An Unexpected Invitation
"Hi there, Jihyo."
…Who is this?
Jiwoo frowned slightly. Now that she looked closer, the girl did seem familiar—a girl from her class, apparently.
What was her name again? She stole a glance at the name tag.
Jo Bitna.
Oh, right. That was it.
But why is she talking to me?
They hadn't exchanged so much as a single word over the past week.
Which made sense—she was part of Gu Minjae's crowd, after all.
That said, as far as Jiwoo could remember, Jo Bitna hadn't exactly joined in on the childish pranks the other classmates had pulled. She was the type who sat at the center of the group, always peering into a hand mirror… that was the impression she gave.
Feeling something odd about the whole thing, Jiwoo answered anyway.
"I don't mind eating together, but there aren't any empty seats here."
"Oh, you're right. What should we do?"
Jo Bitna pouted as if troubled, then her eyes suddenly lit up and she turned around.
"Then why don't you come sit with us, Jihyo?"
Out of nowhere?
"You'd be more comfortable eating with other girls anyway, wouldn't you?"
Comfortable or not, it wasn't like the food tasted any different whether she ate with boys or girls…
Then again, there was no particular reason she had to eat with Hankyul and Yoojin.
Well, maybe it wasn't a bad opportunity to actually break the ice with her classmates—good for gathering information, too.
Most of all…
This girl, Jo Bitna—she's been quietly nagging at me since the beginning.
She'd been wondering how to approach her, so this worked out nicely.
"Sure, why not."
Jiwoo picked up her tray and stood.
"Hankyul, mind if I borrow Jihyo for a bit?"
"Huh? Uh, sure…"
Borrow? What am I, an object? And why was she asking Bae Hankyul of all people?
"Come on, Jihyo, let's hurry."
Jo Bitna took Jiwoo by the arm.
"Honestly, I've wanted to get close to you for a while now."
She even looped her arm through Jiwoo's, chummy as could be.
Jiwoo was a little flustered, but didn't let it show.
Come to think of it, she used to walk arm-in-arm with Jihyo all the time too. Maybe that was just normal for girls the same age, family or not.
"I'm so glad the chance finally came up. Let's be good friends from now on, okay?"
Jo Bitna beamed. It was a smile that seemed to make a rose bloom softly right beside her face.
Now that she thought about it, the girl gave off a heavy perfume. Jiwoo didn't particularly care for it, but it did suit her glamorous beauty.
Is this the kind of girl who's popular at school?
There were always crowds of people, boys and girls alike, clustered around Jo Bitna.
…And Gu Minjae had been among them.
Come to think of it, a few days ago during break she'd caught wind of a rumor that Jo Bitna and Gu Minjae were dating.
…Maybe she should keep a close eye on this for a while.
"Everyone, I brought Jihyo!"
Jihyo, sit here. Jo Bitna pointed at a chair—right next to her own.
Before sitting, Jiwoo scanned the table broadly.
Gu Minjae was nowhere to be seen. She'd been certain he'd be sitting at the same table.
"What's wrong? Hurry and sit."
Urged on by Jo Bitna, she took the seat.
It went without saying that not everyone at the table was welcoming her.
No—if anything, they were crossing their legs, propping their chins on their hands at a slant, glaring…
Just then—
Clang!
Someone slammed a spoon down like they were throwing it.
"…Jo Bitna, why'd you bring her here?"
A voice shot out like a thorn.
Jiwoo recognized its owner instantly.
Kim Yeonhee.
The girl who'd gotten the cola treatment from Jiwoo a week ago.
Kim Yeonhee's expression was blank, but her eyes were narrowed into sharp points.
"Hey. Did you not hear that she and I had a little thing happen recently?"
The atmosphere froze over.
The kids at the table looked back and forth between Kim Yeonhee and Jo Bitna.
"God, tagging along like a lost puppy with zero awareness."
Kim Yeonhee muttered the curse under her breath.
She couldn't shout it out loud like she had in the hallway that day, but she clearly didn't want to lose face either.
She hadn't even been able to meet Jiwoo's eyes since the incident. Maybe having her friends around was giving her a boost of courage.
"If I'd known you were here, I wouldn't have come."
Jiwoo looked Kim Yeonhee straight in the eye and added,
"I have a pretty weak stomach, you see."
"…What?"
Kim Yeonhee whipped around, incredulous. Jiwoo gave her a small smile.
"Nice new bracelet, by the way."
A flinch. Kim Yeonhee's shoulder twitched.
All of her earlier bravado had evaporated. The moment their eyes met head-on, the memory of the cola incident must have surfaced, because she clamped her mouth shut.
