Despite the sheer mass of it; the building of Jeguk High in itself didn't look all that intimidating. Slightly scary in the way it loomed above you, and glared at you from a distance, enough to ward off any unwelcome visitors – yet not enough to be overwhelming. It spread over a vast expanse of land, enough to build a palace on, just looking at it made Tae Yeon feel tired.
She straightened the peachy-beige skirt that her mother had presented her with yesterday evening (the colour was so obnoxiously different that she was certain Jeguk had chosen it to purposely differentiate their students, as if the need to widen the gap between them and everyone else was that strong) and tugging on her blazer, she began to walk towards what she presumed was the entrance.
It certainly looked that way, with its expensive glass doors and floor to ceiling windows, although there was hardly an obvious sign saying Entrance to Hell printed anywhere.
It was further away than it looked, probably like everything else here. She briefly wondered if she would be gifted with a map to navigate this shark tank, or if she was simply meant to know where everything was located, like some sort of inherited knowledge, some sort of test to prove her breeding.
Purposefully ignoring Min Kyung's shouts of encouragement from the car behind her, Tae Yeon decided to focus on the task at hand. Because 1) she really had no idea where she was going and 2) despite the building's barely intimidating appearance, she was fully aware of how dangerous both the students and faculty that lurked inside could be.
They were predators, people who pounced and smelt blood in the air, who savored the scent as they inhaled it and kept it in their lungs. They hunted, scrutinizing, looking for cracks and dents in armor to exploit, searching for possible weaknesses amongst everyone around them – especially newcomers. Tae Yeon was determined not to become their prey, for their searches to yield nothing of use.
To graduate without getting into too many fights.
Once she managed to walk through the door, she felt like Alice stepping into Wonderland, becoming engulfed in an entirely different world. It's noticeably warmer than outside, which is to be expected. Despite the rich's cold blood they have to be kept warm. The air has a sharp tang to it, like disinfectant; the floor a pristine white that could only be maintained by money.
It made a pleasing clacking sound under her shoes.
The obnoxiously large and minimalist clock secured to the wall in front of her alerted her that it was 11.30 – meaning that majority of people were in class. Nevertheless, there were a few students loitering here and there, all immersed in conversation of stocks and tapping on their smartphones. All who apparently deemed that she was no one of interest if the lack of attention that they offered her was anything to go by.
Tae Yeon sighed internally. She was meant to go to the principal's office to make proper greetings, fill out the remaining transfer paperwork and have a brief introduction to the school.
Possibly a map.
As if. If I ask for one they'll probably laugh in my face.
Navigating this building and actually locating the office however, was no laughing matter. Not bothering to even contemplate the possibility of bothering one of the nearby students to inquire after the place in question (she knew for certain that they wouldn't help her unless she had some sort of proof of superior social standing, unless she offered them something advantageous in return); so she simply continued walking forwards.
She kept her head held high, as if she knew what she was doing. Rule number one to this world was to act as if you're perfect, to never be wrong – even when you most definitely were.
When she comes to a junction in the hallway, she decides to turn left, still walking purposefully as if she has somewhere to be. There's not as many people in this new corridor, except from a girl standing at an open locker. Tae Yeon continues to walk forwards, assuming the girl will offer no help either, but when she passes her a quiet voice chimes advice.
"Office is down the corridor, and then your first right," the voice says, and the girl is now looking slightly to the right of her now closed locker. Just enough to see tae Yeon, not enough so that it's blatantly obvious who she's addressing. The fact that they're the only two in the corridor makes it clear.
Tae Yeon appreciates the gesture, and wonders if she doesn't look as in control as she thinks she does. Maybe she's been too relaxed, and has grown slack with her mask. She needs more practice.
In her peripheral vision, she can just see the girl and immediately knows the reason that she offered help, unlike her fellow students. Because she's not one of them, her worn shoes and plain backpack tell Tae Yeon that much, so Tae Yeon lets her act drop for a second and shoots her a grateful smile. She continues to walk, but she knows without looking that the girl returns it.
She continues down the hall, and following the girl's instructions turns right when asked. Unsurprisingly, she arrives at her destination unscathed – because she knew that the girl would not purposefully give her misleading information. Her voice hadn't been spiteful or fake, it had been transparent. Although her act might be out of practice, her skill of detecting falsities was honed to protection.
She's thankful to that girl, and wonders if she'll ever find out her name.
The woman behind the receptionist desk is middle-aged and has her hair in a low-slung ponytail. It's been coloured an unnatural shade of blonde that doesn't quite match her fair complexion, and her eyeliner is thick and dark so much so that she resembles a tiger. A tiger in the heart of the school, in the perfect place to watch and prey on the weak; to gain intel on those who will be ruling the country after they graduate. She shares the students at the entrance's look of disinterest, but at least this woman has the courtesy to plaster on a smile (however fake), make eye contact and ask how she can be of help.
