Hello, beautiful readers. I hope you are having a better April than me. I have been very busy with school and work. I was planning to work on the next chapter this weekend but decided to cut it in half and give you a new chapter for your weekend. Although small, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
Have a wonderful weekend!
With the rhythm of feet tapping on the floor, Jandi's wandering eyes moved from the empty table to her hands held together tightly. The freshly washed uniform she had on, there was no long sleeve to pull and use to ease the movements of her fidgeting fingers. The snow white dress shirt of their uniform peeking from the dark blue suit coat that matched the skirts the girls had to wear; the thought that today might be the last day she would be allowed to wear this uniform and enter this school was a bit scary. Her arms crossed, she quickly moved her eyes to scan the empty conference room they had placed her in. No matter what happens, being kicked out wasn't an option. Failing at the only task she was in charge of wasn't acceptable. Her primary and only mission, how it had been days since she even thought about it, who else would be to blame but herself?
How could she lose such control? The self-blame, the voice continued cursing while her brutal nails started digging into her hands that had never received any mercy from them. All the years of work she had done to be undone because of a simple fight with a group of nobodies? It wasn't even one of the F4 boys, but beating a bunch of nobodies being the reason for her expulsion, was too shocking. What will Bom think? She shook the question she had been avoiding since the incident happened and ordered her mind to devise something more productive to think about. What can she do to stay? Apologize? Beg for forgiveness? Even if it means getting down on her knees and kissing their feet? Was there anything she wouldn't do not to be expelled? The answer was no. She will do whatever they ask. Maybe she could even use her dead parents as leverage to beg. Just the thought left a bad taste in her mouth before her angry teeth were sent to battle against each other. Being humiliated and embarrassed was something she was used to, but somehow, it felt different this time.
"Just suck it and do whatever they ask," The last demands of hers were said out loud as she bit her tongue.
" Remember, you're a nobody. You don't deserve to feel any way about having to beg forgiveness. Remember your place." The voice in her head, as always, was harsher. The gray color of the conference room, all the colors on her face were wiped away to match it. What she does for those older men she puts on those dresses for and parties with until the break of dawn; she was quickly reminded of all she has done to get here. It couldn't get any more humiliating than that. She lowered her eyes from the wall to the empty table. If she gets kicked out, even if she didn't, the best solution was to quickly get as much information as possible. And that solution brought back memories from last night, and the only person who has the information she needs. A vivid image of the person she woke up next to; her nails had slowed down as the image turned to a moving picture of his smile.
The sunrise she didn't see, all she remembers was waking up to the warmth of the sun rays hitting her face. Her eyes opening up to find somebody next to her on any given day would have freaked her out, but somehow, it didn't. Maybe it was knowing he wouldn't have done anything. Maybe it was her unprepared eyes opening up to witness the glowing face of his surrounded by the sun rays coming from behind him. Maybe it was how he was sitting before her, staring at her like always. All of that, aided by the sweet smell of his long coat covering her body like a blanket, she had woken up from her sleep to be welcomed by such a view. A shocking view that had left her speechless for a few minutes. Her slowly blinking eyes, even they couldn't help but just stare back at his soft smile. How on earth was she okay with waking up to see any man around her, let alone this one? How she had allowed herself to sleep and leave herself vulnerable around him? All those important questions had evaporated away when his voice became the first thing she heard in the morning.
" Good morning." his low-tone voice that was even lower thanks to the cold he had caught; only her hands were willing to react to it as they grabbed his coat, covering her all the way to her neck, closer. The warm coat couldn't shield her from what his piercing eyes were doing as they were still studying what she looked like first thing in the morning. He had thought watching the reflection of night turning into morning on her face would have been it, but this had topped that. The dark circles under her eyes perfectly highlighting the golden brown color of her eyes, the puffy cheeks of hers making her red nose even more adorable, and the morning rays illuminating every tiny freckle across her face would have been enough. Still, she had parted her lips to greet him back.
"Good morning," she whispered. Her raspy but soft voice not failing to help the corrupt thought that had already occupied his mind. In his internal battle, he was doing everything to convince himself nothing would come close to what it would feel like if he accepted her greeting by covering her lips with his. Nothing would be sweeter than starting the day that way. The subconscious thought had crossed the bridge to become one he was very aware of. How the crazy thought had crossed another line to become something he could vividly picture; it was already starting to become challenging to get his mind to stop thinking about it. Her poisonous lips that will deliver the kill, the image of them moving in rhythm to his, nothing even compared to just imagining it. His eyes that had never been shy to showcase what had left him frozen; the only proof he needed to know she understood them was how she had pulled his coat higher. The collar of his coat was brought to cover the lower half of her face. Her lips, which she pulled in to bite the lower one, were intentionally hidden from his eyes. Her eyes she kept lowered as she kept adjusting the coat to cover her closely; what she was doing was emboldening the ill thought that was trying to convince him he might be able to get away with it if he dared to pull that coat away from her and take over her lips she was hiding from him.
