The Red of the Rose | Taeyong

Prologue | Guilty

The darkened morning sky cast its cloudy shadow over the school building. With his earphones in his ears, he walked across the football field glancing at the grey building, the windows of which illuminated yellow from inside. He didn't carry any umbrella and let the rain fall over his head as he walked to his own tune and rhythm. He turned a corner, down the abandoned alleyway, the one which every school has, the one where nobody dares to go.

Two girls stood there; one of them was crying in rage and the other trying to explain herself.

'Why are you trying to ruin my life?' Serin shouted, pointing a finger at Miah.

'For the last time–' Miah looked Serin directly in the eyes and said emphatically, 'I. Did. Not. Spread those rumours.'

'You think I would believe you?' Serin scoffed.

'You should because it's the truth.' Miah was not going to back down.

'I can't believe you are being this audacious. First, you make up lies about me that I am sleeping with five seniors together, painting me characterless and then you stand in front of me and lie to my face.' Serin's eyes teary with anger and embarrassment. 'They are my friends. You did not just involve me but others too. What is your problem?'

'Listen, I don't know how you got the idea that I spread any rumours about you. But it's not me. I do not care if you sleep with five guys or fifteen.' Miah sighed, tired of explaining herself over and over again.

'I saw you stay back at school that day and you were the only one who could have taken the picture from that classroom you were sitting in.' Serin stepped closer, trying to corner Miah.

'What? Have you lost your mind? Just because you saw me stay back.' Miah wasn't just exhausted now but irritated as well.

He watched from afar as the two girls argued some more, seeing their emotions get the best of them and logic being thrown to the wind. 'If only you hadn't rejected me, I wouldn't have to do this. Stupid girl.' He smiled a menacing smile knowing that this was just the beginning.

And this is how Miah's life in the final year of her high school was made miserable. Serin bounced back from these rumours almost unscratched. After all, she was the most popular girl in the school and everybody loved her. They didn't care about how many guys she was sleeping with. What they did care about was the girl, malicious enough to paint someone characterless over something like this.

Miah was outcasted, ignored. It's not that she wasn't used to being by herself. She hardly had any friends and only spoke to a few of her classmates. But this induced ostracism broke her. She ate alone. She studied alone. She sat alone. Nobody would respond when she would try to talk to them. Nobody would even look at her with anything other than disdain. They didn't hurt her physically, but she heard the whispers as she walked down the school halls and they weren't pleasant. No matter how much she tried telling everyone she didn't do it, nobody believed her.

But the months passed eventually. Final exams, college prep and entrances. There were more important things to focus on. People forgot, moved on and like everyone else, Miah and Serin graduated from high school bearing only a scar imprinted on their minds of what happened in their final year of high school.