Another day came in IOI Academy and junior students had their morning greeted with the announcement and the said rankings of the students. For them, it’ll take a week to either get your Rank up, maintain a Rank, or get your Rank down. For every junior, they’d fuss all while shoving others aside to get a good look. For the Top 11, they stopped by to see and this time, Somi was with them as she saw her name at Top 1.

There were cries and rants and the decent ones heard them loud and clear. As they looked up, they thought of the privileges gained and lost. For instance, lower Ranks get shorter time in using facilities and the highest of the high get 100% privileges once more.

“From the library, the laboratory, even the toilets…” Sira sighed. “... it’s all so annoying.”

“True. But nonetheless, this shouldn’t be a standard for all students. We all have rights... right?” Eunwoo spoke.

“That’s actually true.” Somi spoke.

“Lucky you, Som. You’re still in 1st place.” Haeyoung got to her and gave her a pat on the back.

Everyone, even the Top 11 reacted. Yoojung went closer and moved her fist closer by Somi’s mouth like a makeshift microphone. Yoojung began asking, “To what or whom do you owe your little success?”

“Well... I can’t say what or whom and I can’t even make a justification that it won’t make me happy since it’ll crush the dreams of others…” Somi began as Haeyoung and Eunwoo did the same, even Sejeong and Doyeon. “Ranking first is not a temple of my happiness…” Somi smirked. “... but being first in the whole world is.”

Everyone chuckled and reacted as Dodaeng made punching motions towards Somi. As much as everyone needed to let loose and calm down after the announcement, they had classes. They all separated towards their different sections, with Somi going with Eunwoo and Haeyoung.

+++

D-6 before the third mock exam

Everyone whined as Teacher Jang wrote it in the blackboard of Section B. Teacher Jang had a soft heart as he tried to calm them down with a gesture.

“Teacher, you can’t remind us again of this. We just got the info about facility privileges and we get another set of bad news.” Siyeon reacted and everyone agreed with her.

“I know, children... but don’t feel pressured. Just do what you usually do.”

Somi slammed her desk softly but it was loud to the rest, even to Teacher Jang. “With all due respect, sir... how could any one of us calm down when you post the announcements regarding our rankings too openly? Think about the others who are already in their lowest self-esteems, trying their hardest to gain optimism and that announcement had to get in the way.”

“Somi has a point, sir,” said Chanmi.

“That’s right!” Eunwoo reacted again.

Teacher Jang stopped them from reacting once more, talking about final details before ending the said assembly with Section B. The others wanted him to stop and explain more of this rotten system while most of them did their usual businesses.

“This is blasphemy. Who knows?! Maybe they’ll let us take more mock exams before the IOI Exam.” Minkyung hissed.

“You serious?!” Siyeon reacted again.

“It’s what I heard too. Aish, really…” Shin hissed too and threw some used paper.

“What the ?” Younseo reacted as she was hit. “Yah, Kang Sira, would you stop playing?!”

Sira stopped playing her guitar and raised her hands up lightly. Younseo was even more pissed when Shin faced her. Everyone in Section B had gone quiet.

“What gives you the right to throw it at the back of your seat?!” Younseo gritted her teeth as she threw the paper back at Shin.

“Heol…” Shin snickered. “... it’s just some paper, you whiny .”

“Stop it, Shin.” Kim Jisung spoke.

“Younseo, it’s just paper. It’s not like it'll hurt your skin anyways.” Shiori said and some laughed lightly.

Younseo found that offensive and she and Shiori had a feud. And then, Section B fell into place.

Sira played her guitar. Eunwoo slept. Siyeon covered her ears. Shin, Shiori, and Younseo had the said feud as Jisung and Somi made the motion to stop the three of them.

*SLAM*

They all stopped as Chanmi stood up and faced them. The three were frozen to see their class President like that. Shin scoffed and sat back down while Shiori and Younseo lowered their heads. Chanmi sighed. 

“Aish, these kids…” Chanmi scratched her head. “... you two are going to talk to Teacher Kahi about your actions. And I mean now!”

