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The sound of the front door clicking shut echoes through the foyer, but you don't stop to listen.
You just clutch your backpack tightly against your chest and run. Your feet pound against the cold marble floor, which reflects the glaring light of the massive crystal chandelier hanging overhead. You don’t care about your surroundings, you just want to disappear.
"Miss? Are you alright? Would you like me to make you something to eat?" the voice of one of the maids calls out from the kitchen doorway.
You don't answer her, you don’t even dare to look back. You keep your head down, letting loose strands of hair fall over your face to hide your tear-stained eyes and flushed cheeks. Taking a deep breath, you take the stairs two at a time. Your legs are shaking, threatening to give out at any second, but panic fuels you with a frantic and desperate energy. Reaching the second floor, you bolt down the hallway lined with expensive paintings and antique vases.
What a bitter irony.
All this opulence, all your parents money, all the influence of a family that rubs shoulders with high society means absolutely nothing within the walls of Moo Young High. Money can't buy a shield against monsters made of flesh and bone… money can't stop Han Su-gang.
You burst into your room and slam the door shut with the weight of your body. Instantly, you turn the key in the lock. The metallic click echoes through the space, drawing a sharp line between the danger outside and your sanctuary. You collapse with your back against the wood, sliding down slowly until your knees fold completely and you’re left sitting on the plush carpet. Its only then, knowing you are completely alone, that everything shatters.
A choked sob rips from your throat, followed by a fresh torrent of tears that soak your face all over again. Wrapping your arms around your knees, you bury your head in them, curling up into a ball to take up as little space as possible, wishing with everything you have to be invisible again.
Invisible… you used to be so good at that.
Lifting your head for a second, you look around your bedroom… an immense and luxurious space. You have a massive bed with silk sheets, a walk-in closet packed with designer clothes you barely wear, a desk with a top-of-the-line computer and huge French windows looking out over the mansion's manicured gardens. Everything is pristine, spacious and ridiculously expensive.
Your parents are always buried in their business dealings and clearly think smothering you in luxury makes up for their eternal absence. To be fair, you’d always found it acceptable… that isolation allowed you to live a peaceful life both at home and at school. While the children of other wealthy families flaunted their wealth and turned themselves into easy targets, you had learned to blend seamlessly into the background of the classroom.
Nobody bothered you, nobody looked at you.
Su-gang’s dreaded clique had never once noticed your existence. You were just a ghost occupying a desk.
Until now.
A fresh shiver runs down your spine as the memory of today's stares flashes through your mind and you look down to see your hands trembling uncontrollably. Your school uniform feels like a cursed, contaminated garment. You rub your arms, desperately trying to erase the sheer terror you experienced just a few hours ago in the school corridors. The bullying had started out of nowhere, executed with the exact same cruelty they inflicted on all their victims. The snickering behind your back, the poisonous whispers, the "accidental" trips in the cafeteria and that suffocating weight in your chest from knowing that your every move was being watched by Su-gang’s lackeys.
The worst part wasn't the physical harassment, it was the psychological torture. The way they watched you, like a trapped prey, like they were just waiting for the exact moment the hunter decided to deliver the final blow.
You could feel Su-gang’s eyes burned into the back of your neck even when he wasn't in the same room. He had a sick fixation on you… a palpable, heavy obsession that hung in the air and choked you. Everyone at the academy knew that once Su-gang set his sights on you, your life was effectively over.
And everyone, absolutely everyone, steered clear of you as if you carried a contagious disease.
Nobody wanted to be next.
"Why?" you whisper into the empty room, digging your nails into the expensive carpet. "Why did I have to do it?"
You crawl clumsily toward your bed, seeking the comfort of the blankets and hugging a pillow as if your life depends on it. The silence of the cavernous mansion only sharpens your thoughts. Your mind drags you back in time, desperately searching for the exact moment of your ruin.
Squeezing your eyes shut, the darkness of your bedroom is replaced by the memory of the lounge. Neon lights drown out the neatness of your walls. The air turns thick and you can smell the pungent mix of alcohol, tobacco and expensive perfume. You see yourself standing at the entrance of that exclusive club in the city’s priciest district, feeling completely out of place in a dress your older sister, Chae-won, had forced you to wear.
"Oh, stop looking like you’re at a funeral!" she had yelled in your ear to be heard over the pounding bass, gently shoving you inside. "Nobody’s going to bite. It’s a private party, just relax and have a drink. Enjoy being young for once!"
