26

I get back up, sniffling, and continue walking down the hill. I let out a few more shakey breaths, slowly stepping along the sidewalk. I wipe my tears with my sleeve, but become annoyed with the fact that I was crying, so I rub my face harder. With each wipe I had hoped that the previous tears she made me cry would end up going away too. I wanted no trace of her effect on me to be left on my face. I run my fingers through my hair before grabbing both sides of my jacket and wrapping them around me tighter. My breath was visible in the cold air. My face felt even colder since I was just crying, I wouldn't be surprised if my nose was red.

After what felt like an eternity, I still seemed to have a long way to go before I reach the bottom. I sigh to myself, just now realizing I don't know where to go. I move some hair away from my face as I try to think of how I'll get to Jugyeong's from here. As I continue to think, I pass even more large houses on my way down.

"Yusoi?" I hear a quiet voice ask.

I stop and turn to see Suho emerging from a house with a trash bag in hand.

"Suho?" I say back in the same tone. "You live here?" I ask, looking at the big house standing behind him.

"Yeah. What are you doing here?" He asks as he makes his way over to the trash can, throwing away the bag he once held.

"I left Haeun's house, I decided not to stay there anymore."

"Did something happen?" He asks, walking over to me.

"You could say that." I say, gripping tighter onto my jacket from the anger that came from remembering what happened.

"Do you know how to get to Jugyeong's from here?" I shake my head. He chuckles. "How did you expect to get there, then?"

"I was going to figure out something." I mumble.

"Wait here." He says, jogging away and back to his house.

He comes back shortly after, jogging back to me while putting on a coat.

"I'll walk you there." He says, already starting to walk off.

I just accept it and follow after him.

"Won't your parents wonder where you're going?"

"No. I live alone."

"You don't live with your dad?"

He shakes his head. I recall moments of the fight I saw them have.

"I guess we're both not fond of our parents." I mumble.

I notice him smile out of the corner of my eye.

-

"Here." He says as we approach Jugyeong's house.

"Thank you." I say, turning to him.

He nods his head and turns around to walk away. I give him a questioning look, but turn around and walk up to Jugyeong's house. I try to open the gate, but it's locked. I turn and still see Suho. I rush back over to him.

"Suho!" I whisper shout, being cautious of the sleeping people.

He turns around quickly, causing me to only be able to stop a little before bumping into him. I back up and look up at him.

"The gate's locked. Can you call Jugyeong?"

He nods his head and pulls out his phone. He dials her and puts the phone to his ear. The ringing can be heard.

"We're sorry. The number you have tried calling is not available to pick up. You can try cal-"

He groans and hangs up.

"I forgot she's a heavy sleeper." I say, annoyed.

He tries calling her again... and again and finally one last time before giving up.

"I don't think she's going to answer." He says, putting the phone back in his pocket.

I roll my eyes.

"I kind of got that." I say sarcastically.

"Let's just go back to your mom's." He suggests, turning around.

My eyes grow wide and I grab his arm, stopping him.

"No! I will not go back there even if you dragged my dead body!" I whisper-shout. He looks at me weirdly and sighs. "If I can understand you not living with your dad, then you can understand maybe why I don't want to live with Haeun." I say, more like pleading.

He looks at me and nods his head.

"Okay. I won't take you back there." I let out a sigh of relief and let go of his arm. "Where do you suggest you go, then?"

"I'm not sure." I say.

He looks at me with an annoyed expression, but I try to act like I don't notice it.

"Come on." He says, turning around and walking away again.

"Where are we going?" I ask.

"A friends." Is all he says.

-

We stop in front of an apartment door. He pulls out his phone to make a call.

"Hello?" Someone on the other end says.

"I need you to open your door." Suho replies.

"What?"

"I'm outside of your apartment and hurry up." He says before hanging up.

Rustling is heard from the inside before the sound of the door being unlocked. It opens to reveal a tired Seojun.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing here at this ti-" He stops when he notices me.

His eyes grow wide. I smile awkwardly.

"What are you doing here? What is he doing with you?" He asks, turning to glare at Suho.

