08 / hearing too much

                                                                                             Ji-won had a devilish grin on her face as she poured the rest of her juice onto Sun-hee, making the girl gasp in surprise. Like a domino effect, Ji-won was the first to laugh and then the others were sure to follow. Sun-hee felt so small and insignificant, wanting the ground underneath her to swallow her and let her disappear from this place.

                                                                                           "Aw, I think she's about to cry," Sa-ra pouted. "I almost feel kinda bad for her."

                                                                                          "Are you gonna cry, little baby? Come on. Let us see those tears," Ji-won persisted, her eyes sparkling in delight as she watched Sun-hee fall apart.

                                                                                          Sun-hee began to cry, the embarrassment and shame far too much. Normally, she could last a little longer and hold back. But Sun-hee found herself on the edge and she wasn't sure how much longer she could last. Dong-eun began to walk towards Sun-hee, deciding to try and help her.

                                                                                         "Hey, now where do you think you're going? I wasn't finished with you just yet," Myeong-o scoffed, yanking Dong-eun back by her arm.

                                                                                         Dong-eun cries out as she's shoved against the wall, completely helpless as she stared up at Myeong-o. She wasn't strong enough to run away, completely at his mercy. 

                                                                                       "It's about to go rain. How about we continue with our game? Sun-hee could come along, let the water wash her right off," Myeong-o offered, he and Jae-joon sharing a knowing look.

                                                                                      "As if I'd let you two idiots mess with my toy," Ji-won frowned. She wasn't going to let Sun-hee be subjected to Jae-joon and Myeong-o's perverted  games. She was still so possessive of Sun-hee, eager to keep the girl all to herself. If she couldn't have Sun-hee the way she wanted to, she wouldn't let anyone else have her either.

                                                                                      "Whatever happened to sharing?" Myeong-o raised a brow.

                                                                                      "A poor degenerate like you is the last person I'd share anything with. I wouldn't even share my scraps of food with you," Ji-won scoffed, causing Myeong-o to scowl. But Ji-won didn't care, turning to Hye-jeong who had been standing off to the side this whole time. "Hye-jeong, get me another drink. And you... go and clean yourself up. You reek."

                                                                                       Sun-hee doesn't hesitate a second longer, racing out of the gym so she could find the nearest bathroom to try and wash off. She starts off by taking off her dress shirt, leaving her in only a tank top underneath. Sun-hee tried to scrub the stains out, only succeeding in them fading away. Next, she'd move on to her skirt - quickly trying to wipe the obnoxious smelly juice away.

                                                                                      The girl glanced up for just a second, flinching at the sight of her reflection. Her eyes trailed down her pale face, faint bags underneath her eyes, before noting all of the cigarette burns on her body. Sun-hee releases a shaky breath as she forces herself to look away, focusing on cleaning herself off instead. After all, this was the only uniform she had, and she couldn't afford another one.

                                                                                    She had no choice but to bend down and wash the juice out of her hair, thoroughly embarrassed over having to use the girls' bathroom like it was her own personal bathroom. But what else could Sun-hee do?

                                                                                      Just as Sun-hee tried to figure out a way to dry her hair off so she could be done, she heard an all too familiar laugh. The laugh came from none other than Ji-won herself and it sent a shiver down Sun-hee's spine. Panicking, the only thing Sun-hee could think to do was rush inside of an empty stall and close the door. 

                                                                                      At the very last minute, Sun-hee decided to climb onto the toilet - crouching down so she could remain hidden. And just then, both Ji-won and Yeon-jin walked inside of the bathroom. Yeon-jin instantly rushed over to the mirror, checking her appearance to make sure that she looked perfect. Ji-won, on the other hand, leaned against the wall with her arms folded across her chest.

                                                                                       "What do you think about Dong-eun?" Yeon-jin suddenly frowned, turning to look at Ji-won.

                                                                                       "What? Why would I think about that poor loser?" Ji-won scoffed. Moon Dong-eun was the last fucking person on Ji-won's mind.

                                                                                       "Come on. You don't think she's prettier than me, do you?" Yeon-jin persisted.

