Shinhye was driving back to Seoul. Mr. Cho already set the meeting that night in a dinner at the Cho Family’s mansion.

                “Yes, we’ll meet with them this evening…. No, it won’t be a party I guess just a simple dinner to talk about the agreement.” Shinhye plugged her headset and was talking with Yonghwa who was on the other line.

                “Would you mind telling me about it after the meeting was concluded?” Yonghwa asked. It was the moment he was waiting for before he started planning for his next step.

                “Of course…I’ll call you as soon as we finished with the discussions”, Shinhye replied smiling. Yonghwa was really very concerned about her. He eased her mind in the last few days after the shock of the news. He called her every night and they talked and laughed and somehow she felt happy despite the marriage agreement breathing at her neck.

                “How do you feel right now that you’re meeting Kyuhyun again?” Yonghwa asked worriedly.

                “I feel a bit uneasy at the thought that I’ll face him …but I can’t do anything about it. I need to be present during the negotiations”, Shinhye sighed.

                “Just relax, Shinhye, okay? Don’t let his presence hurt you…what happened before was already in the past. Show him that you’ll not let him hurt you anymore”, Yonghwa reminded her. “If only I’m with you right now…I’ll make sure that I’ll kiss all your worries away and slay all your dragons”, he told himself.

                “Thank you, Yonghwa. I’ll call you again. Bye.” Shinhye ended the call. “I wish you’re here with me. I wish…I wish I’m meeting with you right now”, she told herself.

                She did not have the desire to meet Kyuhyun again. It had been years since they faced each other. There were times that they attended the same parties but she tried her best to avoid his presence. As she was speeding towards Seoul, her thoughts went back to the past.

                “Shinhye, little princess”, Grandfather Park called Shinhye.

                “Yes, granddad”, Shinhye answered as she obediently went to her grandfather’s side.

                In front of them were an old man the same age as his grandfather, a man the same age as his father and a boy the same age as her.

                “Shinhye, I would like you to meet my best friend Dong Jin, his son In Su and of course this young man, Kyuhyun”, Grandfather Park introduced the visitors.

                “Good evening. I hope that you’re in good health and enjoying this gathering”, Shinhye politely said with a charming smile before she bowed.

                “I’m impressed with your granddaughter, my friend, she’s not only a beauty; she’s also polite”, Grandfather Cho praised Shinhye.

                Shinhye smiled but she noticed that Kyuhyun was eyeing her with a stoic expression on his face. She also noticed that Cho In Su gently nudged Kyuhyun.

               “Thank you for inviting us to your gathering. We are really delighted to be here”, Kyuhyun said his stoic expression did not change.

                “Why don’t we leave the young ones together so that they can chat and get to know each other”, In Su suggested smiling to her and Kyuhyun.

                “I agree”, the grandfathers said simultaneously.

                “Hi! I’m Shinhye. I hope we’re going to be good friends.” Shinhye gave Kyuhyun her brightest smile. She was pleased to be introduced to the grandson of her grandfather’s best friend.

                “Kyuhyun”, Kyuhyun simply reintroduced himself. His stoic expression did not waver.

                Shinhye was taken aback by his unfriendly demeanor but she disregarded it…she thought that maybe he was just not used to being introduced to so many people at the party.

                “Let’s go to the veranda to breathe fresh air. I’m sure you’re tired from being introduced to so many. Actually, I’m also tired from meeting so many people that my parents introduced to me awhile ago.” Shinhye invited Kyuhyun trying to make him feel at ease with her.

                Kyuhyun, on the other hand, just shrugged and followed her.

                “Where are you going to study high school?”Shinhye asked as they reached the veranda.

                “At Incheon”, Kyuhyun replied dryly.

                “Really…that’s good! At least I’ll have my first friend when I get there”, Shinhye happily remarked.

                Kyuhyun remained quiet watching the magnificently landscaped lawn and the statue of Aquarius in a small pond with water continuously flowing from the jar it was holding. It stood at the end of the long driveway in front near the stairs of the elegant Victorian mansion of the Park Family.

                “Honestly, I feel nervous to study in Incheon but my granddad wants me to try it there. I didn’t like it at first but later I realized that it’s also good to go out of my comfort zone here in Seoul and meet new friends there.” Shinhye chatted comfortably.

                “Are you always this talkative”, Kyuhyun rudely asked.

                Shinhye’s eyes widened a bit at Kyuhyun’s blunt question. She was not talkative…she was just trying to make friends with him especially since they would both study in Incheon and they would be far from their families.

                “I’m sorry…I didn’t realize that I’d be offending you”, Shinhye said in a low voice.

                “Do you always follow what the elders tell you?” Kyuhyun asked sarcastically.