“Prez... you don’t have to be harsh-”

“Somi.” Chanmi faced the 1st placer. “It needs to be done for discipline. You understand that, right?” Chanmi faced the two. “Have you no shame to the 1st placer for stopping you from dangling each other’s faces?! Go!”

Younseo and Shiori nodded and went outside. Chanmi patted Somi’s back and went with the two to keep an eye on them. Once the argument had ceased, Somi sighed. Haeyoung faced her. “Yah... crazy, huh?”

“Tell me about it. I felt like my IQ had depleted with this…” Somi huffed.

Later, Teacher Bae came in and began a discussion on philosophy. But then, Somi had gone frisky and talked to Haeyoung softly then loudly, causing Teacher Bae to slap her stick by Haeyoung’s shoulder. Somi and Haeyoung flipped out as Teacher Bae asked the question that defined a student in IOI Academy.

“Park Haeyoung…” She began. “... what tier are you in?”

“Uhh... tier 3.” Haeyoung answered.

"So you’re at the tip of the iceberg. Listen…” Teacher Bae huffed. “... if you were food, you’re already in the brink of expiration. Thus, tiers 3 and 4 are indecent to this academic society so how dare you talk to my class?!”

Somi gulped. She never meant for this to happen. It was her fault, not Haeyoung’s. “Uh, ma’am... it’s my-”

“I apologize, Teacher Bae.” Haeyoung spoke before Somi could defend themselves.

Teacher Bae cussed under her breath and resumed the lesson. Somi gazed at Haeyoung, almost reprimanding her but they had no option but to listen with the discussion.

+++

“What the heck, Haeyoung?!” Somi ranted. “You should’ve just let me handle it!”

“I didn’t know what I was doing. I didn’t want you to get in trouble.” Haeyoung reasoned.

“But it isn’t your fault, babo. The next time we get in trouble, let me do the talking, got it?” Somi said.

“Okay. Sorry, Som…” Haeyoung mumbled.

“I’m the one who should be sorry. Now you got blamed instead of me.” Somi sighed.

“That’s how ty the system is.” Haeyoung said. “Like you said, the lowest of the low gets oppressed.”

“It doesn’t work that way for me, Haeyoung. You of all people know that.” Somi smiled.

“I know, Som. That’s why I’m lucky to be your friend. Thanks, Somi.” Haeyoung nodded and they shared a friendly hug.

Everyone looked as Sejeong and Chungha passed by. Somi saw them and Haeyoung bowed at them before going back inside their classroom.

“Hey, Somi.” Sejeong waved and Somi waved back.

“Hey, Somi. I heard from Yeseul of what happened to Haeyoung. Aigoo…” Chungha reacted.

“It was an accident. I’ll explain everything to Teacher Bae later.” Somi said.

“Whatever.” Chungha sighed then smiled at Sejeong. “I’ll be off to my dance practices. See you later?”

Sejeong nodded and Chungha kissed her cheek before she left. Somi then faced Sejeong. “So what brings you two here by Section B’s turf?”

“Well... I went with Chungha as she’s preparing for her dance competition. In fact, I saved the Taekwondo competition for you.” Sejeong said.

“What? Competitions?” Somi reacted. “I didn’t hear any announcements.”

“The administration doesn’t post it in public. I got Stone Nayoung to help me to inform everyone without raising suspicions.” Sejeong winked. “The Top 11 should get into competitions.”

Somi nodded as she and Sejeong walked and discussed about it.

“I’m entering the Battle of the Brains Competition with Sohye. Yoojung will join a press conference with Doyeon. Yeunjung is into a singing competition, Chungha with dance, Jieqiong with a musical competition, Chaeyeon in figure skating, Mina in a mathematics competition, and Stone Nayoung in Hackathon. I wanted to offer you a spot for Taekwondo since I heard you’re a black belter, and the best at that.”

“It's been awhile since I played, Sejeong. It would be better to give the slot for others.” Somi said.

“I already did, Somi. There were seven slots and I saved the last spot for you. Come on, it'll be a great addition to your student evaluation.” Sejeong insisted.

Somi was flattered to be given the opportunity. A ring was heard and Somi got her phone checked. She saw the link as Sejeong sent it to her. Somi couldn't bat now. She chuckled. “Alright, Sejeong. I'll join.”

