I sped down the hallway trying not to get caught. Yesterday, I slept late from talking with my best friend and now I'm rushing to class because I arrived to school late. I mentally slapped my head for agreeing to stay up late to talk about nonsense. I stopped on my track and looked around the empty hallway. There it was...room L-12. I raised my hand to knock on the door, but I was scared of what my teacher would say—and the looks people give when you come to class late. I mean it's not hard to come to school on time...but then again it's pretty hard to get off the bed so early in the morning.

I timidly knocked on the door and my teacher opens it. There he was. My grumpy ol' teacher who only blinked as a response to my smiling face. He didn't say anything, so I figured he didn't care much about me coming late to class. Then there it was. The quiet, yet judging stares from my fellow classmates. The "why do you get to come late" look. I sat on my chair and looked at my best friend from across the room. She had her head on the desk...well...she was sleeping. That could've been me too if I'd arrived to class on time. She sure had the right idea. My head was aching, telling me I needed to sleep more.

I was dozing off in class, feeling too sleepy to stay focused. Before I knew it, class was already over. "Hey! Aeri!" Jasmine (my best friend) slammed her hand on my desk to wake me up. I did't realize that I actually fell asleep. We walked out of the classroom and I was still half-asleep. "This way!" "Wha-?" I bumped into someone and almost fell down. I shook my head to wake myself and looked up at the figure in front of me. It was him. It was THE Byun Baekhyun. I couldn't believe who I'd just bumped into. It's been a while since we've encountered each other. He was wearing his football jersey, along with his group of teammates. "Sorry," I blurted out. It was all I could say and think of. He laughed a little and smiled. "It's fine. I'm sorry too." There was a small pause before he talked again. "Well, it's nice seeing you again." I felt my cheeks starting to warm up.

When Baekhyun and his friends left, Jasmine kept nudging me. "It's nice seeing you again~" Jasmine mimicked. I pushed her a bit because my whole face was turning red. I looked around and there were a couple of people staring at us. "We should go Jas." We left the hallways to get to our next class—and escape from all the attention. All I could think about during class was what had happened. I couldn't get it out of my head. Byun Baekhyun has been my crush ever since the beginning of our high school year. He was always so nice and funny...and good looking. I've only ever gotten to talk to him when he first came to this school. But with due time, we eventually stopped talking to each other—well, I actually avoided him to lose my feelings for him because he had a girlfriend. It was my first heartbreak. Thinking about all that just made my heart hurt. I took a deep breath and made it throughout the rest of my class without thinking about him.

The bell rang for lunch and all the students rushed out to get in the cafeteria. "Aeri! Hurry up!" Jasmine ran outside without waiting for me. I guess she got really hungry. My stomach grumbled, so I rushed out to follow her. I looked around the cafeteria and found her in line. She waved me over so I could cut. Without thinking, I ran over to her. On my way there however, some genius decided to leave a banana peel on the middle of the floor. Good ol' banana peels. I felt my body sliding, and I fell on my knees. I bit my lip to prevent myself from crying out loud. The pain started to trickle up my body. Jasmine laughed first then helped me stand up. "Are you okay?" I winced in pain. "Sorry. The banana peel thing was just too funny." I stood up and it started to hurt more. There were small scrapes on my knees. "You can get back in line to get food. I'll just go to the bathroom to clean my knees." A worried look took over Jasmine's face. "I could help you." "No, I'll be fine. I wanna see if I could walk by myself."

I left Jasmine and limped out of the cafeteria. That was so embarrassing. I walked to the bathroom in the field because there wasn't much people who used the bathroom there during lunch. It was painful to walk, especially with both knees messed up. Surprisingly, the bathroom there had a line. There was more girls out here than usual. I didn't wanna walk all the way back to the other bathrooms because they may have been full too. I bit my bottom lip and limped to the drinking fountain near the bathroom. I took some water and poured it on my knees. My skin stung and my eyes began to water. Unable to take anymore of the pain, I sat down at a bench nearby.
 

I looked out at the field and saw the football players practicing. Well, that answers why there's so much girls out here right now. I looked around, trying to look for Baekhyun, but I couldn't see him there. As soon as I looked away, I saw Baekhyun come out of the boys' bathroom, running to the field. HE....WAS....SHIRTLESS. My face heated up so quickly. He was sweating and his abs were perfectly traced. I tried to look away, but before that could happen, we made eye contact. I looked away quickly, pretending I didn't see him. I waited until I saw him in the field, but he never got there. I looked back to where he was, and I was startled. He was walking towards me while wiping his body with a towel. My head felt like it was about to explode. *Please don't come closer.*
 

"Hey! Aeri?" I looked up at him and my heart began to beat like crazy. A shirtless man is coming towards me, calling out my name. I might just go insane. "Yeah. Hi Baek." I mentally slapped my forehead. I didn't know what else to say. He stopped walking an inch away from me. He was close alright....and I liked it. He was slightly breathing heavily. His abs were literally so close to my face. He sat down next to me when he notice me struggling to look up at him. I felt them from miles away. All the piercing glares from the girls around the field. "It's been a while since we talked." I nodded my head, remembering why I stopped talking to him. "H-how's your girlfriend doing?" He raised a brow then chuckled. "We're not together anymore. We broke up about two months ago." I was slightly happy to hear it, but I know I probably shouldn't be happy for someone's break up. "Sorry to hear that." He sighed and looked up at the clouds. "It's fine...Are you going to watch the game?" "Are you inviting me?" He stared at me and smiled. "Would you come?" My heart began to beat faster. "If you want me to."
 

