Jeontugi High School
The Librarian
That afternoon, I was one of the fighters for the matches. I noticed the principal watching me. He was probably still pissed at me for my conversation with him earlier. I’m also sure he has noticed that we aren’t doing things the way they are supposed to be done. We have been staying out late to talk, ‘accidentally’ forgetting to wear our uniforms, and losing fights we should have won. It seems to be making a statement, which is what we need. This system can’t win. They WON’T win.
There wasn’t a roster for the fight, which made me nervous. What the hell? Oh, well. I sat next to my friends and waited for the fight to be called and find out who I was fighting. One of the kids currently in the ring was getting his ass kicked, which made me feel sick. It was the sixteen year old, Jungkook. He was fighting a kid I had never seen before. Where did the opponent come from? This was strange.
I noticed the fights were going backward in age, starting with the young students. It was making me feel sick, because they shouldn’t be gaining fucking points for beating the shit out of each other. Glancing at the older group, I noticed something that made my blood run cold. Han Sanhyuk was getting ready for fight, and with how good he was, he would be hard for people to beat. If he won every fight, I would be against him. If you remember correctly, he is the guy I fought last night at the ice skating rink. I really don’t want to go against him. Hyuk was good.
I pulled my friends over to me. “Okay, guy. Something’s different with the fights today. We need to be careful. They might be harder than usual on us. Just do your best, but don’t let the guys run you into the ground.”
Zelo glanced at the others, then nodded. “Yeah, I’ll be careful, but do my best. They seem unpredictable this time. It’s kind of creepy.”
I nodded, sighing. “It is. We’ll just deal with it and see what happens.” The next fight started, with Zelo stepping into the ring against Hyunsu. Their fight went well, with Hyunsu winning, as I had been expecting. He was better. He didn’t beat the crap out of Zelo, since we were still trying to throw them off. It also wouldn’t be the right thing to do to a friend.
Dongho, who went by Baekho, kicked Jimin’s ass, which wasn’t a surprise to me. It did suck to watch him get beat, but that was the order of things. Baekho beat Jimin pretty badly, but they shook after the fight. That wasn’t something that normally happened here. Typically, we would just fight and go on.
My turn came and I was against one of the unfamiliar kids. He was really trying his hardest to kick my ass. It was tough to beat him and I finally had to knock him out. I really didn’t want to.
I began to get nervous as the fights came to the end of the list. There was a good chance I would be against Hyuk. He was in the ring now, fighting one of the kids I didn’t know. I have no idea where they came from. He won, which meant he was going on to the next round.
Round two was only a few kids. I saw the first two go in and noticed that it was Hyunsu against one of the other kids who I had no fucking clue what their names were. Hyunsu had a tough fight on his hands, and the kid was obviously bigger and older than him. However, he was faster and lower to the ground, so he won. I sighed in relief when he was named a winner. That meant his fights were over.
Now it was Baekho’s turn, against another of the mysterious guys. He kicked his ass, which was to our advantage. He was named a winner, also. His fight was also over.
I cringed when I noticed that Hyuk was the last one standing that hadn’t fought in this round. He was obviously my opponent. Shit.
I stepped into the ring, circling him to keep my eyes on him. Hyuk kicked me in the side, throwing me to the ground harshly. I bounced back up before he could beat me up. Punching him in the face, I glared at him. He should know that I was still pissed at him for last night. That had been completely uncalled for. Hyuk stepped in and slammed his fist into my chin. It had been a clean uppercut, so I fell to the ground. He was on me in a second, punching me. Every hit felt like a hammer, and I was starting to wonder if I should just let him have this one and call it a loss. That was when I snapped out of it, pinching the pressure point in his thigh. Hyuk tensed up, his entire body seizing.
Taking the advantage, I punched him in the face. Hyuk fell back, still tensed up. I pushed him to the ground, looking at the referee so he could call it. He never did, as he had done for all the fights before. I guess I had to knock him out. That was stupid, so I stood up. Hyuk didn’t move, still in pain from being pinched. I had hit the right spot with that pressure point. Looking at the referee again, I cocked an eyebrow. The referee finally called the fight in my favor.
Shaking my head, I reached down to help Hyuk up. He took my hand, only to try to flip me over. I simply let go, staring at him. While he looked angry, he also looked dismayed about losing. I knew that look. I had seen it several times, and knew it was because his parents were going to bitch him out for losing. That was ridiculous.