"Relax, she doesn't want to stay at her mom's and Jugyeong won't pick up, so I brought her here."

"What?" Seojun asks, surprised.

"You owe me from when I helped you with... you know." He says, clearing his throat.

Seojun also looks down, uncomfortable with the memory. I look between the two of them, confused.

"Can I please stay here? Just for tonight. Then I'll go to Jugyeong's." I say to him.

He looks back at me and nods his head.

"Sure." He says, opening the door wider to let me in.

"Thanks." I say to him as I walk inside. "Thanks again, Suho." I say.

He nods his head and turns to leave. Seojun closes the door and locks it. I look around the cozy apartment. It felt like a home.

"You can sleep on the couch, I'll get you a blanket and pillow." He says before yawning and walking off.

I nod my head, putting on a pair of slippers he handed me, and walk over to the couch. I sit down and take off my jacket, setting it to the side. I lay back, letting out a deep breath. Seojun comes back and hands me a thick blanket and a pillow. I take it from him.

"Thank you." I whisper, setting the pillow to the side and unfolding the blanket.

"You want to sleep in that?" He asks.

I stop and look at the outfit.

"It's all I have, okay?" I say back, a little agitated.

He clicks his tongue and walks off. I cover myself in the blanket and lay my head on the pillow. I hear footsteps coming back and then something being thrown onto me.

"Hey!" I whisper.

I remove the stuff that was thrown on me, realizing it was a shirt and a pair of sweatpants. I look at Seojun and even though it was dark, I could tell he was blushing.

"Sleeping in a blouse and a skirt isn't going to be comfortable." He tries to excuse.

I smile at him.

"Oh, so I get the honor of wearing your clothes?" I tease.

He clears his throat, the blush on his face becoming more red, even though I couldn't exactly see it.

"Thanks." I say, taking the clothes and standing up. "Where's your bathroom?" I ask him

He points.

"Down the hall and make a left." He says.

I nod my head and tip-toe into the bathroom. I turn on the light, my eyes slightly stinging from how bright it was and begin to change. As I put his shirt over my head, I become overwhelmed with his scent. I smile to myself. I fold up my clothes and carry them back out into the living room. Seojun was sitting on the couch. I walk over and set my clothes next to my jacket. I take a seat beside him and he covers my lap with the blanket, the rest covering him.

"I take it things didn't go well." He says softly.

I shake my head, trying to fight back anymore tears because I was sick of crying. And I slightly had a headache from it.

"Not at all. I already didn't like the idea of staying with her to begin with, but when I saw she had a new family-"

"What?" He asks, shocked.

I turn to look at him.

"Yeah. They're only three years younger than me, too. So, that only means she was pregnant when she left." I say quietly.

He reaches under my arms and pulls me into a hug, his chin resting on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry." He whispers into my ear.

His voice was soft sounding, but also deep. It sent shivers throughout my whole body. I wrap my arms around him, returning the hug.

"It's okay." I say as I lay my head on his shoulder.

-

I was woken up by the sun shining brightly onto my face. I cover my eyes with my hand and open them. I notice I was facing towards the balcony, which was weird because I could have sworn I put the pillow on the side facing away from it. My eyes adjust to the light and I put my hand down. I yawn and hear a groan. I freeze and realize their was an arm wrapped around my waist. I look up and see Seojun's sleeping face really close to mine. My legs were draped across his and both, not just one apparently, of his arms hugged my waist.

"What the hell?" I mouth.

Seojun groans again, hugging me tighter and pulling me even closer into his chest. He nuzzles his head on top of mine and lets out a happy sigh. I smile to myself.

"What is this?" Someone suddenly asks.

I feel myself tense up, but I close my eyes and pretend I went back to sleep. Their footsteps become closer and a gasp is heard.

"Hey! Han Seojun!" They yell.

"What?" He asks, tired.

I feel his head lift from on top of mine.

"What are you doing?" They ask.

"What do you-" He stops midsentence.

I'm assuming he realized he was sleeping under me.

"It's not what it looks like." He says.

"It looks like you got yourself a girlfriend." They tease. "Oh! Is that Yusoi?" They ask, their voice closer.

