Yuri

I cautiously opened the door to the gym and was met with the echoing sound of the basketball slamming onto the gym floor. Masses of sweating males were moving quickly across the court, the basketball dribbling rapidly at one moment and then stolen right from the hands of a player the next.

A small but sharp pain struck through my heart and I winced. I remembered how I used to anticipate every basketball game and do my absolute best during the routines, just to see if he would notice me.

It’s funny how things you used to be so familiar with and sounds you used to hear all the time can become so foreign to you when just a little time passes and a whole lot of things change.

I quickly climbed into the bleachers and set my bag down. Settling in the third bench up, I took out some homework- though honestly, I shouldn’t have bothered. My physics worksheets were quickly discarded and forgotten at my side as my attention became focused on the boys practicing on the court.

I felt my eyes land on him all too quickly and a familiar feeling of extreme unease passed over me. I then turned my attention to my best friend- I easily picked him out, as he was the tallest guy on the team. I watched intently, having never him seen him play before.

The way he expertly handled the ball was almost graceful. His aggressiveness as he evaded the blockers contrasted hugely with his normally quiet, shy demeanor- and it made my chest feel funny.

When he went in for a jump-shot and the ball dropped through the net with a swish, I could barely contain my cheer. The other guys clapped Minho on the back and he grinned back at them.

Finally, the coach blew his whistle and dismissed the team- practice was over. I packed up my physics homework, which had been barely done and, feeling nervous, made my way down from the bleachers.

I had hoped to catch Minho alone- but that wasn’t the case as I approached the group of sweaty basketball players.

“Choi Minho, you are a boss,” Joon complimented him.

“Ah, hyung, I’m not that great…” Minho refuted humbly.

“Yah- shut it, dongsaeng- just take a compliment for once, will you?” Kangin said, slapping him on the back. Minho glanced at the older boy, a shy smile on his face.

“We’ll make those at Chukhae piss their pants in fear now,” Seungho snickered. “Hey, Minho. I’m just curious- why did you decide to come to Baeyoung all of a sudden anyway?”

“Well, I…” He finally caught sight of me and a look of amazement crossed his face, followed by a slow-growing grin. “…Yuri…you…you came…!”

I blushed and waved at him. “Hi, Minho…” I walked over to him…and suddenly, he grabbed my wrist and dragged me over to his teammates.

“Hey you guys- you know Yuri?” I stiffened and punched his arm, sending him dagger eyes. He stared at me, bewildered.

“What do you think you’re doing?!” I hissed. “Of course, I know these guys and I’d rather you not…”

“Eh- Yuri-ssi?” Kangin said. “Wow…it’s been a while…hey, everyone? Remember Yuri-ssi?” I groaned to myself as he drew the attention of the other basketball players and they all came over to greet me.

“Man, you look pretty as ever, Yuri-ssi,” Seungho remarked, winking at me. I thanked him while mentally rolling my eyes. 

“Hey, how come I haven’t seen you with the cheerleading team lately?” Joon inquired.

“…Weeeelll…I kind of wanted to focus more on my studies. Cheerleading was pretty time consuming.”

Kangin snorted, “Pssh- lame excuse. The cheerleading team hasn’t been doing as well without you. You should come visit some more!” I merely shrugged.

I saw Junho and Junsu approach me and my body became even more rigid. Junho offered me a cordial smile and said, “Hey, Yuri-ssi…” while Junsu only gave me a stoic nod.

“H-Hi…Junho-ssi…and Junsu-sunbaenim,” I greeted them nervously. Junho was about to make some insipid conversational point when Minho came over…with him following.

“What is it, Minho?” he asked, seeming confused. My eyes widened, my chest started to hurt and I silently begged for a fire, an explosion…anything to let me avoid this moment.

“Nichkhun-hyung, you know Yuri-ssi, right?” I guess God wasn’t really paying attention to me at that moment…or maybe even He had abandoned all hope for me. I watched as Nichkhun’s eyes glimmered with recognition, as well as a hint of embarrassment and guilt. Guilt from memories past, memories that I had hoped to forget forever.

