off limits ✧ zb1 applyfic

✧ twelve

As soon as the school bells had rung, Vicky had been ecstatic to go home, but she'd forgotten Jiwoong had an important meeting with the rest of the teaching staff. And because she wasn’t really comfortable taking the subway home alone, she'd decided to stay behind to do some homework, at least until Jiwoong was done with his work. Her headphones over her ears, she tapped her pen in rhythm with the music, as she skimmed over her art history lesson. She would have been much more comfortable in her bedroom, but oh well. There wasn’t much she could do about Jiwoong’s obligations.

When she felt a tap on her shoulder, Vicky flinched and immediately pulled her headphones off. She was pretty sure Dayeon was gone by now, but maybe she’d stayed behind for some reason. A bit of company wouldn’t hurt.

But as she turned around, she didn't see Dayeon at all. Instead, three girls were standing right behind her chair, unreadable expressions on their faces. She widened her eyes, confused. Were they going to ask her to move so they could sit there?

"You're Vicky, right?" the middle girl asked.

And it suddenly hit Vicky. Those were the three girls that had been staring at her when she'd bumped into Ricky a few days ago. What were they talking to her for? Vicky had a feeling she knew where this would be going. She'd been told about Ricky's popularity, but to experience it first hand was something else. A lump forming in her throat, Vicky nodded hesitantly, making herself as small as she could.

"So," the middle girl continued as soon as she got her answer, "you’re close with Ricky, huh?"

Vicky had been spot on. It was a jealousy tantrum. She wasn’t prepared to deal with this at all. Hopefully they would just be a little mean and side-eye her, nothing more. For a second, she could only wish her big brother would miraculously appear out of nowhere to save her, but she couldn’t always rely on Jiwoong.

Attempting to make her voice as stable as possible, Vicky cleared her throat. "Not really, um, we’re sort of family friends." Vicky grabbed at her skirt as she looked down.

"Yeah?" A defiant look on her face, the middle girl stepped closer. "Well, you should stay away from him."

Vicky knew from the beginning this was the crux of the problem, but somehow, hearing it out loud hurt in a way she hadn’t expected. Ever since she’d met Ricky, she'd been a lot more enthusiastic at the idea of going to school. It was just an innocent crush, but still, it felt like it made her a bit more courageous. Like she had something to look forward to in this godforsaken place. The simple thought that she’d have to stay away from him made the school a lot duller.

Why couldn’t people just let her have her little joys? She had so few of those!

"But we’re just friends," she stammered, her voice thick with unshed tears. "I swear, I'm not trying anything..."

But her defense did very little to convince the three girls. They all narrowed their eyes, their faces impassible.

"Right," the girl on the left finally spoke up, "who are you trying to fool? Bumping into him on purpose so he'd have to catch you..."

If Narae had been here, she could've explained it hadn’t happened like that.

"If you keep trying to date Ricky, we'll have to do something about it," the girl on the right added, her eyebrows furrowed.

What was this, another subpar Mean Girls sequel?

The middle girl's lips stretched into an almost believable smile as she leaned closer towards Vicky. "He's a prince, and you're just a peasant. Keep that in mind."

Without adding another word, the three girls strutted away, leaving a stunned Vicky on her own. With a heavy sigh escaping her lips, she turned back to her notebook, the distant sound of her music still seeping out of her headphones.