Free Web NovelChapter 11: Class Observation
Learning about Moonbyul’s school life from the teacher left me in a state of disbelief.
After a long silence, Taeyang finally spoke.
"...I see. Yes."
Feeling like a criminal, he hung his head low. He was too embarrassed to even lift his face. His mood hit rock bottom, plummeting into the abyss, overwhelmed by despair and self-loathing.
What kind of parent or guardian doesn’t know what their child is doing at school?
Watching Taeyang, the teacher smiled bitterly.
"Don’t be too hard on yourself. Most parents don’t even care about their children. You’re doing well enough."
"That’s a strangely comforting and disheartening consolation."
"And there’s something else I need to tell you."
The teacher flipped through Moonbyul’s school records and pulled out a stack of papers tucked between the pages, handing them to Taeyang.
"Moonbyul doesn’t show much interest in academics, but she’s an exception when it comes to art classes. She puts in a lot of effort and clearly has talent." The teacher continued, "Art is typically a difficult major to recommend due to family circumstances, but... I thought it would be better to inform you."
"Art, huh..."
The realization that he didn’t even know his sister’s favorite subject made Taeyang’s heart ache even more.
"She seems particularly interested in portraits."
Wondering how well she drew, Taeyang looked down at the papers with curious eyes.
"Uh..."
"She’s not drawing celebrities or anything, so I wondered who she was drawing so diligently..."
Seeing Taeyang’s bewildered expression, the teacher nodded in understanding.
All the papers were portraits. Though they depicted various poses and expressions, they all featured the same person.
"So, when you first entered the counseling room, I was quite surprised."
The drawings were so lifelike, they looked like photographs of Taeyang. He stared at them for a long time, his emotions a complex mix.
"Can I... take these?"
"Of course."
Taeyang carefully placed the papers in his bag to avoid crumpling them.
"Anyway, thank you for taking the time."
"No, thank you. I’ve learned a lot about her that I didn’t know."
They both got up from their chairs and bowed. Finally, Taeyang pulled a thick envelope from his pocket.
He had brought it just in case. If the teacher was just going through the motions, he wouldn’t have given it, but... ƒгeewёbnovel.com
"Please accept this."
The teacher waved his hands in shock.
"Absolutely not! Not in this day and age!"
"It’s not much, just a little something for your trouble."
Forcibly putting the envelope in the teacher’s pocket, Taeyang added,
"This isn’t a bribe or anything. I wouldn’t ask you to change her grades or steal test papers. I just..."
Taeyang hesitated for a moment.
"I just... want you to fill in the gaps at school that I can’t cover at home."
Refusing such a sincere offer would be rude. The teacher cleared his throat softly and accepted the envelope.
"I’ll use this to buy the class some pizza."
"That would be even better."
With that, they exchanged bows once more and parted ways.
*
Taeyang returned home and immediately headed to Moonbyul’s room without changing his clothes.
He opened the closet, searched under the bed, and pulled out every book from the shelves, flipping through each page. After thoroughly searching the room, he found a few outdated adult magazines, a large dildo, and...
"Damn it."
Several unopened packs of cigarettes. His knuckles turned white as he gripped the packs, crumpling them.
"And they’re the expensive ones too."
His head was pounding.
Studying? Not necessary, just graduate.
Fighting? Use weapons if you have to, just win. Kids grow up fighting.
Just stay healthy.
With that mindset, he had half-heartedly left Moonbyul to her own devices. And now, years of that approach came crashing down. He never thought she wouldn’t even try to stay healthy.
"Ugh..."
Honestly, cigarettes? Alcohol?
He thought she could smoke or drink if she wanted to. Youthful impulsiveness, peer pressure—there could be many reasons, but she could always correct her mistakes.
His legs gave out, and Taeyang slumped onto the bed.
"This is too much."
The reason he was so upset wasn’t the cigarettes, but the fact that Moonbyul had lied to him.
A few times, he had noticed the smell of cigarettes on her clothes while doing laundry and asked her about it.
He wondered if she was smoking, but she always insisted it was from her friends who smoked, or from the PC Bang or the billiard hall.
