Thorns of a Lily

Nari quickly walked to her locker and put the books that she needed to do her homework that night, into her backpack. She grabbed onto another bag that was set in her locker and set it on the ground. She closed her white locker and zipped up her backpack. She threw it over her shoulders and bent down to pick up the other bag that was in her locker. She hung it on her left arm as she walked down the crowded halls of the academy. She lifted her arms and put her long dark brown wavy hair into a ponytail. She hurried her steps, keeping her head low, not wanting to make any eye contact with everyone. Nari used to be an extrovert, but certain things had changed her. She was now an introverted musically talented girl that never spoke. Or so to speak, a mute. But, she always smiled at anyone that needed it.

When the last bell of the day rang, Luhan sprinted for the hallways, wanting to get a glimpse of Nari. He tried to find her at lunch, but she was nowhere to be seen. It confused him because all seniors had the same lunch period. But, maybe she was like him. Luhan didn’t like to eat in the cafeteria. His cafeteria was the rooftop of the school. It was actually against the rules to go to the rooftop, but that didn’t stop Luhan. For him, some rules were made to be broken. And so in the end, Luhan figured that she was having lunch in her own sanctuary somewhere.

Because he didn’t see her like he had hoped, he wanted to follow her and strike a conversation with her. It didn’t even take seconds for the hallways to fill up with tired students. Luhan didn’t know what Nari’s last class of the day was. He mentally cursed himself for not asking Kyungsoo. Luhan puffed his cheeks with air and sighed. He turned multiple times, trying to find the girl. The academy was like a labyrinth. Anyone new to the school would get lost.

Luhan cursed the multiple hallways, but stopped when he spotted that similar brown headed girl, carrying two bags. He smiled brightly before pushing his way pass people, not caring about the scowls and shouts that he was getting. He jumped up a few times in an effort to not lose sight of her. His heart beat fast in anticipation. The closer he got, the more excited he felt. He had never felt so excited to just talk to one person, especially a girl. He didn’t know why, but she intrigued him so much. Maybe it was the way she passionately played her violin, or maybe it was Kyungsoo, calling her a mute. Whatever it was, he was, all in all, curious about Jung Nari—the girl that had been attending the same academy as him for the past few years.

When Nari walked through the front doors of the academy, Luhan panicked. He quickened his pace and rushed towards the doors as if the human race depended on her. He bumped into a few people and only offered a few apologies to some. When he finally reached the doors, he looked left and right. To his right, he spotted her. She was jogging across the courtyard of the academy.

The courtyard was as prestigious as the school was. It had a big water fountain smack dab in the middle. There were metal benches that were painted in white, placed in the courtyard in a uniform way with large flower pots that housed beautiful red roses and forget-me-nots—a strange combination. The ground of the courtyard was tiled with white hexagonal stones. It was well kept, so there wasn’t any grass growing in between the cracks. Tall brown brick walls surrounded the perimeter of the academy and courtyard like a prison.

Luhan ran as fast as he could, trying to catch up with Nari. He saw her go through the front black iron gates of the school. He clutched tightly onto his guitar and ran towards her with a big smile. Once he was pass the school gates, he was only a few yards from her. She had stopped running and was standing beside a bus stop. Luhan smiled and casually walked up to her. Nari’s focus was on her watch. She impatiently tapped her right foot and bit her lower lip—a gesture that Luhan thought was cute. Nari slightly pouted and looked left and right, as if that would make the bus arrive sooner.

Luhan quietly stood behind her with a small smile playing at his lips. He held his hands behind his back, between himself and his guitar. He stood up tall with his chest sticking out. He seemed like a proud little boy that had just won a running competition. He heard a silent sigh leave Nari’s lips.

I wonder what’s she’s in such a rush for, Luhan wondered.

