Heyyyyyyyyyyy please don't kill me I swear I had my reasons (elaboration after the story). Anyway, this chapter is kinda M-rated but I didn't put words pertaining to a certain male/female organ (GONADS) or masses of fat tissue hanging from a woman's upper abdomen (BEWBIES) and there's no action involved in it so yeah >.< Just read it...

---

Youngjae was not having a good Saturday. He was violently sick, with a high fever and a pretty bad cough. His throat felt like sandpaper and his forehead felt the base of a volcano. That is to say, it felt hot.

“Sweetie, you’re staying at home today,” his mum announced firmly as she swept all of her papers into her briefcase.

Youngjae raised his finger to object but his mum beat him to it.

“I don’t care if you have a test. If you’re sick, you are staying home,” she slipped on her pumps and arranged her hair neatly. “There’s porridge in the fridge. Just heat it up if you’re hungry.”

Youngjae stared as his mother slipped out of the door.

“Sorry I can’t take time off. I’ll try to get one of your friends over to take care of you. See you tonight!” she smiled at him before heading off to work.

As the door closed behind her, Youngjae stifled a disappointed groan. Why did Life choose today of all days to lob him with lemons? Himchan-hyung would be so disappointed if he didn't attend the opening of the bazaar. He also had a Chemistry test in the first period and Youngjae had studied his off the night before!

He picked at the stray threads coming off his pillow and sighed. Okay, fine, maybe he wasn’t exactly studying for the exam. He was studying to distract himself from that girl.

He’d confessed. And then he’d been rejected. And now he was regretting everything.

Why had he listened to that stupid Zelo? “She likes you”, he said. “She just hasn’t realised it yet”, he said.

Youngjae chortled bitterly. Would she even talk to him again? Would she even want to see his face? Why couldn’t he just have been content with her friendship? Why did he have to kiss her twice, like an idiotic erted e? Did she even show any sign that she liked him, except for the lack of rejection?

But she did respond to both of the kisses, something small and unquenchable piped up in his brain. Would she really respond if she didn’t like him back? And she never actually answered. Maybe she had been asleep when he confessed!

Yeah right.

He clamped his pillow over his eyes, groaning quietly. Life . Like a .

---

“School’s over!” Eunhye slammed her hands on my table, shocking me awake as Mr. Kim, our Chemistry teacher, left the classroom.

“Dammit Eunhye, what the hell do you want?” I groaned, shielding my eyes from the sudden influx of sunlight.

“Himchan-oppa’s bazaar opens today… Go with me, please?” she begged with puppy-dog eyes. “It’s the first time he’s selling his designs and I need to support my future husband!”

I slumped back onto the table. I already wasn’t feeling very good thanks to yesterday and I just wanted to go home and sleep. That stupid panda bear had been smiling at me for the majority of last night, forcing me to mull over what he'd said and done. Never mind the mindblowing kiss, what transpired afterwards was even more of a shocker.

He’d said he liked me. And it didn’t take a genius to figure out what he meant.

My heart raced and blood rushed to my face as the sound of his voice reverberated through my skull. I felt really delirious, partly from the lack of sleep and partly from… that. To be honest, I didn’t even know why he liked me. What was there to like? I’m not exactly a supermodel in terms of looks or height. Skinny, yeah, but that was about it. I’m not an all-round genius like him. I’m shy, awkward, introverted. There’s nothing to like about me.

But it felt nice to know that a super cute, super sweet guy like Youngjae-oppa actually found me attractive. I mean, I’m Dari the houseplant who only makes friends with her brother’s friends because she has no ability to make friends of her own. And it made me happy, in a weird way. It made my heart jump and my lips automatically curl into a smile.

But if he asked me to answer him, I honestly couldn't. What I felt for him and what I felt for Mr. Cho were completely different. In fact, Mr. Cho had been completely replaced by his face in my mind. 

"Hello? You there Dari?" Eunhye waved her hands in front of my face.