A boundary he knows she will never forgive him if he crosses without clear consent from her; who would have thought just seeing her react like this would be enough to silence the burning thoughts? That fact that she could not only read what was displayed all over him but could feel it to have such a reaction was a big win for now. If it were any other girl, she would have been held against the glass and forced to scream his name by now, but that wasn't even what he wanted from the girl that he had accepted was going to be the first and probably last girl allowed even to have access to his heart she would break over and over again. For now, none of the ways he wanted to undress this girl had anything to do with actual clothes but the armor she wears to hide the person she keeps behind her walls. Disarming her was supposed to be the main goal, but every minute he spent around her had already started blurring the line. How his body responds to even being around her, his aim was only days away from not having a clear intention and becoming just a mixture of feelings he has never felt before.
Seeing her hurt, covered in blood. Seeing her sad, her cries echoing through the trees, just the mere thought of those was easily able to shift his body's desire to one that was very foreign. The lust of his lips or his hands that were begging to touch her was nowhere near wanting to get rid of her pain or share in her sadness. But in reality, both were unlikely events. But even then, it was pretty obvious to him that no matter how insane it would drive him, he would prefer to be her resting place and the one she wouldn't need to guard herself against. But if he was granted both and if that day ever comes, hearing his name whispered when she reaches the highest of pleasures would be the closest thing he would experience to heaven. That is probably why the universe wouldn't make it possible. It was too good to be true, and he had never been lucky like that. All his luck was used up when the universe decided what parents to give him. Everything else after that has been a curse. Knowing his luck, he would thank the heavens if he was granted even the chance to be close enough where she might choose to rest her tired body and burdens on his shoulder.
" Are you still sick?" she asked, quickly looking up and bringing him out of his thoughts.
" Yes"
"The custodian opens the building at 6, so we should be able to leave." The way she was only sneaking glances at him, he needed a minute not to bother asking about it and decided to let it go.
" It's ten past 6." glancing at his watch, he announced, and nothing was said until they left the building. Leading the way, Jandi had only looked his way, curious why he wasn't putting on the coat she had given back to him. The wind they were welcomed by, her eyes had again returned to the coat that could have protected her from it. Her cardigan wrapped around her, and she quicked their steps to the empty streets. Junpyo, following on her right side, distracted himself from how much he wanted her to cover her frail-looking body with his coat to the fascinating view of the streets. The closed stores, the somewhat empty streets being cleaned, the early morning workers with their heads lowered heading to the train station, it was all so fascinating to see.
" There is a phone booth two blocks away. You can call your driver," Jandi said, directing them to turn right. She folded her hands lower to her growling, empty stomach. Just like she said, she had walked them to the phone booth and gave him some coins to make the call. The driver, awakened by the call, was told to pick him up by the main train station before Jandi told him to make it to the high school on the west side of town. That was the best place to stay hidden and picked up from so nobody who knew her saw him.
" He said he will be here in 30-45 minutes, depending on traffic."
" Traffic is in the other direction, so it should be 30." Jandi, who didn't seem happy about it taking any longer, started their walk again. The streets turning smaller and uphill, Junpyo was happy just enjoying this walk beside her. The fresh air of the morning, the sun that was still rising, had the perfect orange hue across the neighborhood he was studying. Everything had his attention: the old buses passing by, the food carts, and the old ladies rolling them to the perfect locations to sell to those running to their work; all his attention was on the neighborhood. That was until he heard her stomach growling. With all the things he has come to realize about her, he knew he had to find a smart way to make her eat. The first thing was to wait a few minutes so his suggestion didn't seem obvious. The second was to use himself and make it about him.
"Is there someplace to eat something?" he asked, only turning her way when he saw her questioning eyes focused on him.
" I need to eat so I can take my meds" was the only explanation he needed, but he had added more.
" I don't want to get even more sick," he coughed between his words.
" Would you really eat anything from here?" she asked, returning her eyes to the road.
" Why wouldn't I?"
" The way you have been looking at everything, I doubt you would trust the food."
" I am just fascinated, nothing else."
" Sure," was all she said as she calculated the best place to get him something to eat and whether it would be a good way to waste the 30 minutes.
" What?" he asked, catching the small smile that escaped her lips as she looked up at him.
" Nothing." One of her favorite places to eat, she had convinced herself she chose it to test his claim that he really didn't mind eating here, and not because she wanted him to try what she liked to eat in the morning.