“Great!” Sejeong grinned her catchy eye-smile, making Somi find an attraction towards the second placer. “Even though the competition is still a long way to go, I bet you'll kick .”

“Heol… hahahaha... I can, Sejeong.” Somi said, doing a pose.

“Want to grab something to drink?” Sejeong asked.

“Hmm... okay.” Somi nodded.

+++

Sejeong was chilling at the field as she was done studying. To pass the time and her stress, she got her sketchpad and drew a female. With every , Sejeong felt relieved as if all the worries were washed away. She finished making a sketch when she saw something similar. It made her gasp. Was she visualizing Somi or was it just her?

Sejeong felt someone snatch her sketchpad as she looked to see Somi. Sejeong sighed, "It's rude to get something that isn't yours."

"I know... but somehow I can't help it, knowing I'd see you in this part of school." Somi said back and sat next to the girl. "Nice drawing skills."

Somi flipped the other pages for more drawings when Sejeong stopped her. It turned out to be a playful act when Somi stopped and asked. "What's the name of the character?"

Sejeong never thought of it before. She just drew for stress relief without giving the essence of a name of her drawn characters. It took her a while to think of a nice name until something popped out of . "Somin. Her name is Joo Somin."

"Nice name." Somi gave a thumbs-up. "Anyways, I need to go and practice with the Taekwondo team. See you, Sejeong."

Somi gave Sejeong her sketchpad back and Sejeong watched the girl walk. For some reason, Sejeong couldn't hold back a smile.

+++

"Somin, huh? What a lame character."  Oh Han Areum spoke and she did flying kicks.

"It isn't lame, Hanareum. In fact, it's pretty cool and novel-like." Somi answered and kicked at a mannequin. "Where are the others anyways?"

"Studying again. Actually, chances are that they'll back out and we'll be the only ones competing." Areum said and did another flying kick. "I would do that to rank up but with the system, I'd never."

Somi stopped and looked at Hanareum. Hanareum wondered of Somi as she stopped too. "Yah.. why are you looking at me like that?"

"It's almost weird, right?" Somi asked.

"What is?" Hanareumreum asked. "Somi..." Hanareum chuckled. "... it would almost be insulting of me to practice with you. I mean, you're from Tier 1 and the Top 1. And what does that make me?"

"That doesn't matter, Hanareum. Say... how about I help you study?" Somi offered.

"Studying isn't part of my vocabulary, Somi. Besides..." Hanareum kicked the mannequin and the sandbag broke. "... I'd never compete within a ty system. Mistreatment, negligence, and discrimation have been a part of my life. It's a thing I got used to."

"Okay. I won't force you and I respect that. But still if you want to ask me of anything, just let me know." Somi grinned.

"I appreciate that. Thank you." Areum answered.

+++

"Thanks again for coming, Sejeong." Kim Nayoung shook hands with her.

"Yeah. No problem." Sejeong said.

Nayoung went inside the building for her evening tutorials and Sejeong sighed and got home. She took a bus and stopped by her mansion called a home. She got inside and there was her mother having chitchat with her friends.

"Sejeongie~" Her mother called.

"Oh, hello..." Sejeong bowed.

"Such a beautiful lady. And smart too." One friend commented.

"Is she still Top 1?" Another friend asked.

"No. Someone took her spot. She's in second place," said her mother. "But I expect that she'll gain her Rank again. But no matter what Rank she is right now, I am still very proud of her." 

Sejeong's face grew dim as she excused herself towards her room. She didn't heed her mother's concerns as she got to her room, sat on her desk, and studied right away. She got her earned money from her bag and stored it into a drawer filled with bundles of it, all of it for her savings.

Sejeong may be easy-going as the school sees in her but secluded inside a happy pill is a stressful student. Sejeong being at the Top 1 as she sat foot in IOI Academy was no joke. She did that for herself and for her mom, after all that has happened as her father left them. And when Sejeong was at that point of insanity, her mother worried. That's why she was albeit thankful that she wasn't pressured anymore. But still, she wanted to do her best for her family.

