A SILENT VEDENTTA

Everything felt unreal once I was back in the classroom. The voices, the rustling pages, the teacher's lecture—it all blurred. I just sat there, staring at my desk, my mind stuck on rewind. After I entered the class i could sense joon-seo's sad gaze on me. 

Min-ah's fake smile as if nothing happened—greeting me at the door like an old friend. How does she act so normal?

 But I couldn't shake the image of them. It played over and over like a cruel loop.

Then it hit me. 

"Did you forget everything she did to you?" What did Min-ah mean? 

"Attention, students." 

My thoughts were cut short by Ms. Oh's voice. 

"As you all know, the JAF is just around the corner. Starting tomorrow, classes will end at 12 p.m. The rest of the day should be spent preparing for the festival. Please meet with your respective club representatives today. We'll reconvene tomorrow after lunch to discuss our class activity."

The room instantly buzzed with excitement.

"Finally!" 

"Took them long enough." 

"What's our class doing?" 

"I'm so excited!"

I'd heard from my seniors that the JAF—short for Jirisan Annual Festivities—was the highlight of the school year, and participation was mandatory for everyone. 

It stretched over an entire week. 

Three days were dedicated to the sports festival, covering both indoor and outdoor events. 

Two days were reserved for art exhibitions and performances. 

The sixth day was all about class activities—each homeroom preparing something unique. 

And finally, the last day wrapped up with a school-hosted banquet, fireworks, and the much-anticipated end-of-year dance.

I wasn't sure if I should be happy that the festival would keep me distracted… 

or depressed that I wouldn't have anyone to dance with. 

*Sigh. Tough days.*

Still, I made my way to the club room. 

Our club representatives, Ha-yun and Min-young, had already gathered everyone and were going over the basics.

Once everyone had gathered in the club room, min-jun stood in front and clapped his hands for attention.

"So, just a quick heads-up," he began. "the teachers will be collecting names for all events directly from their respective classrooms."

Min-young chimed in, "so make sure you actually participate in something. It's a big deal for the school—and for our club too."

"Yeah, let's represent well, alright?" min-jun added with a small smile.

I nodded quietly from the back. That was… less stressful than I expected.

Anyway, the day came to a close, and I could already tell—the next few weeks were going to be chaotic.

The next afternoon, right after lunch, we gathered again as per instructions. Ms. Oh stood at the front, clipboard in hand, her usual stern look softened just slightly.

"Alright, Class 1-3," she began. "As you know, we need to decide on our class activity for the JAF. Let's hear your suggestions."

Hands shot up.

"A retro café!" 

"A DIY photo booth corner?" 

"Ooh, what about a face-painting stall!" 

"Horror room, like last year's Class 2-1?" 

"Let's do a game booth! Like ring toss or mini darts!"

The class buzzed with excitement and overlapping voices. Ms. Oh scribbled each idea onto the board before clapping once.

"Settle down. Now let's vote. Remember, we want something fun, manageable, and preferably something that can bring in a lot of visitors."

After rounds of discussion, debates, and some people changing sides three times, the final tally came in.

Booths + Sweetheart Stand

It was surprisingly close.

"So we'll do a line of game booths," tae-il said, already pulling out a notebook. "Like balloon darts, ring toss, and maybe a 'guess the song' challenge."

"And the sweetheart stand," added Hye-jin, grinning mischievously. "Where visitors can 'rent' a classmate for 30 minutes. You know, like walk around the festival with them, take Polaroids… cute stuff."

Groans and laughter followed.

"Are we seriously doing that?" someone muttered.

Ms. Oh sighed. "As long as everything stays respectful and appropriate, I'll allow it. But I'm trusting you all to be responsible."

Then, Ms. Oh turned on the projector, and the board lit up with a long list of sports, arts, and performance activities.

She read each one aloud, pausing after each to jot down the names of those interested.

"Tug of War. Mini Obstacle Course. Relay Challenge. Mini Marathon—for girls—and Marathon for the boys. Table Tennis. Basketball. Volleyball. Throwball. Fitness Challenge. Dodgeball…"

The list felt endless.

"Gallery Walk. Flash Mob. Cosplay. Skit. Dance Showcase. Photography Display. Runway. Clay Modelling..."

I gave my name for the mini-marathon, the relay race—of course—runway (because why not try being brave for once), and clay modelling.

Still, anything was better than staying idle and spiraling in my thoughts.

Min-ah, as expected, chose the flash mob and skit. She always craved the spotlight—even when it wasn't hers to take.

Soo-hee went for the relay race too, and added cosplay to her list. Something about dressing up as her favorite historical drama character.

Joon-seo, ever the quiet one, signed up for basketball, relay race and the mini obstacle course. Cool, controlled—just like always.

And Hyun-min? He raised his hand for dodgeball and the full marathon, grinning like he was already breaking records.

Almost every girl in the room signed up for the runway. Every boy, without fail, for tug of war.

I hated the thought of having Soo-hee and Joon-seo on the same relay team as me. The idea of running side by side with people who'd once left me behind—it felt like some cruel joke.

But it is what it is, I guess.

No matter how much I wanted to run from the past, I was still stuck on the same track as them—at least for now.

And with the Jirisan Annual Festivities creeping closer, one thing was certain…

This race was only just beginning.