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I'm an idiot.
I'm actually an idiot.
The first thing I do when I get back to school is go looking for the canteen. As I rush down the halls, turning left then going up a flight of stairs, I decide to ditch the heels. This results in about half the student body throwing me strange looks as I fly by them with a pair of sparkling pumps in my hand. But I'm on a fucking mission, a mission to find some chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream, and I currently have zero fucks to give so please fuck off girl throwing flyers in my face. No, I do not want to join the tennis club and no, boy passing out buttons, I will not vote for you. I JUST WANT MY FUCKING ICE CREAM.
There's no one monitoring the canteen, resulting in about fifty or so students in my class taking up the small tables and stools situated in the small shop. Five of these stools are occupied by my favorite people in the world: Hyemi and her group.
The moment she sees me, her expression turns sour. As I walk over to the line of freezers stacked against the wall, I catch a glare from Jessica that could level a building. That's unusual coming from her considering she's been mostly sunshine and smiles the few months I've been here. But then I see her getting up and walking over to me with a purpose, chin held high and eyes positively chilly as her friends watch with pride.
"Hey Eunji." She says, smiling. I notice two boys from my math class obviously checking her out in the corner of my eye. What's not to like about Jessica? She's nice, the nicest girl in my class, and sure she's not that bright but what she lacks in the brains department she makes up for in looks. The only problem is she lets girls like Hyemi brainwash her and order her around. She's a doormat - and everyone walks all over her all the fucking time.
I offer her a short smile but keep my guard up. Jessica notices my getup and smile turns smug. "Nice dress. Did you go out?"
I ignore her and shuffle through numerous containers of mint chip ice cream. At the bottom lies one last carton of cookie dough ice cream that I reach for at the exact time Jessica opens her mouth again.
An honest-to-God sneer curls her upper lip, an expression I've never seen before. I can't help but think about how similar to Hyemi she looks. "So I guess Wonwoo's not enough for you?" Her voice comes out in a bark. "You're also chasing Hansol now?"
My grip tightens around the carton of ice cream. Everyone goes quiet, eerily quiet, as Jessica continues. "Hyemi was right, you're nothing but a slut."
With a proud smile, Jessica turns to stride back over to her friends but before I can think better of it, my mouth is opening with a snarky reply shooting out.
"Lee Seokmin, huh?" The name causes her to stop. "Funny, cause did you even know he existed before Christmas? Or did you only start hanging around him because you've run out of guys to get back at your exes with? I heard that you cheated on your last boyfriend with Wonwoo, only to then cheat on him with Mingyu." I scoff as Jessica's lip begins to quiver. "And you're calling me the slut?" The words fly out faster than normally and by the time they're out, I'm already regretting them. I see the tears welling up in Jessica's eyes and realize that not only am I an idiot but I went too far.
I shouldn't really be one to judge other people.
As soon as Jessica's face crumples, Hyemi's up and flying out of her seat. Her glare intensifies for the briefest moment as her hand whips across my cheek. The impact of it hits me hard and sends tears springing to my eyes. As I reach a hand up to touch my blazing cheek, I see Hyemi standing in front of me with as much ferocity as she can muster.
"Really," Hyemi starts, "just because you're mom died doesn't mean you have to be such a bitch."
It hits like a kick to the shin. My mouth falls open with shock and it takes all my self-control not to punch her right in her stupid face. Being called a bitch and a slut isn't what gets me. Hyemi's called me things way worse than that dozens of times before but never - never has she mentioned my mom. It's just so low, so taboo that I just assumed she knew not to go there. Apparently I was wrong. Apparently Hyemi doesn't know a thing about boundaries and she's just as bad as her mother.
"How dare you." My voice trembles as I take a step towards her, my eyes burning. Hyemi takes an uncertain step back.
"You've been nothing but mean to me ever since the day Inha brought me home." I lower my voice but by this point, everyone in the room is straining their ears and trying to listen. "Why do you hate me so much? What did I do that makes you so angry?"
She huffs out a sigh. "Just stop-"
"I'm serious, Hyemi. This isn't a fucking joke, okay. Despite what you think, I'm not just some little orphan always crying for attention."
"Yeah fucking right." Hyemi scoffs. "If that's the case then why are you bringing this up now of all times? Right out in the open in front of all these people. Oh I know, it's because you seek nothing but attention. Your mom's dead and your dad was a fucking train wreck so now you just go around thinking the whole world's against you. Well guess what. It's not. So stop acting so fucking arrogant just because your whining got you noticed by Hansol."
I advance on her, mouth open in disbelief. "Is this what this is all about?" I demand. "Chwe Hansol?"
Hyemi falters, sputtering, off guard. "No. This isn't about him."
"That's a lie. You just said his fucking name."
"Jesus. Get over yourself." She yells. "God, just because mom pays special attention to you or whatever the fuck she does, you think you can start talking to me like this? You're delusional. This isn't about him so stop acting like everything I do and say revolves around him." Hyemi steps forward and jabs her finger into my shoulder, pushing me back. "Don't you get it? You always make fun of me and your best bud Nana for always talking about him when you're doing it right now. Centering everything around him, always talking about him. You're obsessed with him. You're a fucking freak, Shuri!"
My jaw clenches. "Don't call me that! Hyemi, do you really want to know what I'm 'obsessed with him,'" I asked. "Do you know what Inha has been doing these past few months?"
"Oh so now it's mom's fault?"
