The Mysterious Girl Was Ji-woo.

"Beautiful" he whispered, careful not to let Eun-kyung overhear. But alas, his plan was fruitless as she instantly sat up at the sound of his voice. U-jin quickly dodged her incoming hit.

"What did you say" she asked as she rubbed her tired eyes with the back of her palms.

"Nothing" he answered as he stepped away to check up on his brother.

"What time is it, Is school over yet" Eun-kyung stretched and walked towards the mirror to take a moment to assess her appearance .

"No" he stared at her neck which was wrapped with bandage, "it would perhaps be wise if you stayed here for the meantime," U-jin suggested.

"What! but being cooped up here is going to be super boring, I'd much rather attend my classes" but as she wanted to walk towards the door, her path was blocked by U-jin causing her to raise one of her eyebrows.

"Is staying here not better than attending classes, besides seating down and only listening to lectures is way more boring" he said.

"At least I will be enlightened" she shrugged.

"Ji-woo, are you saying that you prefer to attend classes than hanging around in the infirmary" he asked unsure of her answer.

"Yep, is that a problem"

"Ji-woo, you always hated class, you liked hanging around here in fact this place was your own classroom. I always had to coerce you to attend classes" U-jin expressed his anxiety about how much Ji-woo had changed. Even the colour of her irises had turned into something exceptional.

"She's Eun-kyung not Ji-woo, my dear brother" Diego who was lying on the bed and listening to their ramblings decided to join the conversation.

"She's Ji-woo, she just pretended to be someone else because she wanted nothing to do with me anymore" U-jin insisted.

"What are you talking about?" Diego asked, confused and looking at Eun-kyung for clarity.

"Don't look at me I didn't say anything to him" she raised her hands up.

"She said she lost her memories but she's was lying, I figured out that she just want me to think that she has forgotten me" U-jin revealed.

"And here I thought you were smart," Eun-kyung laughed. "Not everything is always centered around you. The doctor already diagnosed my illness as an identity disorder. You should read more about it. Besides, you have seen that I am totally different from Ji-woo," she said as she folded her hands.

"U-jin, I know you're filled with guilt for what happened to Ji-woo but she's gonna come back when she's ready" Diego goes towards him and placed his hands on U-jin's shoulder.

"Might I ask who is Ji-woo to you" Eun-kyung felt that she was missing something.

"Ji-woo is actually my brother's close friend, they are childhood sweethearts" Diego teased. Eun-kyung eyes widens, Does that mean that there wasn't any romance in the novel because Ji-woo passed away before the novel's time frame? But her thoughts were interrupted by U-jin's rebuttal. "We weren't sweethearts."

"But you acted like a person who desperately wanted your lover to come back to her senses," Diego continued his teasing.

"Stop being ridiculous," U-jin snapped.

"Be careful with your actions, it could be easily misinterpreted," Diego warned him.

"I know, just make sure that Ji-woo stays here for the rest of the school hours" he ordered.

"My name is Eun-kyung"

"If we listen to you, it could expose whatever is wrong with you" he looked at her coldly and left.

"What wrong with him" she looked at the door he exited from.

"Since you're not his precious Ji-woo, he won't treat you nicely anymore" Diego stated as he made his way to a desk there and retrieved a notebook and pencil, "Now, let's do something exciting" he smiles.

"Like what" she asked as she sat on the bed.

"Let's say that I'm the skilled artist and you are my immaculate muse," he said, drawing a chair nearer to the bed.

"You could draw?" she asked surprised. She didn't know that he had such talent as it wasn't mentioned in the novel.

"Yup, I sure do. Just stay still so I can make an awesome animated portrait of you," he instructed.

"Okay" replied Eun-kyung, her excitement mounting with each passing second.

After what appeared to be an interminable period of time, Diego had finished the portrait.

"I'm done, how does it look" he inquired, only to discover that Eun-kyung had maintained her stillness. Now he knew why she insisted that she lies down on the bed while he draws her, she must have been very exhausted.

He sealed the book and strolled to the nearby window, given that the infirmary was situated on an intermediate floor, from his viewpoint he was able to observe the football field. He sighed; he knew he would never be able to qualify for the football team due to his diminutive stature. Despite applying annually, the coach continually grumbled about his stature, which irked him immensely. Diego mused, if only he could...

However, he dismissed the notion, looking away and approaching the bed where Ji-woo, who he now recognized as Eun-kyung, was situated. He was astounded that Ji-woo had adopted this alter ego.