Junho and Junsu were staring intently at us. Some of the boys glanced at each other as well; an uncomfortable air of knowingness had settled.

“…I do know, Yuri-ssi, yes…” he said quietly. I couldn’t look him in the eye.

Minho looked at the both of us and, clueless as he was, said, “…What’s up with you two…?”

“Yah! Minho, you idiot, you left your stuff over here!” Junho called out. Minho ran off towards Junho, leaving the two of us alone.

Nichkhun was the first one to break the silence. “So…how have things been for you…Yuri-ssi?”

“I’m quite well…th-thanks for asking…Nichkhun-sunbaenim…” I finally looked up…and saw his normally smooth features contorted in an uncomfortable grimace. He sighed and took a step toward me- I automatically backed away.

“Yu…Yuri…”

“Khun!” one of his teammates called out to him. “Vic’s waiting for you outside the gym!” This elicited several hoots and coy teasing from the guys. He visibly blushed and stood awkwardly for another few moments.

“I…I have to go now. I guess I’ll…catch up with you later…?”

“Yeah…I guess so…” I had barely finished my sentence when he left abruptly. He seemed relieved to be released from the awkwardness and, to be honest, so was I. But now that it was over, my feelings were thrown into turmoil and I rushed out of the other exit of the gym.

I collapsed outside and shamelessly let my tears fall. God damn it, I thought. This is what, the second time this year that I’m crying in school? Didn’t I promise myself that I would never shed tears in front of anyone in this place ever again?

Someone sat down beside me. I turned my head, saw Minho…and only cried harder.

“Yul…Yul, what’s the matter?”

I sniffled. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Yuri, tell me.”

“I said, don’t worry about it!” I insisted, my voice going up an octave higher, and I buried my face in my knees. Suddenly, I felt him grab my arms and force me to look him in his warm, brown eyes.

“No. I will worry about it. My best friend’s upset, I have no idea why and…I want to help her. So much.” I simply sat there staring at him, tears running down my face. He reached out to brush the tears away- I flinched. He sighed.

“It’s okay, Yul,” he said in a comforting voice. “I…won’t hurt you. You can tell me…I’ll listen.” I sniffed deeply and began, unleashing everything that I had kept hidden for so long.

Taeyeon

“Oppa!” I shouted out towards the playing field. Wooyoung turned towards me and I saw him grin. He loped away from his goalie post and approached me, giving me a big, sweaty bear hug.

“You smell terrible,” I remarked.

Wooyoung smirked at me. “Thanks, babe.” He kissed me on the cheek and I shoved a bento in his face.

“Lunch. Eat up, Wooyoung, I know you’re starving.”

He stared at the bento in amazement. “No way…homemade lunch from Taeyeon? This like, never happens. What’s up with you lately, Taeyeon?” A pang of guilt pierced through my heart, but I kept my expression innocent.

“What do you mean ‘What’s up with me’? I made it ‘cause I felt like it. Are you going to eat it or not?” I questioned him, settling down next to him on the grass.

Wooyoung shrugged, taking huge bites out of a sandwich. “I don’t know, Taeng…you’ve been in this really…nice mood for some time now. It’s kind of…strange. I like it though.”

The grin he gave me made me feel like the guiltiest in the world.

When I had returned to school after the night spent at Jungsu’s house, it suddenly hit me just how risky the entire affair was. To ease the consuming shame I felt, I went out of my way to pretend there was nothing out of the ordinary between my calculus teacher and me.

I checked my watch and said, “All right- I’ve got errands to run. I’ll see you tomorrow…Oppa.”

“’Kay. It was great seeing you, babe…” he replied. I gave him a sweet kiss on the lips and left.

The classroom was completely silent as most of us worked on the problems in our workbook, save the few in the back who always slack off.

I finished the very last problem, put my pencil down and looked around, unsure of what to do to pass the time. Eventually, my eyes landed on Jungsu, who was sitting at his desk grading tests.

