1 THE NEW STUDENT

In normal life, Hyun-ki walks every day at ten am to his school, Goyang High School. He usually meets his best friend, Mun-hee, on his way to school, but on this particular day, someone passed by Hyun-ki, causing him to stop and turn around to see who it was. However, he couldn't find any trace of the person. Mun-hee asked Hyun-ki, "What are you doing?" to which Hyun-ki quickly replied with a low voice, "Nothing."

Time passed, and students started gathering in the class, waiting for Teacher Kim to arrive so they could start the class as usual. Girls gathered around Hyun-ae, while boys gathered around the richest person in class, Mun-hee. Hyun-ki sat beside the window, enjoying the chilled wind with headphones on his ears. After a while, the teacher arrived, and everyone sat in their seats.

"Before we start the class, I need to announce that we have a transferred student from Seoul," Teacher Kim said.

Students started asking if it was a he or she, and they whispered that if it was from Seoul, it must be a rich person. After a while, the teacher called the transferred student to come and introduce herself. As the students entered the classroom, everyone was in shock. The class became silent for a moment, and then everyone started screaming "WOAH!" It turned out that the transferred student was a girl and a really gorgeous one with blue eyes and silver hair. Even Hyun-ae and Mun-hee were shocked. The transferred student stood in the middle beside the teacher's desk and introduced herself by saying, "My name is Mi-cha from Seoul. I transferred from Seoul Global High School. That's all."

After her introduction, she turned to Teacher Kim and asked him, "Can I go sit now, teacher?" Teacher Kim gave her permission to sit, and that seat happened to be beside Hyun-ki. Hyun-ki hadn't even noticed that there was a new student or that the teacher had arrived. She passed by Hyun-ki, and he was shocked by the chilled and cold feeling that he had earlier on his way to school. He turned to see where it came from, only to find out that there was a new person sitting in the empty seat. He found it weird, but he turned like nothing had happened and ignored the weird feeling, acting like it was just another ordinary day.

The class ended, and everyone gathered around the new student, who seemed uncomfortable and focused on her phone. Other students kept asking her questions, but Mun-hee noticed that she was feeling uncomfortable and told everyone to stop asking her questions and let her relax. Hyun-ae agreed with him and went to Mi-cha to introduce herself. She said, "Hi, I am Hyun-ae. Nice to meet you. If you need anything, feel free to ask me. And if you need a tour of our school, I'll be glad to help you with that so you can feel comfortable."

Hyun-ki stood up without saying a word, and Mun-hee asked him, "Where are you going?" Hyun-ki said, "It's too noisy here." The students in the classroom heard him and got angry and confused, whispering about who he was, whether he belonged to this class, and how much of a loser he was. Mi-cha didn't say a word or even look at him; she just turned her head to the window.

When the school finished, Mi-cha got up from her seat and went toward Hyun-ae. Hyun-ae turned to her and said, "Hi, do you need anything

Hyun-ae responded with a radiant smile and said, "Yes, I'll be glad to."

As the two girls walked through the school yard, the students were whispering and shocked by the sight of the two beauties. Hyun-ae smiled and turned towards Mi-cha, asking her, "Why did you leave a huge city like Seoul to come to Goyang?"

Mi-cha responded with a single word, "Because."

Hyun-ae felt a bit strange but smiled and said, "It's okay, everyone has their own reasons. I hope we can be friends."

Mi-cha stopped and turned towards Hyun-ae, saying, "I like you."

Hyun-ae blushed and was shocked. Mi-cha quickly added, "I mean, I want to be friends with you."

Hyun-ae let out a deep breath, and Mi-cha asked her, "What's wrong? You look red and out of breath."

Hyun-ae replied, "Nothing, I just thought I saw something."

Mi-cha kept looking at her without saying a word. While returning home, Mi-cha saw Mun-hee with a guy with blue hair, but she just passed by them without saying anything. Mun-hee called Hyun-ae, and she turned back and said hi to him. While the others talked, Mi-cha didn't recognize the other boy, so she turned back and started walking again. Mun-hee said to her, "You forgot to say hi to my friend Hyun-ki. He's also in our classroom. Don't tell me you didn't see him in class."

She replied, "No, I didn't. Sorry, I'm late. I need to go."

Hyun-ki heard her and started looking at her with a creepy look while she walked quickly in front of them. Mun-hee turned towards Hyun-ki and saw him with that creepy look, telling him, "Don't. You told me you'd stop doing it. Don't even think about it."

Hyun-ki said, "I didn't think about anything. Let's go."

The day after, Hyun-ki was on his home balcony smoking and watching the people in his neighborhood. He did it every day as a hobby.

Hyun-ki said to himself, "But some of you might see it as stalker stuff. Well, to be more specific, why do I have such a hobby? If you see that old man over there at this hour of the day, he always goes to the garden and sits alone, reading a specific book. It may seem normal to you all, but that routine of his is one of my creations. It brings me joy and happiness to let people take a road that they think they have chosen, but the truth is that I manipulated them. Through getting to know them, I give them the idea that they have someone who cares about them. Well, this is my story and my life, and I don't mind taking part in others' lives."

Suddenly, someone started ringing the bell of his door. Hyun-ki didn't expect anyone today, or to be more specific, he had no one. He opened the door, and Mun-hee was standing in front of him. Hyun-ki asked, "What's the occasion?" Mun-hee simply answered, "It's about what happened yesterday in school. It's about that creepy look you gave Mi-cha."

Hyun-ki told him, "I already told you I didn't do anything. Do you not believe me? Why would I do such a thing to someone I don't even know?"

"Mun-hee said, 'Well, you always do it, and you can't lie to me. You know that I know you better than your own parents, so just be an honest man.'"

Hyun-ki answered, "I didn't do anything, but what I want to know is why you are so protective toward her. Wait, don't tell me you like that new student. What's her name again?"

Mun-hee said, "Her name is Mi-cha."

Hyun-ki said, "Shit, man. You never remember girls' names, and this one you remember with just one time of hearing it."

Mun-hee replied, "What? No, I always remember girls' names, like Hyun-ae. Besides, like I said, I didn't come to defend Mi-cha or anyone, but I did come to know and see if you did stop from doing that weird habit of yours. And why do you always keep smoking on the balcony exactly at this hour? It's been the fifth time I've seen you from the outside. Don't you get afraid if one of the teachers saw you?"

Hyun-ki said, "Can't a guy have a smoking break from this lowly life? And no, I don't get afraid because the teachers already know. And I won't stop if they do something to me, and you know it too. You know what happened to the last person who tried to change me. Enough from the chitchat, man. It's already night. I think you should go so you can sleep and wake up for school. Don't think that your good looks will get you out of getting punishments."

Mun-hee said, "Well, it did once. Well, I hope what you just said is true and that you stopped. Let's see what will happen in the future."

Hyun-ki replied, "Well, this year surely will be special. Besides, it is our final year in high school."