"Doesn't this make you a coward?" he whispered softly as he crouched down to be on the same level as Eun-kyung, "You neglected to answer my question before taking your own life." He moved the strand of hair that had fallen over her eyes.

"I believed that we were in this together but instead you left me behind, you're just like the rest of them, you're....."

"Diego, I am trying to have a good sleep. Could you please lower your voice," Eun-kyung voiced sleepily. Diego glanced at her apprehensively. Did she hear me?

I believe not. He then rose to his feet and exited to the bathroom. Eun-kyung opened her eyes and grinned, saying, "Gotcha ya, so that mysterious girl was actually Ji-woo"

Upon the toll of the bell marking the termination of a day's learning, Eun-kyung vigourously sprang up from the bed and proceeded to depart the infirmary with haste. When she arrived at her classroom, she noticed numerous curious gazes trained upon her, but without further ado, she seized her bag and departed.

Regrettably, when she neared the school's entrance, she discovered that she was undeniably at a disadvantage, as she was unaware of Ji-woo's brother's parking location and lacked a phone to communicate with him.

"What am I going to do now" she asked no one in particular.

Abruptly, a cell phone was materialised before her very eyes, "Here, use mine" she turned towards its possessor.

"Thank you, Diego!" she exclaimed joyfully, relieved that he had pursued her.

"Anytime, I've already unlocked it" he beamed back, as she took the phone from him, only to realize that she was unaware of his number.

"Blast, I don't know his phone number" she looked at Diego.

"Check the saved contacts. His name should be there," Diego recommended. "Oh!" Eun-Kyung quickly searched through the saved contacts, only to find that she did not know Ji-woo brother's name. She giggled nervously, "Um... I actually can't recall his name" Diego gazed at her with astonishment. "It's Si-woo," he replied.

"You're the best!" she embraced him tightly, causing him to jump in shock before joining in her laughter and loosening her grip. "Yeah, I know. Now, just make the call, okay?" he instructed her, after which Eun-kyung proceeded to make the call to Si-woo.

After a few beeps, Si-woo answered, "Little brother, can you direct me on where to find your car, I want to go home" she spoke gently.

"Do I look little to you, never mind just go to the school's car park, I will come get you there" Si-woo instructed from the phone. She ended the call and gave the phone back to Diego.

"He said I should wait for him at the school's car park" she informed him.

"Allow me to accompany you," Diego offered, as he began striding towards the direction of the park.

"Do you not have a club to attend?" Eun-kyung inquired, struggling to catch up with him.

"No, and what about yourself?" he interrogated in turn. When she reached him and walked hand in hand with him, she noticed that she was slightly taller than Diego probably because his puberty hadn't kick in. According to the novel, Diego was taller than U-jin when he was first introduced in the novel so he will probably shoot up after maybe two or three years.

Coming out from her thought, she answered Diego's question, "My aunt informed me that Ji-woo opts out of clubs due to the possibility of being bullied," Eun-kyung responded.

"But then Si-woo won't attend because he will take you home, Wait; did you refer to Ji-woo's aunt as 'your aunt'?" he expressed.

"Don't worry he will come back after dropping me. And I didn't have a aunt in my life so I took her as my own aunt" she placed her two hands on her chest.

"Okay" he laughs, "But aren't you stressing Si-woo out"

"Tomorrow I will be joining a club, what about you" she asked.

"Same" he said, bringing their steps to a halt, they settled upon a nearby park bench.

"By any chance, did you hear me talking while you were sleeping?" The question spurted from him, infused with anxiety and trepidation.

"Talking when?, I didn't hear anything, I couldn't because I dreamt of myself adding excessive chilli powder to U-jin's noodles" she guffawed uncontrollably, drawing the attention of passersby. "If only you could have seen his expression, it was priceless," she added, her chuckles lingering in the air.

"What was?" A familiar voice from behind her mouthed the words, eliciting a sense of apprehension and consternation.

Rising from his seat, Diego addressed the speaker. "What brings you here, brother?"

"I came to relay a message I had forgotten to convey to Eun-kyung." The mere mention of her name caused Eun-kyung to beam radiantly.

"What is it?" she inquired, her eyes alight with anticipation.

"Ga-ram won't be going back with you to your residence, you can go without her" he said nonchalantly.

"Okay" she said not thinking too much of it.

"Si-woo is here" Diego gestured absently towards his direction before motioning discreetly with his head.

"Oh, but why is he just standing there" she looked at Si-woo but noticed that he was staring at something, she looked towards where he was looking at and saw a girl with a headset on, her fingers nimbly navigating the screen of her smartphone as she sat on a motorcycle.

