Reality Quest: Questism

So, this morning I finished my final Medicine interview for uni. This time around March... I'll know if I've gotten an offer or not. I hope I do. Wish me luck guys.

Enjoy the chap!

I was too exhausted for a victory dance.

Every single person who was gonna have it out for me… was gonna be stronger than that?

The thought made my legs weak. My arms felt like lead. I had half a mind to just faint right there, let the floor swallow me up, and say screw this Rep thing.

But the rewards, the sweet sweet rewards… sweet sweet dopamine… 

Chain Quest 5 complete!

The familiar warmth rushed through my body. Huh. That was only quest 5? What was quest number 6?

The question left my mind just as suddenly as it appeared, with Navy Suit adjusting the mic once more before speaking into.

Navy Suit adjusted his tie, clearing his throat as he spoke into the mic. His voice carried through the dusty, dimly lit room.

"I suppose that matter has been settled."

He let the silence hang for a moment before continuing.

"Boramae's new Representative is now Dowan Ha."

Murmurs immediately rippled through the room.

"Woah… what was that combo at the end?"

"Was he just pretending to be knocked down?"

"So cruel…"

"…so cool."

The sound of the gavel slamming down echoed through the room, cutting through the whispers.

Silence.

The weight of what just happened finally hit me. I won. I was officially the Rep of Boramae. And now I had the authority to actually find out everything to do with my father… Dowan's father. Ha Jinoh. 

I'd already written down everything I'd known previously, he was dead. A car accident to save a pedestrian he would've otherwise ran over. I could remember the tears, I could remember my mother bawling over his corpse. 

Soon, Jeong Seokyoung would obtain a video showing the brakes of the car being tampered with, by someone from the Sunshine foundation no less. 

Someone from the very organisation he'd created to reform the youths in this district had somehow wanted to or been convinced to kill him.

My fists clenched.

I needed that video. I needed to find out where he got it. 

A low groan from my side made me turn.

Sehun was still on the floor, hands braced against the ground, head hanging low. He was breathing heavy, shoulders rising and falling like a man who just ran a marathon through hell. 

All those punches to the head… and he gained consciousness after less than a minute.

What a monster.

Blood lined his lips, his eye was already swelling shut, and his jaw was probably sore as hell. He tilted his head up just enough to meet my gaze, eyes burning with something unreadable.

"You got me good," he muttered, voice hoarse. "Thought you were just another dumbass trying for money."

He spat blood to the side, then wiped his mouth with his sleeve before pushing himself up onto his knees.

"But… don't get it twisted."

His fingers cracked. His muscles tensed.

"That wasn't even my best."

A chill ran down my spine. He wasn't lying. He'd been tricked, distracted. 

He was holding back.

A quest window popped up in front of me and I read it calmly. Yeah, that's what I thought the final quest would be.

I could see Siyeon to the side, an expression as close to shock as she could make it scattered across her face, deciding whether to intervene or not.

"Sehun. You're strong."

He turned, looking confused, probably wondering why I'd said that out of the blue. "Yeah, I kno-"

"Join my crew."

He paused.

"Join your- what?" He scrunched his eyebrows up. "Listen up fucker, I was in Boramae long before you came here, so if anything, you joined my crew."

"I didn't stutter," I said, rolling my shoulders. "Join me."

Sehun clicked his tongue. Annoyed.

"You think just 'cause you won today, you can start running your mouth?" He leaned in, eyes narrowing. "Do you even know how things work around here?"

"I know that I just beat the strongest guy in Boramae," I shot back. "So yeah, I think that means I get a say in how things work."

A few voices in the crowd murmured in agreement.

Sehun's jaw tightened.

Siyeon finally sighed, rubbing her temple. "If you two wanna compare dick sizes, can you at least do it outside?"

I ignored her, eyes locked on Sehun's.

His right eye twitched. "You want me to be your underling?"

"No." I shook my head. "I want you to be my right hand."

Silence.

For the first time since I met him, Sehun actually hesitated. His hands curled into fists.