Gosh Eunhye, can’t I just go home and rot away with my weird feelings?

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Zelo commented, coming to my rescue.

I stared at him with surprised gratitude. He always sided with Eunhye no matter what. Did he finally value me as much as he did Eunhye?

“Yongguk-hyung just called. Youngjae-hyung is sick and he needs someone to take care of him,” he continued, voice getting a little high-pitched. “I can go with Eunhye to Himchan’s ba-whatever while you can go over to take care of Youngjae-hyung!”

Nope. still preferred Eunhye.

“But why do I have to do it?!” I whined. “Yongguk-oppa is way better than me at taking care of people!”

“W-w-well that’s because… Yongguk-hyung…” Zelo trailed away before looking to Eunhye urgently.

“Yongguk-oppa will be at the opening with us!” Eunhye answered quickly, glaring back at him. “Jongup-oppa and your brother are gonna be there too! I just recalled that it's a males-only event so you can't come. Might as well spend the rest of the day caring for your friend instead of wasting away in your room, right?”

Zelo nodded, beaming from ear to ear. He scribbled down Meatbun-oppa’s address before handing it to me expectantly.

Today just wasn’t my day, was it?

I groaned and accepted it.

Truth be told, I was kind of worried too. He did have a test today and if I knew him (which I did pretty well), he wasn’t one to skip because of a simple cold. It had to be serious if he was skipping school. Plus, Eunhye’s obsessiveness over Himchan-oppa was slightly disturbing. How did she find out that all of them would be at the opening? I didn't even know there was an opening! 

"Wait, if it's a males-only event, how are you gonna get in?"

"Mustaches," she grinned and whipped out a packet of felt mustaches, "and lots of deodorant."

"Well... Good luck with that," I coughed. "Don't get caught."

With a nod of acknowledgement, I headed off, feeling both excited and nervous about seeing his face.

---

Youngjae woke up with an even worse headache. The clock read 1pm, and even with the added 6 hours of sleep, he still felt like hell.

“I should go buy some medicine,” he croaked to himself, massaging his head.

He slipped on a Superman T-shirt and slouched out, not bothering to lock the door.

---

I stood in front of the apartment building in wonder. Being used to flashy cars and giant sparkling houses, this was a rude shock.

People could actually live in such places? The outer walls of the apartment building were cracked and speckled with black mould as the stench of a dead animal from somewhere stank up the area. The concrete ground was moist and slippery, covered in dirty green moss. There were roaches and trails of ants crawling all over the walls. I stepped gingerly inside the apartment building and waited for the lift.

The inside of the apartment building wasn’t as bad as the outside. It was clean and there was no strange smell. I spotted a female police officer heading up to me.

“We’ve had reports of a 50-year-old drunkard around here, so please be careful,” she smiled cheerfully.

“I won’t stay out for too long,” I grinned back to her as the lift doors opened.

Waving goodbye, I stepped in.

The lift was creaky and made strange noises when it moved upwards. The lights flickered on and off, giving a creepy feel to the already scary building. The ‘close’ button was so old, it didn’t even work. I waited nervously as the lift moved its way slowly.

The lift dinged and the doors slid open.

Finally, I was on his floor. I stepped out in relief and made my way down the rows of apartments before finally stopping in front of his. Strangely, there was a man outside the apartment, beer bottle in hand and drinking away merrily.

“E-excuse me, you're blocking the entrance,” I faltered. Was that the guy the police officer lady warned me about?

The man turned to me and smirked widely.

Are you Youngjae's friend?” he slurred, before stepping closer.

I backed away a bit, hand searching for my phone slowly.

“Youngjae-oppa,” I called out slowly, hoping against hope that he would answer.

No answer came back.

“Looks like Youngjae isn’t coming,” he giggled and swigged his beer again.

I turned to run, but I was too late. He grabbed me by the arm. His grip was strong for a 50 year old man and try as I might, I couldn’t struggle out of his grasp. He pushed me against the wall, beer stench suffocating me. His greasy chin-length hair whipped me in the face as his hands roamed over my face. I let out a sob as he trailed his fingers down my neck, tracing my veins with his fingers.