"Hyemi, you have no idea what-"
"That's bull!" She snarls. "Cut it with this blaming other people shit. You said you want to know why I hate you so much, right? It's because you fucking blame all your problems on other people and then expect people to still give a fuck about what you have to say. Ever since that first day you showed up on our doorstep it's been nothing but blaming other people with you. First your parents, then my mom who has shown you nothing but kindness, and now is it Hansol? Fucking learn where your place is before you start blaming other people for shit you caused." She hisses.
I open my mouth, ready to tell Hyemi everything Inha has done these past few months but the words are lodged in my throat and refuse to come out. Syllables stop forming and I'm left with a mix of jumbled up thoughts.
She won't listen to me. Everything I say just deflects off of her like a shield. She stares at me long and hard like she's determined to stay furious, determined to stay angry at me.
"This is about your sister, isn't it?"
Hyemi's expression darkens. "I do not want to talk about her." She says, low and dangerous.
"It's her. It's Minah. Minah's the reason why you're like this. She's the reason why you're so angry all the time."
"Shuri stop." She says but I've already started gaining momentum.
"You're mad at her for always being perfect, for always being the favorite. You hated her because, like me, Inha only paid attention to her-"
"Stop."
"-but then she died. She killed herself and you took it as if it was some sort of personal insult to you." I say sharply. "You hate her for leaving and you hate her for leaving a hole in your family that I was forced to fill." My voice trails off and then there's silence. Suffocating silence that keeps everyone stuck frozen in their seats.
"You wanna know what's in my head?" Hyemi's mouth is twisted in a snarl but her voice quivers. "My sister left selfishly for some stupid reason God knows why and you expect me to forgive her? She didn't even leave a note. Not even an explanation or a heads up. She just went and jumped off a stupid building because things turned to shit and she couldn't handle it. Miss Perfect with her stupidly perfect life and stupidly perfect everything was a fucking coward. Like hell I'm going to forgive someone as selfish as her. Forget her, maybe. But forgiveness? I'd rather drink bleach."
"You don't miss Minah? Not at all?"
"Stop saying her name." Hyemi's voice rises. "Stop acting like you know me. Stop acting like you're my therapist because you're not. You're nothing but a charity case so stop trying to play the role of fucking Cinderella."
There it is. That phrase again.
Charity case.
The next thing I know, my feet are flying down the halls. Bile rises in my throat only to shoot back down as I swallow, my mouth as dry as the desert. My feet continue to run as if they're on auto-pilot. But then the posters plastered on the walls begin to look familiar as I turn down the hall that leads me to the room that always smells of Seungkwan's cooking: The Helpful Student's Service Club.
The carton of ice cream is probably melted and more soup than solid, but that doesn't stop me from throwing open the lid and searching for a spoon as soon as I enter the clubroom. Hyemi's words are still ringing in my ears as I plop down in a beanbag chair and eat my sorrows away. When did I ever get this...bitter?
As I think back to Jessica's crumpled face, Hyemi's biting words, and the accusatory glares of my classmates, my eyes fall shut and my mind goes, You idiot.
The door opens and my eyes fly open. "Noona?" Dino squeaks out in surprise. Behind him is none other than Minghao and I rack my brain, trying to remember if the two were ever friends. Then I remember how Minghao recently joined the club and that I had forgotten to get him a gift. With an annoyed frown, I toss the empty carton into the trash and turn back to the two boys.
"Hey." I offer a smile but it comes out more like a wince. Dino shuffles in and pulls up a chair next to me while Minghao hobbles over. I notice that his limp is getting less noticeable each time I see him. "How's the foot?"
He shrugs. "Could be better. Doctor said it's taking a much longer time to heal than normal."
"Maybe that's because you refuse to stop dancing." Dino points out with disapproval heavy in his voice. I smile as Minghao throws him a sheepish look.
"Whatever, what about you?" His question catches me off guard. "What happened to your face?" He asks. Dino cocks his head to the side like an adorably confused puppy. But then his eyes catch sight of my swollen cheek and his eyes nearly pop out of his head.
"Oh my god your face! What happened?"
"Gee thanks, Dino."
His cheeks redden. "No I - you know what I meant." He mutters as he gets up to get me some ice. I try protesting that my cheek's fine and that Hyemi didn't even hit me that hard but that only makes him more worried and more protective. And to think this little kid is a first year...
"You got in a fight? In the middle of the canteen?" Minghao repeats with wide eyes. "God, you're insane."
I flick my gaze over to him, eyes hard and unamused. Minghao shuts his mouth. But it's not like he's wrong or anything. I am insane. God, what was I thinking? Why couldn't I just put up with her for just five more minutes?
"Noona?"
"Dino, sorry, but I'm really tired right now and just-"
"No, noona, there's someone here to see you." Dino says, his face unusually tense. The door swings open and Dino steps aside, allowing the dreaded visitor to enter.
It's an upperclassmen like Hoshi and Wonwoo, that I can tell by the color of his shoes. But the way he carries himself with an air of confidence is similar to that of Hansol's. It's like everything from his dark blue hair to his polished shoes ooze charisma and just that fact alone makes me shift in my chair. I have a feeling I know who he is.
He smiles and walks over to where I'm slouched over in my beanbag and crouches down to my level. Extending a hand, he says, "Hey there. You're Lee Eunji, right?" His voice is surprisingly nice and sounds full of understanding. Strange, considering how many horrible things I've heard about him. "I'm Mingyu, Vice President but acting President when Hansol's not here." He winks. "Anyways, the Principal wants to see you."
Dino's eyebrows shoot up to his hairline and Minghao's mouth falls open.
Principal Cho wants to see me?
Prince 13: Kim Mingyu
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