Ever since the day they promised to start over, Hyoyeon made no more moves at her, keeping a safe distance. He had even invited a female teacher from his academy to assist him, in which he explained that it was easier for them to divide the CLASS into male and female, since they were teaching social dance. But Taeyeon had scoffed at the excuse. The Hyoyeon she knew was able to easily single-handedly teach the dance to both genders, not to mention how obedient the kids were to him. It had irked her how the female assistant would stand close to him, placing her hands on his body, giggling and laughing with him. It disturbed her so much that there was a constant urge in her to rip the female’s hands off and chopped it into pieces so that she was unable to touch him. But he was not hers anymore and she did not want to seem possessive.

Sitting by the corner, she kept a close lookout at all the kids, making sure that they were not hurting themselves. Though knowing that the kids were cautious and Hyoyeon was constantly reminding them to be careful, she thought it was better to have another pair of eyes looking out, just in case. Besides, it gave her an excuse to be in the classroom, to ogle at the dance teacher in furtive glances.

Just as she thought she could take a short break, closing her eyes for a minute, a loud wail jolted her awake. Within seconds, she had rushed to the crying child, her face laced with worry.

“Tiffany, did you hurt yourself?”

"It hurts."

"Where does it hurts? Your leg?"

The crying girl nodded as she clutched her ankle. Gently, Taeyeon pried off the girl's fingers, prodding softly on the injured area causing Tiffany to whimper.

"You might have hurt your ankle. It should be fine after a ahort rest."

Taeyeon spoke softly, cradling the child in her arms. Receiving a nod from the child, Taeyeon stood up, carrying the girl to a chair and placing her on it, careful not to touch her leg. She was about to report it to the director when she felt a tug at the helm of her shirt.

"Miss Kim, does this mean Tiffany can't join us for dancing anymore?"

Taeyeon turned to the curious child, bending down to meet her level. With the same soft voice, Taeyeon replied her.

"Yes Jessica. Unfortunately, Tiffany would probably have to rest for a few weeks before she can join the class."

"Then I won't have a partner."

Taeyeon frowned, knowing that the class would be an odd number now that one was down.

"In that case, I'll have Jessica to be my partner."

Jessica's face lit up into a bright smile while other girls frowned and pouted. It had taken great efforts for Taeyeon and Hyoyeon to persuade the kids to pair with the same gender since there were more girls, but now that Hyoyeon offered to be Jessica's partner, Taeyeon could only imagine the protest it would cause. Indeed, it had only taken minutes for the ladies to process and started screaming about changjng partners, but Jessica was not a force to be trival.

"I step on feet. Don't believe? Ask Tiffany."

All eyes immediately fell onto the said girl who nodded tentatively. Eyes then glanced back to the Jung who shrugged her shoulders, indicating for anyone who volunteered to partner with her.

As expected, none of the kids were willing to have their feet trampled on, hence the triumph smile on the girl's face.

The class continued their lesson, while Taeyeon gently nursed the injured girl, whispering words of comfort and encouragement. All of these actions did not go unnoticed by Hyoyeon, who kept a constant glance by peripheral vision, a smile playing on his lips.

---

"Is she much better?"

Taeyeon gently the sleeping girl who had fallen asleep together with the other kids. A soft smile on her lips as she watched the girl slept.

"She should be up and running after waking up though."

Hyoyeon hummed, his eyes fixed on the picture before him, trying to engrave the warm image of Taeyeon cooing the child. It had made him think of many things that he had placed at the back of his mind. Yet meeting her, it was as though the Pandora box was opened. Flashbacks, regretful pasts, hurtful feelings had all gushed towards him, forcing him to relieve some of the unwanted memories.

"Hyoyeon. Hyoyeon."

A soft voice cooed near his ears, sending heat down his body and jolting him out of his nightmare. He gulped, remembering how that sultry voice used to moan his name.

Taking a step away, Hyoyeon tried to muster a smile as Taeyeon looked on puzzled and amused.

"Don't you need to be anywhere? The kids are sleeping. And if you are worried about Tiffany, she will be fine after she wake up so you don't actually have to be here."

