This was it. This was the time. 

When Jisoo got a call from the faculty dean early on Friday morning, she knew something was wrong. She was prepared for the worst scenario because since Baekhyun threatened her last week she knew something would happen. Yixing even warned her about this, he wanted her to stay alert and let him know right away if Baekhyun did something to harm her.

Yixing wanted to report this to the police, but since Jisoo had nothing to prove that there was indeed a threat directed at her, there's nothing they could do to put a restraining order against her ex. She could see that Yixing was worried because he kept asking if they should have some bodyguards to tail her but Jisoo said no for that. Having bodyguards was a bit too much, and they would gain people's attention when she had to be in the office. Jisoo didn't want to have eyes lurking at her more than she already had, so she had to turn down the offer.

The dean sounded very angry when he called her, mentioning something about some nasty pictures and that she had brought shame to the campus with her scandal with Baekhyun. Jisoo didn't catch his words too much because he spoke so fast, and his high tone made her very uncomfortable. But some of which she caught was that people finally found out that she had dated Baekhyun a few years ago, and this she had expected would happen the most. Then there were also some pictures spread online, and Jisoo didn't really understand what it meant. As she recalled it again, she did use to take some snaps with Baekhyun in the past. That guy really liked to take selfies and perpetuated their togetherness, he said it because they didn't get to spend as much time as the other normal couples, so he wanted to have some pictures of them on his phone just to remind him that they were indeed dating. Jisoo didn't suspect that Baekhyun still kept their old photos, and she also didn't understand why he spread them, but she couldn't care less. Those pictures they took were nothing scandalous, so when some campus staff sent her some messages and gave her a number of links from the internet, Jisoo ignored them.

She only started to realize that something was strange after she finished her morning routine. She was getting ready to go to the office to meet the dean—who ordered her to meet him in his office this morning—when she came into this thought of the links people gave her. At a glance, Jisoo didn't think too much about it, but she realized that the addresses that were shared came from different sites. Out of curiosity, Jisoo opened the first link, and once she opened it, she immediately regretted it.

She couldn't explain how she felt when she opened the link, because this was apparently not a social media account she had expected, but a community something site. And she began to understand what the dean was talking about when he mentioned the obscene photos because what she was seeing right now was completely beyond her expectations. Jisoo felt her heart sink to her belly when she found her half- pictures widely spread on the internet.

At first, she didn't believe that it was her, because she couldn't remember when the photos were taken. But what shocked her the most was the fact that it really was her since the background was some spots in her old apartment, the place she used to live before she left for America, the silent witness of her secret relationship with Baekhyun.

She couldn't believe her eyes, the photos were taken candidly. Baekhyun never even asked her if it was okay to take her picture when he did that. She wore very minimal clothes, even some only with her undies. For God's sake, she was prepared for the worst scenario, but this wasn't the scenario she was thinking about. Seeing that people were out there enjoying her body was completely unexpected. This was too embarrassing.

She called Baekhyun right away, and she didn't forget to press the record button just in case she could get something for her defense. And Baekhyun, as if waiting for this to happen, picked up the phone immediately on the first ring,

"Yes?"

"You, Bastard, do you have to do it this far? What you did is illegal, Baekhyun. You're so disgusting, you even took my pictures without my consent, and now you spread them? I can't believe you will even be this low, you're unbelievable." she ranted as soon as the call was connected.

And she heard Baekhyun chuckle for a moment, really, if only Jisoo was in front of him at that time, she might have beaten him now. She clutched her hand tightly, trying to hold back her anger. No, she didn't want to lose her cool anymore. She must face this situation calmly. She couldn't panic.

"Hey, before you go out of control and cursed at me, I didn't spread the photos. I lost my phone two days ago, so, oops, sorry, it's just kind of happening."

"Liar! You think I'll believe that? I know you, Baekhyun, I know how petty you are. But I didn't expect that you're a hideous ert too."

"Well, it's up to you to believe it or not. That's what happened." Baekhyun sighed, "Look, I'm sorry about the other day, alright? I didn't mean it when I said you're going to regret this. I'm sorry that I took your pictures too, but we didn't get to see each other every day, and you know how hot you were, well you're still are, but I didn't expect this to happen either, so, you know what? I'll have this in control, okay. I'll talk to the dean, don't worry. You'll be fine..."

Disgusting. This guy was so disgusting. He's sick. Jisoo didn't want to listen to his babble anymore.

" you, Baekhyun. I won't stay silent for your nasty revenge this time. I'll fight, you know, I'll fight you."

"You can't, Honey. There's nothing to fight to begin with. Yes, I was wrong to take your picture without your consent, and I admit my mistake. But I didn't spread it. It's not my fault that I lost my phone. If you want to fight, good luck finding who first spread those pictures. By the way, I have to go. See you at the dean's office, Babe." Baekhyun hung up the phone, and Jisoo slammed her cellphone to the wall for the extreme exasperation.

Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes. She refused to cry, she couldn't. She couldn't give up this quickly, she didn't want to let Baekhyun feel victorious by seeing her breaking down. She had to stand up for herself. She must show him that she wasn't fear him.

In her entire life, Jisoo had never been humiliated like this. She always tried to live her life as a good person. She was fully aware that in the social world, she was inferior because of her age in comparison to her colleagues. She never hurt anyone intentionally, and if she was hurt, she always tried to forgive them and solve everything with a cool head.

She was logical, always trying not to get carried away with emotions when dealing with any problem. Jisoo always felt that she was able to hold back and stay calm under pressure, but there would indeed be times when she couldn't be as strong as usual. And this was a time when she was just a fragile girl, who didn't have any strength when the attacks came from all directions.

She felt her pride was trampled on while she was in the dean's office. When the dean called her there, she didn't expect that most of the teaching staff would also be there. She understood the most that as a human, not everyone would like her. Just like Yixing once said, she wasn't US dollars, there would be people who would always try to find her faults. And of course, this was the perfect stage for those who dislike her to bring her down. She was treated unfairly, they called her names, but Jisoo found it hard to believe that people she considered family would judge her unilaterally as if all this was her fault.

It was her fault to date a student, to begin with. And although there were some who defend her by assuming that Baekhyun wasn't technically a student, as he didn't take active classes in his thesis completion process at the time, others assume that his official status still remained a student no matter what. When they initially blamed her for dating a student, they blamed her because she kept it a secret until now later on. The lecturers who came that morning were divided into two sides, those who defended her and those who blamed her for the whole scandal. Things get worse when they discussed the circulating photos online. Jisoo couldn't say anything, she just quietly let people were arguing to decide her fate at the university.

And living among the deep-rooted patriarchal ideologies, she had expected that none of her concerns would be taken seriously. When she wished that the people closest to her there were able to protect her, it turned out that they didn't even care a single bit about her dignity being laughed at by many people. They only cared about the name of the campus that was carried by the scandal and blame her as a disgrace to the university. And by the end of the meeting, she was removed officially from all of her structural positions at the university effective immediately. Since she was a permanent employee there, they couldn't fire her, but the dean ordered her to immediately submit her resignation letter in the near future.

And Baekhyun? They let him go with only a month's suspension. A man always had his own benefits in society. They tended to choose to keep them over a woman, in addition, because he was one of the favorite lecturers in this faculty.

"Your fave latte? It's good to ease your mind at times like this."

Jisoo was taken aback to see Baekhyun in her office, she was too deep in thought as she stood to stare out the window that she didn't hear him enter. He put the coffee cup on the table and stood there.

"You know what?" Baekhyun continued speaking when Jisoo didn't say anything, she even ignored him and kept looking out the window. "I really mean it when I say I want to be back with you. I know that I'm not perfect, but I was ready to do everything in my power to match up with you. I even have my doctoral grant already... "

"Talk to the wall, I'm done listening to your ." Jisoo cut him. She waved her hand to order him to leave her alone since she refused to talk to anyone, him especially.

"That's always the problem with you. You never take me seriously."

What? She never took him seriously? Like, seriously?

Jisoo spun around to confront him about his remark, but he kept speaking,

"I'm always the clown Baekhyun to you. That buffoon who falls over heels for you, someone you laughed at when you're down."

"That's not true!" she defended herself.

"Have you ever tried to see our relationship from my point of view? You always say that you're a lucky person, well heck you are. You were born a princess. Your grandfather is a former president of Korea, your father is an ambassador, your mother is a high-rank socialite, even your brother is a diplomat. Did you ever think about how people were having so much fun laughing at me for you? I'm nobody, I have nothing, and dreaming to court you are like crying for the moon. I'm so pathetic, aren't I?"

Really, did she have to listen to all this? She heard that so many times from him that she was getting irked by his shameless consistency. She had too much in her mind right now that she had no idea which one of the things that happened to her she had to cry on. And now from all the time, Baekhyun decided to confront her now? Seriously? Didn't he know how to stop at all?

"Stop. Please, for God's sake. Did I ever complain about all that, Baek? Did I ever question where you came from, or how much money you had? I never did! I'm not that low. My family didn't even care. But you know what? I'm not sorry that you have to experience it all. But I'm sorry because you have to feel insecure about the situation that you created yourself. You should've discussed this with me honestly, instead of justifying your unhappiness with another woman and making me look like a bad guy for pulling you into your own depressive hole. And now you've got everything you want, are you happy?"

"Not everything." he said, "I still can't have you, I don't have everything that I want."

Jisoo looked away, she gave up. It's depress