Chapter Three:
"Never sleep angry. Stay awake, plot your revenge."
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03 : 15 : 21 | 13 : 17 : 43
Jia's
I knew it.
As soon as i twisted the door knob of the detention room, I quickly saw 10 figures inside, seven boys and three girls chatting inside the room.
It seems like they are not even ashamed of being inside the detention room. Everyone looked at me, some smiled, some glared and some scanned my soul.
"So that's... her?"
A girl on a miniskirt slowly walked towards my direction.
"Hello! I am Kwon Fei. You can just call me Fei and I am rank 17 from the Inner Circle!"
She reached her hand out, asking for a handshake as she smiled at me fakely.
She's way too obvious.
"Yoon Jia."
I reached out for her hand and faked a smile too. I walked towards the seat of the girls while getting dragged by Fei.
"You know what, you're so pretty Jia-unnie! What family did you came from?"
The boys are just silent, Yang Jungwon was just beaming at me, listening. The others are minding their own business, the blonde guy i saw on the library is playing mobile games while Sunghoon is staring on the window.
"I can't say that."
The other girl on my side slid her arms on mine, interlocking our arms while leaning her head on my shoulder.
"Waeeeee~ c'mon unnie you can tell us. I am from Kim Manufacturing. Kim Vela."
She beamed at me and snuggled on my shoulder. I am feeling uncomfortable and suspicious. I don't like this kind of treatment.
"Vela, take your hands off her. Can't you see she's uncomfortable with your clinginess?"
The blonde guy reprimanded, without even looking at us. Kim Vela immediately took her arms off mine and pouted.
"You're such a killjoy Jay-oppa."
That Jay glanced at us.
"don't be insensitive Vela, You know she doesn't like it."
He looked at my eyes and smiled.
"She doesn't want anyone's attention afterall."
He meaningfully smirked. This guy knows how to play his card very well.
I looked away from him and cleared my throat.
"I have a question."
They all looked at me, asking what is it.
"What is the Circle."
My eyes were locked with the guy on the seat in front of everyone. He was looking at me blankly.
"Won't you ask who we are first?"
He raised an eyebrow.
"I need no introductions. I want to make sure that this will be the last time we'll be meeting each other."
I glanced at the girl near our chairs. I stood up from my seat and sat next to her. She seems to be excluding herself with the others.
"You."
She looked at me and fixed her eyeglasses. Her bob cat hair made her look so silly. The others laughed at us. Jungwon called them out.
"Do you know what's the circle? I am Yoon Jia."
I reached my hand in front of her and smiled. She judgmentally looked at my hand and back to my eyes.
"Choi Jisu."
She said and turned to me. I nodded my head.
"So... You know what is it?"
Jisu looked at the others first before answering. I saw on my peripheral vision the boy near Jungwon nodding his head.
"It is a system made to reduce bullying and failing inside the school."
She started.
"The Circle, or the Full Circle, a system formed by the student council that ranks students based on their monthly evaluation scores. The higher you rank, the higher you are on the society."
So it's a hierarchical system.
To reduce bullying and failing?
" How can that system reduce bullying and failing...? "
Choi Jisu smiled at me before continuing.
" In a way that students will strive to study harder in order to have a better place in the society. It reduces failure."
"That's the reason why last year, the failing rate of the students from Gyunhee University became 0.01%"
Jungwon added proudly.
"Also, You can't bully someone that has a higher rank than you. You'll take penalty."
"Penalty?"
Jisu nodded her head.
"Yeah. Only the Student Council knows what the penalty is. But there are rumours circulating around it how it can be so harsh so no one is trying to commit bullying."
I see.
It does make sense.
"The ones on the higher rank from 50 to 26 are called the outer circle. While the ranks from 25 to 11 are called inner circle."
"The higher you are on the circle, the more the benefits you'll have. like the dormitory, internet connection, privacy and privilege, uniforms and others."
"Wait- from 25-11 are the inner circle right?"
That's where i am "from" just like what the others are saying.
"Yes."
"Then what's the top ten?"
I asked her.
"They are the Golden Circle."
I glanced at Jungwon who let out a gold card from his pocket.
The seven of them took their golden cards out. It only means that they are the Golden Circle themselves.
The golden card look so expensive. i wonder how much it would be if i will to sell it.
It's an identification card but is made of gold. Very different than what we are using.
"Out of thousands of students, only ten are carrying the golden circle cards. They are like the VIPs. The elites. They have full access to everything inside and outside the school. Everyone is striving hard to be inside the golden circle."
Choi Jisu told me.
"And you should never mess with them because-"
"That's enough, Jisu."
She quickly zipped her mouth closed the moment the guy on the front stopped her.
"The first arrival of the students can never exceed the inner circle no matter how high her admission test is. But after a month, when the evaluation takes place..."
I looked at him. His doe deer-like eyes was captivating enough to deceive anyone.
