"Baekhyun," the teacher called out. Baekhyun didn't respond and the teacher continued to stare at him impatiently. I slowly shifted my eyes towards Baekhyun and he was staring down at his desk, completely unaware of the situation. "Baekhyun," the teacher repeated, with a firmer tone. I inwardly sighed, realizing that I had to step in. I took a deep breath and timidly tapped his shoulder. He turned his head and looked at me with a blank face. I pointed to the teacher with my eyes as he slowly turned his head towards the front of the class. The teacher pointed to his ears and Baekhyun's cheeks flushed a deep shade of red as he quickly yanked his ear buds out of his ears. "Don't let me catch you again. Anyways, sit tight for now while I go make copies of your syllabuses," the teacher said as he grabbed a paper and walked out of the room.

As soon as he was out the room, the class began to speak amongst each other. Even Ahyoung was talking to her lab partner. It seemed Baekhyun and I were the only ones with our mouth shut in the entire class. I tapped my fingers against my desk feeling jittery. Starting a simple conversation was a lot harder than it looked. "So, uh, do you like chemistry?" I fixed my eyes on him and waited for an answer, but he stared straight ahead of him. His earphones were out so it wasn't like he couldn't hear me. I felt heat rise to my face. Too afraid to repeat my question, I looked away from him, disheartened, and propped my chin onto my hand. Was my question too stupid? Of course he liked chemistry. Why else would he have been in that class?

I sighed as the teacher walked back in with a stack of freshly copied papers. He passed them all out and said, "I hope you don't mind who you're all sitting next to because they'll be your lab partner for the rest of the year." How ironic.

Class seemed to drag by as Mr. Cho went on and on about safety rules and the importance of being punctual. It didn't help that I was sitting next to someone that probably didn't enjoy my presence, which didn't make any sense because I've never actually talked to him before. I had a feeling that chemistry was gradually going to lose its ranking as my favorite subject. 

Eventually the bell rang and I was finally free from that torture chamber. Calculus, my next and final class of the day, was all the way on the other side of the school from where my chemistry class and everyone decided to walk extra slow and crowd the hallways so I barely made it inside as the bell rang. "Late on the first day," Mr. Shim said from the white board. "Find a seat, please." I glanced at every row in the class and the only open seat was right in front of Baekhyun. I mentally groaned as I dragged my feet to the open desk. The entire class, which happened to be mostly boys and two girls this time, stared at me as I made my way over. "I hope you all don't mind where you're sitting." No. No. No. Please, no. "Because these are your permanent seats for the rest of the semester." I sank into my seat and couldn't help but feel lasers shooting into the back of my head. I'd never had more than one class with Baekhyun and now I was in three. And to top it off, I was sitting next to him in two of them. I would have been ecstatic if I didn't get vibes that Baekhyun hated me. 

"You don't know that," Luhan said with a reassuring voice. The 7 of us were all walking back home and I had just told them about my last two periods. 
 

"Why do you even care? I thought you said that you didn't like him," Tao said, mocking me. 

"I don't like him. I'm just so curious about who he is..." 

"Well, he hates you, so no need to be curious anymore," Lay said blatantly. I stopped in my tracks and gawked at him as the entire group walked ahead. 

Kris noticed my absence and lingered behind. “It’s only the first day of school,” he said, trying to give me some sort of comfort. 

I let out a sigh and started walking again. “Yes, I know. It’s just, well, you know, it’s-“

“You actually do like him, don’t you?” 

I shook my head profusely. “I’ve had crushes before. I know what that feels like. This isn’t a crush.”

“Hm, maybe you’re in love,” he said with a chuckle as I punched him in the arm. Luckily, we had arrived to our homes so I didn’t have to deal with them any longer.  We all lived right next door to each other, my house being in between Xiumin’s and Chen’s. “Well, here’s my stop. Don’t stress too much over it. He’s a boy. Boys can be stupid. Just look at Tao.” 

“Hey, I can hear you, you know!” Tao shouted from the doorstep. 

I rolled my eyes and waved them all goodbye as I walked into my own home. I don’t know why I was so afflicted by Baekhyun. I had never looked at him with any romantic interest at all and I still didn’t. I was just so intrigued by his secretive life and I just had the urge to find out what he was hiding. It’s overly intrusive of me, but it was a habit of mine to figure out everyone’s life. It wasn’t like I gossiped about them. I just liked the fact that I could understand everyone’s situation. Well, almost everyone. 

* * *

"Are you busy?" my grandmother asked as she stepped into my room. 

