Mr. Go rolled up the sleeves of his neatly pressed pale-blue shirt, adjusting his tie with practiced ease as he took a small sip of his now-cold tea. He glanced at his wristwatch, then folded the newspaper with a quiet rustle. Grabbing his bag, he made his way toward the door, where Mrs. Go stood waiting to see him off.
The door shut with a firm click—an unspoken signal that the day had begun.
Mother moved briskly between the kitchen and the bathroom, her steps quick and restless. With one hand, she smoothed her hair back, then turned to her daughter.
"My dear, did you put on sunscreen? They said it's going to be quite hot today," she reminded gently, placing a water bottle into Nau Rin's hands.
"Yes, I did," Nau Rin replied, slipping the bottle neatly into her bag.
Her mother suddenly paused, as though something had just crossed her mind.
"Oh—this too," she added, holding out an envelope.
Nau Rin accepted it, a hint of curiosity in her eyes.
"What is it?"
"Your allowance," her mother said with a small, knowing smile.
"But you already gave me some," she replied.
"That one was from your father," she said gently. "This one… is from Mom. From now on, Mom will give you an allowance as well."
A gentle warmth spread across Nau Rin's face.
"Thank you. I'll use it wisely," she said softly. "I'll head out now."
She stepped outside, leaving the comfort of home behind as the morning air wrapped around her.
From inside, her mother's voice followed after her—
"Be careful. Keep an eye on the road."
The moment she stepped over the threshold, the cool trace of morning vanished as if it had never existed, replaced by the heavy breath of summer pressing against her face. The sun had yet to rise in full force, yet the humidity in the air felt almost visible—thick, clinging.
Her freshly pressed, lightweight short-sleeved shirt began to gather the faintest hint of dampness. Beneath the brim of her bucket hat, pulled low as if to shield herself from the gazes of passersby, the stifling air filtered through, brushing softly against her forehead with a barely-there coolness.
Minho's gaze lingered on the envelope in her hand.
"What's that?" he asked.
The others followed his line of sight, their curiosity unspoken but obvious.
"Pocket money. My mom gave it to me," Nau Rin answered, her voice even.
Minho exhaled dramatically.
"Your mom, your dad, your brother… wow. Why couldn't I have been born into your family?" he grumbled.
Nau Rin lifted one shoulder in a small shrug.
"One brother is already enough for me."
A mischievous glint flickered in Minho's eyes.
"Oh? So you're admitting I'm older than you? How about you try calling me 'oppa' just once?" he teased.
Nau Rin shot him a cold look.
"Do you have a death wish?" she replied shortly.
Minho let out a laugh, clearly unfazed.
"Hey, Taehyun—if the two of us got into a fight, whose side would you take?"
"Arim," Taehyun answered without hesitation.
Minho clicked his tongue, then shifted his attention.
"Seohun, what about you?"
Seohun gave an easy shrug.
"Isn't it obvious? I'd be on your side."
For a brief moment, something like hope flickered across Minho's face—
but it didn't last.
"If you can't even stand afterward, someone's got to help you, right?" Seohun added, completely deadpan.
The light in Minho's expression vanished instantly.
He let out another long sigh.
"Why am I even friends with you guys?" he muttered.
Nau Rin gave him a brief look.
"Do you have another choice?"
Minho frowned, then strode ahead with exaggerated steps, leaving the others behind as if to prove a point.
—
A low murmur filled the classroom, voices overlapping as students gathered in small groups, chatting in hushed excitement. As the girls began to file out, the boys pulled their gym clothes from their bags without much thought.
Nau Rin followed the others out, heading quietly toward the restroom.
By the time she finished changing and made her way to the girls' locker room, there were barely ten minutes left before class. Yet no one seemed to be coming out.
She waited outside for a while, lingering in the hallway, but as the seconds dragged on, her patience thinned. Finally, she pushed the door open.
The reaction was immediate.
Every head turned.
A few of the girls froze mid-motion, uniforms half-changed, as if time itself had stumbled.
Nau Rin didn't react. She simply walked past them, opened an empty locker, and began placing her uniform inside—calm, deliberate.
Then—
A sharp crack split the air.
A hand slammed against her locker door.
She stopped.
Slowly, she turned her head.
A girl stood there, leaning lazily against the lockers, her expression laced with mockery.
"Why don't you ever change in the locker room?" she asked, her tone dripping with sarcasm.
"Or is there something else you're hiding besides your hair?"
She turned toward the others, a grin spreading across her face.
"Like… maybe you've got three boobs or something?"
Laughter rippled through the room, quick and eager.
From the back, another girl chimed in,
"Or maybe she's actually got a... package down there?"
The laughter grew louder, echoing off the walls—
sharp, careless, and unkind.
Nau Rin ignored them. She shut her locker with a quiet click and turned to leave—
—but a cluster of girls moved at once, closing in and surrounding her.
"Really? Is that true?"
"Then let's check."
