Tarian ignores the calls and messages from Daeho for the remainder of the weekend. She does answer Naeun’s messages a few times, just to let her sister know that she’s safe and not lying in a ditch somewhere. But that’s where her interaction with her new family ends.

To be perfectly honest, she doesn’t have much time to think about them. Yongguk keeps her plenty busy.

She’s not sure how to label their relationship. She’s gotten to the point where she has to admit that she’s attracted to him. The amount of times she finds herself in bed with him that weekend attests to that. But she’s not sure if her attraction goes beyond the physical or not. There’s just something about Yongguk that gets under her skin in all the right – and wrong – ways.

When she shows up to school on Monday, of course her friends are worried.

Eunji corners her before the first bell can even ring. “Where the hell have you been?” she demands, and Tarian has never seen her friend quite as angry as she is at that moment. “Your dad and sister have been calling me all weekend trying to figure out what happened to you.”

“Sorry I didn’t call you back,” Tarian says lamely. “But it’s probably better if you don’t know where I am. If you don’t know, you can’t tell Daeho.” She makes a face at the thought of her biological father.

Eunji doesn’t look placated in the least. “What the hell happened?”

“We got into a fight,” Tarian says shortly, hoping her friend would just let it lie.

But of course Eunji is more persistent than that. “A fight about what?”

Tarian sighs. She may as well come clean about this part of the story. “I spent the night out of town with Yongguk and Daeho flipped his lid. He forbid me to see Yongguk anymore.”

Eunji is predictably shocked and alarmed – and perhaps a little disgusted – with this revelation. “Wait, you spent the night with Bang Yongguk? You slept with him?”

“I didn’t say that,” Tarian replies defensively, although she had slept with him that night. And several more times over the weekend.

Eunji is appalled regardless. “You have an absolutely amazing guy who is head over heels for you and you’re going off with scum like Bang Yongguk?” She threw her arms up in the air. “You know what? I don’t even care anymore. Do whatever you want. It’s your life that you’re ruining.” And with that she stomps away.

“Great,” Tarian mutters to herself. “Now everybody is mad at me. Can this day get any worse?”

Unfortunately for Tarian, it could. Although neither she nor Yongguk had said anything to the rest of the B.A.P. about her temporarily living with Yongguk, it seemed like they all know. And all Jongup and Youngjae want to do during class is discuss how Yongguk and Tarian are dating – even though they’re not actually dating.

“Would you just shut up?” Tarian finally snaps, losing her temper. “You’re so ing annoying!”

“Ms. Pryce!” The teacher’s tone is stern. “Report to detention during the lunch hour.”

“Aw, come on, Teach,” Jongup drawls. “Is that really necessary?”

“No, I’ll take the detention,” Tarian says quickly. Anything to get a little peace and quiet.

Much to her chagrin, Yonghwa is waiting for her outside the detention room when she finishes doing her time. She sighs. She should have known she’d have to face him at some point. She only hopes that Eunji hasn’t told him that she spent the night with Yongguk. She doesn’t want him to know. And she sure as hell doesn’t want him to know that she’s been sleeping with Yongguk.

“Hey Tarian.” He gives her a weak smile. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

Tarian nods. Her voice doesn’t seem to be working properly.

They fall into step with one another and walk in silence for a bit. They’re out in the courtyard before Yonghwa breaks the quiet. “Is it true that you spent the night with Bang Yongguk?”

Tarian winces. She doesn’t want to admit to it, but she also doesn’t want to lie. “Yeah, I did,” she says quietly. “But it’s not what it sounds like. He basically kidnapped me, and I didn’t have a choice. He took me out of town and I didn’t have any money or my phone or anything.”

“He kidnapped you?” Yonghwa repeats. “You should go to the police then!”

“No, it’s not like that,” Tarian says quickly. Then she groans. She has no idea how to adequately explain anything. She usually considers herself a fairly smart and quick-witted person, but right now words are failing her completely.

Yonghwa is silent for a moment, his gaze searching. Finally he clears his throat. “Do you like him?”

Tarian looks up. “What?”

“You heard me,” Yonghwa says firmly. “Do you like Bang Yongguk?”

She chews on her bottom lip for a moment. “I don’t know,” she finally admits. Yonghwa has been nothing but perfect to her and she owes it to him to be honest.