"Who is she" she queried, gesturing towards the girl.

"She is none other than Choi Mun-hee, the younger sister of Yong-rae," U-jin interjected from behind her, causing her to startle.

Observing Si-woo's unflinching attention towards the girl, Eun-kyung entertained the notion of a forbidden romance brewing.

"She's responsible for vandalising the school's system, feeding them erroneous information via hacked devices," U-jin divulged, his tone strained.

"And for what purpose?" Diego queried.

"For fun, well according to her"

"You mean you didn't involve the police?" Eun-kyung exclaimed incredulously.

"We did, it's just that her ingenuity has grown to a height where attempts to locate her via her undetectable IP address have proven futile," U-jin lamented.

"How astonishing," Diego appraised with a tinge of astonishment. Eun-kyung, on the other hand, could not help but recollect a character in the novel who was a hacker that went by the name Cupid. She appeared in the novel when Diego endeavored to breach U-jin's company's system security to obtain a proposal that was on the verge of being contracted but she only agreed because she wanted to also take down U-jin. So after Diego was given the proposal, he forwarded it to U-jin's contractors and gained their approval, this became a setback for U-jin's company.

Unfortunately, U-jin successfully apprehended her for her unauthorized intrusion into his network. She then revealed that since high school, she had harbored animosity towards U-jin after he advised Eun-woo, the object of her affection, to distance himself from her owing to her association with Yong-rae, the most notorious bully in school. U-jin wasted no time incarcerating her in Russia's most secured prison and procured a life sentence against her. This Mun-hee might be that hacker.

Eun-kyung shooked her head as she rushed toward Si-woo, but then she spotted Eun-woo sauntering towards an automobile and immediately leaped on his back, embracing his body with her legs and hands. Eun-woo involuntarily clasped her legs, ensuring that she did not fall while they garnered the attention of students nearby in the parking lot.

"It is me, Eun-kyung" she exclaimed over his nape.

"All right, can you cease hugging me now?" he implored, though he still retained her legs' contact.

"But I can not," she responded, pouting. Eun-woo rolled his eyes, demanding, "And why not?"

"Because I miss you" he was shocked at first but he let her go once he regained his composure. He turned to her and queried, "Are you pursuing me to incite U-jin's envy?"

"You can think whatever you want to" she said before darting toward Si-woo. She hugged his arm and said, "I'm exhausted. Could you please take me home?" Si-woo untangled his arm from hers and attempted to examine the bandage on her neck.

"I will tell you about it on the way home" she steps away from him. He could only sigh, "Then let's go" he replied departing, with her trailing behind before waving goodbye to Diego and U-jin.

But Diego and U-jin just stood there shocked by the terrific acting that she displayed in front of them.

As Si-woo's vehicle entered the estate, she observed her aunt gathering roses in the garden. "Auntie, I'm home!" she yelled, waving enthusiastically in her direction. Her aunt returned the gesture before taking notice of the bandage on Eun Kyung's neck, prompting her to cease her activity and saunter toward where Si-woo had parked the car.

"Sweetheart, what has happened?" she inquired, embracing Eun Kyong. "Yong-rae attempted to harm her; I intend to discuss the issue with U-jin when I return," Si-woo replied from the driver's seat. "All right, but wouldn't you like to eat first?" her aunt proffered.

"No, please take good care of her while I'm gone" he implored. "You got it," her aunt replied, assuring Si-woo as he sped off while they both entered the house.

"I'm going to deal with that rat" her aunt stated assertively.

"I'm positive U-jin has already resolved the issue," Eun-kyung chuckled. "Shh, I am attempting to offer my support," her aunt reprimanded her. Eun-kyung snickered as she retreated to her chamber.

Later on, when she was having her evening meal with both her aunt and Si-woo, she requested a cell phone from her aunt and was given Ji-woo's old one.

She didn't have to think of the password since Ji-woo uses her fingerprints to unlock her phone.

On reaching her room, she opted to call Ga-ram. "Ga-ram, how are you doing?" she asked, concerned. "I'm fine. Thanks for inquiring," Ga-ram responded, touched by Eun-kyung's concern.

"Since you stayed over at my place, I could do the same for you," Eun-kyung suggested.

"No, that's not necessary" she sensed that Ga-ram was becoming increasingly tense. "Okay, I intend to join a club tomorrow; do you have any suggestions?" she questioned.

"Perhaps...." suddenly, Eun-kyung heard the sound of shattering glass, followed by a piercing scream over the phone before the phone call abruptly ended. She was positive that the scream belonged to Ga-ram, was she in danger?