It took about ten more minutes to get to the container-converted street food vendor by the fish market. The old lady who ran it was the only one she would trust not to say anything to anybody because she wasn't in any way connected to anything. The market closed on Wednesday, and she knew this part of town would have fewer people, so she was right.
" Every other day, there is a fish market there." she directed his eyes to what he was smelling. The white noise from the cars rushing on the highway a few blocks away added to the noise of the city waking up; Junpyo was bothered by the noise more than the smell. The complete silence the world he lived in provided him was the complete opposite of the lively noises of her neighborhood, which felt like it had an actual life and would take time to get used to. And once he does, his soundless world would be the odd one.
Smell, noise, the next sense was touch, and Jandi was waiting to see his reaction as they were directed to sit on those tiny plastic chairs at the corner of the street. His tall legs couldn't even fold to fit under the table; she held her smile in as she watched him attempt every direction.
" You brought somebody," the old lady pushing the small cart to their side broke the silence.
" He is handsome," she added before Jandi responded to the first statement.
" We work together," the lie she was preparing to spew; Junpyo decided to just smile at the old lady scanning him. The stern-looking lady, he didn't even know her, but he was already acting properly, so he didn't get scolded.
"What can I get you two?" the old lady asked, placing the cups for the warm water and the side dishes. From enjoying the puzzled look on Jun Pyo, who was scanning everything the old lady was placing on the tiny table, Jandi turned her attention to order.
"Can we get two dried Pollack soups?"
" Can you add some ginger to one? He has a cold." The old lady had turned her attention from Jandi to Junpyo, who was left in a daze as he heard her not only ordering for him but also being considerate of his illness. So, she does care? Maybe a tiny bit, and when he was sick. Perhaps he should always be sick. The way Junpyo was looking at the girl was all the old lady needed to get her answers.
"Can we also get spicy tofu and eggs in the skillet? And Yuzu Jelly tea for him. Can you add ginger to the tea, too?" With another order specifically for the boy, the lady turned to Junpyo to catch his slowly blinking eyes, still looking at Jandi in the same lost way.
" anything else"
" No," Jandi responded. The old lady turned to Junpyo to see if he had any input. All she got was his smile, which she couldn't take in. He was too handsome and looked a bit different than anybody she had seen for her not to question his presence.
" I will get you a better chair," the old lady had claimed as she left with the cart.
" Maybe having long legs isn't a good thing after all." Jandi, hiding her smile behind the cup, took a sip.
"I am sure you would volunteer to chop them in half." His eyes following everything she was doing; he watched as she started pouring some of the warm water for him before she pushed the cup his way. Her arms folded, and she waited as she watched him prepare to taste it. It was just warm water; what she was waiting for wasn't his reaction but watching him do things she does on any given day. In a way, that was the only way she could accept this to be real. Their odd friendship felt real and less scary when it was all happening in her world, under her direction and control. His world she hates more than anything; she found him interesting to watch when he was in hers.
" I am not that violent." Jandi started adjusting her position to wrap her cold body with whatever was left of the cardigan and her arms,
"Haha," he covered his mouth with his left hand as he laughed. The teacup he placed down; he brought his smiling eyes to her.
" Of course, you're not."
" Are you telling me you have never broken somebody's legs before?"
Her lack of response, she just picked up her cup and took a sip.
" I wouldn't be surprised if you have even killed a person." What he had said he was using as a test, only he was baffled when there was no reaction on her face to his claim. She really might have; that was what her mysterious eyes were convincing him of as they stared back at him while she took another sip, a hint of a smile at the corner of her lips. How scary she sometimes gets; his pounding heart was too charmed even by that. The reality was that even if she hadn't, she could do so; not only did he find it charming somehow, it was exciting. Maybe it was because of how her knifelike eyes were looking at him in the tempting way they were.
" Would that make you stay away?"
" Knowing I have killed a person?"
" I don't think you would, would you?" He brushed his hair away. Both were enjoying his confusion about what he believed.
" You slept on my lap, and I didn't kill you, so." what she had said was regretted the second it left her lips, and she saw his reaction to how she had just reminded both of where his head spent most of the night. The teacup she was hiding behind, Junpyo's sixth sense, was starting to learn how to pick on the difference between what she says Vs. what her eyes silently whisper to him. Starting last night, it had moved from just her eyes to her whole body. That was the payoff for being so attentive to everything she did.
" Maybe you were using this opportunity to make me trust you."
" Next time I lay down by your side, you will snap my neck."
" There will be no next time," she responded quickly.
" and if I want to snap your neck, you don't need to be sleeping."
" I don't think you can get away with it if I am awake." He enjoyed the warm water clearing his throat too much, thanks to the conversation.
"What will you do?" her words mixed in with her dismissive smile. She still hadn't realized that trying to scare this boy with a physical threat doesn't work.
