TOUGH ROMANCE || scoups || BOOK ONE

36

I ignored the speed limit and stop signs on the short drive to the high school and noticed Baekhyun did the same behind me. We pulled into adjacent spaces and stormed the front doors, a united front.

I hadn't stepped foot in the school since I was a student here. It looked as though not much had changed.

"How do we know where to go?" Yuna wondered when we walked in through the front doors.

I heard raised voices coming from one of the hallways.

"That way." I said.

"Your sister ruined my life!!" I heard.

I didn't wait for the parents. I headed toward the shouting at a dead run. I made it to the open door just in time to see a seething Mrs Kim fitting her hands at her sides as she leaned into Hani's personal space.

I stalked into the room, but neither woman paid me any attention.

"From what you've told me, your husband ruined your marriage. An innocent eleven year old certainly isn't to blame!" Hani said, hands on hips, not giving the woman an inch.

"She's got her mother's blood, doesn't she? There's nothing innocent about any of you!" Mrs Kim hissed, pointing an accusing finger in Hani's faces

"Bullshit."

My announcement had both women whirling around to face me.

Mrs Kim's eyes got big behind her glasses. I took two steps forward, and she backed into her desk like a cornered rat in bifocals.

"Cheol." Hani said through clenched teeth. "I'm so glad you're here." She was tilting her head and subtly pointing toward the floating wall that created a coat room just inside the doorway. I glanced in the direction and caught a glimpse of black and blue hair. Mimi, holding a jar of who knows what, gave me an embarrassed finger wiggle of a wave from her belly on the floor.

"For fuck's sake." I muttered.

"There's no need for language!" Mrs Kim barked.

"The fuck there isn't." I countered, angling myself to block part of the opening to the coatroom. "And I think Mimi's grandparents will agree."

I jerked my head toward Baekhyun, who, until that point, had been holding Yuna back with a good grip on her summer sweater. "Seems like we've got ourselves a family conference." I said, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Judging from how your daughter turned out, don't think for a second that I'm falling for this show of familial support." Mrs Kim sniffed. "Lee Mimi is a juvenile delinquent, and her mother is a home wrecking, pill popping boil on the bottom of society!"

"I thought you said there's no need for language."

"Gosh." Yuna whispered, and I guessed she'd just spotted her granddaughter's hiding place.

"Huh?" Baekhyun was a little slower on the uptake until his wife pointed out the situation. "Ah, hell." He muttered under his breath. He stepped up to stand shoulder to shoulder with me. Yuna moved to his right. Together, we created a wall between Mimi and her shitty teacher.

Hani looked relieved, then turned back to face the monster. "Mrs Kim." She snapped, bringing the woman's attention back to her.

I snapped my fingers at Mimi and pointed to the door. She started to belly crawl her way toward the door.

Hani waved her arms and paced toward the opposite side of the classroom like she was throwing a fit. "I have empathy for your situation. I really do. You certainly didn't deserve what your husband and my sister did to you. However, you are responsible for not just teaching these students but for making them feel safe in your classroom. And I have it on good authority that you are failing in spectacular fashion when it comes to that duty."

Mimi's sneakers disappeared into the hallway.

"Chae took my husband into her bed and-"

"Enough." I bit out the word, and the woman's lip trembled.

"Yeah. What he said." Yuna agreed, backing toward the door. "Oh dear! I just remembered. I left my purse in the hallway!" She hustled out the door...holding her purse.

Hani returned to stand infront of me. "I'll give you the weekend to decide whether you're going to modify your behaviour so that all your students, including my niece, feel safe in your classroom. If you refuse, then I'll not have Mimi removed from your class, I'll go to the school board and I will raise hell."

I reached and arm around her chest and pulled her back to my front. Hani could be just a little terrifying when she wasn't screaming her frustration into a pillow.

"She'll do it too." Baekhyun cut in proudly. "She won't stop until you're out of the classroom. And the rest of us will be there to back her up every step of the way."

"It wasn't supposed to be like this." Mrs Kim whispered. She sank wearily into the desk chair. "We were supposed to retire together...we were going to drive the RV cross country. Now I can't even look at him. The only reason he stayed is because she dropped him as quick as she picked him up."

I guessed it couldn't be easy for Baekhyun to hear this about one of his daughters. But the man hid it well.

I felt Hani's anger drain out of her.

"You didn't deserve what happened to you." Hani said again, her voice softer now. "But neither does Mimi. And I'm not going to let anyone make her feel like she's responsible for the decisions adults make. You and Mimi both deserve better than the hands you were dealt."

Mrs Kim flinched, then sagged back in her chair.

I gave Hani and approving squeeze.

"We'll leave you to your weekend." She said. "Feel free to email me your decision. Otherwise, I'll see you Monday morning."