Jeontugi High School
Confrontation
The next day was the last of the semester. TK brought some food and drinks to my room after classes and before the fights started that evening. Parties weren't really allowed here, but he wanted to celebrate the end of the semester. It was kind of sad, because most of these kids will not stay in contact, parting ways with one another.
That's how it went in real life. Most people don't stay in contact. I looked at Jimin, thinking that even our relationship might fall apart after today if neither of us made an effort to keep it going. I was determined to not let it die out, since I liked him very much.
When our fun was over and the fights began that evening, I studied all the kids that were on the schedule. There were several I didn't know very well, but also my friends and I were paired against one another. That kind of sucked.
I sighed as I looked at the list:TK vs Zelo, Baekho vs Jimin, myself vs Hyunsu and Ren vs Minhyun. I had never fought Hyunsu, and it's was a little scary. I was dreading that fight, even though we got along alright. I also noticed that they had paired Maru against one of the seniors, which was completely fucked up. What the hell? Was the superintendent trying to piss me off? Sure, I didn't know the kid very well, but he didn't deserve to be against someone older and stronger than him. He was sure to lose this fight.
The fights began, and went as I had expected them to. Zelo beat TK, Baekho defeated Jimin and I had a damn good fight on my hands with Hyunsu. The kid beat me, in the end, which surprised me. He was very good and quick, as I have said before. That was the first fair loss on my record, but I wasn't really effected by it. Nothing mattered here anymore except finding out what was going on here.
I became nervous when Maru's turn came around. He took hit after hit, and his eyes were just dead. There wasn't even any fear or anger. He was shut down. That was the fault of the kids that had come out of hell to fight us. I know they were just here to intimidate us. It was making me feel sick again.
I didn't watch the end of the fight. I knew how it was going to end, and it wasn't going to be pretty. Shaking my head, I walked away...straight to the principal’s office. He glared at me when I barged in, sighing. “What now, Jonghyun.”
I glared back at him. “My name’s Changjo. I have something to ask you. Where the hell did those kids come from yesterday? You know...the fighters that aren't from Jeontugi High. Who are they? Why were we set against them? Do you…does this school even care what happens to the kids here? They get good grades, but none of that matters if they don’t win fights. What the hell? These are kids we’re talking about here! They won’t have a choice in anything in their lives. Why?”
The principal looked shocked. He hadn’t been expecting my outburst, which was perfect. “Jong…Changjo, I agree that the school is a bit messed up in making kids fight, but they need to learn respect. It's also a school that has made it's name for being a fighting school.”
I smiled at him. “Respect! This doesn’t have anything to do with respect, does it? It has to do with control. Who’s holding the reins? What’s happening here? These kids are not learning RESPECT. They are only learning how to beat the next guy or go home a fucking loser! You don't know what it's like to go home a failure because you couldn't win a damned fight. That's not leadership, you dick. That teaches kids that they aren't worth their parents' time unless they win fights. They feel invisible and irrelevent.” I was getting myself worked up and fighting tears. I hate being emotional, but that kid's face killed me.
The principal shook his head, now calmed down and seeing me in a different light. “Changjo, I agree that the system is screwed up, but I don’t know WHY it’s the way it is. Whatever it is, don’t dig too deeply. This is how it’s going to be. I’m sorry. I have seen that you guys have been making a difference in the way this school is and I appreciate it.”
I nodded, still mad. I believed about half of what he was saying. The rest was a load of shit. “Please don’t say anything to the school about this conversation. I don’t want any trouble.”
The principal smiled back at me. “I won’t mention you and your outburst, Jonghyun.”
I felt uneasy all of the sudden. “Thank you, sir,” I replied sarcastically. "I guess there's nothing else I can say here." With that, I walked out and almost ran into the librarian.
“Oh! I’m sorry, sir,” I began to walk past him, and he handed me a book. “Keep it, along with the other one you checked out. They are mine, not the library’s.” He smiled at me, and I noticed the scar on his cheek for he first time. I wondered how he got that one. I watched as he walked into another office down the hall from the principal’s. I glanced around before pressing my ear to the door. I could hear the voice of another man, as well as the librarian’s. “He’s smart. He knows what’s really going on here…and he’s probably listening to us.”
