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xii. REVENGE IS BEST SERVED COLD a bite that kills him.
JINHEE IS ALIVE. Despite the mess of the school and the disarray everyone else is in, her gym uniform is clear of any blood, her hair pulled back in two neat ponytails. She is someone that has woken up in the safety of their room, oblivious to the calamity around them.
Until that tranquil safety is disrupted, by Gwinam's blade against her pale throat, his knee on the back of the principal that lies sprawled on the table.
"Stab me," she hisses, "I dare you."
Gwinam grabs her collar and leans down to her ear, hushing her. Cheongsan hurls the nearest object, a chair, in his direction, but it barely grazes him.
"Misu!" Jinhee yells, her voice so shrill Misu nearly clutches her ears.
"Jinhee," she replies. It's all the confirmation the girl needs to knee Gwinam in the groin, causing him to hunch over in pain, and run to her. The principal uses this as an opening, squirming out of his grasp and stumbling towards Misu. He cowers behind her body, trembling as he watches the aggravated boy with a knife.
"Student," he says, holding out a car key with a shaky hand, "go get my car. It's parked right outside."
Out of everyone in the school, she most hoped that the worst bullies would've died—Myeonghan, Changhoon, Hyeonju, Gwinam, and worst of all, the useless, good-for-nothing principal. But seeing the two of them here, alive and breathing and treating her like nothing and no one, it burns her body up. A slap to her face.
"Say what?" Her voice drops low and breathy, and she stares at him in the eyes. "Why should I help you?"
Fear flashes over his face and he stutters, "You. . . I'm your principal and your elder! You have to protect me."
"Protect you?" She scoffs, shoving his shoulder with her hand. He stumbles back, trapped between her and the bully he defended so many times before. That will be no more. "Sir, do you remember what you once told me?"
He doesn't reply, only falls to the floor and shrinks away from her.
"'I only protect people who need protection.' If Jinsu did not need that protection, neither do you."
Without warning, she hauls him by his collar and pushes him back. The clamour of his body against the table causes the door to rattle with the infected pushing and clawing for the source. Gwinam whistles, once again holding the principal with his head flat against the table. He wraps his wrists using his tie.
"Hey," Cheongsan says, his knuckle going white from clutching the phone so hard. "What's wrong with you?"
"What's wrong with you?" she counters, grabbing Jinhee's wrist. She tries to pull her away but her sister refuses to budge. "Come on. I don't have all day."
