TEENAGE PROBLEMS (II)

"Oh, Anna, you look so energetic" - Mia Woo smiled as she approached where her two classmates were sitting.

"Hi Mia, I wanted to talk to you!" - Anna greeted enthusiastically.

"Hi Mia..."

Sophie, on the other hand, had a bead of sweat running down her forehead.

It's not that she had issues with Anna, but right now, she was one of the last people she would ask for help.

Yes, Anna was one of the school's most famous girls not because of her family background, but due to her intellect and beauty.

However, she had recently become even more popular because she had been linked to the one who might be responsible for starting all the misfortunes Sophie was currently enduring.

The foreign student was named Robert Lee.

That guy, who, with a remarkably relaxed attitude, effortlessly defeated Gunner!

And due to this fact, he had become the most popular guy in the entire school!

Although this frustrated the blonde, she wasn't foolish enough to start a fight. She knew she couldn't blame the foreign student since that fight was instigated by Hee-jin's bitch, who, by the way, had to leave school because her father got into a terrible scandal, she didn't know who else to blame.

The point is, after Mia Woo's terrible and failed confession to that student, everyone started to see them together on several occasions, whether inside or outside the school.

And while they didn't behave like a couple in love, only a blind person wouldn't notice that something was going on there.

Sophie wasn't dumb; she knew that Mia Woo's confession wasn't because she had fallen in love with Robert, as she even tried to impose some terrible and selfish conditions on him.

She knew there was something behind it.

The blonde knew that Mia had been suffering from abuse by Eunice for over half a year, who suddenly began to target her, making a series of 'jokes' that were not funny at all.

She had been present on several occasions when Eunice 'joked' with Mia, even going so far as to spread various malicious rumors.

At the time, Sophie didn't understand why the most diligent student in her year let this happen, but she deduced that there must be something that prevented her from doing so, something that Eunice was taking advantage of for herself.

But since it wasn't her problem, Sophie turned a blind eye to this abuse, even laughing a little at it.

However, all of this changed when Robert showed up at school.

After that stupid confession, something happened between Mia and Robert.

Sophie realized that, unlike the absurd conditions Mia had set, she was the one who seemed to follow the boy everywhere.

It didn't always happen, but it was clear how the brunette always accompanied the new student in most of the breaks.

And something that almost no one noticed, but Sophie did, was that Eunice suddenly stopped bothering Mia.

Did Eunice get tired of bullying? That would never happen.

So what happened?

You didn't have to be very smart to connect those dots.

The relationship Mia and Robert had, whatever it was, had influenced the way Eunice treated the brown-haired girl.

Maybe Robert, being the new 'king' of the school, became a target for Mia to propose to be his girlfriend, thinking that she could get protection.

However, Robert rejected her, so why did it seem like they were in some kind of relationship?

No matter how it went, the point was that Mia seemed to have achieved her goal of getting rid of Eunice. Now, what Sophie wondered was, what favor would she have to repay Robert?

That's why, despite resigning herself to what Anna might do, she wasn't completely convinced to ask Mia Woo for help, because her relationship with Robert was very strange.

What girl would want to associate with the guy who beat up her boyfriend?

"Tell me, Anna, how can I help you?" - Mia asked curiously.

"Did you know? I didn't do so well on the literature exam... and Professor Song assigned us a task, a report on Renaissance literature, and I have to submit it by Monday" - Anna said with a sad look, intertwining her hands as a plea - "That's why... I wanted to ask for your help since you got a good grade in that subject"

Sophie, who had been silent, couldn't help but marvel at her friend's ability to act this way and handle the situation, not to mention not saying that it was her who needed the help.

She knew Anna could be a bit careless about things, to the point where many considered her a bit silly. However, Sophie knew that was just her friend's way, as she wasn't dumb in the slightest.

"Well, that is a problem indeed" - Mia said, holding her chin thoughtfully and remaining silent for a moment.

The two girls weren't sure if Mia would help them or not.

This silence made Sophie nervous, feeling uneasy at the moment. While Anna had covered for her so that Mia wouldn't know it was Sophie who needed help with the report, she was still hesitant about the idea.

An idea that Anna hadn't consulted her about, by the way.

However, the main reason the blonde was a bit nervous was different. While they weren't strangers, neither Anna nor Sophie were very close friends with Mia, so they didn't know if this request could come across as presumptuous.

"Do you need help alone?" - After a moment of silence, Mia asked, glancing at Sophie.

"Well, I need the help, but Sophie could also benefit from reviewing this topic" - Anna replied calmly, nudging her friend with her elbow - "Do you think you could help us?"

"Um... yes, I would like to help Anna" - Sophie replied somewhat awkwardly.

"Alright Anna, I can help you, but it's about time our break ends. Do you think we can do this at your place?" Mia smiled and responded.

"Um... my house is currently undergoing... renovation" - Anna smiled awkwardly while scratching her cheek.

"Oh... well" - Mia replied - "How about you, Sophie? Can we go to your house then?"

"Um... my house is in similar conditions or something like that" - Sophie replied with a sheepish smile to Mia's question.

"Well, that's very... unfortunate"

A new silence settled among the three girls. Both Sophie and Anna had their reasons for not inviting people to their homes at the moment, but they hadn't considered that fact before asking Mia.

For Anna, it wasn't true that her house was undergoing renovation; rather, her family was going through a very tough situation. Her parents had recently separated.

Things had become difficult for Anna, as during the divorce process, they incurred many expenses, prompting Anna's mother to sell many of their belongings, leaving their house in a precarious condition.

As for Sophie, who was also going through a difficult situation, she didn't want people to come to her house because she didn't want them to see her unemployed father at home, as he hadn't yet found a job.

And in Korean society, it wasn't well-regarded for the man of the house to be unemployed. Seeing an unemployed man would provoke several malicious comments, and that was the last thing the blonde wanted right now.

Again, there was silence among the three girls.

"What if we study at your place? I promise we'll behave well and won't give you any trouble!"

Suddenly, Anna suggested going to Mia's house.

This almost caused Sophie to fall off the bench she was sitting on! If she was already uncomfortable asking for help, trying to take advantage of Mia's trust in this way was something that went far beyond that!

Mia didn't immediately respond, only staying silent for a moment. For a second, she seemed a bit nervous, but the next moment, she smiled.

"Well, my house is also going through a bit of a peculiar situation... but don't worry, I have a good place where we can study without any problems"

Mia took out a small notebook from her pocket and wrote something down. She tore out the page and handed it to Anna.

"This is my cell number, add me and I'll send you the address. Since today is Friday, how about we meet up tomorrow?"

"Great!" - Anna smiled and clapped - "We'll be there on time, don't worry, we won't take up too much of your time, right Sophie?"

"Uh... sure, we'll be there."

The blonde tried to smile but only managed a strange grimace that she quickly disguised so Mia wouldn't misinterpret it. The matter was settled now, and all she could do was be grateful, even though it made her uncomfortable.

Ding, Dong, Ding

Suddenly, the bell began to ring, announcing the end of the break and marking the end of the conversation.