The air seemed to wrap around her body, leaving only the faint whistle of wind rushing past her ears. The moment of falling felt both long and impossibly brief—time itself lost all meaning, and even the concept of fear drifted far away. Her chest felt light, as if everything that had weighed down her shoulders had been stripped away at once and scattered into the wind. She was strangely calm—no, more than that, she felt deeply at ease. As though she had finally found the rest she had been searching for all along.
When she opened her eyes, the lake below shimmered like a mirror, holding the blue of the sky entirely within itself. Sunlight shattered and danced across the water's surface, the gentle ripples rising and falling as if the lake itself were breathing. Mountains around her quietly cast their shadows, and the horizon stretched outward in serene stillness. Everything was unbearably beautiful—vivid, alive, and achingly real.
In that moment, Nau Rin simply smiled. No words were needed. No thoughts. As she fell, embraced by nature itself, she felt—perhaps for the first time—what it meant to completely let go.
Even when she was pulled back onto the steel platform, the radiant smile on her face did not fade. As the staff unfastened her harness, Minho stared at her, his expression a volatile mix of anger and resentment.
Once they were back on the ground, Minho finally snapped and smacked her shoulder.
"You idiot—are you insane?! I seriously thought you'd actually jumped!" he shouted, his brows knotted tight, anger boiling over.
Nau Rin winced slightly but kept laughing, clutching the arm he'd hit.
"Ow, that hurts! If you're not going to jump for real, then what's the point? Just faking it?" she teased lightly.
Her calm, carefree tone only made Minho angrier, and as he lunged after her, Seohun and Taehyun stepped in.
Nau Rin quickly ducked behind them.
"Enough already! You're hitting me way too much,"
Taehyun frowned, glancing between them.
"What's wrong with you two now?"
Minho shot Nau Rin one last look.
"Such a jerk," he muttered under his breath, then turned and walked off ahead.
Seohun looked at Nau Rin, who was practically clinging to his side.
"What did you do to make him so mad?" he asked.
Nau Rin shrugged honestly.
"I don't know."
Taehyun let out a sigh.
"Both of you, stop fighting like this. Can't we just have one peaceful day?"
"What did I do?" Nau Rin protested in a soft, complaining tone.
As the sun dipped low, staining the sky red, their joyful outing came to an end, and one by one, they headed back to their separate homes.
And so the weekend slipped quietly into the past, giving way to a new week—familiar, yet heavy, beginning once again with subdued stillness.
Classes passed in silence. No one called her, no messages came through, no one approached her. Amid a classroom full of students, she alone stared not at the blackboard, but down at her book.
The principal did nothing more than reprimand her for abandoning her punishment midway, scolding her for being irresponsible. She offered no explanation—only nodded quietly in response.
Cleaning began as it always did, and ended just the same.
When she tied up the last bag of trash and let out a small breath, the corridor grew even quieter. Now and then, the distant sound of a door closing echoed faintly, as though the school building itself were finally releasing the breath it had been holding all day.
She looked out the window. The sun had already set, and the sky had shifted into a muted bluish gray. No one remained inside the school grounds; only the wind moved through the leaves, rustling softly.
As Nau Rin slung her bag over her shoulder and walked toward the school entrance, she reached for her phone—only to realize it wasn't there. I must have dropped it somewhere, she thought, and retraced her steps.
First floor. Second floor. Eventually, she reached the fourth.
She checked each restroom one by one, peering into every stall, but there was no sign of it. There's nowhere else it could be, she thought. As she stood near the door for a moment, she suddenly realized she hadn't looked behind it.
She pulled it open slowly— Her phone lay there in the corner.
Relief washed over Nau Rin when she found her phone. She had just started walking back down the corridor when, from somewhere nearby, she thought she heard a faint human voice.
This floor lay close to the school's old, abandoned wing, where some classrooms had long gone unused. Though the corridor lights were on, the shadows stretched along the walls, making the place feel emptier, colder. Nau Rin's heart clenched on its own; the fine hairs on her arms seemed to rise as she nearly broke into a run.
Then she heard it again.
Fear tugged at her, yet the thought that someone might be hurt, calling for help, brought her to a sudden stop. She stood there, listening, then slowly turned and decided to walk toward the sound.
Following it, she arrived at the old art room she had been to before. She didn't go in right away. Pausing to listen, she could clearly make out the sound of someone crying and pleading, mixed with the voices of several others talking.
