Chapter 1: The Rules
The paper landed on the dining table with a soft thud.
Haerin blinked at it, her chopsticks frozen midair like they'd been struck by lightning. The steam from her rice danced in the air, but she felt a chill run down her spine anyway.
"What's this?" she asked, tilting her head like a curious puppy.
"Read it."
Minjae's voice was flat. Completely blank. Like he was asking her to pass the kimchi, not… whatever this was.
She set her chopsticks down carefully well, she tried to, but one slipped and clattered to the floor. "Oops, five-second rule!" She picked it up quickly, wiped it with a napkin, then focused on the paper.
Three lines. Written in his perfect, sharp handwriting.
Don't talk to me at school.
Don't tell anyone you live here.
Don't fall for me.
Haerin's heart stopped.
Then it sprinted like it was training for a marathon.
"You're kidding, right?" Her laugh was way too high-pitched and nervous.
Minjae didn't even look up from his food. "Do I look like I joke?"
Nope. He never joked. Kang Minjae was all cold stares and sharp edges, like he'd been carved out of ice. Student council president. Top of every class. Untouchable perfection.
But people said he used to smile. She'd heard whispers at school. How different he used to be before he turned into… this.
"This is ridiculous," she said, trying for a smile. It probably looked more like a grimace.
"Sign it."
"I'm not signing anything!" she burst out, waving her hands so wildly she nearly knocked over her water glass.
He finally looked at her. His dark eyes were like black holes, zero warmth, all gravity. "Then pack your bags."
Her breath caught.
She had nowhere to go. Aunt Minji made that clear when she moved in last month. This house, this arrangement, it's your only option, Haerin. Don't mess it up.
She puffed her cheeks out and muttered under her breath, "So dramatic…" Then, louder, "You can't be serious."
"Dead serious." He leaned back in his chair like a king passing judgment. "School starts tomorrow. These are the rules. Follow them, or leave."
Her eyes slid back to the last line.
Don't fall for me.
Too late for that one.
Haerin had been head-over-heels for Kang Minjae since the first time she saw him two months ago. When Aunt Minji told her about the arranged engagement, and she realized the perfect, untouchable student council president would one day be her husband? Yeah, that was basically every drama heroine's dream come true.
Sure, Aunt Minji said love at first sight was stupid. Maybe it was. But her heart clearly didn't get that memo.
Now here he was three feet away, looking like a Greek god with the personality of a block of ice.
"Why?" The word slipped out before she could swallow it.
Something flickered in his eyes, gone before she could figure out what it was.
"Because I don't want you here." His words were knives. "But we're stuck with each other. So we follow the rules."
Ouch. Double ouch. But Haerin being Haerin, she clung to optimism like a life raft. Maybe he was just stressed? Maybe this was his weird way of… protecting her from school drama? Yeah. Probably that.
"Fine," she said, grabbing the pen. Her hand shook a little, okay a lot as she scrawled her name.
Shin Haerin.
Her letters looked like a shy mouse next to his bold, confident handwriting.
"There." She pushed the paper toward him with a flourish and a big, fake smile. "Happy now?"
He folded it neatly and slipped it into his pocket. "Thrilled."
The sarcasm was so dry it could have started a desert.
Haerin jumped to her feet, too fast, and her chair screeched like nails on a chalkboard. Then, because the universe hated her, her elbow smacked into her water glass.
"Oh no no no!" She lunged for it, grabbed napkins, and somehow managed to spread the water further. "I'm so sorry, I'm such a klutz, I'll clean it up…"
"Just go, Haerin."
Her cheeks burned. She grabbed the soggy napkins and shuffled toward the door.
"Haerin."
She froze, back to him, clutching the crumpled napkins like they were her last shred of dignity.
"Rule number two," he said quietly. "Don't tell anyone you live here. I mean it. If word gets out about the engagement…"
"I know." Her voice was barely a whisper.
There was silence afterwards and she waited, hoping he'd say something, anything, soft to take the edge off.
He didn't.
So she walked away.
In her room, she pressed her back against the door and slid down to the floor with a big, dramatic sigh. The rules flashed in her head like a neon sign.
Don't fall for me.
Too late.
Seriously, how was she supposed to not fall for someone who looked like that? The universe clearly had a personal vendetta against her.
Perfect jawline, perfect hair, perfect everything. Even his frown was hot. What kind of injustice was that?
"Maybe I should just transfer schools and find a nice, average-looking guy," she mumbled into her knees. That would be smart. Logical. Sensible.
Too bad she'd never been any of those things when it came to pretty faces.
And now… there was no going back.