Golden Slumber 📚 ATEEZ [▶]

6

At seven in the evening, Seonghwa remained comfortably seated on the teacher's desk, reading articles while wiping an apple. On the other side of his seat, Sakura, with a stack of yet-to-be-graded answer sheets, appeared to be preparing dinner to keep herself awake in this dull room.

"Ms. Miyawaki," Seonghwa called without turning. "Instant noodles aren't good for your health." He tossed the freshly wiped apple to Sakura, who caught it with surprise.

"Thank you," Sakura said awkwardly, contrasting with Seonghwa's light smile before he returned his attention to the articles on his desk. "Mr. Park, I think you need this."

Seonghwa caught a slightly worn-covered book with folded corners that Sakura carefully tossed. The title on the cover was boldly printed in orange, contrasting with the overall white cover.

Teacher's Guide

Seonghwa glanced through a few pages before getting up from his seat and heading to the lockers where students' folders were stored, organized alphabetically and by class. This made it easy for Seonghwa to find the five student identities that intrigued him. After retrieving the five folders, Seonghwa left the teacher's room, traversing several hallways before opening the classroom door where he taught.

Returning to his seat in the midst of his rather nauseating formal attire, Seonghwa opened the first folder. Wooyoung's photo appeared on the front page, accompanied by some paragraphs containing details about him.

"My name is Jung Wooyoung. But my real name is Salazar Gomez. I use my Korean name because Mom suggested it. My hometown is actually in Barcelona, Spain. Dad lives there, and then he married Mom while working in Asia."

Seonghwa smiled as he read Wooyoung's paragraphs. He put the folder back and moved on to the next one—Kang Yeosang.

"Since I was little, Dad said it didn't matter if he had a son or a daughter. He said he loved both. But when my little sister was born, Dad clearly showed favoritism. He always paid attention to Yeseo, my sister, and ignored me. I started to hate being a boy."

Seonghwa continued to read the stories of Yunho and Jongho, the twins.

"My name is Song Yunho. Since I was a child, I used to spend time with my twin brother or my older brother. But one day, Mom argued with Mingi hyung. I don't remember what for. I had never seen hyung so angry, yelling at Mom before messing up his own hair when a stranger came and took Mom away. Hyung said Mom would never come back again."

"Since then, I lost my home. But I found a more beautiful place. Playing games. Here, if I fail, I can start over from the beginning. Not as cruel as in real life. Even here, I can become number one in the world."

Seonghwa proceeded to the last folder, belonging to Jongho.

"My name is Song Jongho. Since birth, I've had problems with concentration. Plus, since Mom left, Mingi hyung has been getting angrier and drunk more often. It makes me even more unfocused. I thought my twin brother would have an easier-to-concentrate brain, but his focus is only on games. He almost forgets about me."

"Since then, I decided to work harder and learn more so that I could go to school and get a job in a distant place, no longer living with my annoying older brother. Ideally, with my twin brother too. That is, if he stops focusing on the game always in his hands."

With four folders, four identities, everything was complete. Seonghwa noted down the addresses on a scrap of paper. However, there was no background information on San that he could obtain from his identification. Only formal biodata without additional paragraphs, unlike the others. Seonghwa massaged his temples, taking a deep sigh. He organized all the documents before leaving the classroom, once again abandoning the silent room with its lights turned off.