Getting a second chance at life isn't exactly as enchanting as it seems.
Sohee Young, who lived life like the callous person she was, dies. She gets another chance to live life correctly though, and that is by swapping lives with Lina Park, who die...
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WHEN I CAME to, I groaned and rubbed the back of my neck. My head, tilted so far back that I saw the scenery behind me, reminded me of those clowns flexible enough to rotate their whole head. Sitting up on the bench, I ran a hand through my hair—grumbling through the sunlight contrasting my lovely mood—dabbed a hand over my mouth to wipe any drool off, and pulled down the sleeves of my hoodie. Wait.
The polish on my clipped nails disappeared, replaced by most of the nails being bitten off. At a heavy feeling, I reached out to touch the cold metal rim of Lina's glasses, its weight pinching my nose together. I was Lina now. Lina Park. The hoodie and leggings, something father would forbid me to ever wear outside, confirmed it.
It worked. I was revived now. But where did Marshall send me?
I scanned the track field in front of me, where a few people either walked around or sat together. The elder wouldn't send me to school, would he? Turning around to face a townhouse-like brick building, about four stories high, I stopped. The words Oakwood High School on a plaque stuck out from a wall next to a door, as if laughing at my realization.
Of course he would send me to school.
"Miss Park." Someone called, annoyance laced in their voice similar to that of my etiquette teacher I had. I turned my head to the left, hoping that there would be another Park in the obviously isolated area I resided in, and stilled. As the large man coming my way passed a few other students, they greeted him nonchalantly, even going so far as to fist bumping him. I wished I was oblivious, too. Oblivious to the molten lava-like substance flowing out of the scar on his cheek. Oblivious to the smoke curling out of his eyes. Oblivious to the burning, coal-like heart located in the middle of chest.
Souleater.
"Lina Park," the man thundered, a starving, desperate craze in his eyes. Like he had gone for days, even weeks, without food.
With his eyes set on me for his next meal.
I couldn't breathe. Lina's body decided to freeze up and resort to panicking.
Move. Run. Scream. Do anything. I begged, shallow breaths escaping my quivering mouth as the monster approached me. Treading closer towards me, I heard voices fill my ears, pleads and screams from the souls that he took. The other revived that he killed. I had to escape.
Yet my hand wouldn't detach from the bench.
"Lina ya!" The call snapped the souleater out of his tunnel vision, and as if our encounter never occurred, only the scar on his face remained, his eyes back to normal. Comforting hands gripped my shoulders, and for once I didn't retract from the touch. It reminded me that I was still alive. For now.
Craning my neck, I stared into the eyes of Andrew Kim, Lina's best friend. Shooting me a smile, he nodded to the souleater. "Hey, Coach."
"Coach?" I parroted an octave higher, feeling lightheaded.
"And your P.E. teacher," Andrew supplied.
"My what?" No. This had to be a joke.
"What do you mean, what?" He teased, ignoring my pale face. "Do you hate running so much that you decided to forget what your teacher looked like?"
Speechless, I watched the exchange between the two of them before the souleater walked off.
The souleater. Who was my teacher. In the school I attended.
A few weeks? More like a few minutes. Plenty of time to adjust? If they thought I had the ability to adjust as soon as I got here, they thought wrong. I clenched my jaw and took a deep breath.
Calm down, Sohee. You'll be fine. I'm sure as long as there are people, he—it—won't do anything.
A finger poking my forehead snapped me out of my thoughts. Looking down, Andrew gave me a full-wide grin while the corner of his eyes crinkled. For a second, I thought I was in the middle of a photoshoot, and his messy wavy hair styled like models in magazines did nothing to convince me otherwise. Noticing my stare, he chuckled and ran a hand through his hair so that his bangs, which covered a bit of his eyebrows, parted in the middle.
I met better looking guys than him. Models. Hundreds of them. Thousands.
"I couldn't find you during lunch. I thought you ditched me," his eyes lit up. "Did you get my burger?"
"What?" My lips parted as pieces of Lina's memories came back to me. Briefly, I recalled Lina mentioning to Andrew about buying lunch.
"You said you'd buy us lunch yesterday." Eyes widening, he asked, "You didn't forget, did you?"
"I... I fell asleep."
"Huh? Here? At school?" I could see the question marks popping over his head. Feigning nonchalance, I shrugged my shoulders.
"I needed a nap," I mumbled in response.
Andrew's happy-go-lucky personality disappeared, and he cocked his head to the side.
"Okay," he said slowly. "I guess you can buy me lunch another day."
I gave him a tight-lipped smile, hoping he erased this whole day from his mind.
