***

“Don’t be afraid, I’m sure Baekho prepared you for this; he’s got a broken arm too.” He continued trying to calm you down.

“I’ll be fine.” You said in a shaky voice, feeling your tears surface.

“I know you will.” He said calmly. “I need to go now, I’ll talk to you soon, alright?” He continued and hung up.

     You staggered back to your room and started crying like a baby. Kai scared the hell out of you. Baekho had taught you the basics, but were they going to be enough? You were brought back to reality by a couple of knocks at your door.

“It’s me.” Ren’s voice rang from the other side.

“Wait!” You yelled running to the bathroom and splashing some cold water on your face, then running back and opening the door.

“Have you been crying?” He asked giving you a worried look. “Your eyes are red…”

“No… but it looks like my make-up remover is out of date. Don’t worry, though, I washed my eyes very well, it doesn’t sting anymore.” You said smiling.

“I see.” He said watching you as you grabbed his notebook and returned it to him.

“Thank you!” You exclaimed faking happiness.

“You’re welcome.” He said patting your head and leaving. It wasn’t long after that Baekho barged into your room.

“Ya, what happened?” he asked worried.

“Kai is coming back in 3 days…” You said sobbing. He was currently the only one you fully trusted and you had decided to keep Ren out of it.

“And what are you afraid of? You’re ready to defend yourself.” He said reassuringly, patting your back. “He’s got a broken arm too. I know because I broke it.” He said proudly. “So there’s nothing to worry about.”

     You smiled feeling a little better than before, knowing they all trusted you so much. Moreover, just as Baekho had said, you had been training hard and were pretty good. You had even managed to beat Ren in a 1 to 1 fight… if that could be counted as a victory…

     The next two days had passed quickly. You tried to have fun for the sake of the guys even if the thought of standing up to Kai alone still frightened you.

“Take care, okay?” Ren said hugging you and kissing your forehead.

“I will…” You mumbled letting your tears fall freely.

“See you soon.” Aron said hugging you.

“You’ll be fine.” Baekho said smiling reassuringly, hugging you tightly.

“We’ll miss you, Bingu.” Minhyun said patting your head.

“I’ll miss you too”, you answered sobbing and hugging him tightly. He was startled at first, not being such a huge fan of skin ship, but ended up crying too and hugging you back. You spent the whole day practicing alone in the old gym and the next worrying about your well-being so you decided to stay in your room.

     The room shot open, making you almost faint from the scare and the old witch barged in.

“Why aren’t you in class?!” She yelled angrily, walking to the side of your bed and pulling you up.

“I’m not feeling well…” You said, but to no use, she just kept yelling.

“Classes are NOT optional! You’ll only be sitting in a desk, what is so tiring about it?! Now GO!” She yelled pushing you out of your room.

     You started crying and dragged your feet towards the classroom. You weren’t afraid of ANYBODY in that whole school. Why did it have to be Kai?! Up to your surprise and relief, he wasn’t in the classroom so you were going to be safe for the next couple of hours. By the time classes were over it was already dark and you ran back to your room, through the sea of people. You got there and found the door opened. The old witch wouldn’t have left it that way; it was basically an invitation for thieves. She would have definitely locked it. You took small steps towards it and held your breath as you opened it slowly.

“SURPRISE!” 4 familiar voices rang from the sea of yellow, shiny little lights. You the light to see Ren, Baekho, Minhyun and Aron holding a birthday cake.

“Happy birthday, dummy!” Ren yelled excitedly and ran towards you, giving you a tight hug. You hugged him back and just let your tears flow freely, sobbing so hard you couldn’t even speak.

“Ren, you’re holing her too tightly! She can’t breath!” Minhyun yelled, running towards you and pushing Ren away. “Are you alright?” He asked giving you a worried look.

“You s…” You mumbled between sobs. “I was so scared!” You yelled hitting Ren repeatedly, then Minhyun and running to the other to kick their asses too. “This isn’t how you plan a surprise party!” You yelled sitting on the floor in the middle of the room and crying some more. “I was SO SCARED, YOU MOTHERERS!” You yelled angrily between sobs.

“Come on… cheer up, look at the beautiful cake.” A familiar 5^th voice rang from the door. You looked behind you to see JR standing in front of the door. “Happy birthday.” He said smiling sweetly and opening his arms for you to run into them.

     You ‘accepted the invitation’ and crashed into his arms, crying on him shoulder and kissing him.

“What are you doing here?” You asked after calming down.

“I couldn’t just leave my baby alone on her birthday, could I?” He asked kissing you.

“I had completely forgotten about it…” You said as he wiped your tears. “Because I was TOO WORRIED I WAS GOING TO GET !” You yelled punching him in the stomach. “I’m so sorry!” You said when you realized you had punched him a little too hard.

“It’s fine…” He answered coughing. “I deserved it.” He said while the other guys laughed at his pain. “You may do this every time I make you cry.” He said putting his hands on the sides of your face, wiping your tears again with his thumbs and kissing you lovingly.

“Don’t do this in front of us!” The other guys complained grabbing a piece of cake and spreading it all over your faces.

     That had been the best birthday party you had ever had. You loved these guys; they were your first real friends and the only people who had ever done so much for you.

“Guys, thank you SO much.” You said all of a sudden, running to them and hugging them all. “Really, for everything!” You mumbled while snuggling into Baekho’s back.

“Awww, group hug!” Minhyun yelled and they all turned around and hugged you.

“4 more days.” Ren said ruffling your hair. “We’ll be waiting for you outside the school.”

“Thank you, but my parents will come take me home so you don’t need to bother.” You said smiling.

“Who said we were taking you home?” JR asked shrugging.

***

     The day you left was an unusually sunny day. The metal doors of the school’s exit opened letting you step out and be free, at least. You inhaled the fresh air and closed your eyes for a second, sighing in relief. Your eyes shot opened at the sound of a car’s horn. You looked ahead and saw your parents’ car parked in front of the gate as your mother waved for you to see her. A huge grin spread across your face when another car parked in front of it and the guys stepped out to help you put your luggage in the trunk.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” Your mother yelled rushing out of the car.

“I’m going on a holiday with my best friends, I’ll send you photos from the road.” You said opening the car’s door and getting in. “Oh and mom, dad, he’s my boyfriend.” You said kissing JR.

“We’re calling the police!” She yelled angrily.

“I’m not underage anymore, mom!” You yelled as Ren drove off.

“Let’s stop by Doyun’s house on the way.” Jr said making your lips part in surprise.

“Are you serious?!” You asked looking straight at him for any sigh of lying, but there was none. “I LOVE YOU!”