When she recognized those voices as familiar, the crying only grew louder. Without hesitation, she pulled at the door—but it was locked. She knocked lightly and called out,
"Is anyone there?"
The noise stopped abruptly. No one answered. She called again,
"Is anyone there?"
Then came the soft click of a lock coming undone, and the door slowly began to open.
On the other side of the door, she saw Lee Minjae standing there. In one swift motion, he yanked her inside and locked the door again.
The moment Nau Rin stepped in, the sight before her froze her in place.
Yoo Dahi had another girl pinned to the floor, yanking her by the hair, while Kim Mina held a burning cigarette close to the girl's bare thigh, the tip glowing red. The girl's school uniform was smeared with dust; the buttons on her blouse had been torn off, her skirt pushed up, her bare legs exposed. Bruises, scratches, and angry red marks were clearly visible on her skin. Her face was a mess of fear, dirt, and tears, her whole body trembling.
As the scorching ember drew closer, she sobbed and screamed hoarsely,
"Please… please don't! Stop! Please—!"
But the two showed no sign of mercy, pressing her down even harder, holding her so she couldn't move.
Only then did Nau Rin recognize her—the same girl who, on the first day of school, had come up to her and said, "Some kids from another class want to meet you."
Seeing Nau Rin inside, Kim Mina stepped closer with a smile.
"I didn't expect to see you here," she said lightly.
But the very next moment her expression turned cold. She glanced back at the girl on the floor.
"She's been getting a little disobedient lately. We're just giving her a lesson."
Then she looked back at Nau Rin and pressed,
"You should join us too."
"I can't."
Nau Rin's voice cut cleanly through the silence—firm, unwavering.
The room fell still. All eyes turned to her.
Standing beside her, Minjae scoffed and waved a hand.
"What did you just say—"
Before he could finish, Nau Rin grabbed his wrist.
Minjae struggled to pull free, but couldn't. Panic and anger tangled together as he shouted hoarsely,
"Let go—let go of me!"
Hearing his cry, the others rose in alarm. But instead of loosening her grip, Nau Rin tightened it, twisting Minjae's arm sharply.
"Ah!"
She screamed in pain, his body lurching backward.
Nau Rin's face, however, showed no trace of agitation. Calm—almost cold—she looked at the girl on the floor.
"Go," she said quietly.
The girl hesitated, disbelief flickering across her face, but then she scrambled up and fled, the door slamming behind her as she escaped.
Nau Rin flung Minjae's arm away. He staggered back and collapsed onto the floor. As his friends rushed to help him, Nau Rin said nothing. She slowly closed the door—and locked it from the inside.
The air in the room grew heavy. Fear and uncertainty flickered in their eyes.
The dim candlelight reflected faintly off Go Nau Rin's glasses, obscuring her expression entirely. There was no emotion on her face at all. That emptiness unsettled Mina—but the thought There are four of us, and she's alone. What can she do? gave her a thin thread of confidence.
Summoning her courage, Mina asked,
"What do you think you're doing?"
Go Nau Rin calmly loosened the buttons of her uniform.
"Teaching a lesson."
Mina sneered.
"You think you can? There are four of us. You're alone."
A crooked smile tugged at Nau Rin's lips.
"Want to find out?"
The certainty in her voice sent a chill racing down Mina's spine.
As Go Nau Rin stepped closer, Mina panicked and shoved Minjae forward.
"You—go!"
Minjae shot her a resentful glance but had no choice. She charged toward Nau Rin at full speed—only to collapse to the floor a second later. Nau Rin's kick had slammed into his jaw, knocking him unconscious.
Mina and the others recoiled in shock, retreating toward the corner of the room.
Mina's fear twisted into rage as she screamed at them,
"What are you doing?! She's alone! Why are you scared?! Go—get her!"
They rushed Go Nau Rin all at once.
Moments later, every one of them lay sprawled on the floor.
Mina had taken a brutal blow to the stomach. Unable to breathe, her lips drained of color as tears spilled from her eyes. She curled up on the floor, her body shaking uncontrollably from the searing pain.
Go Nau Rin walked over calmly, lowered herself onto one knee, her body tilting forward, one hand resting near her bent leg, then placed a fresh cigarette between Mina's trembling lips and lit it.
Then she gently stroked her back and Whispered,
"Easy… take a drag."