Of course, as a non-smoker, Taeyang had his suspicions, but he trusted Moonbyul and didn’t press the issue further.
And now, the sister he had trusted implicitly had deceived him. The wave of betrayal was indescribable.
He sat on the bed for hours until the familiar melody of the front door clicking open broke the silence.
"I’m home... What the? What are you doing in my room! Dae...?"
Seeing her door open, she rushed in and fell silent at the sight of the cigarettes scattered on the floor.
"Hey."
Taeyang still had his head down, avoiding her gaze. He raised his arm and pointed to the side.
"In the boiler room, there’s Mother’s old golf bag."
His voice was colder than ever.
"Bring the 3-iron."
*
Flustered, Moonbyul stammered as she called out to him.
"O, Oppa?"
"What."
"I mean, can we talk about this first!"
But Taeyang had no intention of talking. To be precise, there was something he needed to address before they could talk.
"Do my words mean nothing to you now?"
Taeyang sighed softly and stood up from the bed. He looked at Moonbyul and said,
"Of course, if you don’t want to be hit, I won’t. You’re old enough to make that decision."
Moonbyul’s face brightened for a moment, but darkened again at his next words.
"But... I’ll be truly disappointed in you. And I’ll tell our parents everything."
It was a clear threat. Either take a few hits and keep it between them, or make a bigger deal out of it.
Moonbyul closed her eyes tightly and replied in a low voice,
"O, okay... I’ll get the 3-iron..."
She wasn’t stupid enough to let immediate pain cloud her judgment about the future.
Still, she couldn’t believe he would actually hit her. Maybe just a couple of times, or just scare her—she clung to a faint hope as she hesitantly went to the storage room.
Of course, Taeyang intended to make sure she never lied again. Moonbyul returned quickly, holding the golf club.
"Here..."
"Hmm."
The 3-iron, dusty from disuse, felt heavy in his grip. Taeyang swung it through the air a few times.
Whoosh- Whoosh-
The sound of the club cutting through the air was menacing. He tapped the floor with the club.
"I won’t hit you too much. Just 10 times. Lie down on your stomach."
"....I’m sorry."
Too late for that, Taeyang thought as he gripped the club with both hands.
"You should have said that when you first came into the room. Or when you lied to me."
"Ah..."
Truthfully, Moonbyul hadn’t felt much danger until now. She thought Taeyang wouldn’t get too angry over just cigarettes.
But Taeyang was furious because she had broken his trust. He always told her,
Since our parents are overseas, we need to rely on and trust each other. Secrets are fine, but never lie. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com
And now, the weight of those words felt crushing.
Realizing there was no use in excuses, Moonbyul lay down on her stomach.
"I’m sorry for lying... truly."
Taeyang’s heart softened for a moment, but he gritted his teeth and swung the club.
Thwack! Thud! Smack! Whack!
"Ugh! Ow! Ah!"
Whack! Thud! Smack!
The punishment didn’t seem like it would end at just 10 hits.
Moonbyul barely made a sound, maintaining her position throughout.
Though her buttocks were bruised, her pride remained intact.
Clang!
Taeyang threw the club to the floor.
"Go throw away the cigarettes."
"...Okay."
She couldn’t even stand, let alone walk, but Moonbyul took a few deep breaths, stood up, gathered the cigarettes, and left the room.
Though she limped, she managed to walk.
*
After disposing of the cigarettes, their conversation was brief.
Don’t smoke anymore.- Okay.
Don’t lie anymore.- Okay.
Taeyang gave her a few more pieces of advice, which Moonbyul accepted quietly.
Then she locked herself in her room until nightfall. This time, Taeyang didn’t call her for dinner.
Knock, knock, knock-
Late at night, Taeyang stood outside Moonbyul’s door and knocked softly. He held a first aid kit in his hand.
"Moonbyul."
Knock, knock, knock-
He called her again softly, but there was no response from inside. The doorknob turned easily; it wasn’t locked.
"Are you asleep? I’m coming in."
Creak-
Taeyang opened the door and stepped inside.
