Words in italics : Flashback

I stood in front of the school infirmary, kneading my fingers in absolute panic and feeling drops of sweats rolling off my palms. Two things on my mind. What’s going on behind the closed door and where that suspicious bar of chocolate came from. The latter wasn’t really the issue because the former was much more perturbing. No matter how you despised a person, moral and humanity came first. I wasn’t that abominable. For goodness’ sake it was someone’s life we were talking about.

“Geez Hye Jeon. Slow down, will ya?”

My head snapped toward the echoing hasty footsteps. A moment later, I was faced with a furious Kim Hye Jeon. “What did you do to my boyfriend?”

I didn’t even get a chance to open my mouth and speak when I felt her hand grab a fistful of my hair and yank it. I let out a silent shriek, the pain I had been feeling intensified when her pointy fingernails dug into my scalp.

“Are you mute? Answer me!!”  With another wrench, she had the collar of my uniform grabbed tightly with her free hand, almost choking me.

“Hye Jeon ah, you’re gonna kill her. Let her go.”

Held back by her two friends, her incensed glare remained fixated on me. I rested my palm on my chest, coughing like crazy while gasping for air. I barely recovered from the pain when the door behind me was swung open.

“What’s going on?” I turned around and saw the head nurse, a look of disapproval painted on her face. Folding her arms, she scolded “Are you girls intending to let your fellow schoolmates’ condition worse? They come here to rest not to listen to your loud voices.”

Muttering an apology, I bowed. I wasn’t the one starting this but like it or not, I admitted I had a share in this. The fate of a certain person inside, my deepest concern and fear at that moment, was still unconfirmed and I was dying to seek for an answer.

“How’s Sehun?”

As if questioning on my behalf, Kim Hye Jeon enquired the same thing I had been having on my mind.

“He’s fine now. I’d injected epinephrine because it was obviously his peanut allergy. Anyone of you knew how he ended up consuming something with nuts on it? He must have not been aware that the food contains them.”

I gulped. Seriously I had no idea what to respond. It wasn’t one of the snacks I had gotten him. There was a reason why it took me long to get him everything. I made sure everything I picked was safe for him to consume.

“It’s her.”

“What?” I exclaimed in disbelief, flicking my eyes to her in disdain.

“You were with him, weren't you? Who else?” Her voice raised a pitch higher with every single accusation she threw at me.

“It wasn’t me.”

“Then you’re saying that he ate that with his own will? You dumb?”

“Girls, calm down. Yell once again and I’m going to kick you guys out of here.”

I pressed my lips together in annoyance, imagining the scenario of ripping that mouth of Kim Hye Jeon’s with my own hands.

“You can now see him, but only one of you. Mr.Oh needs to rest.”

And I wasn’t even intending to stay there any longer. I was there to confirm that he was still alive, breathing normally and made sure that I was free from any trouble in case the outcome of his allergic reaction was fatal. I might not be the one responsible for that but when it came down to the situation where I was the only one with him during the time it happened, it didn’t take a genius to figure out who’s going to be blamed.

Bumping my shoulders with so much force, Kim Hye Jeon shot me one final glare before she disappeared into the room, closing the door behind her. Her two friends were staring at me in distaste and I returned their expression with equal disgust. Some people were just too witless, judging one even when they had no clue what’s going on indeed.

“What happens? Someone’s obviously not in a good mood.”

I shook my head, signaling that I wasn’t feeling like talking. If there was one person who could see through me, it was Eun Byul. That girl was sharp and everytime she suspected something about me, her guess always hit the bull’s eye.

The moment she turned her attention to her phone instead, I knew she got my hint. I glanced at the wall clock, waiting impatiently for time to pass and get the day over with. What’s happening the day before tired me out. Every single trouble I got into lately had drained me of my motivation to go to school. I was exhausted as hell. I was sick of them.

“Chae Rim ah, Tao sunbae and Kai sunbae want to see you.”

One of my classmates’ voice echoed and immediately, I whipped my head to the door, catching a sight of Kim Jong In and Tao motioning me to approach. I exchanged glances with Eun Byul for a brief moment, both of us shrugged in confusion. I stood on my feet and proceeded through the door. When I was standing right in front of both guys, I asked “What is it? So early in the morning?”

“Did you hate Sehun that much?”

I blinked in confusion. It took me a while to let Tao’s words to sink in and when they did, realization hit me like a strike of lightning.

“What?No..I didn’t..”

“You know he is allergic to nuts.”

“Yes. That’s why I..”

“Luckily he didn’t eat that much. Otherwise…” Tao looked like he was in loss for words. Taking a step forward, he closed the distance between us and for the first time, his eyes flickered in a way he never looked at me before. It was…lethal? It was an expression I never thought he possessed because everytime we interacted, it was his playful and childish side which greeted me.

“Tao, hear her out.” This time, it was Jong in stepping in to hold his friend back. “Chae Rim, can you explain what happened? Hye Jeon told us that Sehun was sick and she said.. it’s all because of you. We just thought that we need to clarify this with you.”

Now that Jong In mentioned from whom they heard about it, I started to fear that the whole story had been exaggerated or modified in Kim Hye Jeon’s evil way.

“Oppa listen. You know I’d never do that kind of thing. Well, I don’t particularly like him but…” I stumbled, desperately trying to search for convincing choice of words. Everything just came into my mind at once I didn’t know which to first let out. “…You know I’ll never play with someone’s life. I know how severe it can get.”

Jong In seemed to be taking in my words and silence fell in during that moment he processed my words. I fixated my eyes on him, trying to look for any hint of trust.

“You were the only one staying with him the time it happened.” Tao barked, breaking the icy silence.

“Yes oppa but I…”

“Why were you even with him? There’s no reason for you guys to meet up. You even