Author's Note: This was supposed to be a mini side-chapter… but it bloomed into a full-blown part of Chapter 8. Lol! So, enjoy! This is for all the Gamers. ;)

*Header gif not mine. The rest are.

 

 

~ ~ ~

 

 

8.4

 

 

Still drowsy, Lily took a quick shower, carelessly dressed herself and made her way down to the restaurant for breakfast. She was incredibly hungry, having skipped dinner the previous night. Ugh. The memory of last night brought back ill feelings but she forced them back down. First, she needed to stuff herself. Then, she can feel as desperately guilty as she wanted. After pressing the button for the restaurant's level, she squeezed herself into a corner in the elevator and closed her eyes.

 

Ding! went the elevator a minute later. 

 

That was fast, Lily thought. She wrenched herself from the cozy corner and stood at the center as the doors slid open. 

 

And then there she was, face to face with Cho Kyuhyun.

 

 

~ ~ ~

 

 

 

No matter how much he tried to be silent, he knew that Sungmin heard his muffled sobs as he cried himself to sleep last night. The sudden reminder of the accident caught him off-guard. It's been years, but the memory still haunted him from time to time. It's not like he can't bear it. Heck, he's talked about it in variety shows several times, which shows that he's okay with recounting it. But the way Lily threw it in his face, weaponizing his weakness, was too much. 

 

I didn't deserve to be treated like that, Kyuhyun thought bitterly as he put one foot in front of the other. 

 

He went down to the gym at the break of dawn to run off his anger - something he rarely does. But he couldn't bear the cheerfulness of the sunlight streaming in through the floor-to-ceiling windows half an hour later, so he hid in the sauna until he felt like slow-cooked pork shanks. He thought that he was too upset to eat, but the insistent growling of his stomach made him shower and listlessly head towards the restaurant.

 

What Siwon hyung revealed though…

 

In the tense silence that followed Lily's departure, Siwon gathered them and told them what happened. Everybody, even their manager, was shocked to learn about the rift between her and Clare. They've been with Lily several times in the past two months and she seemed fine. Well, he did sense something weird about her, an edge in her smile that wasn't there before, all the way back in Hong Kong. He wanted to talk to her about it but he just wasn't good at talking about feelings and such. Besides, Donghae was sticking to her all the time. And when she's not with him, there's Siwon or one of the other members with her. He just couldn't get her alone. The only time that he did, he ended up saying the wrong things and looking like an . All their succeeding encounters since then ended with him saying stupid things and Lily wanting to kick his .

 

No wonder. She probably hates my guts now, Kyuhyun realized in misery. For someone who's smart enough to win Math Olympics, he sure was stupid when it came to Lily. 

 

Scratching his head vigorously, Kyuhyun stood in front of the elevator, conflicted. He finally understood why Lily went postal last night, but he still couldn't help but feel irked by her. After learning about what she's going through though, he wanted to…

 

To what? To find her, and let her cry on your shoulder? To say sweet things? Man, you're not Donghae, Kyuhyun reproached himself.

 

He punched the down button. This is so freaking frustrating! He was still hurt by what she did. But he also wanted to-

 

Ding! went the elevator.

 

And then there she was, standing in front of him with shocked eyes - the girl that's slowly driving him insane.

 

 

~ ~ ~

 

 

It was like a bucket of ice water was thrown at her. All her guilt from last night resurfaced as high and mighty as a tsunami. She wanted so bad to apologize to him. For a split-second, she was almost overcome by the urge to hug him. But his scrunched forehead and pursed lips were like a brick wall that kept her in her spot. 

 

They stood there in tense silence staring at each other until the elevator doors started to close. Lily's hand quickly darted to press the open button. She stepped aside as Kyuhyun, hesitating for another second, moved in. Then, all they were left with was a jazz instrumental rendition of the Macarena song. 

