Hello readers! I hope you'll like this chapter! Sorry for the wait but I do appreciate your patience a lot. Let me know what you think of the chapter if you like and have a nice day! Plus, happy new year everyone. May this year bring you great joy and luck. Do stay healthy as well. Much love, xx

School has yes to begin again and yes, no one is happy about it. As everyone entered the class and took their usual seats, Soomi immediately started taking out her notebooks and her pens while the rest was busy sitting in a circle like they usually do before the school bell rang. After preparing her things on her table, she dragged her chair and joined them. "I hate that we're in school again. It would at least be better if the rest of the group was here", Chanyeol said gumbling over the fact that they're all pretty much forced to come to school. Baekhyun whacked Chanyeol's shoulder, "Stop whining. I've been hearing it since yesterday", he said with an annoyed voice and not to mention an annoyed face as his head landed back on the table in front of him. Soomi smiled witnessing them arguing but then the smile disappeared when Sehun nudged her and asked out loud, "Where have you been recently anyways?", he asked making everyone turn towards Soomi with a curioused plastered all over their faces. Soomi froze, she didn't know what to answer which earned them a shrug from her before she answered, "I've been out; hanging around", she said hesitantly; looking a little suspicious and guilty at the same time. Pretty much as if she was hiding something. Everyone suddenly had a suspicious look on their faces. They found her response was a little bit odd.

"With who?", Kai asked looking straight at Soomi. Soomi looked at everyone and smiled, "Well you know, my dad...", she said as an answer. Everyone nodded their head, "Well you missed out on a lot. We went hiking and had a picnic up in the mountains", Kyungsoo said with a genuine shining on his face with his big round eyes. Meanwhile everyone went into a different topic, Soomi was reminded of her memories during the holidays just a wekk ago. The truth was, she had been out with Lay. No, it wasn't as anything else but just as friends. They could be talking, reading and sometimes they would be listening to music together. They were pretty much got used to each others' presences or should I say they grew fond of each other? Overall, over the last week of the holidays, the two pretty much got to know each other more than they used to. Lay found out how Soomi was an only child and had actually learnt gymnastics when she was young. He also learnt the little things like how she bits her lower lip when she's nervous and how her smiles made her glow whenever she does smile. For Soomi on the other hand, has learnt that Lay could sing, he could dance and he could play instruments. She noticed how a slight grin from Lay and it'll show his dimple very quickly. She noticed how he was a little sensitive on his neck when there's wind and how he gets really happy when he laughs; he would clap his hands most of the time.

After school, Soomi dusted her uniform as she stood up from her chair and began packing her things. As she hang her bag on her shoulder, she made her way out of class and straight to her locker. The rest of the group had ran off since they were rushing to the game store to get a new game that had just been released; the first world problems for a girl who only hangs out with boys. Reaching her locker, Soomi unlocked her locker and began arranging her books. There were books that she wanted to leave and there were books that she needs to bring home with her so that she could do some revision and of course... homework on the first day when everyone comes back to school (how lovely). Soomi sighed as she closed her locker in the empty hallway but as she turned after closing her locker, her phone rang signalling her that she has received a new text message. 'Wanna have ice-cream? I also need your help in something', the messaged said. Soomi chuckled reading the message as she began to head out of the school grounds. 'See you in 20 minutes', she replied before putting on her earphones and hailed a cab to head straight to the ice-cream store that the group always go to whenever they wanted to get ice-cream. Paying the cab driver, Soomi headed out and went straight into the store. She looked form left to right and saw the familiar looking boy that was already waiting for her; Lay... and it also seemed like he is holding a pen as he looks at a book in front of him seriously. She approached him slowly, placing her bag on the empty chair beside the chair across him before sitting down. Lay looked up and smiled seeing her. "When did you arrive?", Soomi asked wth her eyes scanning the books in front of him. Without delaying he replied, "Around 10 minutes ago? You're pretty quick for a person who studies a little further than my school you know", he said lowering his head back down to his books.

"What is it that you wanted me to help you with?", Soomi asked with her eyes still staring at the books in front of Lay. Lay frowned looking up at Soomi with his hand pointing down to the books with his pen which earned a laugh from Soomi as she pulled the books away from him. It was a math equation that he couldn't solve. It also seemed like it was the only one; Soomi had looked over the other equations and he got them all right. It was one equation that he got wrong for. "Lay, you're such a silly person. You left out the square root from original equation", Soomi said pointing out his mistake as she turned the book towards him and circled equation with the pencil nearby his hand; accidentally brushing her fingers on his at the same time but it was too fast that she didn't notice it since she was so focused on the math equation being thrown at her. Lay on the other hand got a shock from her touch; he somehow went a little bit more shy all of a sudden as he listened to Soomi lectuering him about his mistake. He scratched the back of his head and smiled awkwardly, "That was such a clumsy mistake. Oh and I ordered you chocolate