Time to practice my act.
Tae Yeon returns her smile, although she's willing to bet that hers is far more convincing from experience, and states that she's a new transfer student and is supposed to meet with the principal to fill in the remaining paperwork.
The receptionist tells her to 'wait a moment' and Tae Yeon nods accordingly as the woman flicks through a diary with her grotesquely long, red nails until she comes to the correct page; Tae Yeon watches as she trails the same finger down the paper until she manages to locate what she's looking for and nods.
"Yes, you're Miss Kang, correct?"
Tae Yeon nods again. "That would be me," her cheeks start to feel strained from smiling and maybe she has to start practicing in her bathroom mirror again.
"I have you scheduled to meet the Chairwoman, if you'll follow me," the receptionist stands from her chair and Tae Yeon watches boredly as it spins round a couple of times. "I'm sure you can make your introductions to the Principal at a later date; hopefully on good terms."
Tae Yeon lets out a light laugh that she can tell the woman is expecting, and the woman looks pleased with her.
Point one to me, Tae Yeon thinks. One person pleased, at least another five to go.
Making alliances and pleasing people was important to her survival, necessary rather than something she enjoys. She's lead down another corridor and another, and Tae Yeon wonders if the reason this place so resembles a labyrinth is to ensure that no one ever leaves. Which then of course leaves her to wonder if she's being lead to the Minotaur in the centre, and what kind of strings her mother's pulled to arrange a meeting with the Chairwoman. Or if Jeguk Group deemed the Principal unable to handle her transfer.
I never thought I was this important.
The receptionist knocks briskly on the door and is met with a prompt response of "Come in."
Tae Yeon wonders if its not too late to leave, and whether or not she'd be able to escape by herself, or if she'd get lost along the way.
The room is cold, explained by the presence of the air conditioner on the opposite wall. The walls are painted light blue, continuing with Jeguk Group's theme, and trophies and awards, certificates and the like line the wall in perfect fashion. Her eyes scan the room quickly, before reaching the Chairwoman and she hopes her wandering gaze hasn't been noticed. If it has, the Chairwoman hides it quickly.
She's an older lady with her hair scraped back into a bun, delicately arranged strands of hair framing her face and Tae Yeon can't quite decide if the hairdo makes the woman look younger of if she's trying too hard. The Chairwoman stands immediately upon seeing Tae Yeon and offers her hand, which Tae Yeon shakes whilst respectfully bowing her head and greeting her a good afternoon.
The Chairwoman waves her bow away, and smiles winningly at her, insisting that she sits. There's something about the Chairwoman that simply boasts power, as if it radiates from her core. The type of power that even money can't buy – power supported by the heavy, expensive looking plaque on her desk reading "Chairwoman Jeong" and the smile on her face that looks so friendly it must be fake. Tae Yeon knows she won't be eager to meet with her again.
"Ah, Miss Kang, it's so nice to meet you. I hope you're well?" The Chairwoman asks, and her voice is so falsely sweet that Tae Yeon feels a little sick. She needs to build up her tolerance to it if she hopes to last even a day at Jeguk without having to rush to the bathroom to vomit.
She wonders how the Chairwoman managed to wrestle this position back and worm her way back into Jeguk Group. Her and the Chairman's divorce had been very public and probably very embarrassing on her behalf; and yet somehow she'd managed to remain control of the school. The Chairman must be ignorant, or the Chairwoman a very good fighter – because having control of the nation's heirs is a great asset to have, and it's no longer in his control. Here stands the woman who can shape the future for the next generation's richest people, and maybe that's what makes her so scary. She doubts asking how exactly the Chairwoman managed this feat would do her many favours.
"Yes Chairwoman, thank you," Tae Yeon says instead, hushing the voices in her head. "Just a little nervous but that's to be expected." They both laugh and Tae Yeon is impressed with just how natural the Chairwoman's high pitched giggle sounds. She's only ever heard one other person manage to make their laugh sound so sincere, someone she's not too keen to meet with again either – and she has no doubt that the person opposite her is just as dangerous.
"Of course dear," she's also the only other person to call her dear, Tae Yeon thinks wryly. There are so many similarities the Chairwoman might as well be his mother, but she's met his mother and knows that this is just a sign of exactly how powerful the Chairwoman is. "I hope you starting late doesn't make the situation more difficult," the Chairwoman adds and Tae Yeon can just about pick up the note of irritation in the Chairwoman's tone and shakes her head politely.