I stayed as quiet as possible, wondering what this was all about. Hearing another voice, I listened carefully. “Kyuhyun, the kid’s too smart. He needs to mind his own business, or he’s going to get hurt.”
“I know, but he’ll be gone soon. I believe he’s going into law enforcement eventually,” the librarian, Kyuhyun, sighed. “It’s a good job for him. He’ll be in his element.”
“Yeah. What was his…friend’s…last name? Park? I think I’ll have a talk with his dad. We may be able to do something about this issue. This Changjo kid seems to think this control problem goes beyond Jeontugi High School, and I have reason to believe he may be right. He just needs to keep his nose out of it, for now." The guy said all of this while he knew damn well that I was listening.
I heard the librarian sigh. "He could be of use to us, if he'll cooperate. We could use his help. Maybe we'll talk to him when he's out of school this next Spring. He's right about this needing to end."
"Yeah, maybe," Kyuhyun sighed again I heard them begin talking about something else, probably to cover their REAL conversation. That’s when I glanced at the book he had given me. It was a book called ‘Back Then…An Investigation into How it SHOULD Be.’ What did he know? I was about the graduate, since the semester was coming close to an end. I would be sure to apply at Ricky’s job. I need to investigate. That will be the perfect place to begin in finding out what was going on, if there is anything to find out. I will move on from there and find out who's in control of this stupid system and what the reason behind it is.
*******************
Graduation went well, and I was glad I wouldn’t ever need to go back to Jeontugi High. I would now be free to do my REAL work. I caught the principal’s eye as I was going past. He would be glad to see me leave, since I was SUCH a favorite student to deal with. I’m glad I could make an impression on him, and I think we all did our part in changing how things would be from now on at Jeontugi High School. I think we have scared them a little. I know I will be leaving some of my friends to fight their way through this hell next year, but I seriously doubt it will be as bad as it is now. We taught them that we aren’t going to take their shit and abuse any longer.
Walking away with my friends, I noticed Kyuhyun, the librarian (or whatever he is) watching us. I smiled at him, mouthing “thank you.” He may be someone who can keep any eye on the rest of my friends, and I will ask them to tell me if there’s anything untrustworthy about him. He seems good enough, but you never know. Now I am gearing up for my investigation at the Power Plant, as well as the university. Wish us luck!
That's how it went in real life. Most people don't stay in contact. I looked at Jimin, thinking that even our relationship might fall apart after today if neither of us made an effort to keep it going. I was determined to not let it die out, since I liked him very much.
When our fun was over and the fights began that evening, I studied all the kids that were on the schedule. There were several I didn't know very well, but also my friends and I were paired against one another. That kind of sucked.
I sighed as I looked at the list:TK vs Zelo, Baekho vs Jimin, myself vs Hyunsu and Ren vs Minhyun. I had never fought Hyunsu, and it's was a little scary. I was dreading that fight, even though we got along alright. I also noticed that they had paired Maru against one of the seniors, which was completely fucked up. What the hell? Was the superintendent trying to piss me off? Sure, I didn't know the kid very well, but he didn't deserve to be against someone older and stronger than him. He was sure to lose this fight.
The fights began, and went as I had expected them to. Zelo beat TK, Baekho defeated Jimin and I had a damn good fight on my hands with Hyunsu. The kid beat me, in the end, which surprised me. He was very good and quick, as I have said before. That was the first fair loss on my record, but I wasn't really effected by it. Nothing mattered here anymore except finding out what was going on here.
I became nervous when Maru's turn came around. He took hit after hit, and his eyes were just dead. There wasn't even any fear or anger. He was shut down. That was the fault of the kids that had come out of hell to fight us. I know they were just here to intimidate us. It was making me feel sick again.
I didn't watch the end of the fight. I knew how it was going to end, and it wasn't going to be pretty. Shaking my head, I walked away...straight to the principal’s office. He glared at me when I barged in, sighing. “What now, Jonghyun.”
I glared back at him. “My name’s Changjo. I have something to ask you. Where the hell did those kids come from yesterday? You know...the fighters that aren't from Jeontugi High. Who are they? Why were we set against them? Do you…does this school even care what happens to the kids here? They get good grades, but none of that matters if they don’t win fights. What the hell? These are kids we’re talking about here! They won’t have a choice in anything in their lives. Why?”
