(a/n) Finals week just came in. A quick update here. Please support. :>

The life of an ace player was quite tough, such that day-to-day schedule was always predictable. Chanyeol had seamlessly tight routines on which he never fails to fulfil (from football practice to catching up with the school’s lessons)—that is, it’s because he believes that by doing it one-hundred and ten percent, he could actually make himself succeed using his passions to release off his mind from the stresses in life he was enduring.

And contrary to beliefs spreading out, about him being the biggest football star in the school and probably the hottest ace player ever to grace the school field—Chanyeol lived the humble life and a secretive one at that. He was never conceited with what he has or how popular he is in the campus. He kept himself on low profile. He was quite the charmer, he puts up a mask whenever he’s in school—behind his likeable character and to-die-for smiles, he had personal problems of his own.

That was why he considers himself a geek in disguise. He loves to read alone whenever he has a spare time, because it gives off a different feeling that football itself could never offer him. He never intended to keep this fact a secret—he just doesn’t want people to know that he has this vulnerability in him.

---

“Chanyeollie hyung.” A not-so distant, acquainted call came to him from behind.

“Yeah? What’s wrong Jongin?” He turned around to face their tanned, yet sturdy goal keeper while fixing up his personal utilities as they were inside the men’s locker room.

“I was about to tell you earlier, Coach cut me off the team.” The younger’s face grew dim as he let out the sad news.

“Wai-what?! Why the hell would he do that? I’m gonna talk to him.” The taller guy’s eyes bulging, and infuriated as he blurted out.

“You’ve been keeping up with the pace. The last time, you even caught about three to four goals.” He continued.

“No. Listen, hyung. You know… There are some things I don’t want to talk about right now. This is not Coach’s fault that I got cut off. It’s about me, actually.” Jongin spoke grimly, as if all the colors of the world turned into monochrome.

Chanyeol look puzzled, yet he was calmer this time. He chose not to argue anymore and tried to listen to whatever he had to say.

“Jongin, look at me. I want to understand. If nobody else can, you know that I could, right? I’ve always been your big brother since you came here.” He placed his hands on Jongin’s shoulders, gripping it lightly.

“Some other time, hyung. I really wanted to thank you for everything.” His eyes were still unable to look at the older’s.

“And by the way, I’m transferring schools. I’m sorry that you got the short notice. It went by so fast.” He put on a quick glance as he continued.

Chanyeol sighed before he composed his words. He already knew that Jongin won’t budge even if he tried.

“What else can I do? You never told me that much. I just wish that you’ll always be fine. I won’t be there the next time you’ll mess up.” He chuckled blithely so as to relieve some of the tension.

“Okay, I won’t force you to tell me anything which makes you uncomfortable. You’re already capable of dealing whatever it is that’s been bothering you. Hope you’re doing the right thing, eh?” He continued as he let out words of reassurance.

“Of course! Hyung, you’re the best! Glad I let that out. It feels good.” He posed a smile which seemed bittersweet—but nonetheless, a smile.

“I better get my things ready. See you later. The last day would on Thursday! See me off, will you hyung?” He tried to be enthusiastic about it, but Chanyeol feels he was trying too hard.

After a while, Jongin had his stuff taken away from his locker. He fixed the place up and prepped it, so that it can be used in the future. With a quick glance and an apparent ‘I’m going’ gesture. He skipped out of the room leaving the giant athlete all alone.

Chanyeol felt a lonesome feeling after Jongin left. Maybe he was just tired, or maybe he was that really sad that he’s going to leave. After all, Jongin was his friend—not really a best friend, but a close one at that when compared among his other team mates.

He rose from the angled benches on his two feet and reached for the showers. He needed to be refreshed so as to lessen the burden he was thinking for the day. The cold water came dripping on his ; pallor skin provided him ease, somehow comforting him that everything will turn out fine.

---

‘Baekhyun’ he remembered.

The name itself, he remembered.

His thoughts shifted towards this boy who caught his attention during his one-way trip to the library the other day. This guy, who he thought he was already friends with, since they shared some clichéd jokes and that he considered him quite amusing, gave him a cold shoulder just this afternoon. He deliberately wants to know about the sudden action and he wanted to know if something was bothering him.

Furthermore, he had an obligation to return the umbrella he lent him that day they met. He was really that grateful for the guy, that if it wasn’t for his generosity. He would be stuck at school due to the inclement weather—and probably, his mom would be nagging him if he hadn’t come home soon.

---

His backpack was ready. He had gathered some important stuff before shutting down the locker room. The bag was all zipped and made a swift turn to the mirror to fix his hair for the last time. He was the last athlete to leave, and probably the last student too. He pulled the door slightly and made a clicking sound that guaranteed him that the metal knob was already padlocked.

---

Along the sidewalks of the busy streets of Seoul, Chanyeol was still in deliberate thinking about why Jongin had to pull out from the team and transfer schools. At the back of his mind, he tried to remember things which might give clues to his decision. Gripping along his large backpack on one shoulder, he continued his way to go home while being mentally absent. After some time, he gave up on the idea and walked along beneath some flickering light posts on the streets.  

He turned his direction to face a pedestrian. A familiar, jacketed figure came by surprise—it was Baekhyun. He was waiting for the red light to come around, and when it did, Chanyeol noticed that the guy was not moving at all. He sensed that he was not aware that the light already turned green.

‘It was perfect timing’ he then thought.

He reached out for his backpack, zipped it open to get Baekhyun’s umbrella inside. He faced to approach him when suddenly; Baekhyun snapped out from his daydreaming and started walking past the pedestrian.

Chanyeol still followed the guy until he saw that the traffic light already turned orange, and then red. His expression was exasperated, his eyes widened and rushed to the streets.

Baekhyun was still in the middle of the streets, that he was completely oblivious of the danger he was in. He made a quick look on his left and saw that vehicles were racing towards his direction cunningly. He didn’t know what to do next.

All he knew was that he saw a light. Baekhyun saw a very bright light.

He felt a very strong push on his back, after which was followed by a loud cry.

“BAEKHYUN, MOVE!”

---

Baekhyun blinked after realizing what has happened. He was lying against the hard-pressed, cold pavement. His face was covered with few scratches and his uniform was all in mess. He tried to stand up, but to no avail, his knees were weak.

Then he saw blood. He saw a man lying centimeters away from him—unconscious and the clothes were stained and tattered. It took him a second to recognize that it was Chanyeol. He knew that he was the one who pushed him off the streets, and now he was in this fatal state. To his horror, and out of adrenaline rush, he stood up, literally whimpering, and carried the unconscious body to his lap.

“CHANYEOL! Please wake up!” He screamed loudly as he attempted to make several gentle slaps on his face.

“Some---one… Please help! Please…. Emergency.” He continued to stutter on his words as he pleaded for help.

His trembling body seemed to be taking its toll that his vision gradually became hazy. He’s already gasping for breath, unable to breathe steadily due to shock. He was not sure anymore if this is a dream or not, and if it was, he needs to wake up immediately from this nightmare.

Baekhyun lost his consciousness once again and the last sound he heard was that of the beaming, screeching sound of the ambulance.

(a/n) Was it short? please forgive me. :( I'll update again. But this time, i'll be more enthusiastic. I love the next chapter! :)