Nari paused, her brows furrowing as she thought it through. Her mind ran through everything she had read in the notebook, replaying the timeline over and over until something finally clicked.
"Okay... it's lunch right now," she said slowly, more to herself at first. Then her eyes sharpened with realization. "Which means... Hajun has basketball practice."
Her gaze lifted to Minjae. "He's our first step."
Minjae let out a quiet sigh, already moving past her like he had made up his mind before she even finished speaking.
"Well? What are you waiting for?" he said flatly, not even looking back. "We have an event to change."
Nari blinked, then rolled her eyes at his attitude before quickly following after him. "You could at least pretend to wait," she muttered under her breath as she pushed through the doors behind him.
The hallway buzzed with noise as students headed to lunch, but Nari barely noticed. Her focus was locked on the plan.
"Okay... Hajun seems like the easiest one to deal with first," she said as they walked side by side toward the gym. "If we can stop his injury, then we'll know if this whole 'changing the future' thing actually works."
"I already have a plan," Minjae said calmly.
Nari turned her head toward him immediately. "You do??"
"Yeah." His expression didn't change. "I'll join the practice."
Nari stopped for half a second, staring at him like he'd just said something completely insane. "What? Join? You're not even on the team," she pointed out.
Minjae finally glanced at her, unfazed. "I can just ask to practice with them," he said simply. "Say I'm thinking about joining. A trial run."
He looked forward again, his tone steady. "That way, I can stay close to Hajun... and stop it before it happens."
Nari studied him for a moment, then a small, impressed smile crept onto her face.
"...Okay," she admitted. "That's actually not a terrible plan."
Still, something in her chest tightened.
This is it...
Their first real attempt to change the story.
.
.
.
By the time they reached the gymnasium, the sound of sneakers squeaking against the floor echoed loudly, mixed with the rhythmic bounce of basketballs.
And there he was.
Hajun.
Effortless. Confident. Moving across the court like it was second nature, his focus sharp as he practiced. Even from a distance, he stood out.
Nari slowed down slightly, her eyes practically glued to him.
Wow...
For a split second, she completely forgot why she was there.
Minjae noticed immediately.
He rolled his eyes, clearly unimpressed, and kept walking. "Save the drooling for when we actually break out of this loop," he muttered, a hint of annoyance slipping into his tone.
That snapped Nari out of it.
"I was not drooling!" she shot back quickly, hurrying to catch up with him, her cheeks slightly flushed.
Minjae didn't respond, already stepping closer to the court. He lifted a hand and gestured toward Hajun.
"Hey," he called out.
Hajun noticed and jogged over without much hesitation, slowing to a stop in front of them. He grabbed his water bottle mid-step and took a long sip, tilting his head back slightly.
Nari, unfortunately, noticed that too.
Okay... yeah, maybe a little drooling-
"Yeah?" Hajun said, lowering the bottle. "What's up?"
Minjae got straight to the point. "Can I practice with you guys?"
Hajun paused mid-motion, a drop of water slipping down his chin before he wiped it away with the back of his hand. Then he looked Minjae up and down—slowly.
"...You?" he said, unimpressed. "The skinny emo kid?"
Minjae's expression tightened instantly. "You didn't have to say it like that."
Nari burst out laughing beside him, unable to hold it in. The timing was just too perfect.
Minjae shot her a sharp side glance.
"Not helping."
Hajun smirked slightly, clearly entertained. "Alright, fine," he said with a shrug. "Maybe you'll actually build some muscle if I let you join."
"Hey! I am NOT that skinny-!" Minjae snapped back, irritation finally breaking through his usual calm.
But Hajun had already grabbed a spare jersey and tossed it at him without warning.
It landed directly on Minjae's face.
For a second, he just stood there, confused, before pulling it off and staring at it in his hands.
"Wear that and get on the court," Hajun said casually, already turning away.
And just like that, he jogged back to practice, like the conversation was over.
Minjae let out a quiet sigh and pulled the jersey over his head in one smooth motion, barely reacting to the situation.
Nari watched him, still a little skeptical. "Wait... you're actually going to join?" she asked, crossing her arms. "Do you even know how to play?"
Minjae didn't even look at her. "I don't need to," he replied flatly. "I'm not here to win. I'm here to stop Hajun from getting injured."
And before Nari could say anything else, he jogged off toward the court.
"—Wait, I wasn't finished—!" she called after him, but he was already gone.
Nari sighed, moving to the sidelines, her eyes following him closely.
-------
The game started quickly.
Sneakers squeaked loudly against the polished floor, the sharp sounds echoing through the gym as players moved back and forth. The rhythm of the game was fast, messy, and Minjae clearly did not belong in it.
