Past (Complete)
Someone suddenly burst out from the crowd of gathered students, blocking Baek Isul's path. It was Dasom, trembling like a leaf, her fists clenched so tightly her knuckles were white.
"...Go Dasom. What the hell are you doing?"
Kang Minji let out a hollow laugh when the girl who'd always hung on the fringes of her group, too spineless to say no, now stood squarely in front of Isul, glaring right at her.
"I-Isul isn't like that...! You didn't even see it yourselves!"
Dasom's sudden rebellion twisted the faces of Kang Minji's crew with rage and disgust.
"Have you lost your mind? This isn't your business—get lost...!"
The moment Kang Minji reached out threateningly toward Dasom, a heavy shadow slipped in behind her and snatched Minji's wrist. It was Chaerin.
"Don't touch Dasom. I heard everything about you spreading those rumors about Isul on someone's orders."
Chaerin's words froze Yoo Eunho mid-step as he approached Isul.
"What? Ha...! And who the hell are you? Got proof?"
Kang Minji smirked, scanning Chaerin up and down. But Chaerin didn't flinch. Instead, she pulled her phone from her uniform pocket and held it up.
"Right here—a recording. Wanna hear it?"
"...!"
The smirk vanished from Kang Minji's face. But the one who paled even more was someone else.
"W-Wait a sec!"
Yoo Eunho, now right up close, shouted desperately and lunged for Chaerin's phone. But even that didn't go his way.
Thud!
Park Geon, who'd sauntered out from the classroom, planted himself in front of Chaerin like a massive mountain. Yoo Eunho bounced off him and stumbled back.
"Where do you think you're touching a girl? Wanna get your glasses smashed?"
Park Geon growled down at him. Overwhelmed by the sheer physical disparity, Yoo Eunho gasped and shook.
Ji Yoon, who'd been watching from afar, sidled up beside me, crossed her arms, and chuckled.
"Whoa... they kinda look like the Avengers, huh?"
"You call them?"
"Nah, I just gave 'em a nudge. They moved on their own."
Ji Yoon shrugged casually.
The standoff ended abruptly with the student supervisor's bellow.
"What are you kids doing in the hallway!!"
At the teacher's thunderous command, Yoo Eunho scrambled to cover.
"Oh, nothing, sir. Just a little misunderstanding between friends..."
With a wave of the teacher's hand, the crowd dispersed quickly, bringing the commotion to a close.
"Hm... kinda anticlimactic."
Back in the classroom, I propped my chin on my hand, staring at the empty seat where Isul should have been.
I had no idea what exactly went down, but right after things settled, Chaerin and Dasom had grabbed her arms and dragged her off somewhere. Still, I wasn't too bothered by the awkward vibe. There was a clear reason I could afford to stay chill.
My gaze landed on Yoo Eunho in the front row, fidgeting nervously as he gnawed at his nails.
That recording Chaerin had must've spooked him.
Well, since they went that far, guess it's my turn to make a move.
A smile crept across my face as I mapped out the final step in my head.
After school. With the students gone, the empty classroom echoed with silence.
"Fuck. I told them to keep their mouths shut, but that airhead Kang Minji...!"
Confirming no one was around, Yoo Eunho spat curses while irritably packing his bag.
"Hoo... it's fine. Just snag the phone and delete it. Start over from scratch. No problem."
"No problem? Why not?"
"...!"
As he muttered to himself and zipped his bag, a voice popped up behind him.
Slipping out from my slouched spot by the back door's locker blind angle, I revealed myself slowly.
"Man, you drop that disgusting tone when you're alone? Good to know."
"S-Seo Juwon... why are you still here...?"
Yoo Eunho's face drained of color. But spotting no one else, he ditched the mask halfway.
"Ha. Overhear everything?"
He pushed up his glasses, twisting his lips into a sneer.
"So what? You gonna do something about it? That pig Chaerin's recording? How do you even prove it's me from just the voice? It won't amount to shit."
He tried to play it cool. I snorted at the pathetic bluff and strode right up to his face.
"Yeah, probably not. But specs-boy, you think Kang Minji's loyal enough to take the fall alone?"
"...What?"
"Right—like you said, no one'd believe Chaerin solo. But."
I leaned in, locking eyes and growling.