                “A…Actually, my parents and my granddad are not manipulative people. They allow me to have my own perceptions about things and guide me on how to make the right decisions. They are the most encouraging people and they love me so much that I always have the motivation to make them proud…they inspire me to be a better person”, Shinhye explained happily. She was proud to tell Kyuhyun that she felt blessed to be raised in love and proper discipline by her family.

                “Well lucky for you”, Kyuhyun nonchalantly said as he left Shinhye at the veranda.

                They met again that school year at Incheon. They were both at class 1-A.

                “Good morning, everyone, I’m Park Shinhye. I’m new here in Incheon but I hope that I’ll have a lot of friends in this school. Thank you”, Shinhye introduced herself politely with a smile on her face.

                The students looked at her. The boys immediately liked her because she was beautiful but most of the looks they were throwing her were a bit lascivious. The girls on the other hand smirked at her because they envied her beautiful face and sweet demeanor.

                “Good morning, everyone, I’m Cho Kyuhyun. I’m also new here in Incheon. I hope you’ll be kind to me”, Kyuhyun said with a smile mostly aimed at the female population of the class.

                The boys immediately admired Kyuhyun’s cool stance. They wanted to be friends with him knowing he was rich and they wanted his swag style to rub on them. The girls, on the other hand were already going gaga over his handsome face and good body built.

                “Hi, Shinhye, may I sit beside you”, Kyuhyun said smiling at her.

                Shinhye was surprised at the change in his attitude…a far cry from how he treated her rudely at the gathering where they first met but she was also pleased. “Yeah…sure”, Shinhye also smiled.

                After their classes that day, Kyuhyun approached her.

                “Shinhye, I would like to say sorry to you for the way I treated you last time during the gathering at your mansion”, Kyuhyun said…he was smiling tentatively at her.

                “Its okay, Kyuhyun, maybe you’re just tired from being introduced to so many”, Shinhye understandingly said.

                “Thank you very much, Shinhye. Friends?” Kyuhyun extended his left hand towards her.

                “Friends”, Shinhye smiled as she shook his hands briefly.

                “Let’s grab some snacks before we go home”, Kyuhyun invited her.

                “Okay, let’s go”, Shinhye agreed as they walked together to the nearest coffee shop.

                Shinhye did not gain popularity with the other first year students in that high school at  Incheon the way Kyuhyun did. She was a book worm who preferred to read at the library and studied hard than to indulge in make ups and boy hunting like her other female classmates. She also gradually lost her popularity with the boys because she did not try to flirt with them. Yet, it did not bother her because she and Kyuhyun became best friends.

                “Why does she have to study here? She’s too beautiful that everyone can’t help but look at her face wherever she’s around”, one of the girls said to her friends as she passed by the corridor to the locker room.

                “Yeah…not only beautiful…she’s also filthy rich…what a privilege girl…”, the other sarcastically commented.

                “Teachers’ pet, too. I hate people like that”, the other said looking at her direction.

                “She’s also leeching Kyuhyun’s attention”, the other girl who had a strong crush with Kyuhyun commented.

                “If not for Kyuhyun, I’d like to scratch her face”, the leader of the girls remarked.

                Other girls also had comments about her but the ones that hurt her the most where her classmates.

                “What does Kyuhyun see in her? She’s really beautiful but she’s so boring”, one of the guys commented as she passed them by the stairs.

                “Yeah…too perfect like an android…hehehe!” the other guffawed.

                “I ask her for a date but she told me that she wanted to focus on her studies first”, the other commented.

                “Maybe, she doesn’t want to be seen with an ugly one like you…hehehe”, the other smirked.

                “Yah…I’m not ugly”, the other bantered back.

                Shinhye felt like crying…at first she tried her best to be friends with them but they rejected her calling her names making her retreat to the library to the sanctuary of her favorite novels, poems and short stories; she was only glad that they were not yet resulting to hurt her physically or destroy her things because of Kyuhyun’s presence. She thought that since they belonged to the first section, they would be civilized but it seemed that envy and bullying knew no bounds or sections.  

                “Kyuhyun, I’m glad that you’re my friend. At least I have someone to accompany me to do the experiments in science and to do the other projects”, Shinhye said as they were walking back to the coffee shop where they usually have their afternoon snacks after class.

                “Don’t mind our other classmates, okay? They are just envious because you’re intelligent, beautiful, rich and most of all the teachers love you”, Kyuhyun encouragingly said.

                “Know what? I’m currently reading a novel written by Jane Austen”, Shinhye excitedly told Kyuhyun.

                “What’s it all about?” Kyuhyun asked as he opened the coffee shop for Shinhye to enter first.

                Shinhye started to tell him about the first few chapters of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. She felt so happy sharing her thoughts with Kyuhyun. She was happy to discuss Anglo American Literature with someone her age. He was really her best friend…the one she trusted…the one she loved like a brother since she never had any siblings.

