Kris clenched his jaw tightly as he recalled what the elders had said.

" Yifan, you are no longer a teenage boy. It is time for you and Naeyong to get married. You have grown into a man already and I have faith that you will be able to treat Naeyong right. "

He had always known that the elders wanted Kris and Naeyong to be linked together since young. All along, he had been perfectly fine with the arrangement, happy even. Unfortunately, he was not feeling that way now. Deep inside, he had to admit that Ara was the reason.

" Yifan! "

Kris turned around facing Naeyong. She was smiling happily at him in a way that used to make his heart skip a beat. It no longer caused such an effect in him. However, he still enjoyed seeing her being happy.

" I heard about what the elders told you. I'm so happy that we can finally make it official! "

" Mm. " Kris grunted in reply. He couldn't bring himself to match her mood. 

" Come on, let's tell the others about our news! " Naeyong skipped off without waiting for his reply.

-

" What?! " 

Luhan gasped as Naeyong finished her words. The rest of the guys couldn't be bothered. They have already been expecting this for some time now.

" Why so suprised? " Naeyong widened her eyes at the only shocked member. 

" Kris..." Luhan turned to the silent man and shot him a glare. Kris kept his eyes on the ground. He didn't want to meet Luhan's reproachful gaze.

" Ara! " Tao turned and noticed Ara coming towards them from the backyard with Kai by her side. " Did you hear? "

Ara frowned in confusion as she sensed the unusual atmosphere. " Hear what? "

" Duizhang and Naeyong are getting married! It's finally official. " Chen answered her question.

Ara held back a gasp as she tried to digest the unexpected news. Meanwhile, Kris had shifted his gaze to the stunned girl while waiting for her response expectantly.

" That's good news, I suppose. Congratulations. " Ara finally managed weakly. She slowly forced herself to look at the leader in the eye and gave him her most convincing smile possible. What can I say? You only had Naeyong in your heart from the very beginning. You never felt anything special towards me anyway. The words that she had overheard between Kris and Naeyong last night were still fresh in her mind. It still hurt her badly but Ara was determined to get over Kris.

The leader felt a pull at his heart when Ara uttered those words. She had congratulated him with a smile. You know that nothing will come out of this anyway Wu Yifan, snap out of it.

" You'll be my bridesmaid won't you, Ara? " Naeyong turned to the girl and smiled slyly. She shuffled over to Ara and smirked at her. 

" Why not? " Ara replied coldly while the smirk on Naeyong's face grew deeper.

-

Ara stared into space as she perched on the huge chair beside her bed. Just the thought of Kris walking down the aisle with Naeyong seemed to hurt. She groaned in frustration. It was hopeless, she knew it well. Kris and Naeyong looked perfect together. Everyone had expected them to end up married and what was most important, they both loved each other deeply. Ara sighed as she realised that this was her very first unrequited love. Just then, a small thump was heard followed by a soft yelp. Ara blinked as she alerted her senses. There were several sounds coming from outside and they sounded suspicious. She exited her room cautiously as she followed the sounds. Moving closer, Ara could sense that the sounds were actually cries for help. Her heartbeat increased as she finally located the source of the commotion. It was coming from Naeyong's room. The door was left slightly ajar but Ara hesitated. Should she call for the rest of the guys? Just as she was debating, a louder shriek sounded. Ara dashed into the room without a second thought. Naeyong was huddled in the corner of the room. Her eyes were frozen in fear as she stared up at the intruder. It was a male but he was heavily masked. Ara's eyes flitted to the intruder's palms. He had a familiar blue light radiating from the center of his huge hands. Just then, Naeyong choked as she collapsed heavily on the floor. The girl dashed forward but the intruder stepped around to face Ara before she could get to Naeyong.

" Hello Ara, does this look familiar to you? " He chuckled as he brought up his palms to face her. The blue light beamed brightly as Ara realized what it was with a jolt. It was the same light that her hands shone with when she used her powers. This man had the same gift as her.