 

Lily fidgeted in her place. This was probably the most uncomfortable situation she's ever experienced in her entire life. She racked her brain for a way to break the silence. A million lines ran through her mind, but every time she sneaked a glance at him, the words evaporate into nothingness. He was standing very still - an expressionless statue staring straight ahead. The coldness in his stance made it seem like he's encased in an iceberg, unwelcoming and unreachable.

 

Kyuhyun… Lily mentally called out to him. Even in her mind, the words kept disappearing.

 

Ding! They arrived at the restaurant's floor at last. The two passengers made a move to exit at the same time, then stopped, giving way for the other to go first. Guesstimating each other's timing without looking at each other at all, they again took a step towards the door at the same time, and paused once more to make way for the other. Lily snuck another glance at Kyuhyun. He was still stubbornly keeping his eyes trained 1000 meters ahead. Did he hate her that much?

 

On their third attempt, since it's been standing open for a long time, the doors started to close. Lily paused once again when she saw Kyuhyun move. But this time, with an irritated sigh, Kyuhyun reached over and forcefully pressed the open button. Without looking back, as if she wasn't even there in the first place, he stepped out and disappeared around a corner.

 

 

~ ~ ~

 

 

He wasn't mentally nor emotionally prepared to face her so soon. But he didn't want to back down either. That would be losing. He didn't like losing. As stiff as a walking corpse, he made himself get on the elevator with her. The doors closed.

 

It'll be fine, he comforted himself. It's just four floors. It'll be a short ride. 

 

But what was that smell? It smelled like green tea and vanilla. Kyuhyun, taking care to only move a fraction of an inch, glanced at the girl beside him.

 

Oh my g… It's her. She smelled like sweet green tea with a tinge of vanilla, Kyuhyun thought, pained. Physically, he was standing as rigid as a cement post, but inside he was banging his head against the walls. He wasn't prepared for this at all. He forced himself to concentrate on something else, like how ridiculously annoying the elevator music is. Who the heck would waste his time to make a jazz instrumental version of the Macarena song?!

 

Wait, did she move? She moved. Didn't she? Oh gah she's gonna talk to me. No, I'm not prepared for this. I've sweated out my wit in the sauna. I need food first before I can think of witty comebacks. I wonder what they have at the buffet? A plate full of soft, hot, scrambled eggs sounds great, Kyuhyun babbled in his head in an attempt to keep himself preoccupied. He needed something lest he loses all his resolve and just stand beside her and sniff her newly-washed hair.

 

Finally, the elevator slid to a halt and opened its doors. He couldn't wait to get out of there and breath in fresh air - or any other air for that matter, even Hyukjae's armpit smell would do - to erase that enticing scent from his nose's memory. But Lily was apparently in as huge of a rush as he was to get out. He paused, giving her the chance to alight first, but she did the same, bringing them back to the previous awkward standing situation. After a minute, he moved again, and she did also. They gave way to each other once more. But on their third synced attempt, Kyuhyun couldn't wait anymore. As the doors slid close, he punched the open button and rushed out of there, leaving Lily and her darn aroma behind. 

 

 

~ ~ ~

 

 

 

Siwon, forever the early riser, was already sitting at a table sipping a steaming cup of freshly brewed coffee and reading a newspaper. Seeing Lily walk in, he raised his hand to get her attention, and then pointed at the vacant seat next to him. Spotting him, Lily dragged her feet to the long table reserved for the boys and plopped down heavily beside her handsome friend. If it weren't for him last night, she would've ended up sleeping on that park bench. She crossed her arms on the table and buried her head in them.

 

 

*flashback*

 

 

Lily storming out the waiting room left the air with a tense and uncomfortable feeling. Even Leeteuk was left clueless about how to fix the situation. Kyuhyun's stricken expression and the confusion on the other members' faces moved Siwon into telling the group about Lily. He knew that it was a private affair, but he didn't want them misunderstanding her. He's been amazed at how, each time she's with them, she appeared cheerful and normal, sometimes even playful, when he knew that inside, she was still that crying girl back in Hong Kong. Last night was probably the stress of the whole thing breaking through, so he gathered everybody and explained.

