Chapter 40

“How'd you know?” asked Yongguk as he emerged from Daehyun's apartment stepping out into the hallway to join her.

Annie shrugged. “It was a lucky guess,” she answered coolly. “So what did you guys end up doing? Did you flip a coin? Or did you play rock-paper-scissors?” She asked with a raised brow.

He chuckled. “Neither, actually,” he said glancing behind him towards the door.

Soon, the door flew opened and Himchan emerged from behind to join them, grinning triumphantly. “Guess what? I'm coming too!” he announced, beaming.

“No way,” Annie gaped as she glanced at both best friends. “How did this come about?”

“We came to a mutual decision, believe it or not,” Yongguk answered curtly.

“Why? Is something wrong? Do you not feel comfortable about this?” asked Himchan, frowning slightly.

Annie shook her head. “Not at all,” she chuckled. “I'm actually kind of glad the both of you guys could come. That being said, now that we're all here, I might need your help with something.” There was a menacing tone in her voice and the guys had a feeling she had something up her sleeve.

“Something tells me I won't like the sound of this,” Yongguk muttered, turning to face her, narrowing his eyes.

“You don't even know what it is,” she retorted back.

“What is it?” Himchan asked.

“Well,” she began, pretending to examine her nails as she spoke, “I was wondering if maybe after the trip to the bakery, we make a quick stop to the convenience store. I have to pick something up,” She finally said, eying them expectantly.

Yongguk and Himchan glanced at one another then back to the girl standing before them. “Why do you need to go to the convenience store? Are you feeling sick or something? Are you hungry for a snack? I mean Daehyun should have medicine for you in case you're feeling sick. I would understand if you're hungry again since he did scarf down a majority of the food...”Himchan finally said, trailing off.

“I'm not sick,” she said, setting the record straight. “And I don't need to buy medicine. And no, I'm not hungry. I just, you know, need to go to the convenience store for something else...” she grinned mischievously.

“I get it,” Yongguk smirked. “Is it that time of the month already?” He raised an eyebrow.

Annie's eyes widened and she immediately waved her hands and shook her head. “No! It's not that time of the month! That time has already past for me, thank you very much,” she barked back but soon her jaw dropped, realizing what she just said. She turned away, blushing. She chuckled nervously. “That wasn't supposed to come out... Forget what I said.”

Himchan snorted which earned a glare from Annie. He stifled his laughter but couldn't help it. Yongguk, in turn, gave in and joined his best friend slapping their hands together in the process. “Nice one, Bang!” remarked Himchan.

Annie was clearly unamused by all of this and allowed them to laugh until they decided to calm down. Glancing down at her imaginary watch, she cleared . “We should get going before it gets really late,” she grumbled turning to walk down the hall.

The two best friends glanced at one another. “Shall we?” asked Himchan, with a raised eyebrow.

“May as well,” Yongguk shrugged, then proceeded to follow her along with Himchan.

The car ride was silent with just the three of them. Himchan ended up having to drive since his car was bigger than Yongguk's which made sense since it was spacious and none of them wouldn't have to feel claustrophobic. Annie resorted to sitting in the back while Yongguk sat on the passenger seat. “Okay, so here's the plan,” Annie finally said breaking the silence.

Both guys perked up, all ears, willing to hear her out. Yongguk managed to turn his head to face her since Himchan was the one driving. “Go on...” Yongguk eyed her expectantly.

“We head to the bakery, I'll have one of you guys come in with me to purchase the cheesecake and after that we head to the convenience store,” Annie smiled triumphantly.

“You never told us the actual reason as to why you need to go to the convenience store,” Himchan said, his voice flat. He briefly glanced at her through his rear view mirror.

“I can't tell you yet,” she said. “If I tell you guys, the plan might go awry and you guys might not want to get involved. Come on,” she urged them. “It'll be fun.”

Yongguk sighed. “I don't like where this is going,” he finally said glancing back at Himchan.

“Alright fine!” she caved. “I'll tell you. This is going to be a really mean prank. And you are gonna hate me for it.”

“Try us,” Yongguk said finally.

“Well here's the thing,” she began. “I buy the cheesecake and you take me to the convenience store so I can purchase laxatives and... Well, you know the rest...” she chuckled sheepishly.

Himchan pressed down on the breaks of his car really hard causing everyone to jerk forward. He finally turned around to face her. “Good lord!” she cried out, glaring at him. “What the hell, Himchan?”

“I'm thinking exactly what you're thinking, Himchan,” Yongguk turned to his best friend.

“That's a little mean, don't you think?” Himchan asked finally, gaping at her in astonishment.

“Mean? What's so mean about it? He's been whining about indigestion lately so I consider it a favor,” she said earnestly. “And me buying him cheesecake each week is starting to burn my wallet so maybe this'll get him to put off on eating it for a while.” She gave them a hopeful smile.

“You could just simply say 'no',” Yongguk gaped at her in astonishment.

Annie scoffed. “Please,” she said, “It's Daehyun, we're talking about here. When does he ever take 'no' for an answer?!”