" Who are you, what have you done to her? " She spat through her teeth as she struggled to remain calm. Naeyong was not moving and Ara's worry shot up. She wanted to scream for help but she knew that the guys were out practicing. It would be too late by the time they reached. Ara tried to dodge past the stranger to get to Naeyong but he moved like lightning. 

" I'll see you soon. I wonder what they will do to you when they think that you were the one who did this. " He winked before casually heaving himself out of the window. 

Ara stiffened at his words. What had he meant by that? Now was not the time to worry about that though. Ara threw herself down at the floor beside the unconscious girl as she tried frantically to locate a heartbeat. Relief shot through the girl as she detected a beating heart. Just as she was examining Naeyong for any visible wounds, the wooden door was flung opened.

" Ara...? "

-

" Naeyong passed out as water had filled her lungs. Her oxygen supply was cut off for too long resulting in her blacking out. " Lay stated stiffly as he stood up beside Naeyong who was lying on the bed. 

Kris kept deathly silent as he watched Naeyong. Lay had thankfully been able to clear the water clogging her respiratory system but the damage had been done. Naeyong would probably take a few months to recover fully. It almost seemed as if this had been deja vu. Just days before, Ara had been the one in this position. However, now, Ara was the one who did that to Naeyong.

" Ara. Please explain your actions. " Kris forced himself to say calmly. He couldn't bring himself to face the girl. Never in his wildest imagination would he expect Ara to pull off such a devious act. His heart was hurting so much that he could practically feel it tearing.

" What? You think that it was Ara? " Kai snarled as he stepped protectively in front of the trembling girl.

" Kai, let's face the facts. Suho and Ara are the only ones with the control over water and Suho was with us the entire time. I don't want to believe this too but what other possibilities are there? " D.O exhaled in frustration. Suho studied his sister with disappointment. He could not believe that Ara would use her powers this way.

Luhan fidgeted uncomfortably. He could only use his telepathy on the males. His power did not work with females. This time, he himself wasn't sure that Ara had been innocent as well.

" He's right... " Tao whispered while keeping his eyes averted away from Ara.

" Not you too Tao! " Kai lost his patience. He couldn't believe how little trust everyone had in Ara. " Ara, explain yourself to them! " 

The girl kept silent. She had already explained herself when everyone found her with Naeyong but it was already obvious that they had believed what they saw. She knew clearly that no amount of explanation would be able to turn things around right now.

" Ara? " Kai prompted when the girl remained quiet.

" No matter what I say, no one is going to believe me. " Ara finally murmured in a small voice. She was still in shock over what happened to Naeyong and she didn't feel like repeating what she had already said.

" So you're just going to accept the blame? " Kai lashed out in disbelief. He couldn't accept that Ara was not standing up for herself.

" Fine, if that's what you want. Just go ahead and continue being a weakling. " He spat out and turned his back on the girl. With a loud slam of the door, Kai left the room.

Ara continued looking down as she felt tears rising in her eyes. She felt utterly exhausted and Kai's hurtful words had made everything much more worse. 

No one spoke. Kris was crouching rigidly beside Naeyong. The rest of the guys were keeping a safe distance from Ara who remained rooted in the corner.

" Everyone leave, Naeyong needs rest. " Kris ordered softly. One by one, they left the room without sparing a second glance at Ara. 

" Especially you, I don't want you being so close to Naeyong. " Kris whispered in agony as he directed his words towards Ara. The girl's head snapped up as she registered his words. They pierced right through her heart but there was nothing she could do. Fighting back tears, Ara walked out of the room. 

She knew that she had no one on her side right now. Not even Kai. 

-

Kris gazed down at Naeyong, ignoring Ara when she left. He felt horrible having to say those words to Ara but it was a fact that she had harmed Naeyong. True, he may not love Naeyong like he had once did but she was still important to him. No matter how deeply he had grown to feel for Ara, he could not bring himself to forgive Ara for what she had done. 

I hope this was a good enough chapter! ^^ comments are appreciated <3