Ideally, she'd have transferred at the beginning of the school year, and progressed to the year above with everyone else, but she'd been wrestling with her mother over her transfer for the past week and had unfortunately inevitably lost. She had however, managed to wrangle more time to say goodbye to her old life, and begin training herself to endure hell. Instead, she was starting in the second week of the year, upsetting the time table and the Chairwoman was clearly annoyed by this.
"I doubt it, everyone so far has been very accommodating and polite," Tae Yeon envisions the people loitering around uninterestedly in the hallways, acting like she didn't exist as she says this. "I do apologize for my lateness this morning. I had a prior appointment that was unavoidable."
Which was partly true. The reason for her delay in starting today had been due to an appointment, and yet her actual delay in arriving was down to a certain Go Min Kyung.
She feels no guilt for lying, however, as she'd stomped out that habit years ago. She does, instead, feel slightly agitated at her own lateness, as it would make a bad impression on the Chairwoman who Tae Yeon has already decided not to cross.
Min Kyung had insisted on taking her to school – claiming that his Tae Yeon's first day of school was something that couldn't be missed – and when Go Min Kyung insists on something, it's far easier to relent than to try and struggle against it.
A lesson that Tae Yeon has learnt from experience.
He'd then insisted on buying her breakfast, which Tae Yeon had had to leave the car for because despite Min Kyung mock reprimanding her for delaying their departure she knew he had a strict rule of no eating in his car, and that if she made a mess in it rather than arriving late to Jeguk High, she'd be arriving in a body bag.
He'd then run a couple of errands, ignoring Tae Yeon's protest, causing Tae Yeon to become increasingly frustrated; especially since he knew how much she despised being late.
"What's faster than a car? How else were you going to get there?" Min Kyung teased, and Tae Yeon barely rested the urge to smack him round the head and tell him that anything would be faster than him – considering he was driving far slower than usual, even slower than when she was in the car with him.
It usually irritated Min Kyung to drive as slow, but that came second to the enjoyment he received from annoying her.
"The bus."
"Not even a taxi?"
Tae Yeon shot him a look in the rear view mirror.
"I'm doing you a favour, those kids'll eat you alive if you arrive on the bus."
"Then I would have given them indigestion and torn them apart on my way out," she said and Min Kyung laughed loudly and wrapped one arm around the back of her seat.
"Hands on the wheel Go Min Kyung."
When they'd finally pulled up to the school, the clock on his dashboard had read 11.20 and Tae Yeon was livid. She'd told her mother she'd be there for 11, and if Min Kyung hadn't been taking his time even with breakfast, they should have reached there at 10.50.
"I'll come pick you up when you're finished."
"Don't bother. I might not be feeling murderous enough to act on the impulse to kill you now, but I'm sure a day here will change that," she'd warned.
"Good," Min Kyung clapped. "Channel that anger into warding off your nerves."
"I'm not nervous," Tae Yeon had insisted, a little too passionately and Min Kyung looked smug.
"I can read you like a book Kang Tae Yeon, don't try and hide from your oppa."
Tae Yeon rolled her eyes and turned around.
"Your oppa doesn't even get a goodbye hug?"
She stuck her tongue out at him over her shoulder and he had laughed at her.
Tae Yeon didn't mention any of this to the Chairwoman of course, and instead continued to smile apologetically.
"No need for apologies, I'm sure a nice girl like you will settle in with no troubles."
Tae Yeon nodded again, and her mother's words to her the night before echoed in her mind.
"Settle in, don't make trouble. Make good friends, find a handsome boy."
Find a rich boy more like.
Half an hour later and Tae Yeon had filled out most of the required paperwork. Her hand had hovered and she'd hesitated when it asked for her parents' occupations and the Chairwoman noticed; waving it off once more.
"Don't worry about that," she'd insisted and Tae Yeon decided that the reason the Chairwoman's voice was so grating was because it came from the nose, "They're all just formalities."
Tae Yeon obeyed and skipped over it. Finally finishing, they'd discussed her family and various other topics for a while, although Tae Yeon was itching all over to bolt out of the office, to leave the lioness' den.
The bell rang just as the Chairwoman finished telling her that if she had any other troubles, to 'feel free to come straight to her'.
I wonder if she says that to all of the new students that come here.
The Chairwoman then proceeded to usher her out of the door, signaling the much anticipated end of the force pleasantries and the least anticipated start of lunch.
Lunch was all a show of power circles and connections, and after half an hour of blagging her way through conversation, Tae Yeon was not feeling up to it.
Eventually the receptionist desk returned to view and a boy roughly her age stood there, fiddling with his sleeves.
"Ah, Yoon Chan Young. Just in time," the Chairwoman greets and the boy turns around and bows his head respectfully.
