KAREN’s P.O.V.

“Hand in your homeworks now,” Mr. Chang ordered. I sat up straight in shock.

“You didn’t finish it?” came Hana’s voice. She raised her eyebrow.

“I don’t remember—”

“Because you were daydreaming yesterday at the end of class, I remember.”

“Stalker!” I hissed, irritated. Why did she have to notice every single thing I do? “Now what?”

Hana went up front to hand in her homework and didn’t return to her seat even after handing it in. She was discussing something with Mr. Chang. He kept glancing at me sharply.

What was she doing?? Did she think I was incapable of admitting to him myself?? That busybody!

“Well, I’m sorry, Karen but why don’t you leave the classroom if you’re uninterested in studying anymore?” Mr. Chang said to me after they finished talking. Hana sombrely walked back to her seat.

“Pardon?” I widened my eyes. “What did you tell him?” I asked her but she turned away when she sat beside me.

“LEAVE. Come back when you have your homework in hand.”

“But—”

“This is not your first time and it will never be your last until you have learned your lesson.”

I was frozen. “I’m sorry,” I apologized. I felt Hana’s stare on me, as well as others.

It was recess and I was lying down my head on my desk. My stomach grumbled loudly. How could I have forgotten to eat breakfast? Not just that, I didn’t have enough time to pack for lunch today. I was so hungry I knew that somebody close by would hear it clearly.

“Are you hungry?”

Well, I also wished somebody close by wasn’t someone called Hana.

“Are you ignoring me?”

“I had no choice,” she added after almost three minutes and five seconds. I knew because I was counting time till she left but apparently, she was relentless and patient enough to continue talking.

I lifted my head up and stared at the whiteboard. I could see that she was watching me carefully.

She didn’t have any choice? Seriously? She could have just kept shut. Thank goodness Mr. Chang accepted my apology. I gulped. Slowly, I rose up and left her.

“Do you want to buy lunch?” Hana asked, walking beside me.

“STALKER!” I yelled angrily and promptly sped up my pace.

I ended up in the crowded cafeteria and felt frustrated. I had always avoided crowded places but I was so hungry today. Not to mention, I had Hana to add to my frustrating list.

People I had met ever since I entered this school last year assumed that I was a loner. They were just checking out the cover. I wasn’t a loner actually. I was just too lazy to make new friends and going through all the drama. Besides, I knew how me entering a new circle of friends could totally disrupt people’s lives.

I had to go through one new kid disrupting my friendship a few years before this. I wanted to stop that from happening again, so I decided to be just acquaintances with everyone. No cutting relationships off, no getting my foot stuck into anything. The way I want it to be and right then, I’d like it to stay that way.

Hana was slowly getting her foot stuck into something. Me. In a non-literal way.

“Where do I have to queue up?” I muttered under my breath. Hana kept her distance a bit after I yelled at her but she was still around. About one short ruler away from me.

I was so lost. Groups of people were everywhere, blocking wherever the freaking queue was. I searched and searched. Hana even managed to dissolve into the crowd. Though it might sound crazy, I felt a bit scared without her. Now I knew barely anyone around. Great, one person who attempted to befriend me, I just had to throw her out.

“Where do I go?!?” I started stomping my foot, finally discomfited.

“Um...” someone cleared his throat beside me. I turned around to be faced with a group of quite cool-looking boys. The boy with his long curly hair in a ponytail cleared his throat again. “We’re discussing something here.”

I was so embarrassed.

Did I just run into some stupid ritual today? Almost one years’ worth of hiding and not stepping into people’s circle, today I ruined it all by stomping like a child beside cool guys’ table who I’d probably love to fantasize as a boyfriend of mine if I knew them before this.

Seeing as I was unadventurous the whole last year, I didn’t actually kept trace of the cool guys around. Damn.

What a day it was today. The day I got asked to move further away from the cool people. I felt so lame.

I kept calm and pathetically started to move away.

“Uh!”

Badge boy stood up. I didn’t see him there before that. My face managed to crack a smile despite of my heavy heart. “Hi,” I greeted and bowed. Starting to exit the crime scene, badge boy said, “Wait – wait.”