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― two.
"i'm sorry." the girl held her head in her hands, ducking away from the glass bottle as it smashed against the wall behind her. she stared ahead of her, afraid to lift her gaze, knowing that he didn't like it when she cried.
"are you kidding me?" he questioned, turning to his wife. "third place?" he seethed through clenched teeth, holding the medal in his hand, his other hand holding a joint between his fingers. the strong smell had filled the room quickly, the lack of ventilation in inha's room made it hard for her to breathe. "is sorry all you have for me?"
inha pursed her lips, unable to bring herself to do what her father wanted her to do. "ha." he took a long drag of his joint, before puffing out a big smoke causing inha to start coughing, unable to hold it in any longer. "if you won't do it, then i guess this bitch will have to do." he grabbed her mother by her hair, pulling her towards him as her mother cried out, trying to pull his hands off of her.
"i'll!" inha began, hurriedly stepping forward. "i'll do it..." she finished timidly, as much as she didn't want to, she had no other choice. her father chuckled, nodding his head.
"good girl." throwing her mother to the side, her father walked over to her, grabbing her and putting out his joint on her arm, causing the girl to scream out in pain as the burn seeped through her skin. her father grinned, licking his lips before pulling her out of the room, her mother watching in defeat as inha silently begged her with her eyes to help her escape. however, her next words broke her heart.
"you should've gotten first place." it was short and sweet. enough for inha to lose hope in seconds as she was swept away to the basement where the real torture began.
-
"you're late." inha bowed her head in apology, making her way to her seat as the teacher rolled her eyes, annoyed at the girl for disturbing her history lesson. there wasn't even long left to the lesson, let alone to the school day. "coming in so late, you may as well have stayed home." the teacher commented, causing a wave of quiet snickers to fill the room as inha brought out her things, ignoring the snide comment sent towards her. it wasn't like her tardiness was anything new, if she could, she wouldn't let it happen again.
"as i was saying," inha, although she should really be paying attention, tuned out the teacher's voice, staring out the window. although she had just arrived, she really didn't want the day to come to an end ― she didn't want to return home. "also, your test results, students, i know that these are mock exams, but this is the time to really put hundred per cent into these," mrs kim continued as she walked around, handing out the slips of paper. "it won't be long until you'll be taking your entrance exams, and you'll regret not taking these seriously." although she was giving good advice, the students couldn't help but feel as if they were being scolded by a parent.
approaching inha's table, the teacher placed her slip down a little aggressively. "good job." she mumbled, almost a little annoyed. inha ignored her tone and hurriedly checked the piece of paper, a breath of relief escaping her lips as she saw the number one in the column next to her name. "if only you put the same effort into your attendance." mrs kim was always known for her snide remarks, which is why inha was glad it was her lessons she would somehow end up missing, even if it wasn't by choice.
"number one again?" jung wooyoung scoffed, rolling his eyes. "of course, you're good at politics aren't you? just like your daddy." he took a jab at her, clearly pressing the right buttons as he watched her fist clench, her knuckles turning white. "yah, how scary, i'd almost think you were gonna punch me." he teased, continuing to prod at the girl, knowing that she'd never actually do anything.
luckily for the both of them, the school bell rang. inha breathed out a deep breath, calming herself down before grabbing her bag and escaping the hell that was her classroom. at least it's lunch. she thought to herself, making her way to the cafeteria.
"inha-yah~" inha smiled, turning to her friend. at least i have you. dohyun smiled, wrapping his arm around the girl's shoulder as they continued to walk towards the cafeteria. "what's the menu for today?" he questioned, although they both knew he already had the answer to that. "tonkatsu!" he cheered, answering his own question as always. suddenly, something caught his eye. "oh, what's that?" he questioned, grabbing her arm.
inha panicked, realising he had noticed the growing scar on her arm from the burnings her father had inflicted on her. "ah this?" she stumbled, trying to figure out how she was going to cover up this one. "i just... burned it whilst cooking." she lied. anyone with a brain could tell that the burn wasn't from a cooker, but luckily it was dohyun she was dealing with.
"ah, really? you should be more careful." he advised, concern clear in his tone. "make sure you're putting cream on it." he added.
"mhm." inha plastered on a fake smile, the two of them splitting ways as dohyun went to grab some food and inha headed towards their table. the girl glanced down at her arm, pulling down the sleeve that had accidentally rolled up and revealed her secrets that she was trying desperately to hide. a sigh escaped her lips as she blinked back her tears, forcing down the emotions that wanted to escape.
