~chapter twenty~
chance
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and the people that you love
well they have nothing lovely to say

Kai looked around with strong, sharp gaze. A girl who was passing by definitely checked him out as he was sitting by himself on a little bench in front of Xiumin’s bakery, but her face fell when he glared at her with all his might. She quickly got out of his sight and Kai’s face returned to its normal state.

He hated when people were checking him out. He was used to it a long time ago. He was even taking advantage of it in the past. He liked the thought of him being attractive. He could have anybody. It was easy for him to flirt with girls. But after he met Sang Hee, he completely lost interest in it. As for now, he knew about his good looks – even though he got much skinnier – but didn’t like other staring at him, no matter what the reason was. He was alone and he wanted to remain alone.

He saw someone stopping in front of him and looked up with the same glare, but he realized that it was Xiumin who came. His friend raised brows.

“Well, that’s a lovely way to say hello” he stated, passing Kai and pulling the keys out of his jacket.
“Where have you been hyung? Why is the shop closed?” Kai asked, standing up from the bench. It was really cold today and he shivered.
“It’s Saturday, Kai” Xiumin answered, pointing at the door. “We’re opened from 9 am to 3 pm and then from 6 pm, so I’m opening only for you”
“But I called you half an hour ago”
“Well I’m sorry, I have plans from time to time too!” Xiumin pouted and Kai felt confused. He blinked and looked at his friend apologetically.

They entered the bakery and Xiumin the lights.

“So? What did you want to show me?” he asked normally, as nothing happened. Kai pulled his phone out quickly.
“I have a friend who paints” he said. “I will show a few paintings for you and you’ll tell me if they’re good”.

Xiumin nodded simply, a bit taken aback. Kai showed him the first painting and Xiumin hummed. At the second picture, he nodded, and at the third picture, he pouted slightly in deep thought. At the end he frowned. His expression was funny, but unreadable for Kai.

“So? What do you think?” he asked, blinking and raising his brows a bit. Xiumin hummed again and Kai started to bite his lips.
“They’re good” Xiumin answered honestly. “I don’t know much about painting, but your friend definitely is talented. Is it someone I know?”
“Nope” Kai shook his head and hid his cell phone. “But I asked you because I have a request”
“I knew it” Xiumin said, pinching the edge of his nose. “Okay, I’ll listen to you” he said a’la Vito Corleone, modulating his voice a bit. Kai chuckled.
“Can I try to sell it in front of your bakery?”

Xiumin raised his brows.

“Well, it’s my parents’ decision to be honest” he said. “But why here?”
“I don’t want to have troubles if I will try to sell it in the middle of the road. Remember the whole situation with Chen and Lay singing in the park?”

Xiumin on his teeth. “Yeah. Damn city rules”

“Right? So I don’t want to go through the same thing. But this area belongs to your parents so you can do whatever you want here right? That’s why I’m asking. I have been thinking about Suho’s café, but it’s not his property and I don’t even know his boss too well”

Xiumin hummed in wonder. Thirty seconds passed and he finally nodded.

“I will talk to my parents” he said, patting Kai’s shoulder. “But if you want to sell it, you have to get rid of that horrific glare of yours”.

Kai chuckled and Xiumin did the same.

~*~

Kai entered their house and pulled out his phone immediately. He messaged  Mari about Xiumin’s promise to ask his parents about selling the paintings and waited for a reply, but she was working and he gave up after waiting for an hour.

As always, he went to sleep, but it didn’t last long. He heard a loud thud and jerked out from the couch, his heart beating rapidly. He turned his head to see Taemin entering the living room with a large cartoon in his skinny arms. He frowned with utter shock; he looked so funny that when Taemin saw him, he laughed. He put the cartoon on the dining table.

“Did I wake you up?” Kai’s hyung asked, giggling and trying to untangle the hem of his sleeve which hooked to some sharp object inside the box. “You look indignant lol”

Kai blinked at him a few times and observed at he still tried to get away from the box. Eventually he stood up and helped him out, seeing what was inside the box.