Sejeong may had a bad hand all of a sudden but that didn't stop her from studying in order to reach her dreams of being successful someday.

+++

In their respective homes, the juniors of IOI Academy had been preparing themselves for the third mock exam. The days have passed and the next day would be the death of their brains and academic souls.

Jieqiong would call Chaeyeon for discussions, Mina would eat while reading, and Yeunjung would waltz around her room, discussing to herself. Somi read on her bed, Sejeong kept on writing with a bad hand, Soomin went on a graveyard shift for tutorials, Chanmi listened to online discussions, Kim Nayoung read every book within every page inside an tutorial institute and drank pills to keep herself steady, and Yoojung would keep herself awake after sleeping from a long chapter in Literature. Others also had their own ways. Shin would read while listening to Latin music, Sihyun would cuss and throw leftover paper from writing notes, and Younseo took down notes while listening to Beast's 12:30... like literally, it was already 12:30 AM.

It was natural in the life of a student wherein their hearts and minds were filled with craziness and anxiety whenever an exam came up. Their energies would deplete and they would feel dizzy and filled forcefully as they put the pen down, finish a slide, or finish the last chapter of a book as the countless competition caught up to them. They would clench their teeth, blister their fingers, and keep themselves awake until the sun rose. But it's unnatural. They were still 15 years old, young, and they still have a life ahead of themselves before reaching adulthood. Sadly, parents and even themselves had to believe that their lives were determined every single day. So even in the academic aspect, they had to do their best, even if it meant taking risks.

+++

The said doom passed in the amidst of the student life. Teachers were assigned to particular rooms and Section B's reaction couldn't get much sweeter as Teacher Bae became their proctor.

"Aish, I can't remember..." Siyeon whined.

Not only Siyeon but the rest were reacting too. Somi was huffing and tried to recall everything she had learned. When the bell rung, they did the usual greetings and Teacher Bae and Chanmi distributed the test sheets.

"Pass them back." Teacher Bae instructed.

Those who were in front got their own sheets and passed the others back. While doing that, Teacher Bae said her words. "Like the last mock exam, the sectioning isn't affected but the rankings might change. Lazy and miserable people will never rank up nor maintain a Rank. Not only that, you'll be judged and will suffer in this institution. Work hard for this." She slapped her stick on the table. "Begin."

Exams are imagined within the school premises and every student had the same thought in such a situation. It was pure hell and many would want the world to end and regain a new world without those stupid exams. That way, students won't take a part of hell ever again.

Hours passed and with a tick of Teacher Bae's stick, the whole mock exam ended. "Alright. Pass your papers."

Everyone did just that. Chanmi helped Teacher Bae in collecting the papers and got to her seat. Teacher Bae said the usual announcements and the reminder of the IOI Exam before she left. Once she did, everyone in Section B celebrated of a ceased day.

+++

Spirits were lifted away from celebration as another announcement was posted with regards to the fourth mock exam and the IOI Exam. 

"Ah, come on! We just got back from doom and another part of it shows up! Bull." Jeon Soyeon ranted.

"Consider that as a reminder." Kim Nayoung said.

"Still..." Park Soyeon added with a scratch on her head. "Aish, this is just..."

She was frustrated and left, with Dani and Haeyoung following her. Somi noticed that too and decided to go with them when Stone Nayoung stopped her. 

"Let them calm themselves down." She said.

Somi couldn't disagree to that. She sighed and looked at the announcement again, feeling almost annoyed of the fact that there were two more exams to go.

"Group study later?" Mina asked.

"Yes." Nayoung nodded.

"I'll pass early." Somi raised a hand. "I have errands."

"Me too." Sejeong added.

"But will you come?" Chaeyeon asked Somi.

"I will." Somi answered.

Somi excused herself and decided to go back to her classroom. The rest wondered, even Chaeyeon wanted to comfort the girl when Jieqiong stopped her.

"But..." Chaeyeon spoke.

"Why are you concerned? Somi's an optimistic kid. She can handle anything." Jieqiong reasoned.

The rest seemed to agree. For Sejeong, she couldn't help but feel that Somi was almost as similar as her. Maybe Somi was as problematic as she was.