Chae-won, always dazzling and surrounded by friends, vanished into the crowd a couple of minutes later, leaving you adrift. At first, you took refuge in a corner of the bar, ordering drink after drink to numb the social anxiety eating away at you. The alcohol went down smooth, sweet and treacherous. By the time you finished your fifth glass, the initial panic had melted away, replaced by a hazy warmth that dulled your senses and slowed your thoughts.
Your usual everyday shyness evaporated under the effects of the liquor. You felt light and giddy, as if floating in a bubble of false security. You actually gathered the courage to step onto the dance floor, moving to the rhythm of a song whose name you couldn't even remember.
That was when the space around you suddenly shrank.
A tall and broad frame positioned itself right behind you. Before you could even turn around, large and confident hands settled familiarly on your waist, pulling your back flush against his firm chest. A shiver shot through your body, but the alcoholic fog kept you from reacting with alarm… in fact, the contact felt dangerously good.
The stranger leaned down, brushing his lips against your earlobe as he whispered dirty words, laced with a bold and absolute confidence that made you gasp. His voice was deep, carrying a magnetic pull that ignited a spark of excitement in your lower stomach.
Letting yourself get carried away by the music, you spun around in his arms to face him, but the strobe lights and your own intoxication kept you from making out his features clearly. All you registered was a sharp jawline, dark eyes gleaming with intensity and a smirk that promised pure trouble. He took you by the hand and navigated through the crowd until you reached the VIP lounges.
You entered a spacious booth, where the outside noise was muffled behind thick panels of tempered glass. The boy sat down on the luxurious black leather sofa and gently pulled you onto his lap. You didn't care that there were other teens drinking and laughing at the table, the fog in your head was far too thick.
When his lips sought yours, you surrendered completely. The kiss was demanding and hungry, a tidal wave of sensations that made you lose your grip on reality while his hands tracked up your thighs with a wild possessiveness. You were right on the edge of total surrender when the real world crashed in in the most violent way possible.
"Hey, Su-gang!" one of the guys shouted from across the main table, waving a bottle. "The guys from the boxing club are downstairs! What do we do with them?"
The grip on your hips froze. The mystery boy broke the kiss with an annoyed sigh, pulling his lips just inches away from yours.
Su-gang.
The name echoed in your mind like a bucket of ice water and something clicked in your brain. The paralysis of the alcohol seemed to vanish for a split second under the pure adrenaline of the shock.
Su-gang… Han Su-gang.
Your mind reeled, connecting the dots at lightning speed. There was only one Su-gang in your universe. The boy straightened up on the couch, turning his back to you for a moment.
"Tell them to wait. Kick their ass if they act stupid. I'll be right down" he replied to his friend, thoroughly irritated.
When he finished speaking, he turned back to face you and under the VIP lights, you could finally see him clearly. The flawless face, the cruel gaze and the arrogant posture of the untouchable heir.
It was him.
The monster of Moo Young High. The most ruthless bully, the guy who ruined lives for fun and whom you had painstakingly avoided for years. And there you were, making out with him on a couch.
Su-gang leaned back down toward you, reaching out naturally to cup your face and resume what he was doing, assuming you would remain submissive under his touch. But sheer, unadulterated panic wiped out any trace of arousal. In a reckless burst of survival instinct and blind terror, you slammed both hands against his chest and pushed him with everything you had.
Su-gang never expected resistance from anyone, let alone a girl in a club, so the surprise factor sent him reeling backward, breaking his grip on your waist for a fraction of a second. You didn't waste a single beat. You scrambled to your feet, smoothing down your dress with trembling hands and bolted for the VIP exit.
As you burst through the glass door, you made the mistake of looking back for a split second and the scene was burned into your memory: Su-gang’s friends were frozen solid, glasses halfway to their mouths, staring at their leader with a mix of shock and contained amusement.
And Su-gang... Su-gang was sitting on the edge of the sofa, his hair slightly muscled up, glaring right at you. His face wore an expression of murderous fury, absolute disbelief and a obsessive glare that curdled your blood.
You had committed the worst possible crime in his world: you had defied him, rejected him and humiliated him in front of his people.
You spent the rest of the weekend locked inside your mansion, biting your nails to the quick, praying to whatever god existed that the alcohol had wiped his memory or that your status as the school's invisible girl would work in your favor.
