Yongshik 'hmph'ed at his son and turned to walk away only to run right into a tall slender body. He stepped back and looked slightly up, "Oh, Junhong-ah, how are you today?" He smiled pleasantly.

"I'm okay, sir..." Junhong nodded his head, staring where he saw Yongguk disappear to.

"Oh is this your dad?" Yongshik questioned, making Junhong turn to see his father walking over with a smile on his face.

"Um... yeah." Junhong waited until his dad got close. "Dad this is Yongshik-sshi - he's a classmate's father." His father looked at the man and bowed his head respectively, holding his hand out to shake.

"I'm Jiyong, it's nice to meet you, Yongshik," Junhong's dad greeted politely. While the two of them chatted some, Junhong's gaze shifted to where Yongguk went, frowning. When he'd walked closer, he noticed they seemed to be having some words, but he couldn't be completely sure.

"Well, it was nice meeting you Jiyong-sshi and seeing you again Junhong-ah, but I need to get going." Yongshik said, bowing politely.

Jiyong smiled, "It was nice meeting you too, Yongshik-sshi. Hope you have a good time here today."

"Thanks." Yongshik said and patted Junhong's shoulder. "When me and Mina go out on a date sometime soon, I'll give you a call. Jinah absolutely adored you, Junhong-ah. Good day to you both." With that the man walked off.

Jiyong watched as he left for a moment before turning to Junhong, an excited grin on his face now, "So, Junhonggie, let's go see what sort of fun we can get into, hm?"

Junhong groaned inwardly and gave a hesitant smile. "Um, sure dad... let's go this way," He steered his dad away from anyone he knew, landing them at the ring toss booth. "Uh, how's this dad? Ring toss is pretty hard... this will keep us busy a while..."

His dad was rarely so lively, this was probably the first time in a long time he'd seen his dad happy about something. Unfortunately, Junhong was on guard - he was fearful his dad would embarrass him badly.

"Sounds awesome, son." Jiyong replied happily as he handed the necessary money over and took five little rings in exchange. He regarded the blue ring, the group of bottles set up and then the wall of prizes behind the attendant thoughtfully for a few moments before turning to his son.

"What prize do you want, Junhonggie? Pick whatever you want and dad'll win it for you, I promise." Jiyong nodded, holding up his pinky for the classic pinky swear and stamp.

Junhong cringed, his eyes trailing to the students running the booth. They were a mixture of hidden giggles and mocking gestures, one even making baby faces at him. He rolled his eyes upwards and grabbed his father's hand, bringing it down and out of his face.

"Uh, whatever prize is fine dad, really. We'll uh, we'll share it." He gave a slight smile.

Jiyong's lips held a small frown as his son refused the pinky swear - Junhong had always loved doing the pinky swear with him. 'He was a child though...' He sighed inwardly, cursing himself for being so stupid. His son was a teenager now - he liked doing cool things and that did not include kiddy promise gestures.

"Okay..." He murmured then and turned to the wall of prizes. After a couple of minutes, he set his sights on a gray and white dog wearing a little black shirt. He then began tossing the rings, inwardly cursing when he missed all but one.  Unwilling to give up, however, he paid for more rings and began again. 

"You wanna try, Junhonggie?" Jiyong questioned on his third round of ring toss.

Junhong looked at the ring and the to his dad, wondering if he should. There were other students having fun with their parents...

He took the ring and tossed it in, surprised when it rang the pole on one go. His eyes widened as his dad jumped around him, hugging him tight. Then he was caught between being surprised and being embarrassed - his dad was acting like a kid.

"What a good job, Junhong!" Jiyong practically cheered, the pride flowing in waves off of him - partly because of Junhong ringing the bottle neck but mostly because he'd participated in the first place. "With that one, we only need one more and we can win that big stuffed puppy." He nodded happily, holding up another ring.

"Go ahead and do another one, Junhonggie."