Yoon Chan Young presents something of an enigma, because much like the girl from earlier it looks like he is not from money, and yet there are other signs all over him that contradict this statement. Like his branded backpack, the barely scuffed shoes.
The wide, genuine smile on his face is the most bizarre of all, because that is not a trait that belongs to someone with money.
"Chan Young here will show you to the cafeteria for lunch," the Chairwoman explains and Tae
Yeon thinks that if she nods politely one more time her head might detach itself from her neck.
Chan Young looks expectantly at her, and she knows the smile is genuine because he doesn't seem at all pained by the massive prolonged grin on his face. "Shall we go?"
Tae Yeon smiles back and feels relaxed by how naturally this one comes. "Lead the way," she says.
They exit the office together and Chan Young takes her in the opposite direction of the entrance.
Perhaps I need to pack a spool of thread in my backpack tomorrow to remember all these places.
Walking besides Chan Young is comfortable and easy, the atmosphere light and companionable even after just meeting moments ago and this adds itself onto the list of reasons suggesting Chan Young isn't from money.
"I'm Yoon Chan Young," he reintroduces himself a couple of beats later, smiling down at her. "I'm class president, so if you have any questions or concerns please don't hesitate to ask me."
Tae Yeon wonders if he has any questions for her. Like why she was conversing with the Chairwoman instead of the Principal, if she comes from money or not. He doesn't ask either like she expects any other student would, and she finds herself increasingly grateful for Yoon Chan Young and her incredible luck so far.
No one can act that genuinely nice, as nice as Chan Young. Only one person could come close, but Tae Yeon refuses to acknowledge his existence.
"Thank you. For showing me where to go, and for being nice," because although she doubts he had much choice in showing her the cafeteria, she's learnt long ago that niceties are always optional and she can tell that Chan Young knows this too. "I'm Kang Tae Yeon," she says and he holds out a hand for her to shake.
She eyes it skeptically, eyes flickering from the outstretched hand upwards to Chan Young's face. He doesn't miss this, and when she relents and shakes it he chuckles lightly and she finds herself laughing too.
"Nice to meet you Tae Yeon."
Tae Yeon appraises the boy besides her, and selects an appropriate way to address him. "You too sunbae."
Chan Young waves this away, and unlike the Chairwoman's constant dismissal Tae Yeon knows that his gesture is sincere. "Just call me Chan Young."
Tae Yeon nods and they make idle chit chat, pointedly avoiding questions about business and the like. Tae Yeon feels like a warning is on the tip of his tongue, and that he's holding it back. It goes unsaid between them, and Tae Yeon makes a mental list of the possibilities. That their classmates have sharp teeth and razor-like claws, cutting words and wit, judgment that can prove crucial. Tae Yeon wants to tell him that he doesn't have to worry about it, class president or not – that she already knows.
They stop abruptly in front of a set of glass doors, and she realizes that she'd been so caught up in conversation that she'd forgotten to remember her path.
"I'm going to get so lost," she comments without thinking, and realizes too late that she's let her guard down for Chan Young, but is soothed by the further realization that Chan Young's laugh is as happy as his personality.
"You'll get used to it, and until then I'll be your guide. Just don't tell my girlfriend," he says. "She can be scary, but she's so cute when she's jealous," he adds and the look on his face as he talks about his girlfriend likens Chan Young to a puppy so much it's ridiculous – and she wonders if even the rich draw lines when it comes to kicking him.
People are just beginning to filter in through the doors on the opposite side of the cafeteria as Chan Young opens the door and a gust of warm air rushes out to meet them; along with the clanging of utensils on expensive plates.
"People might stare," Chan Young warns, gesturing for her to go first.
"As long as none of those people are your girlfriend getting the wrong impression and threatening to kill me, I'll survive." The sentence gets lost in the dim swell of conversation, yet the grin on Chan Young's face is a clear indication that he heard her. Everyone on display looks immaculately perfect, makeup all in place, eyeliner thickness carefully gaged. Uniforms all neat and pristine and they all look like dolls straight out of packaging and Tae Yeon feels her skin start to crawl. Chan Young leads her to the lunch line and takes a try and plate for both himself and her.
This chivalry distracts her from her observations. Maybe chivalry isn't entirely extinct, Tae Yeon muses. And it exists solely inside Chan Young. She'll have to tell Min Kyung she might have found a replacement for him in regards to being her best friend.
"Help yourself to whatever you want, if you finish first wait for me and we can go sit together," Chan Young says as she helps herself to rice. His last statement was timed just as there was a pause in the surrounding conversation, and it cuts across the large room. It acts as a catalyst for the inevitable reaction as heads begin to swivel towards her, already using their naturally ingrained instincts to make assumptions based on appearance.
