Bella had always known it was only a matter of time.
Secrets have a strange way of living in silence for years before slipping out the moment you pray they would stay buried. Her chest had been tight all morning, although she didn't know why until she heard the first whisper behind her locker.
"Did you know she's on a scholarship?"
"No wonder she's so quiet."
"I bet she's not even from around here. Probably just some charity case."
Her fingers slipped on the metal dial in front of her locker and the lock stuck. She kept her head down. Her breathing turned shallow. Her hands trembled slightly, even though she tried to keep her face calm. The hallway noise swelled in waves with laughter, bags slamming, gossip traveling faster than any rumour should. People she had never spoken to suddenly seemed to look in her direction with too much curiosity and too much judgment.
She forced the lock open at last. The door banged against the locker next to hers. She shoved her books inside and took out her notebook with a tight grip. Only then did she realize how hard she had dug her nails into her palms. They left small red marks that burned.
Bella inhaled, steady but shallow. She would go to class. Maybe it was nothing. Maybe it was just rumours catching fire like they often did.
She stepped outside into the courtyard to cut through toward the art wing. That was when she saw the group. Near the fountain. A circle of students forming around Claire like bees around a blooming flower. Claire's hair curled perfectly around her collar. She had that same immaculate cardigan and that effortless way of tilting her chin when she wanted attention.
Bella kept walking.
Then she heard her name slip through the air like a blade.
"Bella. I mean, can you believe it?"
Bella's steps stilled. The earbuds around her shoulders suddenly felt useless. She didn't turn, not yet. But her name repeated again, this time louder, as if Claire wanted to be sure she was listening.
"Can you believe she's been here on a full ride this whole time? Like not just merit or whatever. Everything paid. Tuition. Housing. Probably even her textbooks."
A few reactions bubbled from the crowd. Some surprised laughs, some muffled sounds of disbelief. Bella's pulse thundered in her ears.
Claire glanced around at her audience, smiling too sweetly, as if she deserved applause. "I mean, I do respect people who rise up from nothing. Totally inspiring. But it does make you wonder. Like, is she really at the same level as the rest of us? Or is it just… charity?"
Someone said wow. Another girl made a small clicking sound with her tongue.
Bella's breath turned sharp.
Claire kept going, her tone softer but dripping. "Some of us actually had to get in here on our own merits. Full tuition, yes, but earned. It's kind of strange to think she might not even be here if not for some anonymous donor. I guess we should be grateful she's decided to grace us with her presence. Yunho must be so generous to keep her around."
At the mention of his name, Bella felt something snap inside her.
It wasn't anger at the scholarship comment anymore. It was the assumption behind it. The way Claire dragged Yunho's name into something that was never her business. The way Claire twisted things to make Bella smaller than she really was.
A group of students along the sidewalk whispered to each other loud enough for Bella to hear.
"She's not even the type to be with someone like Yunho," one girl said. "A scholarship kid? Really?"
Bella turned.
Her expression was calm, but her eyes burned. She walked forward. Every step felt heavy and certain; like stepping out of herself into someone entirely new.
"Excuse me?"
She didn't raise her voice. She didn't need to. The way it cut through the noise made several students fall silent. Claire turned, eyebrows lifted just slightly.
"You think it's okay to talk about someone like that?" Bella's voice remained low and even. Her hands were at her sides, curling only slightly.
One girl shifted uncomfortably. Claire stepped forward, as if she enjoyed stepping into other people's pain.
"Don't shoot the messenger. We're just stating the truth," she replied with a smug smile. "Someone like Yunho doesn't need someone like… you. Don't take it so personally."
Bella took a single step forward, closing the space between them. She was shorter than Claire, but in that moment she seemed to tower. There was a trembling heat behind her ribs but her voice stayed steady.
"You really think you get to decide who deserves what?" she asked clearly. The crowd stilled. "You don't know me. You don't know anything about me or my family or what I have worked for. You don't get to rewrite my story in front of everyone like it's something for you to pick apart."
Claire rolled her eyes and gave a slight shrug. "I'm just saying what everyone else is already thinking. Don't be dramatic."
Bella stared at her, unmoving. "I'm not mad at the people whispering. I'm mad at you. For acting like you are qualified to measure another person's worth. I earned my place here. I earned everything I have. And you do not get to shame me for how my education is funded."
Claire blinked once, surprised at how direct the words were. A few students looked at Bella with new eyes but most quiet. Something shifted in the air. For the first time, Claire was not being admired. She was being watched.
Bella did not shout. She didn't cry. She simply said, her voice quiet but steel-edged, "Don't speak about me or my family like that ever again. Considered yourself warned."