                Her life started to become more miserable one November afternoon. The teachers had a general assembly so the classes were cancelled. She just came from the library where she borrowed a book when she heard her classmates inside the classroom. The door was slightly ajar and she saw Kyuhyun and others sitting on the floor of the classroom.

                “Kyuhyun, truth or dare?” one of her female classmates asked flirtingly.

                “I choose…truth”, Kyuhyun answered flirting back.

                “What do you think of Shinhye?” one of the girls asked.

                “A boring android”, Kyuhyun said automatically followed by a mocking laugh.

                “Wooohh!” other students hooted.

                “She’s your ‘best friend’, right?” one of the boys asked.

                “Hey! It should be one question at a time, right?” Kyuhyun bantered back.

                “C’mon now, Kyuhyun you can’t possibly leave us hanging…tell us…tell us…”, one of the girls said.

                “Tell us…tell us…tell us”, their classmates chanted.

                “Okay, the truth is she’s a burden to me. I don’t really like her…if my dad and mom didn’t force me to make friends with her…huh…I wouldn’t even approach her. She’s really boring me to death with those novels! I’m just forcing myself to accompany her because my father told me that if I’ll be friends with her, he’ll buy me the latest model of laptop and other things and increase my allowance…hehehe…so I tolerate her!” Kyuhyun revealed to their classmates. He was smirking and laughing insultingly causing everyone to smirk and add their own insulting words at Kyuhyun’s litany.

                “So you’re being with her is…” It was one of the guys whom Shinhye turned down.

                “Is just an act…hehehe!” Kyuhyun remarked without any remorse or hesitation to her face.

                “If we bully her now…you can’t defend her anymore because we won’t believe you anymore if you did”, the leaders of the girls who hated Shinhye challenged him.

                “Bully her all you want. I just realized that I’m already far from my parents to worry about their opinions. ‘Sides I can’t think of anything more to ask from my parents at the moment to compensate me for being friends with the boring android!” Kyuhyun spat.

                Shinhye realized that she was already crying silently. Tears were falling from her eyes. She trusted Kyuhyun so much…relied to him to be her best friend but she did not know that he resented her and only made friends with her because he was forced by his parents. Worst of all he backstabbed her…he betrayed her…he threw her to the jackals. She could not take it anymore so she decided to enter the door. Kyuhyun saw her and his stoic expression was plastered on his face.

                “I’m sorry for being such a burden to you, Kyuhyun. If you didn’t like me…you…you should have told me…I wouldn’t have bothered you”, Shinhye was crying but her words rang clear.

                Kyuhyun remained silent while others were laughing at her.

                “You…you know what hurts me most right now is you betrayed me…I trusted you and you betrayed me for that I will never forgive you. Never!” Shinhye said sharply…her anger plain in her beautiful features. She left the room crying bitterly for Kyuhyun’s betrayal. She would never trust her again…ever!

                After that incident, her classmates’ bullying increased. They used to bully her with words but later they started destroying her things and hurting her physically and Kyuhyun true to his words just stood back like a spectator.

                “Leave this school, boring android” It was written at the door of her locker using graffiti spray.

                The lock of her locker was broken and she found her books and papers sprayed with graffiti paint.

                “Leech…Leech…Leech!” It was engraved at her desk. They called her leech because they accused her of leeching their teachers’ praises and attention during class discussion.   

                One time she fell on her bottom when she did not see that one of her classmates pulled the chair while she was reciting. The teacher reprimanded her classmate but it did not stop them from bullying her.

                “Please, give my lunch box back”, Shinhye told one of her male classmates who grabbed her lunch box from her bag while the other boys were restraining her arms. They were waiting for their teacher in math that time.

                “You want it…get it!” her classmate threw her lunch box outside the window.

                “No”, Shinhye said as she went outside crying. Her classmates laughed. Kyuhyun did not laugh openly but he did not lift a hand to help her.

                She endured the bullying and because she did not want to worry her parents and her grandfather, she did not tell them anything when she went home for vacation.

                “Little princess, are you, okay”, her grandfather asked.

                “Yes, granddad, I’m just a little tired because of school work”, Shinhye tried to smile.

                “You have good grades, little angel, if you continued with this until your third year…they might recommend you to jump to sixth year already”, her father proudly said as he ruffled her hair lovingly.

                “Dad”, she said as she finger-combed her hair.

                “Just tell us, little angel, if you encountered any problems, okay?”Her mother embraced and kissed her hair.

                She just nodded and embraced her mother back…while inside she was already dying.

                The next school year, the bullying again returned but she tried to immune herself from them. She promised herself that she would ignore them. She performed her science experiments alone…made her projects on her own. She topped the exams and the teachers and the elder students were impressed by her performance.

