A quiet evening at Winter's home. Her room was dimly lit, the glow from her phone casting soft shadows across the posters of her favorite bands. A stack of notebooks and sketchpads sat haphazardly on her desk, some pages peeking out from overuse.
Cross-legged on her bed, Winter scrolled through old photos... her and Karina at a school event last year, laughing like nothing in the world could touch them. The memory felt distant now.
Her thumb hovered over the delete button.
She didn't press it.
Instead, she exhaled sharply and tossed the phone aside, rubbing a hand down her face. Across the room, a small mirror propped against her desk reflected tired eyes and the weight she had been carrying.
"Get it together, Winter." The words came out barely above a whisper, more a command to herself than anything else.
She pulled open her drawer and took out a well-worn notebook. Flipping to a random page, she was met with a mess of angry, overlapping scribbles. Words like not good enough, weak, and failure were scrawled over half-finished sketches.
She stared at it for a long moment.
Then, without thinking, she slammed the notebook shut.
The evening air was cool outside. On a worn-out bench near the school, Winter sat with Jaemin, arms crossed, shoulders stiff.
Jaemin leaned forward, his expression serious, frustration and concern mixed together.
"Winter, this isn't okay," he said, his voice steady but firm. "You can't keep taking out your feelings on other people."
Winter's jaw tightened. "You don't understand, Jaemin. It's not like that."
Jaemin shook his head. "No, I do understand. I know you're going through a lot, but this... bullying? Hurting others? That's not how you fix things."
Her stomach twisted at the word bullying. "Oh, so now you're the expert on my life?" she snapped, her voice sharp. "You think you can judge me because you're 'better'?"
"I'm not judging you," Jaemin said, calm but firm. "I'm trying to help. But if you're just going to keep pushing me away..."
Winter looked away, gripping the edge of the bench like it was the only thing keeping her grounded.
"Maybe you should just stop trying, then." The words came out colder than she intended.
Jaemin stared at her for a long moment, disappointment flickering in his eyes.
Finally, he stood.
"If this is who you want to be, Winter," he said quietly, "I can't be part of it."
He walked away without another word.
Winter didn't stop him.
She just sat there, fingers tightening around the worn wood of the bench, her tough facade cracking in the spaces where no one could see.
Later, the soft murmur of conversation from the group meeting faded as Karina and Winter lingered near the lockers while the others walked ahead.
Karina leaned against the cool metal, arms crossed. "Danny's funny sometimes, but I swear, he's useless when it comes to actual work." Her tone was casual, but Winter noticed a tension underneath it.
Winter nodded absentmindedly, barely hearing her. She glanced sideways at Karina, noticing something slightly off... the way her shoulders were a little too stiff, her usual confidence feeling more like a performance.
Winter hesitated.
"You okay?" The words slipped out before she could stop them.
Immediately, Karina straightened, brushing it off with a shrug. "Why wouldn't I be?"
Winter watched her for a moment longer, sensing there was more beneath the surface.
She almost said something else. Almost pushed further.
Instead, she muttered, "Never mind."
The silence between them stretched, heavier than usual. Neither of them broke it.
Winter leaned back against the locker, trying to focus on something else. Karina shifted beside her, fiddling with the zipper on her bag, avoiding Winter's gaze. The hallway was quiet now, the usual after-school chaos gone.
Winter's thoughts drifted back to the notebook at home, the angry scribbles, the frustration she couldn't shake. She wished she could tell someone, explain why she felt so... small, so trapped by expectations and by herself.
Karina's quiet presence beside her felt oddly comforting, even if neither of them said a word. Winter realized it was easier to have someone nearby, even if she didn't fully trust herself to open up.
Finally, Karina spoke again, her voice softer this time. "You know, we can't let people like Danny or the others get to us. Doesn't mean we have to act like them."
Winter nodded slowly. She didn't respond, but she felt a small relief wash over her. Maybe she didn't have to carry everything alone.
The two girls stayed by the lockers, the silence now not just heavy, but steady, a quiet kind of support. Winter thought about what Jaemin had said, and for the first time in a while, she wondered if maybe she could change, if she could start letting herself rely on someone without losing control.
Karina gave a small shrug, more to herself than Winter, then glanced at the hallway. "We should probably catch up with the others before they get too far ahead."
Winter pushed herself off the locker, brushing invisible dust from her sleeve. "Yeah," she said softly, almost to herself.
Together, they followed the rest of the group down the hallway, neither speaking much, but the weight between them a little lighter than before.
For Winter, it was a small step. A quiet one, but a step toward something better.
A.N :
Just like how villains always have a past, so I gave Haneul & Natty one.
