Hyunjin was never one to complain. She had always been very competitive and athletic, which lead her to learn how to deal with whatever was thrown her way. She was on the swim team, captain of the football team and often participated in running competitions at school. She didn't have many friends, but the few she did have knew her as a silly and funny girl. She liked joking around and playing roughly with her friend when she was younger.

Moving to a new city was a big shock to her in more ways than one. Her father had gotten a promotion but it meant having to move 5 hours away from her hometown. She dreaded leaving so much, she ended up running away from home multiple times to hide at her grandmother's house.

She didn't want to leave her sports teams and friends behind. 

Her parents understood but the job would pay a lot more, allowing them to buy a nice big house in the new city and let Hyunjin join any sports teams she would want. This sounded amazing to Hyunjin and she didn't have any say in the matter anyway. So she reluctantly said goodbye to her friends and headed for a new life.

She wasn't going to lie, she did get excited at the thought of making new friends and joining new sports teams. She was hoping she could have a solid friend group again as she had before. She was well known because of her sports accomplishments at her previous school. Because of that and her sarcastic face, people were too scared to talk to her. She hopes to change that at her new school.

Her excitement, unfortunately, didn't last long. The morning of her first day at the new school went horribly wrong.

She woke up 3 hours too early, leaving her bored once she got ready. Her parents had shown her to the school the day before because they couldn't drive her on the morning of. Her mother had left her breakfast on the kitchen counter. She came downstairs to find it half-eaten, with her cat smugly sitting beside the plate staring at her. She ended up eating the leftovers and cleaning up the mess her cat made. She loved her cat, Choco, but she was also a pain in the . With an annoyed 'Aong' directed at her cat, she gathered her things and decided to walk to school early.

She was approximately 50 metres away from the school gates and about to cross the street when she saw a kitten stuck in the middle of the road. She rushed forward to help it, not noticing the car barreling down the road at a speed too high for a school zone.

It all happened so fast. She woke up in the hospital covered in bruises and bandages. She got lucky. She only broke her leg but got quite a hit to the head. Once she was stabilised, the doctors urged her to try to speak slowly. She had a lot of difficulties forming words and the doctors arranged a therapist for her. She was discharged from the hospital after a month and a half, still forced to come to physiotherapy and speech therapy once a week. Her parents took good care of her and made sure not to let her walk anywhere on her own. Slowly but surely Hyunjin made it obvious her love for making animal noises was still there. She could say 'aong' and bark and mewl just fine. Her brain function was the same besides her speech. She still remembered everything fine and was able to do work the same way as before. She communicated by means of writing things down on a notepad or on her phone. 

Her parents were growing weary and frustrated as time went by. The therapist suggested letting her join winter break school to hopefully make friends. Hearing kids of the same age around her and wanting to befriend them, could be a trigger to unlocking her speech. She didn't have to go to physiotherapy anymore, now only her weekly speech therapy appointments remained. She was almost fully recovered from the accident. Hyunjin looked forward to trying to make friends, yet at the same time, her speech issue left her terrified of what others would say or think.

* * *

'Hyunjin, sweetie! Are you ready to go to school?' Her mother sweetly calls out for her. Hyunjin was in the midst of picking her backpack up from the floor. Passing by Choco at the door, she bends down and pets his head. Soft purrs leave his mouth, making Hyunjin smile, her heart feeling slightly less heavy.

'Aong...' A soft mewl passes her lips before she sighs and walks downstairs to put on her shoes.

'I'm sure you'll make a lot of friends and have a great time, sweetie.'

Hyunjin smiles weakly at her and follows her to the car. It's only a 5-minute drive but it feels like 3 hours as her breathing becomes more shallow the closer they get to the school gates. She did not even in the slightest feel ready for this.

Her mother stops in front of the school. It was very calm, barely anyone really went to winter school anyway. This made Hyunjin feel slightly better. The fewer people she had to deal with, the fewer people that could potentially laugh at her.

'Have a nice day. If anything is up, message or call me, okay? All the teachers know of your situation so they'll understand if you need a moment to adjust or take a break.'

