DISGRACE ──── ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ ✔️

24 ── ᵗʰʳᵉᵃᵗˢ

ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ

Mi-hee stretched as she finished her morning routine, feeling lighter than she had in days. After everything that had happened recently, her life finally felt a little under control. Meditation had cleared her mind, pilates had energized her body, and the simple bowl of oats and fruits had left her stomach satisfied.

She had slipped into one of her favorite oversized hoodies, curled up on her bed, and picked up the novel she had been struggling to finish. With light music playing in the background and the faint fragrance of fresh flowers drifting through the room, the atmosphere was almost idyllic. For the first time in what felt like forever, Mi-hee felt truly content.

As she turned a page, her phone pinged on the nightstand. She ignored it at first, unwilling to let anything disrupt her peace. But after a while, curiosity got the better of her. Reaching for the phone, she unlocked it to find a message from Kang Ha.

It was about the drugs.

Mi-hee sighed. She had all but forgotten about that mess. At this point, she didn’t even want to care. Kang Ha’s vendetta was his own, and while Rian was no angel, Mi-hee couldn’t summon the same level of hatred she once had for him. If anything, she was starting to feel something dangerously close to pity.

Her phone pinged again. This time, it was from an unknown number.

She opened the chat, scrolling past several missed messages she vaguely remembered receiving over the past week. Her eyes widened in shock as she scrolled further.

The first photo was of her and Kang Ha at a convenience store. They were laughing, clearly enjoying themselves. She remembered that day vividly—it had been one of her first true acts of rebellion against her father.

Then came a string of threats, about revealing her past.

The next photo hit harder: the three of them—Mi-hee, Kang Ha, and Kang In-han—eating ice cream by the Han River. Mi-hee remembered that day as one of the happiest of her life. The last time they’d been carefree together before everything fell apart. Before Kang In-han transferred to Jooshin High and discovered her true identity as Yun Mi-hee, not Minji.

Her heart clenched.

Finally, the most recent message sent a chill down her spine: “I know your secret. One wrong move, and it’s over for you.”

Her fingers trembled as she reread the threats. Whoever this was, they knew too much.

The memory of that day—how it had started so brightly and ended so darkly—came flooding back. She had lost more than just a friendship with Kang In-han; she had lost the fragile sense of normalcy she had been clinging to.

Her mind raced. She needed to talk to someone, but who? Rian was out of the question. Kang Ha couldn’t be trusted, not with something this sensitive.

Jae-i.

The thought struck her suddenly. Jae-i had always been distant, almost cold, but there was an honesty in her that Mi-hee couldn’t deny. If there was anyone who might understand—even a little—it was her.

Without overthinking it, Mi-hee dialed her number.

“Hello?” Jae-i’s voice came through, calm but wary.

“Can we meet?” Mi-hee asked, her voice shaking despite her best efforts to sound composed.

There was a pause. Then, “When and where?”

Mi-hee exhaled a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. “Han River. One hour.”

“Okay,” Jae-i said simply before hanging up.

Mi-hee set her phone down, her heart still pounding. She had no idea how this conversation would go, but one thing was clear: it was time to come clean.

ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