A fate for love

Chapter 5: Ambition and responsibilities

Elina closed the door behind her as she entered, immediately heading towards Emma's room. She found Emma engrossed in her studies, just as she had expected. Elina smiled, walking slowly into the room and gently caressing Emma's hair. Emma, startled, turned and spoke,

"You're here? I didn't realize your presence."

Elina nodded with a small pout. "Yeah~ You were so engrossed in your studies. Wait, what happened to your forehead?" She frowned as she touched Emma's forehead.

Emma laughed a little, trying to brush off the concern. "Oh! I just bumped into a wall while coming back."

Elina looked at Emma sternly, sensing something more. "Are you sure? It looks bad."

Emma widened her eyes, trying to appear sincere. "Trust me! Nothing happened! And I already know good enough boxing to protect myself!" she said, proud of her skills.

Elina reluctantly nodded, sighing. "Yeah, okay."

Emma noticed the lingering doubt in Elina's eyes. Trying to change the subject, she stood up, making Elina stand too. "Okay, okay, now go get fresh, and then eat your food! Or it'll get cold again!" Emma said, gently pushing Elina with a laugh.

Elina laughed as she went to her room. As soon as she left, Emma sighed, recalling what had truly happened earlier.

Flashback

"I finally got my uniform and name tag," Emma muttered to herself, carefully placing her new uniform in her bag. She turned to leave the campus, feeling a sense of accomplishment. Just as she was about to step out, a girl approached her.

"Hey, you're Emma, right?" the girl asked, her voice tinged with hesitation.

Emma nodded, frowning slightly. "Yeah, why? What happened?"

The girl looked nervous but continued, "Um, can you please accompany me to the back of the school?"

Emma remained silent, her curiosity piqued. Sensing Emma's reluctance, the girl quickly added, "Actually, there's a cat stuck in the fence. I could've helped it, but I'm allergic to cat fur."

The story sounded a bit strange to Emma, and she didn't want to waste time, but the girl's distressed expression made her feel a pang of sympathy. "Okay, fine, I'll help you," Emma agreed.

The girl's face lit up with relief. "Really?! Thank you so much!" she exclaimed, grabbing Emma's hand. Emma gave a small smile and nodded. "Let's go," she said, walking alongside the girl.

As they walked, Emma couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. The girl seemed overly nervous, as if she was hiding something, but Emma chose to ignore it.

They soon reached the back of the school. Emma looked around, frowning. 

"I can't see any cat here. Where is it?"

The girl bit her lip, glancing around nervously. "It was here a moment ago. Maybe it moved?"

Emma's suspicion grew. "Are you sure there's a cat? This doesn't feel right."

Before the girl could respond, a few girls stepped out from behind a large dumpster, blocking Emma's path. Emma frowned but soon realized what was happening as she saw Jieun step in front of her. Emma sighed and shook her head.

"Look who we have here?!" Jieun said with amusement and a sneer on her face.

Emma rolled her eyes, clearly unbothered by Jieun's presence. "Don't you have other work than to just nag me?"

Jieun clenched her jaw, trying to maintain her composure. "I do have, but I also have to make things clear among us."

Emma frowned, genuinely confused. "I can't understand your problem, girl! I apologized about the morning issue itself, but you kept bragging about it. And as for throwing milk at you—" Emma paused and then smiled. "You deserved it for throwing milk at me first and then for throwing away my food."