Did she had a date to go to? With the thought of that, Luhan slightly pouted. He was hoping that she would be free so he could talk to her. But, if she was busy, there was nothing he could do. But, there was something that was tugging at the back of his head, telling him to follow her. And so, he did. When Nari’s bus arrived, she got on. Luhan let a few people go before him to make it look like he wasn’t following her. Stalking? No. Luhan was just a curious little fella.

When Luhan boarded onto the large green and white bus, he saw Nari standing towards the exit of the bus. He walked towards her and stopped just feet from her, not wanting there to be an obvious distance between them. He cleared his throat and sat down on an empty seat. He looked out the window and noticed Nari’s reflection in it. He smiled, watching her. He felt a bit like a creeper, but he just couldn’t help himself. He had never been so interested in someone before. It bothered him to no end.

It seemed like only seconds passed before the bus stopped, opening both the exit and entrance doors. Nari stepped out. Luhan quickly got up at her absence and left as well. Nari began walking towards a smaller street. On her way, she had somehow managed to take off her school jacket and put a black t-shirt over her school uniform dress shirt. He stared at her in amusement when she began changing her shoes while walking. She went from flats to black converse that matched his. Once she had successfully changed into her converse, she began running.

Is she on a mission to assassinate someone?

Luhan joked to himself, but seriously considered it.

He ran after her, not wanting to lose sight of her again. She turned corners and onto different streets. Luhan was beginning to run out of breathe and stop following her, but then he saw her stop and stand in front of a small convenience store. He gave her a curious stare with his head cocked to the side. He saw a slight smile make its way onto her lips. She took in a deep breath and patted down her clothing before walking into the store. Luhan’s eyes followed Nari. That was when he realized that she was wearing the same shirt as other people in the store. She was an employee of the store.

This fact just added onto Luhan’s curiosity about the girl. The students at Seoul Academy were children of wealthy families. They didn’t need to work to pay for tuition or for pocket money. Their parents paid for everything. In Luhan’s eyes, they were incompetent. Luhan knew that the academy accepted students based on both talent and wealth. If you had talent and no wealth, there was a very low chance of getting accepted into the academy. It didn’t even matter if the person was a music prodigy.

So, watching Jung Nari put on a baseball cap that had the name of the store embroidered onto it, made Luhan curious. He wanted to walk inside and buy something so he could talk to her, but he also didn’t. He was still wearing his school uniform. Students from Seoul seldom walked into that part of town, and so Luhan concluded that Nari didn’t want to be seen working. It would also make her a laughing stock if someone found out about it. Luhan would never belittle anyone because of their status or where they worked, but Nari didn’t know that.

Luhan sighed and walked back towards the bus station that now seemed so far away. He dragged his feet with every step he took. He wanted to talk to her, but there were so many obstacles in the way. It bothered him and made him a bit sad. But then, he perked up when a thought came into his mind.

I’ll just go home, change, and come back!

He smiled brightly at his “brilliant” idea and began running again. Luhan wasn’t much of a runner, but today, he was. He looked at the time on his watch.

Mei should be home right now. What am I going to tell her? I found someone to stalk. Well, I’m not really stalking her . . . am I?

Luhan mentally shrugged. He made it to the bus stop and quickly got onto a bus that had just arrived.

⚜⚜⚜

Meiying flinched when the front doors of the house opened. She was in the dining room, working on whatever homework that she had for that day. Luhan ran pass the dining room to get to the stairs. Meiying was surprised to see Luhan home so early.

“Luhan—”

She didn’t finish her sentence when Luhan zoomed pass her and up the stairs. She just sat there in confusion and shock, unable to move for a few minutes. She tried to decide whether she just saw a ghost or not. She shivered at the thought, wanting to forget it. But, within seconds, Luhan was down stairs again, but he was in a different attire. He was wearing a black t-shirt that had a picture of a bass and treble clef shaped into a guitar on it, dark blue jeans, and his black converse. And of course, his big black glasses.

“Luhan!” Meiying yelled.

Luhan stopped in his tracks and walked backwards and into the dining room.

“Yes?” he was out of breath.

“Where are you going?”

