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Chapter 25
Yeon Seong-ha had been a gifted student since middle school, selected as a scholarship student by the Seohae Foundation.
He was above average in everything—studying, singing, sports—even without putting in much effort. He particularly excelled at memorization and comprehension.
But Seong-ha didn’t like showing his talent to others.
“If only his parents had been capable, they would have supported him a lot.”
“Poor kid…”
To Seong-ha, being talented always came with pity.
His life goal was to live quietly, without being pitied. So he originally planned to go into a specialized track that could lead directly to a job, wanting to start earning money as soon as possible.
The only reason Seong-ha entered a prestigious high school was one: the will of his grandfather, who raised him after his mother died and his father, with a criminal record, cut ties.
“‘You must get a university diploma, Seong-ha. What can’t you do? Even if you grew up without anything, you’re a capable person. Go, forget everything, and live properly.’”
His grandfather wanted him to live properly, sending him to a prestigious school.
Seong-ha followed the will, entering the prestigious school established by the Seohae Foundation. Every semester, tuition, uniforms, and more were fully supported by the foundation.
At first, he got along well with other students.
He even received a confession from Joo Su-yeon, granddaughter of Ju Tae-baek, chairman of Dongwoo Group—a name every Korean would recognize—and rejected her.
And that was just the start.
He studied seriously, attended foundation volunteer activities, bought workbooks with gift cards from volunteering, and even outperformed rich students who spent months of living expenses on private education, purely with talent.
But everything collapsed when he met Joo Su-yeon during the foundation activities.
“‘She rejected my confession and acted so rude… I thought she had connections.’”
“‘….’”
“‘So you were just a low-class kid?’”
From that day, his life fell apart.
Rumors spread quickly. Students hoping for crumbs from Su-yeon turned away from him.
Seong-ha regretted everything.
He shouldn’t have gone to volunteer when he didn’t even have money for workbooks.
He should have gone along with Su-yeon regardless of his feelings.
No, the real mistake was applying to Yeonpung High from the start.
As if that wasn’t enough, his grandmother’s health worsened, and Seong-ha half gave up on school life.
To avoid collapsing after losing his grandmother too, he stubbornly earned money for hospital bills and medicine.
News that he had incurred Su-yeon’s hatred reached teachers, so no one at school paid attention to him.
“‘Your grandmother didn’t send you to school just to sleep, did she?’”
No matter the insults, he endured, focusing on part-time jobs at night and catching up on sleep at school during the day.
By the second semester of his second year, a new girl transferred in and sat next to him on the first day.
“‘She’ll probably be like everyone else.’”
He expected the transfer student to be just like Su-yeon’s group or the indifferent bystanders.
But then…
“Ah, Joo Sae-i! Put that down!”
“Take your friends and go back to your seats. Quickly.”
Why was she defending Joo Su-yeon?
Seeing the transfer student confront the group surrounding him, Seong-ha thought she had no fear. Or maybe she was reckless.
“I’m certain now. Su-yeon is the instigator, this group are the perpetrators, and the whole class is bystanders.”
Even though Su-yeon was reckless, he never thought it would be this extreme.
“‘My grandfather wouldn’t overlook this.’”
In fact, Su-yeon’s grandfather, Ju Tae-baek, and Seong-ha’s grandfather were strict about punishing this kind of behavior. Dongwoo Group under Ju Tae-baek had largely eliminated workplace bullying.
Seong-ha thought: was she fearless, or just thoughtless? Probably both.
The transfer student’s boldness made it clear.
She firmly grabbed Seong-ha and said:
“Seong-ha. The homeroom teacher wants you.”
Of course, it was a lie. But even using the teacher as an excuse worked to get him moving.
“Let’s go quickly.”
She led Seong-ha outside confidently. No one came after them, even after the bell rang.
She worried secretly:
“What if Grandpa or Dad finds out about skipping class? What excuse should I give if we get scolded?”
Still, seeing Seong-ha dragged along, she handed him the banana milk she had held. He seemed to have been hit—there were small marks on his cheek and his glasses were gone.
Seong-ha frowned, looking down at her. He was taller than she expected—almost as tall as Ryoo Do-kyung.
She put the milk firmly in his hands, even inserting the straw.
He threw it to the ground, resisting, and warned her:
“Thanks for helping, but don’t involve yourself in my matters.”
“Go apologize. Say you were wrong.”
Seong-ha didn’t know she was from the same family as Joo Su-yeon. His sharp tone was probably just caution, fearing retaliation from her and her family.
She realized his eyes weren’t rebellious—they were trying to act strong to avoid more hurt.
Then she noticed:
“‘Without his glasses…’”
Looking closely, she realized he looked exactly like the actor Seo Ha-joon.
“Wait… this is really…”
Seong-ha, the person in front of her, had the same face and name as the actor who had once been famous in Korea.
“Why, why are you like this? Are you sick? Not feeling well?”
“I’m… shocked.”
No wonder he looked too handsome for an ordinary student.