I could see the conflict in his face. The instinct to say "fuck you" and keep things how they always were…

And the creeping realization that I wasn't wrong.

"…Tch." He sighed, running a hand through his hair before looking back at me. He turned back around and left through the elevator, dinging as the doors closed shut.

I cursed. What the fuck was that supposed to mean. Was that a yes? Was that a no?

But before I could carry on mentally cursing the Granite fucker, Navy Suit cleared his throat again.

"If you are quite done, we still have business to attend to."

Right. General Assembly meeting. I'd forgotten that's where I was.

Siyeon grabbed me by my sleeve and pulled me down to the nearest chair, glaring at me as Navy Suit started droning on again.

***

The meeting ended. As the crowd poured out of the building, having all exited through the stairs in the usual way that delinquents do, cursing and whatnot… Siyeon dragged me by my ear to the side of the road and then crossed her arms, glaring at me.

"What the fuck was that?"

"Me beating Sehun? Complete and utter coolness, what do you mean?"

One look at her expression and I knew she wasn't in the mood for jokes. 

"You knew I was gonna nominate you as representative. I can see that now, there's no other way you'd have known about that rule. You planned this. What was that about a crew? What… what are you doing here?"

She was completely lost, I could tell. I looked into her eyes and she looked almost… almost like a child, looking for guidance. I remembered why she was here. I remembered why she didn't want Sehun as a rep.

The old representative. Everything she was doing was because of him. Everything he'd asked her to do.

"Siyeon, what do you actually know about the Bully Council?"

She froze, completely caught off guard. 

I continued, making sure to phrase things so that not too much was said. "There's…. Something that happened to my father. And it has to do with this. I'm here to find out. There's more to this than just profit models and gangs. You have to know that."

"Of course I know that but what's that got to do with you fath-"

"He died."

She shut up.

"He was killed… by someone. And somehow everything to do with it is… it's in this. It's in the Bully Council."

"…Shit," she muttered, running a hand through her hair. "So you're saying this is bigger than just…?"

"Way bigger."

She looked to the ground for a few moments and then looked up again. "And you think you can get answers just by being a Rep?"

I snickered. "Not just a Rep."

Her eyes narrowed as I finally started walking. "You coming?"

She let out a long, exhausted sigh.

"…Fuck it. If you die, I'm not taking responsibility."

I grinned. "Duly noted. And also… wanna join my crew?"

"Fuck you."

The night had settled in fully by the time we walked in silence through the dimly lit streets. The only sounds were the distant hum of cars, the occasional flicker of a streetlamp, and the steady rhythm of our footsteps against the pavement.

The adrenaline had long faded, replaced by a strange stillness in my chest. The fight, the victory, the realization of how deep this went… it was all sinking in.

We reached her apartment complex, a tall, slightly worn-out building with paint still shining at the edges of the gate. The light at the entrance buzzed faintly, casting soft golden glows onto the sidewalk.

Siyeon stopped in front of the door, her hand resting on the handle. She didn't go in right away.

Instead, she stood there, looking at the ground, like she was hesitating. Finally, she turned.

The glow from the doorway caught her face, highlighting the faintest traces of exhaustion in her eyes… but also something softer.

Something real.

"You might have your own motive for doing this…" she said quietly, voice steady but carrying something else, something different.

I met her gaze, watching the way her lips curved up, slow and genuine.

"…But still. Thank you, Dowan."

And for the first time, she smiled.

[Siyeon has joined your Crew!]

Before I could say anything... before I could even process what that moment meant, she turned, stepping inside.

The door clicked shut and the warmth of her presence faded, leaving only the night air.

I stood there for a second longer than I should've, blinking. I'd asked as a joke but… looks like I'd gotten through to her more than I'd thought. And that smile, I genuinely thought she was biologically incapable of such a thing. 

It was a genuine thing, the kind that didn't get used often. I exhaled, running my hand through my hair and then finally turned away.

Main Quest: 'The boy becomes a man!' is complete!

You've received a Gold Card!

You've received a Bronze card bundle!