“First off,” Kris held up a finger, looking quite proud of himself. “No one at your school can figure out the real you. If they do – it’s over.” I rolled my eyes at his dramatic sentence, raising the cups to my lips.

“Two,” Stephanie began, “no attitude –“

“Or violence,” Kris added, eyeing me.

“- that’ll blow your whole ‘wallflower’ image.” She finished, leaning back into her seat.

“’Wallflower image’?” I repeated, raising an eyebrow.

“You aren’t supposed to attract attention,” Kris clarified, speaking for her. I secretly wondered if they planned this beforehand, considering how they finished each other’s sentences and answer for one another like a couple head over heels for each other. Inwardly shivering, I brushed the idea off and tried to listen to what he was saying. “- attention brings popularity.” He waved his hand. “No need for that.”

Puffing my cheeks, I rested my chin against my palm. “So I just stay quiet. No attention. Done?”

Kris smirked while Stephanie smiled, both clearly satisfied. “You’re all set, babycakes.”

I snapped open my eyes in pure frustration, looking up into the barely visible ceiling. After hours of tossing and turning into the sheets, I couldn’t fall asleep. The jet lag was definitely getting to me – along with a headache. Rubbing my temples, I couldn’t stop the words of my stupid best friends from echoing through my mind.

Sighing, I turned to look out the window of my new bedroom. There was a crescent moon out, illuminating soft light through the room. I reached for my phone on the nightstand, looking for the time.

“One freaking twenty.” I furrowed my eyebrows. Could’ve sworn it was only ten o’clock just five minutes ago.

Swinging my legs over the edge of the bed, I cautiously opened the door leading to the hallway. After I arrived, I learned that this mansion was pretty modern and that there were many maids living here. Mrs. Byun wasn’t the type to abuse her power, so she treated all the staff like family. Honestly, I liked her attitude. It was quite similar to how we, being me and my grandparents, treated the staff back home.

Soon enough, I found myself in the kitchen. It was a beautiful one, with spotless white marble countertops, matching cabinets and maple wood flooring. I opened a cabinet, revealing different varieties of tea. In the corner though, there was something that stood out. It was a sleek black box with an unopened top. There seemed to be multiple packets inside the box. Curious, I reached in and pulled out a single packet, reading the label.

Instant hot chocolate.

I almost laughed, biting down on my bottom lip to keep myself from doing so. Mrs. Byun didn’t seem like the type to enjoy hot chocolate rather than tea. Myungsoo, maybe. But a butler wouldn’t put his own items along with the main households’, right? Who knew?

Despite it being summer, I ripped open the small packet, pouring it into a nearby mug. Placing the tea pot on the stove to boil, I leaned against the counter to wait. It was strange, why didn't mother just tell me that I wasn’t going to live with them? If I wasn’t coming back to Korea for the family’s sake, why was I even here? There was nothing for me in this place.

The soft whistle of the tea pot alerted me that the water was done. Blowing softly into my drink in hopes of getting it to cool down quicker, I turned to leave – until something caught my eye.

It was a clear, spotless glass sliding door that presumably led into the backyard. Although it was dark out, I could make out strings of light from the distance. Tilting my head to the side, I took a step closer, trying to get a better look.

I let curiosity get the better of me as I slid the door open with one hand. The warm breeze hit me, and for a moment I was glad I decided to change into a tee shirt and shorts for bed.

Gently closing the door behind me, I made my way towards the light. The night’s air was quiet, with the exception of distant grasshoppers and the wind rustling the leaves, making it eerily peaceful. When I reached the arch way where the light begun, I held in my breath.

The lights were white Christmas lights, wrapped around each pillar, intertwining itself under the wood above as well. It made a path way, a long one at fact. Sipping the chocolate, I glanced back at the sleeping mansion behind me. Guess I won’t be sleeping for a while, I shrugged and made my way through.

“My parents are going to kill me,” Byun Baekhyun glanced at his watch once more before shaking his head. “I’m going to be chopped up, sautéed and fried. The next time you’ll see me, I’ll be in a casket.” He had come home late again. He was simply playing soccer with his teammates and lost track of time. Again. It was his seventh time this summer and this time, for sure, he was done for.

His soccer teammate, Xiumin, snorted from the back seats. “From that description, I think you mean frying pan instead of casket.”

“Guys,” Tao made a face from the back of the car, along with Kyungsoo. “Let’s leave food out of this please.” 

From the driver’s seat, Luhan rolled his eyes at his teammates. “I turn here, right Baekhyun?” he asked, flicking the right signal on. Baekhyun stiffly nodded at the team captain, imagining the possible scenarios of the terror that was to come when he arrives home.

“You know,” Xiumin leaned forward, poking his head between the two headrests, smiling at Luhan. “Although you were as sweaty and covered in mud as we all were-“

“I wasn’t,” Kyungsoo remarked, cringing. He had only sat on the stands in pure boredom while watching his friends play.

 “- you still looked pretty. Like a girl,” he snickered. Tao frowned at the baozi’s words while Luhan felt the need to throw a punch. Taking in a deep breath, he clenched the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white.

“Really?” he asked, his tone straining. Baekhyun snapped out of his thoughts to turn towards Luhan. “Well at least this girl can score a goal, unlike you.” He snapped.

Baekhyun silently watched as Xiumin made an “oops” face and leaned back into his seat while Luhan was having difficulties keeping his cool. He knew firsthand that Luhan grew irritated during the practice game, especially when he had pulled a muscle, resulting in him having to sit out for the day.

“Woah woah. Those weren’t exactly my words. The little fan girls you have there were all squealing about how you were still more attractive than they were.” Xiumin laughed softly, trying to make light of the situation. Luhan only ignored the latter, putting extra pressure onto the pedal.

Sighing at the captain, Baekhyun turned his head back to the window as the air grew tense. When Luhan stopped in front of Baekhyun’s home, he was more than happy to get the hell out of that situation. Just as he opened the door to step out of the car, a hand held him back.

Startled, he looked back into Luhan’s doe like eyes. “Don’t forget that training camp starts tomorrow. Twelve in the afternoon sharp,” he reminded him before letting go of the back of his shirt.

Baekhyun frowned slightly. “Yeah, if I don’t get killed, you mean.” He laughed as he stepped out of the car. “I’ll try.”

“BYE HYUNG!” Tao shouted through the window.

“GOOD LUCK NOT GETTING KILLED,” Xiumin laughed.

“Remember to bring sandwiches tomorrow,” Kyungsoo frowned. “It’s your turn.”

Rolling his eyes, Baekhyun waved off his friends’ remarks and turned to make his way to the front door.

Or not.

Pulling his duffel bag over his head, he ran towards the back of the house, determined to get inside as soon as possible without getting caught. In the backyard, there was a garden. Baekhyun had paid special attention when he himself has built and designed the gardens’ layout, preparing for this particular moment.

He smiled to himself in satisfactory as he eyed the backdoor entrance to the garden, something hidden to most of the residence in his home. He fished out a key from his bag that he only used for emergencies – like one now. As Baekhyun walked through the hedges with ease, he revised his plan to getting into his home.

First, he should check if the back door was unlocked. If he was lucky, some maids might’ve forgotten to lock it just like the incident last summer. If not, then he’d just have to conjure up all his courage and climb up the vines growing along the beautiful wood he planted right by his room window. He prayed that it’d be the first option.

Just as he entered the center of his garden, he stopped in his tracks and felt as if all the air had been knocked out of him. That’s how breathtaking the creature was in front of him. Frozen in his spot, he let his eyes trail down her milky legs that never seemed to end, her long midnight black hair and the rosiness in her cheeks. She wasn’t like anyone he had ever seen before, it was almost as if he was in a dream. Or maybe she was just his hallucination.

He watched as her eyes weren’t on him. In fact, he noticed that she hadn’t even acknowledged Baekhyun’s presence at all, even though he was sure he had made some noise while making his way there. She sat along the edge of the water fountain, observing something with much concentration. his lips, he decided to make his presence known to the beautiful stranger. It was his home, after all.

“What are you doing here?” he asked in a loud and confident voice while straightening his posture. She immediately snapped her head in his direction with wide, alert eyes. After a few seconds rolled by, she stared back at him, narrowing her eyes.

“I’m drinking hot chocolate, what does it look like?” she snapped, with an edge in her tone. Baekhyun blinked back at her, startled. No one, no one has ever spoken to him like that. Or had given him such a… response. She noted his silence and visibly softened. “I’m sorry Myungsoo, I think the lack of sleep is getting to me.”

Hold up.

Wait one minute.

Myungsoo?

Baffled, he stared back at her in disbelief. He looked nothing like Myungsoo. Hell, he had purple hair for gods’ sake. Was she blind? That’s when he noticed that she wasn’t looking at him, but rather just in his general direction. Holy ing , he thought. How did a blind person make their way through the pathway? Unless… unless there was someone else leading her. He looked around in caution, searching for any other living soul.

The girl scrunched her face at him. “Okay,” she stood up. “I’m going back inside. Do you want me to leave the door unlocked for you or…” she trailed off, biting her lip uncertainly.

“Yeah!” he shouted suddenly, making his voice sound high pitched. Coughing into his fist, he felt the heat rise to his cheeks. “I mean, yeah. Do that.” Now he was glad that she thought he was the damn butler. He just made himself sound like a teenage boy that was still going through puberty.

Shrugging, she turned around and trailed her the tips of her fingers horizontally past the pillars. “Alright.” She simply said before making her way back.

Once she was out of sight, Baekhyun collapsed onto the water fountain in disbelief. Mother must’ve done this. She must’ve taken in yet another disabled person to help. He shook his head, feeling fatigue. He’d deal with this matter before he went to camp.

Sighing, he stood up and made his way to the door.

I stared at the figure in the shadows, slightly startled. I hadn’t noticed that someone was here before. It could’ve been a robber. Hell, maybe even a killer. Squinting my eyes at the male figure, I silently made out the outline of his body. I couldn’t see him clearly cause of the damn shadow the tree he was standing next to casted, along with the fact that it was night time. With all my frustration built up from the insomnia, his tone irked something in me.

“I’m drinking hot chocolate, what does it look like?” I snapped. I caught the way how his body suddenly flinched, and realization hit me. Observing his figure carefully, I recognized something; this looks a lot like…

“I’m sorry Myungsoo, I think the lack of sleep is getting to me,” I apologized. I wanted to laugh a little but I couldn’t find the energy in me to do so. Staring back at him, I waited for him to reply. Something like “Ahaha that’s okay.” Or “Must be the jet lag.” But it never came. He just stood there, silent, probably staring back at me too. I couldn’t tell. Softly sighing, I got up and told him I was leaving. He was probably angry at me for giving him attitude or something.

I trailed my fingers along the pillar, admiring it’s’ architecture. The lights and the design really brought out the gardens’ beauty. Silently making a note to myself to ask Mrs. Byun who designed the place, I made my way back while leaving Myungsoo to himself.

Hello! Thank you guys so much for reading this story. Haha.

I'd like to apoligize beforehand  for any misspellings and incorrect grammar.

I hope you guys stick around to finish the story! c:

comment & subscribe?