"Hey, are you alright?" "Huh?" He looked at my knees. I was too happy that I forgot about the pain my knees were causing. "Yeah I'm fine." "What happened?" My cheeks were turning red. I wasn't sure if I should make something up or tell him the truth. "I slipped on a banana peel in the cafeteria." At first, he was serious, then he began laughing hysterically. I pushed him a little and we both laughed. It was pretty dumb to just slip from a banana peel—how ironic. "Stop laughing at me. It actually hurts." His laughter slowly died down but he was still smiling. "I have some bandages. I'll get some for you. I'll be back." He stood up, then ran to the field. There were girls passing by me, giving me looks and they were whispering to each other. I sighed and looked up at the sky to ignore them.

"Hey girl watch out!" I heard someone yelling to me, so I quickly covered my head. I waited a few seconds then looked back up. I found Baekhyun holding the basketball. He threw the ball back at the boy then kneeled down in front of me. I watched as he took some ointment and I reached out to hold his wrist, stopping him. He looked up at me in confusion. "I...I can put the ointment." He nodded and handed me the ointment. I took some of the ointment and spread it around the scratches. He furrowed his eyebrows while watching me. "Let's let it dry first." He sat on the ground and we waited for a bit. "I think it's good now." He kneeled again and took the bandage. He lifted my leg so it was straight then carefully wrapped the bandage around my knees. I smiled as I watched him. It was nice getting to spend time with him again. There was a lingering feeling of heartbreak that stayed with me for so long and it was slowly going away.

He placed tape on the bandages in order to secure it. "There. All better." He stood up and reached his hands out to me. "Try standing." I took his hands and he pulled me up. He guided me as I tried to walk. "It still hurts a bit but I can walk better now." He grinned. "Hey! Byun Baekhyun!" His team was waiting on him to practice. "I'll be right there!" "Go. Your team needs you." "Will you be alright?" I nodded to him. "I'll see you later." He smiled and his hands were no longer holding mine. I waved to him as he jogged away. My phone suddenly rang and I jumped. "Hello?" "Hey! How was the bathroom trip?" "Oh, hi Jas! It was good..." "Hmmmmmm...that tone. Why are you so happy?" I chuckled and felt my cheeks warming up. "Baekhyun and I talked again." "OH MY GOSH! SHUT UP DUDE!" "Shhh." We both laughed. "Damn. You and your lucky a** always getting saved by hot boys." "We'll talk about it later...by the way, I guess I'm going to the game with you." "I told you you're going." "I'll meet you at our hangout."

I tried to walk normally around the school, but it was still hard. I managed to make it to the school's garden without stopping for a break. Jasmine was sitting at our bench, scrolling through her phone. "I made it." "Heeeyyy!! Oh my gosh. Girl! Well come sit and tell me what happened!" We sat there for an hour, talking about what just happened and the things that happened in the past. Talking with my best friend had always been helpful with putting myself at ease. "So, what's your plan now?" I sighed. "I don't know...I'm gonna leave it for him to decide." "I mean, you rejected all the boys that asked you out before because of him. It really showed me how much you love him." "Yeah. I guess so...but he just broke up with his girlfriend for three years, just two months ago. I can wait if he needs me to. Waiting around can be hard too you know. I've waited and waited for so long. I'm just afraid of how long I'd need to wait, if I had to at all... I don't even know if he feels the same way for me..." She sighed and stretched her back. "You're still going to the game with me right?" "Yeah. I'm still going. Wouldn't want my best friend to go alone." "Oh shut up. You're going for him." We both laughed.

School finally finished and the students all headed for the field to watch the game. I was more excited than usual. I would usually only watch half of the games but today, I'm staying until the end. I sat down with Jasmine at the bleachers. We chose a spot that was closest to the field. The football players were still in their locker room. I caught sight of Baekhyun's ex-girlfriend. She was still one of the water-girls for the team. Even though they weren't together anymore, it still made me uneasy to see her so close to him. The game was finally starting and Jasmine came with nachos and fries. My face glowed from the sight of food. "This is why you're my best friend." She flipped her hair and handed me the food.

