It has been recommended by the guidance counselor, Ms. Lee, that Sooyeon and Miyoung take some time off from school after what happened. It’s not that they’re exactly at fault, but it’s for their own good as well. It won’t do them any good to be in that kind of surrounding where not only people are saying not-so-nice things about them in a not-so-backstab kind of way, but people are saying all kinds of things about them.

Their parents are worried of them, of course. This time, Mr. Jung is even asking Sooyeon if she’ll consider changing schools because of what happened but Sooyeon doesn’t want that.

“What? Just because my relationship with Miyoung is revealed, I’ll change school?” Sooyeon says to her parents. “I don’t want to escape, Dad. I don’t want to run away anymore. I used to do that and trust me, Dad, it’s so damn tiring.” Her parents don’t usually support cursing in front of them but that night, her parents keep silent and lets Sooyeon talk.

“I hurt those who are important to me because I was hiding,” Sooyeon continues, glancing at her mother’s direction, and also, thinking of Miyoung and Kyuhyun. She knows how much she hurt Miyoung when she denied her and her feelings for her. She knows that she hurt Kyuhyun, too, in more ways than one, because of everything she did before, assuming she’s in love with Kyuhyun because it’s easy. And even though her parents will not say it, she knows she hurt them, too. Not because of being who she is but because she hid it from them, for long. “I’m not about to hurt them again because I want to hide again.”

Things do get better.

But apparently, not for everybody. Even though Sooyeon and Miyoung didn’t do anything to hurt other people, it seems as if that’s not the case for other people. They call them a disgrace to the entire university and they call them hurtful words, words that nobody, not even the most hideous criminal in the history of the world deserves from another man like his own.

Of course, it’s expected that there’s always something people will have to say but it’s not right to lock them inside the comfort room and post a paper at the door with a note that says, ‘Lesbians making out.’ It’s not right to hide their uniform while they’re changing after gym class that they missed the whole afternoon out of class. It’s not right to fill their pencil cases and lunch boxes with dirt and there was once, it was filled with worms. It’s also not right to tear their lockers down and put a used sanitary napkin (yes, with blood, and that’s really a disgusting and pathetic, not to mention, cowardly one) with the word, ‘Disgusting.’

Catching the culprits are really impossible with the population of the university, no one ratting on the possible suspects and basically, because practically everyone in the university can do it to Sooyeon and Miyoung, unless security cameras are installed in the entire university, which isn’t the case.

Sooyeon and Miyoung are lying if they’re going to say it doesn’t bother them. It does.

“Are you okay?” Sooyeon asks Miyoung, helping her get up because she almost jumps out of her skin when she sees the used napkin in her locker. After that, Sooyeon opens her locker as well and sees the similar things.

“Yes,” Miyoung answers, then, whispers because she doesn’t want them to hear, “Are they ever going to stop?”

Sooyeon sighs. She knows – somehow, she knew – this is going to happen, not in every way it happened, but something close to this, when someone reveals to the entire university that she and Miyoung are more than friends, but they’re human beings, too. They love, they get hurt, and they also get tired. She rips a paper out of her notebook and picks the hanging napkin off her and Miyoung’s locker.

“Come on, Miyoung-ah,” Sooyeon says, “Let’s get out of here.”

They’re about to turn around and leave for their classroom, having garnered quite an audience because of Miyoung’s shriek after seeing the horrendous napkin, when something green and slimy and really, really gross is thrown at them. Miyoung shrieks again and Sooyeon tries her best to stay calm because honestly, what did they ever do to deserve this? What did they ever do?

“Are you alright?” Sooyeon immediately asks Miyoung, trying to get off the green, slimy liquid out of her hair and face. “Miyoung, are you alright?”

“Yes, Sooyeon-ah,” Miyoung answers. “Are you okay?”

Whoever threw them that disgusting green liquid is also probably the one who starts chanting, ‘Lesbians, lesbians, are disgusting. Lesbians, lesbians, outta university.’

It’s too much, really too much. This time, Sooyeon has had enough. She doesn’t deserve this. Miyoung doesn’t deserve this. Nobody deserves this. If there’s something she needs to be condemned for, those were the things she did way before they got revealed, when she was a to everybody, being the high school queen and getting everything and away with everything. But not this. This isn’t right.

She can feel the warm tears threating to fall from her eyes and she’s about to lash out to everyone surrounding them. Who cares if they’re outnumbered? Who cares if they’ll get beaten so easily? This isn’t right. They don’t deserve this. Nobody does.

“Don’t,” someone stops her and holds her slime-covered arm.

“Sooyoung-ssi?” Sooyeon can’t believe it. After everything she did?

“You don’t cry in front of anybody, right?” Sooyoung says to her, glancing around at everybody who’s now throwing dark glares at her and Joohyun who’s helping Miyoung out of her blazer because of the slime. “So, don’t cry. Don’t let them – this – get into you.”

Sooyeon sniffs and bits back her lips to keep the tears from coming. Then, Sooyoung and Joohyun helps both her and Miyoung get out of there. Sooyoung and Joohyun’s reputation, though false, probably helps because everybody watching and enjoying their little show starring Miyoung and Sooyeon as they suffer the consequences of their ‘disgusting behavior’ parts like Red Sea as they get out of there.

Sooyeon and Miyoung’s locker has been cleared and who knows where their extra uniform is? So Joohyun and Sooyoung lend them theirs, still to Sooyoung’s little reluctance but when Joohyun looks at her and she gestures to Sooyeon and Miyoung shaking because of coldness, Sooyoung sighs and mutters, “Wouldn’t hurt to be nice.”

“Do you need to go to the clinic?” Joohyun asks after Sooyeon and Miyoung finish changing into her and Sooyoung’s extra uniforms. “We can help you get there.”

