The year ended quite fast, and so did Sehun's pain and suffering for the loss of a complete family. Now, he has a new set of friends - Kai, Suho, D.O and Baekhyun. He still keeps in touch with his friends back in his former home, but he barely sees them.

Then there's Aoi.

It took a few days before Sehun has finally grasped the idea of them being friends. Yes, friends. Nothing more.

Sehun offered to be her tutor during that break-up incident with Chanyeol a few months ago, to which Aoi agreed. Her korean has improved drastically because of him, and now she finds herself hanging out more and more with the Korean students in her school, and sometimes with Exo-K and their girlfriends as well.

He didn't dare make a move on her, afraid that she won't reciprocate his feelings. So they remained friends for months. Oh, how completely wrong he was.

What Sehun wouldn't realize is the way Aoi blushes whenever he would as much as brush his fingers on her or pat her back to congratulate her on a speech well-delivered... on how she smiles differently at the mention of his name, and how she has that dreamy look whenever she's with him.

No, Sehun's way too insecure to notice all of these. He just refused to take note that he had become a sort of celebrity in their school, and even some of the girls (and guys?) from Aoi's school would stop to gawk at him and his friends whenever they would wait for their friend at the huge gates.

Aoi would also tone down the lolita fashion she usually sports whenever she's with Sehun, but the older guy will insist on seeing her in those cute little outfits. Sometimes, he'd even accompany her in the strangest of strange shops that sell those types of clothes.

The two strangers became friends, and their friendship deepened as time passed.

When Sehun would feel alone and lonely, Aoi would be there for him to cheer him up. When Aoi would feel homesick, Sehun would gladly take her out and they would explore Seoul together.

Once, when Sehun became extremely ill, Aoi sneaked out of her school's dormitory and traveled a good forty minutes in the middle of a storm just so she could personally make sure that he recovers asap. Sehun nearly kissed her in joy if only he wasn't too tired and sick to move (not to mention too shy).

But time came when Aoi had to go back to her home in Japan and take an indefinite leave at school. Her father's business just suffered a financial blow and they couldn't afford to pay for her studies anymore. She didn't know what to do.

For the first time in her life, Aoi was afraid. She was afraid that this might prompt the end of whatever she and Sehun has. It was unfortunate that it had to take a problem like this for her to realize that she had fallen in love with that good-looking guy with the poker face. And she was crushed.

He would never know that the moment Aoi met eyes with him for the first time in that bus, he had already managed to capture her fragile heart. Sehun would never know that whenever he would space out in his seat and a soft smile would plaster on his face whenever he thinks of her, Aoi would turn from her seat and steal a glance at him. He would never know t