the representative of our school now, whether you like it or not.” Lee Cheol-seung kept grinning as he looked at Hyun-sung, as if he was happy about something.

Then Hyun-sung said, “What are you so happy about?”

“Anyway, I’ve achieved my goal. Being able to sit side by side with you and talk like this is like a dream to me.”

“Why are you being so creepy, you bastard?”

“There’s nothing creepy about it, I just want to be friends with you. Actually, I haven’t had a chance until now. How desperate would I have to be to approach you by saying such harsh things to Jung-woo today?”

Shakes head. Hyun-sung shook his head from side to side.

There’s something he doesn’t understand. It’s Lee Cheol-seung’s change. Lee Cheol-seung from his past life and the current Lee Cheol-seung are too different. He wasn’t like this at all in his past life. What made Lee Cheol-seung change like this?

Hyun-sung looked at Lee Cheol-seung. “Hey, you weren’t originally like this, were you?”

“People always change.”

“You’ve changed too much. Was there a special reason?”

“A special reason?”

“Yeah, otherwise a person can’t suddenly change like this, can they?” At Hyun-sung’s question, Lee Cheol-seung seemed to think for a moment, then slowly opened his mouth.

“It’s because of change.”

“Change? What does that mean?”

“I’m talking about the changes in the people around you. I don’t know if you can feel it, but I’ve seen a lot of changes in the people around you.” Hyun-sung tilted his head. Because he couldn’t understand exactly what Lee Cheol-seung was saying.

“What does that mean?”

“Even if it’s just Jung-woo or Il-soo, they’ve changed a lot compared to a few months ago. Especially Il-soo, he’s changed so much that he can’t be compared to the past. He used to bully kids and extort money just like me, but at some point, he started studying.”

“That’s because his thoughts changed, so he changed like that.”

“That’s what I’m saying. Who changed that thought? It’s you. Il-soo started to change after he became friends with you.”

“That’s……” Hyun-sung didn’t have anything special to say. Because it’s true.

Lee Cheol-seung continued again. “Is that all? What about Jung-woo? He’s the same way, not only studying but also his personality has completely changed. You made all of this happen.”

“I worked hard in my own way.”

“That’s what I’m saying. The important thing is that it wasn’t like that in the past. Strangely, the guys around you all change consistently.”

“So?”

“What do you mean so? Seeing that made me want to change too.” Lee Cheol-seung smiled and continued. Looking at Lee Cheol-seung, Hyun-sung said, “So, what are you going to do from now on?”

“I’m going to stick by your side and try to get along with you. If I do that, I might be able to change like the other guys. Please take care of me in the future.”

“Well, to be honest, it would be a lie if I said I wasn’t burdened, and I don’t know what to do.”

“What burden? Can’t we just be friends?” Lee Cheol-seung looked at Hyun-sung and asked.

Then, after thinking for a moment, Hyun-sung slowly opened his mouth. “First, let’s go eat ramen [a Japanese noodle soup].”

“Call [Sounds good].”

It was the moment when the two people’s relationship began.