“Wait, what…?” he mumbled.
“We’re having a party!” Taemin announced, clapping. He pulled plastic forks out of the box and pointed at Kai with them. “A big one”
“W-Wae?” Kai mumbled again, taking a step back and telling him with his movements to get the forks away.
“Because it’s Saturday and Christmas Eve is coming! I want to have a party before the New Year”
“We will have a party on New Year’s Eve” Kai said, making a face.
“Not me” Taemin shook his head with a pout. “I have to be in the company at this time”
“No way!” Kai gasped with disbelief. “But we will spend Christmas Eve together right?”
“Yeah, yeah” Taemin waved his hand and stared to unpack the box. Kai saw plastic plates and cups, a lot of CDs, a lot of packed food and three movies. Also, he got two games to play on xbox. They had xbox but never really played it and the games were Chanyeol’s.
“I still have to go to the supermarket. Suho promised me that he will help me to prepare food. You will too, right? You were good at it”

Kai hummed.

His phone buzzed and he turned back. It was on the coffee table. He picked it up and saw a message from Mari.

“Who is it?” Taemin asked.
“A friend” Kai mumbled to him, already reading the message.

Thank you.

He smiled slightly. It was a short, small smile, but his eyes lighted up suddenly. Taemin stared at him. Kai grunted and put his cell phone to his pocket.

Their eyes met and Kai froze.

Taemin was eyeing him carefully, with a hint of suspicion.

“Kai” he said.
“Yeah?” his dongsaeng whispered with sudden panic. He didn’t even know why he panicked, but Taemin’s cold and weird stare freaked him out.
“Why are you smiling?”

Kai breathed the air out of his lungs and made a face at his hyung. He looked at him reproachfully and with disbelief.

“You are horrible Taemin. Ho-rri-ble!” he said and went to his room, smacking Taemin’s head on his way. His hyung bend down and rubbed his forehead with a hiss.

He still looked at the stairs even when Kai disappeared from his sight. He smiled under his nose, but still frowned his brows in wonder and suspiciousness.

He was scared that his best friend will get himself in some kind of a trouble. He realized that he’s out almost all the time, and not because of his job. Normally he would sleep all days.

It was his sixth sense; they used to do weird and dangerous things when they were still in school. Taemin knew that when Kai did something bad because he would act a bit differently. But it wasn’t really bad, it was just something other people considered as hooliganism. For example, jumping on the building’s roofs or creeping on some weird places, or, as they used to do a lot – spying on someone. Taemin had a feeling that Kai has a new secret, not involved with his past though, a secret, and a plan in the same time. A plan that he’s fulfilling already.

And Taemin wasn’t sure if this plan is about changing Kai’s life or about making it even harder.

~*~

Mari got out of the café and took a deep breath. The air was cold and pinched her cheeks. She huffed to see her breath whirl in white, little clouds.

She headed home, but as always, she chose the shortcut. It was 7 pm, the sky was dark, but the stars were shining brightly and she smiled.

It was a tiring day and she was happy that tomorrow is Sunday. But she remembered that the day of the payment is coming closer and sighed. She already had the right amount of money, but she had to meet with the gang and probably she would have to run away again after what she did lately.

She remembered about her apartment. They knew where she lived. She already changed the locks, but couldn’t afford to move right now; so they probably observed her.

She started to count her payments in her head and on her fingers a bit, steam from her lips falling and whirling after her, as she was getting closer to her house. She passed a theater and went to the cold alley. She got so used to these alleys. In the past, she never entered them, but now it was the shortest way to get to her apartment and it didn’t scare her as much as then.

She quickly got tired of counting and focused at the stars. She was walking while looking up.