" Why don't you try so you can see?" his cup brought to his lips; now he was the one with the smirk as he watched her smile fade away.
"Are you daring me?"
" Maybe"
"Having you close enough to get to my neck would be interesting. Looking into my eyes as you hold my neck before you snap it," he added as he lowered the register of his voice, but it wasn't just that. His dim eyes, turning their gaze, had slowly faded all the background noise out of focus.
" I will promise I won't fight back," he added, his raspy voice sounding even more wicked with every word. The red flags that usually signaled to her when a boundary was about to be tested were nowhere to be found.
" Is this another weird result of your suicidal thoughts?" She had thought even using the term would trigger something and silence him.
" No." With his odd smirk, he took another sip.
" They are definitely not suicidal thoughts."
" What then?"
" You don't want to know."
" Why not?"
" I don't think you would understand."
" Why not? Is it something nobody else has ever experienced?"
"Well, it feels like it," he said as his right hand brushed his hair back. His hand stayed there longer as it started playing with his earrings. He was testing what his intuition was telling him as he slowly lowered his right hand from his ear to his neck. The back of his neck he started massaging; his lowered eyes glanced up to get the answer to his intuition. Half her face hidden behind the cup she was holding with both hands, her eyes had followed every movement of his hand to now focus on the exposed neck he was stroking. The muscles across his neck would require both hands if she wanted to snap it, but maybe that wasn't the best way to do it. His throat she could slit open; he had turned right to make it clear to her eyes what veins she would need to cut to stop blood flow to his brain. The veins strained against his smooth skin; her eyes trailed down until they disappeared into the white shirt he had underneath the green sweater. The two necklaces hidden by the sweater had garbed and directed her attention to the glimpse of his collar bones. As his hand returned to the right side of his neck to move his necklace, her eyes looked up at his and instantly realized she was being watched.
"Why are you so weird?" she swiftly turned her eyes down to her cup.
" Says the trained killer." This one had gotten a reaction out of her as she sat up, her eyes widening and looking back up as she prepared to dismiss what he had said as a joke.
"That's hilarious. If I were one, you would have been dead after you spilled that coffee on me." Jandi, getting ready to add more and even use everything that happened to her to guilt-trip him into silence, didn't have to do anything more. They were disturbed by the old lady who brought their food to the table. There was an odd silence between them, and the old lady was too smart to look at only the boy to figure out why it felt different minutes ago.
Jandi sent both hands to move things around the table and add everything she wanted to her soup. The cold wind that gushed over had attacked her body, and she couldn't hide its shiver. The hot food she hoped to use to give her body more energy to stay warm, she had to turn her attention from the soup she was mixing to Junpyo, whom she saw standing up. The spoon and chopsticks in her hands; her baffled eyes had just watched as he picked his jacket from the empty chair on his right side and walked across to her. Leaning down, he placed the thick coat on top of her. Both his hands adjusting it correctly over her shoulders had made sure to button the collar to cover her neck and make sure it stays on., Her eyes following him back to his seat were just as frozen as her hands above the soup.
" This looks good."Picking his spoon, he pointed at the soup in front of him. The gamble he took, he would have bet against himself and had to hide his surprise when she continued mixing her soup.
" It's good for your cold." She took a sip of the soup to taste, waited until she fully enjoyed that one, and even took her second before sending her eyes his way.
" I don't want to be blamed for getting you sick," she responded to his amazed eyes.
The first taste of the soup that would change his experience with any breakfast after today, Jandi hadn't thought about it, but it was the best thing to silence him. His eyes in disbelief of how good it was; glancing up at her every other minute, all she could do was smile at how childlike he acted at times. As though he had never had food before, who would believe he was the son of a billionaire if they saw him eating like this? Slowing down her eating, she found it fascinating to watch him eat. Her eyes turned down whenever she was caught staring.
" I don't want you to come here anymore." halfway through her meal, she whispered her demand.
" Why not?" He placed his spoon on the napkin and picked up his special tea, which he enjoyed too much.
" I just don't. Why does everything need an explanation?"
" Because I am not allowed to do anything."
" I will come to your place." She knew he would accept this offer.
" I will come to you when you want." She didn't think much about this one as she focused more on the spicy tofu she was chewing on. Looking up, her eyes followed his right hand, which came her way for a handshake on the offer he couldn't refuse. Her usual warm hand, when he shook her hand was when he fully grasped how cold she was.
" Why don't you wear more clothes if you're always cold?"
" If I do, I will get used to the warmth. It's better to get used to the cold." Junpyo chose to take his time to break down and analyze why the words she softly spoke felt like they carried a double meaning.