When I was walking back to my seat, I noticed the tall librarian watching us. He had never come to a fight, so I was surprised to see him there. I smiled at him, but he didn’t see me. He was watching the group of unfamiliar kids. I decided I needed to keep an eye on him, as well as them. He seemed untrustworthy, with his harsh look. It was hard to explain.
When we were leaving, I leaned over to Jimin. “I think I’m going to take a detour to the library. I need to check something out. I’ll see you guys later.”
Jimin smiled at me, looking confused. “Uh…okay. Have fun in the library. You could just look things up online, you know.”
I shook my head. “Not this. It’s for investigative purposes.”
“I see,” he smiled at me. “I’ll see you later, then. Bye.”
“Bye,” I noticed a note on my backpack as I was about to pick it up. I was surprised that it was from Hyuk. I read it, expecting a rant about our fight. Instead, it was short.
‘I’m sorry for the teasing. It won’t happen again.’ –Hyuk
I smiled, looking around to speak with him. Shaking my head, I noticed that he was already gone. Walking to the library, I began looking for reference books on the school. I cursed under my breath when I noticed there weren’t any. Figures. There WAS a book on the justice system, so I grabbed it and a dictionary, walking over to the counter. The librarian was back, reading a solid black book I had never seen before. It didn’t have the library name printed on it, so it was his book. I smiled at him, placing the books on the counter. The librarian smiled at me when he picked up the book about the justice system.
“So, you’re interested in being a cop or something? This is a pretty heavy book for a teenager,” he laughed. “I don’t think I have ever seen this one checked out, but it’s a good book.”
I grinned. “That’s good to know. And yeah, I am interested in law enforcement. It’s a good thing to know the laws ahead of time, including the old system and laws.”
He gave me a strange look. “Yeah, the old laws, before everything changed. It was quite different. I was just a little kid, myself.”
I cocked my head. “So, this system really has only been around for 23 years. That’s interesting. Do you know why it changed? Why so much control?”
His face changed in a instant. “That’s not supposed to be discussed. All that’s known is that they have been around for a while and this is how things are now. It’s supposedly more strict now.” He turned to his computer, checking out my books. “Just be careful about snooping around. It could be dangerous, okay?”
I glanced at him, considering his words. “Thanks. I will.” When I walked out, I noticed that my receipt for the books didn’t show the justice system book. The alarm at the door also didn’t go off when I walked out. I glanced back at the librarian, and noticed he was on the phone. What was his deal? Did he know something that could help us or was he someone to worry about?
There wasn’t a roster for the fight, which made me nervous. What the hell? Oh, well. I sat next to my friends and waited for the fight to be called and find out who I was fighting. One of the kids currently in the ring was getting his ass kicked, which made me feel sick. It was the sixteen year old, Jungkook. He was fighting a kid I had never seen before. Where did the opponent come from? This was strange.
I noticed the fights were going backward in age, starting with the young students. It was making me feel sick, because they shouldn’t be gaining fucking points for beating the shit out of each other. Glancing at the older group, I noticed something that made my blood run cold. Han Sanhyuk was getting ready for fight, and with how good he was, he would be hard for people to beat. If he won every fight, I would be against him. If you remember correctly, he is the guy I fought last night at the ice skating rink. I really don’t want to go against him. Hyuk was good.
I pulled my friends over to me. “Okay, guy. Something’s different with the fights today. We need to be careful. They might be harder than usual on us. Just do your best, but don’t let the guys run you into the ground.”
Zelo glanced at the others, then nodded. “Yeah, I’ll be careful, but do my best. They seem unpredictable this time. It’s kind of creepy.”
I nodded, sighing. “It is. We’ll just deal with it and see what happens.” The next fight started, with Zelo stepping into the ring against Hyunsu. Their fight went well, with Hyunsu winning, as I had been expecting. He was better. He didn’t beat the crap out of Zelo, since we were still trying to throw them off. It also wouldn’t be the right thing to do to a friend.
Dongho, who went by Baekho, kicked Jimin’s ass, which wasn’t a surprise to me. It did suck to watch him get beat, but that was the order of things. Baekho beat Jimin pretty badly, but they shook after the fight. That wasn’t something that normally happened here. Typically, we would just fight and go on.
My turn came and I was against one of the unfamiliar kids. He was really trying his hardest to kick my ass. It was tough to beat him and I finally had to knock him out. I really didn’t want to.
I began to get nervous as the fights came to the end of the list. There was a good chance I would be against Hyuk. He was in the ring now, fighting one of the kids I didn’t know. I have no idea where they came from. He won, which meant he was going on to the next round.
