Unrequited Love Thresher-Chapter 7: It Wasn’t a Memory That Returned, But Hell

There was something Ha Giyeon had come to understand while living on his own.

No matter how unfair or painful things were—even if you were hurting to death—the world kept turning. While he was dying, someone else was living in bliss, and someone else was living in hell.

So, just because he was feeling a little down didn’t mean he could put off going to pick up the uniform. Changing his clothes and heading straight out the door, Ha Giyeon hung the shopping bag from his wrist and started walking toward the school.

“I should just drop this off and leave.”

The uniform didn’t fit him anyway, so he figured he might as well donate it.

“All right, here we are.”

Before he realized it, he had arrived at the school gates. He looked up at the building.

It was the school that Ha Dohoon, Choi Mujin, and Kwon Jongseok attended—and the one Ha Giyeon would be entering.

“Didn’t think I’d be back here.”

Unlike students who aimed for special high schools or elite academies, his brothers had enrolled in a regular high school. They had no plans to study seriously and were already thinking of going abroad as adults, so they’d picked whatever school felt convenient. Even though Ha Giyeon had only spent a year in school with them, that one year had been agonizingly unbearable.

A school life with not a single fond memory.

“It was a mistake to come to this school.”

He hadn’t meant to follow his brothers around here too. All he’d wanted was to say hi, see them around, and get along without issue.

“Don’t act like you know me. It’s embarrassing.”

Ha Dohoon had warned him even before the school year began, so Giyeon had planned to keep a low profile.

“Hey, that kid’s Ha Dohoon’s younger brother.”

“Wait, are you seriously Ha Dohoon sunbae’s brother?”

But not long after entering, word had spread across the entire school that he was Ha Dohoon’s younger brother. Since he hadn’t said anything, he wondered if his brother had introduced him, so he smiled and greeted him as they passed.

“Hyung...”

“Ha... fuck off.”

Ha Dohoon had shoved past him, shoulder-checking him for all to see. Before he could even process the dull ache in his shoulder, the scene had already branded itself into everyone’s eyes. That Ha Dohoon hated his younger brother, Ha Giyeon.

From that day on, rumors began to swell, starting with how the brothers didn’t get along.

“Isn’t he an illegitimate kid or something?”

Just because he didn’t look like Dohoon, people started calling him a bastard.

Unable to make friends, Giyeon had stuck close to his brothers. He thought maybe if he stayed near them, the rumors would go away. He even joined the same club activities and followed them when they jumped the school walls. As his unexcused absences and truancy piled up, teachers started scolding him harshly, blaming him for his brothers’ behavior as well.

“You rude little shit. Can’t you look people in the eye? Don’t go thinking you can treat adults like crap. What, you think just because your family’s rich I’m gonna treat you special? I’ve dealt with plenty of brats like you in this job...”

His homeroom teacher was especially harsh with insults and disdain, but never said a word in front of his brothers. The teacher had likely overheard things from other parents and figured out that Giyeon had fallen out of favor at home. His existence at school was no different from at home.

A kid people could mistreat.

A kid who deserved it.

After his brothers graduated, things only got worse. Someone would steal his stuff, or leave spoiled milk in his locker. They didn’t hit him physically, but the whispers and curses were mentally crushing. After Dohoon graduated and their father stopped donating to the school, his homeroom teacher began calling Giyeon out as a punching bag for his frustration.

When the mental toll became unbearable, Giyeon finally mustered the courage to speak to his parents.

“Um... about school...”

“Just keep your head down until graduation. Don’t go stirring up trouble.”

The words he’d barely managed to utter were cut off right there. His parents’ expressions as they brushed past him, looking annoyed, made it impossible for him to say anything more.

All he could do was endure, hoping to graduate soon.

“Though I got kicked out the moment I did.”

Right before graduation, it came to light that he wasn’t their biological child. Naturally, he was alone on graduation day.

Smiling parents holding bouquets, taking pictures with their kids. Students huddled together for group photos. A schoolyard filled with tears and laughter.

All Ha Giyeon had was a diploma. No family to take pictures with, ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ no bouquet, no friends. He held the red diploma tightly in his hands and stood off in the corner of the schoolyard, watching them for a long time until he was the last one left, and finally trudged out alone.

And now—

“So this is what it looked like.”

Ha Giyeon stood in the same place again.

Looking at the buildings that felt both unfamiliar and familiar, he silently hoped:

“Please, just let me graduate peacefully this time.”

Please let this place be where he could focus on studying—nothing more.

***

Ha Giyeon climbed the stairs, glancing around.

“Was it here? I don’t really remember...”

Maybe they’d done some renovation over break—inside the building reeked of fresh paint. After walking down a corridor painted bright blue, he arrived at the teachers’ office.

Knock knock.

He tapped the door and opened it carefully. Since it was still break time, there was only one person inside. Giyeon approached the teacher sitting at the far desk, busy with paperwork.

“Hello, I’m here for the school uniform exchange program.”

“Ah, you’re the student who called yesterday, right? But... I’m sorry. One person hasn’t arrived yet. Do you mind waiting just a little longer?”