I stared down at the pile of homework on my desk. "Um, kind of, but I could definitely use a break. What do you need?"

"I need you to go down the grocery store to pick up some salt. I'm making kimchi and I didn't realize we were out."

I stared at her with a strange look. "It's 10 o'clock. What are you doing making kimchi at this hour?" 

She shrugged her shoulders. "I want it to be ready by the weekend. Anyways, I would go to the store myself but I need the 30 pound bag and you know my back isn't in its best shape..." 

"30 pounds?!" 

She smiled innocently at me as she gave me her wallet. "Hurry on now. The store closes at 10:30." 

I sighed as I grabbed a random hoodie out of my closet and walked out the door. As soon as I walked down the sidewalk, I noticed a figure standing outside with a backpack on and a phone to his ear. I noticed he was standing in front of Xiumin's neighbor, Kyungsoo's house. As I approached closer to him, I was struck with the realization that it was Baekhyun. What was he doing here? The last bus to the city left at 9. I sorted through my thoughts, wondering if I should try talking to him again. I couldn't just walk right past him. Well, I guess I could have, but the worried look on his face gave me some hope that he wouldn't ignore me this time. 

"Baekhyun?" I asked, approaching him. He turned around and jumped back a couple feet, pulling his phone away from his ear. It was then that I realized I probably didn't look like something people wanted to see when they were out at night. I pulled down my hood and chuckled. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you." He loosened his stiff pose and relaxed a bit. "What are you doing out this late?" 

"I, um, missed my bus earlier," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. A billion thoughts began running through my mind. He talked. He didn't ignore me. He actually talked. To me. Baekhyun talked to me. I silenced the thoughts in my head and I tried to remain composed as he spoke. "I've been calling all of my friends to see if I could stay over their house, but none of them are answering..." he said keeping his eyes on the floor. What he could have possible been doing all these hours if he wasn't at his friends' house was beside me, but I dismissed the idea. 

"Well, I'm going to the grocery store right now." I took a deep breath before asking, "Do you, maybe, want to come with me?" He brought his eyes up to meet mine. My mind started running again. He's going to say no. Hurry and say something to ease him in. "Maybe, by the time we come back, you're friends might answer." 

He turned it over in his mind for a few seconds. "It's okay. I think I'll just stay here and wait it out." I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little disappointed from his refusal, but what did I expect? We were practically strangers to each other. 

"Oh, alright. Well, I'll be going then," I said, turning away from him and walking again. I had just walked past a couple houses when I heard quick footsteps behinds me. Baekhyun appeared next to me and fell into step with me. I looked at him, waiting for him to say something, but he stayed silent and stared straight ahead. A smile came across my face as I looked away from him, feeling successful. 

We walked in silence all the way to the store. Although my mind was telling me otherwise, I decided it would be best to keep my mouth shut, fearing that he might get annoyed by my banter. Fortunately, the store was just down the block. 

"What exactly do you need from the grocery at 10 o'clock?" Baekhyun asked as we walked into the store.

He talked to me again. I shoved the thought to the back of my mind and replied, "My grandma, for some strange reason, wanted to make kimchi right now, but were all out of salt." 

"She just sent you out? Alone? Isn't it dangerous for a girl to be walking at night?" 

I questioned his uncertainty, but then I remembered that he was from the city. "This isn't the city, Baekhyun. This town is actually pretty safe," I said turning into the aisle of seasonings. He just nodded his head and followed me down the aisle. I browsed over the bags of salt, looking for the brand that my grandma usually used. I spotted it at the bottom and grabbed it. It was quite a struggle to pick it up, but nevertheless, I was able to bring it to the cash register.

After paying, I noticed Baekhyun carrying the sack in his arms. I glimpsed at him with an unsure look and he shrugged his shoulders and said, "You seemed to be struggling with it earlier."

"Oh, um, thanks," I said, blushing at his chivalry. 

The walk home was silent again, but it wasn't as awkward as the first time. We were both a little more comfortable with each other and I was starting to realize that he probably didn't hate me. I could practically hear the 'I told you so's I would be receiving from the guys the next day. 

We stopped in front of Kyungsoo's house and I stared at Baekhyun, waiting for him to try calling him again. He furrowed his brows. "Aren't you going home?" he asked. 

"I'll wait until you call Kyungsoo. If he doesn't answer, I guess you could just stay at my house..." I meekly suggested. 

"Wouldn't your grandmother mind a boy staying at your house?" 