He doesn't know me, you repeated like a protective mantra while staring at your ceiling on Sunday night. To him, I was just some random girl at a bar. At school, I wear glasses, keep my hair tied up and wear baggy clothes. He won't recognize me.
How stupid you were.
On Monday morning, you arrived at school and immediately felt the heavy atmosphere. As you walked past the main courtyard, Su-gang’s clique was there. He was sitting on a concrete table with his arms crossed and the exact moment you stepped into his field of vision, his dark eyes locked onto you. There was no doubt, no confusion. A slow, cruel and predatory smirk spread across his lips. He knew exactly who you were.
Hell unleased itself that very second.
Su-gang didn't touch you directly, but he set his attack dogs on you. He took his revenge using the exact type of harassment he mastered, but with an intensity the school had never seen before. The whispers started in the hallways. Every time you walked past, the guys in his group would let out mocking laughs, making loud and crude comments about "girls who think they're untouchable."
In the cafeteria, Min-si "tripped" into you, dumping an entire tray of hot soup all over your pristine uniform. When you looked up, you saw Su-gang watching the whole thing from the center table. He wasn't laughing… he was staring at you with a sick intensity that made it crystal clear: this is what happens when you embarrass me.
They hid your textbooks, defaced your desk with insults and shoved you into lockers. What used to be a peaceful life turned into a public execution and the worst part was watching Su-gang’s obsession grow with every passing day.
This wasn't the typical bullying they did to shake people down for cash… this was personal. He was obsessed with your rejection. He watched you during lectures, standing at the door of your classroom just to watch you squirm. He thrived on the absolute control he was exerting over your life, knowing you were paying dearly for pushing him back in that VIP room.
The memory of that night and the torment of the last two weeks blur together in your head, leaving you with an unbearable hollow feeling. Tomorrow is another school day… you'll have to walk through those doors again and face Han Su-gang’s gaze, knowing there is no way out of his web.
(...)
To your dismay, morning comes and sunlight filters through the large windows of your room, but nothing can thaw the cold knot in your stomach.
As usual, your sister has already left, leaving you to eat breakfast alone in the deathly silence of the mansion. The ride in the family car feels like a convict's walk to the execution chamber. When the chauffeur pulls up in front of Moo Young High, you take a deep breath, trying to summon a courage you don't possess. You just want the ground to open up and swallow you whole.
The hours drag by. At lunch, you manage to hide in the restroom, so you get a free pass this time. During afternoon study hall, the classroom is wrapped in a tense silence. You’re focused on your notes, trying to tune out the outside world, when the harsh creak of the classroom door breaks the fragile peace.
Your head snaps up, your heart leaping into your throat.
Min-si is standing in the doorway. Her uniform is disheveled, her posture arrogant and she holds her phone in one hand while looking you up and down with pure amusement. The rest of the students immediately lower their heads, holding their breath. At this school, the presence of any of Su-gang’s lackeys in a classroom is synonymous with disaster.
Min-si walks slowly toward your desk and stops right in front of you. She rests a hand on the wood and leans in close, just enough so that only you can hear her.
"Su-gang is waiting for you in the gym" she says in a sickly sweet tone. "Right now."
Panic paralyzes your muscles. You sit rigid in your chair, staring blankly at the blackboard as the blood drains completely from your face. Your hands break out into a cold sweat under the desk. You genuinely consider sprinting for the exit, calling your chauffeur and fleeing to the safety of your mansion. You could pretend you got sick, fake a faint or do anything to avoid going to that place.
However, Min-si reads your mind effortlessly and lets out a dry laugh.
"Don't even think about running. It’ll be a hell of a lot worse for you if you leave" she adds, her voice stripped of any remaining mock-kindness. "Come on, move it."
You know she's right, you have no escape. If you run today, tomorrow's punishment will be twice as violent and Su-gang’s obsession will only fester.
With your legs visibly shaking, you stand up from your chair. You feel your classmates pitiful stares burning into your back as you walk toward the door. Deep down, you pity yourself too.
The walk to the gym feels eternal. Every hallway in the academy feels longer and darker than the last, the echo of your own footsteps drilling into your ears. When you finally reach the heavy double doors of the gymnasium, you freeze for a moment. Pressing your hands against the wood, you close your eyes and offer a silent prayer before pushing them open.
The gym is cast in shadows, illuminated only by the high upper windows that project long columns of dusty light onto the basketball court. The smell of stale sweat, leather and floor wax hits your nose, making you slightly nauseous.
