Unwanted Rescuer

Kang Hari knew trouble when she saw it. It usually came dressed in expensive suits, with an arrogant smirk and a cold, calculating stare. And Jang Seohyun was the embodiment of trouble.

So when she walked into the chemistry lab that afternoon and saw him leaning lazily against the counter, she should have known something was about to go wrong.

She had been looking forward to this class—one of the few subjects where wealth didn’t matter. Science followed logic, not social status. But the moment she saw Seohyun, any excitement drained from her body. Worse, the only available seat was right next to him.

Ignoring the way her stomach twisted in irritation, she took the seat and focused on setting up her equipment. The assignment was simple: create a chemical reaction under controlled conditions. Easy enough.

But then she overheard a conversation from the group behind her.

“Are you serious? Someone put acid in her locker?”

“I heard it was a warning. She’s been stepping out of line lately.”

Hari stiffened. She knew they were talking about her. The previous day, she had found her gym uniform ruined—corroded, as if something had burned through the fabric. It wasn’t just bullying anymore. It was dangerous.

She took a deep breath, forcing herself to focus. She couldn’t show weakness. Not here. Not in front of them.

Seohyun shifted beside her. When she glanced at him, she caught the way his fingers curled slightly into a fist, his jaw tightening for just a moment.

Then, without looking at her, he muttered, “You’re so damn careless.”

Hari bristled. “Excuse me?”

His gaze flickered toward her, cold as always. “If you just kept your head down like you’re supposed to, things like this wouldn’t happen.”

Anger surged through her veins. Of course. Of course, he would blame her.

“So it’s my fault?” she snapped, voice low but sharp. “I should just let people treat me like garbage and accept it?”

“You shouldn’t be so reckless,” he said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “You’re not like them. You don’t have the power to fight back.”

Hari clenched her fists. “And you do, right? Must be nice, living in your perfect little world where people grovel at your feet.”

His lips pressed into a thin line, something unreadable flickering in his expression. But before he could respond, the professor called the class to attention, and they were forced to drop the conversation.

The rest of the period passed in tense silence. Hari focused on her experiment, forcing herself to ignore Seohyun’s presence beside her. But then, just as she was adding the final reagent, something happened.

A sharp scent filled the air. A warning sign.

She barely had time to react before Seohyun’s hand shot out, grabbing her wrist and yanking her back just as the solution in her beaker bubbled over, sizzling against the glass. A thick, acrid smoke rose, filling the air.

Gasps echoed through the room as students scrambled away from their tables. The professor rushed forward, barking orders for ventilation.

Heart pounding, Hari stared at the beaker. If she had been just a second later, the reaction could have exploded in her face.

And then she realized—Seohyun had pulled her away.

He had seen the danger before she had.

But instead of gratitude, fury flared inside her.

She wrenched her wrist from his grip. “What the hell is your problem?”

Seohyun’s expression darkened. “You’re seriously yelling at me right now?”

“You just grabbed me out of nowhere!” she hissed. “Do you have any idea how that looked? Now everyone’s going to think I needed your help!”

His eyes narrowed. “You would have gotten hurt.”

“I can take care of myself!”

“You clearly can’t,” he shot back, voice dropping to a low, dangerous tone. “You were seconds away from burning yourself, and you’re mad at me for stopping it?”

The worst part was that he was right. But Hari was too angry to care.

“You always act like you’re above everything, like you’re some kind of untouchable prince,” she snapped. “But guess what, Jang Seohyun? I don’t need your pity. I don’t need you pretending to care.”

Seohyun’s jaw clenched. For a moment, it looked like he was about to say something else, but then he just scoffed. “Fine. Next time, I’ll let you set yourself on fire.”

And with that, he turned and walked out, leaving her standing there, chest heaving, fists trembling at her sides.

She should have felt victorious.

So why did she feel like she had just made a mistake?

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