"If I back her up, and Park Geon and Ji Yoon chime in? Think the kids still wouldn't buy it?"
"...Kuh!"
Yoo Eunho's face crumpled. I looked down at his terrified mug, then turned away like it was nothing.
"Eh, we won't bother with the recording anyway. Long as you answer one question right."
"...What."
"Why? Why her—Baek Isul? Just 'cause she transferred?"
I asked quietly.
"...That curious, huh?"
Yoo Eunho brushed off his clothes with a small sigh. Despite the corner he'd been backed into, the chance to brag about his scheme lit a smug gleam in his eyes.
"Obvious, right? Transfers in, knows no one, pushes everyone away on day one."
He licked his lips.
"And she's pretty too? Aggressive with other guys, but sweet and clingy with me. Smart in class... Keeps up appearances till graduation?"
His tone—like picking out a useful accessory—turned my stomach.
"...Disgusting prick. That's why you tried to ruin her completely?"
"Well, you lot screwed it up in the end."
Yoo Eunho flashed a shameless, slimy grin. Staring at that snake smile, I couldn't hold back a scoff.
"...But you? Zero learning capacity."
"...?"
I slowly raised the phone from my pocket. The screen clearly showed recording in progress.
"Ring any bells?"
"...!"
Finally getting it, Yoo Eunho's eyes bulged.
"You fucking bastard...!"
He lost it and charged. But I grabbed his collar first as he flailed for the phone.
"Already sent the file to Ji Yoon. Even if you freak out and kill me here, it won't vanish."
"...Uh, ah..."
"So shut up and slink through school like a rat. Invisible."
I whispered coldly, gripping his collar.
"One more fuck-up in front of me, and it won't end with rumors."
Whether from my icy glare or the threat, his hands started shaking. I let go, and he crumpled to the floor like a ragdoll.
I stepped past his pathetic heap toward the front door. Pausing as I reached for it, I turned back.
"Oh, and."
He looked up with vacant, unfocused eyes.
"Chaerin's phone? No recording file to begin with. Dumbass."
"Whoa... so, then...?"
"What 'then'? Yoo Eunho stopped talking to Isul after that, kept his head down. With Chaerin and Dasom approaching her every class, she opened up quick."
Seo Juwon's low, dry voice echoed in the empty classroom.
"By second year, he'd transferred out quietly—poof, gone."
He shrugged, glancing out the window.
"After slogging through that mud together, how could we not get close? Hung out 'cause none of us had other friends, and that's how we bonded. That Im Hyunsu guy... Park Geon dragged him in third year somehow."
The long, heavy tale of the past wrapped up.
"Dunno why Baek Isul shut everyone out so hard—her own issues, probably. And this is me summing it up as much as I could."
"..."
Nam Siu, lost in the story, sat frozen, speechless. It hit like a sledgehammer to the skull.
Why Isul had bared her fangs and built walls. How she'd pretended indifference to her friends while cherishing them deeply inside.
Now, finally, he understood her a little.
"...Ha."
A shaky breath escaped him. First in his mind: Yoo Eunho's smile at the library that weekend.
"Isul's no pushover... must've been rough."
His fists clenched white under the desk, veins bulging.
"Does Isul know what that bastard did?"
"...Nah. Felt like killing her twice over. Us telling her. Didn't think it'd lead here."
Nam Siu nodded at Juwon's words. Smart call—them dropping that bomb back then would've crushed her.
"That psycho fuck..."
A heartfelt curse burst from Nam Siu for the first time. Uncontrollable rage bloomed inside.
Watching him, Juwon sighed softly and spoke in a heavy tone.
"Get it now? Why I flipped at his name."
"Ha... I had no clue, and I..."
"No time for self-pity, Nam Siu."
Juwon leaned in over the desk, warning sharply.
"He gave Isul his number at the library and smiled, right? Think that snake did it by chance? Hell no."
His eyes narrowed coldly.
"He hasn't given up on her. Probably got more obsessed after bumping into her."
"...!"
Nam Siu's shoulders jerked. The warning stabbed sharp into his brain.
"Nam Siu. You're her boyfriend now—keep your head on straight."
Juwon gripped his shoulder tight.
"We protected her back then. But now, the one she trusts most? That's you, not us."