Luhan smiled sheepishly and rubbed the nape of his neck. Then he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. He had an excuse, but he didn’t know whether his sister would buy it or not.

“Out with friends.”

His sister scoffed and broke out into a series of laughter.

“You? Friends? Please, Luhan. Your only friend that is not your family is your guitar.”

Her words made him feel a bit bitter, but he would change that soon. He was going to make a friend before the end of the school year. And, he had a strong feeling that it would be Nari. If not . . . then maybe Kyungsoo could count as a friend.

“Mei,” Luhan deadpanned.

Meiying immediately shut her lips. She gave him a “you’re kidding” look. Luhan put his lips into a firm line and shook his head. Meiying smiled brightly and jumped onto him from her chair. Luhan stumbled backwards at the sudden weight.

“Mei!” he yelped out in shock.

“My little brother finally has friends!” Meiying yelled in pure happiness.

“You’re heavy!”

“Oh my gosh, I’m so proud of you!” Meiying pinched Luhan’s cheeks and cooed at him. “Oh yes, you’re a good boy that knows how to make friends. Aw, you should bring them home!”
Luhan scoffed and rolled his eyes.

“Mei, I’m not a baby.”

“No, because you’re mom’s baby and my baby brother. You’re not just an ordinary baby,”
Meiying spoke as a matter of fact.

Luhan only chuckled and nodded.

“Okay. I’ll bring her home later on,” Luhan said.

“Her?” Meiying rose her eyebrows in curiosity. “Are you dating?” Meiying accused him.

Luhan’s eyes doubled in size as he violently shook his head. Was she angry?

“N-No,” he didn’t know why, but he stuttered.

“If you’re going out on a date you can’t wear that! You look like a street kid!” she exclaimed.

Luhan scoffed again and shook his head in disbelief.

“You’re weird, Mei.”

“What? I can’t care for my baby brother?” she questioned him.

Luhan smiled and waved her off.

“I have to go now,” he said.

Meiying ruffled his hair and smiled.

“Okay. Go out there and make hearts flutter,” her eyes turned into crescents because of her wide smile.

Luhan chuckled and waved good bye again before walking out of the house.

⚜⚜⚜

Luhan stood before the convenience store. He read the name out loud.

“Jang’s Stop N’ Shop.”

He hummed to himself and patted down his clothes, just how Nari did before she entered the store. He wanted to look decent and not like a street boy like his sister had mentioned. He took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly, calming down his nerves. He nodded once with a determined smiled and marched towards the entrance of the store.

“Here I come, Jung Nari,” Luhan muttered under his breath. “Let’s be friends. Hello, my name is Lu Han. What about you?” Luhan tried to practice how he would greet her when they actually officially met.

He kept on muttering strange phrases that even him himself knew weren’t natural.

He puffed air into his face, bringing out his lower lip. When he finally reached the door of the store, he carefully placed his hand on the handle. He held onto it tightly and pushed it opened. A short tune played, telling the employees that someone was either leaving or entering the store.

“Welcome to Jang’s Stop N’ Shop!” a few employees yelled from different parts of the store.

Luhan smiled and tip-toed, trying to find his “friend.” He casually walked down the aisles of the store, not really paying attention to the contents of the store. He was surprised that it smelt and looked rather clean. Usually stores like this were rather dirty. He began to pick up random snacks, in attempt to look like a normal customer.

“Thanks, Nari. Don’t worry, we’ll be quick.”

When violin girl’s name entered Luhan’s ears, he ran towards the person that had spoken her name. It was another female that looked a few years older than Luhan—maybe the same age as Meiying. Walking throughout the shop, Luhan counted five workers in total. Right when he had turned that corner, he saw Nari turn around another corner. He cursed his bad timing. The door to the store opened and the tune played again.

“Thank you, Nari! We’ll be back in a few minutes!” a young boy yelled.