+++

"Here are some notes to review! From our beloved Stone Nayoung!"

Doyeon handed some printed notes to Yoojung, Mina, Sohye, and Yeunjung who were busy reading their notes.

The fourth mock exam plus the IOI Exam was approaching, they don't have a choice but to embrace the harsh reality that they will enter Satan's lair again.

"Thanks Dodojjyu!" Yoojung said, "Sit here beside me!"

Sohye discovered a good place to study peacefully, there was a hidden garden filled with beautiful flowers and a big tree in the middle of it, it was far away from school premises. Actually, it's said to be a "sanctuary" side of the school. The whole environment made them relaxed for a while.

Because of the relaxing environment, the hyperactive Yeunjung started to drift away from her senses and was about to go to dreamland when she was suddenly interrupted by a flying stuffed penguin that landed on her face, "What was that for?!"

"We should be studying right now, not sleeping Yeunjung-ah." Sohye gave her a wide smile that made Yeunjung whined like a kid.

"Hey Yeunjung-ah, you look like a wasted raddish." Yoojung looked at her carefully.

"Let me take a look." Doyeon pulled Yoojung away and started to examine Yeunjung's pale face, "See, you looked so different today, what happened to you?"

Yeunjung forced to gulp her saliva nervously, not wanting to tell the truth. And the second thought, she was slowly dying because Doyeon's face was an inch closer to her.

Damn, she's so attractive---

"She was drunk guys, and the effects are still in there-----"

"No I'm not penguin! I only consumed two bottles of soju because Chaerim and Taeha insisted me to drink and I don't have a choice but to----" Yeunjung suddenly stopped on talking and she realized that she gave too much information about what happened to her last night.

"Start digging your own grave, babo." Mina chuckled. 

"I get it... so you got drunk in a midst of our preparation for our exams, Yeunjung-ah?" Doyeon asked and a creepy smile was plastered on her face.

"Hehe, don't get me wrong Doyeon-ie, I'm not drunk at all-OW OW OW ACK IT H-HURTS!"

Yeunjung's voice boomed all over the area, and guess what, Doyeon started to pinched the hyperactive girl's cheek, very hard. The other cuties was laughing hard because of the scene. 

"Yah, what did I say about getting drunk?! And you dare lie to me that you were going home because you needed to review HARD but it turned out you were drunk HARD huh?!" Doyeon exclaimed and she became a rapper in an instant.

"Waaaah! Sorry Doyeon-ie, they only invited me-AHHHHH!"

"Stop making excuses! Aish I hate you!"

The reason behind of Doyeon's wrath to Yeunjung was because one time when Yeunjung was very drunk to the point that she almost kissed a stranger, and she gave a free hug to everyone... in short, she's out of control when alcohol was on her whole system.

"Please forgive me Doyeon-ie, I won't do that next time..."

"Oh yeah? You always said that everytime and you still don't change that bad habit of yours!" Doyeon crossed her arms and ignored Yeunjung's whine for the second time, "Okay, let's get drunk after hell week-"

Yeunjung jumped up and down like a happy kid and hugged Doyeon, "Really?!"

"But I'll be your bodyguard in case you will kiss someone again, understand?"

"Aye aye captain!" Yeunjung continued to hugged Doyeon like a koala.

"Uhhh, Yeunjung you can let me go now."

"Oh... sorry! Yah, Doyeon I'll mark your word!"

"Yeah yeah whatever. But first let's study hard to survive another wave of hell week." Doyeon said and she went to Yoojung's side.

"Awwww I'm alone again..." Yeunjung said jokingly. 

"Nah, we're here duh? Just look at us." Yoojung batted. 

It feels like I'm the legendary third wheel of this group though...

Sohye was teaching Mina some Biology while eating chocolate cookies. Then Doyeon and Yoojung started to laugh at each other because Yoojung was on her orangutan mode again.

And Yeunjung? She was staring at two pairs of lovebirds, alone.

"Penguin, come here." She picked the stuff penguin that landed on her face a while ago, "You're lonely too eh? Don't worry I'm here to protect you." And started to hug it tight, like the way she hugged Doyeon before.

