ChapterThree
1230 Words
Luxury cars lined the entrance to Myeongseong High School, their polished surfaces gleaming in the morning sun. Students stepped out carrying designer bags, greeting their friends as they made their way through the gates.
Ha-eun stood outside for a moment, taking it all in.
So this was Myeongseong.
Ha-eun tightened her grip on her bag.
You worked so hard for this, Seo-jun.
She took a breath and walked through the gates.
The school buildings were even more impressive up close. The main building rose several floors above the grounds, its wide glass windows reflecting the sunlight. Beyond it stood a modern sports complex, and neatly maintained gardens bordered the paved walkways. Students hurried past in their uniforms, some discussing assignments while others complained about the upcoming CSAT.
Ha-eun followed the directions she had been given until she found her classroom.
The moment she stepped inside, she noticed how quiet it was.
Most of the students were already seated, reading textbooks or reviewing handwritten notes. Nobody seemed interested in wasting time.
The teacher welcomed Ha-eun and introduced her to the class.
“Everyone, this is Choi Ha-eun. She’s joining us today. Please help her settle in.”
“You can take the empty seat by the window,” the teacher told her.
Ha-eun thanked her and sat down.
She had expected an elite school to be competitive, but seeing it for herself was different. Even before the first lesson began, the students were already studying.
When the lectures began, the class became even more focused. Pens moved quickly across notebooks. Students followed every explanation, occasionally raising their hands to ask questions.
Ha-eun glanced around, feeling a little lost.
Is this what school is always like here?
She remembered the information she had found online about drugs being used by students at Myeongseong. Looking around, she wondered whether the rumours were exaggerated.
The morning passed quickly.
By the time the bell rang for break, The classroom immediately came alive. Some students hurried towards the cafeteria, eager to beat the queues, while others gathered their books and headed for the library.
Ha-eun reached down to retrieve her pen when it rolled beneath her desk.
As she straightened, she noticed some writing scratched into the wooden surface.
HAN SEO-JUN.
Her hand went still.
She leaned closer, running her fingertips over the faint letters.
Seo-jun had sat here.
For a moment, her throat tightened.
Ha-eun withdrew her hand and blinked away the sting in her eyes.
She hurried out of the classroom and followed a quieter corridor towards the staircase at the end.
As she approached the rooftop door, she heard voices from the other side.
“Hold him properly!”
A sharp cry followed.
Ha-eun stopped.
“Shibal, you still haven’t learned your lesson?”
The speaker sounded furious.
Ha-eun hesitated, her hand hovering near the door handle.
“Please, we didn’t tell anyone,” a boy pleaded.
“Then why did that scholarship i***t try to get us in trouble?”
A girl’s voice answered through a sob.
“We didn’t do anything to you!”
Someone laughed cruelly.
“You should have thought about that before opening your mouth.”
Ha-eun’s stomach tightened.
She pushed the door open just enough to look inside.
Two students were on the ground near the far wall, a boy and a girl. Their uniforms were untidy, and their books lay scattered around them. A group of students stood over them, taking turns shoving and kicking them whenever they tried to get up.
One of the boys grabbed the scholarship student’s collar.
“You think you can report us and get away with it? That other i***t, Seo-jun, thought the same thing.”
Ha-eun stopped breathing for a second, Her fingers tightened around the door.
Seo-jun
They were talking about her brother.
She wanted to rush inside and pull them away from the two students. Her body was already leaning forward when she forced herself to stop.
She couldn’t expose herself. Not before she understood what was happening.
She needed to leave and find another way to learn more.
Ha-eun slowly stepped backwards.
The rooftop door swung open.
A boy standing nearby had noticed her reflection in the glass.
“What the hell?”
He grabbed her arm before she could retreat.
“Hey! We have a spy!”
Every head turned.
Ha-eun stumbled as he dragged her inside.
“Let go! I wasn’t doing anything!”
“I heard voices. I was leaving!”
“Bullshit.”
The others abandoned the students on the ground and gathered around her.
One of the girls folded her arms.
“Who are you?”
“Choi Ha-eun. I’m new.”
“New?” Another girl looked at her uniform, then broke into a grin. “Wait. You’re the new scholarship student?”
The change in their expressions was immediate.
“Seriously?” a boy said. “Another scholarship brat?”
“Looks like we have someone new to entertain us,” one of the girls replied excitedly.
Ha-eun shook her head.
“Please, I don’t know anything. Just let me go.”
A girl stepped forward and slapped her.
Ha-eun stumbled sideways, stunned.
“Shibal” the girl cursed.
“I wasn’t spying!” Ha-eun repeated loudly.
The moment the words left her mouth, someone seized her hair and yanked her backwards.
Pain shot across her scalp.
“Is this b***h yelling at us?”
Ha-eun cried out and grabbed the girl’s wrist, but another student shoved her to the ground. Her palms scraped against the concrete.
Laughter filled the rooftop.
“Look at her. She’s already crying.”
Ha-eun curled her arms over her head as they kicked her and pulled at her hair. She tried to protect herself without fighting back, swallowing her anger with every blow.
When they finally stopped, one of the girls crouched beside her.
“Listen carefully, scholarship kid. If you tell anyone what happened here, you’ll regret it.”
Another student kicked her bag towards the door.
“And if we catch you spying on us again, next time will be worse.”
They left, laughing as the bell rang to signal the end of break.
For a few seconds, Ha-eun remained on the ground, struggling to catch her breath.
Then someone hurried towards her.
“Are you okay?”
The boy who had been beaten knelt beside her while the girl gathered Ha-eun’s scattered books.
“Don’t try to stand yet,” the girl said softly. “Give yourself a moment.”
Ha-eun looked at them, noticing the bruises on their faces and the way the boy kept glancing at the door.
“Why did they do that to you?” she asked.
They hesitated.
Ha-eun lowered her gaze to her scraped hands.
She had come to Myeongseong looking for drugs, hoping to find a clue that would lead her to Seo-jun. Instead, she had discovered that her brother had been bullied by the very people he went to school with.
Is this what he endured trying to fit in here?
Ha-eun clenched her fists. Those students had spoken about Seo-jun with as if hurting him had meant nothing.
And they had threatened to do it again.
She had come here to find drugs, but now another question troubled her.
Does the bullying have something to do with her brother’s disappearance?
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD