The weekend passed in a blur, and by Monday morning, Na-young felt the weight of Willow Heights pressing down on her once again. She had gotten used to the stares and and whispers, the quick glances at her faded and thrift store sweaters. But today felt different. Today, the tension in the air seemed thicker, like something was about to happen.
As Na-young made her way to her locker, she noticed a few students huddled in small groups, there eyes flickering towards her. She tried to ignore it, as she always did, but the uneasy feeling in her stomach wouldn't go away.
When she reached her locker, her fingers froze. Scrawled in red marker across the metal door were two words: "You Don't Belong."
Na-young's heart sank. She swallowed hard trying to keep her hands from shaking as she quickly erased the message with her sleeve, hoping no one else had seen it. But as she turned around, she saw them- Nari Lee and her friends, leaning casually against the lockers down the hall smirking in her direction.
Nari was everything Na-young wasn't. Tall, shining dark hair, and effortlessly glamorous, she was one of the most popular girl in school. She came from old money, the kind of wealth that was passed down for generations, and she made sure everyone knew it. Her father was a major donor to the school, and her influence seemed to stretch across every corner of Willow Heights.
"Having fun, scholarship girl?" Nari called out, her voice dripping with mockery.
na-young bit her lip, trying to focus on gathering her books and getting out of there as quickly as possible. But Nari wasn't done.
"You think just because you're smart, you belong here?" Nari continued, stepping closer, her posse of friends following behind like shadows.
"Newsflash: people like you don't last long in places like this."
Na-young's grip tighten on her books, but she refused to look up. Don't engage, she told herself. Just walk away.
But Nari wasn't going to let her escape so easily. "What's wrong?" Nari sneered, blocking Na-young's path. "You don't have anything to say?"
Na-young could feel her purse quicken. She had never been the confrontational type, but something about Nari's smug smile made her blood boil. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, a voice interrupted them.
"Is there a problem here?"
The hallway fell silent as Ji-ho Yoon appeared, his hands in his pocket, his gaze sharp as he looked between Nari and Na-young. Nari's confident posture faltered slightly, but she quickly recovered, tossing her hair back as she smiled sweetly at Ji-ho.
"Hey, Ji-ho," She purred, her voice shifting into a much friendlier tone .
"We were just talking."
Nari hesitated, clearly not wanting to push her luck with Ji-ho. With a roll of her eyes, she turned to Na-young sneered one last time.
"Watch your back," she muttered before walking away, her friends trailing behind her.
Na-young exhaled slowly, feeling her legs tremble slightly now the confrontation was over. She hasn't expected Ji-ho to step in, and the sudden silence between them felt heavy.
"Thanks," Na-young, barely able to meet his eyes.
"Don't mention it," Ji-ho replied, his voice softer than usual. He glanced at the now clean locker door and then back at her. "You okay?"
Na-young nodded, even though she didn't feel okay at all. "Yeah. I'm fine."
But as Ji-ho walked away, leaving her alone once again, Na-young couldn't shake the feeling that Nari wasn't going to let this go. Willow Heights has always felt like enemy territory, but now it was more than that- it was a battlefield. And Na-young wasn't sure she was ready for the fight.