                                                                                       "How insecure can you possibly be?" Ji-won scoffed.

                                                                                       "You're not answering the question. What about Sun-hee? Jae-joon seems to think that she's pretty hot. Unfortunately," Yeon-jin pouted.

                                                                                       "Yes. Yes, I think she's prettier. She's probably prettier than the both of us combined," Ji-won admitted. She couldn't deny Sun-hee's beauty. It was what had attracted Ji-won to her in the first place. It was why Ji-won wanted to keep Sun-hee all to herself, making sure that no one else could have her.

                                                                                        Yeon-jin scoffs. "I can't believe this. I knew you'd say something like that."

                                                                                       "What's that supposed to mean?" Ji-won rolled her eyes. She really wasn't in the mood for another one of Yeon-jin's temper tantrums.

                                                                                        "I'm smarter than you think, Lim Ji-won. I've been noticing you for a while now. With the way you almost... protect Sun-hee at times from the boys, it almost seems like you're in love with her or something," Yeon-jin accused Ji-won, a grin on her lips as she stepped closer.

                                                                                        "What did you just say?" Ji-won falters, feeling her heart sink all the way to the dark pit of her stomach. Being exposed like this - especially for her true feelings - was dangerous. It was Ji-won's one weakness, the one thing that could ruin her life and have her disowned.

                                                                                         If she was disowned by her family, she'd be nothing. Ji-won couldn't have that.

                                                                                        "I didn't strike a chord, did I? I noticed the way you've been looking at Sun-hee. It's the same Jae-joon looks at countless other girls," Yeon-jin continued.

                                                                                        "Like the way he looked at So-hee?" Ji-won retorted, deciding to hit Yeon-jin right where it hurt.

                                                                                          Yeon-jin's face falls and Ji-won grins, taking a step closer with her arms still folded across her chest.

                                                                                          "Don't forget. If it wasn't for my parents helping you and your mother, you'd probably be locked away for a really long time. It'd be a shame if something like that got exposed," Ji-won threatened.

                                                                                            Thanks to Ji-won eavesdropping on her parents, she knew all about Yeon-jin's dark secret and what she had done to Yoon So-hee on her final night alive.

                                                                                          "You wouldn't," Yeon-jin turns pale, shaking her head in horror. Deep down, she knew what Ji-won was capable of. She knew that Ji-won would expose Yeon-jin - not because of justice but because she could.

                                                                                          "Of course I would. What would I lose? I didn't do anything. You did. I suggest... being a lot nicer to the girl whose family saved your life," Ji-won shrugged.

                                                                                          Yeon-jin releases a shaky breath, overcome by a mixture of anger and fear. Ji-won grins at the sight. Yeon-jin hated how Ji-won knew exactly the right buttons to press, she knew exactly how to get under Yeon-jin's skin and worst of all, she knew how to make Yeon-jin afraid of her.

                                                                                          Yeon-jin feared no one, except for Lim Ji-won.

                                                                                          "I'm sorry. I... went too far," Yeon-jin reluctantly apologized. 

                                                                                          "Good girl, I accept your apology. Remember your place or next time, I won't be nearly as nice," Ji-won continued, her tone eerily calm despite the clear threat laced in her words.

                                                                                          And with that, Ji-won brushed harshly past Yeon-jin as she sauntered out of the bathroom. Yeon-jin waited until Ji-won was gone before she locked herself inside of a stall, banging and kicking the walls in frustration.

                                                                                          "You crazy bitch! I hate you! I hate you! " Yeon-jin raged on, determined to get all of her anger out.

                                                                                          Before, she had been going to Ji-won all because their families were friends. And back then, Yeon-jin hated it. But now because of what she had done to So-hee, she was basically indebted to Ji-won for life. She'd never be able to escape from Ji-won's thumb.

                                                                                          "Damn it! Damn it!"

                                                                                          Sun-hee covered her ears, opting to wait for Yeon-jin to finish with her temper tantrum. If Yeon-jin caught her now, there'd be hell to pay. Soon enough, Yeon-jin finally finished with getting her anger out and left the bathroom after checking her appearance for the millionth time.

