Chapter 163 – Jinsooje (5)
As the hour passed by early in the morning, not only Jinsu Bridge members but also their families came to visit Jinsu Bridge one by one, making Jinsu Bridge the place with the largest number of floating people of the year.
In front of the main gate of the academy, merchants came to sell various snacks, cotton candy, and even ice cream, trying to make some money by hunting down trees. Convenience stores, supermarkets, and stationery stores nearby were also popping up.
After 10 a.M., I walked around Jinsu Bridge with Eunji and Suyeon and joined in the festival prepared by other classmates.
Meanwhile, Yuri’s parents also came to her academy and saw their daughter wearing her maid uniform and serving food.
Yuri’s father asked who asked him to do something like this with a disapproving expression, saying it was a manly thing, but both Yuri and I avoided answering, and Yuri’s mother kept taking pictures of her daughter, saying she looked pretty.
As time passed, Yumin also came to visit, and we all started hanging out together.
At 11 o’clock, Yuri’s service was finally over, and it was time for Suyeon to start serving.
Unlike Yuri, who joined her parents and older sister for a chat after the service, and Eunji, who also enjoyed the remaining free time and chatted with her family, Suyeon was still alone.
I said I would walk Suyeon to our class for a while, and she walked down the hallway with me.
“Suyeon’s family is busy, so they aren’t coming.”
At those words, Sooyeon made a very cynical expression, different from her usual smiling face.
“Ha, my mom and dad are here? If I come here, they’ll probably tell me to get out right away, saying, ‘If you have time to waste on nonsense like this, use that time to study more!'”
“No matter what, you don’t want to do that…”
“I heard this directly yesterday.”
“…”
“Ahaha, why are you looking so serious? I’m fine, so don’t worry!”
Su-yeon said it with a smile, but even a fool could tell that she really didn’t care.
That’s because all the students’ families are here now and enjoying the festival, but Suyeon’s family is the only one missing.
I held Suyeon’s hand tightly out of pity.
“I will be there for you, Suyeon.”
“What are you talking about, that my senior will become my family? Is this a proposal?”
Suyeon crossed her arms and laughed playfully.
“Should I just go to my class and help with the work again? It would be so lonely if you were alone.”
“Seriously, don’t do that. I hate it even more when you can’t enjoy the senior festival because of me, right? Senior Yuri has just finished work, but shouldn’t he still be with you? And I’m not working alone, there’ll be other people too.”
“Still…”
“I’m really fine! Enjoy the festival when you have time, too! Isn’t he supposed to come back later and help our class again?”
“That’s true. But are you really okay with that? You’ll be working for two hours…”
Hehe. It’s my first time hanging out with normal people and doing something together, so I really like it. So don’t worry about me and go back quickly, too. I’ll be waiting for you, Yuri and Eunji.”
“Then… Okay, okay, Suyeon. I’ll go, so cheer up, and if you’re having a hard time because there are too many customers, send me a message. I’ll be there to help you with the work.”
“Okay, senior. See you later at lunch!”
So I let Sooyeon go and took my steps back down the hallway.
And Soo-yeon Choi, who was left alone for a moment, looked at the back of her boyfriend who was walking away and sighed.
“… I guess I should have just acted a little more foolishly.”
Of course, since she was her own person, she felt lonely when she was left alone.
I wasn’t expecting my parents to come, but there was a big difference between knowing in my head and actually accepting it.
However, she had once heard about Han Seong-jin’s family history, so she felt sorry for being so foolish.
Since he had already lived without knowing the warmth of his parents since he was in elementary school, if he was lonely, he would be even more lonely.
Suyeon Choi, who was thinking about this and that, shook her head and lightly slapped her cheek with both hands.
‘It’s okay! It’s not like I can’t see you forever, I just need 2 hours, so why are you like this? Come to your senses!’
And then she went into sales mode again, greeting people inside her 3rd class classroom.
“Welcome~! What would you like to order? If you pay 500 won more, I, this pretty and cute maid, will memorize a magic spell for you?”
#####
An hour after Su-yeon started serving, Eun-ji ate with her family and Su-yeon and I, who had no family on site, ate lunch with her and her family.
Perhaps because Suyeon was so friendly, her Yuri and her parents also liked her quite a bit, and Yumin, who had a hard time seeing each other on weekdays, had a smile on her face when she saw me.
I couldn’t reveal much because it was in front of her parents.
After lunch, Suyeon served again, and after that, Eunji served, and I also enjoyed the festival, but then went back to the classroom and spent a hectic time making drinks and working on materials.
“Oh, the money… I must be crazy. How much is all this…?”
When she returned to work, the class president was now more than happy but scared.
Yuri, Suyeon, and Eunji were rotating shifts every two hours, so people who missed the first opening time came to our class every time each person was serving and had to order another drink, and there were well over hundreds of people. When we repeated that, we made much more profit than originally expected.
Even if all the students come just once, there are 500 visits, which is almost x3 per person, and when you include the families who come to visit, the profit is over several million won.
When I returned to work, I grinned at the foreman who was shaking with fear while settling the profits.