Junhong obliged his dad after getting over his cringe-worthy blush at the man's antics. He threw the ring again and then his dad threw it, taking turns back and forth. They wasted a good few minutes and some dollars at the booth, but they finally won the dog and his dad went crazy over it, which embarrassed Junhong even more.

He grabbed his dad's wrist and dragged him along, thinking of a way to ditch him. He couldn't deal with his dad's hyperness right now - it was way too embarrassing and he was getting sick of the laughter and mocking from his classmates.

"Hey dad... why don't you get us something from the cafe?" He questioned, noticing how it looked a bit busy, so it would keep his dad in line for a bit.

"Hm?" Jiyong questioned, looking up from the dog, who he'd named Brownie, that he and Junhong had won together. It made him happy to think that as this was the first time that he and his son had done any sort of bonding in a long, long time.

"The cafe. Why don't you get us something from there?" Junhong repeated.

Jiyong smiled and nodded, "Of course, Junhonggie. I was just hoping we could stop for a moment to get some refreshments." He said, looking at the cafe. "I'll be right back so don't wander off. Come on Brownie." He grinned at the stuffed dog, quickly making his way inside.

Junhong stood and waited until his dad was already in line before darting off, intent on hiding as long as possible. His dad was being very... weird. He was clingy and just odd; Junhong wasn't used to it.

Before long, he found himself wandering behind the school close to the maze, sighing heavily as he kicked at little rocks in the grass. "Well well well, look what little fishy wandered into our pond..." A voice spoke from behind him. Junhong turned to see Yongguk's goons behind him, all of them looking quite pleased.

"And look, he's by himself..."

The group of young men all held similar sinister smirks on their faces as they eyed up Junhong much like a lion would a fat zebra. Obviously, the fact that there were large groups of parents, teachers, students and children alike didn't seem to faze any of them. They'd probably been waiting for someone to come their way.

And unfortunately, Junhong was that someone.

"So, Junhonggie I noticed your dad decided to come today..." The 'leader' started, a grin on his lips, "I didn't realize he was such a man-child, Junhonggie. Pinky swears at his age?" He snorted and the group laughed alongside him. "Sounds like someone never entered adulthood."

Junhong glared at the guys, his hands curling into fists at their insults. Just because he didn't get along with his dad didn't mean it was open invitation for everyone else to bash on him. He was ready to attack if provoked, but before he could, he was shoved forward by one of the guys behind him. He grunted as he stumbled forward only to be pushed back by the one in front.

One by one they took turns shoving Junhong around their circle until he was sore in the shoulders and chest. When he dropped to his knees, they began laughing at him giving him just the right opportunity. He quickly crawled between two of them and made a run for the maze, almost whimpering as their feet thundered behind him.

He tripped hard and fell, sliding along the harsh grass before getting back up and running again, glad when the bullies finally backed away and stopped following him. Junhong dashed into the maze, intent on getting lost in it for a little while, to nurse his wounded ego and bruises.

"Aish... my pants.." He sighed, over his right knee where his pants were torn and there was blood seeping onto the light colored fabric.

—

Yongguk wasn't sure exactly how long he'd been wandering around inside of the maze, just that he'd gone through two cigarettes and he was a lot calmer than when he'd first journeyed inside. He had run into a couple of people so far but not many thanks to the massive size of the maze and for that he was thankful. People irritated him by default already and when he was pissed off he felt like punching a person's face just because he felt they'd blinked the wrong way at him.

He had just lit his third cigarette and turned a corner of the maze when he saw the last person on earth he'd expected to come face to face with here. Choi Junhong.

'Of course... it's always him...' Yongguk groaned inwardly, cursing his luck. It wasn't that Junhong annoyed, far from it in fact, he just couldn't deal with being around him. The way he felt... he couldn't take it being around him...