She's perfectly aware that her navy backpack and cream shoes betray nothing of importance, nevertheless that doesn't stop Chan Young from looking incredibly apologetic.
"Your girlfriend won't mind?" She asks, pretending like at least fifty stares aren't carving holds into her back.
Chan Young plays along nicely. "I'll introduce you to her, and my friends. Besides, she's so adorable when she threatens people."
"And you care about how cute she is more than the life of the new student you've been tasked with taking care of?"
Chan Young shrugs nonchalantly. "Girlfriend before friends, right?"
Tae Yeon shrugs back, having long ago decided she doesn't mind being his friend.
They get separated somewhere in the middle of the lunch line, with Chan Young still near the front. On the other hand, she's already filled a bowl with soup and finished loading her plate with the least amount of food she can manage. She's still full from the noodles that Min Kyung had bought her, yet doesn't want to be disrespectful to Chan Young so she stands at the end of the lien as people continue to unabashedly glance at her every now and then; their gaze intensifying until they're almost in her face as they brush past her.
She refuses to flinch under their gaze and instead wonders if Chan Young can't hurry up a little as she holds her lunch tray. Tae Yeon's eyes roam the cafeteria, deciding to stare back at some of the culprits. She sees a couple of faces here and there, ones that look vaguely familiar but none that draw up a name. She exhales slightly when she confirms that there's no one she knows, as if there was any shadow of a doubt that someone could spring up from the very depths of hell and materialize before her.
Tae Yeon has a certain someone in mind when she thinks this, and yet refuses to acknowledge it.
Finally her eyes land on a group of girls in the cafeteria. They've formed a ring around someone else, and although she can't make out the girl in the centre from where she's standing – judging by the sneers present on the surrounding people she doubts it's a friendly meeting.
Tae Yeon glances back at Chan Young to find that he's still heaping vegetables on his plate. She sighs and remembers her mother telling her not to cause trouble.
At least I've found a nice boy. Just not the type that you want.
She begins to walk briskly to the group conjugated in the middle of the cafeteria, and thankfully everyone's attentions have switched from her to the unfolding scene so she slips by unnoticed. She's still grasping the metal tray and assesses its uses to her, deciding that worst come to worst the soup would make an adequate missile if need be.
As she comes up behind them, she hears a snatch of conversation.
"Who do you think you are, coming in here to eat with us with your cheap shoes and your cheap looks?" One girl questions in an annoyingly high pitched tone. Tae Yeon figures out what this is about almost instantly, and sighs. She'd known that this type of discrimination had happened, but still hadn't anticipated a confrontation to occur within her first hour here. Tae Yeon wonders if this is the warning Chan Young was contemplating giving her. That if she has no money, she will become everyone else's lackey.
"I'm sorry," comes a voice from the centre, and it's blatantly monotonous, and long past the point of caring. It suggests that she's been through this on more than one account, and has grown bored of it. "I'll try and be quiet when I eat if you let me go."
Another girl snorts rather unattractively at her and Tae Yeon feels like pointing out that the sound indicates improper manners and horrible breeding, that she'd be shunned in a business meeting for doing so – but relents because she's still too far away to properly interfere and she curses the size of this building and all of its rooms.
"Kim Tan's not here to protect you today, Choi Young Do's suspended and Yoon Chan Young was pulled out of class earlier," the same girl continues, accentuating her sentence with a flip of her hair. "There's no one here to save you, and no one for you to sit with, so just leave. Quickly."
"She can sit with me," Tae Yeon offers, finally close enough to be heard and all the girls snap round to face her, granting her with a view of the girl they've been taunting.
She's at least half ahead shorter than her bullies, mainly due to her flat shoes. Her face is pulled into a surprised expression, indicating she honestly hadn't been expecting anyone to interfere. Tae Yeon notices her shoes and her backpack, and deduces that this is the same girl that helped her earlier.
Her mother always advised her against doing people favors, because although putting someone into her debt was advantageous, it was hassling.
Repaying a favor was a different matter, although Tae Yeon had long since given up on justifying her decisions to her mother.
"What?" Another girl exclaims, outraged at the boldness of this transfer student. This girl's face resembles that of an owl, and her shriek suddenly sounds it too. Tae Yeon grins at her, and its all teeth and the girl visibly flinches. For someone who appears to be at the bottom of the food chain, she's certainly doing well at scaring them.
"I said she could sit with me," Tae Yeon repeats, enunciating each word clearly, so that the girl can hear her. Her eyes lock with the girl in the centre who is now smiling softly at her. Tae Yeon allows the edges of her mouth to soften into an actual smile. "Or should I say I could sit with her, if she doesn't mind?"