Hearing that the other student hadn’t arrived only made his mood sink further.

Was he going to have to buy a new uniform after all?

He mentally calculated the uniform price against the balance left in his account. Just then, the office door opened with another knock.

“Hello, I’m here for the school uniform exchange program.”

“Perfect timing!”

Ha Giyeon turned his head—and blinked in surprise.

He’s huge...

A tall guy, probably around 190 cm, strode over. Wearing a black cap pulled low, he somehow radiated pressure. Probably even bigger than his brothers... no, definitely bigger.

But then, a wave of despair washed over him.

There’s no way... that guy’s uniform would fit me.

Ha Giyeon was 171 cm.

The uniform he brought might fit that guy, but there was no chance the reverse was true.

“There are only two of you who applied for the exchange program... so why don’t you both try them on in the fitting room over there?”

Normally, you’d lay out all the uniforms and pick by size. But since it was just the two of them, it was a direct swap. The teacher looked awkwardly between the two of them.

Giyeon and the guy glanced at each other, then headed side by side to the fitting room. They traded shopping bags and turned their backs to each other to unpack the uniforms.

Let’s just hold it up to my body first...

He pulled out the neatly folded uniform shirt and unfolded it—

“...Huh?”

It wasn’t as big as he’d thought. In fact, it fit just right, the sleeves brushing the backs of his hands.

He looks like a second or third-year... how’d he grow so big already?

Giyeon admired it quietly as he glanced over at the guy, who had slipped on Giyeon’s shirt. Even on his tall frame, the shirt fit like it was tailor-made. The silhouette from behind looked like something off a model shoot. Just as Giyeon was marveling, the guy turned around.

“...!”

Their eyes met. Giyeon startled, but then couldn’t look away.

Through the loose curls of his hair, slanted eyes with long lashes fluttered as he blinked. He was the most handsome person Giyeon had ever seen—maybe even more so than his brothers.

No, actually...

“He’s... better looking in a different way than them,”

Wait—now was not the time for this!

Shaking his head to clear it, Giyeon asked:

“Does the uniform fit you okay?”

“Yeah, but... are you sure this was worn before? It looks brand new.”

The shirt was perfectly smooth, and it had that factory-fresh scent.

The guy looked at him suspiciously. Flustered, Giyeon quickly explained:

“M-My parents accidentally bought the wrong size...”

It was technically true, but still sounded like a bad excuse. The guy, though skeptical, nodded.

“Does it fit you?”

“Yeah, if it’s okay with you, I think we can go ahead with the swap.”

A perfect fit on both sides—it was almost too lucky. Giyeon’s spirits lifted so fast it made him dizzy. He folded the uniform carefully and put it into the shopping bag. The clean jacket still smelled faintly of fabric softener.

They both returned to the office and wrote their names in the confirmation log.

“Glad the uniforms worked out for both of you.”

Giyeon thanked the teacher and stepped out of the office. As he was about to head down the stairs with a light heart, a voice called out behind him.

“Wait a second.”

The guy strode up to him with those long legs and held something out.

“Take this.”

He was holding a few crumpled ten-thousand-won bills.

“Huh? Why...?”

“For the uniform.”

“What?”

“I mean, it’s clearly new. You’re trading it for an old one—that has to feel kinda shitty, right?”

No, actually, I love it.

Without this uniform, he would’ve blown more than half the money he’d saved from part-time jobs. He liked the money, sure—but this wasn’t right. Giyeon shook his head.

“It’s really fine.”

“I don’t like hearing complaints later, so just take it.”

“I’m serious—it’s fine!”

The guy tried to shove the money into his hand. His hands were huge and strong—no matter how much Giyeon tried to push back, he couldn’t budge.

“W-Wait! The uniform’s not even that nice, not enough to pay for! And besides, I couldn’t wear it even if I kept it!”

“You could resell it for at least 150,000 won.”

What’s with this guy? Why’s he so stubborn?

As they wrestled (or rather, as Giyeon got manhandled), a thought suddenly occurred to him. He blurted out:

“Then... do you have a P.E. uniform?”

“...P.E. uniform?”

The guy’s grip loosened just enough for Giyeon to yank his hand back and duck behind him.

“Same size as the school uniform. If you have one...”

He mumbled, watching the guy’s expression. Was he being too shameless? Was he gonna get hit?

The guy’s black eyes scanned him slowly, up and down. freewёbnoνel.com

“...Way too small.”

He muttered under his breath, then held something else out—not money this time, but a phone.

“Your number.”

“...Huh?”

“I can’t bring it right now. I’ll contact you before the semester starts.”

Giyeon typed his number into the guy’s phone. The guy called to check it, nodded once, and walked down the stairs without another word.

“Phew...”

Rubbing his sore hand, Giyeon took out his own phone and saved the number.

“...Don’t know his name, so...”

He saved it simply as ‘P.E. Uniform.’

“There. Done.”

Now he had both a school uniform and maybe a P.E. uniform too. Feeling proud to have saved some money, he practically skipped down the stairs.

But... the guy never contacted him before the start of the semester.