He fumbled passes, missed catches, and-- more than once. the ball smacked straight into his face.
Thud.
"...Ow," he muttered under his breath, barely reacting.
"Wow," Hajun called out with a small, amused smirk, "you really suck at this."
Minjae's eye twitched slightly in irritation.
Do I really want to save this guy...?
But even as the thought crossed his mind, his focus never left Hajun. Every movement, every step, he was watching closely, waiting for the exact moment.
Then--
He saw it.
That exact shift.
Hajun's foot slipping slightly on the floor at the wrong angle--the beginning of the fall.
Minjae's eyes widened.
This is it.
"NOOOOO-!" he shouted, in slow motion, his voice cutting through the noise of the gym.
Everything seemed to slow down.
Nari, standing at the sidelines, felt her heart jump into her throat as she watched the scene unfold in what felt like slow motion.
Hajun was already falling-
Minjae ran forward without thinking.
And in one split-second decision, he threw himself underneath him.
Crash.
Hajun landed hard--but not on the floor.
On Minjae.
"--Ow..." Minjae groaned, his voice strained as the impact hit his back.
For a moment, there was silence.
Hajun blinked, staring down at him, processing what had just happened.
Then-
He laughed.
"Wow," Hajun said, pushing himself up slightly, clearly amused. "Thanks, Minjae. Maybe you should join the team- at least you're useful for saving me, since you suck at everything else."
Minjae's expression darkened instantly.
"Just shut up and get off," he snapped, clearly irritated.
Hajun grinned. "Wow\~ stingy\~"
Still, he got off, stepping back and offering a hand, though it was half-joking, half-genuine.
Minjae ignored it, slowly pushing himself up on his own, his back aching slightly.
But his eyes flickered for a moment.
The fall.
It happened.
...but the injury didn't.
Did we... actually change it?
Nari dropped back onto the bleachers, letting out a relieved sigh, her shoulders finally relaxing.
We did it... right?
For a brief moment, everything felt... okay.
Until--
"Minjae! Above!"
Her voice came out sharp, panicked.
Minjae's head snapped up instinctively, following her gaze.
Something was falling.
Fast.
Too fast.
His eyes widened--
CRASH.
The sound echoed violently through the gym.
For a second, everything went completely still.
Then--
Hajun was on the ground.
Not moving.
Blood slowly spread beneath him, stark against the polished floor.
"...What the hell...?" Minjae breathed out, his voice low and disbelieving.
His heart pounded as his head snapped upward, searching for the source.
There--
On the upper level.
Ye-rin.
She stood frozen, her eyes wide, her expression just as shocked as everyone else's--like she hadn't fully processed what she'd just done.
Then, suddenly--
She turned and ran.
"...Ye-rin?" Minjae muttered, confusion flashing across his face. "But how...?" This wasn't supposed to happen. She doesn't--she doesn't kill yet...!
His thoughts spiraled, the timeline completely unraveling in front of him.
This wasn't in the script.
None of this was.
"Minjae!"
Nari's voice pulled him back.
She ran toward him, slightly out of breath, her hands gripping something tightly.
"Look at this--!"
She stopped in front of him and shoved the notebook into his hands, flipping it open.
Minjae's eyes scanned the page.
...and his breath caught.
The words..
They were changing.
Rewriting themselves.
Right in front of him.
"The events..." he whispered, a quiet shock in his voice. "...they're being rewritten...?"
The ink shifted slightly on the page, like the story itself was correcting... or evolving.
And suddenly..
The future wasn't predictable anymore.
-----
*Chirp Chirp Chirp.*
"Ugh... shut up..." Nari groaned, her voice muffled as she shifted under her blanket.
But then--
Her eyes snapped open.
The sound.
The light.
The cold air brushing against her skin.
Her breath hitched as she looked around her room, her gaze darting from the open window... to her desk... to her door.
"...What?" she whispered.
She sat up abruptly, her heart starting to race.
When did I get back?
When did I fall asleep?
Her mind scrambled, trying to piece together the last thing she remembered..
The gym.
The crash.
The blood.
Hajun.
Her chest tightened.
"This doesn't make sense..." she muttered under her breath, gripping her blanket.
And then-
Bang.
Her bedroom door flew open.
"Nari! What is the meaning of this!?" her mother's voice rang out sharply, cutting through the room like an alarm. "How are you still asleep when school starts in fifteen minutes?!"
Nari didn't move.
Didn't speak.
She just stared.
At her mother.
At the exact same scene.
The exact same words.
Her lips parted slowly, her voice barely above a whisper.
"...We... repeated...?"
To be continued.
***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***
Updated 8 Episodes
Download
Like this story? Download the app to keep your reading history.
Comments