Chapter 17

[Next Week | Lunch time]

Katsumi was sitting alone in the school grounds, beneath a large tree, eating her lunch. She hadn't eaten alone in a long time, and she was a little lonely without company, but the cold wind and the smell of nature put her at peace.

Subin and Yejoon were both absent from school today. Subin had to go to the hospital for a week-long examination to see if the bandages were still necessary, and Yejoon had to accompany his younger sister on a field trip to an amusement park.

Because the school's founding anniversary is coming up next month, the staff, teachers, and students have been working hard to get ready. As a result, Namgyu and Kento volunteered to assist with the preparation of the stalls near the front gate.

In less than a month, these large corridors and classrooms will be packed with various booths, decorations, and people, while the grounds will be filled with a variety of gaming booths, rides, special events, and contests.

Everyone, especially Katsumi, was looking forward to the approaching event. She'd always wondered how events like the forthcoming founding anniversary would be celebrated in South Korea, and it was thrilling!

The environment around Katsumi was quite relaxing from where she was. It was strangely quiet but calm, perhaps because she was a little further away from the main school building.

She stood up and departed after finishing her meal and putting her garbage in her bag. As she walked away, she was busy untying her headphones so she could listen to music on her way back to class.

But as she was inserting each side of the earphone into her ear, she noticed a familiar figure just beyond the bushes alongside her.

When she got a closer look, she saw it was Nabi, and she was being cornered by two of her female pals, Ari and Dasom. It was quite a scene, and seeing Nabi being bullied was unusual, and it was sufficiently intriguing for her to listen in.

She couldn't take her eyes off them. She should've ignored her because she knew she shouldn't be doing this, but her body refused to obey and remained still. The atmosphere was intense for her, as if something horrible was going to happen.

Nabi put on a strong face, trying not to reveal how terrified she was of her foes.

"You're joking, right?" Ari exclaimed, outraged.

"I'm not," Nabi replied shakily. "I said what I said; I don't want to be your friend anymore."

"You're making a huge mistake, Nabi," Dasom said angrily.

"Well, bullying Namgyu, Yejoon, and Subin was a huge mistake, and yet you guys still do it."

Ari and Dasom were not pleased to be told the truth. Dasom laughed in disbelief. "And you think you're no different from us?" she asked, pressing Nabis' head with her finger repeatedly, then quietly chuckled, "Don't make me laugh."

Dasom pushed her again, causing Nabi to fall behind on the bench and her elbow to hit the rails on top of it. When Nabi shrieked in pain, Dasom stomped her foot on the bench and sneered at the girl before pouring water on top of her.

Nabi gasped and shivered from the cold as the ice hit her flesh. The temperature was colder than usual because it was nearing winter, and being drained by the icy cold might cause Nabi to develop a cold. That was exactly what Dasom intended.

Katsumi instinctively yelled at the females to get their attention, and it worked. Those girls raced away laughing, as if satisfied with what they had just done.

As Katsumi approached Nabi, she noticed her shivering and wiping the water from her arms, face, hair, and clothes.

"Are you okay?" she inquired.

"Does it look like I'm okay?" Nabi asked dejectedly, and a tear streamed down her cheek as she raised her head.

This had a significant impact on Katsumi. She felt pity and empathy for the young lady. Nobody wants to get purposefully soaked, especially in freezing temperatures. Then, Katsumi removed her hoodie and handed it to Nabi without thinking.

"Use this," she advised. "You can wear this while waiting for your shirt to dry."

Nabi frowned. "You don't have to force yourself to help me, Katsumi."

"You can either dress warmly or freeze from hyperthermia."

Nabi sighed at the choices she was given and chose to stay warm in order to avoid such an incident. They went to the science room to borrow a heater from the teacher so that her clothing could dry. They remained inside the room with the heating on while they waited.

Katsumi returned from the cafeteria and handed Nabi a cup of hot tea. The girl had assumed Katsumi had abandoned her, so she was surprised to see her return with a drink that could help her heat up.

She felt grateful but perplexed by her kindness. After what she had done to her buddy, Nabi expected Katsumi to walk away from her instead of aiding her.

"Why?" she mutters.

"Because it's been scientifically proven that drinking hot tea can help you lower your body temperature."

"No—not that," Nabi said, snickering. "Why are you being nice to me? I've only been mean to your friends, so I expected you to despise me."

Katsumi gave a sweet smile. "I despise you." She pauses. "But I could tell you wanted to change for the better, and you've demonstrated that, and I'm proud of you."

Nabi's heart ached from the enormous relief that she could start over and steer herself in a far more positive manner.

When she faced Dasom and Ari a while ago, she was terrified and wanted to flee. It was difficult for her to break away from her toxic friendships.

She was afraid of getting wounded since there was a chance they might hurt her, and she was correct. Katsumi, on the other hand, saved her yet again, and she's thankful she did.

***

Katsumi went to MoonBucks after class with Kento and Namgyu. She was the new owner of the café, so she was responsible for keeping it operating.

The personnel remained the same, but there were a few new ones, specifically chefs, to work on the meals and snacks to improve the taste and presentation of the cuisine.

Katsumi sat at one of the unoccupied tables and worked while Namgyu and Kento ordered their dinner and drinks. Mr. Kim had provided her with every detail about the café, including the whole menu, because she was the new owner.

