Chapter: 6

Nari had left her house early today, her feet quick, approaching the school. As she walked towards the gate, she saw Ye Jun standing there rubbing the ground beneath his feet with his one foot, while looking down. Her feet gradually stopped as she looked at him. He looked up at her. But she quickly turned away and head inside, ignoring him. He followed her inside the campus silently, without uttering a single word.

'Was he waiting for me outside? But he looked extremely sleepy.' She wondered. But shaking her head, she approached the library.

Keeping their bags on the seats, they started organising some books again. The library was empty, and the school was eerily silent, too. Working for a while, Nari finally sat down on her seat and drank water. As she kept the bottle in her bag hung behind on the seat and turned around, she found Ye Jun staring at her. 

She rolled her eyes and was about to get up when he said something.

"Can I ask you a question, is that fine?" 

She looked at him and with one brow raised, she replied,

"No. I hate it."

She stood up, hung her bag on her shoulder and walked out when he said something again.

"Eunji seems strange nowadays whenever I try to talk to him about that incident." 

She folded her arms.

"So, what? Why are you talking to me about this? I didn't threaten him." 

She said and took some steps away.

"I want to help you." He said.

She looked over her shoulder.

"Why?" 

"I-" He paused.

He knew how much she hated him, and if he stated any reason right now, it would just add oil to the fire. He sighed and kept his hands in his pocket.

"I-" No excuse popped up in his mind and Nari turned around once again.

"Don't pity strangers. I am already suffering. This is advice, not as a friend but as a schoolmate." 

He frowned at her comment, confused again. While she silently walked out. Nari walked out, her brows frowned, her eyes stern and looking forward. Somewhere Ye Jun made her look more pitiful every time he approached her. She hated that no one but Ye Jun out of all was pitying her. She didn't want anyone to help her. She better be suspended than being pitied. And Ye Jun made her furious inside out every time he tried to help her. 

She wanted to reset whatever happened, if only she hadn't beaten Eunji that day, if only she had just walked away, ignoring him. Everything would've been fine.

She came inside her class, the whispers started, she glared at the back of the class and the whispers were suppressed. 

"Tch!" she exclaimed and buried her head in her desk. She wished to skip some months of her life.

"Yah Nari-ya, you alright?" The same friend of hers from yesterday asked her.

Nari nodded, head still down.

"Really?" She caressed her hair.

"Yah, Aera. If I ask you a question will that be fine?" 

"Yeah, ask me."

Nari took a deep breath and sat up straight.

"If a guy wants to help you out, but you know he pities you and that is why he wants to help. Would you still take his help?"

"Umm..." 

"If he can help, yeah," Aera answered back after thinking a bit.

"But, like, you hate him a lot and you hate the fact even more that he pities you and has seen you crying once too. Still?" 

"Tch, it's a hard one. But- You cried? When?" She asked worriedly.

"Ah...that, a long time ago. But you- answer me, quickly." 

"Oh! Yeah." Aera nodded.

"So, there's one guy you hate. He wants to help you out of pity. You hate that he pities you and you're in a dilemma if you should accept his help or not?" Nari nodded.

"Well, if it was me and I was in a real huge problem, so even if someone pitied me and I knew he can help me out for sure, I would've accepted. His help." Aera said and nodded looking at Nari.

Nari pouted.

"But you and I have different personalities. Yeah, we differ. Very much." Nari answered and turned to take a book out of her back.

"Ah! Why did you ask me when you always do what you want?" 

But before Nari could answer, all the students settled down and the teacher came in. He started his lecture and after his lecture ended he said,

"Okay, now. Science test results conducted three days ago are out. I will call your name one by one." 

"Shim Jang, work hard." He handed the paper to one student with a stern glare.

"Kang Aera you- are going good. Work a bit more." Area nodded and a smile spread on her face as she saw her test marks.

Many other students were called and given papers, no one had excelled in the test. Nari was anxious and so was Ye Jun

Nari glanced at all the students going back to their seats and her eyes got stuck on her fingers fiddling on her desk. She was nervous as always. Though she excelled in all the exams, this nervousness never left her head. 

"Ahn Nari," The teacher called her out.

She walked towards him and he glanced at her from above his spectacles.

"Work hard. You're slacking off."

Many people gasped when they realised Nari didn't score full. Nari looked at her sheet and realised the silly mistakes she made on her paper, deducting three marks. 

"Park Ye Jun," The teacher called him out.

He walked towards the lecture desk and even before he reached the teacher remarked,

"Excellent. It seems you're gonna be first this time." Ye Jun bowed a little and smiled as he turned around, his eyes stuck on his sheet.

Nari looked at him, her eyes widened but face monotone. Was this true? Everyone gasped. Someone from Nari's competition was on the ground now. Someone trying to steal her position.

Clenching her fist under her desk, she mumbled.

"Park Ye Jun transferred student. How come you're so brilliant?" 

The teacher left after distributing the sheets. Nari stared at her sheet, the bell rang and everyone left for break. Aera knew Nari needed some time to overcome the little failure she had and so she left her alone. Looking down she didn't realise when someone came and sat beside her.

"Now that I think about it, I never introduced myself to you properly." 

Nari looked at him while he smiled slightly.

"I am Park Ye Jun, the transferred student. The one who came three months ago." 

He stretched his hand out. She stood up and went out ignoring him completely. He followed her in the corridor. But before he could say something they both realised the corridor started to get filled with whispers and girls slightly screaming, as if fangirling someone.

"Nari-ah," Nari turned around when someone called her out.

"Hello!" Kim Min Jae added, waving his hand slightly at her.