ZOOM, bp999 ✓

⭒ TWENTY-EIGHT

TAERAE:
i'm really sorry about how
our date ended yebin

YEBIN:
it's fineeee dw about it 😌

TAERAE:
can i make it up to you??

YEBIN:
that's not necessary, it wasn't
your fault your friend saw us

TAERAE:
it kind of was..

TAERAE:
i told my friends i was going out but
i didn't think they'd track me down

YEBIN:
i told my friend too it's okayy

TAERAE:
if we ever go out again i promise
it won't be like this time

YEBIN:
taerae it's fine 😌 don't stress
out okay i had a good time

TAERAE:
okay

TAERAE:
text you after class?

YEBIN:
sounds good :)

"Is this you?"

Yebin looked up from her work to find a girl standing in front of her desk, holding her phone in front of the sitting girl. In her hand was a photo of two people sitting in front of a convenience store, and Yebin's heart dropped.

It took everything in her not to snatch the phone out of the girl's hands and throw it across the room. She took a shaky breath and opened her mouth to deny it, but her silence was enough.

"Wow. You really are just hopping from guy to guy. Do you have any self respect?"

There was barely a week left of school. Yebin figured she could miss a few days and show up to take her finals, then disappear for the summer and let everything blow over. She was too in her head to notice the boy from before pointing at her over his shoulder and snickering with their classmates.

She let out a slow breath and looked up at the girls glaring at her. "I really don't see what this has to do with you."

"How am I supposed to get my crushes attention when you're out there kissing all of them? It's literally no fair," the girl spat back, earning a sigh from Yebin. She rubbed her temples, completely fed up with the rumors circulating about her.

"Listen," she said in a clearer voice. "What I do in my free time is none of your business. Who I do that with is none of your business." She scoffed. "I don't even know who you are, and you're judging me? Have you forgotten that we're adults now?"

Before the stunned, red-faced girl could stammer a reply, Yebin felt two heavy hands fall on her shoulders and turned to find one of Taerae's "friends" hovering behind her. "Come on, chill out. If you're shameless enough to kiss on a public first date, what's the big deal?"

Yebin immediately shoved him away, raising from her seat when he moved for her again. "Touch me again and I'll—"

"You'll what? Kiss me to death?" The boy's friends laughed, but the rest of the class seemed to be avoiding the confrontation at all cost. Yebin realized with a sinking feeling that this was the professor who always showed late, so if things escalated, she doubted anyone would jump in to help.

Yebin was pulled from her thoughts when she felt his rough hands grab at her again, groping the fabric of her shirt as he tried to pull her toward him. His friends urged him on as he puckered his lips mockingly, making kissing sounds as he tried to plant one on the girl.

"Don't fucking touch me!" She yelled, shoving the boy back only to be grabbed again. Panic was starting to set in, and Yebin began to notice some of the students had their phones pointed in her direction. She hoped it was to film what was happening in her defence, but she doubted that was the case.

When the boy's hand slid to her waist, Yebin pushed his chest hard, getting some space between them before landing a harsh slap against his cheek. The laughter stopped, and instead his friends made teasing sounds into their fists.

While the boy was recovering from his shock, Yebin straightened her shirt and left the classroom before he could attempt to reach for her again.

Once in the hall, Yebin waiting until she was sure no one was following her before allowing the tears to spill from her eyes. The adrenaline was wearing off, finally allowing her panic to set in.

She turned, blindly searching for the restroom, when she heard someone new calling her name. "Oh! Aren't you Taerae's friend—woah, are you okay?"

Yebin had her hand to her chest, trying to calm her breathing when Lee Jeonghyeon found her. "Um, hi, I'm Jeonghyeon, uh—"

"Call Sung Hanbin, please." She managed through her hyperventilating, and when she saw Jeonghyeon stumbling with his phone, Yebin thrust hers into his shaky hands.

Within the next two minutes or so, Jeonghyeon stayed with Yebin, holding her hand as they sat in the women's restroom until she managed to calm down a bit, and by that point, Sung Hanbin arrived with wide, worried eyes.

"What happened?" he asked gently, kneeling to Yebin's side. The girl shook her head, fresh tears spilling from her eyes as she said, "he just kept touching me and everyone was laughing and," she took a shaky breath, "and I couldn't breathe,"

"Oh, babe, come here..." Hanbin soothed, taking Jeonghyeon's spot on the ground to comfort his friend.

After a few moments, Yebin sniffled and wiped the remaining wetness from her face. "There's a video, isn't there?" Her words came out more empty, like a statement rather than a question. Hanbin hesitated before slowly nodding his head. "There is."

Suddenly, shouts filled the hallway. It seemed to be coming from Yebin's classroom, and as both her and Hanbin rose to their feet, a group of three girls came running into the restroom.

They looked surprised to see Yebin there, but giddy smiles spread across their faces when they recognized her. "You're the girl who kissed Taerae!"

"I—"

"Girl, your boyfriend is beating the shit out of that guy who grabbed you!"

•
🤗 (not proofread)