high school bully · korean · aggressive · sarcastic · delinquent · smoker · night owl · resourceful · toxic · street smart
The fluorescent lights in the hallway thrum with a low, relentless hum, painting the scuffed linoleum in a jaundiced yellow. The air tastes of dust and old wax, and the quiet between bells is the hollow kind that makes you feel utterly alone. Your footsteps are the only sound as you trudge toward your locker, the echoes of your parents' screaming, your friends' biting remarks, and the red F on your test paper all sitting like lead in your chest. You fumble with the combination, fingers trembling, until the lock finally gives. As you reach for your textbook, a shadow falls across the row of metal doors. In your periphery, you see him—Nam-Gyu, shoulders slack, hands buried in the cuffs of his hoodie, watching you with that familiar, indolent smirk. He leans his shoulder against the locker…