With only five meal options and three drink options, there wasn't much to it. There wasn't a variety to choose from, so Katsumi was busy writing and drawing suggestions for what to put on the menu to give customers a variety of options. And, of course, it had to be intriguing and delicious in order to pique their interest.

After a few minutes, Subin and Yejoon came, the doorbell ringing to indicate they had entered. Yejoon had brought his younger sister to the Café for a snack because their residence was about an hour away, and he thought of treating her before returning home.

"Heya!" Subin said, and his buddies cheered softly when they noticed he wasn't wearing any bandages on his head.

"The bandage on your head is finally gone, huh?" Namgyu inquired.

"Yep! It's as if my head can breathe comfortably again."

Yejoon assisted his sister in sitting alongside Kento while he sat between her and Katsumi. He noticed what the girl was doing as she was doodling a variety of dishes in her notepad.

"Is that for Art Classes?" he wondered as he sat down.

"These are Food and Drink Ideas for the Café ."

"Can I help?" he inquired. "As the Café Manager, I feel a sense of responsibility to assist."

"Oppa is amazing at drawing, and he's super creative at coming up with ideas!" Yejoon's younger sister exclaimed when she noticed Katsumi hesitated to respond. It made them both smile contentedly.

"Is that so? Then I'll ask your older brother to help me." Katsumi answered with a smile.

In the midst of their brainstorming, Subin and Namgyu brought their tray of orders. Katsumi decided it was time for a little snack break.

Subin inquired, "So, did Yejoon and I miss anything at school today?"

"I was with Nabi at lunch," she explained, surprising the boys.

Yejoon inquired, "What were you doing with Nabi?"

"On my way back to the classroom after lunch, I happened to see her with Dasom and Ari, and she was breaking ties with them."

"Why didn't you just ignore her?" Namgyu inquired.

"Damson purposefully got her shirt soaked; it was a freezing afternoon, and I couldn't ignore a person in need, so I lent her my hoodie while she waited for her shirt to dry."

The atmosphere grew quiet. Katsumi knew she should have ignored her, but for some reason she couldn't. It was like witnessing the guys being bullied while watching Dasom bully Nabi.

Kento began to speak up in an attempt to divert attention away from this. "Anyway, Namgyu and I helped with decorating the booths for this upcoming founding anniversary," he explained.

"Oh! The founding anniversary is just next month, isn't it?" Subin inquired, and everyone nodded.

"Yeah," Yejoon replied. "Are you planning to join a booth or create your own?"

"Decorating is stressful enough as it is," Kento explained.

"Why'd you ask?" Subin wondered.

"I thought we could bring Moonbucks Café to the event?" he wondered. "To advertise the café and make more money for the company."

Katsumi was closely listening to her friends' talk, even if she wasn't paying attention to them. When she heard Yejoon's suggestion, it immediately jolted her head, her eyes shot wide.

"Yejoon!" she exclaimed. "That's a brilliant idea!"

The child let out a big huff, holding his thumping heart in relief. "Oh, thank god! I thought I said something dumb!"

"I'll go to the administrator's office tomorrow and request the participation slip, so all I need now are volunteers to assist me. Who's up for it?"

Namgyu and Kento were undecided, while Subin and Yejoon raised their hands without hesitation.

"Think about all the free food we'll get to eat!" urged Subin. Namgyu grinned at the boy's reaction and raised his hand in surrender. If this booth brings a smile to his friend's face, he doesn't mind sacrificing his time for it.

Subin asked, "Kento? You're not going to join?"

While everyone was staring at him, Katsumi took advantage of the situation by employing her younger twin technique. She pleaded silently as she lipped out 'please' to win this persuasion.

Kento realized that his sister was aware of his vulnerability toward his family. If they are injured, tear up, become depressed, or want assistance, Katsumi knows his willingness to do whatever for them.

He averts his gaze and groans in defeat. "Fine," he answered, "but I'll only be in the kitchen where no one can see me."

Katsumi's face lit up with delight. "Thanks, bro!" She exclaimed, drawing their companions' attention.

"Bro?" Yejoon inquired.

She feared when she realized what she had said, but she tried not to make it obvious because it would make them even more suspicious.

"Yeah! Bro, as in, dude," she argued.

"In Japan, we say that to the people we are close to, especially our friends." Kento lied, but his tone was so compelling that the lads believed him.

The day went on until nightfall, when they all decided to leave and return home. They bid each other goodbye before departing in separate cars, with Katsumi accompanying Kento.

Kento watched her as she buckled her seatbelt. "That was a close call, wasn't it, Bro?" he jokes.

Of course, he had to ridicule his sister and make her feel ashamed of her mistake. Katsumi glared at the boy, dumbfounded.

"Really?"

"Well, wasn't that fun, Bro?" he mocked again with a British accent, which irritated her.

"All right, now you're doing this to irritate me," she remarked. "Are you having fun?"

He chuckles with a nod, "Yeah."

"Just drive," she murmured, and Kento started the engine while chuckling once more before driving away.

Jokes aside, what she did was indeed a close call. Despite the fact that she has been in Seoul for quite some time, she is still unaccustomed to living under this fabricated identity.