---
In the Middle of the Second Period
In the middle of the second period, whispers filled every corner of the classroom. No one was listening to the teacher's dry explanation of differential equations anymore. Everyone was preoccupied with only one topic: Yuna.
One student said in a low voice to his classmates: "Yuna must have hired men to beat up Hye Jin's boyfriend. How could a girl like her do that herself?"
Another added with a sarcastic smile: "Or maybe she did it herself? Have you seen her? She looks capable of anything."
Faint laughs echoed through the classroom, but Yuna wasn't interested. She was lying on her wooden seat, her eyes closed. She wasn't asleep, but thinking. Rumors didn't matter to her, empty words weren't worth paying attention to. All that occupied her mind now was what she would do after school.
On the other side of the classroom, Bora was sleeping peacefully, as if nothing in the world was worth waking her for. As for Han Si-eul, she was busy filing her long nails with a small file, as if she were in a beauty salon and not a classroom.
Han Si-eul turned toward Yuna and said in a voice twisted with boredom:
"Yuna, what do you think about going to eat after school? I know a great place that sells really delicious ramen. You'll love it."
Yuna opened her left eye and looked at Han Si-eul for a moment, then closed it again and said in a sleepy voice:
"Okay... good idea."
Han Si-eul had expected a more enthusiastic reaction, so she frowned and said with annoyance:
"What's wrong with you? You seem completely uninterested. You're really boring sometimes."
Yuna sighed and then said calmly: "I'm just thinking about that Hye Jin girl. What is she planning now?"
Han Si-eul smiled a mischievous smile, then leaned close to Yuna's ear and whispered:
"Are you afraid of Hye Jin?"
Yuna suddenly opened her eyes, and faint anger appeared in her gaze:
"No way. I'm just thinking... what will she do after what happened."
Han Si-eul laughed a short laugh and then said:
"She's just a girl obsessed with her boyfriend to the point of blindness. Can you believe she didn't think for a moment that it might have been just a normal fight between guys? Instead, she immediately concluded that Aren or Bora were behind it."
She paused for a moment, then added with a sly laugh:
"Do you really think this is normal? How could she reach that conclusion so quickly?"
Yuna felt something strange in Han Si-eul's words. It was as if she knew more than she was saying. But Yuna chose to ignore it. She closed her eyes again and returned to her sleeping position.
Han Si-eul was confused for a moment, then said with annoyance:
"Yuna! Are you back to sleeping? It's break time! Wake up!"
Yuna didn't move. Han Si-eul exhaled in frustration and then shook her firmly:
"Come on, wake up! It's break time!"
Yuna slowly opened her eyes and said with a yawn:
"Okay... I'll get up."
Han Si-eul said as she stood: "I'm leaving now. Bye!"
Yuna replied, barely opening her eyes: "Okay."
Ambush in the Cafeteria
Yuna stretched her tired body, feeling a slight crack in her spine. She looked around and found the classroom empty except for a few students talking about studies. She slowly got up and descended the stairs toward the cafeteria.
The place was crowded as usual. The clatter of dishes, students' laughter, and the mixed smell of food. Yuna stood at the entrance, contemplating the scene with her sleepy eyes.
Suddenly, three girls approached her. One of them was smiling a strange smile and said in a sharp voice:
"You... come with us."
Without showing any resistance or curiosity, Yuna walked behind them, covering her mouth with her hand to suppress a yawn. She was still half asleep.
In the far corner of the cafeteria, Hye Jin stood waiting. Her long green hair shone under the dim neon light, and her eyes sparked with fire. When she saw Yuna approaching, she smiled a triumphant smile.
"You finally came."
Yuna looked around. This corner was out of sight, with a few empty tables. The perfect place for an ambush.
Hye Jin told her three friends: "Hit her."
The girls lunged toward Yuna, raising their hands to punch her. But what happened next was so fast that Hye Jin couldn't follow it.
In an instant, the three girls were on the ground, groaning in pain. Yuna stood in her place, as if nothing had happened. She wasn't tired, she wasn't panting. She just stood looking at Hye Jin with her cold eyes.
Hye Jin stepped back and said in a tense voice:
"What... how did this happen? How dare you do this?"
Yuna yawned and then said in a voice devoid of emotion:
"Why are you so angry? All this for one person? You can take any other man. Why all this obsession?"
Hye Jin was shocked. She felt as if Yuna's words had slapped her face. Her long green hair swayed as she shook her head in denial. Then suddenly... she started laughing.
A strange laugh, loud, out of control.
Yuna looked at her in surprise. Did she say something funny?
Hye Jin suddenly stopped laughing and looked at Yuna with different eyes. Those eyes no longer carried only anger and hatred; there was something else in them... something like challenge.
Hye Jin said in a frighteningly calm voice:
"I didn't expect to hear such words from someone like you. Someone obsessed with love and family, talking about them even though everyone ignores you."
Yuna's shock was evident. How did Hye Jin know this? How did she know something about her private life?
