Arin quickly got up and sat down. There were three boys in front of the roof railing. Yeonjun and Felix were smoking cigarettes while looking down at the playground, and Soobin was squatting next to them, looking at his phone.

"If I knew there were people, I wouldn't sing whale songs like that." Yeonjun said while laughing.

Arin pulled the remaining earphone cord from one ear and pulled it out. Then she came down from the desk.

"Huh, what?"

Soobin put down his phone with a straight face at her words.

"What now?"

Choi Soobin, who moved his thumb and tapped the LCD a few times, got up with his knees straight. He looked at her, shoving the phone with his hand into his pocket.

"No, it's impossible. There was no one here at the rooftop..."

"Are you the only one using the rooftop? anyone can come here dude"

"It's not like that..." her face was hot with damn shame.

“Your taste of music is unique.”

"No, and he's good at the same time. It was a really high note just now."

Soobin said the first, and Yeonjun said the last one. She felt her face was so hot that she feel like she's about to explode. 

Arin shoved her ipod into her pocket and left the rooftop saying, "Okay, have a good time."

​​​​​​As Arin was walking down the stairs, she heard the sound of laughing and clapping among the boys from behind the door. The Princess was Lonely, and the music was heard, and Yeonjun was singing along to the song.

"I'm screwed"

Arin's face, with her lips curled up, turned tearful. It was okay for her to listen to the song with earphones, but it must have been funny to hear her live voice without accompaniment.

And the lyrics have the "I am pretty" line, she was like that. She even sing out the first verse.

Her face flushed hot with embarrassment. Arin didn't shed any tears, but she made a sound like "ah-huh" and went down the stairs. Like the protagonist of a wounded pity.

*

*

*

During class, Arin was underlining her textbooks with  highlighter pen when a note flew into her. She turned her head in the direction from where it have flown. Soobin put a pencil between his fingers and looked at her with his chin on his hand.

She looked away and looked at the square folded paper. As if torn from a notebook, the grain of the border was inconsistent. Arin put down the highlighter and opened the note.

[What's your number?]

She turned her head, holding a note in both hands. When their eyes meet, Soobin winked as if telling her to write down the answer.

"Why?" When Arin asked in a small voice, Soobin turned his head and fixed his gaze on the textbook. 

"Hey, at the back seat."

Arin turn her head to the sound of the teacher calling. As if she was in the back seat, her eyes met immediately with the teacher.

"Let's not talk during class."

"... Yes."

She wonder how, did the teacher hear her small voice?

When she felt so intimidated by the point of being pointed out, Arin bowed her head low, and Soobin stretched out his hand and placed a note on the edge of the desk.

[Teacher's hearing is great] 

Then you don't have to send a note. She removed the folded note along the folded mark next to the textbook.

While Arin was holding a highlighter and underlining, Soobin's hand again goes to the edge of the desk.

As she lowered her head and turned her eyes, Soobin turn the pencil in his hand and raised his chin. It seems like he was telling her to read and answer it quickly. Arin opened the note.

[What's your number? You don't have a cell phone?]

Arin opened the pencil case and took out the pencil.

[Why?] 

She threw away the note to Soobin's seat. Perhaps it got on the wrong flow of air, so the not could not reach Soobin's seat and fell to the floor.

Soobin grimaced and bent down to pick up the note. His hands move one after the other, and he moves quickly through the desk. 

[It's because I have something to send you. Is this something to be so serious about?] 

Arin pressed her lips together. She doesn't want to tell him. Soobin, who was saddened by the last time she did not answer. If I won't tell him, I'm sure he'll get offended again this time.

Last time she saw it, how Soobin win and  caught the bully. Arin didn't think there's anything good about going out of sight of Soobin. After hesitating, she wrote down the number and sent it.

Soobin checked the note, placed his cell phone in his pocket and pressed the number under his desk. It looked like he was trying to leave a missed call by pressing the call button and then pressing end, but the ringing sounded. In Arin's pocket. 

Arin thought that she set it on vibrate. Why is the ringtone ringing? She quickly took her cell phone out of her pocket and pressed the end. Soobin said that the history teacher's ears were great, but it was a sound that everyone could hear even if it was not that loud.

Arin shook her head with a puzzled expression. The faces that were facing the textbook turned to her all at once, and the same was true of the teacher, and the only person who did not look at her was Soobin, who was sitting next to her.

That jerk called me!

"Bring it out."

Teacher, what are you talking about?

"The cellphone"

Choi Soobin, you bastard.

*

*

*

Arin was able to get her cell phone back only after she stopped by the office and listened to the teacher's instructions about the duty of a student during class for about 10 minutes. She bowed her head and left the office.

It's just that I'm late to go home.

Arin grumbled into the classroom and packed her bag. Soobin's desk was neatly empty as if he had already gone. 

"... jerk"

Feeling injustice for nothing, Arin left the classroom, striking Soobin's desk leg, which was lying upright.

When you get out of the school gate and go down the alley, you will come to a big road. If you turn to the left based on the two-story fast food restaurant, you will find an arcade and a bus stop in front of it.

Arin thought it was strange because there were a lot of bad-looking students near the bus stop, and that was because of the arcade right behind it.

"Are you going home?"

Arin was standing still at the bus stop when suddenly someone wrapped an arm around her neck and wrapped his palm covering her arms. Someone put her head between his armpits as if giving a headlock and pressed it firmly.