Luhan looked towards the entrance of the store and saw four store employees quickly leave, leaving Nari to be the only employee left. Luhan tilted his head to the side in confusion. Was this why Nari was in such a rush to get to the store? Because all of the older employees wanted to leave and go somewhere else? Luhan pouted at that thought. It wasn’t right to leave someone to manage a store alone, especially if the person was a mute and a defenseless girl.

Luhan searched for Nari and finally found her at the cash register. She was looking at something down in her hands, but Luhan couldn’t see what because of the counter. Luhan cleared his throat, making Nari immediately look up. Her eyes slightly widened before she slightly bowed her head at him, acknowledging his existence. Luhan smiled and waved.

“Hi, my name’s Lu Han!” he beamed.

Nari looked at him in confusion. Why was he telling her that? She blinked a few times, making Luhan’s cheeks turn red. He awkwardly cleared his throat and rubbed the nape of his neck. He smiled sheepishly. He quickly walked towards the drink aisle where he was hidden. Nari wouldn’t be able to see him from where she was standing.

Nari shrugged off the weird feeling that Luhan gave her. That was the first time that she had ever met him. She wondered why he had introduced himself to her so suddenly. She stuffed her phone into her jacket that was hanging on a coat rack near the door that lead to the storage room. Luhan wanted to leave the store. He didn’t want to embarrass himself even more than he had already did, but he didn’t want to leave her alone until her co-workers came back.

The low buzz of the refrigerators hummed throughout the medium-sized shop. The bright lights seemed too bright that it was almost blinding. Luhan tip-toed and peeked over the aisles of snacks and necessities. He noticed that he was the only customer in the store. He quietly sighed and turned around to look at the drinks displayed before him. He shrugged and opened one of the clear glass doors.

Again, the tune played.

Loud laughs and snickers met his ear drums. Luhan frowned and turned around, leaving his hand on the opened fridge door. Three men in their mid-twenties walked into the shop. Luhan tip-toed again and saw Nari greet them. The three men stopped laughing and gave Nari a curious look.

“Hello, beautiful,” a man with an unshaved beard and black hair spoke. The other two men chuckled.

Luhan’s eyebrows furrowed in dislike. He quietly closed the fridge door and began walking towards the trio and Nari.

Nari offered the three guys a small smile. A man with dyed blonde hair and hazel eyes smirked and walked up to the counter. He rested his elbows on the top and placed his chin on his right palm.

“Have a boyfriend?” he asked.

A flash of panic appeared on Nari’s face before quickly disappearing. She forced a smiled. She was about to shake her head, but then a voice broke the uncomfortable silence.

“Yes, she does. It’s me.”

The three men and Nari looked at the teenager boy in shock. Luhan slightly growled at the three grown men and walked behind the counter and wrapping his arm around her shoulders, protectively. Nari tensed up and held her breath.

“I’m sure that you three are adults above the age of twenty-one. Being in a relationship with a minor is not exactly right,” Luhan smirked. “So, why don’t you find someone your age or older?” Luhan asked with raised eyebrows.

Surprisingly, the three men blinked rapidly and gulped.

“S-Sorry, w-we d-didn’t know she was taken,” the one with brown hair spoke.

Luhan scoffed as anger rose in him.

“It doesn’t matter if she’s taken or not. Three against one? That’s not very fair. Don’t act like creeps next time and actually be a gentleman, Jaehyun, Byunghee, and Jaeyeol,” Luhan spoke each of their names with a dangerously venomous voice.

“Y-Yes, M-Mr. Lu,” they all three bowed their heads and ran out of the store in an instant.

Nari felt relief rush through her in an instant. She let out a small sigh and slightly smiled. Her tense shoulders relaxed a little bit, but then the weight on her shoulders made her tense up again. Luhan looked down at Nari with a wide smile.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

Nari looked up at him. The close proximity between them bothered her. He was a stranger that was no better than those three men. But then, he did help her. She slowly blinked and just looked at him with a blank stare. Luhan slightly frowned, but when he saw Nari look at his arm that was still around her shoulders, he immediately let go of her and took a large step backwards.

