Hae Mina woke to Rhee Min-Jun’s soft touch on her shoulder. “Wake up,” he whispered. She turned around and stretched.
“Hmm?”
“We’re here. Let’s go.” Hae Mina blinked a few rapid times to wake herself then st
As Hae Mina sat in the windowsill, the moon's gentle beams rested on her face, and although they held no warmth, they comforted Hae Mina. The chaos of the day swirled in her mind, but soon, a piano's soft melody pulled her from her inner thoughts. At first, she thought she was imagining the sound, but as it continued she realized someone was playing the piano. She slid from the sill and ventured into the hall. She paused at the steps then tiptoed down them. She made it to the bottom and found herself closer to the fading sound. She hurried down the dark halls lit by small dim lights.
Hae Mina heard a knock on her door early the next morning. She rolled out of the bed and stumbled to her door. “What?” she muttered in a tired voice.I can’t believe I was up till two last night.“You have class today, Hae Mina,” Nathan’s voice declared.
Hae Mina sat in the office with her arms crossed. She had failed in obeying Nathan and knew a lecture awaited her upon his arrival. She scanned the room to preoccupy her mind. Cho Mi Cha lay on a couch across the room. Tears streamed down her cheeks and Hae Mina knew she had hit the girl too hard, but she really did not care at this point. The girl deserved it and had struck her first.She clenched her right hand when she continued to look around and saw the younger girl, whose name she had yet to learn, whimper. The principal pointed at the girl and motion
After practicing from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm with no breaks, Duskin curled on the couch and fell asleep. “Can we take a break now?” Hae Mina asked. In truth, she needed the break more than wanted it. Her left hand ached and she did not know how much longer she would be able to keep the pain hidden.“I guess so,” Yang Dae-Su muttered. “What do you say, Jiho?”
As the two climbed into his car, Rhee Min-Jun spoke, "If you don't want to go to practice, I can tell them you are worn out.""No, I'll go. Jiho would never let me hear the end of it if I skipped practice because I was worn out, and I am in no mood to argue with him."He gave her a nod as he started the car and the trip back to the university began. After a minute, Hae Mina broke the silence, "Thank you for helping him. I know you haven't forgiven him for," she paused, "for choking me but--""I do not know that I will ever forgive him for that. Any man who would attack a woman is worse than trash.""So you see Jiho as trash?" she countered."What?""Jiho
Rhee Min-Jun entered the room a few minutes later to find Hae Mina curled up on top of the covers on the bed. Her brown hair fanned around her and hid her face. Her right hand was wrapped in covers and the left lay on a lump of covers. Rhee Min-Jun stepped forward and looked at her hand. Her left hand appeared to be swollen. He slid her hair from her face, and then with two fingers, he applied gentle pressure to her hand. Her face crumpled in pain. He removed his fingers and Hae Mina’s eyes jerked open.Rhee Min-Jun had backed up in time for Hae Mina not to notice he had touched her. She flexed her left hand and her face flinched in pain. “Did you hurt your hand in the fight earlier?” Rhee Min-Jun questioned. She jumped and looked to the side to see him. Her wide eyes let him know she had not noticed his presence until then.“No
Hae Mina woke to the sound of rushing water. Knowing it was Rhee Min-Jun washing let Hae Mina know it was time for her to get dressed. She quickly grabbed her clothes and changed in the corner, far from either door. She pulled her shirt over her head when the water in the bathroom silenced.Hae Mina glanced down at her hands. She tugged at the brace and pulled it off her hand. She then unwrapped the gauze. “How is it?” Rhee Min-Jun questioned as he stepped from the bathroom. She turned and let him see. “It feels a lot better today.”
Hae Mina grabbed her bag with her change of clothes before she followed Rhee Min-Jun to his car. As they pulled from the parking lot, Hae Mina removed her wig then searched through the duffle bag for a brush. As she prepared herself, Rhee Min-Jun drove in silence."I guess, I will run to a bathroom to change," She muttered a few minutes later. But she knew doing so would result in her being late to calls. "Although, I think I'll be late no matter what we do.""We are almost there," Rhee Min-Jun assured as she rushed through the yellow light as the intersection. A minute later, Rhee Min-Jun pulled into the parking lot by the University."Thank you, Sunbae," Hae Mina called as she rushed from the car with the duffle bag in tow. H e waved at her before he took in a deep breath and then with a puff, he diale