 

The members remained speechless after his talk, slowly digesting the sad news. They all knew how much Lily loved her best friend - besides knowing the story behind her being in that hotel in Sydney, she also talked about Clare a lot. All their faces showed how horrible they felt about not noticing that there was something wrong. Hyukjae, in particular, looked especially sorrowful. Kyuhyun, on the other hand, suddenly walked out, saying he needed some air and that they should go look for her without him.

 

After bringing everyone back to the hotel, Siwon, Donghae, and Hyukjae went out to look for Lily, each borrowing a car from their managers. Everybody was calling and texting her but no one got a single reply. The only time that Lily communicated back was when she texted Donghae, but the message didn't include any information as to where she was. They spent almost three hours driving up and down the streets of Shanghai, their worry increasing with each minute that passed without seeing her. 

 

Around 1 in the morning, Siwon's bladder urged him to stop at a small restaurant along a deserted street. He ordered some takeaway as a courtesy before using the restroom. On his way back to his car, he spied a lone figure slumped on a park bench across the street. That messily tied ponytail looked very familiar. The paper bag of takeaway xiao long bao in hand, he crossed the street to the park. 

 

There he found Lily, head resting against the lamp post beside her, tear stains still visible on her cheeks, fast asleep. His heart contracted painfully at the realization that she must've fallen asleep crying, sitting alone in this cold, dark place. Biting the handle of the paper bag to free his hands, he carefully lifted Lily and carried her to the car. 

 

 

*end flashback*

 

 

"Did you get enough sleep?" Siwon asked, patting her head. Lily responded with a groan. Siwon signaled a waiter over and asked for a cup of coffee for Lily - full cream milk on the side please. After ordering coffee for her several times in the past months, he knew that she liked her coffee with tons of full cream milk instead of the usual creamer, which, to him, defeats the purpose of the beverage. But that's what she liked and he's determined to give her whatever it takes to make her feel better.

 

The waiter laid the coffee on the table a few minutes later, its aroma enticing Lily to lift her head and face the world. Siwon had to hold back laughter as she emptied half the flask of milk and spooned two scoops of raw sugar onto her coffee, causing her cup to overflow. Gingerly, without lifting it, she dragged the saucer (with the cup on it) towards her and sipped the warm, light brown liquid. She sat back, smiling in satisfaction at Siwon, who pointed at his mouth, signaling her that she had coffee-mustache. Lily looked at him questioningly for a second before understanding. She was about to use the back of her hand to wipe her lips when he lightly slapped her hand away and handed her a napkin.

 

 

~ ~ ~

 

 

Lily rolled her eyes while cleaning herself up. This guy, really… such a dad. Sometimes she wonders if he was even real. She suspected him to be a cyborg, dreamed up and assembled by a lonely lady genius who wanted to have the perfect man. Once again, she lowered her head and took a sip of coffee without touching the cup with her hands. She knew that this unladylike way of drinking would irk Siwon. She was right. Looking back at him with another coffee mustache, she was met with a disapproving look. But before she could react to it, Kyuhyun passed by in front of them and settled in a seat at the other end of the table.

 

She froze, suddenly very aware of how stupid she looked. Quickly wiping , she sat up straight and - and what? What was she supposed to do? Why was her heart beating like mad?

 

Calm down, Lily, she urged herself. Just… chill. Act normal.

 

Able to gather some sort of composure, Lily pushed back her chair and got up, heading for the buffet table. She needed to buy some time for thinking about her strategy. Sneaking a look at the table, she saw Kyuhyun with his head slightly lowered, silently picking on his food. He looked so dejected that she wanted to catch sunshine and throw it at him to brighten him up. 

 

What could she do?