As she returned her focus to her food, Junpyo had taken all the time he needed to enjoy his tea while staring at the girl. Somehow, he couldn't pick between the view from when she woke up and now. Both times, he couldn't help but be happy about how she was blanketed with his coat. And both times, he had followed his intuition and placed it on her. It was the first thing he did when he woke up to find himself lying on her lap. Well, it was the first thing he did after trying not to freak out over waking up on her lap. About half an hour before sunrise, he had woken up for his eyes to open to the thin fabric of her shirt, which wasn't hiding much. The deep breath she was taking and the movements of her chest had a trickling effect on the left side of her stomach, which he clearly made out behind the t-shirt. His shocked eyes, waking up instantly, were sent up to notice how she was sleeping. His body ordered not to make any sudden movements; even his eyes were closed back just to take in that this was real. The curve of her waist getting his attention this time; his eyes had opened again to welcome all the ill thoughts of his aching head.
Her light body he had held a few times now; how the odd thoughts didn't just start now was all he could think about. The coffee he threw a few months ago, his eyes he closed again, had sent him back to that day. The white dress shirt of hers turned see-through thanks to the hot liquid; what he recalls now wasn't just her fiery eyes staring deadly at him but her chest, trying to keep up with her hard breathing, going up and down rhythmically. The hint of the shape of the bra she had on, along with those eyes of her staring into his soul, was now when he was able to recognize how the inclination reaching the surface now had been planted back then. The citric smell of the cloth she had on, which she had washed hours ago; the deep breath he took to calm himself down had only caused more issues as even his hand couldn't help but react to it.
His hands he would need to train ot even to dare get close to her, let alone touch; he didn't need another reminder of the battle ahead but had gotten one as her right hand was moved to rest on his shoulder. Not even a proper touch; there would be no clearer sign he would be given about how captured his body was. This was also his answer to why he hadn't even been able to look at another girl, let alone touch one in weeks. The boy who gets whatever he wants when he wants it; being unable to satisfy himself wasn't even a serious issue compared to how she really had his whole attention and adoration. Everybody else she had already removed from his view to become the only one; that realization was the one that would trigger his anxiety.
His head slowly lifted away. He had stood up to move to the glass in front and sit down facing her. His anxiety needed space, and that was as much as he could give it as he sat down, leaning against the glass behind him, his eyes focused on the sleeping girl. Being honest with himself, he was very keen on it; it was time to accept his feelings towards the girl his eyes were examining every inch of. Not only was she the one, she was the first and only one. Even more alarmingly, she was the only one he would officially claim as his, and would want to keep everything about her to himself. The exclusivity he never found appealing; here he was, already pissed off he doesn't get to be the only one who gets to be close enough to her to watch her sleep. His mind working against him as always had brought his best friend's name and the image of the kiss between the two. Not only was she nowhere close to being his to declare publically, she was his best friend's girl. Jihoo had already repeatedly accomplished what he couldn't even do unless the universe was flipped upside down.
Would she lay this peacefully around Jihoo? The wrong question to ask. It had brought up a dozen worse ones before the final one dared to ask if she would let Jihoo sleep with her. The fact that he knew the answer to that, another poke at his anxiety, was what sent both his hands to his hair, which he brushed away before he squeezed his head, already hurting. His hands, from his messy hair, were sent to find his cigarette. Even if he doesn't light it, just having it between his lips would help ease the irritation at his thoughts and fidgeting hands. He couldn't find his cigarette, so he was forced to sit there and stare at the girl he knew would be more than happy to do whatever with Jihoo, whom she liked so much.
His best friend Junpyo's thoughts always lead him to whenever he thinks about her; it was the same for Jandi. Still sitting in the conference room, her thoughts from the guy she had spent the night and morning with had turned to the one whom she would never tell what had happened last night. The fact that she felt that way, how she wasn't realizing why, was an issue. The subconscious hint of guilt she was already feeling had forced all her worries to be about her boyfriend, who has been running around and doing everything he can to keep her at school.
" I don't think you should worry much about it. I think Jihoo will save you," she recalled Eun's last few words before they were separated, and the secretary led Jandi to this room. In the long texts she had exchanged with Jihoo about the meeting, a slight smirk had escaped the corner of her lips when she thought of them. The smirk would extend to a smile as she recalled how he had informed her he was still fighting to be included in the meeting. "If nothing else, I want to be there so you could just look at me and don't think about them." Jihoo had texted the words that would extend her smile. How could he be this kind to her? Her thoughts had found the perfect distraction from what was waiting for her.
" You need to do something nice for him," Eun's voice was back. The night they spent together on Monday, Eun had gone on and on about how Jihoo deserved something special from Jandi. Dates, gifts... Eun had gone on listing things she expected Jandi to shower Jihoo with. She might not know how to do any of those, but even Jandi couldn't deny that he did deserve all of it.
