i'm yours to keep | winrina

- 1

Minjeong and Yunjin give each other a silent fist bump as they take their first steps into the principal's backyard. And what a nice yard it is; a great oak tree stands in the center, and a brick path meanders around the property and leads to an artificial pond filled with fish. A small garden full of different flowers and vegetables Minjeong isn't familiar with is pushed to the back corner, near where she and Yunjin entered from.

"Let's give Mr Yu his 'last day of school' gift." Minjeong says as she shrugs off her backpack. "After all, we'll miss him this summer."

"Nah, I won't." Yunjin mutters under her breath. Her parents are making her take summer classes to better up her college applications, as well as play student ambassador for the incoming freshmen. While she certainly doesn't look the part of 'malcontent teen'— with her designer clothes and perfect grades— she's usually the one who takes the most pleasure in their illegal activities.

"Dibs on the tree!" Minjeong points excitedly at the oak in question, hoping to cheer Yunjin up. "I wanna do the tree."

Yunjin smirks at her enthusiasm, seemingly pushing away her thoughts of summer. "Go for it. Just remember that we only have an hour or so."

Right. One hour until Mr Yu gets back from some school board meeting, one hour until he'll flip his shit when he sees what they've done to his precious yard.

She and Yunjin quickly get down to business— Yunjin takes a giant bottle of bleach from Minjeong's bag and starts to carefully pour it around the tree. Minjeong gets a good grip on some of the toilet paper she bought earlier and takes careful aim.

By the time they're finished, the once majestic oak is covered liberally in gauzy toilet paper and the area around its trunk is bleached.

Minjeong and Yunjin step back and admire their work. "It's beautiful." Minjeong breathes, wiping away a fake tear. "I think we really captured the spirit of our school."

"A-plus for execution." Yunjin nods in agreement. "Your aim has really improved this semester— you even hit the top branches."

"And your pouring technique—" Minjeong clutches dramatically at her heart through her shirt. "— it's so powerful, so full of emotion."

Yunjin snorts. "Yeah, the emotion being 'I hate this fucking place'. Glad it came across clearly."

The fun ends— or really begins, in Minjeong's opinion— when they hear a car pull into Yu's driveway. Minjeong throws a silent victory hand in the air and allows Yunjin to catch it and drag her towards the fence. But Minjeong digs her feet into the ground when she realizes Yunjin left the bleach by the tree.

What is this, amateur hour?

"What are you doing?" Yunjin hisses when a light comes on in the house. "It's not like they're going to brush it for prints."

Minjeong snatches the bottle anyway and hurries back towards Yunjin. "If you start getting lazy, it sets a bad precedent—" Her lecture is cut short when her foot tangles in the wire surrounding the garden.

Shit.

She flails as the ground comes up to meet her, letting go of the bleach so she can try to catch herself. The landing is still rough and she feels thorns scraping against her palms. Nearby, there's a faint sound as the bleach empties out of its container and into the surrounding plants.

Before she can grab the bottle again, Yunjin is hauling her up and over the fence. "Leave it!" She joins Minjeong on the other side just as the door to the backyard slides open, and they both peer through the slats in the wooden fence to see the principal's reaction.