“Has anyone told you that you have a very pretty neck?” he leered, sour breath fanning past my ear. “You’re important to Youngjae, right? I wonder how he’d feel if I…”

I cried in pain as he nibbled my earlobe. I felt sullied. Dirty.

He slammed his left palm against my mouth, his own widening into a crazed grin. His other hand mapped my entire face, tracing my nose, lips and eyelids with deliberate slowness.

I squeezed my eyes shut, tears leaking out from the corners just as the lift doors opened again.

---

Youngjae’s mind was hazy, almost as if he was in a dream. The fever was starting to make him feel very faint. He staggered into the lift, medicine in hand and leaned against the walls, breathing heavily.

“Almost… There…” he told himself shakily.

The lift door opened to his floor and Youngjae stumbled out. Right in front of him, a girl wearing his school uniform was being manhandled by that person. She looked like she was crying. Deliriousness gave way to fury and disbelief. This person had the gall to touch one of his schoolmates?

Youngjae ripped the man off the girl angrily before stepping in front of her.

---

 “I told you to stop coming back here, you !” I heard Youngjae-oppa’s angry voice as the weight was released off me.

My legs buckled, making me slump to the ground. I gripped my hands to my ears, still silently crying. My heart raced, but this time it didn’t feel good. It felt bad.

His hands. His hands had been all over me. Touching. Touching everywhere. I rubbed away at my cheeks and neck and ears in horror, trying to physically scrub his touch away from my skin, but to no avail. I could still feel the grease on his fingertips, the stench of alcohol…

I could feel my breath coming in and out in short puffs as I panicked silently. The edges of my vision started to blur and black spots danced about.

“Are you al- Dari?” he turned to me in disbelief and looked back at the old man.

“How does it feel? I touched her,” he smiled creepily, throwing the beer can onto the floor. “Her eyelids, her lips, her cheeks… I’ve touched everywhere on her face. Does it hurt, Youngjae? Does it?”

Without saying a word, he smashed a fist at the old man’s face. The older male dodged swiftly, but didn’t attempt to hit back.

“Get out.” His voice was deadly quiet.

The man walked off without another word of protest.

Youngjae-oppa turned to me and squatted down to my level. He cupped my face gently and wiped the tearstains off with his thumbs. They felt rough and calloused and familiar, waking me up from the daylight nightmare. He held my hands in his firmly, leaning onto me and shielding me from the outside world. Slowly, my breathing returned to its normal pace and my vision cleared again.

“He didn’t touch you anywhere else right?” his voice cracked in seven different places.

I shook my head silently.

 “Thank… Goodness…” he sounded exhausted, head drooping onto my shoulder for support.

My eyes widened in shock. He was burning up, at least 40 degrees Celsius.

When Zelo said that he was sick, I didn’t realize it was to this extent. There was no time to worry about the strange old man. With a huff, I heaved him up into his apartment.

---

The tiny apartment was almost a 180 degree turn from the outside appearance. The walls were blindingly white and decorated with cheerful pictures of a family of four. However, the strange thing was that in most of the frames, a person’s face was scribbled out with angry black pen or completely cut out from the picture.

I dragged the barely unconscious Youngjae-oppa into the bedroom and pulled him onto one of the mattresses lying on the floor.

“Mmm…” he groaned, face rapidly whitening.

I inserted a thermometer into his mouth and waited a few seconds for it to beep.

I took the thermometer out and almost panicked. 42 degrees Celsius. His condition was getting bad.

“D-D-Dari…?” Youngjae-oppa groaned, eyes opening a sliver. “It’s cold…”

“Don’t worry. It’s okay, I’m here,” I piled all of the blankets I could find on top of him, but he continued to shiver.

He needed help, and fast. I hurriedly dialled our family doctor and neighbour as I soaked a towel in cool water.