"She said something happened at her mom's; Suho brought her here."

"Oh, Suho? Jealous?" She asks.

"Shut it Gowoon."

Gowoon laughs.

"Well, good luck moving without waking her up." She says, her footsteps becoming distant.

A door closes and Seojun sighs. I feel him squeeze me slightly before his head rests on top of mine again. I open my eyes and try to refrain myself from laughing.

"Boo!" I say, poking him in his chest.

"What-" He jolts up, his arms falling from my waist.

I laugh as I look at him.

"Were you trying to go back to sleep?" I ask, completely amused by the situation.

He frowns.

"So what if I was." He says confidently, wrapping his arms back around my waist. "Do you have a problem with it?" He asks, leaning closer to my face.

"Hey, it's not very cool of you to take advantage of me because I was upset."

"What?" He asks surprised as he leans away from me.

I laugh again and take his arms off of my waist. I get up and walk over to my jacket. I pull out the pill bottle and turn back to him.

"Do you have bottled water?" I ask.

"Yeah, it's in the fridge." He says, slightly embarrassed.

I laugh at him again and walk over to the kitchen.

"I'm going to take a shower, leave whenever you feel like it." He says, quickly walking away.

I close the fridge and open the water, taking the pill.

-

"And here he is when he thought walking around the house naked was cool." Gowoon says as she points to a picture of Seojun in a photo album.

I laugh.

"He doesn't look very young here." I say, raising my eyebrow at it.

"That's because he was eight." She says, shivering as if she remembers the faze.

I laugh louder.

"I'll be back." I say as I get up.

She hums and closes the photo album. I walk to over to her door and open it.

"Don't think I haven't noticed that you're wearing his clothes." She says in a teasing tone.

I feel myself blush and look back at her.

"It would have been uncomfortable to wear a blouse and skirt to bed." I say defensively before quickly leaving her room.

I walk over to the bathroom feeling embarrassed and quickly open the door. I look up and see a naked Seojun. My eyes widen as I let out a scream. He screams back. I close the door quickly and try to catch my breath. I cover my eyes and feel my face heat up.

"What was that?" Gowoon comes out of her room and asks.

I turn around, my eyes still closed.

"Can you bring me to your room?" I ask. I feel her grab my arm and lead me to her room. She sits me on her bed. "Can you also let me change in here?" I ask.

"Sure." She says with a weirded out tone.

My eyes are still covered until she places my clothes on my lap.

"Thank you." I say.

I hear her walk out and close the door behind her. I move my hands from my eyes and grip my clothes, smacking myself in the face with them.

-

I crack open the door, peeking out and seeing that the coast was clear. I step out and turn to gently close the door behind me. I let out a sigh of relief and turn around. I jump when I see Seojun standing behind me. I back up against the door.

"Why didn't you knock?" He asks, seeming to be upset and embarrassed.

"I-I thought you were done. The shower was off-"

"The door was closed!" He says.

I cover my face with my hands.

"Sorry. I'm sorry." I say, looking back up at him.

His eyes shift around. He clears his throat.

"Well, I better get back to Haeun's to pick up my phone." I say quickly, moving past him.

He grabs my arm and stops me. I turn back to him.

"I thought you didn't want to go back there?"

I take my arm away from his grip.

"I want a phone." I say. "I've never had one. Besides, how else am I supposed to plan my date with you?" I ask.

He smiles at me.

"You still want to go out with me?"

I scoff.

"Of course I do." I reply.

"You're right, what you saw should have been even more of a reason." He says, smiling proudly to himself.

My smile falls and I slap his shoulder. He looks at me and laughs. I couldn't help but smile at his happy expression.

"Hold on." He says, walking away.

I watch him as he disappears in a room, stuff moving around was heard and he emerges back from it. He happily rushes over to me and takes my hand, flipping it so the palm was facing up. I look at him, watching his happy expression as he clicks the pen he retrieved and writes something on my hand. I look down as he finishes and see his number with a smiley face at the end of it. I smile. I look back up at him.

"Text me once you get it."

I nod my head.

"I will."