“Didn’t I say this would definitely be a success? Hey, isn’t this going to be our class’s omakase dinner?”
While spending the morning and afternoon busier than any other class, our class closed the café with an overwhelming amount of profit.
After the maid café closed, Eunji, who was the last of us on duty, clenched her fists, her face turning red in shame.
“Damn… You damn bastards… Do you know how many people came as soon as they heard I was serving them? They must have come here on purpose to screw me! Just wait and see, tomorrow I’ll actually visit each one of them…”〈 Br〉
“That means you were popular. Have a drink.”
“I won’t!”
When I gave her iced tea and played with her, Eunji got upset and went to the bathroom to change her clothes.
From 3 p.M. Until we went to the academy’s large playground for the group talent show prepared by each class, Eunji was upset and turned her head to me. In the end, it was only after I took her to a place without other people and gave her a deep kiss to apologize that she felt relieved. Br〉
And group talent show time.
Each class played the song they had prepared and danced to it.
It was literally a festival in itself, with families of students filling the area around the playground and everyone holding their cell phones and leaving videos.
When it was our class’ turn to perform the talent show, we all pulled out chairs one by one and sat down while we were getting ready.
After arranging the seat where Gong Young-bae should have been, as if he had never existed from the beginning, the song we had prepared started playing from the large speaker.
Bam! Pampa!
We moved our bodies in unison as the intense beat played, as if we had been practicing for several hours every weekend for a month.
The great trials brought me – only the scars made me – ♬
Sitting on a chair, she brought her legs together and spread them out, and turned her head from left to right.
It was a choreography that Yuri and other dancers could easily follow, and it was not noticeable that more than 20 people could not dance at the same time, and the picture was drawn to look quite realistic when viewed from a distance.
Because the song was quite old, it felt like the parents who came to the scene applauded more…
After completing the choreography to the 3-minute song, we greeted everyone and put away our chairs to enthusiastic applause.
Even though I failed to win the talent show, I really liked that moment as it was my first time participating in such a festival.
#####
“Ah, I lost because the teacher recommended a typical song. I could have won first place.”
“There’s nothing these guys can’t do! When I was a teacher, it was a song that was always included in talent shows, huh!?”
“Isn’t it because it was when you were a teacher?”
Time past 6 o’clock.
All the students’ families had now returned home, and all Jinsu-gyo members were now moving to the outdoor performance hall in a nearby citizen’s park.
This place, where celebrities come and hold cultural concerts from summer to fall, is always rented out during annual festivals, regardless of whether it is an academy in the area.
We each sat comfortably on the stone steps in front of the performance hall and the lawn behind them, and chatted while eating the packed lunch provided by the academy for dinner.
After the sun slowly sets, and the student council has collected all the empty lunch boxes, it is time for the individual/team talent show, the real highlight of the festival.
Since it was customary for the president of the church to preside over the session, Yuri, the president of the church, stood on a podium in the corner of the stage, held the microphone, and read the script that had been received in advance.
The vice president of the entire school, who stood next to Yuri, assisted Yuri and the two of them ran the event together, and a talent show was held for individuals and teams that passed the student council screening.
There were teams showing martial arts such as Taekwondo and Karate, dance performances by dance clubs, there were guys who came out as individuals and sang ballads, and there were also kids who came out as a team and made jokes like it was a comedy show.
The night got deeper and deeper as numerous teams took turns performing what they had prepared on stage.
It was already past 9pm.
Coincidentally, the stage that Yuri and I applied for was placed last in the order.
The last performance between me and Yuri was introduced by the vice president alone because Yuri was busy preparing for the stage.
“Now then, next is the final stage of our Jinsu Festival. The participants are Han Seong-jin, a member of the 3rd grade class, and… This is a duet song by our former church president, Lee Yu-ri, who has been hosting the show until now.”
“Wow!!”
What I do may not be known to most of the other kids, but many kids cheered that Yuri was coming out with me.
That’s because Yuri is everyone’s favorite person.
As I tuned up my guitar in the waiting room behind the stage and waited for my turn, I saw Yuri nervously gulping down water and held her hand.
“Are you nervous?”
“Of course I’m nervous. I’ve never done anything in front of so many people… Now, you can do well, right?”
“If you’re too nervous, don’t look over there, look at me. Sing it thinking it’s a song just for me to hear. It’s okay though.”
“Uh, yeah…”
To be honest, it wasn’t that I wasn’t nervous, but I was more nervous about finishing this performance and having to say something in front of everyone than the fact that I was singing while playing the guitar.
Because I had to face my past life in front of everyone, and there was a much greater possibility that they wouldn’t accept it.
Nevertheless, I made a decision.
Since my past life was such an opening scene, I decided to break through now even if I was criticized and criticized rather than being held back by the past while doing something in the future.
“The stage is ready! Now, let’s welcome Han Seong-jin and Yu-ri Lee to the stage! Please welcome them with applause!”
I stood up holding Yuri’s hand as I heard the vice president’s progress coming from beyond the waiting room.
“Then let’s go, Yuri.”
“… Yes.”
