A Sudden Encounter in Central Park

p>Spring had turned into May, the middle of the third semester for the third-year students.

p>A gentle breeze carrying the soft scent of spring stirred the dense greenery of Central Park.

p>Sunlight glided lazily across the ornate limestone facade of the historic limestone buildings lining Fifth Avenue, directly across from the park.

p>Olivia, still in her uniform, had layered a short-sleeved shirt beneath her dress for the first time that year.

p>Her father Allan was unavailable today because he had volunteered for the school charity bazaar, so he had called Song Soon-ye to come pick her up.

p>Song Soon-ye was a sitter whom Olivia had known since she was a newborn, even though she had passed her sixtieth birthday.

p>She had lived in America for nearly thirty years, yet her English remained imperfect.

p>It was her influence that had helped Olivia learn to speak Korean so well.

p>Olivia, who was notoriously shy, relaxed into ordinary conversation like any other girl when she was with Song Soon-ye.

p>Holding the older woman’s hand, she walked toward Fifth Avenue, only for Hunter’s face to suddenly appear out of nowhere.

p>Olivia let out a startled squeak and froze in place.

p>“Come out to the tree house the moment we get home,” Hunter whispered low to her ear, shoulders hunched.

p>All eyes around them snapped toward them at once.

p>Hunter vanished back into the crowd of students heading to class before she could even answer, as abruptly as he had appeared.

p>Tree house? What was that about?

p>The courtyard of their apartment building had a tree house with a slide.

p>That was clearly what he meant for her to come out there.

p>They often played in the playroom together, and if Hunter grew bored, Rosa would take them downstairs to the tree house in the courtyard.

p>Hunter was like a flaming ball of explosive energy, shooting flames in every direction.

p>While Olivia went down the slide twice and sat on the swing swinging her legs, he couldn’t contain the boiling energy inside him and climbed onto the roof of the tree house, arms wide as if ready to fly off somewhere.

p>Just watching him made Olivia’s strength drain away, so she quickly slipped inside the tree house and sat quietly reading a book.

p>Hunter preferred causing chaos by himself rather than having a pesky bookworm around while he played.

p>That was why, even though they shared the same space, they still played separately.

p>This was the first time he had personally invited her to meet.

p>They had been meeting far too often anyway.

p>Why did he have to ask her to come to the tree house?

p>Olivia stood there, face puzzled, when someone else suddenly leaned in from the side.

p>“Olivia! Are you friends with Hunter Hamilton?”

p>Sienna asked, curiosity sparkling in her big sky-blue eyes.

p>She was the most popular girl among the third-year students.

p>Olivia blinked in surprise and answered hesitantly.

p>“…No.”

p>Sienna had never spoken to her before.

p>She didn’t hold any special grudge against Olivia; she simply had no interest in the quiet bookworm sitting in the corner.

p>She only played with the girls in the group her mother had carefully formed.

p>Rebecca Reid, Sienna’s mother, was well-known among the third-year students.

p>Last semester, Sienna had proudly created a board about Rebecca for a project where students chose a female role model from history or famous figures and researched her.

p>Rebecca was an Astor School alumna who had become an editor at a renowned fashion magazine and then a women’s clothing designer.

p>With tens of millions of followers on social media, she displayed her lavish and glamorous life without hesitation in front of the public.

p>Sienna often appeared on her mother’s social media as well.

p>Thanks to that, the mother-daughter duo were treated like celebrities at school.

p>Rebecca even threw a splendid party for Sienna at their townhouse, and the third-year girls were dying to be invited to her sleepover parties.

p>Sienna tilted her head while looking at Olivia.

p>“I’ve seen the two of you together sometimes. You’re not friends?”

p>Are you friends with Hunter?

p>Olivia couldn’t answer right away.

p>If she had to be honest, Hunter was like the guard holding the key to the treasure island called the library inside the playroom.

p>She could only keep getting in there if she showed herself well.

p>But she couldn’t say that out loud.

p>They had spent long hours together as if they were family, yet in school they acted as if they barely knew each other, never exchanging even a glance.

p>There was no special reason; they had lived like that since kindergarten, so suddenly pretending to know each other now would only make it more awkward.

p>Most importantly, Hunter hated her.

p>Olivia was no longer afraid of him like before, but she didn’t like him either.

p>So it was hard to answer Sienna’s question.

p>They saw each other often like friends, yet what should she call them if not friends?

p>While Olivia mulled it over, Sienna frowned in frustration.

p>“Oh well, never mind.”

p>She tossed her honey-blonde hair and turned away.

p>Olivia could hear her mutter as she walked off.

p>“That girl is too shy; she’s so annoying.”

p>Olivia bit her lip and lowered her head.

p>She knew what the kids called her.

p>Shy girl.

p>Some even said the phrase painfully shy in a mocking tone.

p>Olivia had always been afraid of strangers since she was little.

p>Even now, the thought of suddenly being in the spotlight made her dread it more than anything.

p>Allan Parker, her father, had grown exasperated with her.

p>He had warned her that living with such a personality in a land like America where extroverts were far more respected would be miserable her whole life.

p>He even blamed his own personality for hers.

p>Allan was a quiet, introverted man who worked in the back office of an investment bank and had been completely wrapped around a twelve-year-old Olivia.

p>When Olivia pestered him to look into tutoring academies, Allan comforted her by saying he had been just like her when he was young and that he had improved with age.

p>Olivia sincerely wished she could be bright, lively, and confident like that.

p>But she couldn’t change who she was at heart.

p>The moment someone asked her a sudden question, her mind went blank and her throat locked up.

p>Bees buzzed inside her stomach as if ready to sting.

p>On the walk home, Olivia’s shoulders slumped dejectedly.

p>It wasn’t a difficult question; why couldn’t she answer?

p>If she just said they weren’t friends, that would have been enough.

p>She felt stupid and frustrated.

p>And she resented Hunter.

p>How dare he do something he never did before?

p>Hunter stood out in any crowd.

p>When he appeared, people’s gazes naturally turned toward him and then to anyone standing next to him.

p>The person in question didn’t care, but Olivia felt uncomfortable.

p>It wasn’t just because her last name was Hamilton.

p>There were plenty of children with famous last names at the top-tier private schools in Manhattan—Lafayette, Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Kennedy.

p>Hunter was just one of them.

p>His tall, athletic build made him stand out among the ordinary kids.

p>But there were other tall, athletic boys around.

p>The real difference was that Hunter acted as if there was nothing scary in the world.

p>He held his head high everywhere, looking down at others beneath his lofty nose.

p>He never shrank; he was bold and fearless about anything he did.

p>If Olivia had been asked a random question, she would have panicked like Hunter never would.

p>He would have ignored the question if it was hard to answer or mocked the stupid one.

p>Even though he did as he pleased, the kids still followed him.

p>Olivia had never seen Hunter alone at school.

p>He would arrive surrounded by friends, leave when he got bored, and the others would chase after him yelling his name.

p>Olivia envied him.

p>She wasn’t jealous of his popularity, but she truly wanted that careless personality that didn’t care what anyone said and an unshakable self-confidence.

p>A popular boy from Alton School suddenly whispering something in the ear of the shy girl from Astor School was exactly why the children were so confused.