 

Sighing, she reached for a plate and started heaping one dish after another onto it. Breakfast food was by far the best kind of food in her opinion. But today, the fat, juicy sausages, fluffy scrambled eggs, even the perfectly crisped bacon, all looked like mush to her.

 

 

~ ~ ~ 

 

 

He had a plateful of hot, delicious breakfast, yet somehow he has lost his appetite. He silently reprimanded his stomach. Only five minutes ago, it was growling like a famished lion, but now it felt like a huge, wet cotton ball was stuck inside. He gulped down some orange juice, hoping the citrus would kick start his appetite once more. Siwon called his attention, asking if he was okay. He nodded weakly in response. He looked like he wanted to say something else, but decided against it at the last moment. Kyuhyun went back to moving pieces of scrambled eggs around his plate.

 

Out of nowhere, a fork appeared and stabbed the sausage on his plate. Startled, he looked up to see Lily sitting across from him. He didn't even notice her approach. He stared at her as she busily sliced the sausage up into bite-sized pieces. She looked calm, as if what she's doing was the most natural thing in the world, as if that highly awkward elevator encounter awhile ago didn't happen, as if last night didn't happen…

 

Wordlessly, Lily put the cut-up pieces back on Kyuhyun's plate and moved on to his toast. She caught his eye and pointed at three mini jars of jam on the table, asking him to pick one. Kyuhyun looked at her confusedly for a second, wondering what the heck was going on. He yielded and pointed at the strawberry jam. Lily opened it and proceeded to spread it on his toast and then put it on his plate. Then, she stood up and disappeared back to the buffet table, reappearing a moment later with a fresh glass of orange juice and a plate stacked high with pancakes. She placed the orange juice beside his almost empty glass and then attacked the pancakes with her knife. He kept watching her as she worked, curious as to why she's doing this.

 

The pancake slicing went on for a while, and it somehow reignited Kyuhyun's appetite. He brought his attention back on his plate and concentrated on eating. 

 

The sound of a plate sliding across the tabletop made him look up. On it were pieces of pancake arranged into the Hangul words:

 

미안해

(I'm sorry)

 

He stared at the plate for a long time. So this was what she was doing. Even in his mind, he was speechless. But before he could gather his thoughts, a second plate slid next to the first one with the pancake-words:

 

정말 

(Really)

 

He continued to stare at the plates, all the horrible feelings he felt up until that morning replaced by something warm and fuzzy. He shifted his gaze from the plates to Lily, who was staring back at him. She had on a pokerface, but her eyes were big, round, and pleading - silently begging him to accept the apology she painstakingly carved out. He didn't want to give in yet. He should make her suffer a bit longer. If only his lips didn't disobey him, he would've succeeded on that plan. Unable to stop it, a smile started to spread as chuckles gurgled inside him. Finally, he ended up snorting in laughter. 

 

Kyuhyun wasn't really sure why he was laughing. This was by far the cutest, most creative way that anybody has done to apologize to him. He knew he didn't fall in love with this girl for nothing.

 

Wait, WHAT?! Kyuhyun caught himself.

 

 

~ ~ ~

 

 

Lily stared at Kyuhyun, unmoving. The dude was laughing. She didn't know what that meant. Was he laughing because he forgave her, or because he found her attempt at an apology to be totally pathetic? He continued to laugh. She continued to stare. What the heck is wrong with this guy?

 

"So…" Lily began unsurely. "Are we… okay?"

 

It took Kyuhyun another couple of seconds to let the laughter die down. Still smiling, he didn't reply and just looked back at her. Somehow, this particular gaze of his was making her blush. She diverted her eyes.

 

"You spelled it wrong," Kyuhyun finally spoke.

 

Lily looked at her creation, carefully remembering the words Siwon taught her. It was correct, wasn't it? She was sure of it. These were some of the first words she learned and she knew them by heart. Lily furrowed her eyebrows looking for the mistake. 