I couldn’t help but fully take in his attire and feel strangely prideful of the fact that I was the only person in the room who knew how gloriously built his body was underneath his professional clothing.

My eyes drank in the way he twirled his pen around his fingers and how his bottom lip stuck out slightly. He seemed really bored- it was almost mindless, the way he made big, sweeping marks on test papers with his red pen.

At that moment, he looked up and our eyes locked on each other. A secret, devious smirk crossed his face- immediately, I felt my face grow hot. It still amazed me how he could hold me in his grasp even though we were at least fifteen feet away from each other.

He winked at me and I dropped my head, not willing to let him see just how bright red my face had become.

One hour later, the bell rang and students filed out of the classroom. I lingered behind, shooting glances at him. When the very last student left, Jungsu promptly shut the door, locking it behind him. He quickly strode over to me and took my face into his hands.

“You didn’t think I’d catch you checking me out, did you, you naughty girl?” he teased, pressing light kisses along my lips.

“You’re a sinful man, Jungsu…” I replied, savoring the taste of his lips, his tongue. He pulled me into a deeper kiss. “But…I just can’t help…but be drawn…to you…”

He chuckled. “That makes two of us then…” Jungsu moved down to feed upon my neck, his teeth scraping my skin slightly.

“Mmm…” He moved his hands onto my s, kneading them with his fingers. I wished I didn’t have my school uniform on so I could truly feel those lovely sensations.

“Can we…can we do it here…?” I asked breathlessly.

“I’d love to…but I’m actually in a bit of a hurry. I imagine you’ve got practice today as well.” He reluctantly pulled away and I whined pleadingly. “Don’t worry, my dear…why don’t you stop by Saturday evening? I do need your help for lesson plans.”

I thought it over and then smiled at him.

“Will do.”

“Brilliant.” He captured my lips one last time and enveloped me in a passionate embrace. “You should get going now, Taeyeon.” I smoothed out my hair and straightened out my school uniform. As I left the classroom, I glanced back and he gave me a heated stare. Blushing, I smiled shyly back at him and quickly left.

Tiffany

I groaned as I rested my head on the bus window. My stomach growled loudly in response. It had not been my best day. I had overslept again and just barely made it to class on time.

To be honest, the rest of the day wouldn’t have been that bad, had I seen where I was going and not walked right into a trap set by the boys of lesser brain matter in my class. I tripped and fell right on my face, spilling and, in essence, losing my entire lunch, much to their amusement.

I sighed. No matter how much I try to convince myself otherwise everyday, how optimistic I am and how much I try to see the good side of everyone…I’m fully aware that there are cruel people in this world who enjoy inflicting pain on others.

I would know.

The bus finally pulled into the stop near the library and I got off. Checking my watch, I realized that I was about fifteen minutes early for my tutoring session. I glanced around…and I caught sight of Siwon-sunbaenim heading into the library.

“Sunbaenim…sunbaenim! Siwon-sunbaenim!” I called out to him. He noticed me and turned back, approaching me. “Hi, sunbaenim!”

“Hi, Tiffany-ssi…looks like you’re early, for once,” he observed.

I giggled and said, “Yeah well…things aren’t always the same every time.” He nodded and smiled…and my heart felt lighter than it had all day.

Suddenly, my stomach grumbled again, loud enough for him to hear. Embarrassed, I shrunk under Siwon-sunbaenim’s stare.

“Tiffany-ssi…are you hungry?”

“No, I'm fine...” I said; my stomach insisted otherwise once more. “I mean…ah…yes, very.”

“Did you eat lunch or dinner today?”

“…Not really.”

“…Would you like to go get something to eat?” he offered.

I stared at him in awe, not sure of what to say. “Um…uh…” I said intelligently.

“You won’t be able to concentrate without some kind of sustenance. Come on, Tiffany-ssi- there’s a McDonald’s nearby. It’s my treat.”

