Wonyoung is sleep-deprived from the nightmare she had tonight. She still has all those images in her mind and can't erase them from her mind.
Why does she keep dreaming about a freshman, and every dream is the same? It takes place during a war and the boy she likes is not a human, but a vampire...
What's wrong with me, she thinks, and hits the brakes at the last moment when she sees a red light at the crosswalk. A teenager who is just crossing it stops in his tracks and looks at her with a terrified look.
The nineteen-year-old girl feels her nerves go numb when she realizes it's him.
Emotional dreams return at a dizzying pace, and she looks at him like an idiot. In a strange frenzy, in which she suddenly sees an image created in her head, she opens her mouth in astonishment, watching as the eighteen-year-old boy shakes his head and walks away. Except that this is not reality. Dressed in a black coat, he looks the same as in her dream.
The girl slaps her face with her hands to wake herself up when drivers start honking at her. She starts the car and pulls over to the side of the road a bit, feeling that something strange is happening to her.
Breathing heavily, she closes her eyes and thinks back to her dream. She could feel in him how much she loved this boy, that she couldn't live without him, even though he wasn't human. Something was threatening them, someone who called himself an original. Niki was the brother of the first year, but they were at odds because her friend was rebelling against him.
Is this normal? How can you have constant dreams with the same people and action taking place during war?
- Have I gone crazy about him? - she asks herself.
She picks up the phone when the sound of a message she has received rings out. It's from an unknown number and sounds disturbing.
"I know your thoughts. This is your destiny, tragic destiny."
The 19-year-old girl is terrified. She looks around with panic in her eyes, feeling as if someone is watching her.
"Who are you"?
She responds to the text message even though her heart is pounding with fear.
Nobody writes her back.
Wonyoung begins to wonder if this is a joke. Even though most people in Inhon love her, there are also people who hate her.
A large bird flies in front of the window, and she is so scared that she puts her hand to her heart, trying to calm down.
"It's just a bird, Wonnie. What are you so afraid of?"
Another message from this number makes the girl panic over every noise, even the smallest one. She looks around with terrified eyes. She doesn't see anything suspicious, but she intends to leave as soon as possible.
Who is watching her and from where? What do they want from her?
***
Pushing her hair out of her face, she heads up to the first floor, where she starts her classes. She passes people, entirely ignoring them. As she passes the bathroom, she stops mid-step, thinking she hears someone calling her name.
- Wonyoung ... you can't escape fate...
Pale as a corpse, a teenager girl stands still, unable to move. This voice paralyzes her body, brings back memories from a dream — a nightmare she experienced today.
- Are you okay? - Somi's concern is the last thing Wonyoung would expect. The blonde girl stands in front of her, watching her face carefully. - Are you okay? You look like you're about to faint.
The nineteen-year-old girl shifts her gaze to her former friend, once again in some strange frenzy.
- Do you hear that? - The older girl frowns, not understanding what he's talking about. - Do you hear that voice calling my name from the men's room?
She realizes she sounds crazy now, but she wants to know if Somi can hear it too.
"I think you just need love. Fall in love, stop acting like a cold-hearted bitch, and you'll be fine," she declares, patting her on the shoulder as she leaves. She rolls her eyes, but Wonyoung can't see it.
When her name is mentioned again, the teenager can't take it anymore. She shakes herself and, ignoring the stares of others, goes into the men's bathroom to see who is making fun of her. The worst thing is that currently there is no one there...
- Is this some kind of mental illness? - she asks herself, feeling shivers run through her body.
People whisper to each other as Wonyoung appears in the hallway, quickly running away from everyone. She feels herself getting sick with nerves.
- Hey, what's up? - Niki, who's heading down the hall to class, grabs his younger friend's hand, seeing that she looks bad. - What's up, Wonnie?
They both forget about their resentment of the last incident as she buries her face in his chest, hiding from all the intrusive eyes. He strokes her hair, looking worried.
- Something really disturbing has been happening to me lately... I've been having strange dreams and hearing voices that don't exist. - These words seriously worry the boy. - Can you explain what's happening to me?
- What do you mean you hear voices that don't exist?
"I know I sound crazy, but someone just called my name from the men's room, and when I went in, there was no one there," she explains, lifting her face to look him in the eye. "Also, today I got these texts from an unknown number," she adds, showing them to her friend.
- Someone is clearly playing a joke on you. They must be having a good laugh.
- So, how do you explain the fact that I have emotional dreams every night? It's the same people and everything happens at the same time?
Niki looks at her for a long moment, wondering what could be causing this.
- Is that a man? You know, these days various manifestations are fashionable, maybe someone is practicing it on you?
Wonyoung blinks, wondering what the meaning of that answer is. Well... those dreams started when she met the first year...
Wait a minute, why is Niki there every time too?
- So you practice them too? You appear in every dream I have - the girl says reproachfully, frowning.
Niki's eyes widen in amazement.