                                                                                          Sun-hee didn't get out until she was sure that it was safe. And once it was, she lingered in front of the stalls as she processed everything that she just heard.

                                                                                          She wondered if they had been talking about Yoon So-hee who had died not too long ago from an apparent suicide. What had Yeon-jin done to her that was so terrible that Ji-won knew about it? Had Yeon-jin been bullying her too? Was she the reason why So-hee had killed herself?

                                                                                          Sun-hee felt even more confused than before, her mind spinning with so many ideas. But she figured she could go to the only other person who could potentially help her with answers.

                                                                                          Sun-hee found Dong-eun outside a short while later, drenched in rain water with her clothes sticking to her body. Sun-hee picked Dong-eun up, helping her into the bathroom so she could dry herself off. Dong-eun just cried, traumatized by what she had gone through. The embarrassment and shame over accidentally exposing herself stuck to her worse than the water that coated her body. But worst of all, she couldn't get the dirty looks or perverted comments out of her head - making her feel even more exposed than before.

                                                                                         "I... I... don't know how much more I can take of... of this," Dong-eun spoke, shivering the entire time. Her teeth were chattering too, and Sun-hee truly felt so sorry for her.

                                                                                         "It's going to be okay," Sun-hee tried to assure her.

                                                                                         "We need to tell," Dong-eun insisted, staring straight ahead into the mirror so she could meet Sun-hee's gaze through the reflection.

                                                                                         "I already did," Sun-hee nodded.

                                                                                           Dong-eun turns to look at Sun-hee, confused at her sudden change of heart. Sun-hee had been so against it before but now... it seemed to be a completely different story. "Who did you tell?"

                                                                                           "I told one of my teachers, Mr. Yoon. I'm sure you know him. He believes me. He's willing to help," Sun-hee explained, resisting the urge to call him by his first name. 

                                                                                           "So why is it that nothing's been done yet?" Dong-eun wondered aloud.

                                                                                          "We need more evidence. Mr. Yoon says that if we get enough evidence against Ji-won and the rest of the gang, we'll be able to put them away and they can face real consequences," Sun-hee explained.

                                                                                         "Evidence? What more evidence do we need?" Dong-eun inquired, her mind racing with all sorts of thoughts, while she held onto her shivering body.

                                                                                         "Marks, bruises, something. I don't really know just yet. Maybe if we take pictures of the whole thing, they can see it for themselves and we'll finally get them locked away," Sun-hee replied.

                                                                                           "Do you really think this is gonna work?" Dong-eun inquired. This had to work. Dong-eun was feeling desperate and she wanted her and Sun-hee's suffering to end. They hadn't done anything wrong, and they didn't deserve this.

                                                                                           "Yeah, I think so. If you want, I can help you home. We can properly dry off there and -," Sun-hee began to offer.

                                                                                           "No," Dong-eun harshly cut her off.

                                                                                           Sun-hee flinches, her hands hovering above Dong-eun's soaking wet clothes. "Oh. O - okay, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to impose."

                                                                                         "No, I'm sorry," Dong-eun falters, her tone and features quickly softening once she realized what she had done. "It's just... I can handle it on my own. You don't need to worry about me."

                                                                                          Plus, she didn't want Sun-hee to see where she lived. Her home (if Dong-eun could even call it as such) was not a place she felt proud of, and she definitely wasn't about to show it off to Sun-hee.

                                                                                        "Okay," Sun-hee nods, deciding not to press further. She knew what it was like wanting to keep her home life private. So instead she continued to help dry Dong-eun off, deciding not to tell her about what she had heard from Ji-won and Yeon-jin's conversation. She didn't even really know what to make of it herself.

                                                                                          What had Yeon-jin done to So-hee? And what had Ji-won's family done to help cover it up?

( 🍭🔥🔪 )

word count: 2120
notes: oooohhh ji-won really has yeon-jin under her thumb. next chapter will be more insight into ji-won's life. as much as i hate her, her character as a villain is lowkey fascinating to me