The girl shakes her head, and Tae Yeon feels slightly relieved at this. Yet she's the only one to notice the gesture as everyone else's eyes are once again firmly transfixed on her. No one is speaking, and the silence is quickly escalating into something else, and although Tae Yeon really doesn't mind, she has to at least attempt to hold the semblance of a promise she made to her mother. "Really, it's very good fortune that the people who have no one to sit with have found each other. You helped me to find her, so for that I am grateful to you," Tae Yeon completes this with a bow of her head, almost bending in half. She's over-exaggerating it to the point of ridiculousness and this has the girls seething.
Tae Yeon walks away, and gestures for the girl to lead her. The walk to a nearby table and sit down opposite one another, placing their lunch trays in front of each other.
"Cha Eun Sang, are you okay?" Chan Young comes storming over with a smaller girl in tow; a girl whose struggling to keep up with him as her hair bow threatens to slip out of her head.
Cha Eun Sang. Finally I can stop calling you the girl from earlier.
"I'm fine," Eun Sang reassures him as Chan Young seats himself next to her, and his scary girlfriend seats herself next to Tae Yeon.
"Thank you," Eun Sang says and Tae Yeon shakes her head.
"Thank you for sitting with me," Tae Yeon says and Eun Sang laughs along with her.
"I think you have competition for being my best friend," Eun Sang says and he pouts at her.
Tae Yeon looks to Chan Young as she grasps her chopsticks. "I know you said to wait for you, but I have a habit of interfering I haven't been able to stop."
Chan Young holds his hands up. "Interfere all you like."
Chan Young's girlfriend finally speaks up, reaching across the table to hit him on the shoulder and glare at him. "Who do you think you are, asking girls other than me to wait for you?"
A twinkle appears in his eyes as he replies, and Tae Yeon wonders if this is what love is supposed to look like. "Then would you have me ditch our new classmate?"
His girlfriend finally acknowledges her presence and turns to squint at her. She's sitting next to her, and Tae Yeon can smell the perfume she uses, and knows that its expensive, and that this girl is made of something different from Chan Young and Eun Sang. And yet the fact that she's willing to sit with the two of them, to date Chan Young vouches more for her character than the gold and diamond earrings in her earlobes. Tae Yeon tries not to laugh and finally registers what Chan Young had meant earlier as his girlfriend's eyes continue to narrow.
His girlfriend was quite cute when she was jealous.
"You must be Chan Young's girlfriend," she says and Eun Sang starts eating her lunch as if Chan Young's girlfriend trying to give the death glare to someone was an everyday occurrence; Tae Yeon is willing to bet that it does. Tae Yeon prides herself on her readings of people, and she can tell that this girl is the sort to love easily, and get jealous easily, but can tell she has a light heart.
Good for you, Yoon Chan Young.
"Why? What did he say about me?"
Tae Yeon pretends to contemplate this, and Eun Sang looks up in curiosity. Chan Young is looking pleadingly at her.
"He said you were very cute and beautiful, incredibly adorable when you're jealous, and you fit that description." His girlfriend absolutely melts at this, and turns to Chan Young lovingly who quickly halts the grateful look he'd been giving Tae Yeon.
"You really said that about me?" She says, and she's positively bouncing on her chair. "You really think I'm all those things?" she beams.
Tae Yeon nods, and suddenly she's being enveloped in a rather lung-crushing embrace. Tae Yeon decides that her perfume's not that bad, not as bad as the jealousy and apprehension that she can whiff whenever she'd come close into contact with the rest of the students.
"Yah, are you trying to steal everyone from me?" Chan Young jokes and Tae Yeon smirks back at him. There's hardly room to say anything else, what with his girlfriend constricting her windpipe.
"I'm Lee Bo Na," his girlfriend says with a flip of her hair, and the name sounds vaguely familiar to her; although Tae Yeon can't quite place it. Unlike everyone else whose faces only registered slight familiarity, the name Lee Bo Na tugs on her mind, as does her face.
Yet I think I would remember someone like you.
"Kang Tae Yeon," Tae Yeon says, and begins to chew on a mouthful of rice, and sips a spoonful of soup.
"Nice to meet you Tae Yeon," Bo Na says. "I haven't seen you around before."
"If she's a new student does it make sense for you to have seen her before?" Eun Sang asks and Bo Na pointedly ignores her. Chan Young is simply watching his girlfriend with a look of adoration in his eyes that has Tae Yeon's heart clench.
I want a boy to look at me like that, as uncomplicated as that. With no difficulties.
The thought strikes her and she slams it back into the drawer that it came from. She locks it shut and tosses the key into the dark abyss of her mind.