Though he hadn't bothered to hide his presence, Junhong hadn't seemed to notice him and instead had his attention focused on his knee. His bloodied knee. Before Yongguk could really process the thought, he had already walked over to him, eyes on the hole in the knee of Junhong's pants and the crimson fluid dripping out from the gash in his skin, eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"What happened to you?" He finally spoke up, removing the cigarette from his mouth in favor of exhaling the smoke.

Junhong's head snapped up at the familiar voice, his eyes widening upon seeing Yongguk standing there. He sighed heavily and leaned against the plywood wall before sitting on the ground. "I had a run in with the goons..." He mumbled, feeling around in his pockets for some napkins or something.

"," He cursed, leaning his head against the wall, still out of breath. He absently rubbed at his shoulders, wondering how bad the bruises were on his upper torso now thanks to the idiots. He paid no attention to Yongguk, he was sure the other would just move along on his way anyways.

Yongguk frowned at the mention of the 'goons', eyes trailing over Junhong as he noticed just how utterly haggard he seemed. His breathing was heavy, his skin was paler than usual and he'd wince every so often when he'd shift in place. 'Those idiots... they're getting too rough...' He hissed inwardly, thinking about how the guys would normally stick to utter humiliation to have fun and not physical harm.

Before he could stop himself, Yongguk walked over to Junhong and crouched down in front of him, carefully pulling away the tattered fabric to assess the damage on the boy's knee. It was a pretty nasty gash. "What happened to your knee?" He asked curiously, once again before he could really stop himself, glancing up at Junhong.

Junhong's eyes eyes widened in surprise at Yongguk squatted in front of him to look at his knee. He hid a blush by looking down, frowning at his own cowardice. "I fell trying to get away from them..." He pursed his lips, expecting to hear laughter from the other, but Yongguk remained quiet, eyes still on his knee.

"It's not a big deal - I'd have worse falling off my skateboard," Junhong mumbled, the fluttering in his heart going wild the longer Yongguk looked over his wound.

Yongguk simply nodded and backed away for a moment as he took one last drag off of his cigarette before putting it out, blowing the smoke upwards so it didn't waft around them. He took another look at Junhong's knee then and decided that it needed to be cleaned up at least a little bit. 

"Your best bet was running..." Yongguk said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. "One against many is stupid on any given day but one who doesn't know how to fight against many who do know and like it is just plain idiotic." He nodded, not really sure why he felt a need to assure Junhong he'd made a smart move by running. He just did.

Junhong watched Yongguk, fascinated with how gentle and caring the other was being despite his firm words. He nodded gently, not saying anything at first as he thought of what exactly would be proper to say in a situation like this.

"I know..." He murmured finally, chewing on his bottom lip. He took this time to admire the boy up close, the purple hue to his hair offsetting the pitch black bangs he had. His eyes were concentrated, but soft and his lips were pressed thin together as he dabbed at the blood on his knee.

"Good. It would be best to remember it." Yongguk replied, pausing briefly when Junhong let out a soft hiss of pain, eyes trailing up to the boy who was biting his lips. Though he wasn't a fan of saying sorry during any occasion, in the wrong or not in other words, he sent an apologetic look to the younger. 

'What the hell's going on with me?' He asked himself, wondering why it was that Junhong was slowly unraveling him bit by bit without even knowing he was doing it. He wasn't used to being this... nice to anyone outside of his brother and Jieun. 'This is her fault...' He finally decided. She was the one pushing for him to be friendlier with Junhong.

Yongguk finally pulled away after just deciding to tie his handkerchief around Junhong's knee, looking over the leg once more before standing. "You can keep that. I have plenty more where that came from." He nodded and, as an afterthought, offered a hand to help Junhong up.

Junhong looked at the hand for a moment before taking it, pushing himself off the ground at the same time Yongguk pulled him up. He brushed himself off and looked at Yongguk with a small smile. "Thanks, hyung," He hummed, not bothering to be respectful - it didn't seem like the occassion called for it anyways.