"Are you chasing me away?"

"N-no."

Hyoyeon glanced at the teacher suspiciously as the latter stuttered. Cursing herself for stuttering, Taeyeon tried to regain her composure, putting on a brave front when in fact all she wanted was Hyoyeon to say he would stay.

"Well, since you are not loathing my presence, then I guess I'm here to stay." Hyoyeon gave a charming smile. "Besides, it has been so long since we last talked."

"We have been talking-"

"Yeah. In the class with the kids. Now that the kids are sleeping, I would love to talk to you, and you alone only."

Hyoyeon flashed another smile, causing an increase of heart rates in the teacher. Hiding her blushing face, Taeyeon strode towards her office quickly with Hyoyeon following behind. Whether or not Hyoyeon noticed the crimson-red face was kept a secret.

Back in the office, Taeyeon was thankful for the air-conditioner, hoping it would effectively cool down her pulsing heart and burning face. However, with the source of her insanity was simply a step behind, there was little she could do except to play by ear. She looked on as Hyoyeon walked around her office observing. Just the sight of the man nodding was enough to make her feel giddy.

"I miss you."

His voice was soft, still looking away from her as though afraid to see her reaction. Her breath hitched, wondering if she had heard correctly. Three words, those similar three words that used to make her feel warm and fuzzy inside, that used to be full of love and longing, yet now all she could feel was pain and guilty. He should not have said those three words. It had taken her long enough to overcome that phrase, to get used to not having him by her side, to become accustomed with being alone. However now, all she wanted was to feel that familiar strong arms around her, hugging her tightly and securely, soothing her gently.

"I miss you, Taeyeon."

The voice was still soft, but he was no longer looking away from her eyes but staring right at her instead. His expression was calm, yet those expressive eyes of his portrayed longing, grief and pain.

Overwhelmed by the stare, Taeyeon casted her eyes away, her fingers fidgeting with her blouse, a habit that was noticed by her ex-husband.

"I'm sorry. I-"

"It's okay." He forced a smile. "I get it. Sorry for your time."

Without a glance back, he strode out of the room with his head bowed, leaving Taeyeon to wonder if that was a trickle of tears on his cheek.

---

The week flew by and though Taeyeon was busy with the kids, a particular dance teacher had started to invade her mind unconsciously. She found her thoughts often drifting towards Hyoyeon, his affections, his soft husky voice and most importantly, the way he said he missed her. Those three words, it echoed in her brain repeatedly, never failing to remind her the hurt and pained eyes before he walked away. Part of her wanted to apologise, but the cowardly part of her was afraid. The last thing she wanted was to hurt him again.

Still, it did not hinder her from looking forward to the dance class, the only day of the week where she could see him, and stare at him at the pretence of learning the dance moves. It was her guilty pleasure but she could not help but fall in love with him everytime he held her gently by her waist and guide her through the beats.

The day came sooner than she expected and saying she was anxious was an understatement. She had been fidgeting all day, stuttering over words, tripping over toys and being the kluz she was, she had banged right into a glass door, much to the amusement of the kids and teachers alike.

Silently scolding her clumsiness, Taeyeon walked towards her classroom where the children were drawing quietly. Picking up a half-finished artwork, Taeyeon cocked her head at the familiar picture.

"Jimin, who are you drawing?"

Jimin looked up with a toothy smile, pointing to the teacher.

"Miss Kim and Hyoyeon oppa."

"Hyoyeon oppa?"

The girl nodded.

"Hyoyeon oppa said to call him oppa because songseangnim sounds old and a charismatic, handsome and y dance teacher like him should be called oppa."

A light scoff escaped her lips upon hearing the explanation. Trust Hyoyeon to have that inflated ego. But she could not deny. Hyoyeon was indeed handsome for someone in his late-twenties, charismatic whenever he danced but y, she had to admit, he was y. Especially in bed. She could picture him seducing her, slowly tracing her body and-

Her face flushed crimson red at the dirty thought. Charismatic, handsome, y, he indeed possess all three qualities, few of the many reasons why she had fell for him in the first place.

