Warmth Unveiled | Michaeng

Chapter 41 - How's my face?

The class before lunch always tended to drag on and on, but today's one in particular seemed to move in slow motion. The mocking ticking of the clock was only drowned out by the cacophony of whispers niggling at Mina's back.

"She's the one right? The one that cheated on that guy in the year below us?"

"I always saw them sitting together at lunch and they seemed close. Guess this can happen to anyone."

"She really doesn't seem like the type to cheat. She looks plain, but I guess she's a slut too, huh?"

"Huh, it's her loss to be honest. He was too good for her in the first place."

A fresh wave of bile rose up in her throat, an uneasy shiver trickling down her hunched spine. She kept her head down, cold sweat making her school dress cling to her back. The books in front of her were blurred as she blinked furiously to fight back the tears that wanted to dribble down her cheeks. Contrasting to her normal habits, her notebooks were empty apart from a few dazed scribbles, her mind so far from mathematical formulae and chemical equations.

"Unfortunately, I think that's all the time we have today," her math teacher sighed over the sudden shrill screaming of the lunch bell, pushing his think-framed glasses up with his middle finger. "I expect you all to finish the exercises in section 16.3 of the textbook by next class." A chorus of groans erupted from around Mina, people already rising from their seats to make a quick escape from the suffocating classroom.

While she was stacking her books into a pile, a sudden force collided with her back, her whole body lurching forward. Her hip bone slammed into the hard edge of the desk, the blunt force making her let out a strangled sound of pain.

"Oh, sorry," a girl muttered from behind Mina, the girl's friend nudging her as she walked past.

"Jennie, you don't even have to apologize, she totally deserves it." 

The girl that bumped into Mina looked her up and down quickly, before recognition dawned on her face. The girl's mouth curled up in a sinister grin, eyes cold.

"Oh, she's that girl, isn't she?"

Mina gulped at the way the girl snickered, nodding her head. Before they could say anything further, Mina hastily grabbed her books and hugged them tightly against her chest, brushing past the two with her head down. Ignoring the people filling the halls and the beady eyes following her trail, she didn't look up from her feet once, not until she made it to the pool. With how fast she ran there, Chaeyoung had only just arrived, her broad back facing Mina as she neared the shed.

"C-Chae," she choked out, Chaeyoung's statuesque form at the sound of her name. Chaeyoung's mouth popped open when she saw Mina, but didn't manage to make a sound as she slammed into her, burying her face into Chaeyoung's chest and locking her arms around Chaeyoung's middle.

"Bad day?" Chaeyoung asked, voice low, her own arms pulling Mina in closer. Chaeyoung's hands rubbed broad, slow circles against her back, only stopping momentarily to open the door to the shed. The two of them stumbled into the shed, feet bumping into each other as they didn't drop the embrace, despite struggling to walk.

"Pretty bad," Mina mumbled, answering the question from earlier. Pulling back, she gave Chaeyoung a tired smile. "But it could've been worse."

Chaeyoung snorted, the displeased look on her face faltering for a moment as she smiled. She opened her mouth to say something, but Mina's stomach decided it would be a good time to let out a prolonged growl, her cheeks flaming. Chaeyoung choked on her laughter. Grabbing Mina's hands in her own, Chaeyoung teasingly nudged at her unruly stomach.