She noticed a glimpse of something black on the building’s roof and frowned. In the next second, something cold fell on her forehead and she gasped, taking a step back, her heart beating crazily. She touched her forehead with utter shock and then looked at her fingers.

Her eyes widened when she saw a pink paint dripping from her forehead and now also from her fingertips.

She jerked her head up, but didn’t see anyone. She ran towards her house.

~*~

Loud music was penetrating Kai’s ears. He took a sip of his coke and then gulped the whole cup down. Suho, Kris and Key brought some alcohol and now they were having a debate about politics. Kai tried to listen to them once, but after staring at them and frowning, he felt like a retard who didn’t know anything, so he stopped.

Xiumin, Luhan and Minho were playing video games. Minho was shouting as always, because he didn’t want to lose. Taemin was talking with Chen, Chanyeol was eating on the sofa and cheering on Luhan, Baekhyun was beside him, doing something in his phone.

For them, it was a party, even though from beside it looked like a normal meeting. But it was a party indeed – because they could meet and spend some time with each other. More than that, there was food.

Jonghyun joined him suddenly and poured himself some coke too. They were in the kitchen, but it was connected with the living room, so they could see everything from here.

“I like evenings like this” Jonghyun said. “It gets lonely after some time, so when we’re all together again, I feel relieved. I remember that I still have many friends”

Kai hummed.

“You should be glad that you’re not a student anymore you know” Jonghyun continued. “You have some free time for yourself. And the job you have is enough for you to live here, right?”
“Not really hyung” Kai said. Sometimes Jonghyun was too straightforward and didn’t really know what he was saying. “I pay for the apartment together with Suho and Taemin, so I wouldn’t live here alone if I would have to. I have money for food, yes, but Suho mostly takes care of this. I’m like a parasite here to be honest”
“No way” Jonghyun shook his head. “You’re a great friend so it doesn’t matter if you pay or not” he beamed, making Kai even more uncomfortable.
“Huuh” he mumbled, embarrassed. “Thanks, hyung”
“You’re welcome! I’m going to play. I want to kick Minho’s ” Jonghyun said, patting Kai’s shoulder. The younger boy jerked it away habitually, but Jonghyun didn’t even notice it.

After drinking his coke and eating dozen of cookies (yes, literally dozen) Kai went to sit beside Chanyeol and Baekhyun. They nudged him and they started talking about some movies.

Kai’s mood quickly got better and he laughed when Chanyeol ended up cracking because of his own joke.

“But, Kai, let’s be serious now” Baekhyun said, looking at him with his cute, big eyes. “How are you doing? How’s your job? We haven’t talk in a while”
“No one has time to talk” Chanyeol sighed, laying down.
“It’s fine, I’m not complaining” Kai answered, nodding. “I read most of the time”
“Your boss must be great to pay you for doing nothing” someone suddenly said. Kris sat beside Kai with a beer in his hand and looked at him sharply. “What was her nickname again?”
“It’s Madam” Kai answered. “Well, I do help her”
“I heard that she’s a widow” Chanyeol stated. Kai frowned.
“Where did you hear that?”
“I don’t remember. Is she?”
“Yeah, with quite a big inheritance” Kai said, huffing. Chanyeol looked at Kris and they both grinned in the same time. Kai frowned at them questioningly.
“What’s with your faces?”
“Oh come on Kai” Kris said, his voice low. “We know that we can have any girl you want”

Kai blinked at him and burst out laughing suddenly. Kris, Chanyeol and Baekhyun snorted and laughed too. Kai smacked Kris with a pillow three times.

“You are crazy!” he shouted. Kris tried to defend himself, but he ended up splitting the beer on his own clothes and he got up.
“YAH!” he shouted, but couldn’t stop laughing.
“But you know, older women are…” Baekhyun started, but Kai threw a pillow at him.
“Don’t even try to say it!” he said, pointing his finger up warningly. “I respect Madam with all my might and I wish that she would find a good man someday-“
“What are you guys doing?!” Suho shouted, seeing the pillows all around and beer spilled on Kris. Before he knew, Kris jumped on Kai and they started bickering over his wet shirt.

