If Choi Hana had a motto, it would be: "Always keep a lollipop in your mouth and a secret in your pocket."
With one hand tucked into the pocket of her oversized hoodie and the other casually twirling a grape-flavored lollipop between her fingers, she stepped through the towering gates of Seoul International Elite High—the land of flawless uniforms, spotless shoes, and students whose parents owned entire zip codes.
She looked around, unimpressed.
"Fancy prison," she muttered under her breath, blowing a bubble that popped with a snappy pfft.
Behind her, a black BMW discreetly pulled away. Inside sat her "bodyguard"—more like her part-time babysitter—who'd been instructed to blend in. He wore a suit so tight he looked like a sausage in a tux. Hana waved him off without looking back.
She didn't look like trouble. In fact, with her short straight hair, round glasses, and earbuds tucked in, she looked like she'd be voted "Most Likely to Be Ignored at a Party."
But the Seoul underworld knew better.
They whispered her nickname: "Sugar Snap." Sweet on the outside. Deadly on the inside.
At the front desk, the secretary, a middle-aged woman with overly penciled eyebrows, looked her up and down. "Name?"
"Choi Hana. Transferring from… nowhere fun," Hana replied, spinning her lollipop like a tiny lightsaber.
The woman squinted at her computer. "Hmm. I have you listed as… oh, you're in Class 2-A. That's with—"
"I'll find it," Hana said, already walking off.
Meanwhile, on the top floor of the school, Jeon Minjae was sipping espresso like he was born doing it—which, according to rumors, he was. The boy wore a navy blazer better than most models. His hair was art. His jawline had probably cut glass.
He was the son of the Jeon Group CEO—basically the crown prince of capitalism.
Everything about him screamed calm, calculated, and just arrogant enough to be annoying.
Across from him, his best friend Jinwoo burst into the student lounge like a panicked puppy.
"She's here!"
"Who?" Minjae asked, not even glancing up from his tablet.
"The new girl. Transfer student. The one from... that family."
Minjae blinked slowly. "You mean the rumored K-Dragon Syndicate family?"
Jinwoo nodded frantically. "She blew up a biker gang in Busan with a vending machine."
"She what?"
"I don't know if that's true," Jinwoo whispered. "But I want it to be."
Minjae finally looked up, intrigued. "Mafia blood in a school full of heirs? This should be fun."
Cut to: Homeroom 2-A.
The teacher, Mr. Do, cleared his throat. "Class, we have a new student today. Please welcome Miss Choi Hana."
Hana strolled in like it was her runway. Her hoodie had cartoon ducks fighting in a street gang embroidered on the back. Her earpiece blinked softly under her hair. She didn't bow. She didn't smile. She popped her gum.
The class collectively gasped.
She scanned the room like she was choosing her next victim. Her eyes stopped on Minjae. He was leaning back in his chair, half-lidded eyes, sipping from a thermos like this was a coffee shop, not a classroom.
Their gazes locked.
Electric tension.
The kind you only get when mafia meets money.
She took the empty seat beside him. No hesitation. Pulled out her phone. Started blasting music in her earpiece. BTS, but remixed with gunshots.
Minjae leaned slightly toward her, voice smooth. "That's against the rules, you know."
She turned, popped the lollipop from her mouth, and whispered, "Rules are for people who have something to lose."
He smirked. "You talk big for a new kid."
She winked. "I fight bigger."
Suddenly, a flying paper airplane nailed Hana in the forehead.
The class gasped again. The culprit? Park Sora. Queen bee. Plastic-smile elite. Daughter of a fashion mogul. She flicked her hair like it was insured.
"Sorry," Sora said sweetly. "It must've slipped."
Hana stood up. So did Minjae, instinctively.
But instead of blowing up, Hana calmly walked to the front of the room, grabbed a whiteboard marker, and drew a very detailed cartoon of Sora falling into a trash can labeled "High Horse."
The class exploded into laughter. Even the teacher chuckled.
Sora's face turned beet red.
Minjae clapped slowly. "Impressive. You've been here five minutes and started a war."
"I was born in one," Hana replied, sitting back down.
The bell rang. Everyone scrambled out except Minjae and Hana.
"You're not what I expected," he said.
"You're exactly what I expected," she replied, unwrapping another lollipop.
As they walked out together, the hallway buzzed with whispers.
And just like that, Seoul International Elite High had its first Sugar-Coated Showdown.