Chapter 8: Scandal

“Yeah, I’ll be there in 10 minutes!” I said trying to hold the phone in between my shoulder and ear.

Kim answered from the other line, “Gosh where are you?! We’ve been waiting for ages and the movie is starting soon!”

I groaned in annoyance at her, “Stop yelling woman, I’m on my way. Don’t buy any popcorns for me, hate it” I said and ended the call.

So that was how I found myself seated beside Kim who was consciously hugging Kris’ arm in the cinema’s hall. I’ve always wondered why couples cling towards each other like their lives were depended on it. Is it that comfortable? Or do we just do it out of pure lovingness to show that we do need them? It’s a topic I never know how to comprehend.

The whole cinema erupted in laughter at the jokes from the movie when the male lead deliberately embarrassed himself in front of thousands just to win the girl’s heart. Yet another cliché romance comedy with a hint of fluffy sadness.

I looked to my right and found Kris looking intensely at the sight of Kim laughing. He had a slight genuine smile on his face that showed how much he appreciated the life he was living. Oh how romantic. I mentally grinned at this.

They sent me home afterwards and promised to meet at school tomorrow morning with a face cloned by zombies considering the fact that it was very late.

So the next morning when I woke up with a minor shock from my mom banging on my bedroom’s door, I yelled at her in an attempt to convince that I was wide awake. Partly awake that is.

I groaned in annoyance because there was no way I could skip school easily. I didn’t have a proper sleep and the uneasiness in my chest from sleep deprivation was irritating me, persuading me to be frustrated and scream at everyone today.

By lazily carrying myself with a pat in the back, I managed to prepare for school and walked like a mother sloth by the pavements. I saw Hana entering the school gate with a nonchalant expression, the usual, so I strode and caught up to her with a smile.

“Good morning” I greeted.

Hana replied and smiled at me, “I spent all night finishing the meeting’s report for yesterday. Can you help accompany me, kinda need to pass it to Suho and…” she didn’t have to finish her sentence for me to understand her situation, so I agreed.

This led me to think about Suho’s friends which of course one of them is Kai and that led me to think about what he told me two days back. Now that I thought of it, I barely gave it much thought and ignored what he said. ‘Oh well, what harm could it do anyways’ I told myself as I walked to my locker.  

No one ever paid attention to me, not everyone at least. So when I finally realized how the students were whispering and looking at me as if I had killed their childhood bunny, it alarmed me. Some girls even intentionally bumped their shoulders with mine harshly and the intense glares felt like someone were shooting lasers at me continuously. The word uncomfortable was an understatement. It was like I was standing alone in an auditorium filled with professional judges criticizing the way I breathe, which is very wrong and weird at the same time.

Hana too realized this, so she nudges me by my side and whispered softly, “Did something happened?”

I shook my head and raised my shoulder because if I had really killed their childhood bunny, I would of course know it before anyone else does. Thing is, I didn’t kill any bunnies.

As I walked along the hallway trying to minimize my existence as small as possible, a group of girls stopped my tracks hastily. It caught me by surprise and I recognize some of them as my classmates.

“Krystal’s clique” Hana muttered under her breath beside me.

The one in the middle smirked and looked at me with furious eyes, “It’s brave of you to do the unthinkable Violet” she said voice full of venoms.

This confused me, because the only thing that kept on playing in my mind is ‘What the hell did I do.’

With voice full of care, I cautiously question her, “I’m sorry, which of the unthinkable thing did I do?”

Maybe I sounded a bit too confident and sarcastic. But I was very oblivion of the things that I do in which somehow, everyone is blaming me about. One morning I’m the average Violet the next morning I’m at the centre of the earth with everyone accusing me of something I have no idea what.

She scoffed at this and shook her head, “You’re pathetic! Wait until Krystal comes and you’ll die in her hands” she said and walked passed me, bumping her shoulder with mine. I stumbled before stabilizing myself properly.

I turned my head and looked at Hana with questioning expression, “Where in the world is Kim when I need her?” I said.

Hana who was zoning out, furrowed her eyebrows and pulled me to the side, “I think you did something really bad, everyone is literally looking at you” she looked to her right and left. “Can’t you remember anything? Did you by chance posted anything weird?” Hana added as she looked at me.

“I didn’t do anything! Why is everyone shooting daggers at me?” I said out of frustration. “Let’s just go to class and wait for Kim. She’ll know what’s up” Hana stated and we walked hands in hands to class.

Kim was already sitting in her seat, scrolling her phone with forehead all wrinkled like an old woman. I fastened my ways to her and sat on my seat, it awaken her from her focus. She was surprised to see me; her face looked as if I was resurrected from the dead.

Kim pulled me harshly closer to her and Hana leaned in to hear what she’s about to say, “Were you making out with Kai?!” she hissed.

“What?!” I raised my voice and looked at her unbelievably.

She her phone and showed us a picture with a thousand views underneath it. What alarmed me were the picture itself, and let’s not forget how many people have seen it too. It was photographed when Kai pushed me on the wall at the alley behind school and the fact that the perspective was taken from Kai’s back made it look as if he was kissing me. He didn’t.

My mouth hung opened, I raised my head to look at my friends who were apparently looking at me as if I did something really bad to them. Well maybe I did.

“What is it that you’re not telling us Vi?” Hana questioned, her face expressed how serious she was about the matter.

I was about to turn the topic away and tell them that class was starting soon but Kim beat me to it, “Save the trick, Teacher’s absent today.”

So I did, I told them from the very start. About how I witnessed the two couples at the hallway, what Kai told me and what he did at the alley. I told them everything.

“So you’re meaning to say that someone, who could be anyone living in this whole world followed both of you, knows that you didn’t kiss each other but still took a picture of you guys?” Kim asked in conclusion, her face showed pure madness.

“I guess so, yeah. I mean the possibility of the person not knowing that we kissed is 50-50 considering the fact that it was taken from Kai’s back, so…” I answered her and shrugged my shoulder.

Hana suddenly gasped, “Wait does Kai know about this?” she whispered.

“I don’t think so, I haven’t seen him these past few days” I answered. Kim wrinkled her brows and looked at me weirdly, “Kai not knowing something that has something to do with him is something very rare to happen, you know that right?”

“That’s a lot of something” Hana commented softly, in which we ignored.

I groaned rather loudly in annoyance and threw my head on the table, “I’m dead. I’m dead. I’m dead…” I whispered to myself. Hana put her hand on my shoulder as she pulled me back from continuing the childish act. “You’re not dead Violet, as long as this problem could be solve you’ll still live” Hana spoke and tucked her black hairs behind her ears. I’ve always found her fringe cute. It was just so, Hana.

“Yet! Just imagine what his fangirls will do to my poor soul! What he will do to me? And what if this become too viral that it follows me around even after I graduate high school?!” I stated the possibilities. I may have over-reacted, but any sane human would.