"Huh oh!? Who are you?" 

Arin was surprised by the sudden touch and tried to pull away, the man with his arms wrapped around her head shook Arin's head with greater force. When she looked up while he was holding her head, it was the guy who had pulled her up to take her shirt off the other day. Was his name Kang Eun-ho?

"Oh?, let me go..."

When Arin push her arms out, Kang Eun-ho releases her head with an unpleasant smile.

"I just said hello, but I hate it. Am I going to eat you up?"

"No..."

She straightened her messy hair and looked at the scheduled arrival time of the bus. And he ruined me. 20 minutes, is that real? It's not broken, is it really coming in 20 minutes? 

She took a deep breath and lowered her gaze to her toes.

​​​​​​"I bought a new school uniform. Someone made it dirty."

Her lips were dry in the harsh atmosphere. She bit her lips and looked at the school uniform Kang Eun-ho was wearing.

It's not new to anyone looking at it. Where's the tag?

“Ah, but when I bought a new school uniform, it was a little unfair. No matter how much I  think about it, I think you should buy it for me"

Arin looked up at the shirt that showed the marks he was wearing and raised her eyes. He raised the corners of obliquely looking down. It was impossible to have any money to give to Kang Eun-ho, but even if there was, she thought that she would not have given it. She wriggled her lips and opened . 

"I think you've worn it before."

Thick fists clasped her shoulders. Her upper body shook at the punch, and her steps were pushed back. Arin opened her eyes wide at the sound of a painful blow and looked at Kang Eun-ho.

"Oh! ! Why, What's wrong?"

With a frightened face, she immediately carried the bag in front of her and defended, if ever he hit her in the chest.

"Who do you think I  am beggar? The one I used to wear? I threw it away because it smelled really bad."

"Uh, no, I'm really sorry about that."

"Say sorry to my wallet"

"Huh? I'll give you my wallet then"

Kang Eun-ho bursts out laughing as he speaks in a crawling voice.

"This isn't a pure bully. I bought a new school uniform because of you. Why can't you understand what I'm saying at once?"

In junior high school, there was no such thing as a tall boy or a big boy, but Kang Eun-ho was tall and had a big body, so it was a threat just to stand in front of him.

​​​​​​As if all of this was unsatisfactory, Kang Eunho snickers at Arin. 

"Would you hit me with a stab in your conscience?"

Do you have a conscience? A conscientious bastard thinks of hitting someone.

When there is no answer, Kang Eun-ho sheds tears.

"Let's calculate correctly".

Kang Eun-ho's crooked eyes could be seen stealing glances at her bag. When Hong Cha's mother bought her school uniform, she also bought bag and shoes.

No matter how good it is instead of Hong Cha, she still has the image of a rich student, the chairman's wife even insisted   that she had to carry a good bag and took it with her.

She don't know the exact amount, but it's probably quite expensive. His eyes flash badly.

"I need to get paid for my school uniform."

"......."

"Is it your habit to ignore what I say? "

"I don't have money."

"Oh, you don't have any?"

"Uh. I really don't have one."

"Then give this to me, you punk."

Kang Eun-ho hit the bag that was surrounded in front of her. But the chairman's wife bought this to me? What should I tell? My mom brought this... Can this be taken away like this?

When Arin held on to the strap and did not let go, Kang Eun-ho said, let go, and spit out a harsh voice.

Had it not been for chairman's son, Arin would have reported it to the police first, but she clenched her teeth at the thought of saving herself. *thuk* The bag went to Kang Eun-ho's hand. 

"If you don't have money, you have to think about paying it on your own Do I really have to say this first? Live with your senses."

Arin didn't even make eye contact on purpose, and while she was waiting for Kang Eun-ho to disappear, he kicked her shoes and touched them.

"Why aren't you taking it off?"

*

*

*

Arin was sitting at the bus stop with a bewildered face.

Kang Eun-ho also took the shoes.There was no thief. She wanted to say something, but she kept shut because she didn't want to cause any problem anymore. 

Arin asked him, “Well then, what should I wear?” Kang Eunho just kicked two Montshell boxes off the road and held them out in front of her.

She was so embarrassed and frustrated that she couldn't even cry. off. only cursing. 

Arin sat down at the bus stop and looked down at her soiled socks a few steps away. Not having a bag is the same, but she felt like she lost everything because she didn't have shoes.

"Looks like a beggar."

She sighed as she looked at the socks that turned into mud. When she was facing Kang Eun-ho, Arin didn't even cry, but when she thought of her mother, her eyes easily turned tearful. 

 

As soon as Arin lowered her head, tears fell on her uniform pants. Drop by drop of tears seeping into her school uniform pants, and choked on her tightly closed mouth. 

 

She raised her arms and pressed her eyes shut. Arin wiped away tears with her jacket sleeve, but she felt someone's presence and looked back with her arm down. Sitting at the end of the chair at the stop, Soobin was staring at her. 

 

In the dark landscape where the sun had set, there were only the two of them at the bus stop. The headlights of cars running on the road repeatedly moved away from each other. 

 

They only looked at each other, but no one opened their mouths first. Arin turned her head away first because she looked miserable. Fiddling with her fingers, she dropped her gaze on her mud-colored socks.

"It's a total mess, so I don't know what to ask first." Soobin's voice slips in. 

"Your bus stop number 17 right?"

Arin nodded with her eyes down.

"Don't go anywhere. Just wait"