lim sarim is abused by her father, and when sunghoon, her coldhearted and bold classmate, witnesses it, he starts bullying her. but as he gets to know her pain, he realizes he has feelings for her that he can't ignore.
"𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐩 𝐭𝐡𝐞...
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The classroom was alive with the usual hum of students chatting and laughing, their voices a constant background noise that only deepened Sarim's sense of isolation. Lim Sarim sat at her desk, staring blankly out the window, her fingers absently twirling her pen. Outside, the world seemed peaceful, the trees swaying gently in the wind. But inside, Sarim felt like she was slowly dying.
Around her, everyone was smiling, sharing stories about their weekend. She tuned it all out, focusing on the faint tapping of her pen against her notebook — until she caught a snippet of conversation from a nearby group.
"...My dad took me to the amusement park!! It was so fun, he even bought me this cute plushie."
Sarim froze, her heart sinking as the words hit her like a blow. She could feel her chest tighten, the familiar ache rising up like a wave she couldn't stop.
Fun with their dad.
How does that feel?
She didn't even know what that felt like. To her, fathers were storms — unpredictable, destructive. She had never known anything else.
Her breath quickened, the noise in the classroom becoming overwhelming, like a wall of sound pressing down on her. She had to get out. She couldn't breathe properly.
Without thinking, she stood up abruptly, ignoring the curious glances of her classmates as she walked out of the room. She didn't care. She just needed to escape from there.
Her feet carried her to the rooftop, the only place where she could be alone, away from the laughter, the happiness that seemed to mock her. The moment she stepped outside, the cool wind hit her face, and for a second, she felt like she could breathe again.
But then the ache came back, stronger than before.
She leaned against the railing, staring out at the sprawling city below, her vision blurring as tears welled up in her eyes. She tried to hold them back, but it was no use. The tears spilled over, and soon, she was silently sobbing, her body shaking as she hugged herself, the pain too much to contain.
Why couldn't she have a normal life?
Why couldn't she have a father who loved her, who didn't make her feel like she was nothing?
The sound of the rooftop door creaking open startled her, and she quickly wiped at her face, trying to hide the tears. But it was too late. She heard footsteps approaching, slow and deliberate.
"Seriously?" a voice drawled, cold and mocking. "You're fucking crying?"
Sarim didn't have to look to know who it was. Sunghoon. The boy who never seemed to care about anyone but himself. His voice was sharp, cutting through her like a knife.
"What, did someone steal your lunch money or something?" he continued, his tone dripping with disdain. "How Pathetic."
Sarim kept her head down, her fingers gripping the cold metal of the railing, her knuckles turning white. She didn't respond. She didn't trust herself to.
"Look at you," Sunghoon sneered, taking a step closer. "Standing up here like some kind of victim, crying like the world's out to get you. What are you even crying about? Did your perfect little life fall apart for once?"
She bit her lip, trying to stop the fresh wave of tears that threatened to spill over. She wished he would just leave. She didn't have the strength to deal with him right now.
But he wasn't finished yet.
"Do you think anyone cares about your tears? You're just making a fool of yourself," he continued, his words sharp and mercyless. "What, are you going to cry every time something doesn't go your way? Grow the fuck up."
Sarim's shoulders trembled, but she stayed silent, her eyes fixed on the ground. The lump in her throat made it impossible to speak, even if she had wanted to.
Sunghoon let out a derisive laugh, the sound bitter and cruel. "You're so weak. It's just so pathetic. You think crying up here, hiding from everyone, is going to make anything better? You think anyone is going to feel sorry for you?"
She flinched at his words, her body tense, every muscle coiled with the effort of keeping herself from breaking down completely in front of him.
But Sunghoon wasn't done. "What's your problem? You think you're special? That your pain matters more than anyone else's? People go through worse every day and don't waste their time crying like a baby. But here you are, acting like the world ows you something."
Sarim's breath hitched, the tears falling freely now, though she still refused to look at him. Every word he said felt like a blow, each one driving deeper into her already fragile heart.
He scoffed, shaking his head as if she were beneath him. "You can stay up here and cry all you want. It won't change anything about your pathetic life. You're still going to go home to whatever miserable life you have, and no one's going to care."
With one final, disgusted glance, Sunghoon turned and walked away, leaving her alone once more. The door slammed shut behind him, the sound echoing in the silence.
Sarim stood there, staring at the spot where he had just been, her tears still dropping, her body trembling. His words echoed in her mind, cruel and unforgiving.
She had always known she was weak. But hearing it out loud, from someone who clearly hated her, made it feel so much worse.
She wiped her face with shaky hands, trying to pull herself together, but the sadness lingered, heavy and oppressive. Her concealer was smeared, and you could see the red bruise under her right eye.
She wanted to scream, to make the pain stop, but she couldn't. All she could do was cry.