 

"Which one did I misspell?" Lily asked, finally giving up.

 

While trying to keep a straight face, Kyuhyun picked up his knife and fork, cut off a portion of the second word, and ate it. 

 

"There. It's misspelled, that one."

 

Lily didn't know how else to react other than doing a facepalm, laughter inevitably coming out of her. Kyuhyun joined in a moment later, making the other members look at them curiously as they arrived for breakfast.

 

Sungmin went for a closer look at the two seemingly insane individuals and saw the plates of apology. 

 

"Oh, so are you two okay at last?" he asked. He pretended to be fast asleep as Kyuhyun fought to hide his sobbing last night. His heart went out to his friend. But at the same time, he knew that Lily only reacted that way because she was under extreme emotional stress herself, so he couldn't hate her. He hoped that they'd make up soon.

 

"Actually, I haven't gotten an answer yet," Lily managed to say between laughs. "So, Kyu, am I forgiven?"

 

"Hmm… Alright," Kyuhyun connected, "on one condition: you have to be my #1 fangirl for the whole day today."

 

 

~ ~ ~

 

 

It sounded like a ridiculous demand at first (what does it even mean?!), but Lily had no choice but to concede for the sake of resolving the whole thing. Besides, it was no surprise that Kyuhyun asked for her to be his #1 fan for a day. The boy is so full of himself it's a wonder he hasn't exploded yet. It was a 5-part plan, he said. She dreaded what was in store for her.

 

Task 1

 

Shanghai was getting a double Super Show so the boys had another day of rehearsals. Still carrying a frown, the effect of Kyuhyun's explanation of what she's supposed to do, Lily stood in the midst of a hundred or so privileged Chinese ELF who were lucky enough to be allowed in to watch the rehearsals. She was really embarrassed of what she's supposed to do, but a few minutes after the rehearsal started, Lily knew that what she's going to do wasn't out of the ordinary at all. 

 

Bonamana came on and Lily was ready for it, having absorbed the energy and craziness of the fangirls that surrounded her. Squeezing herself to the front, she unfolded the 2m x 2m banner she made (in less than an hour - with only the hotel-provided office supplies in the room at her disposal, she had to improvise A LOT), getting ready for the moment. Then, the dance break came. Holding up the hodgepodge of poster cut-outs, paper, tape, and paper clips, Lily shouted at the top of her lungs, "CHO KYUHYUN JJANG!" over and over in a sort of hyper-chant. The boys, realizing that it was Lily, paused in confusion for a second, before bursting out in laughter. Lily tried to keep her voice steady. She knew what they were thinking. She looked ridiculous. They have never seen her go full-on fangirl over them, let alone over Kyuhyun! 

 

Kyuhyun, on the other hand, looked all smug. He had that expression that made Lily want to throw her shoe at him. That is, if she could even move an inch. Not long after she started fangirl-screeching, all the Kyuhyun-biased fans joined in. They somehow clustered around her, forming a dense, undulating pool of Kyu diehards. It's a good thing she was tall or else she wouldn't have been able to breath. She wondered how they are doing it. 

 

The Kyunatics' screams multiplied tenfold, forcing Lily to drop her banner and cover her ears. A fangirl's voice really defies any laws of the human body, especially when her bias starts moving towards her, doing an extended version of the Bonamana dance break.

 

All the girls around her were going crazy. It was a little scary yet funny at the same time. It also made her curious. This was Kyuhyun. The annoying brat who says mean things and thinks so highly of himself. Why the heck are these girls going crazy over him?!

 

"OHMYGOSH he's so handsome!" squealed the girl to Lily's right, whose friend emitted some sort of pterodactyl sound in agreement.

