A strange silence hung over the breakfast table,
but it wasn't the suffocating silence of fear from the past.
Jinu had prepared omelets and toast for Jia.
She ate slowly, her movements hesitant,
while her gaze drifted toward Jinu every few seconds.
He sat across from her,
partially hiding a small, soft smile behind his coffee mug.
"Jinu," Jia said softly,
breaking the quiet.
"Are we... are we really going to school today?
Everyone must know by now about my father.
How will they look at me?"
Jinu set his mug down and looked her directly in the eyes.
His expression was serious yet incredibly gentle.
"People will always talk, Jia.
They talked when you were hiding in the shadows,
and they will talk now that you're stepping out of them.
The only difference is that today,
you aren't alone.
I'll be with you every step of the way."
Jia took a deep breath,
gathering every ounce of courage she had left.
She picked up her bag, and together, they stepped out of the house.
As they reached the main gates of the school,
time seemed to fracture.
Jinu,
the "Ice Prince"—the boy who never stood near anyone—was walking side-by-side with Jia.
The usual morning chatter in the corridors died down instantly,
replaced by sharp intakes of breath and frantic whispering.
"Look, is that Jinu and Jia together?"
"Is it true?
I heard about her father's accident... is Jinu actually taking care of her?"
Jia instinctively lowered her head, feeling the weight of a hundred stares.
But then, she felt Jinu shift closer, positioning himself like a physical shield between her and the prying eyes of the crowd.
"Keep your head up, Jia,"
Jinu whispered, his voice low and steady.
"You have nothing to be ashamed of."
As they neared their classroom,
they were intercepted by a group of the school's "popular" gossips.
One of the boys, emboldened by curiosity, stepped forward.
"Hey, Jinu! What's the deal?
What are you doing with her?
Are the rumors actually true?"
Jinu stopped in his tracks.
He didn't grab her hand, but he stood so close to her that it was clear no one could get to her without going through him.
He turned his cold, piercing gaze toward the boy.
"Rumors are for people with too much time and too little brain," Jinu's voice rang out clearly,
echoing through the hall.
"Jia is my responsibility.
If anyone has a problem with that,
they can take it up with me, not her."
The entire corridor fell into a stunned silence.
Jinu, the boy who never bothered with anyone's business,
had just publicly claimed her as his priority.
Jia looked up at him, her eyes brimming with tears—but this time, they weren't tears of fear.
They were tears of relief.
He walked her all the way to her desk before taking his own seat.
From that moment on, their story wasn't just a secret shared in a dark room; it was a bond the whole world had to acknowledge.