The next day, a pair of feet could be seen waiting in front of the gates of the Kim residence, it was Yoojung holding a couple of bandaids, fidgeting in her place.

Inside the Kim residence, Mrs Kim was persistently persuading Jiwon to ride the car to school.

“You never use the driver nor the car to school. Are you ashamed of our wealth?” Mrs Kim was at it again with her usual dramatic mornings.

“It’s not that, omma…”

“Then what is it? Who knows what harm can come your way? You could be kidnapped or worse, get the germs from riding those filthy daily transportation.” She cringed at the thought, but Jiwon just thought her mom’s ideas were exaggerated.

“Fine mom. Just for today.” And with that, Jiwon sets out and notices the girl who’s been waiting for a good 30 minutes outside his house. He tilts his head to the right and squints his eye, trying to make sense of the situation. Was she actually waiting for him? He approaches the gates and clears his throat which catches Yoojung’s attention.

“Ohh, Jiwon-ah. Yesterday, I’m sorry! I was… I think… I didn’t… slapping you with ice… it was wrong… revenge… if you want…” Yoojung couldn’t understand why she was speaking like Yoda when she clearly practiced what to say just minutes ago.

Jiwon raises one eyebrow when he sees the bandaids she was holding and punches the air with his right fist, his knuckle landing only a few inches away from Yoojung’s face. This startled Yoojung, but welcomed the impact by closing her eyes tightly. She didn’t know Jiwon believed in ‘an eye for eye, a hit for a hit’, or something like that. And yet, the impact never came. She slowly opened her eye only to see the knuckle still up in the air, held in front of her.

“Hurry up already, my arms are starting to feel sore from holding them up for too long.”

Yoojung was ready to accept the corporal punishment and slowly brought her face closer to the fist.

“What are you doing? I meant to put bandaid on my knuckles. Did you think I wanted to punch you?” Jiwon was surprised at what Yoojung was about to do and stopped her before her face even reached his knuckles.

“Oh! Right! The Band-Aids.” Yoojung suddenly remembered the Band-Aids she was carrying and carefully stuck one on Jiwon’s hand. “There!” Yoojung said once she finished sticking the band-aid. Jiwon looked at the Band-Aid and was horrified at what he saw.

“Hey are you really sorry for what you did? What is this? Are you trying to make me look like a sissy?” Jiwon held up his fist once again to show Yoojung the image of Cinderella on the band aid she just gave Jiwon.

“It’s freaking Cinderella!!!” Jiwon was outraged at the girlish bandaid this girl stuck on his knuckles, visible for everyone to see.

“I’m sorry, I only have the complete Disney princesses band aid set.” She said apologetically while giving the rest of the band-aid set to Jiwon.

“Wow, you’re really trying to make me mad on purpose?” Jiwon asked.

Just then, the driver spoke from behind Jiwon, “Sir, the car is ready.”

“Hey Joowon!” Yoojung greeted the driver, thankful for his distraction.

“Miss Kim.” He acknowledged and bowed.

Jiwon clicked his tongue and bent his neck sideways to release the frustration building up. He turned around and left Yoojung without a word, entering the backseat of his chauffer-driven, black Mercedes.

“I’ll try to buy some really manly band aids next time!” was Yoojung’s last effort to try and appease Jiwon before the car door was closed by the chauffer. The car drives off leaving Yoojung behind.

Inside the car, Jiwon watched Yoojung from the side mirror and once out of sight, he shifted his attention to the band aid on his knuckles, letting out a small smile. “I must be crazy.”

In school, Jiwon was greeted by tons of his fan girls. One of his avid fans, Seolhyun, purred like a cat as she approached him with a bandage.

“Jiwonieeee, come, let me fix your bruises for you in the nurse’s office… alone…” Seolhyun continued to pur.

The other girls were furious upon hearing this and fought for Jiwon’s attention, each having their own bandage or band aids with her, trying to get the chance to ‘take care’ of his wounds from yesterday’s fight. If this ruckus went on, these girls will be the ones needing their own bandages.

“Ladies, stop please, it’s too early in the morning. And besides, I’ve taken good care of my own bruises.” He said showing them the band-aid on his right knuckle. That shut them all up, and Jiwon went on his way to his homeroom.

“Was that… a Cinderella band aid?” Seolhyun asked, dumbfounded. The other fan girls could only nod in response.

It was third period and Yoojung was dozing off again. Jiwon was busy writing down notes and naturally caught sight of the Cinderella band-aid on his knuckles. He smiled and glanced at the girl beside him, he couldn’t help but look at her in amusement. ‘How could she easily fall asleep anywhere? She could get herself another detention’ He thought and went on to write a note.

Yoojung awakened as she felt something hit the side of her face. It was a small piece of crumpled paper. She opened it and read what was written on it. ‘Did you like detention that much? Wake up before the teacher sees you.’ The concern was almost sweet except for the fact that the note was also rude, she thought. She looked around to find the source of thrower of the note, but did not find anyone.

The last period of the day was PE. And if there was anything Yoojung dreaded, it was PE. You can make her sing, solve math problems, emcee or play instruments, but physical activities were just not her thing. She wanted to! She really did want to learn how to be athletic and dance, but her calisthenics just didn’t cooperate with her on this one. You can’t have it all, they say.

“Today, we will be doing a series of exercises and stretching to prepare us for running. Jiwon will lead us into stretching. Later on, be ready for a race!” The teacher announced.

Kim Jiwon was naturally made the leader of the exercises and stretching, as he was the school’s revered athlete. The series of exercise routines killed Yoojung. By the end of the stretching exercises, she was already dead tired. Yet, she was determined to improve, to show that she wasn’t just good in academics, she can do sports too.

It was finally time for the race and the boys got in position, girls, including Yoojung were cheering hard for Jiwon. As the race began, the others proved to be no match for him as he completed the race ahead of everyone with a wide margin of difference in time. Girls swooned as Jiwon took a bottle of water and poured it over his head, relieved by the cooling effect of the water.

It was now the girls’ turn. Everyone got in position and waited for the go signal. In the last seconds, Yoojung noticed that her shoelaces were untied, she was about to tie it when the starter gun fired, signaling the start of the race. She ended up tying the laces loosely and ran with all her might to catch up. Things were looking up for Yoojung. She wasn’t leading, but at least she wasn’t in last place. They were reaching the tight curve of the oval when her shoelaces started untying causing her to trip and lose balance; the impact was made more severe by the forward force from running. She hit her right knee on the pavement and went rolling earning her some scratches on the arm and legs. But more than the physical pain, she could feel the all the blood rise up to her face in humiliation. Once again, Kim Yoojung proved she at sports. She decided to stay still, lain under the scorching heat of the sun, letting a teardrop fall from her left eye. She was embarrassed, might as well just soak in it. Suddenly the brightness of the sun was covered by a towering figure. Yoojung tried to open her eyes, squinting them until the image of the person came in full view.

“Until when do you plan to lie around here? There’s another race coming up, and you’re in the track.” It was Jiwon talking, but not looking at her.

“Oh of course. Hah! Silly me.” Yoojung tried to cover up the embarrassment she was feeling. Out of all the people that could’ve approached her and told her off, it had to be him. She tried to push herself up to no avail. Jiwon sighed and bent down, his back facing her.

“I’ll only say this once. Hop on.”

And he only needed to say it once, as Yoojung’s eyes sparkled and climbed up Jiwon’s back in an instant. She was in heaven. This must be the silver lining in today’s mishap, and she’s going to bask in it, she thought. Some girls looked at them with envy while others, with adoration for Jiwon.

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