Himchan and Yongguk thought for a moment. “You're right,” said Himchan, nodding slowly in understanding. “Good point,” he grinned at her in astonishment.

“Exactly! I mean you guys did hear the little argument prior to this little trip anyways,” she pointed out.

“I can see why you're frustrated about it,” said Yongguk. “But that doesn't seem justified enough for you to want to feed him laxatives in his cheesecake.”

“Bang, are you seriously being a party pooper right now?” Annie asked, realizing how ridiculous this sounded.

Himchan snorted. “That's Bang for you,” he said, shaking his head.

Yongguk shot his best friend a look, “Don't tell me you're agreeing to this.”

“Hey, don't ask me,” he raised his hands in defeat. “I'm just acting as the chauffeur.”

She cleared to get their attentions. “Have you guys forgotten that you actually agreed to come with me?” she finally asked. “I mean if you guys don't want to do this then you don't have to. I don't have to drag you into this with me. But you're an accomplice, so whether you like it or not, you're both going down with me.” She smirked in return.

Both guys froze then slowly turned their heads to face her. Grumbling, Yongguk leaned back in his seat. “Fine. But this is all your doing,” he told her.

“Fine by me,” said Annie, grinning triumphantly. Himchan started up the car once again and proceeded to drive off. “You know, Bang. I'm actually very surprised by you.”

“What did I do this time?” he asked, glancing back at her.

“You're no fun,” she said matter-of-factly.

Himchan snorted. Yongguk shot him a look then turned back to gape at her. “I am fun,” he argued back, slightly hurt by her remark. “Why did you say that?”

“Hey,” she raised her hands in defeat. “Don't get all -hurt now. And I say that because I was seriously considering not going through with this little prank on Daehyun. Yes, I have a conscience in case you're wondering.”

“It's not too late to consider it now,” he advised her.

“Now, that's where we're different,” she pointed out. “You see, reverse psychology now works to my advantage because the more you're talking me out of this, the more I want to do this. You're telling me not to do this but I want to do it. If you tell me to do it, then I probably won't.”

“Then do it,” he said as if it's the easiest thing in the world.

“It's too late now,” Annie barked back. “We're already making our way to the bakery.”

Yongguk turned to glance at his best friend then lightly tapped his arm. “Help me out here,” he mouthed.

Himchan shrugged in return. “I'm not in this,” he mouthed back. “I'm just the driver.”

He sighed then slumped back into his seat as Himchan continued driving off to the bakery.

Himchan resorted to waiting outside in the car while Yongguk and Annie went inside to pick up the cheesecake. It was not often they came across a bakery that was opened 24 hours so it was a relief and convenient that the bakery was still open nevertheless. He watched on as Annie and Yongguk browsed around the bakery laughing and talking together. Come to think of it, he kind of regretted his decision to wait in the car. He could be inside joining them in their little inside jokes but she assured him they won't take long and he took her word for it.

His thoughts were soon interrupted by the sound of his phone. Checking the caller ID, he ran a hand down his face in frustration when he found Miranda's name pop up. Picking it up, he pressed SEND. “Did you miss me?” her voice rang out from the other end.

“What do you want?” he asked, his voice flat.

“That's not a nice way to greet me,” she said, sounding slightly hurt.

Himchan scoffed. “Why would I be nice to you? You're anything but nice,” he barked back.

“Oh Channie, now you're breaking my heart,” she continued.

“I'm surprised you have a heart,” he said.

“I see my nanny is enjoying herself with you and Yongguk,” she said matter-of-factly.

Himchan perked up immediately. “What the hell are you talking about?” he asked looking around pressing the phone hard against his ear. “Are you here or something?”

“You won't find me looking around sitting in your car like that,” she informed him.

“Did you follow me?” he asked.

“Actually, I was going for a drive and happened to see your car along the way so I'm sure this is just pure coincidence,” she said.

Stepping out of the car, he slammed his car door angrily and began looking around for her. As ridiculous as it sounded, Miranda resorted to following him. It was like he could never have a peaceful night without her around. “Are you not aware that people might suspect something? I mean it wouldn't look so good on your part if you're seen with me,” he said coolly.

Miranda laughed bitterly. “Please,” she said. “I have my people so I'm pretty much safe and inconspicuous if you ask me.” Soon, he finally found her a few feet away leaning against the black service car, smirking smugly at him. “I knew you'd find me,” she said hanging up then placing her phone back into her clutch.

“Shouldn't you be home with Danny?” he asked, sounding really annoyed.

“And shouldn't you be staying away from my nanny?” she retorted back.

He scoffed. “What I do in my spare time outside of work is MY business. And last time I checked, it's none of your business,” he said, emphasizing every word.

She sighed. “Oh Channie... You know, I like it when you're mad,” she said seductively inching closer to him.

He immediately backed away from her. “I thought I told you this is over,” he said gesturing to the both of them.

“Why? Because you've fallen in love with my nanny?” she snorted, as if it was the most ridiculous thing in the world.

“Leave her alone,” he demanded. “She has nothing to do with this.”