I shook my head. "All of my friends are boys, so I really don't think she'll mind." 

He placed the sack down on the floor as he brought his phone out of his pocket. He seemed to press at the screen and bring it to his ear. We stood there in silence again as he waited for Kyungsoo's answer, but it never came. He put his phone back in his pocket and said, "No answer..." 

"Well, come on then," I said reaching down for the bag, but he picked it up before me. 

"I got it," he said. I felt a blush rise on my cheek again as we walked over to my house. As we stepped onto the porch, he said, "You sure she won't mind? I can just sleep outside..." 

"No, it's fine. I wouldn't let you sleep outside, anyways," I said twisting the key into the doorknob. Walking inside, I called out to my grandma and walked into the kitchen. 

She had everything laid out on the dining table and she was mixing everything together when she looked up. "I asked for salt, not a pretty boy," she said, taking a glimpse at Baekhyun. He blushed. Cute. "You can place that right here," she said to him, pointing to the floor. 

As he placed the sack down, I said, "This is Baekhyun. He missed his bus home and none of his friends are answering their phones, so I let him come here. It's okay for him to stay, right?" 

"Ah, right. You're the boy from the city. And of course it's okay."

"Thank you so much," Baekhyun said, giving her a deep bow. 

"Grab some clothes from your brother's room so he can wash up," she said looking at me. 

I nodded and led Baekhyun over to my brother's room. "You can stay in here," I said opening the door and turning the lights on. 

"Your brother doesn't live here anymore?" 

"Um, no, he, uh, passed away," I said after swallowing the lump in my throat. 

"I'm so sorry," he said as a look of panic came across his face. 

"It's fine," I said with a small sigh. "Well, you can just grab whatever from his drawers. The bathrooms right across the hall and the towels are in the closet right next to the bathroom," I said before turning around and walking out. I heard him mutter a thanks as I closed the door behind me. 

Walking into my bedroom, I groaned as I noticed the unfinished pile of homework on my desk. Homework shouldn't be assigned on the first day of school. Any content feelings that I had diminished in a mere second. I reluctantly returned to my desk and got back to work.

As I was finishing my last problem, I heard a knock on my door. "Come in," I said, still focusing down at my work. The door opened and I looked up to see Baekhyun with damp hair wearing a shirt and a pair of sweats. After I finished the problem and closed the book, I noticed Baekhyun sitting patiently on my bed as he looked around my room. 

"I do like chemistry," he said breaking the silence in the room. I looked at him with a confused look as to why he said it so randomly, but then I remembered asking him if he did earlier in the day. "Sorry, for not answering you earlier... I just, well, how do I say this?" he said scratching the top of his head. "I don't really like meeting new people. Well, You've been in my English class every year since middle school so I guess you aren't really 'new', but," he sighed. "I don't know..."
 

I felt shivers run up my spine. He knew I was in his class? "It's fine. We've never really talked before, anyway," I said, standing up and sitting on my bed, still keeping a good distance between us. 

"How did your grandma know I was from the city?"

"She knows everything," I said simply. "I don't know how she does it, but yeah, I don't think there's a single person in town that she doesn't know."

"So, you just live with your grandmother? Where are your parents?" 

"Mhm. She used to live alone in her own house, but after my parents died a few years ago, she moved in here." I took a deep breath before speaking again. "They're the reason my brother died. My parents died in a car accident on the way to his university graduation. He blamed their death on himself and committed suicide that night..." 

"I'm so sorry," he said quietly. 

I sighed. "I'm sorry for dampening the mood... Honestly, I don't really know why I told you that. I've never told anyone that before. Not even my closest friends," I said to myself, keeping my eyes on the floor. 

"You shouldn't bottle things up inside of you. The longer we hold things in, the easier it is for them to come out. Don't worry though, I won't tell anyone," he said with a small, comforting smile. "Well, it's getting late. We should both get some sleep," he said standing up from my bed. "Thanks for letting me stay over," he said walking over to the door. "If you ever need to get something off of your chest, don't hesitate coming to me," he said before closing the door. 

I stared at the door and pondered over our conversation. I didn't really know why I opened up so much to him after only talking to him for a night. Maybe it was because I thought that if I opened up to him, I would stand a better chance of him opening up to me. But even after the whole night, I realized that I didn't really learn much about him. Sure, he didn't hate me and I guess I learned he was a pretty good friend, but other than that, he, and his actions, didn't reveal much about himself. As far as I was concerned, he was still a complete mystery to me.