Episode 5 — The Rumors Became Dangerous

By the end of lunch break, the academy was in complete chaos.

Jiwon knew this because strangers kept staring at him like he had personally rewritten reality itself.

Which… technically wasn’t wrong.

As he walked through the hallway beside Seojin, whispers followed everywhere.

“That’s them.” “The strawberry milk couple.” “I heard Han Seojin fed him.” “No, no—apparently they’re already dating secretly.”

Jiwon almost walked directly into a pillar.

Dating?!

HOW did the rumors escalate THIS quickly?!

Beside him, Seojin looked perfectly calm.

Too calm.

Suspiciously calm.

Jiwon finally stopped walking and grabbed Seojin’s sleeve desperately.

“We need to fix this immediately.”

“Fix what?”

“The rumors!”

Seojin blinked once.

“…What rumors?”

Jiwon stared at him in disbelief.

“You cannot seriously be asking that after INDIRECTLY KISSING ME IN PUBLIC.”

Several nearby students gasped dramatically.

One girl covered her mouth like she was witnessing a live drama scene.

Seojin looked thoughtful for a moment.

Then asked quietly:

“…Was that your first indirect kiss?”

Jiwon nearly collapsed.

“That’s not the point!”

“But was it?”

“Han Seojin!”

For the first time, Seojin laughed softly.

Actually laughed.

A real one.

Low and warm and unfairly attractive.

The hallway instantly became louder.

“Oh my god he laughed.” “I’ve never seen him laugh before.” “Kang Taehyun made him laugh??”

Jiwon wanted compensation for emotional damage.

Immediately.

Things only became worse during afternoon class.

Because someone anonymously posted cafeteria photos onto the academy forum.

And unfortunately—

The photos were VERY clear.

One showed Seojin feeding him.

Another showed them sharing the strawberry milk.

A third captured the exact moment Jiwon looked horrified while Seojin stared at him calmly.

The caption read:

“Cold prince Han Seojin finally dating???!!”

The comments were already exploding.

“KANG TAEHYUN???”

“This enemies-to-lovers arc is insane.”

“Wait why are they lowkey cute?”

“I suddenly support toxic romance.”

Jiwon slammed his head gently against the desk.

“I’m finished.”

Meanwhile, Seojin sat beside the window quietly reading.

Like he wasn’t the source of Jiwon’s suffering.

Jiwon turned toward him suspiciously.

“…Did you see the forum?”

“Yes.”

“And?!”

Seojin calmly flipped a page.

“It’s entertaining.”

“ENTERTAINING?!”

A nearby student jumped at Jiwon’s dramatic whisper-shouting.

Seojin finally looked at him.

Then unexpectedly asked:

“Does it bother you that much?”

Jiwon opened his mouth—

Then paused.

Because honestly?

The rumors themselves weren’t the real problem.

The REAL problem was how dangerously fast Seojin was getting attached to him.

That scared him.

In the original novel, once Han Seojin loved someone…

He loved obsessively.

Completely.

Painfully.

And people around him got hurt because of it.

Jiwon quietly looked away.

“…I just don’t want misunderstandings.”

For a moment, Seojin said nothing.

Then his voice lowered slightly.

“So you hate being associated with me?”

Jiwon immediately panicked.

“That’s not what I meant!”

Seojin’s expression remained calm.

Too calm.

But something in his eyes dimmed slightly.

And weirdly—

That made guilt twist inside Jiwon’s chest.

Why did he suddenly feel like he kicked a sad puppy?!

Before he could explain himself better, the classroom door suddenly slammed open.

A tall student entered angrily.

Ah.

Disaster.

Park Dojin.

One of Taehyun’s original friends.

Rich.

Aggressive.

And absolutely loyal to the old Kang Taehyun.

Dojin looked between Jiwon and Seojin with visible disbelief.

“…What the hell is this?”

The classroom immediately became tense.

Because everyone knew:

Park Dojin hated Han Seojin.

In the original story, the two almost fought multiple times.

Dojin walked directly toward Jiwon.

“You’ve been acting weird since yesterday.”

Jiwon laughed nervously.

“Haha… people change?”

“Not overnight.”

Dojin suddenly grabbed Jiwon’s shoulder roughly.

“You’re embarrassing us by hanging around this bastard.”

The room fell silent.

Seojin slowly closed his book.

Dangerously slowly.

Jiwon internally screamed.

NO FIGHTING.

NO ORIGINAL PLOT VIOLENCE.

WE ARE REFORMED NOW.

He quickly pushed Dojin’s arm away.

“Relax. We were just eating lunch.”

Dojin looked genuinely offended.

“You hate him.”

“…Used to?”

Dojin narrowed his eyes.

Then leaned closer and whispered harshly:

“Did he threaten you?”

Jiwon blinked.

Honestly?

That would’ve been less confusing.

Before he could answer, Seojin suddenly stood up.

The atmosphere instantly became colder.

Everyone watched nervously as Seojin walked closer.

Dojin scoffed.

“What? Got something to say?”

Seojin stopped beside Jiwon calmly.

Then—

Without warning—

He adjusted Jiwon’s crooked collar gently.

The classroom collectively stopped breathing.

Even Jiwon froze.

The movement was absurdly natural.

Intimate.

Careful.

Seojin’s fingers brushed lightly against Jiwon’s neck before pulling away.

Then he finally looked at Dojin.

And said quietly:

“He’s mine to worry about.”

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Jiwon’s brain exploded.

EXCUSE ME?!

Meanwhile, the classroom descended into complete chaos.

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