“Oh we'll just see about that,” she said taking out her phone to make a phone call.

“Damn, I'm getting hungry again,” Annie had said once they were inside the bakery.

“I wouldn't blame you,” said Yongguk eying all of the delicacies closely. “Which one are you getting him?”

“Not sure yet,” she shrugged. “Knowing Daehyun, he'll eat anything.”

“That's no lie,” Yongguk added.

“This kind of reminds me of when I first met him,” she began, thinking back to the past. “I gave him a slice cheesecake as a welcoming gift. Me and Lucy were both working at the Temple Cafe at the time so he happened to stop by and knowing I met him at school that day, I remembered he was really nice so I told him the cheesecake was on the house since a manager wasn't working. I made him promise not to tell anyone,” she chuckled.

“I remember when we became friends. He was the new kid from Busan who was quiet. Often times, he got picked on a lot and I felt bad for him. He was really sweet so I hated when people gave him a hard time. Me and Lucy were trying to shy away from the crowd because we didn't have too many friends. I mean we didn't mind. It was our last year, technically, so of course, we were glad to be leaving. Anyways, Daehyun's locker was near mine which was kind of how we met. He didn't make a lot of friends but when he did they would usually leave him out in the cold but me and Lucy ended up sticking around. After we left, I guess we gave him a boost of confidence and he found his voice and what do you know? He turned into the Daehyun we all know and love. I still love him to death despite the fact that he frustrates the living out of me.”

“What a touching story,” Yongguk finally said with a chuckle.

“Not really,” Annie shrugged indifferently. “I mean, the only reason I'm doing this is because he's allowing Zelo to stay with him until I can get my own place so he could just stay with me.”

“I see,” he nodded slowly in understanding. “How did this arrangement come about?” he couldn't help but ask.

“The arrangement about Zelo?” she asked turning back to him. He nodded. “Well, Zelo is a struggling student who happens to remind me a bit of myself,” he looked down at her. “I'll tell you about it later, it's a long story. But anyways, he was moving around a lot staying with Jongup from time to time and didn't have a stable home so I asked Lucy if he could stay for a night until I can find him a place to stay for the time being. Which brings me to Daehyun's. The only reason I went to him was because he had an extra room available knowing he was resuming it for me in case my living situation didn't work out with Lucy. I mean I'm fine with where I'm at right now but it's Zelo, I'm worried about.”

“I understand,” he finally said. “You did a really good thing.”

“Oh well, you know,” she said looking away shyly. “I try.”

“I never knew you had it in you to have such a big heart,” he said teasingly.

Annie shot him a look. “What's that supposed to mean?” she asked crossing her arms over her chest.

He chuckled. “Nothing,” he said immediately shaking his head innocently.

She narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. “I'm onto you,” she said pointing a warning finger at him. “Anyways, I should pick something now before Himchan starts going crazy.”

“Alright,” Yongguk nodded in agreement. “Still wanna go to the convenience store?”

Annie considered it for a moment then shook her head. “Nah,” she said with a flip of her hand. “I want some cheesecake too and I'm not going to willingly take a laxative.”

He chuckled and shrugged. “I had to ask.”

As soon as they were out of the bakery, they made their way to Himchan's car only to find him gone. “Hey, where'd he go?” asked Annie looking around curiously.

“Don't know,” said Yongguk, also looking around. “I'll just call him or something.” With one hand carrying the box, he used his free hand to reach into his pocket to dial his best friend. He waited impatiently for it to ring only to hear the ring tone from a distance.

“Wait,” Annie spoke up, listening intently for the source of the sound. “Do you hear that?”

Hanging up, he placed his phone back into his pocket. “Yeah, I do,” he nodded. “It's coming from that alley over there.”

“Do you think that's where he is?” she asked worriedly.

He shrugged. “I guess we'll just have to find out,” he said taking her hand in his then leading her away.

A/N: Hello again! Sorry for not updating for a few days! I've been very busy with my job and since I start school next week, I have to prepare for that. >_< Anyways, this chapter was a little sloppy on my part and I'm sorry! I'll come back to fix it later. I just didn't want to leave you guys hanging... And please don't hate me for this! XD

Anyways, I have a bunch of side notes for you that has nothing to do with my story. It has a lot to do with our boys... I swear I hate them sometimes because they're seriously ruining my bias list! I know I didn't pay much attention to Youngjae before but damn, he's gotten ier. We share the same birthday (I'm 3 years older :-P) so I knew I liked him for a reason. I was watching a performance of Coffee Shop and noticed his shirt was see-through. O_O *Dirty thoughts please go away!* XD And then for some reason, I came across a picture on Facebook of Daehyun showing off his abs... Damn it! They are seriously ruining my bias list! And Daehyun was supposed to be the best friend who's a pain in the but instead I now see him as this y guy with luscious lips and nice abs. Now I know where all that cheesecake goes... >_< Enjoy the chapter! I'll try to update again later...

Tell me what you think about the chapter or my side note.. I'd love to hear your opinion. Like I said, I'll come back to fix this chapter later. XD