Chapter 12

I had my mind wrapped around the whole Sehun ordeal this morning that I stayed longer than 5 minutes inside the comfort room when the bell rung and I stepped out of the classroom faster than anyone.

He said 'See you later, Soori'. But why did he say that? I couldn't get it out of my head that I splashed and splashed water on my face till I was soaked enough that I shivered.

"That didn't mean anything, right?" I muttered, looking at my own reflection in the mirror.

I just stared at myself in front of me, water dripping down from my chin, till the door opened, and I heard girls' voices echoing through the walls of the comfort room. In panic of being caught alone in this sort of place, specially by OSFC members, I quickly entered a cubicle and locked myself inside. I pulled down the seat cover and sat on in quietly—not daring to make any noise.

The voices became louder as the door swung close, and their silhouettes came into view from the small opening in between the door and the tiled flooring.

"You won't believe what I saw this morning!" A girl gushed to her friends. The gang squealed back in excitement asking her adamantly to spill the beans. "I happened to pass by the seniors hallway and saw that girl flirting with Sehun!" The others spewed grunts upon hearing the bad news.

Judging from my namelessness when she referred to me as 'that girl', she and her friends were freshmen; and members of the OSFC.

I listened quietly, trying to get the gist of their conversation. Was this what people have been talking about me? I was curious though I knew I wouldn't be hearing anything but rude things.

"You mean the one who punched Sehun oppa?!" Yuck with the oppa!

"Yeah, that one!" The first girl affirmed. "I think they were fighting or something. I didn't hear quite clearly but it was obvious that she was trying to lure oppa back!" I almost gagged.

"Eh?!" The other girls exclaimed.

"But what did Sehun oppa say? That kind of girl doesn't deserve him! He should just forget her!"

"That was what I was thinking." Girl no.1 said again. "But I heard him talking about asking her for another chance, so I guess he would still chase after her." I imagined her rolling her eyes while saying that and her girls rolling their eyes back. I wished they just kept rolling their eyes till it reached the back of their sockets. That way it might get stuck and they would never have a day to live seeing light; all they would see were their rotting brains.

"I hope not! Sehun oppa should just date a popular girl. Unlike that average-looking ." Now I had another nickname. . Whew. "And can't he see it? She was pining for that nerdy VP of the student council while flirting with him!" I frowned. What the hell did they say?! I almost slammed the door open and pulled on their collars at the accusation, but I glued my on the toilet cover and suppressed my anger. Relax. Relax. Relax! They can't see you, Soori!

"Oh! Now that you mentioned the VP! Did you see him these past few days? He wasn't wearing those freaking black rimmed glasses and he looked really, really—" This girl was obviously hyperventilating because she couldn't actually finish her sentence before she squealed like she was a dying walrus. Oh God.

"I knoooooow!" No.1 joined in the fangirling. "He looked really good without them! I think... I think... I might actually like him if he just stays that way!" They shrieked giddily at the thought, and then gushed about plans they could form to actually get the VP's attention from now on. Pathetic  school girls!

I really wanted to slap each of them for fantasizing over the Vice President of the student council, but they were gone before I could even kick the door open and scare them off. I was so enraged I screamed my lungs out when I was finally all alone in the comfort room.

Just because they finally saw the VP—who was also my bestfriend—and whose name was Kim Jongin—in his most glorious state, they were finally going to hit on him? How shallow each of them were! Did they only like every boy they laid their eyes on just for their appearance?! Even more pathetic than any spoiled bread full of molds!

I should do something before those freaking nut cracks do some damage to my pure best friend! I wouldn't let him fall victim to those shallow girls!

I went out of the comfort room still feeling edgy, mad, irked. My mind was already in the process of devising my own plan to stop the evil apocalypse from breaking out that I wasn't able to stop it when I bumped onto something hard on the way back to the council room which I often spent my lunch time in.

"Ow." I felt myself turning dizzy from the impact that I almost lost footing and fell down.

But the 'something' I bumped onto steadied me by my shoulders and spoke, "watch it."

It was then the face in front of me became clearer and I widened my eyes at who I saw.

"Yixing." I muttered, disbelieving I was actually seeing him in flesh, and not just some apparition.

It was such a long time since the last time I actually saw him. Zhang Yixing. Who was so angel-like and kind. Who was so cute with the admirable dimples. I wanted to hug him at that moment, claim him back, but the impish smirk on his face made me throw away my plans in a trash bin. He wasn't the same boy.

"Look who we have here." His smirk grew, his breath reeked of alcohol and cigarette. That wasn't new.

I nodded, saying, "I haven't seen you in so long. How are you?"

He was shocked, but didn't let me see too much of it as he let his expression go blank again. He probably didn't expect me to be this friendly, much more ask him how he was. Because ever since he transformed into this rebellious boy after middle school, he slowly drifted away from us. Gone were the days he spent playing with the five of us.

"Fine as always." He didn't sound snarky unlike whenever he talked to the teachers or other students, but the answer wasn't what I wanted. He was using his bravado even towards me. I hated it.

"I see." I said, just to prolong the conversation. "I'm sorry about bumping onto you." I wasn't really sorry—since bumping onto him was a miracle to me—but I said it anyways.

"It was fine. Just be careful who you bump into next time. Or else who knows what kind of trouble you'll get yourself into." He said, getting his smugness back. "You are just lucky you only bumped onto me." He pointed at himself and displayed a sickening smirk. Until when was he planning to act macho even in front of me? God, help!