Hyunjin nods and kisses her mother on the cheek before shakily getting out of the car. The cold winter wind hits her as she tightens her scarf around her neck and pulls her beanie down more. It wasn't snowing yet but the wind was very icy, sticking to one's skin. Hyunjin usually didn't get very cold but since the accident, her body has been more sensitive. 

Behind her, her mother drives off after waving and smiling. She really hoped Hyunjin would be okay and be able to make some friends again. She'd been isolated, only in contact with her parents and medical professionals.

She takes a deep breath and bravely steps onto school grounds. Her feet drag on the floor slightly, gaze directed at the floor. She hoped to blend in for the first few days. She didn't want to attract any unnecessary attention. Her warm breath hits the cold air, fogging up and floating away. She focuses on the little clouds her breathing produces. 

Before long, she finds the classroom used for tutoring over winter break. It had luckily been pointed out with signs for the newcomers. Her mom told her it wasn't uncommon for new students to take part in tutoring during summer or winter to get used to the school and make friends before getting into school and becoming overwhelmed by the many students. Hyunjin was a bit of a special case but that shouldn't matter to the other students, she hoped.

She enters the classroom, letting her eyes roam around as she slowly walks to the back of the classroom. She was told to pick a desk and sit alone. Every student would be assigned another student to tutor them, from a higher class. In Hyunjin's case, as a senior, she would simply get another senior to tutor her.

There are a few girls chatting around a desk near the windows, smiling among themselves. They notice when Hyunjin walks in and smile at her sweetly. Hyunjin smiles back confidently. She had always been confident about herself. Her being nervous wasn't going to change that too much. Her gaze moves to 2 boys playing around in the back of the room, one of them brought a football and they were trying to see who could keep it in the air longest. Hyunjin itched to steal it and show them how it's done, but she was stopped by the sound of the school bell.

She quickly sits down at a desk near the back of the class, taking off her scarf, jacket and beanie and putting them away quickly. A few more kids enter the room. Everyone takes a seat as the teacher enters. Hyunjin can see a row of students standing right outside the door. They must be the tutors, she reasons.

The classroom grows silent as the Teacher looks up and claps her hands excitedly.

'Hello, kids! I'm Miss Jo and I will be your teacher for this tutoring period, covering maths! For those of you who aren't familiar with the system, we divide each day into 4 periods for the tutoring week. You will be assigned a tutor to help you who's confident in the subjects you've decided to study this week. Some of you will get multiple tutors, differing per course. Some of you will also get one specific all-rounder tutor assigned for special reasons.'

With that, she smiles at Hyunjin sweetly. She must be talking about her. How many other special cases would there be here?

'Well, I'll assign the tutors in a moment. Please pay attention and raise your hand when I call your name so your tutor knows where to go.'

Miss Jo grabs a list off of her desk and motions for the tutors in the hallway to enter the classroom. They all huddle together in the front corner of the room, waiting to be assigned to another student. Some of the students in class murmur among themselves, recognising some of the tutoring students.

'Right, first up as a tutor is Choi Yerim.' A cute and vibrant girl with purple hair steps forward and bows to the class. Her energy is contagious and a few of the students smile at her.

'Choi Yerim, our resident vitamin, is a 5th-year student and will be assigned to one of our 4th years. Don't let her fool you, she is surprisingly good at maths. Yerim, you're assigned to Im Yeojin.'

A hand eagerly shoots up at the mention of her name, as she waves at Yerim excitedly. Yerim smiles back and squeals at how adorable Yeojin looks with her oversized sweater on. She quickly moves to her seat in the middle of the classroom and sits next to her. The girls share a smile and Hyunjin notices how a blush spreads across Yeojin's face. Yerim seems oblivious and just throws a friendly arm over the smaller girl playfully.

Hyunjin smiles at the pair and turns her attention back to the teacher at the front of the classroom.

'Yerim, please refrain from turning this classroom into a playground. Both you and miss Im have a track record of doing so. Don't make me regret this decision.'

The 2 girls nod frantically. 'Yes, miss Jo!'