- But that I'm your lover in them? Listen, because I don't bother with any love manifestations...
"Not a lover, but a rival to the one I love." Her response makes his face fall.
- I still have some time, so my friend, let me walk you to class and sit with you for a while - he says, changing the subject.
***
Before he enters the classroom for his first class, Jake straightens the collar of his blouse. His eagle eyes catch Somi sitting alone, without her friends. He walks toward her with a bold step, greeting everyone who shouts "hi" to him.
The blonde girl only glances at him for a split second as he takes the seat next to her, then ignores him until he speaks first.
- We have beautiful weather today, don't we?
The twenty-year-old smiles to herself.
- Don't you have anyone left to hunt, Mr. Jake? - she asks, looking through the book. - Have you run out of victims, the first-graders not meeting your expectations?
- You know what, Somi? - His voice is indignant. - You know you've been my crush since middle school, so how can you say something like that? I will never hunt you like prey.
The girl lifts her gaze from her book and shifts it to her peer. She had been madly in love with him in middle school, but Wonyoung wouldn't let her flirt with him, and especially not have a relationship. The blonde girl suspected back then that she was crushing him, but she didn't do anything to win him over.
In Inhon, Jake has always been the biggest hottie and still is.
- So what happened to make you stop ignoring me?
" Wonyoung let me," he replies. The blonde girl nods, wanting to laugh but trying hard to keep it in. "She said she didn't care about you enough to let me talk to you."
- Nice...
- What happened that you went from friends to enemies? Everyone was talking about it being about a man, that you stole the one she liked from Wonyoung, is that true? She's never been in love, she didn't pay attention to guys...
- Do you think so? - Somi closes the book. She leans her hand on the table, resting her cheek on her palm. She looks Jake in the eye intensely, making the boy feel hot. - She pretends to be a cold bitch on the outside. She hides behind a mask, I don't know why, but she really has a sensitive heart and falls in love easily if she meets the right guy.
- So you were really after a man? Who?
"About you," she replies immediately. Jake's eyes widen, looking shocked. "You wouldn't expect that, would you?"
- You're kidding, right? Wonnie never looked at me that way.
Somi is amused and has to admit that Jake looks quite adorable at this point when he's so flustered.
- Take it easy. It wouldn't have worked out anyway. You don't have the right chemistry... - she says, then bites the pen in her mouth.
You won't fall for this... ever.
***
Throughout class, Sullyoon has been feeling anxious because a boy in her year has been staring at her. Ever since he approached her in the parking lot, she's been terrified.
Her sister warned her not to go anywhere alone, but she had no intention of behaving like a child, led by the hand by others her whole life.
After all, no one will hurt her in broad daylight.
That's what she thinks until she feels someone following her as she walks down the hallway. Her heart beats faster as she looks over her shoulder and sees her classmate.
With each passing moment, he begins to scare her more and more...
The eighteen-year-old girl runs down the stairs, shoulder-bending over people as they pass. She ignores him, frightened by the fact that he won't let go.
He's like her shadow, moving behind her, not willing to let go. The girl doesn't understand what he wants from her.
The feeling of panic grows as she realizes that there is no one downstairs at the moment. She is unable to even scream because he puts his hand over her mouth and drags her to the men's bathroom, located just down the stairs.
Sullyoon looks at him with wide, frightened eyes as he covers her mouth with one hand while stroking her hair with the other, looking at her with inexplicable adoration in his eyes.
- I like beautiful and innocent girls... - he says, looking like a madman at this point. - Untouched, flawless, good girls...
The teen takes advantage of his fingers moving lower to her lips and bites him. She screams in pain, but she is unable to escape because he catches her before she runs out of the bathroom.
She doesn't understand why it's empty here and why no one comes in here right now?
He yanks her up and presses her against the wall too hard. For a moment, she feels a searing pain in her back.
- Why are you so hot-headed? Be good for a moment, Sull.
At that moment, the bathroom door opens and a boy from their year appears in the doorway.
Already during class, he noticed that the man was watching her the whole time, and she looked scared.
He was not mistaken.
He pushes him away from the girl, threatening him with his finger.
- Let me see you by her side again... just look at her, and I promise you, next time you'll be picking your teeth up off the floor.
"Maidens always have the most knights," he says with disdain in his voice as he heads for the exit. Sullyoon breathes a sigh of relief and looks at his classmate gratefully.
- Thank you, if it weren't for you... - she says with a trembling voice.
- I noticed during class that something was wrong. Is everything okay? He didn't do anything to you?
She shakes her head in response.
- I'm fine. Thanks again...
- Sunghoon - he tells her his name and she nods. - Your name is Sullyoon, do I remember correctly?
- Yes.
- Would you like us to go to the next class together so that you feel safe?
- I will be grateful to you.
The boy smiles brightly and lets her through the door. She thanks him and goes with him to her next class, believing she can make friends with someone outside her circle.
However, he does not realize that there are no coincidences and everyone has a hidden purpose.