Seungho's POV

I sat down on the bench outside the changing area and opened the first aid kit. I started cleaning the cuts on my arms robotically. Although I did not feel any pain, I know that I had to clean them or else something even graver would happen.

You may think that it should be a luxury to not feel pain. By not being able to feel pain also mean that I would have no idea when to seek help or what is dangerous. I might die not even knowing how or why I died.

"Are you doing art on your arm?" A voice asked.

I looked up to find Min Jeong frowning at me.

"Why..." She did not give me a chance to finish.

"Why am I here? I'll answer it later. Give it to me." She snatched the cotton bud from me.

"Who taught you to clean wounds like this? Were you trying to paint?" She grumbled.

I laughed, earning a glare from her.

"Is it funny?" She asked.

I shook my head.

She sighed as she dapped medicine onto my wounds.

"Sorry~" She apologized as she blew gently on them.

"What for?" I asked, confused.

"It hurts, don't it?" She asked.

I shook my head.

"Don't lie." She muttered.

I smiled, saying nothing.

I watch as she gently cleaned and dressed my wounds. Although I could not feel the pain, I sure could feel the tender loving care.

"Thanks." I said.

"Have you eaten? Let's go grab a bite." She said.

"I got to go soon." I said, glancing at my watch. My break was about over.

"Do they even give you enough time to eat?" She frowned.

I shrugged my shoulders.

"Wait." She said, running off.

She came back ten minutes later with two paper bags in her hands.

"What are those?" I asked.

"Lunch!" She smiled as she took out food from the bags. The bags were like a bottomless pit.

"That's... a lot of food." I muttered.

"A growing boy like you needs to nom nom a lot!" Her cheeks went a light shade of pink after saying that. You should never say words even you are embarrassed of hearing.

"Growing boy~" I laughed.

"Eat!" She smacked my shoulder, startling me.

"Ahhh sorry, sorry~ Are you hurt there too?" She asked.

"No worries." I said, munching on the sandwich.

"You haven't told me why are you here." I said.

"Eh?" She seemed caught of guard by my question.

"I... er..." She looked like she was thinking of an answer.

"Uh huh?" I waited.

"I work nearby, and so since it's lunch time, I thought I come by and see how my friend is doing." She said.

"Friend?" I raised my eyebrow at her.

"Aye~ We're friends!" She smacked my arm.

She enjoys smacking, don't she?

I laughed and shrugged my shoulders.

"Never mind what you think. As long as I think we are friends, we are." She grinned.

"Every decision is your call?" I asked.

"Only the important ones like this." She smiled.

"Right~" I shook my head, laughing.

"Where do you exactly work? Are there any buildings nearby?" I asked.

"There are. Just not prominent." She said.

"I see~" I said.

I laughed at the sight of her stuffing her cheeks with food.

"What?" She frowned.

"Swallow your food!" I said.

"I am swallowing!" She pouted, her cheeks round.

"You're gonna choke." I commented.

"I am..." She started coughing even before she could finish her sentence.

"See~" I patted her back as she sipped on water.

"Better?" I asked.

She nodded.

Lunch ended quicker than I expected.

"How much is lunch?" I asked, taking out my wallet.

"My treat!" She said.

"No, no, no, no~" I shook my head.

"Come on! It's not a lot of money!" She said.

"No." I insisted.

"Treat me dinner then. What time do you knock off? I'll come pick you." She said.

"Ehhh?" I looked at her.

"We work near each other and we stay near each other. It's on the way." She said.

"6. I end work here at 6." I said

"Then, see you at 6!" She smiled.

"Take lots of care, okay!" She waved at me before turning to leave.

"Min Jeong!" I called out.

"Yeap?" She looked at me.

"Your office is really nearby, right?" I asked.

"Eh?" She looked surprised.

"Are you here because of the show?" I asked.

She stared at me, jaw dropped slightly. I stared back at her, waiting for an answer.

"Of course not. Why do you doubt me? I am not doing the show anymore." She said, looking sad.

I smiled slightly at her and nodded.

"I'll see you later then." I said before going off.

It is not that I want to doubt you, Min Jeong ah~ I just had to be sure who I want to put in all my trust on.

Min Jeong's POV

"Are you here because of the show?"; I felt a pang of guilt washed through me as Seungho's words kept replaying in my head.

"So, have you managed to see through the wall?" A voice close to my ear asked, the warm breath down my neck caused me to shiver.

I turned to find my colleague grinning at me, his face just inches away from mine.

"!" I cursed, pushing him away.

"So violent~" He commented.

"You know you deserve this." I said.

"Whatever~" He laughed, sitting down next to me.

"So, what's with staring at the wall?" He asked.

"Just wondering how can I bury you inside after I murder you." I said.

"Ahh~ So, thought of a method yet? Need some help? May I suggest you use the other wall? It's wider. I am not very small, you know." He said, giggling.

"Idiot~" I smacked his arm, giggling as well.

"Honestly, what's wrong?" He asked.

How do I tell him about Seungho?

"Just tired." I said.

"That's like the excuse of the year." He said, rolling his eyes.

"I..." I was lost for words.

"So?" He asked.

And so I told him everything.

"You know if you want to do this, you cannot have any personal relationship with him, right? It's either you stick to professionalism or you go with your personal feelings. You cannot want both and expect to not get hurt." He said.

"But I..." I muttered.

He was right. I had nothing to say. Call me greedy, but I really wanted both. Why can no one seem to understand from my point of view?

I gathered my stuff and announced that I was leaving.

My colleague looked at me and flashed me a soft smile.

"Don't get hurt." He said, patting my hair.

"I wouldn't." I said.

"And don't hurt him too." He said.

His sentence seems to have wiped out all of the confidence I had before.

"Absolutely not." I said, trying to force out the confidence in me, but I was doing a terrible job.

Can I make this a win-win situation for the both of us?  Or can I not?

***
I hid at a corner, watching Seungho get his daily dose of torture from people he never knew.

He did not seem to even flinch a single time despite their tortures. Does he really have a high tolerance of pain or is he just very skilled in hiding?

My eyes found the carnival owner who was proudly explaining to his friends or clients, whoever they may be, about Seungho, making him sound like an 'it' more than a 'him'.

The smile he had on his face whenever someone hit Seungho made me want to splash acid on that greasy face of his. And to those who laughed like as if they were watching a circus show deserved to be punched in the face.

I clenched my fists tight as I forced myself to look away. I needed to not be affected by it to be able to work professionally, don't I?

I figure I could not work on the show today in a mood like this therefore I left the carnival to a nearby café to chill. When it was almost 6PM, I drove back to the carnival.

I waited in my car for Seungho to come out. After 30 minutes, I was starting to wonder if he had left already, but just as I thought about that, I saw him walking out.

“So thin~” I muttered to myself as I watch him hug himself as he walked lifelessly.

I sounded the horn gently to get his attention, but ended up scaring him instead. I laughed when he jumped at the sound.

“Did I scare you?” I laughed as I got out of the car.

He nodded cutely.

“Aigoo~ Such a baby~” I said.

“Only babies can get surprised?” He asked.

“No, no~ Come on, let’s go.” I opened the door to the passenger seat for him.

“Why are you here?” He asked.

“I thought I said I would come pick you?” I said.

“I thought you were kidding.” He said softly.

“There are many things in the world to kid about but this isn’t one of them. Come on, get your fat in the car!” I said, smacking his .

He jumped and let out a squeak.

“So rude!” He pouted.

I stuck out my tongue at him.

I thought he would continue to sulk, but he rolled his eyes and laughed instead.

I do not want to lose this friend.