No one knew what was going on, but everybody was laughing.

~*~

Mari turned right and could finally see her apartment. She only had to get out of the alleys and cross the street.

But she suddenly stopped when she heard a low growl.

She froze. The growling continued and became louder and more frightening. Her heart jumped out of her chest. She turned her head very slowly, unable to move her hands of legs.

She saw a pair of shining eyes around the corner. Two strong, black paws were shivering slightly on the ground, its muscles tense and ready to jump.

A huge dog was growling at her and she couldn’t think properly. She tried to remember what to do if a dog wants to attack you, but she could only remember that she can’t make and sudden movements.

She had to get somewhere higher. She looked around without moving any part of her body and saw a ladder leading to the building’s roof.

She still stood with her back to the dog, only turning her head. She was scared to look away, because he would think that she was scared. Well, she was, but she couldn’t show it.

She tried to move on the right. She mover her leg a bit and the dog growled again. He moved his paw a bit too. She moved her left leg. She forgot about breathing and her lugs felt sore all of a sudden.

She took a deep breath.

She moved her feet a bit, but some rock got in her way and rolled away.

The dog barked suddenly, tensing even more and she gasped lightly, losing her balance.

Her leg made a sudden movement when she tried to keep her balance and the dog jumped. She couldn’t think straight, but she jerked to the front and jumped at the building’s wall, grabbing the ladder right away. She could hear her loud and unstable breathing, her racing heart, hurting in her chest, and the dog’s growls and scowls, and paws hitting the ground. She never got up faster than she did at that time. She felt the ladder shaking and she knew that the dog jumped on it, but she was higher.

She looked down and frowned, her heart beating so strongly that it hurt. She had a feeling that it will tore her chest in a second.

The dog had a collar. And there was something black going out of the collar. She followed it with her eyes and stopped around the corner, where the dog was standing earlier.

She saw a dark silhouette. The man was holding a dog-lead. And she knew right away what just happened.

She got on the roof and without thinking, she started to run. She jumped on another roof and heard steps behind herself. She turned to see the man again. He was slowly walking on the roof, towards her.

She jumped again. The building was right beside the street and she could see the people walking around. She felt an ease, but when she turned, she saw the man running towards her.

She totally panicked and tried to find the ladder to get down, but there was none. She only saw a big tree growing on the left. Without thinking, she ran towards the edge of the building and jumped from it in the last second – the man was behind her, pulling his arm out to catch her.

She caught a big branch, but her hands got cut deeply and she shouted. She let it go and fell on another branch, and then on the ground, with a loud hiss mixed with w growl. Some people walking around stopped at the sight, worried and shocked, because she appeared out of nowhere. Mari’s hands were bleeding and she scratched her legs when she fell. Not mentioning her , which she couldn’t really feel.

But at least she was safe. When she looked up, she saw no one on the roof.

It was like a routine for her already; running away. Running away, getting hurt, going back home. And repeat.

She got up. A woman asked if she was okay, so she nodded, but the woman gave her a pack of tissues anyway. Mari thanked, bowing, and ran to her house. She wanted to close the doors, cover the windows and feel secure again.

But she knew that she won’t feel secure ever again.

Kai’s face appeared in her mind, but she shook her head while wiping out the blood from her fingers.

~*~

Kai was knocking on the doors for seven minutes already. After three minutes, he tried with his leg, but got tired and now he was knocking with his own head, mumbling Mari’s name from time to time. He was bored and she was still sleeping, he knew that. He growled and slapped the doors. He just hoped that Mari’s neighbors won’t come out and nag at him.

“Mari! Open the doors god dammit” he said, kicking them again. He stopped and waited.

He finally heard a sound and breathed out with an ease.