“Ahn Jaehyo speaking,” Dr. Ahn’s professional-sounding voice sounded.

“Dr. Ahn, my friend has a fever of 42 degrees Celsius. I’m taking care of him now, but could you come over?” I asked politely, holding the phone in one hand while patting Youngjae-oppa’s neck with the damp towel.

“Anything for my princess!” he said happily into the phone.

“Can you get here in ten minutes? He lives on the fifteenth floor of that old apartment building outside our neighbourhood,” I asked as Youngjae-oppa’s hand caught a weak hold on mine. A little tingle of electricity shot up my arm, but I ignored it. I squeezed his fingers tightly, trying to comfort him.

“I’ll be there soon!” he hung up.

I soaked another towel and patted it on his forehead and arms before repeating. After the seventh cycle, the doorbell rang.

“It’s not locked!” I yelled, taking his temperature again.

Right on cue, I heard the door open and someone pad in on his socked feet.

“How’s the patient, Nurse Jung?” he joked as I glared at him.

“His temperature about fifteen minutes ago was 42 degrees. I’m going to check again.”

I inserted the thermometer back into his mouth until it beeped.

“40 degrees Celsius… I’m going to check his vital signs first. Move aside please,” Dr. Ahn said seriously, zipping open his bag and taking out a stethoscope and other medical things.

Looks like Youngjae-oppa was really sick. I hovered about anxiously, still gripping tightly to his hand as Dr. Ahn did his doctor-y things.

“His pulse is strong and so is his heartbeat, but his breathing seems to be having mild problems,” Dr. Ahn looked to me, sighing in relief.

“He probably has an infection in the upper respiratory tract. I can’t confirm where it is, but I highly suspect it’s in the trachea. It’s not serious, but it’s not very mild either. Quality rest and the paracetemol he bought just now should do the trick,” he continued as I walked him to the door.

“Thanks for coming on such short notice, Dr. Ahn,” I bowed politely.

He laughed and patted my head.

“No problem, sweet-cheeks,” he smirked. “Now go back to your boyfriend. I can hear him calling for you already.”

“Youngjae-oppa isn’t my boyfriend!” I squeaked, flushing as Youngjae-oppa mumbled again.

“Fine, whatever. Anyway, he’ll get better, so don’t worry too much,” he hugged me tightly before releasing me. “No hanky panky, okay?”

I could only stare after him wordlessly as he skipped merrily to the lift.

---

Youngjae’s eyes blinked open sleepily as he shifted in his mattress.

“Good morning sleepyhead,” Dari’s cheerful face popped up into his line of sight.

He scrambled up in surprise as Dari stuffed a thermometer in his mouth.

“37.2 degrees Celsius,” she said triumphantly. “I’m not bad.”

“What are you even doing here?” he croaked as she laid out the paracetemol he’d bought just now and a glass of water.

“I’m nursing you back to health!” she smiled again. He downed the glass of water with the medicine in relief.  “My doctor came by just a few hours ago and said you'll be fine, as long as you sleep on time.”

“Thanks Dari,” Youngjae smiled sincerely.

“Anything for a friend,” she grinned at him. “Oh yeah, how do I use your stove? I was going to reheat the congee but I don’t know how to use it…”

"I'll do it. If you get burned, your brother would kill me!" he nudged her aside and fired up the stove. 

"The fire burns... By itself?" Dari gazed at the flickering blue flames with fascination.

He placed the pot onto the flame and started to stir the cold congee.

"Magical isn't it?" he laughed. "It's almost done!"

This time, Dari pushed him aside. She ladled some congee into a bowl and scooped some with a spoon.

 “Say ahh,” Dari blew on the spoon gently and held it out.

Youngjae opened his mouth obediently and she fed him, ears reddening. It felt like a scene straight out of his dreams.

Then he noticed the searing red scratch marks on her cheeks and neck. Reaching out a cautious hand, he traced the marks gently. She recoiled at his touch and fidgeted with her hands nervously.