 

Seriously?! Lily thought in disbelief. She trained her eyes at the dancing idiot onstage. Hyukjae and Leeteuk have now joined him as back-up dancers in the impromptu dancingKyu show. They started joking around, stopping from dancing and shaking their heads, acting like they think Kyu's dancing is hopeless. Kyuhyun joined in the charade, pausing and scratching his head, and then gesturing for the two to show him how it's done. Together, the three of them repeated several steps, making all the fangirls go wild all over again. 

 

 

From the back, Sungmin announced that they were taking a break. Hyuk and Teukie patted Kyuhyun and headed back. Turning towards the Kyunatics, Kyuhyun stood still for a second, taking in the crowd. Then, he smiled appreciatively and waved at each one of them. Sweat made his fringe separate in locks and stick on his forehead. He puffed his cheeks and blew on them - a little aegyo for the fans.

 

 

 

Oh, I think I see it now, Lily thought as she put up her banner and fangirl-screamed once more.

 

 

 

Task 2

 

An hour. She spent an hour looking for the specific restaurant that Kyuhyun asked for. Out of all the good restaurants nearby, he had to have the fried chicken from the one an hour outside the city center. It was supposedly the only one that made fried chicken exactly like the one he had in Taiwan, and according to Boss Cho, one of the duties of a fan is to make sure that her idol is well fed with his favorite food. 

 

"Whenever I have recordings, there almost always is food from a fan club," Kyuhyun pointed out. "Now, we have a concert so you have to do better than them."

 

Do better? What does that even mean?! Lily cried in her head. Since the boys had to rush away to do interviews, she didn't get a chance to make him explain. Instead, she took it as a command to buy as much fried chicken as her wallet would allow. Thankfully, this particular restaurant's prices were on the cheap side so she was able to buy enough for the group including the managers and staff, plus a few servings of Shanghai fried rice, sweet and sour pork, and xiao long bao. 

 

Another hour of travel and she was back at the concert venue, setting a long table in a room backstage. Several staff members walked by and was drawn in by the delicious aroma, but Lily regretfully shooed them away (well, after letting them pick a piece of xiao long bao each - they've worked hard, too), telling them to come by again when it's officially lunchtime. She needed the food intact for inspection and approval of Boss Cho. Half an hour later, the boys returned for their lunch break. Hyukjae, upon entering, had his jaw drop at the sight of all the food. 

 

"Lily… is this for us?" he asked, eyes wide, mouth visibly watering.

 

"No, it's for Kyuhyun," Lily replied simply. "Where is he anyway?"

 

"He's signing some autographs with Siwon," Sungmin responded, also unable to take his eyes off the food. "Is that fried chicken?"

 

"Yes, but NO STAY AWAY FROM THE TABLE!" Lily exclaimed as Hyukjae made a grab for a plate. She blocked his hand in time, making him frown.

 

"But I'm hungry!" he complained. Everyone else grumbled in agreement. Lily started explaining that this was ordered by Kyuhyun and that they can all eat when he comes, but then everybody started arguing and trying to steal the food. Shindong got fed up and stepped out, only to return with Kyuhyun on his shoulder in a fireman carry.

 

Setting him down roughly in front of the table, Shindong commanded, "There. There's the food you made Lily order. See it? There it is. Now, can we PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF FRIED CHICKEN EAT ALREADY?!"

 

 

Task 3

 

"No. No. No no no no no," Lily refused vehemently. 

 

"It's just for today! It won't even be for a whole day. There's what, only 8hrs. left until it's officially tomorrow," Kyuhyun reasoned. "You can change everything back tomorrow."

 

"That's still 8 hours of people I'VE KNOWN MY WHOLE LIFE thinking that I've completely lost my mind, including all sense of good taste," Lily shot back.

 

"Are you saying that liking me makes you have bad taste?!" Kyuhyun questioned.

 

Lily stuck out her tongue at him. Kyuhyun grimaced at her.

 

"We had a deal. You have to do it," he pointed out.