"You can be at the top in no time, or you can be at the bottom. It's a circle afterall."
I see.
So the student's goal inside here will not be to graduate at all.
But to be at the top of the food chain.
They want recognition, morals and fame.
Interesting.
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20 : 31 : 53
It is eight in the evening and I am still walking to find a convenience store. I just want to buy some ice cream but unfortunately, I can't see any convenience store nearby the dormitory.
This school sucks. It was way too huge that it's enough for me to get lost.
I reached the building III after wandering for awhile, making me remember what happened earlier in the detention room.
*flashback
" You all are dismissed now. You can leave the detention room."
A teacher told us after a few hours of waiting.
It's not really waiting since I just took a nap right after that conversation to avoid being caught up inside the talks they had.
I looked around, seeing some of us already left the room.
Lee Heeseung and Jungwon already went outside since they still have a meeting for the Student Council. Vela And Fei are fixing their make up while Jisu is packing her notebooks.
I looked at Sunghoon, seeing him looking at my direction.
I raised an eyebrow. He stood up from his position and and walked towards my seat. He sat next to me and whispered.
"You really look so familiar. Perhaps you know...."
He leaned closer, whispering on my ears.
"Yoon Jinsol?"
I look at him with confused eyes.
How did he...?
"I do not know her."
"I never told you she was a her."
I glared at him and packed my belongings. I need to get out of here.
"I'll get going. Bye."
How did he know my mother?
How come he knows someone even i don't know her face?
That can't be.
Is he playing games with me?
Before i left, i glanced at him once again before rolling my eyes and walking away.
This school is creeping the hell out of me.
The system
The students
And everything.
It looks like it is the most promising school in the world with its system to make the students go study harder in order to receive what they deserve but it feels like something is wrong.
Everything is sketchy.
It is way too perfect that it became sketchy.
*end of flashback
I can't really scrutinize how did he knew my mother's face when even I didn't know how she looks like.
While walking, I saw a silhouette of a young man exiting the building three, he's on a black hoodie and is keeping himself from being seen by others but i saw his face.
Nishimira Riki. What did he do inside the building?
The lockers are nowhere there and the Golden Circle's room is in the building I.
So what did he do there?
I don't know why but i decided to follow him. I made sure to keep myself lowkey so that he won't gonna see me.
I saw him turn left to a small alley, the alley is connecting the building three to the garden. I quickened my pace and turned left too.
"Why are you following me?"
I didn't know he was actually waiting for me at the alley. He quickly pulled my arm and slammed me on the wall. He used his forearm to corner my neck on the hard concrete wall on my back.
"I-I'm not."
It seems like he realized that it was me . he quickly let me go and bowed his head politely.
This boy is kind but it seems like he can be deadly if he's mad. seeing his jijutsu skills earlier made me think that he mastered karate or something.
"that's painful."
I tilted my head and massaged my neck. I looked at him and he was bowing his head 90 degrees to apologize.
" I am really really sorry i thought it was a suspicious person..."
He apologized. I nodded my head and looked around.
"What did you do there?"
I asked him. he took his phone from his pocket and allowed me to see a text message.
"someone called me to go there so i think i should check it out. it seems like it was just a prank."
he said. I just nodded my head. I shouldn't really prey on others business if i don't want them to be interested in mine.
"Okay. I'll go now."
"Wait noona!"
He pulled my sleeves to stop me from walking away. i looked at him and raised an eyebrow.
"Where are you going?"
Oh come to think of it, i don't know where I am going.
"to the convenience store....?"
he chuckled at me and pulled me to the other direction.
"The store is in this way noona. you are meeting a dead end if you walk straight there."
He said while laughing. oh well, what did i know?
we ended up going to the convenience store together. he is such a soft kid actually.
he was like an angel.
Can someone be as perfect as him though?
I don't think so.
thirty minutes had passed and i received a text message too. He looked at my phone and we read it together.
"They are pranking you too i guess."
it is the same as him. but different time.
-building III, right now. it is urgent.-
I felt like It's kinda sketchy and i know it will just be a prank but
what if it's not?
"i'll go and check. you should go home now. thank you for the company!"
I said and bid my farewell, waking towards the building three where i was called.
______end of jia's pov
She walked out from the convenience store after bidding her farewell.
Little did she know, Ni-ki was staring at her back, sheepishly chuckling while she's walking towards the building.
"I don't know if she's stupid or just plain ignorant. how pitiful."
The young boy whispered to himself and sipped on the cola he's been drinking.
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ni-ki is an angel. periooooood
here's the update! Did i explained The Circle well?
The Full Circle system is my own concept and point of view actually. how good it will be if there's really that kind of system right? will you be against it or will you go with the flow?
(lately I've been writing long chapters on this book. i rarely reach 2k words on my three other works since it is often 1k or something lower but with this book, i reached 1.5 - 2k right from chapter one to three. lol that's all lovelots! <3)
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