"How do you like it, sweetie?" Aunt Cha said as she opened the grand door.

The living room was floored with light wood, and one of the walls was a giant window complete with a patio as big as a room. A golden chandelier hung from the high ceiling, and the single-floored, extremely large house had several large, unused bedrooms, a kitchen, three bathrooms, and two storage rooms. Miyeon walked into her room, and looked at the lush bed. Her place was lightly decorated with fancy furniture and the ground was also floored with wood. Yet it was so plain. Miyeon picked up the sheet and stared at it. She disliked the intricate lace and wished for something like polka dots or flowers. She wanted the luxurious, expensive decor out of her room and cute, cheaper things instead. Instead of art pieces and sculptures, she wanted posters and stuffed bunnies. Rather than being rich, she wanted to just be normal and middle-class. Miyeon didn't want any of this.

She sat down on her bed and looked at the brass frame on her bedside table. It was a photo of her late mother. The only thing she had left of her. Miyeon would visit her grave whenever she had time... and wonder why such a strong and independent woman would ever marry a scoundrel like her father. Maybe he was different then. Maybe she was blinder then. If only she knew...

Miyeon reluctantly went to her white wooden table to do her homework. She couldn't focus on the formulas and numbers scattered across the page and ended up sitting there and reminiscing. This house was so nostalgic, and so was this town and those streets and how the air smelled crisp in the evening and literally everything just reminded her of the old days.

Back before her mom died and she was legally handed over to her father, she had a pretty standard life, living as a poor two-member family who barely survived without her dad, fighting to live every day. She went to school like any other kid, had friends like any other kid, did work like any other kid. She was normal, another smiling face in the crowd. Although she had to work a lot harder than a normal family, she was still happy. Miyeon wished that she could return to those bittersweet days... unlike her mess of a life now. She wondered how her old friends were doing. She'd lost contact with them years ago, and could barely put names to faces.

After managing to pull herself together and finishing her work for the day, she ate a hearty dinner that she could barely finish and after sitting at her windowside pondering how to not get involved in conflicts with gangsters before realizing that as long as she was herself, she couldn't, she sighed and went to bed, snuggling into her silk sheets. Maybe today was just a dream and tomorrow would be different, she hoped deliriously as she slipped deeper into the night.

Slipping on her shoes, Miyeon decided to walk and take the bus today. It'd bring less attention to her and it was good exercise. Health was very important during the flu season! Or so she said, trying to make up excuses to Aunt Cha earlier so that she could walk.

Miyeon checked her appearance in her phone's reflection as the bus went along. She was still wearing her black hairband, and her dark eyes were still delicately quivering, like pools of black coffee, ever so slightly. Other than that, she looked fine, except for a few stray hairs blown away by the wind. It was quite chilly today, and Miyeon shivered as she bundled up in her light gray-blue knitted scarf, which sadly, clashed with her uniform more than she wanted it to. She hoped that she wouldn't get a cold, since she would be forced to go to school anyway.

As soon as she stepped onto school grounds, people started to jeer at her.

"Hey, it's that rich !"

"Look at her clothes! What the heck is that?"

"Wow, you can almost smell the money used to bribe the principal."

Miyeon lowered her head in shame and clutched on to her bookbag as she scurried into the school. People everywhere backed away from her and gave her dirty looks, as if she were some criminal guilty of a horrible crime.

The bell rang, and so she unwillingly went to class.

She had a different set of classes today, which she all hated. First up was History, a.k.a. Social Studies, except that nobody ever really did anything social in that class, from her experiences before. And so, she was absolutely right. It was an hour of listening to a teacher drone on and on about the glories of Napoleon, which she really couldn't care less about, and not to mention, Jimin and V were in her class AGAIN. Which meant more teasing, more embarrassing callouts, and more harassment. Miyeon slid down in her seat, completely defeated. The next class? Exactly the same. And soon enough, it was finally lunch.

Miyeon opened her bag, which contained a modest sandwich, and after brushing back her hair, dug in. She was continuing to eat alone but then someone's hand landed on her shoulder, startling her and making her shriek.

"Whoa, calm down. I just wanted to talk."

She turned around and met the smiling face of J-hope. Miyeon froze, not knowing whether to run or to stay.

He stuck out his hand and she backed up a bit. "My name's Hoseok, but you can call me J-hope."

After a moment or so of silence, Miyeon reluctantly shook it.

"I'm Lee Miyeon..."

J-hope smiled. "It's nice to talk to you! And sorry 'bout earlier. Rapmon was kinda edgy yesterday."

She nodded silently, looking at his clothing. He was wearing a ripped tee with a leather jacket, and torn jeans as well as chains. He really did look like a gangster. He started to walk away, opening a pack of gum and popping a piece in his mouth.

"Seeya' round. I gotta get back to the guys now. I hope you forgive us, by the way." He said over his shoulder.

Miyeon didn't respond as she watched him walk away, feeling a twinge of suspicion. Why was he being so friendly to her? Didn't he hate her? The last time she saw him, he was threatening her and now? She didn't understand. Maybe he was just acting earlier? But why? Miyeon tapped her lip with her spoon and sighed. Her simple mind was not complex enough to understand this situation. At least he doesn't really hate her... she thinks.

Soon enough, the bell rang, and she was on her way to her last block, which had only Jimin in her class. Miyeon felt like puking every time she saw his face. And not out of disgust, it was out of anxie