"Hey! Be careful you two! You almost ruined my project!" Sohye hissed at the jokester duo. 

"Eh? What was that penguin?" Mina asked out of curiousity. 

"Ah... this?" Sohye held a microscope slide and showed it to Mina, "Part of our special project on Biology."

"It looks like a dust or something..." Mina mumbled. 

Sohye chuckled, "Aniyo, this is a part of white mouse's liver."

"Wait what?!" Mina exclaimed, Doyeon and Yoojung stopped their business and Yeunjung went closer to look at the said specimen.

Sohye showed the four specimen that was placed on the microscope slide, "This is the skin, then stomach, then brain, and lastly my favorite part, the heart."

The four of them were shocked for a moment, "Err, guys?"

"The white mouse you brought a while ago, was dead?!" Mina asked while pointing at Sohye dramatically.

"And you k-killed a poor mouse j-just because you need it f-for your experiment?!" Yeunjung started to get terrified and tried to digest everything she saw. 

"Yep!" Sohye nodded, and that was the cue for Yeunjung to attack the poor penguin. 

"How dare you kill a cute white mouse! It's a big sin!" Yoojung and Doyeon tried to stop the hyperactive girl, but were left dumbfounded when Mina shoved five chocolate chip cookies onto Yeunjung's mouth.

"Serves you better." Mina grinned and helped Sohye to get up. 

"Well this is so delicious..." Yeunjung said between her munching the cookies inside . 

"Eww! Don't talk when your mouth is full!" Yoojung said, "Hello? You don't know the golden rule?"

Yeunjung ignored the midget and continued to indulge the cookies like she was in heaven. 

Their quality time was completely ruined when the unexpected guest started to approach them.

"What's going on? I heard a yell from over there so we ran to this place as fast as we could..." Chanmi asked, with Kim Nayoung and Soomin who looked so pissed off. 

"Ah... we were just goofing around here, don't worry about us." Yoojung answered. 

At the other side, Yeunjung's mood started to get worse and everytime she did something stupid, it was because of Chanmi's existence.

"What are you guys doing here anyway?" Doyeon asked with a raised eyebrow. 

"Just passing by." Soomin answered this time. 

"We're completely okay, so please get lost, thank you." Yeunjung batted and rolled her eyes. 

Soomin was provoked and started choking the hyperactive girl, "You little , you want some piece of me huh?"

Yeunjung proved that she was a pure and gave a playful smirk, "Then give it a try."

Sohye batted in between them and stopped Soomin's fist from landing on Yeunjung's face. "What are you doing, 31st placer?"

Yoojung and Doyeon just chuckled about Sohye's statement and Mina was still nervous about what happened next.

"Stop being so arrogant, Sohye. You're still in Class F after all." Soomin exclaimed.

"But I'm still on Rank 5 my dear, you should stop doing this crap before I tell this to the school authorities."

Soomin hissed and she let go of Yeunjung, who gave a glare at Soomin as she fixed herself. Soomin, who was obviously pissed, walked away as she quietly cussed at the ground.

"I'm not acting superior here, I'm just stating a fact. And if you want us to get vanished in this hell, you should beat our current Ranks first..." Sohye said in a sarcastic tone, "... let's see if you can do it."

Kim Nayoung and Chanmi glared at Sohye, and started to walk away, catching up to Soomin.

Yeunjung who was silently glaring them at the back, was shocked a little bit when Sohye gave her a scalpel, "You want to kill Chanmi right? It seems like you want to slit into eight pieces and place it to a microscope slide, don't worry, I'll give you some."

Mina slapped Sohye's shoulder lightly, "Stop it penguin you're not helping!"

"I'm just kidding you know!" Sohye mumbled, "Hey hyperactive dragon, sit down so we can start our session."

Yeunjung just shrugged it off and started to focus on her group study.

+++

Stone Nayoung was busy coding for another project when she felt a presence in front of her. She got rid of her headset and saw Soomin. Not only that, she saw Kim Nayoung and Chanmi as the students by her side of the aisle reacted like the other side.