That had dared to touch his Dari.

“I’ll kill him,” he muttered quietly, fists clenching murderously.

“I’m fine,” she answered shortly, scooping up some congee and holding it up to his face.

Youngjae couldn’t eat anymore. The fact that she’d been touched by that horrible man made him sick to the stomach. Why was he so slow? Why didn’t he move faster? If he’d just walked home a little quicker, got into the lift a little faster… perhaps he’d be able to stop him before he-

“Stop beating yourself up about it,” she sighed and put the bowl back down. “I’m fine, honestly.”

“If you’re fine, why are you trembling so much?” he caught a hold of her hand and held it up to her face. True enough, her hands were shaking badly. And then, her mask broke.

Tears slid down from her eyes as the shaking worsened. She started to hyperventilate, fingers automatically going back up to her face. Youngjae caught her hands in his, forcing her to stop scraping at her face. He wrapped his arms around her violently shaking frame, hugging her tightly and whispering comforting words into her ears. Slowly, her shaking stopped and her breathing returned to normal.

 “I-I-‘m sorry,” she hiccupped, burying her face into his shoulder. “I’m just r-r-really scared… I don’t want to be touched like that...”

“I’ll protect you, I promise. I won’t ever let this happen again,” he hooked his pinky with hers.

“W-w-who is he?” she asked shakily. “He seemed to know you.”

Youngjae paused.

“He’s my birth father,” Youngjae chuckled bitterly. “He left us on my tenth birthday. He’s a disgusting prick who only knew how to drink himself senseless, gamble our life savings away, cuss at us and beat my mum till she was bruised all over. I told my uncle about it and he reported it to the police. He lost everything in one fell swoop: his job, his friends, his house… And he placed the blame on me. He’s a horrible person. I wish he’d stay away, but no matter what, he just keeps coming back.”

He didn’t realize how worked up he’d gotten until Dari placed her warm, soft hand onto his, which had been clenched so tightly, his fingernails had punctured his skin.

He breathed into her hair, the familiar scent of oranges calming his senses.

“I’m sorry…” she mumbled into his shoulder.

“What are you sorry for?” he looked at her in surprise.

“That you had to go through such a traumatic experience,” her eyes pooled with tears. “And it that I can’t do anything about it.”

His heart plummeted to his stomach as his feelings for her resurfaced.

“Stop making me like you more, please,” he groaned.

“B-b-but-”

“I like you Dari. I like you so damn much. All I want is an answer,” he pleaded in anticipation and dread as she twiddled with her thumbs, figuring out the answer.

---

I paused and twiddled my thumbs awkwardly.

How did I feel about him? I knew he was a cute guy. I knew his personality was wonderful and he was a sweet, funny person. I knew he liked me for who I was and not for anything else (like I had anything else). He was nothing like his birth father.

All the memories of us together flashed through my mind. Our first meeting, his first birthday gift to me, my first hug with him, our kisses… My heart raced. My face flushed. My lips tingled.

And then I realised it.

I liked him. I liked Youngjae-oppa. I liked the cute, cuddly, kinda chubby, smart, kind, nice Youngjae-oppa. What I'd felt for Mr. Cho paled so much in comparison that I never realised it.... Until now.

“I… I like you too,” I blushed furiously as his lips widened into a large, barely-containable grin.

With a whoop, he started dancing away on the floor. He pulled me along with him, cheering in slightly-crazed glee.

“Say it again,” he stopped dancing and demanded childishly.

“I like you too, Meatbun-oppa,” I repeated, as he crushed me into a hug.

“Say it again!”

“I’ve said it twice already,” I pouted. “Aren’t you supposed to be eating your dinner?”

“How can I eat?” he laughed like a hyperactive kid. “I can’t believe it! You like me! I like you! We like each other! Ahh! Pigs are flying! The sky is falling! Hell is freezing over!”

“Go back to your congee, pabo,” I flicked his nose. “It’s getting cold.”

