Seo Jiwon

19 years old. Son of the chairman of the powerful Mireon Group. Cold, untouchable, terrifyingly handsome. Everyone at school either worships him or fears him. Used to getting whatever he wants. Has anger issues he hides under calm expressions. Secretly lonely.



Han Taeyang

18 years old. Scholarship student. Quiet, stubborn, observant. Lives with his sick mother and works part-time at night. Gets bullied easily because he never fights back loudly—but he’s far from weak. He notices everything.



Jiwon

Known for being cold, rude, and impossible to approach at school.

Used to be really outgoing as a kid, but after his parents’ divorce he slowly shut everyone out.

Hates when people pity him, so he pushes others away before they can leave first.

Gets into fights a lot, but never talks about why.

Secretly keeps every small thing people give him, even if he pretends he doesn’t care.

Has insomnia and usually wanders around late at night instead of sleeping.

Only soft spot: stray cats. He feeds them behind the school where nobody can see him.

Rumor says he got suspended once for protecting someone, but nobody knows the full story.

Taeyang

18 years old. Scholarship student.

Quiet, stubborn, and extremely observant.

Lives alone with his sick mother and balances school with late-night part-time jobs.

Often comes to school exhausted but never complains about it.

Gets targeted easily because he rarely fights back or raises his voice.

People mistake his silence for weakness, but Taeyang simply chooses his battles carefully.

Notices things others ignore—shaking hands, fake smiles, bruises hidden under sleeves, the way someone’s voice changes when they lie.

Keeps most of his emotions to himself because he learned early that nobody would solve his problems for him.

Has a hard time accepting help from others and prefers carrying everything alone.

Despite looking cold, he’s quietly kind in small ways, like leaving medicine reminders, sharing umbrellas, or walking people home without mentioning it later.

Studies obsessively because losing his scholarship would destroy everything he worked for.

Hates pity more than insults.

Slowly becomes one of the only people who sees through Jiwon’s anger instead of fearing it.

Even when bullied, he never looks away first.

...----------------...

The first thing Han Taeyang noticed about Haedam Private Academy was how painfully out of place he looked standing inside it.

The school campus stretched across several massive buildings connected by glass walkways and perfectly trimmed gardens that looked more like a luxury hotel than somewhere teenagers were supposed to study. Students walked through the halls wearing expensive watches beneath perfectly fitted uniforms, talking casually about vacations overseas and restaurants Taeyang had only ever seen online.

Even the air felt different there.

Cleaner. Colder. Untouchable.

Taeyang adjusted the sleeves of his uniform automatically while following the teacher through the hallway. The fabric sat awkwardly around his wrists because he had altered the uniform himself late at night after buying it secondhand for cheaper than the official price.

He noticed the stares immediately.

Not curious stares. Judging ones.

People at schools like this could recognize money instantly, and unfortunately for Taeyang, they could also recognize the lack of it just as quickly.

“That’s him?” “The scholarship student?” “He transferred here?” “Seriously?”

Taeyang kept walking quietly, pretending not to hear any of it.

He had learned years ago that reacting only made things worse.

The teacher stopped in front of a classroom before sliding the door open.

The conversations inside slowly faded.

“Class, we have a new transfer student today.”

Thirty pairs of eyes turned toward him at once.

Taeyang bowed politely. “My name is Han Taeyang. Please take care of me.”

Silence followed.

Not the comfortable kind.

The kind that quietly reminded you that you did not belong there.

The teacher cleared her throat awkwardly before pointing toward an empty seat near the back beside the windows.

“You can sit there.”

Taeyang nodded once and started walking through the rows of desks while feeling students openly stare at his old backpack and worn shoes.

Then suddenly—

A chair slid into his path.

The movement was slow and deliberate enough that the entire classroom noticed immediately.

Taeyang stopped walking.

A long leg blocked the aisle carelessly, attached to a boy leaning lazily back in his chair near the window as sunlight spilled across his face.

Seo Jiwon.

Taeyang recognized him instantly despite never meeting him before.

Everyone in Korea seemed to know who Seo Jiwon was.

The son of the chairman of Mireon Group. The rich heir constantly surrounded by rumors. The student teachers avoided confronting. The boy known for getting into fights without ever explaining why.

People online called him untouchable.

Sitting only a few feet away from him now, Taeyang finally understood why.

Jiwon looked bored in a way that felt dangerous.

Like someone who had already lost interest in most things a long time ago.

