#14
“H-how do you know all this…?”
“You got your first period during the summer break when you were twelve, didn’t you?”
What?!
“Even I don’t remember that! How the hell do you know?!”
“I don’t. I just made it up.”
“……”
Damn it. He got me again.
As I gawked at him in disbelief, he smirked and pressed the button on the remote.
The once-black screen flickered to life.
Instinctively, my gaze followed it.
On the screen, I saw myself.
Shivering violently, hugging my arms as if I were freezing.
Even at a glance, I looked completely out of it.
I forgot how to breathe as I watched, unable to tear my eyes away.
A moment later, my body started twisting in an unnatural way—like something straight out of a zombie movie.
The fact that Wei Chen had stood right in front of me, completely unfazed, was almost impressive. If I had been in his shoes, I would have screamed bloody murder and bolted out of the mansion.
And then—
FWOOOSH!
Black wings tore through the back of my clothes, whipping up a violent gust. The massive wings unfurled with eerie grace, their sleek feathers rippling ominously.
From that moment on, the footage was predictable.
A mindless, frenzied attack.
Destroying everything in sight.
I licked my dry lips and, with a trembling hand, picked up the remote.
Glancing at Wei Chen, I pressed the power button.
The screen went black.
The room fell silent.
Only now did I understand why he had shown me this.
I had thought my greatest weakness was my grades—my father finding out I had failed.
But no.
This was worse.
The real nightmare was the monster on the screen.
My own twisted, mutated self.
Swallowing hard, I forced my voice to stay steady.
“…You’re going to send this to my father, aren’t you?”
Wei Chen hesitated for a split second before snorting.
I repeated, my voice barely above a whisper.
“…You’re going to send this to my father.”
“What? Why the hell would I do something that annoying?”
His response was… unexpected.
I blinked in confusion.
Without missing a beat, he grabbed the remote and replayed the video.
“Lights, art wall, sofa, dining table, paintings… ugh, I’m tired of listing. And let’s not forget the sunglasses you swiped. You’re paying for all of it.”
“…What?”
“This is evidence. You’ll be getting the invoice soon, so brace yourself.”
I understood his words, but my brain refused to process them.
So… he wasn’t blackmailing me with the footage.
He was using it as proof to make me pay for the damages.
And on top of that—
He knew I had stolen his sunglasses.
My face burned with humiliation. I didn’t need a mirror to tell me I was bright red.
“Oh, and the watch you just took.”
He nodded toward my pocket.
It was unmistakably bulging.
I hesitated before pulling out the stolen watch and placing it on the table.
I had grabbed it without thinking—somewhere between begging him to let me go home and holding onto his arm.
“If you stop fighting me and just cooperate, I’ll consider this an investment and won’t charge you interest. That’s a pretty good deal, don’t you think?”
He sounded like he was doing me a favor.
“…I don’t have money.”
“That’s fine. Even if you can’t pay, you have a wonderful family, great friends, and even a bunch of classmates. I’m sure they’d love to help out. After all, keeping promises keeps everyone at ease, doesn’t it?”
“…Is that why you did a background check on me?”
“That’s just how gangsters operate.”
No matter how hard I tried to think my way out of this, I was still trapped in the palm of his hand.
Frustrated, helpless, and furious—but at this moment, the only choice I had was to listen to him.
“I have three semesters left until I graduate.”
“You still don’t get it.”
“I’ll finish this semester. I hope your so-called research wraps up quickly, but if it drags on, I’ll take a leave of absence.”
Hmph.
Wei Chen let out a short, amused hum before suddenly grabbing my wrist and pulling me forward.
My balance wavered, and before I knew it, I had fallen into his arms.
A heavy arm wrapped firmly around my shoulders, holding me in place.
Then, he took the sunglasses hooked onto his shirt and slid them onto my face.
They didn’t quite fit my nose and slipped down slightly.
I looked up at him, eyes narrowing.
Without a word, he casually pushed the sunglasses up.
“Try begging.”
* * *
I was able to attend my classes without any problems.
Not only that, but I also brought my laptop and tablet from my apartment.
The everyday life surrounding me was incredibly peaceful, as if the storm-like weekend had been nothing but a lie.
Even Professor Choi Jung-man’s voice, which was like a forced sleep ASMR, felt as captivating as watching a famous opera singer’s aria today, and the built-in chairs that seemed to be created by the devil himself felt as comfortable as a five-star hotel bed.
Hmm. CRISPR-Cas9 system optimization using sgRNA and correlation analysis with PAM sequences. Just hearing it makes my heart race. I feel excited. Really.
“Look at Han Dabi, she’s grinning while looking at Jung-man.”
“Is this ojikkomu?”
“Live in reality, you nerd.”
“I heard Dabi’s been feeling sick. Just leave her be.”
I could hear murmurs around me, but even that was nice.
Because I was human, because I was still human, I could hear such words.
When the last lecture ended, I was the last to pack my bag and stand up.
As I stepped into the hallway, I made eye contact with my classmates gathered in front of the vending machine.
“Dabi!”
Seon-ah stretched out one hand wide and waved it from side to side. A bracelet I had never seen before wrapped around her wrist. It was the luxury brand bracelet that Wei Chen had handed out like ice cream the other day.
I didn’t know if they had forgotten about the ring incident or just decided to let it slide. Either way, the hostility they had shown toward me last time had completely disappeared.
“Are you feeling better?”
“Yeah, I rested over the weekend.”
“Did you stay with your boyfriend the whole time?”
Ugh.
That was something I would never get used to hearing.
I coughed, a sudden fit making my face turn red.
“Oh wow, should you go see a doctor?”
“…This is nothing.”
“By the way, what’s your boyfriend’s SNS ID? Not for any weird reason, just because I told everyone that Dabi’s boyfriend is insanely handsome, but no one believes me.”
A Hong Kong mafia member on social media… well, it wasn’t entirely impossible.
Wei Chen seemed like someone who lived as extravagantly as he appeared. Even if he didn’t post often, he seemed like the type to at least have an account.
That said, there was no way I was giving them his ID.
In about a week, I planned to make an excuse that we had broken up.
Of course, since I didn’t know anything, I couldn’t tell them even if I wanted to.
“He doesn’t use social media.”
“Wow, what a waste. If he uploaded just a few selfies, his followers would skyrocket.”
“Come to think of it, you don’t use SNS either, do you, Dabi?”
“Yeah.”
“Then make a couple’s account! If I were you, I’d be showing off my boyfriend everywhere.”
Showing off? I didn’t even want to acknowledge that I knew him.
I looked horrified at Hyun-joo’s suggestion but forced an awkward smile on the outside.
“But, it’s surprising. I thought Dabi liked someone else.”
“Someone else? Who?”
At that moment, someone called out from a distance.
“Guys!”
A familiar voice made me turn my head naturally.
It was Jung-ho sunbae.
His friendly smile and the way he walked toward us looked oddly slow.
His hair swayed gently in the wind, and his eyes curved softly in a way that suited him well.
Before I knew it, Jung-ho sunbae had reached us and made eye contact with me.
“Dabi, it’s been a while.”
“Hello.”
I had to work hard to suppress my awkwardly stiff expression.
I couldn’t even meet his gaze and instead found myself staring at my toes for no reason.
All my senses were hyper-aware of the fact that he was standing right next to me.
“Sunbae, did you hear? Dabi’s boyfriend is super handsome.”
My lips twitched for a moment.
Why were they still talking about this?
It must have been a huge shock for my classmates when Wei Chen appeared.
“Yeah, I heard. Apparently, he’s celebrity-level handsome.”
“…So the rumors have spread.”