I am not thinking about that now.
Bo Na is still looking expectantly at her, but Tae Yeon knows she couldn't have zoned out for more than a couple of seconds. Despite Eun Sang's logical comment, she knows what Bo Na had meant. She means that she hasn't seen her face, doesn't recognize it besides Tae Yeon's initial familiarity with her name. That she hasn't seen her at any galas or meetings.
Tae Yeon doesn't say any of this and instead explains herself according to Eun Sang's interpretation of the question. "It's my first day. I wasn't in this morning, but I came in around 11.30 and Chan Young guided me here from the office."
"Just in time to be my hero," Eun Sang says, and the conversation is light and Tae Yeon once again finds herself grateful to have found this group of people so quickly. The gods must be smiling down upon her, shining a golden light among the few nice people in this fish tank.
"What's wrong with those girls anyway? Just because Kim Tan isn't here. Is Kim Tan the only one who can offer you protection?" Chan Young asks indignantly, stopping his tender adoration of Bo Na. Eun Sang sighs into her spoon, and this is a conversation she has clearly long grown tired of.
Then, as if struck by some sort of epiphany, turns to Tae Yeon. "What kind of new student is stupid enough to interfere with that sort of a thing on their first day?"
"Lee Bo Na," Chan Young reprimands her and Bo Na's expression turns into one of guilt.
"I can be stupid when it suits me. Plus, Eun Sang helped me this morning, so it only seemed fair."
"That was you?" Eun Sang asks incredulously and Tae Yeon smiles.
"I think I would have been dragged off and sacrificed to the God of wealth and beauty if you hadn't given me directions."
Eun Sang laughs, and Tae Yeon decides perhaps Jeguk High won't be all that bad.
By the end of the week, Tae Yeon's pleasantly surprised to have found good friends in Eung Sang, Chan Young and even the quirky Bo Na. She meets Myung Soo on the Friday, and the boy claims that the reasoning behind his absence is due to the fact he's been boycotting school in protest of someone named Choi Young Do's suspension – but no one quite believes him.
He's cute and childlike and Tae Yeon warms to him instantly; finding similarities between him and Min Kyung in a heartbeat. Myung Soo is overly trusting for someone attending Jeguk High, and at first Tae Yeon wonders if he's too dense to realize how dangerous it is, but soon learns he's just overly trusting. She supposes the fact that his parents are the leading lawyers in the country and he's endearingly adorable is enough to keep him afloat in these dangerous waters.
Eun Sang's Kim Tan however, she's not entirely sure of.
She'd met him on her second day, before her and Eun Sang had entered homeroom. She'd been waiting for Eun Sang to retrieve her books from her locker whilst they chatted idly about various school experiences, including various embarrassing tales featuring Chan Young – a conversation that had started that morning. Tae Yeon had discovered on her first day that Eun Sang took the bus to school, and when she got on the bus that second morning to see Eun Sang already there; Eun Sang didn't question it and instead moved her backpack from the seat next to her and gestured for Tae Yeon to sit down.
"Good morning," a boy had said as he snaked his arms around Eun Sang's waist, causing Eun Sang to suddenly halt her story about something Bo Na had done to a girl named Yoo Rachel – blushing cutely. Tae Yeon hasn't seen the boy before, and doesn't remember him from yesterday. Just like Bo Na's name, the boy's face seems familiar. Judging from how comfortable he is with Eun Sang and how deeply she's blushing, Tae Yeon had concluded that this is the boyfriend she hard about yesterday: the infamous Kim Tan.
Tae Yeon had watched amusedly as he took Eun Sang's books from her, despite her loud protests. "I heard you got into trouble at lunch yesterday?" He asks, and Eun Sang froze, before her blush intensified.
"I'm going to kill that Yoon Chan Young," Eun Sang had declared.
"And I'm going to kill those girls," Kim Tan said, and Tae Yeon leant further against the row of lockers to get a better view of the couple, thoroughly enjoying the embarrassed expression on Eung Sang's face. Kim Tan had paused. "Sorry for not being here to save you."
"No need," she'd said, closing her locker and patting his chest. "I've already found a new hero to replace you," she'd added, and smiled at Tae Yeon.
Tan noticed her then for the first time, and raised his eyebrows at her. Tae Yeon notes the way they disappear beneath his oddly-young looking fringe.
"Who are you?" he'd asked bluntly.
"She's a friend," Eun Sang stated defensively, and Tae Yeon felt warmed by the idea of Eung Sang defending her. "She started school yesterday."
