The next week, I barely saw Taemin, but his coldness towards me at home made me feel uneasy. I was also starting to worry a bit about Jay; he hadn't shown up to school in the last two weeks, and after the baby assignment was over, I had tried my best to forget about him. 

One day, in school, I was washing my hands in the washroom when I heard a loud group of girls walk into the room. Drying my hands nervously, I ducked into one of the stalls to avoid confrontation. 

"I can't believe Jay did it again," one girl snickered. I pressed my ear to the thin door of the stall, my curiosity piqued. 

"Come on! He's just that type of guy, but I never thought he'd bounce back that quickly," another girl laughed. "I wish I could've seen the look on his uncle's face when he saw Jay and another one of his girls in bed together." My heart stopped a little at that comment. 

"He's probably celebrating the fact that he's in England now, with all those foreign es," the first girl said, and I imagined her leaning over the sink to peer at her makeup. 

"Those girls won't give him a second look," a quieter voice spoke up. 

"He's a charmer," the first girl said wisely. "He even messed with Young Rin, the girl with no feelings...now that must've been an accomplishment." The girls laughed and I felt a spark of anger. 

“But seriously, Young Rin is just a ,” one of them said in a haughty voice. “She’s been playing around with Taemin, even though he already has a girlfriend.” I froze, and I had no time to recollect my thoughts before the person spoke again.

“Apparently she’s dirt poor too,” the previous voice said, “I bet she only went for Taemin for his money. That explains Jay too.” The girls all murmured their consensus, and for a moment, I was able to organize my scrambled brain.

Jay was in England because he was caught with a girl by his uncle.

Taemin had a girlfriend.

That girlfriend wasn’t me.

“What was his girlfriend’s name again?” a girl asked like the total ditz she was, “It started with a Y.”

I don’t remember the rest of the day, and somehow, I wandered back to the dorm in one piece. I sank onto my bed and searched up Taemin and Yeon Ri on the internet.

Everything the girls in the washroom had said was true. Apparently, Taemin had gone on a talk show a couple days ago and confessed his love for that . And of course, she’d been flattered. Angrily, I clicked the video link to the show.

“Can you tell us a little bit about your ideal type?” the host asked, smiling winningly at Taemin. Taemin smiled naturally, and nodded his head.

“My ideal girl would be sweet, innocent, and a great cook and dancer,” Taemin said.

“Now, have you ever met a girl like this? I’ve heard some rumors,” the host said as he looked at Taemin. Taemin stumbled a bit, and after a long pause, he opened his mouth.

“A year ago, I met this girl who was a backup dancer for our group. Even though she was only supposed to be with us for one practice, I asked our manager to keep her with us,” Taemin said, flushing a little bit.

“And how’s your relationship been since then?” the host asked, encouraging the stupid story.

“It’s been platonic,” Taemin confessed. Hah. Platonic my . “But now, I’ve been starting to worry about the looks other guys give her; it’s been driving me nuts.”

“I’m sure any girl would love to be with you,” the host said, looking at the audience. Whoops and cheers came from the audience, and Taemin looked up as if enlightened.

“I’ve never told her this directly,” Taemin said shakily, “But Yeon Ri, I-“ At that point, I shut down my laptop and imagined Yeon Ri’s stupid face smiling at Taemin’s confession. Depressed, I buried myself under my blankets and slept until I heard the sound of the bedroom door opening.

“Young Rin,” Taemin said, as he walked into the room. He sat down gingerly on the edge of my bed. “I have something to tell you.” I buried my face in my pillow and willed him not to say the thing I was dreading. Taemin swallowed nervously, and looked away from me.

“I can’t be with you. You were right,” he said slowly. “You were right about how this relationship would never work out between us.”

The tears were coming on now, fast and thick, and I struggled to keep quiet. What I really wanted to do was scream and slap him.

“I’m sorry,” he said, his voice breaking a bit.

“You bastard,” I said, full out crying now, “You promised me you’d never make me cry.”

“This is for your own good,” Taemin spat at me, “It’s not like you ever liked being with me…I was just a rebound wasn’t I?”

I sprang up from my bed, and ran out the room, and as I passed the other members in the living room, I ignored their surprise and shock.

“What the hell did you say to Young Rin?” Minho asked Taemin, as I stumbled out the door.

Distantly, I could hear Taemin’s answer, but I forced myself to just run and not think.

Screw logic.

Screw reason.

Screw him.