Sooyeon looks at Miyoung and when the latter shakes her head lightly, Sooyeon answers Joohyun, “No, it’s okay. I think we’re okay… Thank you, Joohyun-ssi.”

Joohyun smiles and Sooyoung keeps shut (which is really, the best she can do at the moment. She still hasn’t forgotten how Sooyeon tripped Joohyun and even though she might have forgiven her already and she’s sorry for what’s happening with Sooyeon and Miyoung, some things are really hard to forget.).

Sooyeon realizes that she still hasn’t gotten the chance to apologize to Sooyoung and Joohyun for what she did in the cafeteria last semester. It stings her that after everything she did, both to them, they’re still the ones to help them. What are they, angels? Probably, Sooyeon thinks to herself.

“Um,” Sooyeon suddenly says, trying to keep her voice stable because she wants to do this right. She knows there’s no way she can bring back time and change the stupid things she did in the past but if there’s one thing she can do right now, it’s to apologize right and she knows, Sooyoung and Joohyun deserves that.

“Yes, Sooyeon-ah?” Joohyun smiles at her again.

The familiarity eases Sooyeon. “I’m sorry for what happened back in the cafeteria last semester,” Sooyeon says clearly and audibly and apologetically and she says it like she means it because she does. She’s sorry. “I know there’s no way I can bring back time and change that stupid thing I did in the past but I just want you to know that I’m really, really sorry. I can’t ask for your forgiveness, really, I know. But still… I’m sorry, Joohyun-ssi, Sooyoung-ssi.”

Sooyeon formally bows and Miyoung smiles proudly at her.

Sooyoung and Joohyun exchange glances because this isn’t something they expected.

“Stand up straight, Sooyeon,” Sooyoung breaks the silence. “What will people think if they see the high school queen bowing so respectfully to the university’s resident weirdos?”

“That I’m sorry… for what I did,” Sooyeon says.

“It’s okay, Sooyeon-ah,” Joohyun tells her, smiling.

“It’s not,” Sooyeon firmly says, because she really thinks it’s not okay. “I hurt the two of you and I hurt Jongwoon-oppa and Kyuhyun-oppa, too. It’s not okay.” She shakes her head and looks down in shame.

Sooyoung raises her brow at ‘Jongwoon-oppa’ but Joohyun only nods her head and remains the smile on her face as she tells Sooyeon, “It will be.”

Maybe it’s not really everybody although it can’t be denied that there are many people against it, or them, but ever since Sooyoung and Joohyun kind of stand up with Sooyeon and Miyoung against those people, less and less people are making things at the university like hell for Sooyeon and Miyoung. And for Yoona who’s enjoying the pain and suffering of Sooyeon for stopping Kyuhyun when he was about to kiss her, it’s making her really pissed off.

She’s supposed to be suffering… getting laughed at… in pain, Yoona thinks, walking towards the cafeteria. It’s been several days after her little treat to the entire university of getting it wrapped with posters of Sooyeon and Miyoung. She hasn’t seen Kyuhyun, yet, despite the latter’s effort in looking for her and making it clear to her that even with everything she’s doing and everything she’s planning to do in the future, it won’t make Kyuhyun like her, mostly because she’s avoiding Kyuhyun.

It’s not embarrassment, really. Yoona isn’t embarrassed with what she did, not that anybody except Kyuhyun, Jongwoon, and Sooyeon (plus Miyoung, because Sooyeon tells her everything) knows the truth. She thinks Sooyeon deserves it. She’s not even considering that Miyoung didn’t do anything to her and well, what Sooyeon did to her isn’t really foul. Sooyeon only saved Kyuhyun from her. She’s avoiding Kyuhyun because she still has her plans.

Like that day, she walks towards the cafeteria like the usual prettiest girl in the university would, with people whistling and greeting her, mostly guys, from all corners of the cafeteria. This time, she isn’t avoiding Kyuhyun because she wants Kyuhyun to be there when something happens to Sooyeon.

Sooyeon and Miyoung are also in the cafeteria, of course, because if not, then Yoona’s plan would be futile. Jongwoon is getting lunch with Sooyoung and Joohyun. Kyuhyun is sitting on his usual table with his friends, Sungmin, Hyukjae, and Donghae.

Then, suddenly (of course, it’s not ‘suddenly’ for Yoona because she premeditated everything), someone shouts, “Lesbos!”

Everybody knows who – whoever the hell shouted – is referring to. But that’s not it, there’s something more, of course. Yoona will not settle for that simple act of embarrassing Sooyeon in front of the entire university. She fishes her phone out of her bag and is about to make a call, a signal from her to start breaking another hell for Sooyeon and even though she isn’t probably that much aware of it, for Miyoung as well. But before she can even unlock it, Kyuhyun appears from behind her and takes away her phone.

“Stop,” Kyuhyun says through gritted teeth. He’s had enough of Yoona hurting people important to him.

Yoona is surprised. “Kyuhyun-oppa,” she mumbles, blinking her eyes like a ing goldfish (Kyuhyun’s description).

“Let’s go,” Kyuhyun says and just like that, he drags Yoona out of the cafeteria, like literally drags her and this should be a dream come true for Yoona except that she isn’t able to pull her plan to get back to Sooyeon and Kyuhyun’s grip on her wrist kind of hurts (Kyuhyun’s even holding back himself back then. Yoona’s still a girl, Yoona’s still a girl, he keeps reminding himself.).

Before leaving the cafeteria, Kyuhyun slightly nods at Jongwoon. They think about it before, that Yoona will stop at anything to get back at Sooyeon, and it kind of works like Red Cross’ motto ‘prevention is better than cure’. Jongwoon asks Sooyoung and Joohyun to get Sooyeon and Miyoung to eat lunch with them in the cafeteria.