When We First Met (Again)
📍 **[Flashback - 7 Years Ago | High School -]
🛎️ [Classroom - Morning Bell Rings]
Students settle into their seats. The morning sun filters through the windows.
Ji Soo
(plops down beside her "ha", talking fast)
"Hey! Did you hear? We're getting a transfer student today. They say he's from Seoul!"
Ji Soo
Yeah, and they say he's super quiet. Maybe a total weirdo.
Teacher
Everyone, we have a new transfer student joining us today. Please welcome him.
🚪 [The classroom door opens slowly.]
👞 [Footsteps echo lightly as a boy walks in - tall, lean, sharp jawline, calm unreadable eyes. Black hair falls slightly over his forehead. A cool, quiet air surrounds him.]
👧 Girl 1 (whispers):
"He's kind of... handsome, right?"
👧 Girl 2:
"Very Seoul vibe. Mysterious type?"
Seo Joon
(stands straight, voice even)
"Seo Joon. Nice to meet you."
👀 His eyes scan the room... and stop on Ha Rin.
📸 For a second - she freezes. He freezes.
Ha Rin
(thinking):
(Wait... that's the guy from the store?!)
💭 [Mini flashback - A week before]
Ha Rin in a convenience store, sees him crouched by the fridge, thinks he's stealing.
Ha Rin
(then):
"Hey! Thief!"
Seo Joon
(startled, stands, silent - then walks away without a word.)
Ha Rin
(hides her face with her notebook, mortified)
(Oh my god. It's really him...)
Ji Soo
(grinning, leans in)
"Why do you look like you saw a ghost?"
Teacher
Seo Joon, you can sit... in the empty seat behind Ha Rin.
Min Jae
(sitting beside him, raises a brow)
(Tch. New guy's got people staring already.)
Ha Rin
(thinking, hiding her face behind her book):
(Please don't say anything. Please don't remember me...)
Seo Joon
(silent, staring at her back):
(So... it's her.)
📍 **[Flashback - Same Day | School Cafeteria - Lunch Break]**
Ji Soo
Let's go get lunch! I'm starving.
Ha Rin
...Yeah." (still a little shaken)
📚 [They line up, grab their trays, and head to their usual window-side table.]
Min Jae
Look who I fought through the hungry crowd for - your favorite spicy tofu!
Ji Soo
Aww, you do care." 😏
Ha Rin
Thanks, Min." (soft laugh)
[They start eating. Suddenly, Seo Joon walks in, tray in hand. The cafeteria quiets a bit as eyes turn his way. He scans the room - the only open seat is next to Min Jae.]
Min Jae
Hey, new guy! There's space here.
Seo Joon
(nods slightly)
"...Thanks." (quietly sits)
[Ha Rin freezes mid-bite. Ji Soo immediately senses it.]
Ji Soo
(whispers):
"Look who sat next to us... It's Mr. Suspicious."
Ha Rin
(whispers):
"Don't call him that!" 😳
Seo Joon
(without looking up)
"...So you do remember me."
Ha Rin
"I-It was a misunderstanding, okay?
Seo Joon
(calmly eating)
"You yelled pretty loudly."
Ha Rin
"I thought you were stealing!"
Seo Joon
(slight smirk)
"You weren't the first to think that. But definitely the loudest."
[Min Jae and Ji Soo glance at each other, amused by the banter.]
Ji Soo
Wow. So this is your vibe now? Accusing cute guys of stealing?
Ha Rin
Can we not make this a thing?
Seo Joon
(tilting his head slightly)
You didn't apologize that day.
[There's a pause as everyone eats. But then-]
Seo Joon
(glancing at Ha Rin, cool tone)
Don't worry. I get mistaken for a criminal all the time.
Ha Rin
That's not really something to joke about...
Seo Joon
Maybe. But you were cute when you panicked.
[Fork drops. Ji Soo stares. Min Jae bursts into laughter.]
Ji Soo
Hold up-what did he just say?!
Min Jae
Ohhh, smooth operator.
Ha Rin
(blushing, flustered)
I'm going to ignore that.
[The teasing continues. But every now and then, Seo Joon's gaze drifts to Ha Rin. Calm. Curious. Like he's trying to figure her out.]
Ha Rin
(in her head):
(Seriously... who is this guy?)
Author
---****---****---
**Author’s Note:**
This chapter takes us back to where it all began—an unexpected reunion, an awkward past, and the start of something neither of them saw coming. Ha Rin and Seo Joon’s story is just getting started. Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for what happens next!
-Author ❤️
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