The cafeteria at Seonghwa Integrated Middle & High School was loud with trays clattering, kids chatting, and chairs scraping on the shiny floors. It was early March, just the start of the school year, and everyone was still figuring things out.

Shin Ho-jin left the lunch line, balancing his tray with one hand, two classmates beside him. He was tall and carried himself with confidence. His black hair was cut short, almost military, which made his jawline stand out. He had thick eyelashes and a small beauty mark right under his left eye. He was really good-looking, and he was used to people looking at him.

He noticed some girls by the windows waving at him, and one of them called his name loud enough for everyone to hear. His friends started teasing him.

"Aishh…¹ Ho-jin's fanclub…"

Ho-jin stopped and looked at his friend, then forced a smile so fake it was meant to be obvious.

"Watch how you talk about Min-ji."

The others laughed even harder.

Ho-jin kept the smile on his face as he said, "Idiots."

Then he turned to the girls and smiled at Lee Min-ji. He added a light, easy wink. He tried to send her a message with his eyes, and she was the only one who caught it. 

Min-ji liked the idea of being the one someone like Ho-jin chose to flirt with. Ho-jin liked that she settled for moments like this, because his life didn't leave room for anything serious. Min-ji came from money, the kind that made things easy and predictable, and that alone put her in a world he could never really step into. They both knew they would never line up that way, but they still liked each other, and for now, that was enough. Min-ji was way too good for him, and he was the only one who knew it. He kept walking while looking at her.

And that's when it happened. Someone smaller suddenly stepped into Ho-jin's path. It all happened too fast to avoid. Trays crashed to the floor, food splashed onto uniforms, and scattered everywhere, and around them people stopped what they were doing and turned to look, the noise and movement pulling everyone's attention to the mess in front of them.

Ho-jin stayed still for a moment, then looked down slowly. His shirt was covered in food, rice and sauce dripping onto the floor.

In front of him stood a shorter kid with black hair and blue eyes that looked almost out of place on such a young face. His skin was pale, his jaw small and neat, not quite done growing into itself yet.

Ho-jin took a second to gather himself, wiping some soup off his sleeve as if it mattered, keeping cool on the outside, though his hands were still trembling. The fabric was already sticky. He rubbed at it anyway and looked at the people watching, and it showed on his face.

He'd already drawn enough attention, and the fact that it happened right in front of Min-ji and her friends made it worse. Someone snorted and someone else whispered his name, and Ho-jin pulled himself together, even though he knew it wouldn't change how it looked.

Still, he didn't raise his voice.

"Why don't you watch where you're going?"

He stood there, blocking the kid's way on purpose now, close enough that the boy would have to look up if he wanted to answer.

The boy looked unimpressed, like he was already tired of the conversation. He didn't look scared or rushed. He stood there, empty hands at his sides, his tray already on the floor with everything spilled out between them.

"Maybe if you looked straight ahead instead of trying to impress every girl in the cafeteria, we wouldn't be having this conversation."

A few people reacted right away, and someone laughed again, louder this time. Ho-jin smiled, but there was nothing amused about it. He stepped closer, closing the distance without touching him. For a moment, everything went quiet. 

Ho-jin was a lot taller and clearly older, and everyone around them could see it. He tilted his head slightly, waiting like he expected the kid to back down now.

"Say it again?"

"You heard me," the kid said, and he kept his eyes on Ho-jin. He lowered his head and looked at the trays on the floor, then raised it again and looked straight at the name tag on Ho-jin's chest.

"‘Shin Ho-jin.' Got it."

Then he walked past, lightly bumping Ho-jin's shoulder as he picked up his tray.

"Don't bother me again unless you want to be reported. I know your name now."

Ho-jin didn't move. He was still trying to process what happened.

What the hell is wrong with this kid?

But before he could say anything else, a teacher called out.

"You two! That's enough. Clean yourselves up and move. You're blocking the line."

Some girls nearby were laughing. One of them tried to hold it in, barely. Ho-jin noticed, but it didn't bother him. What got to him was the fact that the kid, younger and smaller and clearly a first-year, had spoken to him like that. He grabbed a few napkins, wiped his hands slowly, and walked toward the locker room.

—

Moon Ji-hun was halfway through changing when he muttered to himself how stupid it was to run into someone like that on his very first day. He didn't even notice the door at first. It creaked open behind him, and when he looked up, Shin Ho-jin was standing there. Neither of them said anything. The room was quiet, the kind of quiet where even a dripping showerhead sounded loud. Ji-hun turned away quickly, pretending to fix his shirt.

"Ya," Ho-jin said. "Are you okay?"

Ji-hun didn't look at him. He kept his eyes on the wall and answered in that direction. 

"Why would you care? I'm just changing."

Ho-jin stared for a second, not expecting that kind of answer. Then he laughed. It started low, then came out louder.

"Damn. You're really something," he said, scratching his neck with one hand. He stepped closer, and this time his voice had changed. He wasn't smiling anymore.

"I'm trying to talk to you like a normal person. You ran into me, and now you're acting like I'm the one who messed up. I'm your sunbae². What's your problem?"

He didn't raise his voice, but there was weight in it, the kind that shut people up. Now Ji-hun was really scared, yet he kept his eyes on him.

"My problem?" he said. "I don't like people who bully everyone they meet."

Ho-jin looked at him like he couldn't believe what he had heard.

"Bully?" he repeated. "When did I ever bully you?"

"You don't need to," Ji-hun said. "Your face and attitude say enough. Just so you know, I don't scare easy."

He turned away, worried that the shake in his hands had been noticeable, and tried his best to hide it. He changed his clothes fast, and when he reached the door, he looked back.

"Hope I don't see you again."

Ho-jin watched the door close. The whole thing annoyed him twice over. First because a stupid cafeteria accident had turned a tiny kid into an enemy, and second because that tiny kid had actually spoken to him like that.

"You picked the wrong fight, hoobae…³"

—--

아이시¹ (aish) Refers to a gentle emotional tension between two people. It is the quiet warmth, the unspoken closeness, and the soft pull that exists when feelings are there but have not been said out loud yet.

선배² (sunbae) A respectful Korean term for someone who is older or more experienced, especially in school or work. It carries a sense of admiration, guidance, and quiet respect.

후배³ (hoobae) A Korean term for someone who is younger or less experienced, especially in school or work. It implies respect toward a senior while also carrying a sense of freshness and growth.