Chapter #2

The first week of the semester had barely begun.

Freshmen wandered around campus with maps in their hands.

Seniors walked confidently between buildings without looking up from their phones.

And the rumors...

Spread faster than lectures.

"The Kang heir came back."

"Did you see Song Hye Rin this morning?"

"I heard Min Woo left her standing in the courtyard."

By lunch...

Everyone had something to talk about.

Kang Jina wished they wouldn't.

She quietly found an empty seat outside the freshman building and opened her notebook.

She had always preferred silence.

Silence never judged her.

She adjusted her glasses and continued writing.

"...Excuse me."

She looked up.

Three girls stood in front of her.

Each wore expensive clothes and perfectly styled hair.

One smiled.

It wasn't a friendly smile.

"You're the new girl, right?"

Jina nodded.

"Yes."

"We introduced ourselves during orientation."

"I'm... sorry. I was nervous."

"So you ignored us?"

"I didn't mean to."

Another girl leaned over and picked up Jina's notebook.

"Oh."

"She color-codes her notes."

"How cute."

The others laughed.

Jina stood quickly.

"Please... that's mine."

"Relax."

"We're just looking."

Students walking past slowed down.

No one stopped.

No one wanted to make enemies on the first week.

One of the girls casually tossed the notebook to another.

Jina took a hesitant step forward.

"Please."

"You cry easily?"

More laughter.

Not far away...

Hye Rin and Yoon Ara crossed the courtyard.

Ara was halfway through a story.

"...and then my brother actually thought he could cook."

Hye Rin smiled faintly.

"I assume the kitchen survived?"

"Barely."

Then...

Hye Rin's eyes drifted toward the small crowd.

She slowed.

Ara followed her gaze.

"...Freshmen."

One girl was holding another student's notebook above her head.

The others laughed.

The freshman looked ready to disappear.

Ara sighed.

"Ignore them."

Hye Rin didn't answer.

Instead...

She changed direction.

"Hye Rin?"

Click.

Click.

Click.

The sound of her heels echoed across the courtyard.

The laughter died almost immediately.

One of the girls turned pale.

"...Sunbae."

Hye Rin stopped beside them.

Her expression remained calm.

"Is this entertaining?"

"...We were only joking."

"Really?"

She held out her hand.

"The notebook."

The girl obeyed without another word.

Hye Rin looked at the cover before placing it carefully back into Jina's hands.

"You came to one of the country's best universities."

She looked at the three girls.

"And this is how you choose to spend your education?"

None of them answered.

Her voice never rose.

It didn't need to.

"If you have enough free time to bully someone you've known for two hours..."

A faint smile touched her lips.

"...perhaps you're not studying hard enough."

Several nearby students lowered their heads to hide their smiles.

The girls' faces burned with embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, Sunbae."

"Leave."

They left immediately.

Silence returned.

Jina clutched her notebook tightly.

"...Thank you."

Hye Rin gave her a brief glance.

"Next time..."

She gently straightened the strap of Jina's backpack, almost absentmindedly.

"...look people in the eye."

Jina blinked.

"W-What?"

"They're less intimidating when you stop staring at the ground."

It wasn't said harshly.

It was practical advice.

Hye Rin stepped back.

"Come on, Ara."

The two walked away.

Ara looked sideways.

"You know..."

"You didn't have to do that."

"I know."

"So why did you?"

Hye Rin shrugged.

"I hate people who think being cruel makes them important."

That was all she said.

Later that afternoon...

Jun was leaving basketball practice when he overheard two second-years talking.

"Did you hear what Song Hye Rin did?"

"No."

"She embarrassed three girls in front of half the campus."

"For what?"

"They were picking on some freshman."

Jun slowed his steps.

"...Which freshman?"

"No idea."

"Quiet girl."

"Glasses."

"They said Hye Rin didn't even raise her voice."

Jun frowned.

A quiet freshman...

Glasses...

A strange feeling settled in his chest.

Without another word, he pulled out his phone.

Jun: How was your first day?

A minute later, Jina replied.

Jina: It got better.

Jun looked at the message for a long moment.

He had no idea why.

But he had a feeling that "better" had something to do with Song Hye Rin.

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