Round two was only a few kids. I saw the first two go in and noticed that it was Hyunsu against one of the other kids who I had no fucking clue what their names were. Hyunsu had a tough fight on his hands, and the kid was obviously bigger and older than him. However, he was faster and lower to the ground, so he won. I sighed in relief when he was named a winner. That meant his fights were over.
Now it was Baekho’s turn, against another of the mysterious guys. He kicked his ass, which was to our advantage. He was named a winner, also. His fight was also over.
I cringed when I noticed that Hyuk was the last one standing that hadn’t fought in this round. He was obviously my opponent. Shit.
I stepped into the ring, circling him to keep my eyes on him. Hyuk kicked me in the side, throwing me to the ground harshly. I bounced back up before he could beat me up. Punching him in the face, I glared at him. He should know that I was still pissed at him for last night. That had been completely uncalled for. Hyuk stepped in and slammed his fist into my chin. It had been a clean uppercut, so I fell to the ground. He was on me in a second, punching me. Every hit felt like a hammer, and I was starting to wonder if I should just let him have this one and call it a loss. That was when I snapped out of it, pinching the pressure point in his thigh. Hyuk tensed up, his entire body seizing.
Taking the advantage, I punched him in the face. Hyuk fell back, still tensed up. I pushed him to the ground, looking at the referee so he could call it. He never did, as he had done for all the fights before. I guess I had to knock him out. That was stupid, so I stood up. Hyuk didn’t move, still in pain from being pinched. I had hit the right spot with that pressure point. Looking at the referee again, I cocked an eyebrow. The referee finally called the fight in my favor.
Shaking my head, I reached down to help Hyuk up. He took my hand, only to try to flip me over. I simply let go, staring at him. While he looked angry, he also looked dismayed about losing. I knew that look. I had seen it several times, and knew it was because his parents were going to bitch him out for losing. That was ridiculous.
When I was walking back to my seat, I noticed the tall librarian watching us. He had never come to a fight, so I was surprised to see him there. I smiled at him, but he didn’t see me. He was watching the group of unfamiliar kids. I decided I needed to keep an eye on him, as well as them. He seemed untrustworthy, with his harsh look. It was hard to explain.
When we were leaving, I leaned over to Jimin. “I think I’m going to take a detour to the library. I need to check something out. I’ll see you guys later.”
Jimin smiled at me, looking confused. “Uh…okay. Have fun in the library. You could just look things up online, you know.”
I shook my head. “Not this. It’s for investigative purposes.”
“I see,” he smiled at me. “I’ll see you later, then. Bye.”
“Bye,” I noticed a note on my backpack as I was about to pick it up. I was surprised that it was from Hyuk. I read it, expecting a rant about our fight. Instead, it was short.
‘I’m sorry for the teasing. It won’t happen again.’ –Hyuk
I smiled, looking around to speak with him. Shaking my head, I noticed that he was already gone. Walking to the library, I began looking for reference books on the school. I cursed under my breath when I noticed there weren’t any. Figures. There WAS a book on the justice system, so I grabbed it and a dictionary, walking over to the counter. The librarian was back, reading a solid black book I had never seen before. It didn’t have the library name printed on it, so it was his book. I smiled at him, placing the books on the counter. The librarian smiled at me when he picked up the book about the justice system.
“So, you’re interested in being a cop or something? This is a pretty heavy book for a teenager,” he laughed. “I don’t think I have ever seen this one checked out, but it’s a good book.”
I grinned. “That’s good to know. And yeah, I am interested in law enforcement. It’s a good thing to know the laws ahead of time, including the old system and laws.”
He gave me a strange look. “Yeah, the old laws, before everything changed. It was quite different. I was just a little kid, myself.”
I cocked my head. “So, this system really has only been around for 23 years. That’s interesting. Do you know why it changed? Why so much control?”
His face changed in a instant. “That’s not supposed to be discussed. All that’s known is that they have been around for a while and this is how things are now. It’s supposedly more strict now.” He turned to his computer, checking out my books. “Just be careful about snooping around. It could be dangerous, okay?”
I glanced at him, considering his words. “Thanks. I will.” When I walked out, I noticed that my receipt for the books didn’t show the justice system book. The alarm at the door also didn’t go off when I walked out. I glanced back at the librarian, and noticed he was on the phone. What was his deal? Did he know something that could help us or was he someone to worry about?