They reached for her, hands intrusive, crossing a line without hesitation.
In an instant, Nau Rin struck them away, her movements sharp and unyielding. Then, without hesitation—
smack.
Her hand collided hard against the cheek of the girl leaning by the lockers.
The sound cracked through the room.
Silence fell.
Complete. Sudden.
Everyone froze.
The girl's eyes widened, shock flickering into anger as heat rushed into her face.
"You… you just slapped me?" she spat, her voice trembling with fury. "You're seriously messed up. Girls touching each other is completely normal!"
Murmurs of agreement rose behind her, emboldened, echoing her words.
Nau Rin stepped forward.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
She stopped just in front of her.
"What you do with each other," she said quietly, her voice low and steady, "has nothing to do with me."
A brief pause.
Her gaze never wavered.
"But don't try it with me."
Then she leaned in closer.
Close enough that her breath brushed the girl's ear—
her voice dropping to something barely more than a whisper.
"I'll kill you."
She pulled back, her eyes lingering on the girl for just a second longer before straightening.
A chill ran down the girl's spine.
Her breath caught.
Her body refused to move.
She stood there, frozen—eyes wide, unblinking—as if something cold and unseen had wrapped itself around her and wouldn't let go.
As if nothing had happened, Nau Rin turned and walked out of the room, the door snapping shut sharply behind her.
By the time she reached the gym field, Minho was already walking toward her. She lifted a hand in greeting, a grin tugging at her lips.
"Hey," she called out.
Minho met her gaze only briefly—from the corner of his eye—before walking past without a word.
She stopped, watching him go. Her lips pressed into a thin line.
"...What a piece of work," she muttered under her breath, lowering her hand before continuing on.
The P.E. teacher clapped once to gather attention and announced that today's class would be combined with another.
"Alright, let's get started! Everyone here?" he called out.
The two class representatives answered in unison,
"Yes!"
Nau Rin glanced off to the side and spotted Seohun and Taehyun standing together at a distance.
"Let's start with a warm-up!"
Music began to play through the speakers.
The students quickly formed three rows and began their stretches in sync, moving through the routine as the teacher clapped along to the rhythm, guiding them.
After a while, the teacher spoke again, voice bright with energy.
"Well then, now that you're warmed up… how about a little run?"
A wave of groans spread instantly across the field. A piercing whistle blasted through the air.
"Move, move! Two laps!"
Nau Rin broke into a run. Seohun soon came up beside her, sweat already forming at his temples and slipping down along his neck.
"Running in this heat… seriously," he muttered.
"Tell me about it. I hate the heat too," Nau Rin replied.
Taehyun joined them, already out of breath.
"Ugh… I think I'm gonna collapse…"
Before they had even finished a full lap, his face tightened with exhaustion.
"We're only halfway? I might just drop here," he complained.
Nau Rin gave a faint smile.
"You go ahead. I'm finishing fast and resting," she said, picking up her pace.
Seohun matched her immediately, speeding up without hesitation. He ran right beside her, neither falling behind.
Far back, Taehyun was already lagging.
By the time they finished, students were dropping to the ground one after another, drained of energy. Nau Rin and Seohun moved into the shade and sat down.
Not long after, Taehyun dragged himself over and flopped onto his back, staring up at the sky. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he struggled to catch his breath.
The teacher clapped his hands.
"Good work, everyone. Now let's play something!"
He kicked a soccer ball off toward the left.
"Soccer—left side!"
Then he placed a basketball on the ground.
"Basketball—to the right!"
And yet—
no one moved.
The teacher rubbed his forehead with a sigh.
"You're all young, and you can't handle a bit of heat? Come on—everyone up!" he called out sharply.
The boys groaned but got to their feet, splitting into two groups. The girls followed, drifting over to cheer them on.
Nau Rin stayed where she was, resting in the shade of a tree. Not far from her, a group of girls whispered among themselves.
"Look at him… he's seriously good-looking," one said under her breath.
"And he's got a great body too," another added.
"Did you see his abs?" one of them giggled, barely containing her excitement.
Nau Rin glanced over in the direction they were staring.
She took a sip of water, idly passing the time, when Seohun jogged over, wiping sweat from his face. Without much thought, he pulled off his T-shirt and held it out to her.
"Here, hold this. It's sticking to me—I'll grab it after class," he said casually.
Nau Rin frowned.
"Don't give me things like that. That's gross. Just put it next to me—I'll keep an eye on it," she replied.
"Alright, alright."
Seohun dropped the shirt beside her and ran back.
When Nau Rin looked up again, the girls who had been whispering earlier were now staring straight at her, their expressions clearly sour.
She lowered her gaze slowly, turning away as if she hadn't noticed.
A moment later—
"Seohun! Seohun!"
The girls began cheering in unison, their voices bright and eager.
Nau Rin blinked, a little surprised.
'Wait… the one they were talking about… was Seohun?'
A faint smile touched her lips.
"So that idiot's actually popular." she muttered under her breath.