This World is too Cruel to Men – Chapter 42

The graduation ceremony had ended, and I thought I could now just relax until entering high school.

However, unfortunately, the world wouldn’t leave me alone.

As the days grew colder, I had given up on my regular exercise routine and was burying myself under the blankets, munching on tangerines.

I was watching a movie on the computer when my mobile phone suddenly started buzzing.

At first, I thought it might be a disaster alert about the cold wave, so I ignored it… but that was just the beginning.

From then on, it kept buzzing, and the noise was so annoying that I couldn’t focus on the movie I was watching.

Curious about what was going on, I checked my phone and saw a bright red notification dangling.

‘What is it?’

And the source of that notification was none other than…

A newly created group chat.

‘No wonder…’

So that’s why my phone was making such a racket.

But what on earth was this group chat for?

I asked out of curiosity, but no one replied.

Instead, they were all too busy bickering among themselves.

As I was contemplating whether to just leave like someone else might, I finally found out the purpose of the group.

Camping, huh?

I already knew that the person who started this was the kind of guy who loved to stir up trouble, but this was way too sudden, wasn’t it?

Not to mention it was winter, not summer.

Going camping in this weather?

I seriously thought I might freeze to death.

So, I had no intention of going.

I was comfortably wrapped up in my warm blankets, so why would I want to crawl out and suffer?

And above all—

‘Do they even have the equipment? I bet not…’

If there’s no equipment?

Guess I would have to either buy or rent it.

But since we were all practically broke kids with zero financial resources, buying was practically impossible, so renting would be the only option. And even that would still cost quite a bit.

That’s why I was even more against going… but I figured I’d help that poor friend of mine, who was lost in the romantic idea of camping while ignoring its hardships, and maybe bring them back to reality.

Surprisingly enough, it seemed like they were quite well-prepared.

I heard that my aunt or someone like that operated a campsite, so maybe she gave permission for us to come and hang out as a graduation gift.

‘By the way…’

Looks like they were trying to make me the cook.

Well… if there’s a camping equipment and a warm indoor place, then it wouldn’t be impossible to go.

If I decided to go, cooking wouldn’t be too much of an issue.

Of course, I knew that cooking outdoors was completely different from cooking indoors… but there would be an indoor option, right?

If push came to shove, I could just run inside and whip something up there.

‘…Hmm? Thinking about it again, it doesn’t sound too bad.’

If it was just a casual trip with close friends before entering high school, then it would be fine to go.

Jinho probably had that thought in mind when he planned this.

Staying inside comfortably all day is nice and all, but we should occasionally go outside, bask in the sunlight, and breathe some fresh air.

Of course, I wasn’t about to leap at the idea right away.

It was obvious they intended to push me around like a servant—

‘Cooking’s one thing, but…’

So, they expect me to cook and then clean up too?

Honestly, that seemed a bit unreasonable.

I had said I’d consider it only if I got a free pass on the cleanup so that I could avoid taking the full brunt of responsibility.

Fortunately, that demand was smoothly accepted.

Although it seemed Jinho ended up being the one stuck with all the cleanup duties.

By the way, I asked if he could check with Yoonseo if she wanted to join.

What on earth was she doing that she wasn’t even checking the chat?

‘…Is she sleeping?’

Anyway, I agreed and then called Yoonseo.

How long had it been since then?

The ringback tone was flowing into my ear when suddenly it cut off, and a voice still buried in sleep came through the speaker.

– What is it, why…

“Did you fall asleep?”

– Uh…

“I thought you might have snuck off for a trip abroad without telling anyone.”

– What are you talking about…

“Well, it’s the afternoon, but it seemed like the person who picked up the phone was still in the middle of the night. You were practically in a different time zone.”

– …So what?

If it were any other day, I would have started teasing her, but her lethargic voice showed just how sleepy she really was.

– So what’s up… yawn

“Not much, but I was wondering if you’re interested in going camping?”

– …What? Going where?

“Camping, I said. Camping.”

*

Yoonseo had been half-asleep just a moment ago, but the word ‘camping’ that came through my phone was enough to wake her up.

So this is what it feels like to be completely alert.

Just a moment ago, her eyes would have drifted closed again, but hearing the suggestion of going camping jolted her back to full consciousness.

‘Camping?’

Suddenly?

From the perspective of someone who just woke up, such a spontaneous offer felt completely out of the blue, but it also made her heart race with excitement.

To be honest, she thought it felt like a lucky break.

‘Wait…’

Could it be…?

Are we going, just the two of us?

Knowing both of them were just middle school kids who hadn’t even entered high school yet made it practically impossible for that scenario, but still, that thought slipped in.

‘Just the two of us…’

Setting up a tent, with a campfire lit in front, perhaps sitting on a makeshift chair, sipping something warm while listening to the crackling of the fire…

It would be so romantic.

As her mind wandered into that cozy scenario, she could feel her face warming up.

– If you’re the only one going, it’s game over.

The sweet fantasy of the moment was trampled by the voice coming through the phone speaker.

Well, I knew it wouldn’t turn out that way, so the disappointment wasn’t too crushing.

I just licked my lips at the thought.

No, that’s not the important part—

“…Who else is going with us?”

Right, that was the crucial part.

– First, you know Jinho, right?

“Oh, the guy you always joke around with?”

– What are you saying… Anyway, it’s him, me, and Myungwook, so that makes three guys, and… let’s see…

At that moment, her ears perked up.

While she was quite confident in successfully blocking any advances from Dogun, she had no intention of letting her guard down, especially not when it came to an event like camping that could easily soften hearts.

– Looks like Sangah and Chaedam are the girls.

Fortunately, seeing the group going reassured her.

If it were any other girls, it might be a different story, but she could trust those two.

After all, both of them had their own crushes.

“So that makes three boys and three girls?”

– Exactly.

“So what about the expenses? Even if we borrow a few tents to sleep in, we’ll still need equipment to cook, right?”

– Oh, I heard Jinho has a family member running a campsite, so we can use the equipment there and even stay at the pension for free.

“Really? Then it shouldn’t cost much, huh?”

– Probably not…? Sounds like we just need to buy some food and we’re good.

“Then count me in.”

To be honest, she was already planning to go as soon as she heard the word camping.

After all, it was about camping.

It meant breaking away from her usual environment and living in an unfamiliar one, so it was the perfect opportunity to showcase a different side of herself.

And if she could use that opportunity well… maybe she could shake off her image as merely a friend and make Dogun notice her as more than that.

‘But for that…’

It seemed like there would be more preparations than she originally thought.

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Everyone agreed, and the money started coming together, and somehow, I ended up taking on the role of treasurer.

Honestly, it was a bit… annoying, but since this was how it turned out, I decided to stay positive about it.

’Yeah… it’s better for me to handle this rather than watch those kids blow their cash and make a mess of things…’

So even though it was a bit of a hassle, I figured it was easier for me to do it.

And thanks to my aunt’s generous decision to waive all costs for the equipment and pension, the budget only covered the transport to the campsite and the money for food for two days.

We took a bus to get to the campsite.

Our parents offered to drive us since they found out about our plans, but it just wouldn’t be as fun if we didn’t take the bus or train with our friends.

Anyway, the moment we got to the neighborhood where the campsite was located—

“Should we start shopping?”

With my hands now feeling pleasantly heavy, I headed directly to the market.