She always found the protective behaviors of people endearing. At this moment, nobody was as attractive as the one running around to make sure the punishment she received for what she did was as minimal as possible. He really does deserve everything, she concluded as she pulled her phone out of her pocket. The silenced phone, now, was when she saw the text from Eun with the stay-strong memes. The two people were turning her days from gray to somewhat normal, but Jandi hadn't yet realized how drastically her life was changing in such a short period. With the quick text sent to Eun, her focus was shifted to the web search, where she typed in something she would have never guessed she would.
What to do for my boyfriend—the words she was typing. Her eyes were stuck on the last two. Her fingers had typed what her subconscious had already accepted. How she had accepted it so quickly, without much thought, wasn't a matter for now. It was time to be happy that she even had someone to type this question for—someone who truly cared about her. Someone she was honestly interested in making happy. Someone whose opinion mattered so much, she was actively forcing herself not to think about what he would do if he ever got to know the real her.
Before she pressed search, "Hello." The opened door instantly got her attention. As she placed her phone face down on the table, she turned her eyes to the two men who walked in. Their expensive suits were the first thing she noted as she ran their faces against her memory of all the men she knew. She had never seen them before.
" I am Jang KiYong. This is Kim DongHee," the one wearing the black suit and leading the way smiled at her. Her sharp eyes from his suit were sent to his smiling face; she couldn't pinpoint why he was smiling. Stranger men were always seen as dangerous; her unblinking eyes stayed on him as she watched his smile grow. With her scary eyes, he glanced at the blue-suited man beside him, who was also smiling. The girl that hadn't even stood up from her chair to greet them; the way she was looking at them was enough to tell him she wouldn't be smiling back at them.
"You're exactly as he described," he added as he pulled the chair in front of her and sat down.
" We are your representation." He smiled again as he opened his bag and started pulling out documents. His expensive watch and suits would have been enough, but even his soft smile looked pricey.
" We have gathered some information about the incident. Is there anything in particular you would like us to know ?" he asked as he started taping the file he lay on the table with his name-marked pen, which he pulled out from the same bag. Her eyes, still scanning them, shifted from him to the blue-suited one waiting for her. Unlike the other, he wasn't smiling, and his lowered shoulders and postures toward the other indicated that the other was in charge.
" I just want to apologize and get it over with." her meek voice followed the same direction as her eyes she shifted to her hands held together and placed on her lap. The thing she had been avoiding wasn't possible anymore and something serious awaited her. Considering this type of fancy lawyer, getting involved with the case meant there were some legal things. All she could think about was the boys' families deciding to sue, which would be worse than even getting expelled. Getting expelled, she had thought that was the limit to what could happen to her. She had forgotten about the law, which the wealthy families use as it suits them.
" Why would you apologize?" the one leading the conversation forced her eyes back up to him.
" You were defending yourself, weren't you?" he asked as he leaned back on the chair. Her somewhat baffled and startled eyes, now was when she recalled what they said about why they were here.
" What I'm more curious about is what you want to happen to them," he asked, confusing her even more about what he was here for. There is no way a school-paid lawyer would ask her this. Maybe this was another effort of Jihoo to help ease the situation. As instantly as she thought of it, a smirk escaped her lips, which both men caught. He really was going above and beyond to help; she thought as her reaction-less face turned somewhat welcoming. On their last call on her way here, he had told her not to sign any legal documents without a council. Did he mean them? She scanned the two again. If he really did send lawyers to help her, that would be too much. How much sweet can he get?
" I just don't want to be expelled."
" And?"
"That's all." Her eyes shifted from them to their pens, which marked something at the bottom of their documents.
" I thought you might have more fire in you, considering what happened." Flipping the file closed, the main lawyer smiled.
" I just want to stay and cause no more problems," she said in her tired-sounding voice. She didn't understand fully what these two were brought here to do.
" Can you guarantee that?" she asked, slightly startled by the smile the two men exchanged. She waited for a response that wouldn't come, but their smile at the question was the answer.
"Huh," she took a deep breath and crossed her arms. The careful eyes of the one asking her all the questions had slowly started scanning her. The face of hers, she was sure she looked strange; her thumb had started moving along her skin it was fond of causing pain as both sets of eyes went on analyzing every inch of her. It doesn't take much to figure out she is odd. They wouldn't be here if she weren't, but what both men were thinking about was nowhere close to the harsh words she was using against how she probably looked.
" Excuse me, they are ready for you," the secretary who knocked and opened the door announced, and that was it for the chat with the lawyers who would be positioned on each side of her as they walked out of the conference room and followed the secretary who would lead them to the special conference room in the director's office. Even if not for the two men, she expected to get some attention from the students they were passing by. Considering the popularity of the photos of what she had done, she was expecting some, but the number of people stopping what they were doing and turning to them was a bit startling. Everybody on their way, students, teachers, and even other staff had paused what they were doing to look at the girl guarded by the two suited men. Some were stunned, some with a mixture of amazement and disgust, and some not sure what they felt about her. Jandi captured all the looks she was getting.
