pulling on cosmic strings ꩜ pi hanwool, study group

4. lee hankyeong, their savior

She had let them be tonight, not another punch after their defeat. She was the most merciful of them all. But they knew something else would be coming. Unbeknownst to Minju, they knew they would be further demolished at the news of her being at tonight's attack.

"Kim Minju!"

She turned around to face Lee Hyunwoo, him staring at her in midst of the fight.

"You know I can't fight you," he said with a smug face. The words unsaid lingering in the air.

"Fight me, I can take it."

"I'll get in trouble," Hyunwoo hummed.

"I promise I won't snitch. Or are you scared?"

Hyunwoo's eyes darkened, and he delivered his first attack. He aimed for her face, stomach, and side. She dodged all but the last.

Recoiling from the hit, Minju asked, "Why'd you come after her?"

Hyunwoo was still grinning ear to ear, and he simply shrugged, "I was bored."

Minju's body shook with rage, her anger palpable from how stupid and reckless the boy in front of her was being.

The boy missed a kick before Minju punched him hard on his jaw and kicked him straight in the chest.

"Answer me."

Hyunwoo retrieved a nearby slab of wood and maintained his stance. He tossed it up in the air and caught it, "I was told she needed a good beating, is all." Hyunwoo reeled his arm back and ran forward, attempting to bash her head with it, but Minju dodged quickly.

She grabbed the wood and twisted it, twisting his arm in the process, before he released it. Minju banged the wood against her knee and broke the slab in half, ignoring the splinters piercing through the skin of her palms.

Minju didn't feel it, couldn't feel it, compared to the overwhelming feelings inside her. She recalled what happened in her past life.

Ms. Lee dying was the center of it all.

She was a symbol of hope and freedom, which was crushed the moment it was announced that she died. Just like her mentor before her, Ms. Lee became another victim, another pawn, in YB's game.

Ms. Lee had planned a disciplinary meeting for the expulsion of Hanwool, which his father shut down easily by placing a hit on her. The news and the police called it a suicide, but everyone in Incheon knew that this was not the case.

A cascade of events occurred in Ms. Lee's absence. Gamin's group disbanding, leaving Yusung High just the same as it was before. Hanwool, Minhwan, and herself realizing the power their parents and YB held, and how they would never be able to escape it.

If they tried back then, maybe it wouldn't have been so difficult letting go. She had to wake them up from the nightmares that would become their lives.

The universe had sent her back to this time for a reason. Ms. Lee was going to be their savior. And Minju was going to do whatever it took to protect Ms. Lee.

Minju snapped back to reality.

While Hyunwoo put up a good fight, she wasted no time before lifting him over her back and using the momentum to fling him onto the ground.

It didn't take him long to get up once more, posture unsteady as he winced from the pain.

Noticing the crowbar left on the ground from earlier, Minju picked it up. She slammed the blunt end against Hyunwoo's side, his wobbly steps making him fall, leaving him breathless on the ground.

The voices around them quieted, the remaining attackers completely beat. Unaware of the eerie silence, Minju continued to stride towards Hyunwoo, the stares of Ms. Lee, Gamin, and Geonyeob burning through the back of her skull.

Minju lifted one foot and placed it on Hyunwoo's chest, the crowbar in her hand threatening to strike down on him. He had no choice but to lay on the dirt, no energy left in him, the injuries he sustained wearing him down.

"Who sent you?"

Hyunwoo smirked and cocked his head to the side, "Come on. You're asking like you don't already know."

‧｡ ₊ ⭑˚ ꩜ ⋆ 𓂃 ₊ ⊹

Author's Note

Thank you so much for 200 reads, as well as the votes and comments! I really appreciate all the support! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, let me know what you think!

In this chapter, we get some background on how in Minju's past life, Ms. Lee was killed by Pi Yeonbaek, which led to Gamin and his friends losing all hope, and the trio realizing going against YB would only result in deaths, so they succumbed and ended up joining YB. My biggest worry when writing is not properly portraying what I'm imagining in my mind, so if anything is unclear, please let me know!

I feel like based on this chapter, you can kind of predict how Minju is going to go about saving her loved ones!

On another note, what did you guys think about Hyunwoo in the Webtoon? He's a good guy who just so happened to be led down the wrong path. His bond with his sister is so touching too, I wish I had a sibling my age who cared for me like they do for each other! I also really like how the author draws/portrays him, he just looks so FINE. If this ff goes well, maybe I'll write a Hyunwoo ff next ✋😓