Hiding her blushing face and returning drawing to the young child, Taeyeon walked off quickly, not wanting to draw any attention when she bumped into somebody.

"Sorry-" She looked up and frowned at the grinning man. "May I help you?"

"Oh, I'm looking for a teacher named Kim Taeyeon."

"I am she."

"I am the new dance teacher. I will be taking over Hyoyeon sunbaenum from now on."

Taeyeon frowned at the absence of Hyoyeon. All day she had waited, only in vain and he did not even bother to tell her about the change. As much as she refused to admit, she could not help her curiosity as to the man's whereabouts.

"Hyoyeon sunbaenum is busy with a new project. He wanted to push it away at first because he was afraid that he will not be able to teach dancing to the kids and they will be disappointed. But the company of the new girl group was insistent, so he had no choice but to accept. I volunteered to teach dance here on his behalf, so I guess we might be meeting for the next few months or so." The man gave a charming smile and held out his hand. "I'm Max Changmin."

"Kim Taeyeon." Taeyeon shook his hand before guiding the man towards the classroom where the kids were. Despite her calm exterior, her heart was flipping. New girl group.

As expected, the kids were disappointed that they was unable to see their favourite teacher, but they got over it quickly under the charismatic guidance of the new instructor. Max was indeed a very good dancer and teacher. He seemed to have all the patience in the world when teaching the kids a particular dance steps, and would joke and play around with them. He could also pop, lock, breakdance, hip-hop and what had the kids look up to him with awe was his ability to dance freestyle to any types of music, including kids songs.

"Now I know why Hyoyeon sunbaenim is always smiling when he gets back from teaching here." Max gave a dreamy smile. "It's fun. The kids are pure and innocent." He glanced to the silent teacher by his side. "Even the teachers are beautiful."

That caught Taeyeon's attention as she looked up to him with a tint of pale red spreading across her cheeks.

"Sorry. What I meant was this is a beautiful place." Max gave a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of his neck embarrassedly. "Hyoyeon sunbaenim would always talk about how wonderful this place is when he gets back. He would show pictures of the kids and the beautiful scenery with a dreamy smile and said he would give up everything if he could be there. When we joked if he would even give up the love of his life, he said the love of his life would be there too."

Taeyeon looked up surprised at the confession. She knew Hyoyeon loved the kids and the place, but she had never known it was to that extreme. Giving up the love of his life? Taeyeon smiled, shaking her head. Hyoyeon would never give up dancing. He would rather die than to not dance.

"What are you smiling at?"

Taeyeon was about to answer when a loud thud was heard, followed by screams of the children.

"The kids probably need you back with them, so you don't have to send me off. I will see you next week." Flashing another charming smile, Max walked off as Taeyeon scurried back to the classroom, leaving no time for her to ponder about the conversation further.

---

Leaning back against her chair, Taeyeon watched the people go by outside her window. A small tranquil smile crept onto her face as she took a sip of her latte. It was her favourite to spend time in the afternoon, watching busy people scurried by and relaxing as though she had all the time in the world, a habit she had adopted after her divorce. It allowed her to ponder through things, settled her thoughts and be at peace. It would have been a wonderful afternoon, if only a particular man had not refused to leave her mind.

Taeyeon frowned at the sudden invasion of the man. Despite her pushing and begging, he had refused to even step away for a second and she was going crazy with those continuous thoughts about him. Charismatic, playful, y, gentle, caring and all the sides she had used to known. How much she had missed him.

Taeyeon sighed, staring out of her window once more in attempt to divert her thoughts when she frowned. Squinting her eyes and peering in closer, she could feel her heart turning cold. Just right at the corner was Hyoyeon, together with a young lady no shorter than he is, giggling and laughing while patting him on his back. He, on the other hand, would caress her head lovingly.

A sudden thought of confronting him flashed through her mind, but was dismissed as quickly as it appeared. Who was she to confront him? She was no longer his wife nor girlfriend and whether or not they were friends were still up to debate. She leaned back against her chair, watching their interactions closely despite her heart's protests.

