the takeover | Winrina

Chapter 2- Public Humiliation

Karina enters the changing room like she owns the place, positioning herself in front of the mirror to arrange her hair. She stretches her brow to check her eye makeup but figures there isn't much point in fixing anything if she's just leaving school to go to Aeri's house.

"What?" she snaps at two of the soccer players, who'd been staring at her since she walked in. It's been like this ever since the news of her break up with Yeonjun had started making the rounds. They are quick to turn away, going back to getting dressed.

She catches the new girl studying her reflection and surprises herself when she smiles instead of telling her off. The girl returns the smile and approaches the mirror, coming to a still at the sink next to Karina's, where she starts applying a moisturizer to her face. Karina appreciates the methodical gestures, the way her fingers move upwards across her jawline, and the way they draw circles on her temples and her forehead.

It's no secret that Karina Yu enjoys new, pretty little things.

"Rina, I told your sorry ass I'd be out in ten minutes," Yeji says, emerging from the shower area, wrapped in a towel, wet hair dripping on her shoulders, "No need to be here trying to rush perfection."

The new girl chuckles next to her and Karina decides she kinda likes the sound of that.

She pushes the thought to the back of her head and watches Yeji from the mirror, "It's been a while since I saw you naked, Yeji Hwang." She smirks, and feels oddly tickled when the new girl's eyes widen and lock with hers in the reflection for a split moment, "You gotta deliver."

"Yeah yeah yeah, you big perv," Yeji says, shooting her away with exaggerated hand movements, "Just go to the parking lot, Aeri's already there."

Karina pouts, "You're no fun."

Yeji pays her no mind, so Karina shrugs and winks at the new girl, before leaving the changing room with a flip of her hair.

For all the attention they get at school as the Hive, something Karina had begun to nurture as early as freshman year, was that they much prefered the times when they're together away from the prying eyes. It's not that they can't handle attention — they thrive on it — but there's a comfort, an ease, that can't quite be reached when their every movement is being observed.

After they'd finished homework, they ordered pizza, and were now all situated in Aeri's room, Karina sitting on the edge of the bed and the other two girls sitting on the floor in front of the TV. Aeri and Yeji are fighting over what movie to watch, even though Karina doubts they can even get halfway through it without her and Yeji's parents calling them to return home. It is a school night, after all.

There's an unexpected moment of silence and Karina lifts her head to find Aeri's eyes zeroing in on her. Twinkling with a playfulness that makes Karina swallow audibly, and not because she's eating.

"So..."

Karina should have known that Aeri would choose the moment she's happily munching on her pineapple pizza to focus on her and start with the questioning.

"I head this rumor in school that Yeonjun cheated on you, is that true?" Aeri asks, enunciating the words carefully as if she's treading in dangerous waters. Karina appreciates the concern, but she feels that Yeji's snort is more in tune with the reality of the situation.

"Aeri, please," she says, tilting her head to the side as the gestures to herself, "who would ever dare to cheat on this?"

Yeji lets out a laugh this time and Aeri pinches her leg in annoyance.

"I was worried, okay." she harrumphs, side-eyeing Yeji, "Yesterday, you just told us you'd broken up with Yeonjun and we didn't get to talk about it properly until now."