 

Rolling her eyes, Lily forcefully tapped her laptop awake, opened a browser window, and started logging on to all her social networking sites. Kyuhyun stood behind her, making sure that she did everything he asked. A few minutes later, Lily's Facebook, Twitter, and everything else were filled with notifications of people asking whether her account has been hacked.

 

Trying hard not to throw up, Lily replied to them one by one saying, "No, I just really love Cho Kyuhyun of Super Junior."

 

And for the next 8 or so hours, her profile pictures, backgrounds, headers, status messages, tweets, blog entries, EVERYTHING, were all Kyuhyun and about how freaking much she loved him.

 

 

 

Task 4

 

 

"GO TO THE RIGHT!"

 

"I'M TRYING BUT THE THING WON'T MOVE!"

 

"JUST CLICK THE SPACE NEXT TO IT!"

 

"OH! I thought it was the arrow keys..."

 

"AISH! NOW LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE!"

 

Dying for the fifth time, Kyuhyun slammed his mouse down in exasperation. They've been playing Starcraft for the past hour, and Lily's abysmal gaming IQ has made him lose 5 times in that short amount of time. This was by far his worst gaming record. All because of her. What a fan.

 

"I've told you a MILLION times to click the space!" he said, frustrated.

 

"Will you cut me some slack?!" Lily fired up. "I'm new to this! It's confusing!"

 

"It's a game. I'm not making you do Calculus," Kyuhyun shot back. "How is this confusing?!"

 

With icy calmness, Lily returned, "Playing Starcraft, to me, is like you reading a whole book in English."

 

Kyuhyun shot daggers at her with his eyes but didn't reply. Hurtful as that analogy was, it made him understand how difficult this was for Lily. It was almost midnight but they were all still wide awake, powered by the leftover adrenaline from the concert. They really should start preparing for bed. The flight back home tomorrow morning was quite early. As for Lily…

 

But before he could ask about her schedule tomorrow, Donghae entered the room. 

 

"Hey, Lil, d'you wanna go out and eat? I suddenly had the craving for some xiao long boa, and Siwon told me about this small 24-hour place that make really good ones," Donghae said.

 

"You're just in time! I'm starving!" Lily exclaimed, jumping up. Then remembering, her face fell. "Oh, but Kyuhyun…"

 

"It's fine, you can go," Kyuhyun said. 

 

"But what about Task 5?" Lily asked.

 

"Don't worry about it," Kyuhyun replied dismissively. 

 

Lily hesitated. "Are you sure?"

 

"What, are you some kind of princess to make Donghae hyung wait? Will you just go already!"

 

Smiling like a little child opening presents on Christmas morning, Lily grabbed his cheeks with both hands and kind of squished it while saying, "Thank you thank you thank you!" before letting go and jogging towards Donghae. 

 

"What was task 5?" Donghae asked Lily as they walked out the door.

 

Lily shrugged. "I don't know, he didn't tell me about it…"

 

You were supposed to have a midnight picnic with me, he silently told her, touching his cheeks where Lily's touch still lingered.

 

Staring after the two figures walking away, his smile turned into a forced one. What was this he's feeling right now? It felt like… disappointment. About what? About having your game time cut short? About your playmate leaving? Or the fact that your playmate chose to be with another guy instead of you?

 

And how much does it hurt knowing that the other guy is your kind, wonderful friend, Donghae? snickered a sadistic voice in his head.

 

He closed his eyes and buried his face in his hands. He knew that he knew the answers to these questions, but still he pretended that he didn't. It was idiotic, but maybe if he kept on pretending that he didn't know, in time, he just might be able to fool himself into not feeling anything at all. It'd be better that way, because by the looks of things, he'd have to get used to seeing those two walking away hand in hand, leaving his own empty and alone.

 

 

____________

 

 

I'd just like to say that it's now 5:30AM and I have to be up in 2 hours but the deep, dark circles around my eyes are totally worth it for posting this part. Hahaha! I hope you guys enjoy it. :)