---

It had been at least three weeks since their last encounter, or rather her one-off encounter with Hyoyeon and his 'supposed' girlfriend, or so she believed and Taeyeon could not keep her mind away. It was frustrating her that she was still attracted to him in a way or other, yet he had already moved on. She did not want to be that pathetic and clingy ex-wife who would cry and refuse to let go.

Walking with her head bowed towards the office, she sighed, muttering prayers for her to get through the day without mishaps when her head hit a hard surface. Rubbing her head, she was about to apologise when she heard a soft, husky chuckle. A voice that was all too familiar.

"I know you are short, but you don't have to look down at the floor while walking."

Taeyeon looked up in surprise, her heart pounding fast as she took in the sight of the man. Biting down on her lips, she restrained her lips from smiling too widely.

"You know, you can smile if you want. Laugh even."

But she had forgotten that the man that stood before her knew every inch about her, of her. She pouted at the tease but smiled widely after.

"Why are you here?"

"I missed-" He leaned in closer and she caught a whiff of the faint perfume on him. She frowned at the strange smell, knowing that it was definitely not him. The only 'perfume' that he would spray was the deodorant he kept in his bag so that he would smell good after dancing. Image control, he used to say, but she had always teased saying it was so people would not look at him weirdly.

"Taeyeon." A snap of his finger and she returned to reality. "Are you okay?"

Taeyeon nodded, a frown still on her face.

"You sure? You have been spacing out and you are frowning." He took a step backwards. "You know, you look like an really really really old woman when you frown."

Immediately, the cheeky man sprinted off into a safe distance as Taeyeon processed his words. It took her a while, but the moment she understood, she broke into a mad dash, chasing after the man who was howling with laughter, earning looks of disapproval from curious passer-bys. But Taeyeon could not care less. It was her time, a rare time that she could spend with Hyoyeon even if he was annoying her. In fact, she missed it.

It took minutes before she ran out of breath and started walking, tying her hair into a messy bun as she waved to him as a sign of defeat. He smirked arrogantly, dropping into a trot by her side.

"Anyways, you look a lot prettier when you smile."

Taeyeon could feel heat rushing in her veins towards her cheeks. On instinct, her hand rose up and wiped the perspiration on her neck before fanning her face, hoping that it would lessen the amount of redness on it.

"Taeyeon." A new voice interrupted the duo as a familiar man jogged towards them.

"Hyoyeon sunbaenim." The man bowed, to which Hyoyeon greeted with a curt nod. "Taeyeon, I was about to call you. I wanted to ask if you are free for lunch later."

Taeyeon looked at Max in surprise, but the latter only rubbed his head shyly, his eyes casted at his feet. It was cute, the way the man was acting as if he was talking to his high school crush. But Taeyeon knew better than that. The man looked young, but she was not. It could be a noona-dongseang relationship that she was not exactly comfortable with. Her parents would be fine, but her relatives would take every chance to gossip and badmouth about her if they knew. Not that they had done that when she announced that she was divorced, but still, Taeyeon was not comfortable with it. Besides, Hyoyeon- Hyoyeon, she jerked at the sudden realisation. Hyoyeon was still beside her and here she was with a man who looked younger than her, asking her out. Glancing to the man beside her, she could see the clench in his jaws and the tense in his muscles even though his eyes seemed focused at a family a distance away from them.

As if sensing the uncomfortable feeling in the only lady, Max shifted his stance unsurely. He was getting anxious trying to wait for the answer.

"Taeyeon."

"How old are you?"

If Max was startled by the sudden question, he did not show it. Instead, he calmly replied that he was thirty-five. Taeyeon stared at him in surprise, which made Max embarrassed by the constant attention.

"I know I may look young, but I'm in fact older than you."

"How do you know how old I am?"

A guilty look flashed across Max's face.

"I looked up your profile on the school's website and the kids told me you are still single." A low growl was heard from her side. "So I thought maybe I could... you know... stand a chance?" The last few words came out unsurely and softly, but Taeyeon caught them.

