It was any other ordinary Friday morning, Haerin however was late for classes. She woke up later than usual, missed the bus and had to wait for the next one to get to school. All of this happened because for the past few nights, she and her beloved Minji stayed up late into the night texting each other back and forth, talking about only God knows what. Haerin didn't mind being late, what she didn't like was the rush she had been in the whole morning. Even though it wasn't possible to get to school in time, she still stressed out about leaving the house as soon as she could. 

She walked through the front gate of the school, the small entrance yard was eerily quiet. Of course it was, the students were in class but Haerin wasn't used to being late. She would skip classes, especially lately, but she would always make it to the first class of the day. So arriving at this time of the morning just felt weird.

"Yah, loser Kang! Where are you going so fast?" Haerin was ambushed by about four students, three girls and a boy, all of them she recognized as being some of Minji's fans and admirers. 

"I bet she was with our Minji again and that's why she's late." Haerin took a few steps backwards until she hit the hallway wall with her back. She understood the hate these students had for her, what she couldn't understand was how can someone as amazing as Minji have such terrible followers. 

"You know since you showed interest in our Minji, she doesn't perform as good in basketball as she used to. And I've been there at every practice and game since she started playing. I've seen it all." A girl looked at Haerin from head to toe in a disgusted manner. 

"You are not even pretty. How dare you have the audacity to date Minji sunbae when you look like that? And this hair? You are pathetic, Kang." Another girl touched Haerin's hair that was neatly tucked behind her ears and pulled it. Haerin didn't understand what was wrong with her hair; sure, it wasn't the standard black color that most students had, it was dyed dark brown which was still pretty normal for teenagers to have. What's wrong with brown hair?

"You have to have Minji's number right? Give us her number." The boy snached away Haerin's phone that she was clenching into this whole time. "Come on, Kang, unlock it and show us what secrets you have that made Minji like you." 

"I bet she spiked her water with something." 

"Omg, are you really drugging our Minji? That's a crime."

"Of course she is. Who could date someone like her? She's a nobody." One of the girls grabbed her arm and pushed her towards the boy who still had her phone. "Unlock the phone!" 

Haerin couldn't say anything but shake her head, refusing to do what those students told her; tears were streaming down her face as the bullying continued.

"Fine, don't show us your phone. But remember that Minji is only using you. Wait until she s you and leaves you after. You are not worthy of her time, you're just a toy." 

"And if the team loses the big game, it's all your fault for distracting the whole team with your stupid friends." 

"Bully me all you want but please leave my friends alo-" Haerin lost her ability to keep silent once her friends were mentioned. She tried protecting Hanni and Jihye but she was interrupted. 

"You have some serious accusations against my girlfriend and I." Minji approached the group with her arms crossed to her chest, from the other end of the hallway. 

"Minji sunbae!" All four of the students bowed deeply as the footsteps of the senior were approaching them. Haerin leaned against the wall again and kept her head low; she was ashamed to be seen in this situation. 

"Sunbae, aren't you supposed to be at your morning practice?" 

"Aren't you all supposed to be in class?" Minji stepped in between Haerin and the students, her whole attention being focused on the four in front of her. "Hmmm, how nice. You have a phone identical to my girlfriend's. Both the case and the charm. Can I see it?" The team captain extended her hand waiting for the boy to give back Haerin's iPhone. The boy quickly executed what he was told and handed over the phone, to which Minji just smiled. 

"I'm sorry, noona." The boy said, bowing again. 

"I'll have the principal review the CCTV cameras after school just in case any of you did something you shouldn't have." Minji looked at the four of them and stopped them once they wanted to leave. Minji knew that bullying was prohibited in their school and it will be written on their records, which will affect their resumes to apply to universities. 

Once being threatened, the four students apologized again to both Minji and Haerin and were ready to leave but the senior stopped them. "I forgot to tell you that if you come near Haerin or me again, or if you spread stupid rumors about us, you'll face much worse consequences than a bad record." Minji smiled sweetly at them even though she was burning up because of fury. Her words sent the students away, leaving the two of the girls alone in the hallway. 

"I'm sorry you had to go through this. I'm sorry I wasn't able to protect you from the beginning. Are you alright?" Minji turned around and hugged the girl who was quiet the whole time. She grabbed Haerin's face and wiped the ongoing tears away from her face. The younger girl shook her head and pushed Minji away, freeing herself from being touched. The older girl was surprised by the action and just watched Haerin, now from a distance. 

"I'm only causing you problems, sunbae. I don't want you to lose your supporters and I don't want to distract you from your path. I think we should stop seeing each oth-" 

"Haerin, no! Haerin I lov…" Minji stopped herself from talking for a moment and took a deep breath. "I care about you. I never cared about them and their opinions. Trust me, Haerin. I want you to believe me and my actions, not some hateful words of some kids that are jealous of you. I chose you because I like you. I lose sleep to talk to you because I like you. I spend my time with you because I like you." Minji approached the girl again but she was rejected again. Haerin took her phone back that the older girl was still holding