"What's the info about the three?" Stone Nayoung asked Kyungwon.

"I guess some students witnessed them threatening the '99 liners in the Top 11." Kyungwon answered. "From what I heard, Soomin almost choked Yeunjung."

"What?!" Stone Nayoung reacted.

She saw Teacher Kahi pass by and the three students followed them. Nayoung could hear whispers from the other students who watched them pass by as she almost glared at the three for what they could possibly do. But then, Nayoung didn't like the whispers either. As soon as the coast was clear, Nayoung faced all students, making them shut their mouths and go back to their classrooms.

"Heol... you're scary, Stone." Kyungwon gulped.

Nayoung didn't mind of that and wondered as Sejeong and Somi passed by. Not only that, the '99 liners passed by the two as Teacher Bae told them to come with the three after being witnesses. Sejeong and Somi stopped as they saw Nayoung.

"What happened?" Sejeong asked.

"Fiasco." Nayoung sighed.

"That Soomin had been too harsh when she choked Yeunjung. And Sohye had to cuss at her, aigoo..." Kyungwon said.

"Strange. Yeunjung and Sohye always kept their cool." Sejeong said.

"Sometimes even the gentlest of mountains can erupt when you least expect it." Somi said, making the three look at her.

"But who do you think is the main culprit? Heh, I'm sure Soomin will be screwed... again." Kyungwon chuckled.

"It's either." Somi said. "Soomin almost committed violence but it would've been mature enough not to fight back. And that's what Sohye did wrong. And for the rest, they committed negligence."

"Somi's right," said Sejeong.

"She is." Nayoung added.

"What?" Kyungwon was confused.

Nayoung intended to explain to her, leaving Sejeong with Somi again. Sejeong noticed Somi sigh as she patted her shoulder. "What's wrong?"

"I'm just hoping that whatever the verdict, justice would be served to either parties. A war here in school premises, no matter the form, is one thing that cannot be handled..." Somi spoke.

"Woah... you do have a point there, Som." Sejeong said, impressed of what Somi had to say. "Say... will you come to the group study later?"

"I wouldn't miss it." Somi said.

+++

*splash*

"Yah! You almost drenched my notes here!" Chungha cussed.

The '99 liners were still pissed. For the rest of the Top 11, they were just silent, all while studying in the same cafe. For Yeunjung, she had splashed Sohye with water because Sohye told her to. 

"I would've been glad that Soomin would be in the brink of expulsion but we get demerits?!! I didn't harm a single hair on that !" Sohye ranted.

"Me too! This is ridiculous!" Yeunjung ranted too. "I was this close to choke her." She made a motion with her fingers.

"Guys... what's done is done." Somi sighed. "Why don't we have a little quiz in preparation for the fourth mock exam?"

Sohye and Yeunjung nodded as they gathered around. Somi, Sejeong, and Nayoung led the little quiz and everyone got a chance to answer and learn more. They did that for two hours when Nayoung decided that they should take a break and relieve themselves.

"So... anyone wanna bet that Lee Soomin will be expelled?" Jieqiong smirked.

"Watch it, Jieqiong. It's not nice." Chaeyeon sighed but then the '99 liners raised their hands.

"She's the reason why we got demerits!" Mina huffed.

Majority made their bets except for Somi. They wondered why as Yoojung asked. "What's your bet, Somi?"

"I won't bet on anything. Whatever the verdict, you gus will make through it. You guys are hardworking and intelligent students so you can get through a tiny mess and get your tracks back on the right path." Somi said as she pointed at the '99 liners.

"Such powerful words. No wonder why you're Rank 1." Doyeon clapped.

"Anyways, if I were to voice out..." Somi slapped a tissue on Sohye's face to wipe the water off. "... if the bad acts were to be compared, Soomin would get whipped more. I can't believe she'd tolerate violence."

"Right?" The '99 liners reacted. "You really think so?"

"Yep. Only immature people do that... although ranting is also one part of immaturity." Somi cackled.

"Watch it, Som." Yeunjung said.

Somi made a peace sign and the rest of them continued to study. It was almost one heck of a day for them but just as Somi said, they'll get through it.