Chapter 9: Aftershocks
831 Words
By the next morning, Mirae’s name was everywhere.
It clung to the walls of the academy like ivy, whispered in corners, scribbled into chat groups, buzzing like a swarm of invisible insects.
“Did you see it? Joonseo actually spoke. For her.”
“He never talks to anyone. Why her?”
“Baek Taewoo must be furious. No one’s ever shut him down in public before.”
“Do you think she’s—like—special?”
Mirae walked through the gates with her hoodie zipped high, each step heavy, her head lowered as if the ground could shield her. The courtyard that morning seemed sharper, every laugh louder, every whisper a knife.
She sat in class, eyes fixed on her desk, trying to breathe through the weight of it all. But the air itself felt different. Students stared too openly. Some sneered. A few looked almost… envious.
It was worse than invisibility. It was exposure.
---
At lunch, she thought of escaping to the rooftop again. But when she reached the cafeteria, Jin Harim was waiting by the doors.
“Mirae-yah,” he called, smiling as if nothing in the world could touch him.
Her chest eased slightly, though her feet hesitated. “Harim…”
“Don’t look like you’re going to run away,” he teased lightly, walking to her side. “Sit with me.”
“I can’t. People—”
“People will talk?” He grinned, cutting her off. “They already are. So let’s give them something good to gossip about.”
Before she could protest, he gently tugged her sleeve and guided her to a table near the window. Students watched. The whispers thickened. Mirae’s stomach twisted.
Harim ignored them completely. He unpacked his lunch, unwrapped a sandwich, and slid half toward her. “Here. You look like you haven’t eaten in days.”
Mirae blinked. “I… I did eat.”
“Really? Then prove it. Eat this.”
She hesitated, then took a small bite. The bread was soft, the filling warm, simple. Harim leaned his chin in his palm, watching her with a grin.
“See? You’re better when you eat.”
Her lips parted, confused. “…Better?”
“Brighter.” His smile softened. “Don’t let them steal that from you.”
Her throat tightened. “I don’t feel bright.”
“Then I’ll remind you,” Harim said gently.
Her chest ached at the warmth in his words. She lowered her gaze quickly, afraid her eyes would give her away.
---
After class, Mirae slipped into the library, hoping the silence would swallow her whole. The smell of old books and polished wood eased her nerves a little. She wandered between shelves until she found a corner seat hidden from most view.
But someone was already there.
Seo Rihan.
He sat with a book open on his lap, his silver hair catching the lamplight, his posture relaxed but deliberate. When his eyes lifted to hers, she froze.
“You’re following me,” Mirae blurted before she could stop herself.
One corner of his mouth tilted faintly. “If I were following you, you wouldn’t notice.”
She clenched her sleeves, uneasy. “What do you want?”
“Nothing,” Rihan said smoothly. “Just watching.”
“That’s worse.”
He closed the book, laying it carefully on the table. His gaze sharpened. “Do you know what you did yesterday?”
Her breath caught. “I didn’t do anything.”
“You did,” he countered softly. “You changed the hierarchy.”
Mirae’s brow furrowed. “…What does that mean?”
“Joonseo spoke.” Rihan leaned forward slightly, his voice lowering. “For you. That alone shifts everything.”
Her heart stumbled. “I never asked him to.”
“I know.” His tone was calm, but his eyes glinted with something deeper. “That’s what makes it dangerous. People don’t forgive disruption here. Not unless you learn how to play.”
“I don’t want to play,” she whispered.
Rihan studied her for a long moment. Then, softly: “Then you’ll be broken.”
She flinched at the bluntness in his words. He stood, adjusting his blazer with practiced grace. “But perhaps…” He let the sentence trail, as if reconsidering.
Mirae’s voice shook. “Perhaps what?”
His gaze lingered on her a second too long. “Perhaps you’re not as breakable as you think.”
Then he walked away, leaving the scent of his cologne and the weight of his words behind.
---
That evening, the mansion felt colder. Mirae lingered in the garden, the lanterns flickering against the koi pond. She pulled her hoodie tighter, trying to untangle her thoughts.
Harim’s kindness.
Taewoo’s mockery.
Rihan’s warning.
Joonseo’s voice.
Everywhere she turned, one of them was there. Watching. Waiting. Wanting.
And for the first time, Mirae wondered if her hoodie was enough to protect her anymore.
---
- Writer
