Mr. Bitter's Sweetness | So Junghwan ✓

Chapter twenty

This time, Junghwan and I were officially dating.  The mysterious texts had been bothering me for over a month.  No matter how many numbers I blocked, the threats were kept coming:  'You're next,' 'I know what you're doing,' 'I'm always watching you,' and the worst one, 'You'll die soon.'  I hadn't told Jihye or Junghwan.  Was it just another prank?  I thought about going to the police.  I went to the ice cream shop, my usual spot, and ordered my favorite cookies and cream.

"Is that unknown number still bothering you?" the owner asked.

He knew about it because I came in often and we talked. He treated me like his own daughter, maybe because he missed his own so much.

"Yeah, Ajjushi.  He just texted me this afternoon," I said.

"Maybe you should report it to the police. It's not safe to walk around with those kinds of threats," he said.

"Ajjushi, I'll do that. Thanks for being concerned," I said.

Later that night, I heard a familiar voice. It was dark, and I couldn't see anything.

"You're not going anywhere, babe," the voice said.

I woke up.  It was the voice of the guy who had hurt me.  I cried again, remembering what happened.  But I wouldn't let those thoughts control me anymore.  Now I had someone to protect me.

The next morning, I got another text, but it wasn't a threat. It read:

'cous it's me Junkyu'— unknown number

Hey it's Cindy why did you text me?— cindy

Junkyu?  Cous?  Wait a minute.  Do I have any relatives? 

Oh yeah!  I remembered. It's my cousin who always teased me.  He and Junghwan used to team up to make me cry.  Crazy!  I immediately changed his name in my contacts so I wouldn't get confused.

'Just checking on you cous
I really don't want to do this but mom wanted me to ask if how are you now.'— junkyu

'Woah your still rude to me 😞'— cindy

'I was just kidding 😂'— junkyu
'We also know what happened to aunt.So sorry for that.'— junkyu

'Hey bro I'm fine I already moved
on but still missing her.'— cindy

'Ok now that you're fine bye,let's just see
together soon.'— junkyu

'Ok bye can't wait to take revenge 😉'— cindy

'Hey girl you can't I bet you're still a dwarf 😉'— junkyu

That was it.  I didn't reply.  I got ready for school and went to the bus stop.  I got on the bus and arrived at school a few minutes later.

As I walked into the school, I heard the same voice from my dream.  I felt helpless and couldn't shake it off. My legs gave out, and I fell to the ground.

A guy came over and helped me up. It was Kevin, Yoshinori's old friend.  He seemed haunted by his conscience.  He knew what his friend had done to me.

"Cindy?" Jihye said, rushing over from her car.

"What happened to her?" she asked Kevin.

"Jihye... I remember his voice!" I said.

"Who?" Jihye asked.  She knew right away.

"I'll leave now," Kevin said, and he walked away. The girls didn't know him, but he knew me.

JUNGHWAN

"Junghwan, someone's looking for you," my classmate said.

I didn't ask who it was. I just stood up.

"Junghwan, I'm Kevin Yoon.  I know you don't know me, but you know Yoshinori, right?" he asked me.  I was confused.  Why was he bringing up Yoshinori?

"What is it?" I asked.

"There's something important you need to know about him.  I can't tell Cindy. I know how much pain it would cause her.  You'll be confused too.  I know her, but this has been bothering me for a long time.  It's sensitive, so let's talk somewhere else."

We walked to a quiet spot behind the building.

"Now tell me what's going on with Yoshinori," I said.

"I don't know how to say this... My conscience is eating me up," Kevin said, stopping himself.

"Just tell me," I said.

"Yoshi was the one who hurt Cindy.  I hated that he was my friend.  I finally had the courage to tell you because of what happened earlier," Kevin said.  My fists clenched, and I was speechless.

"He's also the one behind the locker incident.  But believe me, I had nothing to do with it," Kevin added.

I stormed out of there and headed to Yoshinori's class. I was furious when I saw him.  I grabbed his collar and punched him in the face. His lip started bleeding, but I wasn't satisfied.  He fought back, and the whole class was in chaos.

After the fight, I called my dad and told him everything.  He said he wouldn't tolerate that kind of behavior in his school.

The next day, everyone was shocked to see Yoshinori in handcuffs.  I had called the police and filed a report against him.  People were confused.

"What's going on?" Cindy asked, standing behind me.

"He's finally getting what he deserves," I said, still angry.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"We'll talk later," I said, and she nodded.

CINDY

I froze when I heard what Junghwan said. It was him? That's why his voice was so familiar.  I hadn't even realized I was crying. I wiped away the tears. I was relieved that the man who had hurt me would be going to jail.