His expression remained completely blank as he looked Taeyang up and down slowly, eyes lingering briefly on the shortened sleeves of his uniform before returning to his face.

“You’re blocking my sunlight,” Jiwon said calmly.

A few students laughed immediately, though the sound felt nervous rather than genuine.

Taeyang glanced once at the leg blocking the aisle before meeting Jiwon’s eyes again.

“You’re blocking the path.”

The room fell silent.

Someone near the front whispered, “Did he just talk back?”

Most students lowered their heads around Seo Jiwon without thinking. Some out of fear, others because they desperately wanted his approval. Either way, nobody challenged him directly unless they were looking for trouble.

Jiwon stared at Taeyang for several long seconds.

His face remained unreadable, but something flickered briefly in his eyes.

Interest.

Then slowly, without another word, he pulled his leg back.

Taeyang walked past him quietly and sat down near the window.

Even after class started, he could still feel Jiwon staring occasionally.

Not constantly.

Just enough to notice.

Lunch break arrived slowly.

Taeyang left the classroom almost immediately, not because he disliked being around people, but because being surrounded by wealthy students discussing things he could never afford exhausted him faster than studying ever did.

Instead of going to the cafeteria, he climbed the stairs leading toward the rooftop.

The wind outside felt cold against his skin as he sat near the fence with a cheap triangle kimbap and strawberry milk he bought from the convenience store before school.

It was enough food to keep him awake until work later tonight.

Probably.

Taeyang pulled out his phone briefly and checked the time.

Two missed calls from the hospital.

His shoulders tensed immediately.

A familiar heaviness settled in his chest before he quickly called back, lowering his voice while speaking.

“Yes, I’ll come after work tonight.” “No, it’s okay.” “I understand.”

He ended the call quietly and rubbed his eyes for a moment.

Lately, his mother’s condition had been getting worse again.

Hospital bills kept increasing. His work hours kept getting longer. And sleep had become something distant and unreliable.

Still, losing this scholarship was not an option.

Without it, everything collapsed.

Taeyang opened the milk carton slowly.

Then the rooftop door opened behind him.

Voices echoed across the rooftop immediately.

Taeyang did not need to turn around to know who it was.

“You always come up here?” someone asked.

Another voice answered lazily. “It’s quieter.”

Seo Jiwon.

Taeyang took another bite of his kimbap while pretending not to notice them.

Unfortunately, Jiwon noticed him immediately.

The conversation behind him paused.

Then footsteps approached slowly across the rooftop floor.

Taeyang looked up just as Jiwon stopped directly in front of him.

Too close.

Close enough for Taeyang to notice the faint shadows beneath Jiwon’s eyes, like he had not slept properly in days.

Close enough to notice a fading bruise near his wrist partially hidden beneath his sleeve.

Taeyang noticed things like that naturally.

Jiwon’s gaze dropped toward the food in Taeyang’s hands.

“You seriously eat that for lunch?”

“It’s food,” Taeyang answered simply.

The boys behind Jiwon laughed quietly.

One of them muttered, “Poor people really survive on anything.”

Taeyang ignored him completely.

Jiwon continued staring at the strawberry milk carton for another second before suddenly taking it from beside Taeyang without asking.

Taeyang frowned immediately. “Give it back.”

Jiwon examined the carton slowly.

“Strawberry flavor?” he asked, sounding oddly judgmental about it.

Taeyang held out his hand. “You’re annoying.”

Silence fell across the rooftop.

Then unexpectedly—

Jiwon laughed.

It was not loud. Not cruel either.

Honestly, it sounded rusty, like something he rarely did anymore.

The students behind him looked shocked.

Taeyang did too.

Jiwon handed the milk back slowly while studying him with an expression Taeyang could not fully understand yet.

“…Interesting,” Jiwon murmured quietly.

Something about the way he said it made Taeyang uneasy.

Not because it sounded threatening.

But because it sounded genuine.

By the middle of his second week at Haedam Private Academy, Han Taeyang realized that Seo Jiwon had developed a habit.

Jiwon watched him.

Not constantly enough for other people to notice.

But enough that Taeyang started feeling his gaze before actually seeing it.

During class.

Across the cafeteria.

From the back of the hallway after practice ended.

Sometimes Taeyang would look up suddenly and find Jiwon already staring at him with the same unreadable expression he always wore, only for Jiwon to look away first like nothing had happened.

It was strange.

More than that, it was irritating.