I snorted, feeling comfortable now in front of him even though I knew he had scared the out of half the students of this school with his bad reputation. He used to be my friend after all. And even though I was stupid before not to try and get him back as a friend, I was willing to change my fate now. I wanted him to be my friend again at whatever cost. And I will work hard on that.

"I'm really lucky I bumped onto you of all people today." I said, he scrunched up his nose, seemingly confused of what I was meaning to say. He must think I turned psycho for thinking like that. Well, I guess I was. "Perhaps you want to hang out and have some catching up?" Now, he raised a brow, his gaze starting to become calculative. He was trying to read me.

I knew he wasn't going to agree with me despite saying that, I was just hoping it would have even the tiniest effect on him. 'Hello! One of your dearest friends still cares about you!', I wanted to say.

He had isolated himself from all the people in this school, except for the other guys who were just like him. His faux friends. They were all living to burn their lungs and destroy their livers. But I knew he wasn't doing it for nothing. Yixing must have had a very deep reason to do this three-sixty degree metamorphosis. And until I figured that out, I was going to thread waters, and the next phase of my plan would continue.

"Uh, well..." He scratched his temple, looking so so disinterested. "I still have to see the guys so maybe next time." He explained. I knew there wouldn't be a next time, but I nodded.

He gave me one last wave before turning around, hands in his pockets. He looked so confident, so sure, and dominating as he walked away from me like that, and I almost believed he was fine and I wasn't seeing a broken boy who had just hardened through time, had I not known better.

"Yixing!" He didn't stop when I called. It was as if he didn't hear me even if I was yelling. Still, I said what I wanted to say, "Don't forget about next time!" And then he was gone, without an answer or a confirmation.

I stayed rooted in my spot, thinking about the old days.

Yixing used to live five houses down Jongin and I's houses. He was someone we met when we were nine, and actually became good playmates with. He was kind, cute, and at that time I even preferred playing with him than Jongin because Yixing just exuded the kind of charm that even little girls like me would be pulled into. He was sweet like his angel-like appearance. And what I liked the most about him was that he always let me ride his back on our way home after a day's play.

We found out that he studied in the same elementary school as ours when summer ended. He was in a different class than Jongin and I, but we spent every lunch together. We were an inseparable trio since then even though it was funny how too diverse were our personalities—Jongin was too nerdy, Yixing was charming, I was the average little monster (I often got in trouble!).

Yixing was easy to fit in the crowd; and he was really popular back then among boys and girls. They liked him so much that they always crowded around him in class and listened to his escapades as a child. We happily watched him in the back, because Yixing was shy and yet he was able to gain many friends other than us. Jongin and I, on the other hand, were already contented with who we had—we didn't try to fit in. We knew we were no Yixing. So it was impossible to befriend the whole grade like him. And that was actually relieving because we didn't want the added attention.

In middle school, we met Hana, Minjee and Kyungsoo. We easily clicked together; the six of us.

Hana was the cynical one of the three. She wasn't really much of a talker, but her jokes were her specialty. Her humor was just as twisted as her that you would never really get it if you didn't really know her. But her loyalty to all of us was unparalleled. She cared like a mother would. Her instinct was just as sharp as her tongue, but her words were a melter. She was warm inside her frozen shell.

Minjee was outgoing. She loved adventure and boys. Among the three of us, she was the go-getter when it came to the love department. But she wasn't really that tough after a break up. She was a heavy crier. But that would be always a phase when it came to her. She cried over all the boys she liked, even the douchebags like Jino.

Still, Minjee was a really happy girl. She liked making us all smile, even with the little things she could do for us. But opposite to that, she had a very short temper—especially to people she didn't like. That was how bipolar this girl was.

Kyungsoo was an achiever like Jongin. Reason why they bonded best during discussions of math equations and the periodic table of elements. He was also a leader, and had been part of the student council since we don't know when. That was why in senior year he was finally voted the student body president.

Like my best friend, Kyungsoo was smart but very reserved like Jongin. They were so alike in that department that sometimes I get left behind when they used to have their 'academic' dates. Good thing that when I couldn't handle the loneliness anymore, they let me tag along during one of those dates. But the bad thing was that, after one date, I went home with an overheated brain. Their conversations were so intellectual that I wasn't able to handle it, and since then, I never attempted to try third-wheeling their dates. Ever.

Kyungsoo was the mother of the group; at that time he was the most advanced in learning everything, that we left the chores to him. It was hard seeing him move around in sweat without asking us for help, but he never complained. Like, never, never! He was level-headed too. And what I liked most about him was that, he understood I was naturally a quiet person despite my tough exterior.

Middle school was probably the most golden days we ever had. Until high school actually appeared before us. Many things changed. Kyungsoo and Jongin grew taller. Hana decided to do a bob with her hair. Minjee applied for ballet in the local dance school. And Yixing moved away to another neighborhood without telling anyone of us.

We were shocked upon hearing the news, but nobody really knew the reason why the Zhangs moved away. There were rumors spreaded by Mrs. Kang—the baker's wife, saying how one of their children got into big trouble and had to move away to avoid humiliation. People said drugs must have been involved if they even had to disappear. Not any of the five of us believed their theories though. We were still waiting for Yixing to say anything