Hyunjin chuckles and looks over at the remaining tutors, all patiently waiting to be assigned. A pair of dark brown eyes in the back, catch her attention. Someone looks like they're standing on their toes at the back, trying to look over someone's shoulder. It's quite a funny sight and Hyunjin tries her best to stiffle a chuckle, hiding behind her sleeve.

'Next up is Son Hyejoo. Come over here, please.'

A dark-haired girl sporting a pair of tight black pants, a black shirt and choker, walks up lazily. Her dark hair is dyed blue at the tips. She remains unphased as some boys in the back of the class start murmuring about her. 'Doesn't she always drive a motorcycle to school?' 'I heard she broke someone's jaw once because they touched her bike.' Hyunjin frowns and turns to glare at the boys. That's no way to speak about anyone. 

Hyejoo remains unphased and simply waits for the teacher to assign her. Hyunjin is confused as to why such a seemingly badass girl would bother tutoring.

'Miss Son is one of those assigned to one person alone. It's a bit of a special case because the person she will tutor for maths now, will, in turn, tutor her in literature class next period.' Hyejoo smirks at this and winks at a girl with blonde hair near the front of the class. Hyunjin can only see the back of her head, but the girl looks like a princess. The way she sits up seems very regal in posture. 

'May I sit, miss?' Hyejoo's voice is deep but has a very whiny tone to it. Not at all what Hyunjin expected. Miss Jo sighs and nods.

'Not that it matters to anyone else but for prosperity's sake, Hyejoo is assigned to miss Park Chaewon at the front there and vice-versa.'

Hyejoo makes her way over to the blonde girl and sits down swiftly, leaning in and kissing her cheek. More murmurs move through the room. 'Didn't you hear? Chaewon and Hyejoo started dating right before the break. Don't even think about touching her man, Chaewon is forbidden territory now.'

Hyunjin smiles happily. Seeing the couple of complete opposite personalities interact so cutely, how Hyejoo's face lights up with a smile as Chaewon playfully shoves her, it warms her heart. She catches miss Jo smiling at the pair before turning to assign the rest of the tutors to students.

As the students sit together and hushed murmurs fill the air in between, the last tutor becomes visible when another moves up. It's the girl Hyunjin saw standing on her toes. The girl with the pretty brown eyes, and cute mole underneath. The girl with gorgeous dark hair and a sweet smile on her lips. Hyunjin bites her lip and blushes, she hasn't seen a girl this cute in ages. Hyunjin knew she was into girls. But right now she can't help but think she's only into this girl. Everything else fades as she keeps an eye on her until she moves forward when the person before her is seated.

'And last but definitely not least, my favourite tutor and student, Jeon Heejin. Come here, dear.'

Jeon Heejin, that's the girl that captured Hyunjin's heart so tightly she felt like dying on the spot. Heejin walks up next to the teacher, who pats her on the shoulder gently. The tutors and students almost all have their focus on Heejin. Some of them whisper to each other about how popular and sweet she is. Others groan now that they realise she was tutoring but not assigned to them. And some students opted for silently sending her loving and admiring gazes. She was really a beauty after all with her sweet eye smile.

'Thank you, miss Jo. Hey, I'm Jeon Heejin! Let's all have fun together this week.' She bows and smiles at everyone, causing most to smile and wave back enthusiastically. Hyunjin simply freezes, a blush permanently stuck to her cheeks and her eyes wide in shock. She sounded like an angel, her voice was surprisingly lower than Hyunjin's but velvet to her ears.

She locks eyes with the cute rabbit girl at the front of the class. Hyunjin was after all the last person without an assigned tutor, so Heejin put two and two together. She smiles at her sweetly and Hyunjin quickly averts her gaze, gripping her pencil tightly and staring at her lap. She was trying really hard not to suddenly mew at the girl and scare her. She genuinely wants to befriend Heejin, and perhaps be even more than friends. Hyunjin sighs. Why does she have to get a crush on her first day, and on her tutor too! 

'Heejin, you will be tutoring and helping Hyunjin over there out. Everyone gets 5 minutes to get used to each other and discuss what your main issues with maths are with your tutor. Miss Jeon, Miss Kim, if you 2 would like to follow me out for a moment?'

