Chapter 3 — Shadows in the Cafeteria

The cafeteria buzzed with its usual lunch-hour chaos. Areum entered a little later than usual, her tray gripped tightly in her hands. Minjae wasn’t with her—basketball practice during lunch, again.

She found a quiet spot near the corner, away from the windows, and sat alone. She picked up her chopsticks slowly, trying to blend into the noise.

But someone had already noticed her.

“Well, if it isn’t the model student,” came Jisoo’s voice—light, sugary, and sharp.

Areum tensed.

“Looks like your GPA won’t help you sit with anyone,” another girl said behind her, snickering.

Jisoo leaned in a little. “Do you think good grades fix where you come from?”

Another laugh followed. “She still lives in that rundown apartment near the old market, right?”

Areum’s jaw tightened, but she didn’t respond. Her food sat untouched. Her stomach churned.

“Honestly,” Jisoo sighed dramatically, “some people really think they belong here just because they memorize a textbook.”

Their voices weren’t loud, but they were cruel enough to draw curious glances.

Areum's fingers curled around her chopsticks. Her eyes stayed on her tray. She didn’t want to cry. She wouldn’t.

And then—

“Hey.”

The group turned.

Haneul stood a few steps away, holding his tray. His expression was unreadable, and he hadn’t heard anything.

Jisoo’s posture instantly shifted. Her lips curled into a bright, sugary smile.

“Haneul!” she chirped. “What a coincidence. We were just about to sit.”

Without waiting for a response, she walked over to the table and plopped down across from Areum.

“We were just chatting with Areum. Isn’t she so hardworking?” she said sweetly, looking up at Haneul.

He gave her a brief nod and took the seat beside her, not sparing Areum a glance.

Areum sat frozen, confused.

What just happened?

Jisoo turned to her again, her smile still in place. “We should eat together more often. I was just saying how lonely lunch can be, right?”

Areum opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

From another table nearby, Jiyun watched silently. She had seen everything—from Jisoo’s mocking sneer to her sudden transformation into a sugar-coated doll.

She knew girls like Jisoo too well.

Jiyun’s lips curled into a faint smirk. She stabbed her rice with her chopsticks a little too hard.

Jisoo, oblivious to the subtle jab, kept playing her act.

“Haneul, you have to try the soup. It’s not terrible today,” she said, pushing hers toward him like they were already on a date.

Areum looked at her tray, still untouched.

Then—

“Areum.”

She turned at the sound of her name.

Minjae had arrived, brushing hair from his forehead and setting down his tray. His eyes moved between Jisoo, Haneul, and Areum.

He frowned slightly.

“Everything okay?”

Before Areum could speak, Jisoo answered cheerfully.