Outside, a fierce wind was blowing. Mina exited the book store with a heavy bag and walked along the pavement. It was lucky that there was a bookstore so near to the school and she was glad that she had woken up extra early. It had been hard to find the exact book she was looking for and she had a new bag ready to put it in. She shivered and wrapped her blazer more tightly around her body, watching as her breath misted in the frigid temperatures. She hurried on and passed through the school entrance. The main gate was closed as it was still early and few teachers had arrived but the side gate was open to the relief of Mina. She wanted to be prepared for any eventuality. She had already searched up Momo’s locker bay and number the day before and stood beside it eagerly with her gifts.

However, it seemed that she was too prepared and had come to school a bit early as the halls were empty of students. She grew tired waiting and leaned against the lockers, browsing her SNS. Finally, Momo arrived accompanied by Sana; the ever present friend. She stopped talking as Mina straightened up from her slump and said something to her friend before walking to open her locker, ignoring the fact that there was someone standing next to her. Mina felt a flash of guilt run through her as she noticed the bruise that was on Momo’s cheek. It was likely that she had been the cause of that. Building up some courage, she stepped forward nonetheless and held up the new bag.

‘I’m really sorry about what happened the other day. I don’t know what came over me.’

Hearing Mina speak, Momo turned and looked at her as if only just realising that she was there. She bent her head to stare at Mina’s shoes, slowly moving her gaze up the rest of Mina’s body. She finally settled on Mina’s nose and replied with a voice dripping with venom and clear hatred. “I don’t need your pity nor your concern,” she said. I’ve already bought replacements with my own money. Just leave me alone.” With that, she slammed her locker door shut and walked off with Sana, leaving Mina standing there alone, shocked at the turn of events. She felt empty; her apology and gifts rejected.

She reached into the bag and pulled out a new copy of ‘Sightseeing in Seoul’ and shook her head wryly as she dumped it in the bin. She should have expected it. Who wouldn’t act that way when someone had destroyed your belongings so heartlessly? She kept the bag, thinking to use it for something else and as a reminder of her latest failure.

~

‘I probably would’ve reacted in the same way. The way you described it made it seem really brutal.’

Mina kept silent as she processed Tzuyu’s words. She had asked the younger girl for her take on the situation and wasn’t sure if she was pleased to know that Momo’s rejection of her apology was normal. She was still in regret over how the incident had unfolded and things were just as bleak on the home front. The atmosphere was always frosty when her father came home from work and they only spoke the occasional greeting. It wasn’t so much that they were still angry at each other but that neither of them knew how to make the first move. Both father and daughter shared that same personality trait.

Fortunately, a few days had passed since their argument and her father had relented in some areas by allowing her to visit Tzuyu but had maintained his stance on her other behaviours. One of the main reasons was that he still thought of Tzuyu as a good influence.  Tzuyu was the typical obedient daughter; member of the student council and honour roll. They had met at a party of a mutual friend where Mina hadn’t been feeling the most sociable and had stood in the corner of the room. There she had observed as Tzuyu was corralled by some older guys and had gone to the rescue, pulling Tzuyu free. Tzuyu had been thankful and admiring of the older girl’s act and they had formed a bond over subsequent meetings.

‘But you did the right thing in trying to apologise. It shows that you aren’t a total .’

Mina smiled at that, familiar with Tzuyu’s use of strong language. “I suppose,” she said. “It just feels like a weight on my shoulders knowing that I haven’t been forgiven.” Tzuyu nodded and continued scribbling away, working hard at her studies. Mina put aside the pillow she’d been hugging and moved to stand beside Tzuyu, watching as she worked. The page was filled with algebraic functions and equations that she didn’t understand. She had a sudden thought that she really needed to re-evaluate her progress at school. Tzuyu was a year below her and they went to the same school so the stuff she was learning should have been familiar to Mina. She pursed her lips and sighed softly, knowing that she had a lot of work to do to make up for the missed classes.

She patted Tzuyu’s shoulders and grabbed her bag off the floor to leave. Her father had set a curfew for her return and she needed to leave soon in order to catch the bus for home. Her chauffeur had been given strict instructions to not drive Mina anywhere other than school as part of her ‘household privileges’ that had been revoked and Mina was still getting used to public transport. Tzuyu suddenly turned around and called out to her and she stopped in the doorway, raising an eyebrow.

‘Wait. I just wanted to tell you that my mum said I could go to this week’s party. She’s going since her friend invited her and when I asked, she said yes. Are you going?’

Mina shook her head knowing that she was still grounded. “Nah. My dad’s not going to allow me to go. I’m still grounded,” she said. Tzuyu’s face dropped at the news then shrugged her shoulders. “That’s fair. But just try asking him. He might say yes if you ask nicely,” she suggested. Mina stopped a snort from escaping her as she knew that there was no way her father would relent for such a thing. “I’ll try,” she said, waving goodbye.

She left the house and looked at her watch before cursing and broke into a run. She barely made the bus and paid for her fare as she glanced around the inside of the bus. She did this as habit, making sure that she knew where to sit before the bus started moving. The first time she had caught a bus, she had been looking for a seat when it had moved suddenly and she had stumbled onto someone’s lap. It had been an embarrassing experience but now she felt more comfortable and swung into an empty spot at the back of the nearly empty bus.

She watched the outside world as they drove, thinking about what to say to her father when she asked for permission to attend the party. It was likely that he’d refuse after her recent actions but if there was a slight chance that he would say yes, she would grab at it. She knew that Tzuyu going was mostly for her sake and she didn’t want to disappoint her friend by being a no-show. Before long, the bus reached her stop and she got off. She walked the short distance to her home and stopped briefly to watch the dark silhouette that the house made against the backdrop of the night.

The door opened for her as she reached the front step and was welcomed by the maid. She bowed in thanks and put on a pair of slippers then made her way to her father’s study. Sure enough, the light was still on and she took a deep breath before she knocked on the wooden door. Her father’s familiar voice called out in reply and she stepped inside the brightly lit room. Her father was typing away at his computer and only shot her a quick glance as she entered and took a seat.

‘What brings you here?’

‘Uh, I was hoping to ask you permission for something.’

‘Well?’

Mina took another breath, knowing that this was the hard part of asking and wished that her dad was in a good mood. “There’s a party on this weekend that I really want to go to,” she forced out. Her father raised an eyebrow and slowly took off his spectacles. She bit her lip as nervousness set in before quickly adding, “Tzuyu is going and she asked me which is why I’m asking you for permission.” There was no reply and she looked down at her hands that were tightly gripping each other, dreading the incoming refusal.

‘Hmm. What do you have to offer in return?’

Mina’s head shot up in surprise at the unexpected answer and stammered out a reply. “Offer?” she asked. “What do you mean?” Her father waved his hand in a vague motion. “As in if I let you go, what will you do for me?” he posed. “For example, will you offer a guarantee of an A grade for your next term’s report or will you perhaps say you’ll do your chores yourself.” Mina thought for a moment before deciding on the best response available.

‘I leave it up to you to decide.’

‘Alright then. I want you to show me that you’ve actually seen the error of your ways and are fully focused on your studies. How you do that is up to you.’

Mina frowned at the confusing demand but nodded. She hadn’t expected him to say yes when she had walked in and thinking back to earlier in the nigh