INTERTWINED FATES: THE RED STRING

CHAPTER 1

Screams echoed from downstairs, waking Nabi up.

"Wake up, Kim Nabi! We are going to be late!" Mrs. Kim's voice cut through the silence. Startled, Nabi jumped out of bed and hurried to get ready. She quickly joined her family for breakfast.

"Good morning, Butterfly," Mrs. Kim said with a warm smile, putting a plate of pancakes in front of her.

"Good morning, Mom," Nabi replied, still half-asleep and rubbing her eyes.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," Kyzer teased, poking his sister playfully.Nabi rolled her eyes but smiled at her brother. After a quick breakfast, Nabi and Kyzer headed to school, chatting and laughing. At the school gates, they met up with their friends. Isa and Helena were already there, chatting and laughing.

"Hello, Nabs," Isa said with a mischievous grin as Nabi approached her locker.

"Morning, Nabi," Helena added with a smile.

"Good morning. By the way, where is Tiana?" Nabi asked, looking around.

"She's fangirling over Thyme," Helena said with a knowing smile.

"Anyway, did you finish—" Isa started to ask, but her words were drowned out by excited screams from the hallway. The girls turned to see a group of 11th-grade boys, led by Zade Vermilion, being mobbed by a crowd of girls.

When the noise settled, the girls went back to their conversation. Tiana, still starstruck, finally joined them.

"What class do you guys have now?" Tiana asked, glowing from her encounter with Thyme.

"Chemistry," Nabi said.

"ICT," Helena replied.

"Physics," Isa added.

"We have the same class," Tiana said, smiling.

The girls went to their classes and later met for lunch. They sat at their usual table, chatting about their day.

"How was class?" Helena asked, eating her lunch.

"Good, it went smoothly," Isa replied.

"Me too," Tiana said, still excited.

"I got my Chemistry marks," Nabi announced proudly.

"How much did you get?" Tiana asked eagerly.

"100 out of 100," Helena said, already knowing but joining in the excitement.Before Nabi could say more, Kyzer came over to their table, grinning.

"Hello!" Kyzer said cheerfully.

"Hello, Kyzer," the girls said in surprise.

"What do you want, Kyzer?" Nabi asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I accidentally spilt juice on your notes," Kyzer said nervously. "I just wanted candy—"

"You did what?" Nabi interrupted, her anger rising. "My notes?"

"I'm sorry, okay?" Kyzer pleaded, looking guilty.

Without another word, Nabi ran down the hallway, searching for her brother. The girls watched, knowing this was typical sibling behaviour.

In her rush, Nabi accidentally punched Zade, who was standing nearby. Zade staggered from the punch. Nabi's eyes widened in horror. "I'm so sorry, senior! I thought you were my brother. I'm really sorry."

Zade, shocked and in pain, was speechless. Kyzer, hiding nearby, struggled to hold back his laughter at the sight of his sister hitting a senior. Nabi dragged Kyzer by his ear, still apologizing to Zade, her face red with embarrassment.

"Looks like the punch was hard," Bryan said from the sidelines, amused.

"He's awestruck by a punch? Wow," Harry added sarcastically as their friends continued to tease Zade.