Hyunjin jumps up at the sound of her name and walks towards the hallway quickly, avoiding Heejin's gaze. Miss Jo and Heejin come out a moment after her and close the classroom door behind them. She turns to them, faking an air of confidence and forcing herself to not look Heejin straight in her mesmerising brown eyes.

'Well, your case is a bit more delicate this year Heejin. It was a bit sudden so we couldn't properly inform you, I apologise for that.'

Heejin smiles up at her favourite teacher and shakes her head. 'It's okay, miss. I don't mind. As long as I can help. Hi, Hyunjin. My name is Heejin, as I said earlier. I hope we'll get along well and don't hesitate to ask me about anything.' Hyunjin makes the mistake of looking up and locking eyes with the beautiful girl. Heejin had her hand out in the air between them, waiting for Hyunjin to take it. She shakily takes her hand and marvels at how soft and small her hand is. Hyunjin knows she has long limbs and large hands but Heejin's soft hand seems so delicate in her grasp. She tightens her hold every so slightly and shakes her hand gently, afraid of breaking her. She dares to smile back at Heejin and is shocked when something slips past her lips. 

'Aong...'

It's soft but audible in the silent hallway. Hyunjin quickly drops Heejin's hand and looks down at her feet. Meanwhile, Heejin continues smiling at the girl. She thought the sound was rather cute and liked the way Hyunjin held her hand so gently.

'That's basically the thing, Heejin. Hyunjin was in a car accident at the start of the semester. That's why there was an empty seat near the window in the beginning, before we moved seating around once we knew she couldn't join classes before the second semester.' At this, Heejin gasps and brings her small hand up to her lips. Her eyes widen and she looks over the strong-looking girl in front of her. Nothing about Hyunjin made her think she was in a car accident only a few months ago. And one bad enough to leave her out of school for the whole semester. Now that she thinks of it, she hadn't seen Hyunjin around at all. Heejin prided herself on knowing everyone that attends this school. She basically knows everyone in the city since she attended the only high school they had. She's lived here her whole life.

'Are you okay? Oh, that must have been terrible. I'm really sorry you had to miss so much. You must be new to town as well, I haven't seen you around before. Please, don't hesitate to ask me about anything! Even after tutoring week is over!' Heejin places a friendly hand on Hyunjin's arm and squeezes it comfortingly. To Hyunjin, the simple gesture sets her entire arm on fire and she looks up from the floor to blush and smile at Heejin. Heejin is taken by surprise at how cute Hyunjin's canines look when she smiles.

'Aong...' Heejin tilts her head in amusement and drops her hand from Hyunjin's arm. Miss Jo pats the girls on their back.

'I'm sure you'll get along fine. Hyunjin, I have also been appointed as your mentor while you recover. I will give you my info at the end of the day so you can contact me anytime, about anything. Heejin, you need to know that that's basically all Hyunjin can say right now. She can bark too apparently. It was something she did before the accident, jokingly. Unfortunately, the accident left her with a speech impediment. She's recovering and they hope her going back to classes and making friends could help her recover her speech faster. She's been a good student up until this year apparently so she shouldn't be hard to help catch up with the missed semester. She is indeed new in town. I'm very sorry your moving to this city started out on such a rough note, dear.'

Hyunjin smiles a little teary-eyed. Miss Jo had very warm and motherly energy about her. Her words touched her. She nods at her as her hand slips off of Hyunjin's back. Heejin's eyes widened at the new info, her hand finding its way to her lips again. Hyunjin looks at her and just shrugs. 'Aong.'

It didn't matter much to her anymore now that she knew and Heejin seemed okay with it, if not overly sweet about it.

'I'm really sorry to hear that, Hyunjin! It's kind of cute too though. It suits you, you kind of resemble a cat.' Heejin giggles and tilts her head, studying Hyunjin's features. Hyunjin blushes and smiles widely at her. Her heart skipped a beat at the way Heejin said her name. And she thought she was cute so that was definitely a good start.

'Well, lets head back and get this period started!' Miss Jo opens the door to let her students in just as the school bell rings. Her timing seems impeccable.