At the far end of the facility, near the ring and the heavy bags, Han Su-gang is alone. He’s sitting on a wooden bench, unwinding the white wraps from his hands, dressed in athletic gear. He looks completely calm, a stillness that is far more terrifying than if he were screaming. The dangerous aura radiating from him entirely fills the empty gym, choking you from the moment you step inside.
The door clicks shut behind you and, at the sound, Su-gang snaps his head toward you. His dark eyes lock onto yours with an intensity that makes you want to bolt.
"You came" he says. "I thought you'd be stupid enough to keep me waiting."
You stand a few yards away from him, hands clasped in front of you, your breathing erratic. You say nothing, letting the silence between you stretch out, thick and heavy. Su-gang stands up slowly and walks toward you, rolling his shoulders to loosen them up. As he gets closer, you notice the tight set of his jaw and the tension in his neck.
Since this torture began, this is the first time you’ve had direct contact with him and, to your misfortune, he is livid. The calmness on his face is just a poorly constructed facade to mask a savage rage that has been brewing for weeks.
"Why?" he asks bluntly, stopping two paces away. His height forces you to look up.
You instantly know what he means. He isn't talking about the harassment, the ruined notes or the spilled soup… he’s talking about that Friday night. He’s talking about the lounge, the kisses and the shove you gave him in front of all his friends, making him look ridiculous.
But you stay silent. Your mind locks up under his proximity and you don't know how to answer. Any word feels like a death sentence. If you apologize, you admit you defied him… if you stay quiet, you only prolong his fury.
Your silence seems to be the final straw for his patience. You can tell he’s completely snapped when he rips the rest of the wraps off his hands and flings them to the side. Su-gang takes an aggressive step forward, looming over you threateningly and eliminating the space between you. He gets right in your face, forcing you to arch your back against thin air, cornering you with his sheer physical presence. You can feel his hot and rapid breath hitting your forehead.
"I asked you a fucking question" he growls, his fists clenching at his sides. "Why did you push me? Why did you run off like that? Who the fuck do you think you are?"
Panic closes off your throat. You see it in his eyes… he has an absolute need to break your resistance, desperate to reclaim the pride you wounded. You know that if you don't do something this exact second, the consequences will be physical and devastating. Your brain goes into survival mode, working at a thousand miles an hour.
You have to calm him down, no matter what.
You have to stop this wrath before it destroys you.
And then, in the middle of absolute terror, a lightbulb goes off.
A bold and desperate thought crosses your mind: you have to spin the story. You have to give him exactly what his massive and overinflated ego needs to hear to get yourself off the hook.
Swallowing hard, you force yourself to look up at him, shifting your expression from stark panic to something entirely different. You take a small step forward, voluntarily closing the distance he had enforced and let your lips tremble slightly as you spin the most well-timed lie of your life.
"Its just... it's just that I like you so much, I got nervous" you answer, your voice soft and timid.
Your words hang in the gym air, heavy and definitive.
Su-gang freezes completely. The fury on his face falters for a split second, replaced by genuine shock, his pupils dilating as he processes what he just heard. The school's most vicious bully finds himself staring at the one confession he never expected, but that his obsessive mind secretly craved.
"What did you say?" he asks, his tone dropping the aggression, turning noticeably raspy.
Seeing that the bait worked, you decide to lay the manipulation on thick so he buys it completely. You know perfectly well that he is so obsessed with you that his own ego will act as your greatest ally, it will force him to believe the lie because it’s the only explanation that saves his pride from the humiliation of rejection.
"It’s the truth..." you continue, dropping your eyes to his chest and nervously playing with your fingers. "Ever since I started at this school, I’ve always watched you from afar. You're... you're amazing, Su-gang. Everyone respects you and I always wanted you to notice me, but I was just the invisible girl at the back of the room. When you talked to me at the club, when you took me to that VIP room and kissed me... it felt like a dream. I thought I was going to faint from the shock."
You lift your head slowly, looking directly into his eyes, making sure he sees the apparent sincerity and adoration on your face.
"But when your friends started calling your name and my mind realized it was you… that the guy kissing me was the Han Su-gang... I panicked. I was so terrified that you'd mock me the next day at school for giving in so easily that I acted recklessly. I pushed you because I was dying of embarrassment and panic that you'd find out how much you affect me. I didn't want you to see me weak."
