http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMc4tEeWr7E

-----

Sunday passed by gloomily. There wasn’t much laughter or talk, and if there was, it was mostly from Himchan and Jongup who were trying to lighten up the mood. However, no matter how many attempts they made for Zelo to smile, he didn’t give in. He had turned into a mute child with vacant expressions. His eyes were vapid, and it seemed as if something- or someone- had his soul out.

Monday was a rainy day.

As expected, Zelo couldn’t concentrate in school. He even had to stay in during breaktime to finish his math problems. All the formulas that Baekhyun had taught him had been wiped out from his memory.

The last bell of the day dismissed the students from class.

Zelo slowly packed his belongings, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and trudged out of his classroom. He looked up and halted. Saemi was staring at him. Her expression was curious yet concerned. Zelo averted his gaze. He couldn’t face her now. He didn’t want to cry in front of the girl he liked. *If she sees me now, she’ll notice my swollen eyes. I can’t let her see me like this.* Without saying anything, he forced himself to turn around and walk away.

Zelo took out his umbrella and began to walk home. Honk. Honk. He stepped to the side, thinking that the car needed him to move. Yet, the damn car kept honking. *What now?! I moved, didn’t I?!* Zelo stopped and spun around with an agitated look. The sleek black car passed by and abruptly came to a halt by his side. The back window slid open, and the person he wanted to see least at that moment looked up at him.

“Junhong, sweetie, get out of the rain. I’ll give you a ride to wherever you need to go.”

Zelo flatly rejected her offer. “No, thanks.” He sourly spat and walked away.

The car inched along to match his pace. “Junhong, please. You’ll catch a cold.” Mrs. Choi pleaded.

Zelo stopped, turned to her, and sneered, “You didn’t care before! Just go away and leave me alone! I don’t need your stinking car!” He dropped his umbrella and started running “Junhong-ah!” She cried out, but he had already run out of sight. Zelo stopped when he was sure the car wouldn’t follow him. Breathing heavily, he glanced back. The car was nowhere in sight. *Damn that woman. How dare she follow me to school, too?* Shaking his wet, blonde hair, Zelo made his way home.

Honk. Honk.

*GOD DAMMIT!* Zelo spun around to curse his own mother. However, it was a different car. The silver BMW pulled over, and the window slid open. Zelo furrowed his eyebrows and stepped back in caution. If the clingy woman had gotten another car, he’d just climb over the wall behind him. To his surprise, it was a friendly face.

“Need a ride?” Baekhyun smiled kindly.

Zelo took his offer. Baekhyun turned the heater to full blast and drove towards Zelo’s home.

The ride was silent and comfortable.

Zelo glanced at him. “Aren’t you going to ask me what happened?”

“I don’t think you’re ready to tell me. Are you?” Baekhyun asked.

Zelo turned silent. Soon, they arrived at his home. Baekhyun parked the car and turned to him.

“Let me just say one thing though, Zelo. I know it may not be any of my business, and you probably don’t want to talk about it either. However, I don’t want to see a good dongsaeng of mine in such a daze that he can’t move forward with his life.”

Zelo looked away.

“I can’t feel what you are feeling at this moment. It must be extremely complicated to be in your shoes right now. I can only imagine what you are going through. However, Zelo, you should know that you’re not alone. You have a lot of people who care about you and would do anything to help you. You have Yeojin. You have Daehyun, Jongup, and Youngjae. You also have Himchan and Yongguk hyungs. And you have me. Whatever you’re going through, we’ll try to be there for you as much as we can. Never think that you’re alone, okay?” Baekhyun reminded.

Zelo slightly softened, “Hyung…”

“And we’re going to start with extra tutor sessions.” Baekhyun grinned, “Nothing like math to keep your mind off of things.”

Zelo raised an eyebrow, “Are you serious?”

“Dead serious. Now do you want to study at home or somewhere else?” Baekhyun asked.

Zelo thought about it. He didn’t want to stay home because there were chances that his biological mother would visit him again. “Can we go somewhere else?” Zelo asked.

“Sure.” Baekhyun started the car and drove away.

------

The phone shrilly rang. Yongguk tore his glove off and darted inside the office. He picked up the telephone and answered, “TS Auto Shop. How may I help you?” There was a pause on th other line. “Hello?” Yongguk repeated.

“Hello, I am Junhong’s mother.” She replied. He froze immediately. *Why is she calling here at my work?*

“Hello.” Yongguk replied as politely as he could.

“Can we meet up? There’s something I would like to show you. Also, I would like to discuss about Junhong.” Mrs. Choi said.

Yongguk didn’t want anything to do with this woman. He wanted her to go far away and leave his family alone. However, being the responsible, mature one, he couldn’t decline her request. “Sure. I’ll meet you there in an hour. Goodbye.” Yongguk hung up.

Himchan approached him with a sweaty face and greasy arms. “Who was that? Another customer? We haven’t been getting many lately. I think we should advertise some more.” He noticed that Yongguk was staring off into spa