"I should be getting back..." He mumbled softly, breathing in deep, cringing some. "Well, uh... I guess I'll be seeing you then." He bowed some and began walking the way he came in, hoping he didn't get himself lost.

Yongguk watched him as he walked away, frowning because he hadn't missed the way the younger had cringed when he'd taken a breath. He'd been right in his suspicions that the boy hadn't gotten away completely scot-free from his encounter with the guys. He knew they hadn't done something overly physical to Junhong but it obvious they'd roughed him up a bit. Those guys were indeed getting worse and he knew it was because he was no longer including himself in anything they did - they had no 'master' and therefore no one to answer to but themselves.

Just this once, he wouldn't deny to himself that he worried about the possibility of the group awaiting the boy to exit the maze.

"." Yongguk muttered before quickly following after Junhong. He caught up with him easily enough, slowing his steps down to a leisurely pace. Before the boy could say anything, he explained, "I've been in here for a while - I figured you might know the way out."

It wasn't the entire truth, but it was enough. He honestly couldn't begin to comprehend where the exit could be.

Junhong looked at Yongguk and managed a smirk. "Got yourself lost huh? That's smart," He snickered, no malice in his teasing. He folded his arms behind his head, his shoulders stinging from the movement, but he ignored it.

"Not lost." Yongguk replied defensively, eyes narrowing as he looked at the freshman. He shrugged and looked forward once more. "I did it on purpose because I didn't want to be found." He found himself explaining, eyes darkening as he remembered the fight with his father earlier.

Junhong looked at him and nodded his head, tempted to bring up the fact that he saw him and his dad exchanged heated words, but decided against it. He really didn't want to break the semi-peaceful moment between the two of them.

"I know how that is... you just want to get lost somewhere where no one can find you..." He replied softly, his mind wandering.

Yongguk glanced at Junhong, honestly surprised that the other boy understood. And from the sounds of it, he understood very well at that. It made him wonder just exactly why the younger wanted to get lost. 'Probably because of those idiots...' He decided finally, once again feeling guilty for having not stepped in to stop them - especially after he'd found out that Junhong was Toto.

"So you are smart." Yongguk murmured then, a smirk on his lips as he looked at the ground underneath their feet. If he had to be completely honest, which he really didn't want to be, he'd only said anything because he didn't like the far-off look in Junhong's eyes - it didn't suit him.

Junhong's head snapped in the direction of Yongguk, blowing his cheeks up in annoyance. "You know, that wasn't open for comment, hyung..." He crossed his arms in front of his chest and snorted some.

"Besides, of course I'm smart - I wouldn't have run away from the goons earlier if I wasn't, so there," He nodded his head, shooting Yongguk's words right back at him making him feel better.

"Yah... is that anyway to talk your hyung, dongsaeng?" Yongguk returned, raising a hand to prod Junhong's temple with his finger. "I believe the term I used was 'best bet' - nowhere, at any point, did I actually say you were smart." He smirked.

Junhong pushed his hand away much like a child would when pouting, a scowl on his face. "I'm smarter than you, Mr. Hotshot - grafitting the school..." He scoffed, his face still contorted in annoyance as he led them towards where he came in at. They were already at the end of the 'hall' and heading to the entrance now. Junhong honestly felt a little sad - he was enjoying his time with Yongguk, they weren't at each other's throats.

"Highly doubtful, brat." Yongguk replied, quite liking how quickly Junhong was to get snarky. It was funny to see him in such a state. "There's nothing stupid about graffiting. It's just art of a different kind." He stated matter-of-factly, pausing as they finally exited the maze. 

Almost instantly, the joking air around them changed to something awkward which made the two teens wonder why it had. Of course, the answer was as clear as day to them - in the maze, there was no one to judge Yongguk for being a punk and Junhong for being the bullied freshman. They'd been themselves.

"Well..." Yongguk started, not really wanting to leave the other boy because of the possibility of the goons finding him again. What could he do though?

"Gray prince oppa!!" A child-like voice suddenly cried out.