Street Cred

Chapter 1

"Can somebody please come up and solve this?" Mr Jeon stood at the front of the classroom and wrote a difficult and lengthy math equation on the board. Some of the students were too busy talking to their friends to answer him while others found that daydreaming about what they would do after school was of more importance. Only about three students were actually paying attention, and one of them was Moon Byeol.

She looked around and rolled her eyes at everyone else in the class that was not paying attention. Of course she knew how to solve the equation, but anytime she answered a question, people would whisper about her. It didn't used to bother her, but recently, the whispers have gotten louder, as if the people who said them didn't care if she heard them or not.

So Byeol remained in her seat and waited out the teacher until the bell rang, dismissing school for the day. She quickly grabber her books and headed to her locker where her best friend, Minki was always waiting for her.

As Byeol approached her locker, she saw the platinum blonde head of her best and only friend.

"Byeol! Babe!" Minki ran to her friend and engulfed the girl in a tight hug.

Minki giggled as her friend gasped for breath and hugged her back. Eventually ending the hug, Minki stepped aside and allowed Byeol to reach her locker. As Minki talked about the newest K-pop news, Byeol put her textbooks in her locker and grabbed what she needed to go home.

As she shut her locker and put her bookbag on, Minki linked their arms and started walking towards her boyfriend's car. The two girls arrived at Han Jisung's flashy sports car and waited for the boy to arrive. As soon as Minki saw his dark blue hair walking towards them, she ran and jumped in his arms while he picked her up and spun her.

Byeol smiled at the two wishing she could have something like that, but then her father's face popped in her mind and she remembered why she didn't have anything like that. She needed to work hard and show her father that he could be proud of her, even if she wasn't the son he wanted instead.

A giggling Minki brought Byeol out of her thoughts as the happy couple arrived back at the car.

"Hey, Byeol!" Jisung smiled at his girlfriend's best friend as he unlocked the car for them. Byeol climbed into the backseat with Minki. Jisung was used to playing chauffeur for the two because while he may be Minki's boyfriend, Byeol was Minki's wife. He just went with it - a smart move.

Jisung always took Byeol and Minki home since they were neighbors. The car ride was filled with Minki talking about making plans for the upcoming weekend.

"You know, Mimi, my friend Hyunjin is throwing a party this Friday. It won't be that many people, but I wanted to see if you'd go with me? Byeol is more than welcome to come as well." Jisung looked at us briefly then fixed his eye on the road again and turned into our neighborhood.

Minki gasped and squealed in excitement. "That sounds like the move. Byeol, please go with me!" She turned to her friend and grabbed her hands giving her puppy-dog eyes.

"I don't know. Parties really aren't my thing. Besides, I have a test in two weeks that I need to-"

"Moon Byeol you have 2 weeks to study for that test, I think you can go one night without studying. Now, you are going to this party with me and Jisung. You will meet other people besides us and you will have fun if I have to drag you there myself." Minki said all of this with authority. Jisung arrived in front of their houses and the girls got out.

"Thanks for the ride, Jisung!" Byeol waved goodbye to the boy and waited as Minki went to give him a kiss and say goodbye. The two girls watched Jisung drive off before heading into Minki's house. They always went to Minki's house after school because Byeol's mom wasn't home from work yet, and Byeol hated being by herself.