Heejin and Hyunjin make their way to their shared desk, all eyes in the room seem to be following them.

Miss Jo quickly has Yeojin and Yerim hand out worksheets catering to the specific needs of the students. The tutors were to help out with the given maths problems and could ask Haseul for help if needed. Everyone quickly got to work with the teacher walking around and helping or praising the students and tutors where needed. Heejin turns to Hyunjin and points at the worksheet, leaning in to whisper to her. 

'So this is a summary of the maths we worked on this semester. I don't know how far you'd gotten at your previous school or how good you are with maths, but you can try to make these and ask me if you have any questions.' She smiles at her encouragingly as Hyunjin picks up her pencil and starts filling out the questions. Hyunjin had always been quite good at maths. She ends up filling in the entire worksheet with only a few hick-ups. When she's not sure about something, she points at the question and pouts at Heejin. Heejin then chuckles and proceeds to explain how to solve the question, leaning in close to whisper and not disturb the others.

Hyunjin finds herself staring at Heejin's side profile as she's reading over the answer on the last question. She looks ethereal with the classroom's fluorescent lights shining down on her angelic features. 'You did it, Hyunjin! You solved them all!' She's pulled out of her trance as Heejin sits up slightly to smile at her happily. She didn't realise how close their faces were until this moment. She could very easily close the gap between the 2 of them. Her heartbeat picks up, blood rushing to her cheeks violently. 'Maw.' She mewls pathetically and shuts her eyes in embarrassment. A moment later, she feels a hand brush hair out of her face and place it behind her ear. A chuckle escapes Heejin's lips as she watches Hyunjin open her eyes slowly.

Her big brown eyes lock with hers and she offers a kind smile. Hyunjin seems like a very strange but amazing person. Heejin didn't mind tutoring her one bit. She didn't do much so far anyway. Hyunjin seemed to breeze through the question sheet with ease. Heejin found it very amusing to watch as Hyunjin frowned and bit her lip in thought at the harder questions. Or how she would let out the softest little mewls of confusion, muttering them under her breath when she didn't understand, turning to Heejin with a pout moments later.

'You're very pretty, you know that?' Heejin can't help it. She has a tendency to talk a lot and loves complimenting people. She's not known as the kindest student at school for no reason. Hyunjin blushes harder, if that's even possible, and turns her head away from Heejin's hand. Her hair falls in front of her face, saving her from further embarrassment. Heejin chuckles and raises her hand to catch miss Jo's attention.

'Yes, Heejin?' She smiles down at the girls and is surprised to find the entire stack of worksheets filled in.

'She's done already. She's amazing at maths. You might be getting a new favourite student at this rate, miss Jo.' Heejin teases as Miss Jo ruffles her hair and picks up the stack of worksheets. She smiles down at Hyunjin who finally turned to look up at their teacher, a faint blush still on her cheeks.

'You did well, Hyunjin. There's still 30 minutes left before the history period starts so you 2 can leave and hang out in the study hall if you want and get to know each other better. Miss Jung will be in charge of supervising in between periods and to keep an eye on those like you, who are allowed to leave early.'

Heejin smiles widely and nods, collecting her things and waiting for Hyunjin to do the same. When Hyunjin finally realises and starts packing her stuff, she notices some of her fellow students and their tutors have their eyes on her and Heejin. Miss Jo has moved to the front of the class and was currently checking Hyunjin's worksheets. She receives an impressed look from Hyejoo, who quickly turns back to Chaewon at the sound of a soft confused whine.

Hyunjin quickly gets up and walks out the door with Heejin. She steps outside and looks at her as she closes the door behind them, silently waiting for Heejin to lead the way. Heejin smiles and takes Hyunjin's big hand in hers, tugging slightly to guide her to the cafeteria. Hyunjin smiles and follows behind her eagerly.

* * *

The pair had been giggling at the supervising biology teacher trying desperately to convince her wife to buy her a new aquarium, over the phone. Jung Jinsol was a best friend to the 2 other most popular teachers at school. Miss Jo Haseul, the maths teacher with a motherly smile; Miss Ha Sooyoung, the art teacher that was a masterpiece herself; and Jung Jinsol, the geeky biology teacher that was simply loveable and easy to be around. The 3 hung out together a lot and their respective wives were also close friends. 