Hye Jin chuckled arrogantly:
"Do you really think it's hard to know this, Yuna? It's the easiest thing. Anyone who wants to dig into your family's secrets will know this easily."
Hye Jin stepped closer to Yuna and continued:
"So stop saying things like that. And also... do you think I'm obsessed with that jerk?"
Yuna's level of surprise was indescribable. What was Hye Jin saying? Isn't she the girl who almost went crazy over her boyfriend?
Hye Jin looked around. Everyone was either unconscious or absent. No one was watching them. She leaned closer to Yuna's ear and whispered:
"The reason for my fame is my relationship with him. His family heads one of the major idol companies. I can become famous through him. That's all there is to it."
Yuna couldn't believe her ears. In her thinking, Hye Jin was just a second-rate villain, quickly disposed of in any story. But what she was discovering now was that Hye Jin had been deceiving everyone. Her obsession with her boyfriend was just a mask.
Yuna asked in a skeptical voice:
"Do you really despise him as much as you say?"
Hye Jin smiled a cold smile:
"Does it matter to you?"
On the Rooftop
On the school rooftop, two girls were watching the scene from above. Han Si-eul and Bora were looking down at the school corner from a distance, watching what was happening between Yuna and Hye Jin.
Han Si-eul said while looking at Bora:
"Why do you keep humiliating Hye Jin like this? Are the rumors true? Are you in love with her boyfriend?"
Bora's face stiffened for a moment, then she turned to Han Si-eul with angry eyes:
"Don't talk nonsense, Han Si-eul. I'm just doing this because it's fun. It's amusing to see Hye Jin go crazy like this."
Then she added with a sharp look:
"But... I don't understand why you're siding with Yuna. Is there a specific reason you're her friend?"
Han Si-eul looked down at Yuna, who was still talking to Hye Jin. Then she said in a strange, almost lifeless voice:
"I'm just... indebted to her for something."
Bora raised her eyebrow in surprise, then smiled lightly:
"That sounds like something webtoon characters would say."
Han Si-eul got angry and said with emotion:
"Does it really seem like that?"
But before she could continue, the scene below was developing.
The Final Threat
Hye Jin said to Yuna in a voice sharp as a sword:
"So... don't you dare think about touching him. Understand? If you do, I will personally break all your bones and destroy your social life. Don't you dare try anything stupid."
Yuna turned and started to leave, saying coldly:
"I don't care about destroying dirty relationships."
Hye Jin got angry, but only said loudly:
"Don't you dare get close to him! And I don't care what you do!"
From above the rooftop, Bora saw the scene and said laughing:
"Haha... it seems your friend backed down out of fear of Hye Jin. Give me my bet money."
Han Si-eul bit her lips and said:
"Your family is rich. What do you need money for?"
Bora replied with a cunning smile:
"Taking other people's money is better. It makes you feel like you haven't lost anything."
Han Si-eul got angry, but she took out money and gave it to Bora, saying:
"Okay... I hope we can replay this game soon."
Suddenly, a person appeared behind them. A young man wearing elegant glasses, his hair carefully combed back. He said in a calm but sharp voice:
"What are you two doing here?"
Bora and Han Si-eul quickly turned and looked at him with sharp glances. Han Si-eul was the first to speak:
"The student council president?"
The young man said while examining them: "You can just call me by my name. Why all this formality?"
Han Si-eul said as she prepared to leave: "Okay... I'm leaving now."
But the student council president suddenly grabbed her shoulder and said in a serious voice:
"I heard you two caused some trouble during the first periods."
Han Si-eul was terrified. She knew that the student council president was not someone to be underestimated.
But Bora suddenly interrupted and said coldly:
"Hye Jin did it. Go to her."
Han Si-eul tried to free her shoulder from his grip, but he tightened it more. Then, she used more force and violently pushed his hand away, saying:
"Stop grabbing me, you pervert!"
The student council president looked at her in surprise:
"What's with this violence, Han Si-eul? Are you angry just because I grabbed your shoulder?"
Bora intervened with a sharp voice:
"Stop doing these things."
Bora's features were very serious, and unusually angry. The student council president looked at her and said sarcastically:
"Have you now started bullying those weaker than you after leaving the judo club?"
Bora was silent. She was frighteningly calm.
Suddenly, without warning, Han Si-eul raised her hand and slapped the student council president on the face. Then she said with eyes blazing with anger:
"If you don't stop your stupid questions, I will kill you right now."
The student council president looked at them thoughtfully, then sighed and descended from the rooftop without uttering a word.
Bora laughed lightly and said:
"It seems he's afraid of you."
Han Si-eul said while wiping her hand with disgust:
"Maybe... but I really hate him. He's annoying, and his mere existence is disgusting."
Bora agreed, saying:
"I agree. That's what happened when I left the judo club."
Bora looked at the sky, then down below where Yuna was leaving the cafeteria. She said in a faint voice:
"Things are starting to get interesting."
[To be continued...]
---