Because Taeyang could never tell what Jiwon was thinking.

The bullying started becoming more obvious after that.

Still subtle enough that teachers ignored it.

But deliberate.

Taeyang arrived at school one morning to find his desk covered in scribbled marker stains that had not been there the day before.

A few students nearby laughed quietly while pretending not to look at him.

Taeyang sighed softly before grabbing tissues from his bag and cleaning it without saying anything.

Then a voice spoke beside him.

“You’re not even angry?”

Taeyang looked up.

Jiwon stood there holding an iced coffee, his uniform jacket hanging loosely over one shoulder.

He looked unfairly perfect for eight in the morning.

Taeyang returned to cleaning the desk.

“Should I be?”

“Most people would be.”

“Most people have time to care.”

Something flickered across Jiwon’s face briefly.

Taeyang noticed it immediately.

He always noticed small changes in people’s expressions, especially when they were trying to hide them.

But before he could figure out what it meant, Jiwon leaned against the desk casually.

“You know,” Jiwon said, “people here hate scholarship students.”

“I noticed.”

“They think you’re stealing a spot from someone richer.”

Taeyang scrubbed another ink stain away quietly.

“Sounds difficult for them.”

A laugh escaped Jiwon before he could stop it.

Short.

Surprised.

Like Taeyang had caught him off guard again.

Jiwon stared at him for a moment longer before suddenly reaching down and grabbing the cloth from Taeyang’s hand.

Taeyang frowned immediately.

“What are you doing?”

“The stain’s still there.”

Jiwon wiped the desk once with unnecessary force before tossing the cloth back onto the table.

“There.”

Taeyang blinked.

“…You caused this.”

“I never said I didn’t.”

Then Jiwon walked away before Taeyang could answer.

Leaving behind the faint smell of expensive cologne and confusion.

That afternoon, Taeyang nearly fell asleep during literature class.

He had worked until almost two in the morning the night before after another employee called in sick at the convenience store. After that, he went straight to the hospital because his mother’s fever had risen again.

By the time he finally got home, the sun had already started coming up.

Now exhaustion sat heavily behind his eyes no matter how hard he tried focusing on the lesson.

His head dipped slightly.

Then—

“Han Taeyang.”

Taeyang blinked awake instantly.

The teacher looked annoyed.

“If you’re tired, maybe you should wash your face instead of sleeping in class.”

A few students snickered quietly.

Taeyang stood automatically.

“I’m sorry.”

The teacher sighed.

“Stay standing for the rest of class.”

Taeyang nodded once.

Embarrassment settled uncomfortably under his skin as whispers spread across the room, but he kept his expression calm.

He was used to humiliation.

Unfortunately.

As he stood there quietly, his gaze shifted briefly toward the window.

Jiwon was already looking at him.

Not amused.

Not mocking.

Just staring with a slight crease between his brows.

Taeyang looked away first.

After school ended, Taeyang headed toward the locker room to change before work.

The hallway remained mostly empty by then, filled only with distant voices and fading footsteps.

When he opened his locker, he froze slightly.

His gym shoes were missing.

Again.

A tired sigh escaped him.

Honestly, at this point he almost expected things like this to happen.

He crouched down to check beneath the nearby benches when slow footsteps echoed behind him.

“You lose something?”

Taeyang did not need to turn around.

Jiwon leaned against the doorway holding the missing shoes loosely by their laces.

Taeyang stared at him for a long second.

“You really have too much free time.”

Jiwon tilted his head slightly.

“You’re not going to ask for them back?”

“I figured you’d eventually get bored.”

For some reason, that answer irritated Jiwon.

His jaw tightened briefly before he stepped closer and tossed the shoes toward him carelessly.

Taeyang caught them against his chest.

“You should react more,” Jiwon said suddenly.

Taeyang frowned slightly.

“To what?”

“To me.”

The words came out quieter than expected.

Almost absentmindedly.

For a second, neither of them spoke.

Then Taeyang stood up slowly, holding the shoes in one hand.

“Why?”

Jiwon looked at him.

And for the first time since they met, Taeyang noticed something underneath all that coldness.

Not anger.

Loneliness.

It disappeared so quickly he almost thought he imagined it.

Jiwon looked away first.

“…Forget it.”

Then he walked out of the locker room without another word.

Taeyang remained standing there silently for several seconds afterward.

Confused.

Because somehow, Seo Jiwon had started feeling less like a bully—

and more like someone trying very hard to be one.