Love Across Universe

The Essence Of Mischief

Soojin

Ahh! Something struck me, and everything began to fade into darkness. When I opened my eyes, I found myself lying on a bed with pristine white sheets. Glancing up at the ceiling, I realized I was in a small, brightly lit room.

Suddenly, I noticed a pair of eyes scrutinizing my jaw, which was probably hurting. I turned towards the eyes and saw my best friend, Alain.

"Hey! You're awake. Feeling better now?" he asked with his decent French accent, concern etched in his voice.

"What am I doing here? Where am I?" I inquired, trying to avoid his gaze while my eyes took in every detail of the room.

"A football hit your face, and when you fell, you lost consciousness. We're in the school's infirmary, dumbo," he said, placing his palms on his temples. I felt like the most oblivious person alive.

Who wouldn't recognize their school's infirmary after nearly a decade of studying there?

"Sorry, I was just too shocked. A football hit me? Really? When and how?" I asked, giving him one of my most bewildered expressions.

"Looks like my assumptions were correct. You should see a doctor, Soojin," Alain said, looking utterly fatigued.

"Oh! I remember now. We were playing football, and Elisha hit the ball at my face deliberately. I won't let her get away this time. She needs to learn her lesson," I fumed, getting out of bed. Just as I was about to leave the room, Alain caught my wrist and pulled me back.

"Calm down. You can't prove she did it intentionally. Just let it go. She has always been like this," Alain said placidly.

With that, he exited the room, leaving me alone. Sometimes, it felt like Alain always tried to shield Elisha, maybe because she was more attractive, maybe because she was an European like him.

I couldn't comprehend—was I not good enough? Why was I always looked down upon because of my Asian heritage? What had we done to deserve this? We weren't uncivilized barbarians.

I had endured discrimination all my life, but I never thought Alain would also judge me. Anyway, time to get back to my classes.

Hey everyone, you've just read snippets from my quotidian life. I'm Soojin Min, and Alain is 'just' my best friend, nothing more. Alain, a French guy—God knows how we went from neighbors to best friends. But that's not my concern .Right now, I was focused on teaching Elisha a lesson.

My parents had always warned me not to get involved in altercations or mischief, but I craved adventure. I wasn't afraid of anything, so here I was, devising a perfect surprise for Elisha.

"We'll place a bucket of flour above the classroom door. Elisha will be the first to enter for dance class, and the bucket will fall on her," my friend Anna said, jotting down her plan.

Yes, I had some adventurous friends, but they were all a bit obtuse though.

"No, I've seen that in movies. Let's come up with something original. We don't want her accusing us of plagiarizing from cheap films," I said, twirling my pen.

"Let's get her drunk and abandon her somewhere—a permanent solution," Alice chirped in her bird-like voice.

"Hell no. We'd be the first ones to get accused," I said, pondering deeply. "What if we modify Anna's plan a bit? Listen to me, guys."

"This is all for today's class. See you tomorrow," Mrs. Lucy concluded with her endearing smile. She was my favorite teacher, though Chemistry wasn't my favorite subject. I decided to stay in the lab a bit longer.

"Are you planning to spend the night here ghost-hunting? It wouldn't surprise me if you say 'yes,'" Alain joked, but I didn't appreciate his humor.

"Yeah, I'm thinking of making a voodoo doll of you. Wouldn't that be fun?" I gave him a sarcastic smirk. He gulped, then laughed nervously and left.

After finishing my experiment, I grabbed my backpack and headed home.

The next day:

I went to school alone. Usually, Alain and I walked together since we lived in the same neighborhood, but today, I needed to meet Anna and Alice early to execute our plan.

"Hey Soo. Ready to go?" Anna said, standing by my locker.

"Yes, babe. Just wait and watch," I replied with a smirk, eager to see Elisha's reaction.

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How was the 1st chapter everyone? Technically the 1st chapter of my first book 😆

Any guesses how Soojin's gonna teach Elisha a lesson? Let me know in the comments 💯

Dive into the next chapter to get rid of your curiosity 😉