" You're popular." Leaning her way, the leading lawyer smiled. It was beyond obvious how much she was disliked and feared at the same time. If it were him, he would be proud to have had such power in this school while being one of the scholarship students. Considering what he had heard about her, he would be walking with pride if he were her. Maybe even with an attitude that dares for anybody to try her. The girl who dared to slap Junpyo should be walking with confidence. What wasn't obvious to him was why her head was held down; it had nothing to do with all the spectators but what was waiting for her.
" When we are in there, you take my lead."
"Anything you want to say, you check with me first," he added, leaning closer to her.
" If possible, I want to do all the talking," the last smile he gave her; he even gave her a tiny wink as he walked past the door the secretary held open. And that was the start of the crazy meeting.
"Good morning, everyone." As though he was in charge of the meeting, he had walked in, gathering everybody's attention. From the man still leaving her baffled, Jandi's eyes went to the people sitting on one side of the long conference table. There were too many people. The parents of the three boys, the two mothers, and their lawyers were easy to spot.
" What are you doing here?" The immediate question from one of the boy's lawyers was a shared worry by all the lawyers she spotted sitting along the table. All their startled eyes, she scanned each one before her eyes were brought to the man beside her. Who was this man? The question she didn't have an answer for, she had turned her eyes to the director of her school and the school layers next to him who started whispering to him. All three of them looking at the man next to her, their worry-filled eyes were all the clue she should have needed to know that whoever sent him had given her the only weapon she needed to win this battle.
" Same reason you are here. I am working," the smile he gave them; Jandi quickly started picking on the tension around the room as the family lawyers started leaning to the moms and whispering. Jandi's eyes scanning everybody couldn't be any less disappointed not to find Jihoo there. But quickly, her attention was returned to the lawyers on her side, who everybody was still staring at. The chair they pulled for her, Jandi had made sure to follow what he asked of her as she followed his lead. The seat she was given in between then, not just pulling the chair for her, her main lawyer sitting by her right, had even opened the water bottle and passed it her way. Everybody on the other side of the table was watching in amusement. Even Jandi was baffled as to why he was doing this, and he turned her way and asked if she wanted anything else to drink. Her head shook to signal no; it would take her a few minutes to understand everything he was doing was intentional.
The school director started the meeting, and the first task was to go through a round of introductions. The lawyer on her right didn't even wait to read the file the secretary passed around before he started his questions.
"Thank you so much for the introductions. Before we start, we wanted to ensure we have everything on record." The lawyer on her right gave a node to the blue-suited one on her left. The small electronic device he placed in the middle started blinking once he pressed it.
" There is no recording of this meeting," the school director sounded firm as Jandi turned her attention to her right and the lawyer's smirk.
" Well, you all have cameras in here. We just wanted our own copy of the conversation." The smiling lawyer had only glanced up at the two cameras at the roof corners of the conference room. He didn't wait for their confirmation to continue. Only the lawyers on the other side understood what he was doing. Everything said in this room will be used for any other case, and they knew his reputation too well not to warn the mothers to be very careful of what they say, and that was what they all did as they moved closer to the parents and informed them not to say much. Even the school director was informed by the school lawyers.
" I want to review some things before we discuss what we are here to discuss. That way, we can cut the meeting short." He turned his attention to the file he had and flipped the first page to a timeline document. Jandi, even though close to him, wasn't able to read what was on the documents but could see what was highlighted and annotated with different-colored pens.
" What events?" the assistant school director asked.
" The events that led to the fight."
" I am sure you are not claiming she just woke up and decided to do this." His smirk at the assistant director wasn't tolerated, and the irritated look on her director's face was clear. Folding her arms, Jandi sat back. This was fun. The assistant director who had humiliated her and called her every name in the book behind, silenced by some on her side, was too much to watch.
" Donghee," he gave the blue-suited one a cue as the latter stood up after pulling some documents from the blue folder he got from his briefcase. The documents were handed to the lawyers on the other side before the others in the room.
" As you can see, less than an hour before the indecent, she was attacked by a group of students," the lawyer, leaving even Jandi stunned, started describing the printed photos in the folder that was passed around—the pictures of Jandi and Eun surrounded by students.
" How did you get these?" the school lawyers were quick.
" It doesn't matter how I got these. What matters is what my client endured that day." The mothers didn't seem like they cared; Jandi and the rest were the ones who were startled by how much this man knew as her eyes turned to him. His focused eyes, ignoring all, were focused on the school lawyers and directors, which were all he cared about. How did he get those photos from the student chat groups? She was quick to provide her own answer, Jihoo. Would Jihoo go to this length to protect her?