“Only if you say it again,” he buried his face into my hair, giggling. “Please?”

“I like you too, Youngjae-oppa. Now eat,” I laughed at this completely alien but adorable side of him.

He hurriedly polished the congee off as I hid a chuckle. How on earth did I miss this for so long?

I interlaced my fingers with his hesitantly as we both stared at the ceiling in comfortable silence.

“Now what?” his tone was serious, breaking the quiet. “You and I both know what’s gonna happen if we start dating.”

I sighed and nodded. I’m not an idiot. I knew the implications of dating someone who wasn’t rich.

What would Father and Mother say? They liked Youngjae-oppa yes, but only because he was a good influence for Hyunnie-oppa. Under his influence, Hyunnie-oppa had flourished in English and Literature. But, even though Youngjae-oppa was smart and good and polite and well-brought-up, he wasn’t rolling in pots of money. Mum and Dad, however wonderful parents they might be, were old fashioned and would never let me date below my status.

What would Hyunnie-oppa say? His protectiveness wasn’t a very big secret. If he found out about the both of us…

Would his family approve? I’d never met Mrs. Yoo and I supposed she didn’t know about me either. The only thing I knew about his brother was that he was enlisted in the army and was 8 years older. And his father…

I shivered again, but quelled it this time. Would he come and find Youngjae-oppa again? What would he do to us?

“I don’t know,” I admitted at last. “What with Hyunnie-oppa and Mum and Dad and all… But I’m willing to give it a try.”

He broke out into a wide smile and leaned his head on my shoulder.

“Then… Jung Dari, would you like to go out with me?”

“Yes,” I smiled shyly as he gave me another high-pitched giggle.

---

“Remember to take your medicine,” she nagged as they sat together at the bus stop, waiting for her chauffeur. “Every six hours, don’t forget! And make sure you go to sleep straight after Mr. Park comes. And make sure you take your temperature every hour and inform me if it goes back up again!”

He wasn’t even in the mood to be bothered by the nagging. After all, it was his girlfriend, and she had the right to be worried about him! He giggled at the word ‘girlfriend’. He couldn’t believe it. She liked him. She felt the same way as he did! And now, they were together.

It felt like a dream. A very nice, marshmallowy dream full of cotton candy and rainbows and dancing kittens in pink hats. But thankfully, it wasn’t. Her very solid-feeling fingers were interlaced with his, anchoring him to the ground and preventing him from floating off to heaven. Her head lay on his shoulder as she swung her legs back and forth like a little child.

 A sleek black Lamborghini drove up.

“Well, looks like he’s here,” Youngjae coughed disappointedly. He didn’t want the moment to end.

“Mm hmm,” she hummed, not moving.

“You’re not going to go-“ his voice died away as she leaned towards him and pecked him on the cheek.

He stared after her, bug-eyed and caressing his cheek as she waved to him cheekily and hopped into the vehicle, which drove off immediately.

He sat there, alone at the bus stop with his thoughts and a big silly grin on his face. She liked him the way he liked her. Now, she was finally his. With a burst of giggles, he skipped all the way home.

Life’s lemons were tasting pretty darn sweet now.

---

No kiss this time, sowee. :( How was it? Was it okay? Now we learn about Youngjae's family! :OOOO Or rather, his missing dad, who is an ! May I get a unanimous aye about that? 

Anyway, I've been gone so long because I've had allllll sorts of going on! Literally man, crisis here, crisis there, flunked exams, etc. Sorry for the late update. :(

I regretfully inform you that I'm going on a hiatus, which means I might update very sporadically or not at all until December. It's my final year of secondary school and I need to sit my down and study! Ugh. So yeah... I'm really sorry guys... I'll try to fit in some writing here and there, but I'll be pretty darn busy so don't expect too much.

And we're finally moving into the 'Secret Love' Arc! More lovey dovey fluffy scenes (please don't I really at those) and yeah byee~

-Peanut

PS: Hurricane is love amirite except the dance breakdown part ;-;