Kapitel 5: CHAPTER 5: BEGONIA HIGH

Location: Hana-Puellaweo City — Begonia High

Afternoon

Weather condition: Cloudy

The time hits 12:24 pm, and apparently, it's lunchtime. The students of Begonia are all gathered and bustling around the cafeteria to eat to regain their energy after the morning class. The atmosphere is still gloomy as ever.

After all that boring lesson, I couldn't help but fall asleep on my desk. What makes it even worse was today's weather. Not that there's a sun to lighten up the mood. It's just that the atmosphere is too…dull. Not to mention, the cold is almost unbearable. Winter has not even arrived yet.

Oh, how I wish it was sunny here. I want to feel the warmth of the sun..! The heaters here don't give much heat to be honest. I want to feel the natural warmth of the sun. I don't want to grow old and die in this cold and secluded city! Unfortunately, the rest of the cities outside the walls they've built are much more dangerous...as I was told. Not even a single person stepped out of the city to explore the other side of the walls. I may have been curious about it, but apparently, this Hana-Peullaweo is much safer than the rest of the cities. So I would rather not take the risk of walking on those thorns.

I heaved out a long sigh and duck my head on our table where I am seated with 3 of my friends.

"You've been sulking all day. Is there something wrong?" Cha Yeoryeong poked my head. She's currently seated in front of me. Most of the students here thought of her kindness as similar as to a saintess. You can see it from her gentle smile. She was supposed to run as President for our school's council, yet she ended up being one in our class. Still, we are lucky enough to have such a kindhearted pres in our class.

Heh, unlike me, of course.

"Has anyone got an exciting life, a better one than this?" I said as I hit my forehead against our table.

"Aaah, here we go again," This is our beauty conscious friend, Lim Haewon. Everywhere we go, she carries her magical pouch of cosmetics. She aims to be the best make up artist representing our school, Begonia High. It must be nice to have consistent dream career.

When she takes out her pocket mirror, it makes me think it's already glued onto her palm. She said she can't enter nor leave from a place without retouching her make up. That's how conscious she is with her looks.

"How about getting a boyfriend?" Suggested by my other friend.

"EW—No. Why don't you get one yourself, Soo Bomi?"

"No, I'm good. I feel complete just by reading this," she flipped through the pages of the novel she's been reading for months. Soo Bomi, the novel enthusiast of our class. Ask something about story recommendations, she would immediately come knocking at your house's door only to tell you several types of novels, genres she prefers, and unwanted spoilers.

I'm guessing it's another volume of a romance novel. What's so interesting with that genre anyway? Most authors just put cringe lines to make their readers swoon. What's so fun about that? Just pure cringe. Ugh. It's making me gag by just thinking about it. If you are as similar as her, stay away from me, please.

"Why don't you try hanging out with Jun? I heard he was recently got discharged yesterday," Yeoryeong suggested before taking a bite of a sweet bun she bought.

I'm not really into sweet snacks due to my parents who went overboard from scaring me about severe cavity when I was just 6. I think it would be better not to explain how gruesome they described it to a child.

What a way to give your daughter trauma.

"Oh, right! He's in your class earlier. Have you talked to him yet?" Haewon scoots close to me with her eyes anticipating that I'll be giving a positive answer.

"Jun…? Do you mean Lee Hyo Jun?"

He's been one of my classmates ever since I was in grade school. We used to be best buddies, not until he got admitted to the hospital due to health complications.

He was rushed there after fainting in the middle of our P.E. class. His parents haven't explained the cause to me. Almost most of my classmates knew what was wrong. I felt like a real outcast since then. And yet, they still couldn't inform me about his condition.

That's when my parents began to distance me from them.

"I haven't talked to him. But I don't plan to," I shifted my gaze elsewhere after replying coldly.

"What? But it's been a while! Aren't you even a bit worried about him? He's been there for three months," she said with genuine concern.

"Well, I haven't even tried for years."

"Huh—Heartless!" She blurted out a word on how she describes me with a frown as she brushes her dyed blonde locks. That's right, I am cold towards other people. I push them away, so they won't be involved with me. Unfortunately, these three did not leave me be. They are like mushrooms sticking onto me.

"Haewon…!" Yeoryeong covered Haewon's mouth to shut her up desperately. I don't see why she has to do that so hastily. Are they hiding something I do not know about?

After giving them a frown, I turned my head on the other side of the table. Coincidentally, I saw Jun sit by himself with his eyes staring back at me.

As soon as our eyes met, he averted his gaze and minded his meal. Jun looked a lot more different from the last three months I saw him. He has gotten more...frail.

"Aah, speak of the devil." Bomi took a brief glance from a certain direction as she flipped another page of the novel in her hands.

"He's gone pretty skinny! How pitiful…" Yeoryeong cupped her right cheek while staring at Jun's sickly figure.

"He eats less these days. What should we do? Let's join him!" I rolled my eyes, ignoring Haewon's suggestion. Her unnecessary concern will probably lose his appetite if she keeps nagging about his meal choice. This girl seriously doesn't have any idea what personal space is.

"Let's not bother him and finish your meal!" I demanded her to just sit down and mind her own business. "Your food is getting cold, too. Just leave him be and focus on your damn food."

"But Yoona, he's—" With worry in her eyes, she stood up in an attempt to come closer to Jun. I was about to grab on her arm to stop her, however, someone already did before I could.

That person grabbed Haewon's shoulder to prevent her from approaching Jun's lonely-zone table. Just by standing beside her, that person seemed like a wall blocking her way.

"O—Kwangmin-ah!" I immediately turned my head back to them as soon as I heard a familiar name. His tall figure is quite distracting from this distance. The well-known jerk of Begonia High...and of course, it's—

"… Ban Kwangmin," I uttered in pure disgust. Just by saying his name makes me feel like cursing.

"Yo, Kim Yoona. Haven't chatted with you for a while~"

What is he plotting to do right now? I bet it would be something despicable again...