“S-Sorry,” he stuttered, rubbing the nape of his neck in embarrassment.

Nari smiled and cocked her head to the side. Her eyes turned into crescents when she smiled. Her deep dimple on her left cheek appeared. Luhan just stared at her in awe. She looked so pretty, innocent, and cute. He just wanted to pinch her cheeks. Nari quickly walked passed him and towards the refrigerator. Luhan felt uncomfortable behind the counter because he wasn’t an employee, so he quickly followed Nari. She came back with a juice box that wasn’t opened yet and handed it to him with her bright smile. Luhan just stared at her for a while and hesitantly took it.

“I-Is this a thank you present?” he asked.

Nari’s smile seemed to brighten even more, making her dimple deeper. She nodded enthusiastically. Luhan smiled faintly and ripped the straw out from its plastic wrap. He took out the straw and stuck it into the box. During the whole process, Nari watched him. When Luhan noticed that he was being watched, he looked up and was met with Nari’s curious gaze. Luhan choked on his juice and started coughing. Nari walked up to him in worry. Luhan waved her off and chuckled.

“I’m fine. You’re curious, aren’t you? About how I know those three guys, right?” Luhan asked when he had recovered from his coughing fit.

Nari nodded, her smile slowly being replaced by a small pout.

“They work for my father’s company. I went there once and they were mistreating a fellow co-worker. They know that I can get them fired, so . . . yeah,” Luhan said awkwardly.

Yes, he could get them fired . . . if his father stopped ignoring him. But, Nari didn’t have to know that. At least not yet.

Luhan had hoped that Nari would speak at least one word, but she still hadn’t even muttered a single syllable. Luhan didn’t want to seem rude and ask her why she never talked or if she was a mute, so he just kept his questions to himself.

Nari nodded and smiled to herself, not really caring that he was probably a rich bad boy or something cliché. She had her own knight in shining armor now. Even though she didn’t really know her knight, she was very thankful for him and knew that he was a good guy. The two teenagers just stood in the middle of the store, looking at each other. Awkwardness still flowed in the air, but it was more bearable now. Luhan didn’t know what to say. Nari . . . she just didn’t talk.

“Uh . . . where are the other employees?” he asked.

Shoot. She can’t talk.

“Uh, I mean . . . do you want me to walk you home after your shift ends?” Luhan asked awkwardly.

Nari gave him another blank stare. Was he offering to take her home so he could protect her? Or was he trying to hit on her? Nari didn’t really think that it was the latter, but she had to be cautious. Although Luhan was her savior, he was still just a stranger—a stranger that she thought she would never see again. Nari offered him a small smile before politely declining by shaking her head. Luhan’s heart slightly dropped, but he didn’t let her answer bring his mood down.

“Okay, I understand. Just . . . be safe and always kick men between the legs when they approach you, or you can kick them in the shin and run away, okay?” Luhan asked.

Nari chuckled and smiled. She nodded a few times. The door opened and the tune played. The four employees had come back. Anger rose in Luhan again that day. He walked straight up to them with a piercing gaze.

“How dare you leave a girl all alone in a store?” Luhan asked in anger.

All four of the employees were indeed older than Luhan, but he didn’t care at the moment.

Actually, he never cared.

“Who are you?” a boy that was a bit shorter than him spoke with a bit of cockiness.

“Your boss pays you for a reason. I don’t care that there are cameras here. Cameras can’t protect Nari when she’s all she’s got to defend herself. So, I would appreciate that one of you would stay with her when the rest of you take advantage of her kindness to stay behind while you guys go out and play.”

Luhan did not spare anyone another glance before walking out of the shop and back home.

Notes

Hello, I'm back! I'm so sorry for not updating! I lost my USB that had all of my stories on it, and just found it again recently.

And....I HAVE GOOD NEWS! I won a contest and so both my poem and short story that I entered will be published in a magazine! :D

<3 Nubci4