Tan had looked at her, in the way that all of the other students had, in a way that showed he thought he was superior; so she'd looked straight back. From the top of his head, to the bottom of his maroon sneakers. Kim Tan was tall, taller than Chan Young – perhaps the same height as Min Kyung. His face wore an expression of sever passivity, and it had only looked slightly warmer when he'd been conversing with Eun Sang. Nothing in comparison to the way Chan Young had looked at Bo Na yesterday. When he'd next spoke, his voice had taken on a tone of indignation. "And why does a new student think she should interfere in other people's business?"
Eun Sang had hit him squarely in the chest, and he paid no attention. "Yah, Kim Tan!" Eun Sang scolded, and Kim Tan merely reached up to hold her hand as she prepared to hit him again.
Tae Yeon arches her eyebrows. "Excuse me?" she asks, and she notices how her voice has gone quiet.
"Busy bodies don't last well here."
"Kim Tan!" Eun Sang exclaimed again, shooting Tae Yeon an apologetic look. However Tae Yeon felt her temper rising quickly, and she doesn't have the time to quell it before she acts out; no matter how much she values Eun Sang's friendship.
She does not appreciate people making assumptions, or telling her what she can or can't do, what is expected or not expected of her. "Boyfriends who give people the impression it's okay to bully his girlfriend when he's not there don't last well in relationships," she quips back, and the sore expression on Tan's face had told her that she'd managed to strike a raw nerve.
"What are you?" Tan demanded.
"A friend," Eun Sang repeated, agitated that he's paying no attention to her reprimands. Tae Yeon could tell that she was actively trying to diffuse the tension, almost on instinct; as if she's had to do it many times before. Tae Yeon hopes for Eun Sang's sake that it's usually more successful.
"Kang Tae Yeon," she says and Kim Tan continued to look unimpressed.
"Do you know who I am?" he asked, and the glint of recognition that had flickered in his eyes when she says her name made her stomach twist.
Eun Sang appeared to have given up, instead grabbing onto Kim Tan's wrist with her free hand as if preparing to drag him away.
"No," Tae Yeon looked closely at him, squinting for added effect much like Bo Na had yesterday. "Should i?"
"I'm Kim Tan," he'd said, and Tae Yeon remembered the name from yesterday, and had then racked her brain for somewhere else she might have heard it, that makes him think it's that important – yet comes up short.
"Great," she'd said flatly when her search had come up empty.
"I'm Kim Nam Yoon's son," he'd continued, and it clicked into place in her mind.
"You're Jeguk Group's second son."
Eun Sang looked between the two of them curiously.
"Yes. And the Chairwoman of this school is my father's ex-wife," he said matter-of-factly. Explained the ridiculous hair, perhaps the Chairwoman had influenced his fashion choices. He'd stated it obviously, as if there was any way that Tae Yeon wouldn't know. As if his relation to the Chairwoman had to be stated separately from being Kim Nam Yoon's son. He is telling her that he knows the Chairwoman, that this is the Chairwoman's school, that the Chairwoman controls this school, and so Kim Tan knows her.
The intended meaning is clear. Kim Tan is telling her that he knows who she is, even though she's been trying so hard to not let anyone know. He is telling her to be careful, that this is his school, and that she needs to watch her place.
It's a blatant threat, and Tae Yeon doesn't take kindly to it.
Eun Sang apparently picked up on his tone, and decided she had had enough. "Kim Tan, stop," Eun Sang had said and when Tan glanced down at her he looks slightly hurt at her for not siding with him – then proceeds to storm off.
Tae Yeon had snapped out of her temper the minute Tan left her sight. "Sorry if I spoke out of line and offended you."
Eun Sang shook her head. "No need, I apologize on his behalf. He's incredibly protective of his friends, and ridiculously wary of everyone. He'll come around."
Tae Yeon must have looked as unconvinced as she felt, for Eun Sang continued as she linked her elbow through Tae Yeon's. "He has to, because I am not about to lose my new friend to his bad attitude," and then she's leading her to their home room and Tae Yeon is too focused on giving her introduction to care anymore.
An OC FanFiction? I know, how 2010 of me. I remember when I wrote my first FanFiction, looked back at it and swore to never write OC fic again. And yet the Heirs has pushed me to it.
Kim Tan and Eun Sang just wasn't doing it for me, and I lost interest in him and Eun Sang's love line despairingly quickly, and just hoping for more Young Do.
Of course I never get what I want, and I didn't think that I had a clear enough interpretation of what I thought Eun Sang was like to do her justice in my writing (especially compared to all the other fics out there); so I scrapped that idea and made my own character.
I have an obscenely clear picture of where I want this story to go, and I've mainly figured out exactly who I think Tae Yeon and Young Do are.
Hopefully someone enjoys reading this as much as I enjoy writing it (not that it'll stop me because I am having the time of my life).