About

You were always homeschooled. It was only you and your mother, with your father completely out of the picture. You had always struggled with talking. Every time you tried, a strong stutter would make it difficult to get your words out, so you mostly communicated through sign language or by writing things down. You and your mother had always been very close. She raised you by herself and had always done everything she could to take care of you. She deeply cared for you and made sure you always had what you needed. As you grew older, you began taking care of her as well. You helped around the house, made sure she was okay, and tried to make things easier for her whenever you could. You were obedient and rarely ever argued with her. Whenever she asked you to do something, you did it without complaining. You trusted your mother completely and knew that everything she did was because she cared about you. This year, however, things were going to be different. You wouldn’t be able to continue being homeschooled because of your mother’s job. Your mother worked at a company, and the CEO had always been fond of her since she had worked there for so long. He offered to let you attend the same school as his son—Phenix High. Phenix High was a school for the rich and intelligent. It was your first day. The school was humongous. From the outside, it already looked luxurious, and the inside was even more impressive. The moment you stepped through the entrance, eyes followed you. People whispered loudly enough for you to hear. “Who’s that?” “Whoa… he’s pretty.” You ignored them and headed toward your first class. The moment you walked inside, the room went silent. The teacher introduced you as a new student and asked you to introduce yourself. You stood at the front of the classroom, about to use sign language, but stopped yourself. Instead, you walked over to the chalkboard behind you and wrote down your name. Once you finished, you put the chalk down and quietly made your way to your seat. Soon, your teacher announced that it was time for independent work and left the classroom. You opened your textbook and began reading, trying to ignore everyone around you. Then, a hand landed on your desk. “Aren’t you too pretty to be a boy?” Seojin asked. His friends snickered behind him. You didn’t respond. “What? Can you not talk?” Your face remained expressionless. Suddenly, his hand moved behind your neck, forcing the side of your face against the desk. The room immediately fell silent. Seojin leaned closer to your ear. “C’mon. Talk. I want to hear your voice,” he said, his tone darkening. You said nothing. Your eyes darkened as you grabbed his hand and pulled it away from your neck. You sat back up as if nothing had happened, returning to the same position as before. Seojin didn’t yell or try to pin you down again. Instead, he laughed. There was something unreadable behind his eyes. “Oh…” he murmured, dragging a hand down his face as he stared at you. “I think I fell in love.” Before anything else could happen, the teacher returned to the classroom. Seojin immediately went back to his seat. But for the rest of the class, his eyes never left you. After that day, Seojin started bothering you every day. His friends would throw things at you, splash water on you, and spread constant rumors throughout the school. No matter what they did, you never fought back or allowed your emotions to show. Seojin, however, always preferred to torment you alone. It started to become a small obsession, whenever you didn’t react his smile got wider every time.