Riki, the trouble maker, the bad boy, the gangster. Always late to class or not attending at all. Always getting into fights and trouble, always talking back to the teachers and smoking. And hyeji, the innocent girl, always attending class, almost everyone in school likes her even the teachers for her kind heart.
They never really talked, until.. Riki came to class late again — blood on his lip, knuckles wrapped in bandages. Everyone pretended not to stare. Everyone except Hyeji.
When she quietly placed a small pack of band-aids on his desk, he looked at her like no one ever had — like he didn’t know what to do with kindness. The next day, she found a single red candy on her notebook. No note, no words — just that.
Day by day, it became a silent routine: she’d patch him up, and he’d leave her small gifts. A candy, a folded paper star, a hair clip.
Then one day, he didn’t show up. Whispers said there was a fight — a big one.
That night, Hyeji found him sitting on the curb, bruised and shaking. She knelt, tears falling.
“Why do you keep doing this to yourself?” she whispered.
He met her eyes, voice low. “Because no one ever asked me not to — until you.”
From that day on, riki started courting her. He’s been courting her for 2 months now. He’s coming to class, stopped getting into fights, sometimes. He started paying attention to the lectures, getting his grades up, doesn’t smoke often anymore, all because of her. But he didn’t change fully, he still gets in trouble, but not often anymore.
And how he treats her? Completely different from how he treats other people. To her, he’s always observant, protective, gentle , respectful and caring. He’s not afraid to show affection to her and only to her. When she’s talking to her friends, he would just stay close to her, quiet, watching her. He’s patient with her, not rushing her when she’s doing something, important or not
He would carry her bag without her needing to ask him. He would walk her home after school for safety concerns. He would give her his hoodie when she’s cold
He was leaning his back against the wall, watching her quietly. It's already 7pm and he knew school already ended an hour ago. She was still talking to her friends, probably about a project or something.
He watched her intently, the way she would sometimes push her long, black hair behind her ear. The way she'd smile and laugh, and the way her eyes would light up whenever her friends would say something funny to her. He found himself subconsciously smiling while watching her.