I was unable to say much, so overcome with happiness I was. “…Oh…okay…” I stuttered. He gave me a strange look and started off towards the fast food restaurant and I followed him from behind.

“…I don’t think a McChicken and Fries are exactly the most sustaining forms of nourishment out there…” I remarked jokingly as we set our trays down.

“Well…we don’t have much time, so this was the best we can do,” Siwon-sunbaenim said.

“Oh no, I understand!” I insisted. “And…thank you so very much, sunbaenim…really, I’m sorry for making you go through the trouble…”

Siwon-sunbaenim shrugged and said, “Honestly, it’s no big deal. You should eat.” I smiled at him and promptly began to devour the food in front of me.

When I finally remembered to breathe, I looked up…and was surprised to see Siwon-sunbaenim staring at me with an amused smile on his face. “What…sunbaenim, what is it?”

He snapped back to attention and said, “Oh…it’s nothing…”

“No, really…is there something on my face?”

“No, no, uh…it’s nothing…just…you’re…you consume food in a very interesting manner…” I stared at him- and burst into a fit of giggles.

“What? What’s so funny?” he demanded to know, causing me to laugh harder. The confused pout on his face was really too much for me to handle. When I had finally calmed down, he asked, “Really, Tiffany-ssi…what is it?”

“Oh, I really don’t know, Siwon-sunbaenim…I guess it’s just really refreshingly fun to see you not be in such a…professional, business-like mode, you know? It’s cool to see you…almost…normal?...Yeah, I don’t really think I’m making much sense, and I think I was being kind of rude…you can ignore what I just said, Siwon…uh, sunbaenim…”

He stared at me intently and then chuckled. “I don’t think I’ll ever quite understand you…” he said quietly.

What does he mean? I wondered. “Um…is that a bad thing?” I asked timidly.

“…in this case? Not really, actually,” he replied, smiling, really smiling for the first time. “Oh and…Tiffany-ssi? You…you can drop the suffix.”

Did I hear that right?  “…Eh? Really?” 

“Yes. It must be stifling to have to constantly address me as ‘sunbaenim’ all the time. Just Siwon will suit me fine.” Slowly, his eyes met mine

I felt like I was floating on the highest cloud in heaven and my smile became wider. I seized upon an idea. “Okay…but then you should just call me Tiffany then.”

“Just Tiffany?”

“Yeah. Is that okay with you?”

“…Sure, why not?” It took all my efforts not to suddenly squeal with happiness out of nowhere. As I finished off the last of my dinner, I remembered something.

“Oh! Sun- I mean…Siwon!” He stared at me, silently gesturing for me to go on. “Remember…remember when you told me that you’d like to hear more of my poems.”

It may have just been my imagination, but he looked…almost embarrassed. Yet he said, “Yeah…what about it?” I took out a notebook from my backpack, opened it and flipped through the pages, words and marks scrawled all over.

“I write all the poems that come to me here. Would you like to read them?” His eyes widened at the sight of the notebook and another small smile appeared on his face.

“…Gladly, Tiffany.” Our planned study session became much forgotten as we sat there in McDonalds and I discovered a side of him that I had never known existed, one that highly valued literature. My not so great day had just turned into the best night of my life so far. 

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A/N: annyeonghaesaeyo everyone- cee-cee has come back with an update after quite a while! it's getting surprisingly easier to write chapters now. maybe because i've passed the first turning point and now i know how the story's supposed to flow? 

anyway, i am super happy- i've gotten up to the 15th chapter! i did NOT expect to have this much progress -is excited- hehe. 

by the way, if anyone was wondering, i had a LOT of fun on my school trip. my school did all right in the competition. i kind of wish i was back there and not slaving away in school and errythang x_x

so how have all my lovely readers been doing? hope you're all well/liking the story so far. there will be more to come! c: 

that's all for now- i'll try to update as much as possible :o hwaiting~!

oh yes and before i forget- ATTENTION READERS! i would like to have a little fun, so everyone PLEASE ANSWER THIS POLL: 

i'm curious about your feedback/what all of you guys really think! :D