"Mom I am home" I call out as I close the door and take off my shoes. I put my bags near the entrance and ready myself for her scolding.
I was yet again late courtesy of a pink-haired boy and my phone had died on me. My mother would not let me go without a scolding today.
I was late home twice this week because of Yeonjun both times.
It didn't matter how many times I asked him to come in through the door and during open hours, he had decided he would give me a cardiac arrest every time he visited the café.
Although, to be honest, he had been true to his word about the truce.
I had imagined he would make my days at school hard but he had suspiciously been quiet about the whole ordeal and didn't even blink in my direction, not that I noticed if or when he was staring in my direction.
Even the two times he visited hive for ice cream, he was civil, well, as civil as he can be when he is not scaring the wits out of me popping up from behind the garbage bins and not insulting me for my choice of favourite ice-cream or my lack of fashion sense.
The person, however, who was making my days at school harder was Beomgyu.
His group didn't pay much to me, other than a curt nod of acknowledgment from Soobin or Kai. Taehyun and Yeonjun completely ignored my presence.
It was Beomgyu who was always screaming my name whenever he spotted me.
There was still a lot of ambiguity regarding his group, or Royals, as the rest of the school seem to call them.
And since I knew who Yeonjun was, it was common sense that the people he hung out with would be just as important, if not more.
I knew the Huening siblings had something to do with acting because a lot of girls would fawn over Kai's looks and I guess he has seen him in some movies before. I think.
Soobin definitely gave me a political vibe. The way he handled everyone's gaze on him and even handle situations, outside and within his friend group, he was definitely related to some politician.
It was Beomgyu and Taehyun I had absolutely no idea about.
Beomgyu was into music, so maybe a musician? His surname was also Choi but it is a very common surname for me to pin him to a famous musician or singer.
As well for Taehyun, I can't guess about him as he was just as good at sports as he was good at his studies. I could vouch for the study part but it was Saehi was the one who told me about the sports.
The statement was instantly followed by a scowl from San.
Speaking of San...
After bombing me with the fact that Yeonjun was the successor of the Choi group, San had been exceptionally quiet regarding the matter and only warned me not to get too close to them. His friends seemed to share his sentiment.
I couldn't deny I was not curious but I didn't want to go ahead and ask others, not like I had friends apart from San's friends and Beomgyu, if you can call him my friend.
I am sure he sees me more as a fun project or a pet dog but he has been kind to me, except a few times when he seems to know something is up with me and Yeonjun and deliberately puts us close to each other.
I am not sure whether Yeonjun has told Beomgyu about our deal but promised me he wouldn't. I only have his words to rely upon.
But it seems even if Beomgyu doesn't know for sure whether something is going on between us, he suspects it.
"Are you even listening to me?"
"Huh?" I ask, my head snapping in my mother's direction at her sharp voice.
"Come, sit and eat" I see my mother seated at the table with a serving of tonight's dinner laid out in front of me.
I quietly wash my hands and face before taking a seat opposite her.
I expected her to chew me out by now. She warned me if I was late again and didn't inform her before she'll make me pull out of the job at Hive.
I needed this job.
Was she scolding me and I was too preoccupied with my thoughts that I didn't pay attention? That seems unlikely.
She is uncharacteristically calm and quiet.
I do not like it.
I eat with the silence as my company and when I see my mother open her mouth to speak, I am somewhat relieved that she is going to scold me because her silence terrifies me more than her angry words.
"How is school going? You don't much about it"
"It's nothing new. And I tell you about it every day" I say with a mouth full of rice.
"You always say that. How are the teachers, how's the pressure? Are people treating you right? Did you make any friends apart from San?"
I just shrug as my answer and stuff my face with food. I didn't realize I was this hungry.
I don't tell my parents most of it because I don't think they need to know the nitty-gritty details. And what do I think their reaction would be if I told them what had happened?
Yeah, actually I pissed off a really important person at the school and I almost thought I will get kicked out because you know who was that person? It was the successor of the Choi Group! Yeah, you caught that right, the company that owns the school and half of Korea!
But it's okay now because we have come to a truce and for an entire week he has held his end of the bargain. So I guess mom, I will not be kicked out of the school before even completing one month there.
I can already picture her expression.
"Somebody came by today," she says quietly. She seems deep in thought.
"Who?" now my interest is piqued.
She pulls out a maroon envelope from underneath the table and sets it in front of me.
I look curiously at the envelope.
I am not forgetting any holiday and my grandparents didn't visit here either so the envelope definitely does not have money in it.
Slowly realization runs over my body like a bucket of cold water on a winter day.
I inched my hand forward t a snail's pace, tracing the gold lining at the borders before turning it in my hands. The gold wax of the seal with the monogram confirms my suspicious doubt.
That Bitch!
All this while when I thought he meant it with the truce, he just meant bullshit. He was just making fun of me before pulling the strings and ruining my life.
I can't believe it! How naïve can I be?
Of course, Yeonjun would make sure I was kicked out. He was just toying with me and enjoying how easily I believed him.
He could have just given me the termination certificate. He didn't have to give it to my parents. I can only wonder what he must have told them.
Ugh! I feel so stupid!
I stare at the gold seal and feel my eyes water.
The intricate RH monogram mocking me. It is telling me how I have yet again disappointed my parents.
I try to breathe through my mouth and keep my tears at bay. I know my mother is so disappointed in me that she doesn't even want to scold me. She has probably given up on me at this point.
I wouldn't blame her.
"What did you do to get invited to a party?"
"What?" I whip my head, eyes full of tears to look at my mother.
We both mimic an expression of shock and bewilderment.
A/n: hello everyone! *Me shamelessly walking back into your life*. Who is the most unreliable author of all time who says they're only taking a 2 week break and then end up on a hiatus for 2 months? Any guesses? Yes! You guessed it right! It's me, hi, I'm the problem, it's me.
Sorry for being MIA. I wish I had a life altering reason for doing so but there isn't. I was just dealing with a lot of teenage drama even in my adult life. Can I call myself an adult right now? Idk. I am legally 23 but my mind is still stuck at 17 so eh, kinda unsure on whether I should call myself an adult.
I am ranting again. Anyway! I am back and here to continue this story. I am not leaving this story mid way. There's a long way to go and till now I wasn't sure who the main guy will be but now I am so I am excited to see how the sorry pans out as well.
Hope you enjoy reading the story as much as I like writing it.