Then, unexpectedly, it was Jo Bitna who spoke first.
"Yeonhee, calm down. We're just trying to eat together—what's the big deal? There aren't any seats around here anyway."
"So what? Who cares if Seol Jihyo eats standing up or face-down in the dirt?"
Kim Yeonhee deliberately raised her voice, her face twisting into a scowl.
And through all of it, she didn't spare Jiwoo so much as a glance.
Jo Bitna soothed her gently, her voice smooth as silk.
"You shouldn't talk like that. You and Jihyo made up that day, remember?"
"Made up my ass. Hakjoo made me do it. You think I'm crazy enough to actually make up with Seol Jihyo?"
Watching Kim Yeonhee spit the words out venomously, Jo Bitna knit her brows as if at a loss.
"Sorry, I hadn't thought that far."
"Whatever. If you get what I'm saying, then hurry up and—"
"But what can I do? I already promised Jihyo I'd eat with her."
…Excuse me?
Kim Yeonhee's face went blank with confusion.
Jiwoo's too.
Oblivious to both of them, Jo Bitna wavered, mumbling as if genuinely torn.
"I brought it up first, I can't just send her away now… Yeonhee, then I'll go eat at another table with Jihyo. Sorry for not being considerate."
The moment Jo Bitna gathered her tray and made to stand, the kids around them rushed to stop her.
"Hey, why are you being so touchy? Just eat together. It's not like there's anywhere else to sit."
"Bitna's gone this far, just leave it. Kim Yeonhee, you're on a diet anyway—you barely eat."
"…"
Kim Yeonhee looked like she had plenty more to say.
"Your food's getting cold. Let's eat, Jihyo."
And so Jiwoo ended up sitting beside Jo Bitna, eating her lunch.
It was like sitting on a bed of nails.
Why do these people have to make everything so hostile? It's just ruining my appetite.
She couldn't for the life of her figure out why Jo Bitna was so determined to eat with her, even at the cost of wrecking the mood like this.
But Jo Bitna's strange behavior didn't end there.
"Want to go to the bathroom together?"
"Can I sit next to you?"
"Jihyo, we have a moving class. Come on, let's go."
Through afternoon classes and every break in between, Jo Bitna shadowed Jiwoo's every step.
She clearly had some purpose in mind, yet she didn't seem to be doing anything overtly suspicious…
Jiwoo decided to leave her be and keep observing. Before she knew it, classes were over and it was time to head back.
"Um, Jihyo?"
After school, as she was packing her bag to return to the dorm, someone came up to her.
She assumed it was Jo Bitna again—but it was someone unexpected.
"…Lim Lisa? What is it?"
Gripping the strap of her bag tightly, Lim Lisa murmured in her characteristic hushed voice.
"If, if it's okay… do you want to walk together…"
Before Lisa could even finish her sentence, yet another someone cut abruptly between them.
"Jihyo, heading straight back to the dorm? I'm coming with you!"
Jo Bitna. Again.
Just as she had at lunch, Jo Bitna slipped her arm through Jiwoo's with practiced ease.
Lim Lisa, her words cut off mid-sentence, made a troubled face from across the way.
Jiwoo glanced at Lisa.
"Lim Lisa, what were you about to say?"
"Oh—nothing. See you later…"
As Lisa scurried off, Jiwoo stared after her retreating back—and Jo Bitna tugged at her arm impatiently.
"Come on, Jihyo."
"Oh, okay."
And so Jiwoo left the classroom with Jo Bitna in tow.
What was Lisa trying to tell me just now? She stepped out into the corridor with that thought still lingering.
"By the way, Jihyo—are you close with Yoojin?"
"…Moon Yoojin?"
"Yeah. I saw you eating lunch together."
"We just happened to end up sitting together. We're not really close."
"I see. Then are you close with Hankyul?"
…How does one thing lead to the other?
More importantly, why was she suddenly bringing up Moon Yoojin and Bae Hankyul?
It was the very moment Jiwoo found this strange and glanced sideways at Jo Bitna—
"Hey, look over there. Isn't that Seol Jihyo?"
"What the—something's seriously off about that picture."
…Was it just because Jo Bitna was beside her?
All the kids in the hallway were staring at them with curious eyes.
"Why is Jo Bitna hanging around with that girl?"
"Must've got something on her, right?"
"Like Bitna would ever have a weakness someone could hold over her."
They say humans are animals of adaptation.
It had been over a week since she arrived at Gaon—ample time to grow used to even a hellish situation like this one.
She was just about to brush past them without wasting a single moment on any of it.
But then—
"Everyone, I can hear you."
It was Jo Bitna, of all people, who stopped in her tracks.