When the 2 students walked in, they overheard her conversation with her wife and had been listening in for the past 10 minutes. Miss Jung even addressed them and pulled them into the argument.

'Jungie, you don't get it. I can't place another beta with Blue in the same tank! That's the whole thing about beta fish! Look, even my students think I should get another aquarium! Right, guys?' Blonde hair is swept over a lean shoulder and a desperate look is shot at the 2 young girls.

'Fish are cute and you really love them, Miss Jung.' Hyunjin nods in agreement next to Heejin and miss Jung smiles at them in gratitude.

'See, baby! Pretty please? As an early birthday present?'

Hyunjin chuckles at the whiny teacher in front of her and turns when she feels a pair of eyes on her. 'You really should smile and laugh more. You have cute teeth, really makes you look like a cat together with you cat-like eyes.' Heejin's smile is genuine and Hyunjin nods, making a note to smile more around Heejin in the future.

The 2 spend the rest of their free time and the rest of their day enjoying each others company. Lunchtime is spent with the other students from their class. Heejin manages to convince them that Hyunjin is just very shy. Hyunjin had asked her through a note on her phone to not tell anyone about her situation just yet. She didn't want any weird looks or pity. 

Hyejoo eyes her weirdly the whole time but otherwise, everyone is very friendly. Yeojin and Yerim liven up the group with their jokes and loud voices as Hyejoo tightly holds Chaewon on her lap and allows her girlfriend to feed her. Hyunjin discovered that Yeojin and Yerim definitely have something going on. It seems they both like each other but don't realise it themselves yet.

At the end of the day, she receives miss Jo's information as promised and also ends up exchanging phone numbers with the group of girls she befriended. As everyone heads home for the day, she finds herself huddled up to Heejin in front of the school gates, waiting for her parents to pick her up. Heejin shivers and Hyunjin wastes no time to pull her closer and take off her own scarf to wrap around the petite girl. How Heejin could have forgotten to wear a scarf in this cold is beyond her, but she simply silently helps her out. The cold hitting her own, now exposed, skin doesn't bother her as much anymore once Heejin smiles at her gratefully and clings to her arm.

'Thank you. I forgot my scarf in the car this morning.' Hyunjin nods and looks ahead silently, trying to spot her parents' car.

She feels her phone buzz and checks it quickly with her free arm as the other is still being claimed by Heejin.

I'm sorry sweetie, we can't pick you up. Your father has to work overtime and he has the car. The principal told me one of the kids in your group lives at the end of our street. She can bring you home, please ask her and update me. Her name is Jeon Heejin.

She gasps and turns to Heejin, who smiles at her with eyebrows furrowed in confusion. She turns her phone so Heejin can read the text and smiles at her sheepishly.

Heejin squeals and smiles up at her. 'That's awesome! We can start walking to and from school together! Where is your house?'

Hyunjin quickly pulls up the address and shows her on the phone. Heejin takes a quick glance at her screen and clings tighter to her arm. 'Let's go then!' She gets dragged forward by the force of nature that is Jeon Heejin, a content smile on her lips. She didn't mind walking to school if it meant walking with this pretty girl. For a few minutes, as they walk home together, Hyunjin forgets about the bad memory of the accident. Walking side by side with Heejin, her warmth pressed against her arm and small hand in hers, she can only think about how happy she is to have agreed to moving here.

A small purr comes from the back of and she widens her eyes in shock. Heejin heard the purr and giggles, leaning up to kiss Hyunjin's cheek and pulling her through their street happily. 

'Cute...' Hyunjin mutters under her breath as they reach her house. Hyunjin just looks at Heejin, face red from the cold and looking at her sweet smile. 

Suddenly all the colours of the world feel so bleak and boring. As she watches Heejin waiting by her front door, she seems to be the source of all light in the world at that moment. Heejin is vibrant and vivid, she's everything Hyunjin thought she lost since the crash.