" K-kai please stop ignor- " Ara stuttered when the tall man strode past her. She tried to catch his arm but Kai just shrugged it off coldly and continued walking away. Ara sighed. It had already been 1 week since the misunderstanding. No one had uttered a single word to her, not even Kai. Naeyong was still unconscious without showing any signs of improvement. 

Ara looked out of the misted window. Snowflakes were drifting peacefully outside as they covered the  huge lawn in a blanket of snow. The girl had never felt more alone then she did right now. Ara wasn't a fool. She knew that given the circumstances, her self-defence explanation would only seem like a weak retaliation. The most important thing was to hope for a successful recovery for Naeyong. Too bad Kai wouldn't give her a chance to explain herself. Just then, shuffling footsteps were heard and voices rang out. Ara knew that it was dinner time and that all the boys were heading towards the kitchen. They had mostly spent their time in Naeyong's room watching over the girl. Ara knew this as her room was located close to Naeyong's. In contrast, everyone ignored Ara's presence when she attempted to visit Naeyong. A cold atmosphere immediately surfaced whenever Ara appeared. She had not been joining the guys for meals ever since. Ara couldn't bear to see the countless accusing eyes on her. Maybe for the exception of one. Sehun, the one male who had always disliked her seemed almost as if he knew of Ara's innocence. He had stopped glaring at the girl. Instead, Ara caught Sehun glancing at her with what almost seems like sympathy in his cold hard eyes.

Kai hissed in frustration as he entered his room. It took all of his ability to ignore Ara when she had called for him in such a desperate tone. He knew. Of course he knew that she had been completely innocent. In fact, he was surprised that the other guys couldn't see that. Given the type of personality that Ara had, it was almost near impossible for her to even harm anyone. What angered him was her refusal to defend herself. Kai was always a hot-headed character. When he saw how broken Ara was when everyone did not believe her, it hurt him. The pain was clearly portrayed on her face. Yet, she hadn't uttered a single sentence in her defense. It had upset him so much that he couldn't bring himself to face her.  It had already been a week since he started ignoring Ara. Just a week and he was already missing her badly. Her voice, her little actions, even her smile which he had not seen for a long time since.

" Dinner time, Jongin! " Suho's voice rang out. Growling under his breath, Kai violently shoved his desk against the wall before leaving his room.

Ara's stomach rumbled loudly. The current routine these few days was to wait for the guys to finish their meal before going down to prepare some small dishes for herself. Even the maids treated Ara with contempt now that they had found out about Ara harming Naeyong. The girl collapsed on her bed and looked up at the ceiling imagining how fortunate her life would be if she were still ignorant about everything regarding the guardians.

-

Kris felt his heart clench when his eyes focused on Ara's empty seat once again. He knew that the boys still held Naeyong's current situation against Ara. Too be perfectly honest, he wanted to believe that Ara was innocent. He knew that Ara's character wasn't such but what could he say? All the facts were turned against her and as the leader, he knew that he couldn't afford to be biased. The only thing he could hope right now was for Naeyong to wake up and prove Ara's innocence. However, he had to admit that he was afraid of Ara turning out to be the culprit ultimately. Kris looked up to meet Kai's ashen face. The man had been keeping silent ever since he lashed out at Ara and Kris could tell that Kai regretted what he did badly. But Kai being Kai, he would not back down on his stand. The meal was finished in silence and everyone shuffled back to Naeyong's room again. Kris decided not to though, he felt that having the rest of the guys with Naeyong was more than enough. Besides, he couldn't stop worrying about Ara. If she was really innocent, she must be feeling horrible about herself. He did not want her to be in that kind of pain. 

Kris hesitated outside Ara's room. He had held up his hand to knock but he wasn't sure if he was doing the right thing. Just then, the door pulled open and Ara gaped up at him in shock.

" What are you doing here? " She whispered.

Kris remained silent as he met her eyes. They were filled with confusion now but he could see the hurt and pain behind them. Without realizing his actions, he closed the gap between them and wrapped his arms tightly around her petite frame. Kris could smell the slight floral fragrance of her soft brown hair as he rested his chin on her head. This had been something he wanted to do for a long time.

Ara widened her eyes as she suddenly felt herself being trapped in his warm embrace. Her head was leaning against his well-defined chest and she could feel the strength of his arms. 

" I promise to find out the truth, regardless of your innocence. " Kris muttered before pulling away and striding off, leaving Ara standing still in shock.

Just a short update in between boring boring lessons~