"Oookkkaaayyy Ladies and Gentlemen, get ready to greet your team. Here we have the Wolves!!!!" Jasmine and I stood up and cheered. "And on the other side, we have the Cheetas!!!" Other people cheered for their school. The football players all came out from their locker room and the crowd grew louder. Baekhyun saw us and waved. We waved back and I caught his ex look at us. Jasmine shook my shoulder in happiness.
The boys got in formation and as soon as the whistle blew, they moved into action. "Number 88 passes to number 4... Number 4 makes a run for it. He dodges.....and score!!!! That's one point for the Wolves!" The crowd roared. "Byun Baekhyun! Byun Baekhyun!" Jasmine and I kept jumping. The game continued and the other team managed to catch up. The referee called halftime and the boys gathered around their bench. The boys were given their water to freshen up. Baekhyun took his helmet off and wiped his sweat with a towel. I watched as his ex walked to him with water. Baekhyun was going to take it, but she held his wrist and backed the water away. She said something and Baek parted his lips. She poured the water in for him. "Ouch." Jasmine blurted out. I looked away but my heart felt like it was sinking. After the break, the players had a small meeting with their coach.

The whistle rang again and the game resumed. The other team continued to catch up with ours. One more touchdown and the teams would be tied. "Number 4 takes the ball and makes it across the field. Will he make it?!" Baekhyun ran across the field with the ball. A bunch of people from the other team charged after him and he was blocked. I stood up from my seat when he was knocked down on the ground. My knees began to hurt, but I ignored it. There were players twice his size, huddled over him. When the opposing team got off of him, one of his teammates gave him a hand and he stood back up. The other team scored one and now they were tied. The coaches called in for a short meeting, then the game resumed. This was it. Either one of the teams were able to win the game. The whistle blew and the boys charged for each other. "Number 10 throws the ball across the field. The ball is heading toward number 4. Will he catch it!!!!???? And touuucchhhddoowwwnn!!" The crowd stood up from their seat and cheered. "We won!!!" Jasmine and I jumped. Baekhyun took his helmet off and his team carried him. "That was a good game played by both teams. Congratulations Wolves! A great game played by Number 4. Mr. Byun Baekhyun! Have a grreeeaaatttt night everybody." The team cheered for their victory. Jasmine pulled me down to the field and we were headed to the players.

When we got closer, I saw Baekhyun and his so-called-ex-girlfriend together. Her lips were touching his. I felt like my heart exploded to a million pieces. Jasmine kept pulling me, but I stopped her. I guess she didn't see it. I let go of her hand and I ran away as fast as I could, even with my knees messed up. I didn't know what hurt more at that moment. My knees scram in pain but my heart cried out. I kept running until my legs gave up on me and I was down on my knees again. A tear fell down my cheeks and I closed my eyes. I should've known this would happen. I felt the blood stain through the bandages. I couldn't get up and I felt hopeless and alone. It was quiet there—wherever I was— and the cool night breeze felt warming to my skin. I sat on the floor and stared at the blood through my bandaged knees. I heard a footstep and found Baekhyun walking closer to me. I wanted to run away from him. I couldn't stand to see him...not like this. I tried to push myself up to run away, but I fell again. He held his hand out to me, but I ignored it. I held on to a bench and lifted myself up. He held my arm to help me but I pushed him away. "Just leave me alone...please." "Aeri...I just want to help." My eyes began to water and I scoffed. "You? Help me? Is that what you're really doing? The only way you could ever help me, is by leaving me alone." "Aeri, I'm-" "I trusted you Baek. You know, I've waited three years for you to realize I liked you...but how? How do I get myself to like someone like you? You're just like everyone else...and here I thought you were different."

"I didn't kiss her. I was looking for you and she forced herself on me. You only saw what she did but you didn't see what I did." I closed my eyes to get rid of the scene playing out in front of me. "Aeri, I'm so sorry. I can't even imagine the pain I've caused you, but give me a chance." I opened my eyes and he was on his knees in front of me with tears rolling down his face. He stared into my eyes. I couldn't bear to see him that way. More tears fell down my eyes and he reached his hand to my face. "Don't cry. Please. You have no reason to. Let me show you what was really meant to happen in that field." He wiped the tears off my face and carried me to the field. We were both quiet until we arrived. I didn't know what else to say to him. We were the only ones in the field. He laid me down on the field gently and lay next to me. We were quiet and stared up at the night sky. Baekhyun suddenly held my hand. My heart skipped a beat. "Remember when we first talked to each other? I was lost and I couldn't find my way around the school. I couldn't ask for help either...I was scared of telling people I was lost." I breathed in the cool air and looked at him. "I was lost, until I found you. You were walking down the hallway with your mouth filled with kimbap and your hands were filled with bags of chips—chips of all sorts. I laughed, and you made me forget I was lost in the first place."

"I've made a lot of mistakes in my life and one of my worst ones, was letting go of you." He moved closer to me and held my hand tight. "Funny thing is....I lose myself in you." A smile crept up my face and he moved his face closer to mine. I stared into his eyes and lost myself in it. Our nose touched and I closed my eyes. I felt his soft lips press on mine. A shiver ran through my body and I felt him smiling. He pulled back and chuckled. "I didn't realize it would be too cold out here right now." He stood up and lifted me with him. "Let's get you home."
 

The next morning, as I shut the gate of my house, a voice called out to me. "Excuse me ma'am. Mind helping me find my way?" I turned around and Baekhyun was leaning on a tree. "Are you lost sir?" I walked closer to him, smiling playfully. He tuck a hair strand behind my ear and pecked my cheek. "No. Not anymore."