“Finally!” he shouted, when she was unlocking the doors. He saw her and smiled widely, happy because of something. But Mari was in a complete mess, with three cuts on her cheeks and her fingers covered with plasters. Kai’s face fell.
“What happened?” he asked.
“Hm?” Mari mumbled, yawning. “Come in”
“What happened Mari?” Kai repeated, passing her.
“What do you mean?” the girl asked, frowning. Kai grabbed her hands and looked at her fingers closely. She chuckled.
“Ohh, this. Nothing serious, I fell from the tree” she answered with a small laugh.
“A tree?” Kai gasped.
“When I think about it now, it must have looked hilarious” Mari waved her hand. “But you know, I’m not in a mood to go out today, so…”
“No, no, that’s important. Xiumin’s parents said yes so we can start to sell the paintings”

Mari opened her eyes widely and smiled.

“Really?! They said yes?”
“Yeah” Kai smiled and nodded, crossing his arms. “They must really like me”
“Ohh, who wouldn’t” Mari rolled her eyes and went to her bedroom to take some clothes.
“What? What do you mean?” Kai asked, taken aback.
“Nothing” Mari chimed, passing him with the clothes and entering the bathroom with a smile.

It didn’t take long for them to exit the apartment and head to Xiumin’s bakery with paintings they picked out. They took eight paintings in random sizes.

They stopped in front of the bakery and Mari eyed it with slightly opened.

“I didn’t know that it’s this bakery” she said. “When I was a bit younger I used to eat white buns here”
“White buns?”
“You know, with sweet white cheese inside”

They went inside. Xiumin was selling something to an elderly lady and waved to them quickly. There was a girl behind the counter too who was working here, but she was taking care of another customer.

The person who was buying from Xiumin exited the bakery, so Kai went to him with Mari. Xiumin opened his eyes widely when he saw the red haired girl and stared in utter shock.

Mari raised his brows and Kai mentally facepalmed.

“Xiumin” he said, gritting his teeth. His friend looked at him with wide eyes. “This is Mari” Kai said normally. Xiumin beamed at her and bowed.
“Nice to meet you Mari-sshi” he said. The red haired smiled. “Please forgive my reaction. I didn’t know that Kai has such pretty female friends” he shook his head and looked at Kai with a playful glimpse. Kai chuckled at him with disbelief. “Did you bring the paintings?”
“Yeah. Thanks for letting us selling it here”
“Sure. But you should thank my parents when they will come back”
“Yeah, I will”
“Okay, go outside. Want to eat something?”

Mari’s stomach growled loudly right after Xiumin asked. The boys looked at her and she blushed. They laughed.

“Okay, I guess that you do” Xiumin said.
“White buns please” Kai said quickly, raising his hand up.

After taking the food, they got out. Xiumin gave them two chairs and they placed the paintings on the bench. Mari was nervous and couldn’t even eat properly. When Kai finished his bun, her got cold already.

“Oh come one, why are you so tense?”
“What if I won’t sell anything?”
“We will come tomorrow then”
“Hah. When?” she asked. Kai remembered that they both had a job to do. But he smiled.
“That’s what friends are for” he answered. “Don’t worry Mari, eat”

Mari eyed him. She looked at her paintings standing on the bench and leaning on the wall. It looked pretty. With white snow around them, they were even more colorful and energetic.

She bit her bun and sighed deeply, stretching out her legs.

Kai stared at her. Somehow, he found her interesting and amusing. He was observing how her cheeks and jaw moved when she ate and how she waved her legs. She had long fingers. Every time he was seeing her, she was either skinnier or paler. Her red hair contrasted with her white skin.

He leaned on the wall and observed her carefully, letting himself drown in her beauty. 

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The chapters are long but almost nothing happens. Sigh. 
Anyway, a lot of you already told me that they like the pace of the story - I'm glad then. I really appreciate and love every comment. 
Thank you for reading and see you next week, I hope : )