“I'll catch up with you guys later,” I promised, walking away from my band with Wooyoung.

NiRa and Saylan looked at each other. Kyran frowned. 
“But--” Rynn stepped forward. 
“Just tell our manager I'll be back later!” I called in their direction as Wooyoung and I pulled a door open and made our way to the parking lot.

“Thanks for coming with me,” Wooyoung said, his voice quiet.
I nodded. “No problem.”

There was silence between us as we got in the van and it pulled out of the parking lot and made a turn onto the main street.

“Where to?” I asked, choosing my words carefully.

“Huh?” Wooyoung looked at me from gazing out the window. “Oh, um, the salon.”

I nodded slowly. “Oppa....is something wrong?”

Wooyoung looked wordlessly at me, and I felt my gut tighten. Did I do something wrong? I dropped my gaze onto the floor.

“Don't worry, it's not you,” he said, as if reading my mind.

I frowned.

He sighed. “Sorry for being so weird. It's just—I've had a lot on my mind recently.”

“What did you want to talk to me about?” I asked slowly.

He bit the corner of his lip. “I-uh--”

He glanced at his driver, and I caught the worried look in his eye. I nodded understandingly and he gestured that we would talk later.
Some time later, we were dropped off in front a salon on a quieter area in town. I got off first and Wooyoung hopped off after me. I reached out for the handle to the salon, but Wooyoung's hand stopped me.
“What's wrong?” I asked, frowning.

“Let's...” he looked up and down the street before looking at me. “Let's talk.”

********************

“Okay, let's talk,” I said, after Wooyoung had whisked me away into a nearby cafe and the two of us were sitting opposite each other.

He sighed then laughed shortly. “I don't even know why I'm telling you this...”

I couldn't help but feeling a little annoyed at his behavior, but I forced myself to keep my patience. This was obviously a hard topic for him to talk about, but...why me?

I sent him a reassuring smile.
“Okay,” he took a deep breath. “I got kicked out of my dorm.”

“What?!”

He clamped a hand over my mouth when I had blurted my surprise. He slowly peeled his fingers off my mouth.

“Mianhae,” I said, then brought my voice down to a whisper. “What? When did this happen? Why?”

He ran his fingers through his hair. “Taecyeon and JunHo threw me out. We had—a fight.”

“A fight?” I repeated, frowning.

“I punched Taec,” he clarified, swallowing.

My mouth fell open. “Wha--?”

“It was stupid,” he muttered, grabbing a fistful of hair and closing his eyes. “I wish I didn't hit him.”

“What is this even about? Did--” I stopped when I saw his eyes fill with misty tears. “Wooyoung oppa.......”
He rubbed his eyes on his sleeve. “I think they're jealous....”
“Jealous? About what?” I asked.
“My solo comeback,” he answered quietly.

I sat there frozen, my head racing. What was going on? I had heard about him releasing a solo album, but....punching Taecyeon? Was it really that bad? I stared at Wooyoung from across the table. He kept his head down, sniffling quietly. Where did this all come from? His behavior was so out of the ordinary. 

"W-why me?" I asked. "Why not Nichkhun? Or JoKwon, or--?"
He laughed shortly, rubbing his temples. "I don't know myself. I just felt--I had to tell you."
"It's just that--" I stopped myself and Wooyoung looked up.

"What?" he met my eyes. 
I sighed. "It's just that, we haven't talked to each other in months--Twitter doesn't count as talking--and now you're coming up to me with your problems--"
His eyes widened. "No, no! Mianhae, I--didn't think of you to solve my problems. I just---ugh, I feel so stupid right now--I just wanted to---talk."

My gaze softened. Was the fight really that bad? Enough to drive him to tears and talk to a girl he hasn't seen in months?

"Start from the begining," I said.

"Wooyoung shook his head. "There isn't one. It just happened. When Taec started ignoring me, I didn't think it would lead to this. I thought he was just mad about something that didn't relate to me. He was ignoring everybody, so when I asked him what was wrong, he just--blew."

I nodded. "Then what?"
Wooyoung shurgged. "It happened so fast. He started yelling at me, then, of course, I,I--yelled back at him. I said he was just jealous cause of the solo--then, I don't know. He kept yelling. After I punched him, JunHo grabbed me and threw me out."

"So where have you been staying?" I asked. "Does JYP know?"
He shook his head. "I've been staying over at a friend's house for the past two days. But I think I have to leave soon. I don't want to be a burden for him..."
He closed him eyes. 
I could see how much pain he was in. He needed some air. 

I stood up and grabbed his upper arm. "Come on, let's go."

He stood up, bewildered. "Where?"
"Get your hair done," I said, dragging him out the door and into the salon. The stylists frowned upon seeing us, but I ignored them.

"Huh? Wae?" 

"Just do it," I led him to a seat and caled a stylist over. "It always makes me feel better."

He gave a small smile then scoffed. "But your a girl--"
"Aish~" I poked him. "Just do it." 
I turned to the stylist, who had appeared with a cart full of scissors and combs.
"Unnie, please give him a completely new look," I instructed, and she nodded.

I sat down in the waiting area with a huff. I grabbed the nearest magazine and began reading it. I began debating letting JYP know. Shouldn't he know about this issue too? I shook my head, muttering to myself. I was sure I caught the eye of some worried stylists, but I didn't care. 

No. If Wooyoung wanted JYP to know, he would have told him himself. For now, this was just going to be between him and me. 

I sat there blankly for who knows how long, occasionally muttering to myself and shifting in the leather seat. Twice, one of the stylists came over and asked if everything was okay, and I waved her away in what I hoped was the most polite way possible. 

A figure came up to me, and I raised my head to snap at them, but stopped when I realized who it was. 

I gave him a smile. "Nicely done."

He ran his fingers through his hair. "Thanks."
"Yah, I didn't do anything," I said, brushing some hair off his shoulder. 

Without warning, he pulled me into a tight hug. 

"Thanks," he said again, quietly. 

"Anything for a friend," I said. "Come on, let's get out of here."

Next Chapter (coming soon)