"We would like a copy of the surveillance video of this attack, if possible."
" We can't provide you that."
" Do we need a court order for it, or did it magically disappear with the video of the fight?" Jandi's eyes, unable to hide their shock, were kept on him.
" We are not here to discuss that. That meeting already happened earlier. We are here to discuss what happened to the boys," the assistant director said, raising his voice. He got some agreement from the family lawyers.
" Exactly, that is what we are here to discuss," one of the boy's lawyers added.
" The boys are in serious medical conditions and lying in hospital beds."
" One of them has a broken rib and broken arm."
" One was unconscious for days."
" Maybe they shouldn't have started a fight they couldn't finish," the lawyer had stated, the statement that would make him her idol. The shock in her eyes turned to amusement; Jandi would waste the next few minutes just watching the man on her right. Her mind wandered off to how beyond grateful she was for Jihoo for sending her such a person to fight on her behalf. What could she possibly do for Jihoo to make up for this? The back-and-forth arguments about who started the fight she had ignored until the lawyer whispered something even she couldn't believe was mentioned.
" This wasn't the first or the second time your boys had attacked my client. They had attacked her in the girl's locker after drugging her." what the lawyer said instantly froze everybody, even the mothers.
" They did that with a direct order from the F4 boys," he added as Jandi's shocked eyes from her school director she was looking at to confirm this was really being said out loud to the lawyer.
" Ask the boys who that was?" the lawyer pointing at the phone the lawyers were using to text the boys for all the information he was sharing asked.
" That is not true and had nothing to do with my boy lying in the hospital
" Your boy drugging and attacking her in the locker is an actual crime, Maam." The lawyer silenced the mom, who was pulled to sit down by her lawyer, who quickly wrote to the boy.
" Such a thing did not happen on this campus."
" Ask them and see what they say, or maybe we can ask the person who ordered them himself." the lawyer focused all his attention on the school director as he continued.
"I am sure the Shinwa family would love to be informed that their son is ordering people to drug girls on campus," he added, silencing the whole table. With the confused and stunned look on the school staff, Jandi mistakenly assumed it was only because of what he said. Her shock at what was said, Jandi's mind was sent away from the conversation to where he might have found that information, Jihoo. Only he knew what happened, apart from the boys and Junpyo. Did he really use his best friend to threaten the school to do whatever the lawyer asked? Would he do that to protect her? Would he really goes that far? Did he like her that much? That was the only thing in her mind. When the meeting ended 15 minutes later, her legs were in a rush to find him and only him. The one that had been by her side since their first interaction, what he was willing to do to protect her was too much for the girl already feeling too many new emotions she couldn't control.
After thanking the lawyers, she walked to the elevator and rushed up the stairs to the student council office. Her hurt knee asked to speed up had complied as it only took her a few minutes to open the door and walk into his office. Standing by the printer, Jihoo turned to the sound behind him and found Jandi standing by the door. Her fast breathing, his already anxious heart were quick to order him to look for other signs of the meeting's outcome.
" So?" he asked as he turned around with the paper he pulled from the printer in his hand. Her silence leaving him confused, he caught her eyes being sent to the door she closed behind her before she started her quick steps his way.
" What happ?" to give him a mini heart attack, his question would be silenced by her lips. The paper in his right hand flying down; not only his hands but his whole body was too overwhelmed to react for a second or two. His bottom lip pulled into her lips; his heart needed more time to calm down but wasn't provided any as he closed his eyes. The soft kiss on her lips demanded a reaction, and she got one as both his hands were sent to her neck. His head tilted slightly to the right; he took control of the kiss he would deepen by pulling her closer.
A few seconds of his heavenly kiss were all she needed to celebrate what had happened at that conference room. The big smile on her face as they separated their faces that would still be less than an inch away from each other. This was too good to be true, and that was all she could think of as her eyes opened to the view of her gorgeous boyfriend, who she would believe if anybody told her was a fictional character and nothing about this was real.
"What was that for?" he whispered before he pulled his lower lip in to get one more taste of her.
" To thank you for what you did," she whispered back, her right hand sent to calm her pink cheeks, which were too warm to be considered normal. Her slightly embarrassed eyes, shying away from him were sent to the floor.
" And if that wasn't enough?" Jihoo, leaning down to catch her eyes, asked.
" What would be enough?" not only did she allow his right hand holding her neck to raise her head back up, she had even leaned closer to his fingers as they moved up to caress the cheeks she was trying to cool. Her eyes that hadn't recovered from his kiss; the way they were looking at him would have been enough, but her slight lean into his hand had been what pushed his button.
" Then I have a favor to ask." he whispered before his lips were returned to hers.