"To my surprise, the next day as I'm leaving math, I find Kevin waiting for me outside the door, his signature smile lighting up his face. The late morning sunlight that streamed in through the windows in the hallways made some stands in his hair look more bronze than brown. And those lips of his. He's so dreamy...

"Hello! How was math?" Kevin asks me cheerfully. I shrug.

"Okay, I guess. You could say it's not my favorite subject." I look him in the eyes. "Why are you here though?"

"I was planning to walk with you to class. That's what friends do, right?" He replies, his smile never leaving his face.

"Right..." I say awkwardly. I didn't have many friends at my old school. I guess you could say I was an outsider. I tuck a loose strand of hair and twirl it around my index finger.  "So, what class do you have next?" I ask, desperate to break the awkward pause of silence that had formed. 

"Foreign languages." He replies nonchalantly, grabbing my arm and gently guiding me through the mass of people that flooded the narrow hallway. 

"But I have Chem. next. Aren't the foreign language rooms and the science rooms on opposite sides of the building?" I ask. He nods.

"Yeah, they are. Why?" He replies.

"Aren't you going to be late?" I ask, concerned. Kevin shrugs his shoulders, a graceful, fluid motion.

"I don't mind. Plus," He grabs my wrist and gently wraps his hand around it. "You're so tiny I'm afraid you're going to get run over." 

"But I don't want you to have to be late to class!" I object. He shakes his head.

"I'm walking you to class." Kevin states firmly. I sigh. I knew nothing I said would change his mind.

"Okay. Thank you." I say, smiling faintly. He smiles back, flashing perfect, pearl-white teeth. 

"Any day."

---

Timeskip

A few months later...

Over the course of just a few months, Kevin and I had grown to be good friends. I sat with him at lunch, and he'd walk me home as often as he could.

No good thing comes without a price. Kevin had always been popular with girls. He claimed that he'd never dated any of them though, something I found rather hard to believe; he was extremely good looking. I could understand why so many girls fell for him. There were tons of pretty girls at NH High. I don't think I'd ever understand why handsome Kevin Woo didn't date them.

The cool afternoon breeze tugs small strands of hair out of my ponytail. I shiver and pull my jacket tighter around my shoulders. I was standing outside the dark green doors of the main entrance to NH High School, waiting for Kevin. He was late today, and he wouldn't reply when I tried to text him. I pulled my lips into a tight frown. Almost everyone had already left campus. Almost everyone.

"Hello there, freak." A scratchy voice says from behind me. I know who it-- who they were-- without turning around. The voice belonged to Ra Chi Yong, head of what I called the "I-Hate-Celestyn-club," a group of girls that I swear only became friends because they hated my guts that much. Yah. A bit extreme, I'd think.

They weren't what you'd call nice people. Most were stuck-up rich snobs who's parents were CEOs of companies or whatever. 

"Awww... the little American freak isn't with her boyfriend today, huh?" Chiyong continues in the same sratchy voice. I turn around nervously. 

"What do you want, Chiyong?" I ask quietly. Chiyong laughs.

"Kevin. Isn't it obvious? But of course," The girl pauses for effect. "someone stole him from me. and stealing isn't nice. You should know that." She grabs my ponytail, tugging at it slightly. I stiffen. "My, my. Such pretty hair. It'll be a shame to rip it out of your head. Quite fun though, I'd think. Maybe Kevin-oppa won't like her as much if she's missing hair." She laughs again. I don't respond. She smirks and yanks my ponytail backward and slams the back of my head into one of the railing on the stairs. My skull vibrates from the impacts, but I bite my lip, forcing myself not to cry out in pain.

"Not painful enough?" She taunts, yanking my ponytail again, this time tossing me down the stairs. Weighing only 95 pounds, she had no trouble shoving me into a wall. By then, my knees and hands were bruised and bloody. She and a few friends took turns kicking me in the stomach and back, and laughed as I writhed in pain. 

After what seems like an eternity later, Chiyong finally backs off and says, "We should probably get out of here before her 'boyfriend' comes back. I bet after seeing her in this state, he'll run from her." Chiyong laughs maniacally. Giggling, she and her friends leave me on the stairs, bloodied and bruised. 

The cold air bit away at the scrapes that lined my arms and legs. My head pounded. I weighed my options. Crawl home, or wait to see if Kevin would come out of the building anytime soon. But I doubted I'd have enough energy to crawl all the way home.

The green doors swung open ten minutes later. My hands were numb, and I was shivering. "Sorry I'm late, Miss Hyo Jin forced me to finish my...' He notices me lying on the ground and immediatly kneels down beside me. "Celly, what happened to you?" He asks, wide eyed. An angry expression crosses his usually bright face. "Who did this to you? I swear the next time I see them, we're going to have a big problem." 

"N-o. Don't. T-they're j-just g-going hurt me even more." I manage to choke out, shivering.

"Oh gosh Celly you're freezing. I knew I should have waited till tomorrow to finish that stupid test." Kevin mumbles a long stream of curses under his breath. He gently wraps his jacket around my shoulders and looks me in the eye. "They're not going to hurt you. I'll protect you." He picks me up bridal style, but I'm too tired to resist.

"Could we not go to my house?" I ask Kevin.

"Okay. We'll got to mine instead." He says. I nod and bury my face in his chest, inhaling his scent. 
"It's okay," he murmurs. "You're safe with me." His lips gently graze my forehead before my eyes close themselves. 

---

Hopefully it wasn't terrible. ^.^ Thank you for reading!