"Hey."
Joo In Guk, the class representative, closed in on him. He knocked the desk with his knuckles, trying to wake the delinquent up.
Of course, Hyuk ignored it. He still kept his head on the desk and his eyes closed, although his forehead was slightly scrunched from the sudden disturbance.
"Hey, I'm talking to you," In Guk repeated, looking as if his patience was running thin. He continued to knock on Hyuk's desk until he got his attention.
"What?" Hyuk raised his head, replying gruffly with a frown.
"Lee Hyuk, are you even human?" In Guk suddenly asked after getting Hyuk's response.
"The f*ck?" Hyuk looked at him as if he had a few screws loose.
"Yesterday. Ra Won was getting pushed around by those thugs but you sat there doing nothing. Do you even know what 'compassion' is?" In Guk blurted out. Although he was no ally of justice, he could not stand such blatant injustice. It was happening to his own classmate and friend, so he felt that he should intervene.
With the same line of thinking, he could not help but reproach Hyuk. Although bad rumours were swirling around him, Hyuk wasn't so bad before. But after he started hanging out with Ji Yeong Gi, he was beginning to stray. Self-fulfilling prophecy, as he had dubbed it.
"Ha. Look at this prissy little b*stard flapping his mouth. Oi, who do you think you are, to lecture me like this?" Hyuk retaliated. He kicked the leg of his table in apparent annoyance.
Since In Guk was standing in front of his desk, he naturally stepped aside to dodge the desk. His distaste for the man deepened. Can't this thug deal with anything without relying on violence?
"I'm the class representative. Why? Got a problem with that?" In Guk righteously replied. He was the class rep so it was fine for him to confront Hyuk when everyone else in the class was afraid to. Hyuk's presence was making them walk on tenterhooks and it was his duty to make the class a harmonious place.
"Ha!" Hyuk scoffed, thinking that the guy was a big joke. So what if he was the class rep? As if that title carried any actual weight.
"And? What do you want me to do, class rep?" He asked, a fair amount of ridicule concealed in his tone.
"You..." In Guk glowered at him. How was he going to reform this dumb*ss? Clearly he was unrepentant. "Don't bother picking a fight with me. I won't stoop as low as you."
"What did you say?" Hyuk kicked the table again.
In Guk sighed in exasperation. "Can't you be more civilised? You're making a fool of yourself by acting like this. Are you a buffoon or something?"
Although In Guk was usually really nice and easy-going, he was dissatisfied with Hyuk, so his inner snarky attitude came out unconsciously. Something about Hyuk just made him feel like letting his mouth run off as it liked.
"What?" Hyuk laughed, as if he couldn't believe that the guy had the guts to talk bad about him face-to-face.
"You heard me. Trash like you should just go away. Why did you even come to school for anyway? To play around? Why bother, when you're just going to ruin your life later?" In Guk said. Most of the things he said was due to the heat of the moment, but parts of it was fuelled by his disappointment.
Hyuk was originally not that bad. He knew this since he was the class rep and would often observe the other kids in detail. In the beginning, although Hyuk would sleep in class every once in a while, he'd still come to school without fail. Although he was not the brightest student, at least he was not dead last. But it seemed like he had fallen with the wrong crowd, turning him into a real good-for-nothing, and this bothered In Guk to no end.
Hyuk was not a patient person. He was not someone who would just stay still when he was facing an attack. His fists was raised before he could think; a product of his upbringing. He was so used to fighting back that it became second nature.
Bam!
In Guk did not expect Hyuk to hit him, so he crashed into the chairs and desks behind him.
"F*cktard," Hyuk growled. "What do you know about me? Someone whose life is smooth-sailing like yours wouldn't understand."
"Ha!" Smooth-sailing? In Guk snorted as he shakily got up, glaring at Hyuk. "And who are you to make assumptions about me, *sshole? Do you think you're the only one with a bad life? Oh, you must think you're the most pitiful person on Earth, don't you?" In Guk spitefully bit back. One of the things he hated the most was when someone assumes that he was a spoiled brat just because his family was a bit richer than average.
Hyuk chuckled coldly, "Keep barking, b*tch."
Without waiting for In Guk to get up properly, Hyuk grabbed his collar and threw him to the ground. His eyes were spitting fire.
So what if he thought he was the most pitiful person on Earth? How was he not pitiful? His life was in shambles; he had no future, his mom was dead, his dad was a c*nt, and the only girl he ever fell in love with was someone he could never have. How was that not pitiful?
"Keep barking!" Hyuk yelled, slamming his knuckles on the smart-mouthed b*stard's face. He could see nothing but the red from his wrath.
"Stop him!"
"In Guk!"
"Hey, somebody call the teacher!"
Ignoring the ruckus he had caused, Hyuk single-mindedly focused on letting out his rage on the d*mn sh*thead who was the class rep.