The warning
800 Words
Chapter Five
The Warning
Ha-eun stared at the message for several seconds.
Stay away from Han Seo-jun.
She read it again.
Then again.
Her first thought was that it had to be a joke.
But the second message made her uneasy.
You don't know what kind of person he really is.
She looked around the nearly empty campus.
Nothing seemed unusual.
Students were walking between buildings. A few were sitting on benches, talking and laughing.
Everything looked normal.
Her phone buzzed again.
Ha-eun's heart jumped.
But this time, it was Min-ji.
Min-ji: Where are you?
Ha-eun quickly locked her phone.
Ha-eun: I'm coming.
She decided not to tell Min-ji.
Not yet.
The next morning, Ha-eun arrived at class earlier than usual.
She wanted to talk to Seo-jun.
But when she saw him, she hesitated.
He was standing near the window, talking to Kang Soo-ah.
Soo-ah looked upset.
Seo-jun said something quietly before walking away.
Ha-eun watched him approach.
“Good morning.”
She forced a smile.
“Morning.”
He looked at her carefully.
“You're acting strange.”
“I'm not.”
“You are.”
“Maybe you're just imagining things.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“Did something happen?”
Ha-eun looked down at her notebook.
“No.”
Seo-jun didn't look convinced.
Before he could say anything else, Professor Kim entered the classroom.
Their conversation ended.
After class, Ha-eun packed her things quickly.
She wanted to leave before Seo-jun could ask questions.
But he caught up with her outside.
“Wait.”
She stopped.
“What?”
“You've been avoiding me.”
“I've been busy.”
“With what?”
“Nothing.”
He stepped closer.
“Ha-eun.”
She looked at him.
There was something different in his expression.
He wasn't teasing her.
He was genuinely concerned.
“Did someone say something to you?”
Her heart skipped.
“How did you know?”
His expression immediately changed.
“Who?”
Ha-eun hesitated.
Then she showed him the messages.
Seo-jun's face went completely still.
“Where did you get this number?”
“I don't know.”
“When did they send this?”
“Yesterday.”
He stared at the screen.
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“I didn't know if I should.”
He looked away.
For a moment, he said nothing.
Then he quietly asked,
“Are you scared?”
Ha-eun shook her head.
“No.”
He looked back at her.
“You should be careful.”
Her eyes narrowed.
“Why?”
“Because whoever sent this knows enough about me to try to scare you.”
“That doesn't answer my question.”
He sighed.
“There are things about my family you don't understand.”
“Then explain them.”
“I can't.”
“Why not?”
“Because it's complicated.”
Ha-eun folded her arms.
“You always say that.”
“Because it's true.”
She stared at him.
Then she noticed something.
His hand was clenched tightly around his phone.
He looked worried.
Not for himself.
For her.
That realization made her uncomfortable.
“Seo-jun…”
“I'll take you home.”
“What?”
“I said I'll take you home.”
“I can go by myself.”
“I know.”
“Then why—”
“Because I want to make sure you get there safely.”
Ha-eun didn't know what to say.
They walked toward the university gate together.
Neither spoke.
Then Seo-jun suddenly stopped.
Ha-eun turned.
“What?”
He was looking across the street.
A black car was parked there.
The same car from the previous afternoon.
His expression hardened.
“Stay here.”
He crossed the street.
Ha-eun watched him approach the car.
The window lowered.
She couldn't see who was inside.
After a few moments, Seo-jun stepped back.
The car drove away.
He returned to her.
“Who was that?”
“Nobody.”
She stared at him.
“You're lying.”
He didn't answer.
Ha-eun felt frustrated.
“You expect me to trust you when you won't tell me anything.”
Seo-jun looked at her.
“You shouldn't trust me.”
His words hurt more than she expected.
“Fine.”
She turned away.
“Ha-eun.”
She kept walking.
He didn't follow.
That night, Ha-eun sat on her bed and looked at her phone.
She had expected another mysterious message.
Instead, there was only one new notification.
From Seo-jun.
Han Seo-jun:
I'm sorry.
She stared at it.
Then another message appeared.
Han Seo-jun:
You deserve to know the truth. I'll tell you tomorrow.
Ha-eun's heart began to race.
For the first time, she realized that whatever secret Han Seo-jun was hiding...
It might have something to do with her.
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