The principal looked shocked. He hadn’t been expecting my outburst, which was perfect. “Jong…Changjo, I agree that the school is a bit messed up in making kids fight, but they need to learn respect. It's also a school that has made it's name for being a fighting school.”
I smiled at him. “Respect! This doesn’t have anything to do with respect, does it? It has to do with control. Who’s holding the reins? What’s happening here? These kids are not learning RESPECT. They are only learning how to beat the next guy or go home a fucking loser! You don't know what it's like to go home a failure because you couldn't win a damned fight. That's not leadership, you dick. That teaches kids that they aren't worth their parents' time unless they win fights. They feel invisible and irrelevent.” I was getting myself worked up and fighting tears. I hate being emotional, but that kid's face killed me.
The principal shook his head, now calmed down and seeing me in a different light. “Changjo, I agree that the system is screwed up, but I don’t know WHY it’s the way it is. Whatever it is, don’t dig too deeply. This is how it’s going to be. I’m sorry. I have seen that you guys have been making a difference in the way this school is and I appreciate it.”
I nodded, still mad. I believed about half of what he was saying. The rest was a load of shit. “Please don’t say anything to the school about this conversation. I don’t want any trouble.”
The principal smiled back at me. “I won’t mention you and your outburst, Jonghyun.”
I felt uneasy all of the sudden. “Thank you, sir,” I replied sarcastically. "I guess there's nothing else I can say here." With that, I walked out and almost ran into the librarian.
“Oh! I’m sorry, sir,” I began to walk past him, and he handed me a book. “Keep it, along with the other one you checked out. They are mine, not the library’s.” He smiled at me, and I noticed the scar on his cheek for he first time. I wondered how he got that one. I watched as he walked into another office down the hall from the principal’s. I glanced around before pressing my ear to the door. I could hear the voice of another man, as well as the librarian’s. “He’s smart. He knows what’s really going on here…and he’s probably listening to us.”
I stayed as quiet as possible, wondering what this was all about. Hearing another voice, I listened carefully. “Kyuhyun, the kid’s too smart. He needs to mind his own business, or he’s going to get hurt.”
“I know, but he’ll be gone soon. I believe he’s going into law enforcement eventually,” the librarian, Kyuhyun, sighed. “It’s a good job for him. He’ll be in his element.”
“Yeah. What was his…friend’s…last name? Park? I think I’ll have a talk with his dad. We may be able to do something about this issue. This Changjo kid seems to think this control problem goes beyond Jeontugi High School, and I have reason to believe he may be right. He just needs to keep his nose out of it, for now." The guy said all of this while he knew damn well that I was listening.
I heard the librarian sigh. "He could be of use to us, if he'll cooperate. We could use his help. Maybe we'll talk to him when he's out of school this next Spring. He's right about this needing to end."
"Yeah, maybe," Kyuhyun sighed again I heard them begin talking about something else, probably to cover their REAL conversation. That’s when I glanced at the book he had given me. It was a book called ‘Back Then…An Investigation into How it SHOULD Be.’ What did he know? I was about the graduate, since the semester was coming close to an end. I would be sure to apply at Ricky’s job. I need to investigate. That will be the perfect place to begin in finding out what was going on, if there is anything to find out. I will move on from there and find out who's in control of this stupid system and what the reason behind it is.
*******************
Graduation went well, and I was glad I wouldn’t ever need to go back to Jeontugi High. I would now be free to do my REAL work. I caught the principal’s eye as I was going past. He would be glad to see me leave, since I was SUCH a favorite student to deal with. I’m glad I could make an impression on him, and I think we all did our part in changing how things would be from now on at Jeontugi High School. I think we have scared them a little. I know I will be leaving some of my friends to fight their way through this hell next year, but I seriously doubt it will be as bad as it is now. We taught them that we aren’t going to take their shit and abuse any longer.
Walking away with my friends, I noticed Kyuhyun, the librarian (or whatever he is) watching us. I smiled at him, mouthing “thank you.” He may be someone who can keep any eye on the rest of my friends, and I will ask them to tell me if there’s anything untrustworthy about him. He seems good enough, but you never know. Now I am gearing up for my investigation at the Power Plant, as well as the university. Wish us luck!