Su-gang listens to you in silence and you can see the exact gears shifting in his mind: his murderous rage dissolves, swallowed whole by a wave of narcissistic satisfaction. His chest swells subtly and his wounded ego finds a bandage in your submissive words. The obsession he felt for you is no longer the fallout of a humiliating rejection… now, it’s the result of your supposed devotion to him.
Su-gang wasn't rejected, he was wanted so badly it scared you into running.
A dangerous and low smirk curls on his lips. The edge doesn't leave him, but it’s instantly replaced by a thick, possessive sexual tension.
"So that's what it was..." he whispers, closing the tiny gap left between you. He reaches out and catches your jaw in a firm grip, forcing you to hold his gaze. "So the little classroom mouse was losing her mind over me."
"Yes..." you moan softly and blinking slowly, fully committing to the character that just saved your life. "Forgive me for making you angry this week, Su-gang. I didn't want to cause trouble for you."
"I forgive you" he says, nodding quickly. "But actions have consequences. You put me through a shitty week… I thought about you every damn second and now you have to make it up to me."
Before you can even breathe an answer, the built-up desire explodes in the gym. Su-gang grabs your face with both hands and smashes his mouth against yours in a fierce, biting kiss, loaded with pure rage and possessiveness.
The kiss is violent, moving like a continuation of your previous argument. His tongue invades your mouth demandingly, claiming what he considers his by right. You gasp at the sheer roughness of it, but your own body responds to the friction, your hands traveling up to his shoulders, clawing at the fabric of his shirt as you let yourself get dragged into the undertow of his dominance.
Su-gang lets out a raspy growl against your lips as he feels you kiss him back. Without breaking contact, he shoves you backward until your spine hits one of the concrete pillars of the gym. The impact knocks a soft breath out of you, which he immediately devours, deepening the kiss in a hungry and desperate manner.
His touch makes your head spin. One of his hands tangles into your hair, tilting your head to get a better angle, while the other tracks roughly down your body. His large fingers slide beneath your blouse, gripping the skin of your waist tightly, sliding possessively up your ribs as he handles you without a shred of modesty.
You cling to his arms, digging your nails into his biceps as you surrender completely. You know this submission is your greatest weapon and, at the same time, the source of the heat gathering between your thighs. Su-gang’s breathing is ragged, he is completely consumed by the obsession you chose to feed just to save yourself.
His lips drag down your jawline and begin to bite at the sensitive skin of your neck, leaving marks that will absolutely give you away. But suddenly, the loud screech of the heavy gym doors swinging open shatters the heat in the room.
"Hey, Su-gang! The guys are… " Moon-ki’s voice booms through the space, cutting himself off dead in his tracks as he registers the scene.
You go rigid instantly, your heart leaping from pure fright. You try to pull away, but Su-gang barely shifts. He takes a couple of agonizing seconds to slowly let go of your neck, exhaling a long breath. He turns halfway, effectively blocking you with his broad body to shield your disheveled uniform from his friend’s sight.
"What the fuck do you want, Moon-ki?" Su-gang growls. "Don't you know how to knock?"
Moon-ki blinks in surprise, looking at his friend and then trying to peek around to see who you are, though his leader's protective and threatening stance keeps him from seeing a thing. He holds his hands up in apology, letting out a nervous chuckle as he realizes he interrupted something big.
"Sorry, man, didn't know you were... occupied" Moon-ki says, taking a step back toward the exit. "The principal is looking for you in the main office about that cafeteria report. Said for you to get up there right now. I'll wait outside."
Moon-ki exits quickly, slamming the doors behind him and plunging the gym back into silence.
Su-gang runs a hand through his hair, frustrated by the interruption and tries to steady his breathing with his back to you. However, before fixing his clothes or walking out, he spins around sharply and corners you against the pillar again, trapping a strand of your hair between his fingers.
"You got lucky that idiot walked in" he whispers right against your ear. "But starting tomorrow, things are changing. Nobody is going to lay a single finger on you or bother you ever again. You’re mine now. Don’t you forget it."
You stand perfectly still as he turns on his heel and leaves the gym. Straightening your blouse with trembling hands, a small smile plays on your lips in the dim light, knowing the danger has passed.
You actually did it.
You played the most feared monster in school like a fiddle and came out unscathed, turning his wrath into a secret obsession. Starting tomorrow, the invisible girl is going to have the king of the school watching her back.