Every turn she makes, Winter is always met with a mocking stare –worse, she gets ridiculed whenever someone gets a chance as if she cannot hear what they whisper of her. It only gets worse when she received the verdict with regards to the Royale Competition. Days after she was picked as the representative of her class, Miss Kang also told them that all the participants will be posted at the big announcement board that was located at the main lobby.

And there Winter saw her name plastered with the others, she feels nauseous already just seeing her name in it.

A heavy sigh comes from her lips, she walks away from the place and heads straight for her classroom. As she was about to open the door of their room, she noticed someone was coming her way. She is someone who is on the way of becoming a bane for Winter's existence, someone that she'd rather not meet so early in the morning, someone she'd rather ran away from because Winter doesn't have the energy to fight back.

But running away would just add to her weariness, so in the end, Winter halted her inner thoughts to herself.

 

“Miss Bae?” Said woman waves smiling at her direction, “Did I do something for you to personally meet me?”

Miss Bae pouts afterwards, “Don’t I get a good morning?”

“Good morning, Miss Bae.” Winter greets with the fakest smile she had ever made. “Now, what is it that you want?”

Miss Bae, all of a sudden, grins out of nowhere. “Be honored for I have come bearing news with regards to the compe –what?”

When she heard the reason of her visit, Winter had that deadpanned expression of her –she wonders if this is really the Miss Bae everyone knows? “Did you just walk all the way here to tell me that?”

“Not entirely. I just wanted to see your dreading face.”

Winter twitches, a smile she fakes at her, “You’re not getting younger, Miss Bae. Miss Kang doesn’t like oldies.” Now that dampened the mood of Miss Bae. That teasing look she had earlier, now replaced with a dejected look –Winter felt like she had overstepped her bounds.

‘She’s more fragile than I thought…’ Before Winter could quack out an apology, she hears the subject of their talk calling for her name. Marching towards them was Miss Kang, a struggling woman carrying books that weighs more than what she can carry. Winter hurriedly runs to her, carrying half the books that Miss Kang brought with her.

“Thank you, Win.” It was then she took notice of the presence of Miss Bae, still looking dejected from what Winter said. “What are you doing here?”

Miss Bae pouts, “Can I not be here?”

“Not really. I just thought you were busy.” Miss Seulgi walks pass by her, dragging her student with her. “We’ll be on our way then.”

 

 

As soon as classes were over, she rushes home with a tired expression on her face. As she opens the door to their house, the first thing that Winter searches for is the presence of her lovely sister. She wasn’t at the living room, she wasn’t at her room –she even checked the bathrooms just to make sure she wasn’t there. With one last location in her mind that Winter knows of when she can’t find her sister, she hurriedly walks to the back part of the house.

 

“Unnie~” Instantly, it caught Taeyeon’s attention. “I’m home..~”

There her sister is, enjoying herself with a glass of champagne while basking under the sunset. Taeyeon halts from drinking when her ears perk up hearing footsteps from behind. A smile she flashes to the young girl, Taeyeon gestures at her, telling her to sit with her. “How was your day?”

“Tiring.” As she takes her sit, Taeyeon offers her a drink. “I’m a minor.”

Her sister chuckles, “I tried.”

Taeyeon looks directly at her sister’s eyes, a heavy sigh escapes her lips as she finishes the glass filled with the remaining champagne. “So you will be representing your class.”

 

Winter kept mum. Her attention was somewhere else, probably staring at the leaves falling from the tree, or it could be the birds flying freely at the empty sky –it could be anything. Nevertheless, she took her silence as a confirmation.

 

“Minjeong,” Winter’s real name, Taeyeon only calls her that when she’s serious. “You know that I’ve always given you the freedom to choose whatever you want. I listened to every problem you have and there’s not a single thing that I did not help you on.”

True to her words, Taeyeon was anything but a bother to her. In fact, not only has she been a sister to her but also the mother that Winter dreamt of. Living with her older sister, Taeyeon was always the one who gives rather than receives, never asking for anything in return, everything that Winter wants, she would do anything in her power to find that one thing that will make her living comfortable.

But, “What are you trying to say, Unnie…?”

 

“Just this once, won’t you listen to this one request of mine?”

 

///

 

The next few days, Winter came to school looking like someone who hasn’t sleep in ages. Whoever sees her or meets her ends up showing the same reaction. Eyes traumatized for they have never seen someone looking like that. Every step she takes, an excruciating pain shots to every part of her body. How she managed to come to school in her pitiful state still amaze her.

As Winter enters her beloved classroom, she is greeted yet again by stares –the ones that don’t hurt. She could tell that her classmates were surprised because she was rather early than usual.

 

“You’re early today.” Walking towards her, a black-haired girl who bore the same height as her enters Winter’s vicinity. “Finally made a resolution that you wouldn’t be late anymore?”

“Piss off, Yizhuo. I had a rough day..”

“That explains the lethargic energy you give off.”

 

Ning Yizhuo, one of the very few classmates of hers that she treats as her friend. Originally a Chinese person, with the permission of her father –Wang Yizhuo, she decided that she will attend her father’s alma mater and learn how to use magic liker her father had. Unlike her father’s expectation in her manifesting the same fiery element that made him known, she manifested the same magic as her mother instead –the element of water.

And if you are wondering why the girl is at the lowest class, there’s a brief explanation for that.

 

“It’s because you were late an