"I-"

"It's okay if you don't like me though. We could just be friends." He chuckled nervously.

Taeyeon let out a small smile. Despite her age, she was startled by the confession and had no idea how to respond.

"So, are you free for lunch later? As friends?" Max glanced at his senior. "Perhaps Hyoyeon sunbaenim could join?"

Max looked so hopeful that Taeyeon did not have the heart to turn him down.

"I guess I could spend some time outside for lunch, but I can't be too long, the kids will get rowdy."

"It will be somewhere near the orphanage and it will be quick." A bright smile plastered across Max's face. "I will text you the place later."

With a bow towards his senior and a happy wave of hand to Taeyeon, Max skipped off.

---

Lunch was a quick affair because of the tension between the two men and the awkwardness of the only lady. It did not escape the lady's notice of how the two men seemed to exist peacefully yet fought over the slightest things in their own way, and neither did it escape the two men's eyes of how the other seemed to like the lady, but to which side the lady swung to, neither was sure either.

The situation was made worse by the appearance of another younger, stunning lady who seemed to be on good terms with the older dancer and had blatantly ignored the presence of Max and her. Yuki was the lady's name and Hyoyeon oppa, she had called with a sultry voice and it made Taeyeon see red despite the latter calm exterior.

In attempts to ignore Hyoyeon's and Yuki's conversation, Taeyeon made an effort to talk to Max, however her ears seemed to only accept Hyoyoen's voice. Amidst the nods given to Max to show that she was interested, she would try to tune in to the conversation beside them.

"Hyoyeon oppa, we are doing a y concept and I'm just worried about the image I'm going to portray. For the photoshoot before this, they had my hair bun up and it just doesn't look y." Yuki pouted.

"It will come out great. So don't worry."

"Really?" Yuki leaned in closer. "You think so? Don't guys prefer girls with their hair let down? It looks ier and more feminine."

Hyoyeon simply flashed a smile and nodded her head, but Yuki did not seem convinced.

"Oppa, which style do you prefer?" Yuki stared straight at Hyoyeon, her eyes as though trying to devour the man before her.

Hyoyeon took a glance to the seemingly nonchalant Taeyeon, noticing the slight pause she had while taking another sip of her tea. Ever since Yuki arrived, the latter had been sipping her tea every few seconds and considering the time, Taeyeon's tea should have been long gone, yet she was still sipping on it.

"So oppa?" Hyoyeon reverted his attention back to his conversation partner. "Which style do you prefer?"

"Girls with their hair down."

Unconsciously, Taeyeon shifted her hand to her hair, scratching the area near the bun with a frown. Despite her subtle movement to make it look natural, Hyoyeon knew she was conscious about her hairstyle. It made him smile, to know that she was still concerned about his opinions.

"What about types? Do you prefer the cute, innocent ones or the y ones?"

"y ones definitely." He watched as she looked down at her body, noting the casual hoodies and jeans she had pulled on in the morning.

"What about bodies? S-line or busty?"

What's with the questions? 21 questions?" Hyoyeon frowned.

"No oppa. It's just we are debuting and I'm worried. What if the audiences don't like us? I just wanted our group to be popular."

"Then you should work hard and practise more. The public will grow to love you girls if you showcase your natural self and talents." Hyoyeon flashed an assuring smile.

"Really? Do you really think we will do well?"

Hyoyeon nodded.

"Thanks oppa, I guess I needed that." A wide smile appeared on Yuki's face. "So oppa, what kind of bodies do you prefer? S-line? Curvy?"

Hyoyeon pondered for a moment before replying carefully, his eyes not moving away from Taeyeon. "I guess most guys would prefer S-line and model-like bodies."

He chuckled softly, seeing how Taeyeon looked down at her body once more. She was feeling inferior, he knew but he was having fun teasing her. It had been a long time since he had done that and he was feeling the urge to seek her reactions, a method to test her feelings for him too. However, the fun was cut short when Taeyeon had abruptly stood up and excused herself, citing she had to return to the kids and left, with Max following after her hurriedly.

"So she's the one?"

"Yes. She's the one."

-TBC-