                “Shinhye got the highest score on the laboratory test for biology. Congratulations, Shinhye”, her teacher gave her, her paper.

                “Thank you, ma’am”, Shinhye humbly replied.

“Shinhye topped the exam in math this quarter. Congratulations, Shinhye”, her math teacher announced.

                For the entire school year, she earned her classmates undying envy and hatred and the bullying became graver but she was prepared to endure until one afternoon at the last day of the school year.

                “Hey, android!” the leader of the girls who were bullying her called out.

                She was going out of the school when the group cornered her.

                “I don’t want to argue with you. I’m going home”, Shinhye tried to side step the leader but she was surprised when two other girls came out of nowhere and put their arms around her and dragged her at the back of the school.

                “So you think you’re better than us?” the leader inquired.

                “I don’t know what you’re talking about”, Shinhye replied. Her heart beating faster but she tried to be brave.

                The leader slapped her. “Know what? Everyone would want to come and beat you but we decided to do it instead since it would be too obvious if everyone will gather here to beat you senseless”, the leader snarled.

                The leader motioned the other two students to hold her arms as she was slapped left and right. She fought them despite the pain. She managed to wrench herself free and run…shouting for help but before she could get far, they grabbed her hair and someone punched her abdomen. She fell on the ground writhing in pain.

                “Please, stop it…stop it…stop it”, Shinhye groaned in pain as she covered her head. She felt punches coming from all directions. They were beating her and she did not know if she would survive.

                After they were satisfied that she was beaten and bruised they left her lying there crying and groaning in pain. She could not stand…she also feared that she might have broken one or two of her ribs. Her nose was bleeding, her face was swollen and her lower lip was split. From a distance, she saw someone running towards her.

                “Kyu…Kyu…Kyuhyun, he-helped m-me”, Shinhye pleaded a voice slurred by pain and she lost consciousness.

                She woke up at the hospital. She saw Kyuhyun looking at her.

                “T-thank y-you for helping me”, Shinhye said in a low voice.

                “Don’t thank me, Shinhye. I didn’t help you because I want to…I just don’t like you to die here, my parents might blame it to me because they asked me to be friends with you and protect you. If you die they might think I didn’t follow their edict”, Kyuhyun sarcastically said.

                Shinhye did not say anything…she felt tears falling from her eyes.

                “Kyuhyun, why do you hate me? I didn’t do anything against you”, Shinhye said as she turned her tear filled gaze at him.

                “I hate you because my parents forced me to be friends with you. I hate you because you belong to those things that symbolized my parents control and manipulation. I hate you…I hate you because your family loves you the way my family never loved me”, Kyuhyun was already crying. He wiped his tears.

                “It’s not my fault, Kyuhyun. It was never my fault. You do not have the right to hate me nor encourage everyone to bully me…I treated you as my best friend…as my brother…” Shinhye winced at the pain she felt on her side.

                “I don’t care what you think! Just don’t mention anything to your parents who might say things to mine because if that happened I might personally ask those bullies to give you a second beating”, Kyuhyun said icily as he walked out of the room.

                Shinhye asked one of the nurses to help her contact her parents. Her parents and grandfather picked her up the next day.

                “My God! Little angel, what happened to you?” Her mother cried softly

                “Who did this to you?” his father angrily asked.

                “Didn’t Kyuhyun protect you?” her grandfather asked.

                “Random students from other schools try to beat me on the way home. Maybe they mistook me for the one they were bullying”, Shinhye replied. She decided not to tell her parents and her grandfather about Kyuhyun not because she was afraid of what he told her but because of her pride. She did not want her parents to know that she was not able to gain any friends in Incheon and the one she thought her best friend betrayed her.  

                “Mistook you?” her father asked.

                “I don’t know, dad. Ahhh”, Shinhye groaned again in pain the effects of the pain killer fading.

                “Didn’t you recognize them?” his grandfather asked.

                “I didn’t, granddad”, Shinhye replied as she continued to wince in pain.

                “Please, don’t talk anymore, little angel. Please, call the nurse and the doctor”, Shinhye’s mother smoothed Shinhye’s hair.

                The nurse gave a dose of pain killer to Shinhye which sent her to sleep while her parents and her grandfather spoke with the doctor.

                “I hate you, Kyuhyun! I hate you…I will never forget this…never!” Shinhye told herself before she fell asleep.

                The next day, her parents brought her back to Seoul. They decided that she would not return to Incheon for the next school year.

                Shinhye realized that at the middle of her reminiscing, she managed to stop the car by the side of the road as she cried. She never forgot what she did to her…

                “Damn you, Kyuhyun, even if I ended up married to you…I swear I won’t ever allow you the chance to hurt me again!” Shinhye wiped her tears and with determination in her eyes she started her car and continued to drive to Seoul.