[CONTENTID1]CHAPTER TWENTY[/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]

He felt sluggish scrambling through the halls of the school, his back in pain and eyes burning from the bright sunlight filtering in through the dirty school windows. Life seemed to be at an all-time low these days, with MiRan God knows where, Hobi being locked up in his rooms- from where he sometimes heard chocked sobs- and JungKook looking more and more like a wandering soul rather than a teen full of life.

He couldn’t help but pin all of the gloominess on one person- MiRan. She had come into their life so unexpectedly, bringing something new to all of them and changing their routine completely. Hobi seemed to forget all of his problems and JungKook’s cheeks were painted a soft pink whenever he was with her.

Then she was gone and everything crumpled with a `poof`. Maybe befriending her was his worst decision, but at the time she was so weak and vulnerable…

Turning a corner, he heard the voices of TaeHyung and Kim Tan, conversing in hushed tones which was so unusual JiMin froze for a second, as if slapped. “What are you two conversing about, again?”

TaeHyung startled at his presence, but quickly his stiffened back went back to its slouch. “MiRan isn’t in school… Again.” He spoke softly, his eyes carefully observing my face. It was obvious the younger had realized that whatever friendship MiRan and him had shared had been burned to ashes when she decided to leave with no word.

“And?” JiMin asked casually, trying to control his face from twisting into a grimace at her name. Hwan MiRan was a subject not yet breached in his heart, and he could not forgive her- not now, not anytime soon.

“And neither is JungKook.” Kim Tan added, a frown on that young but tired face of his. He looked far older than the sixteen he was supposed to be. Somewhere in the bottom of his heart, JiMin felt some form of pity for the boy, about his family and the situation he was in. MiRan had been a beam of support for him, as well. Even helping him when he needed it most and everyone else had turned their backs to the young genius.

Upon seeing JiMin’s face set into a deep frown, TaeHyung perched on the bench he sat on, crossing his ankles and setting his hands under his thighs. “Do you think it’s because of MiRan? The way Hobi had begun acting? And JungKook, as well…”

A hazy cloud flowed over JiMin’s eyes, thinking of his two close friends. JungKook wasn’t much of a problem concerning MiRan, he realized. The boy was a free spirit kept in place by her presence, sure, but he was always a troublemaker seeking to run away from everything and everyone. However, Hobi… “I don’t know…” JiMin had muttered, realizing with shame that he knew nothing of the elder and what was happening to him in that locked room of his.

“I heard teacher’s speaking of calling HoSeok to school- like a summon. I think they want to expel him. He missed a lot of classes and seeing as it’s his final year, counting up through the whole three years, they’re not as flexible with letting him graduate.” Kim Tan’s voice a little more than a whisper.

“Of course they won’t…”

Whatever relationship Hobi and MiRan had it had certainly been a much bigger case than the relationship between her and the rest of the groups. Maybe it was because of Hobi himself. The man was a lost case of needing attention- and MiRan had been the motherly touch the man needed so much, that no one else from his group could provide.

On a level, JiMin guessed that Jung HoSeok felt more deprived than all of them, and if he wouldn’t come out of that room anytime soon they would need to break down that door and bring him out, or else things might go terribly, terribly south.

And yet, his heart clenched. It was all Hwang MiRan’s fault. All MiRan’s fault. His friend’s fault.

He couldn’t bring himself to say it out loud. But he hated her. He hated her. He truly did.

He wondered whether he would still think that way if she would pop right back into his life, apologize.

He didn’t want to think about it.

The week was tough, I had to admit. Getting a call from school asking to be summoned with pa