He nods, but it’s obvious that her answer hurts him. He clears his throat again, and when he speaks it’s clear that he is struggling to control the emotion in his voice. “Do you like him more than me?”

Tarian’s voice is no more than a whisper when she answers, “I don’t know.”

Yonghwa looks away to regain control of his emotions, and Tarian hates that she’s hurting him. But when he speaks, he sounds calm again. “Okay. Thank you for being honest with me.” He gets to his feet.

Tarian reaches out and grabs his hand before he can walk away. “Do you hate me?” she asks uncertainly.

He smiles, then leans down and pecks her on the lips. “Of course not,” he assures her. “I already told you I would fight for you. I just have to make you like me more.”

Tarian actually laughs at that. She’s relieved that he doesn’t hate her.

The following morning, she is called into the office. Thinking she’s being reported yet again for breaking the dress code, she drags herself down there. She is surprised, then, when she finds Daeho standing in the office with an unfamiliar woman.

“What are you doing here?” Tarian demands, crossing her arms over her uniform blouse.

Daeho looks uncertainly at the woman standing beside him, who is dressed in a pencil skirt and high heels, hair tucked back into a neat bun.

“Hello Tarian,” the woman says briskly. “I am Mrs. Kim. I’m your case worker. We haven’t met in person yet because your father here assured me you were adjusting to your move well. Unfortunately, you running away from home is not in anyone’s best interest and we must take steps.”

Tarian is livid. “You reported me to my case worker?”

“Your father did the right thing,” Mrs. Kim says coolly. “You are not of age and therefore you are required to listen to your father and the state. You must return home at once.”

Tarian glares. “I’m not going back.”

“If you feel that way,” Mrs. Kim says, her eyes glinting icily. “We can arrange for you to be placed in a correctional facility until you come of age. Would that suit you better?”

Tarian can’t recall being so angry in her entire life. “I’m missing class. Can I go now?”

“Think long and hard about what you want to do, Tarian,” Mrs. Kim advises nastily. “We’ll be in touch.”

It’s as she’s storming back to class that she sees Yongguk and Yonghwa at the end of the hallway. They’re discussing something seriously, both faces twisted in anger. Tarian loses some of her steam. She doesn’t want the two of them fighting, especially not because of her.

“Hi!” she calls loudly, and they both look up. Yongguk doesn’t smile, but Yonghwa does. He waves back, then disappears. Tarian jogs over to Yongguk. “What was that all about?” she asks, looking after Yonghwa.

“Nothing,” Yongguk says, but it’s pretty obvious that he’s lying. “Why aren’t you in class?”

Tarian rolls her eyes. “I got called to the office. My dad called my case worker. Can you believe that? Those s. They’re threatening to put me in a correctional facility until I come of age if I don’t come home. What douches.”

“Why don’t you just go back home then?” Yongguk asks. “Not that I want you to leave my place or anything, but you can still come over on the weekends or spend the night.”

Tarian shakes her head, leaning against him comfortably. “No, that’s why I left in the first place. My dad forbid me to see you anymore.”

“What? Why?” Yongguk demands, his arm coming to wrap around her shoulders automatically.

She laughs. “Because you’re you, idiot. You’re Bang Yongguk, leader of the B.A.P. Everybody in this city is terrified of you.”

Yongguk frowns but doesn’t comment on that.

At least not until the following afternoon. Tarian is eating lunch by herself – Yonghwa had invited her to eat with the usual group but she had declined since Eunji is still frustrated with her – when Yongguk comes to find her.

“Hey,” she says, setting her camera aside and motioning for him to sit down beside her. He remains standing. “What’s up?”

“We need to talk,” Yongguk says shortly. He isn’t smiling.

Tarian feels something sink in her stomach. “About what?”

“You need to go home,” Yongguk says shortly, his voice brusque. “You’ve become a nuisance. I was having fun at first, but now it’s boring. I want you out of my place by tonight.” He tosses her the key. “Get your and be gone by the time I get back tonight.”

Tarian stares at him, barely catching the key. “What?”

“You heard me,” Yongguk says coolly. “Do I really need to spell it out for you? I’m tired of you. I’m bored. So get your and get out of my life. Leave the key under the mat when you’re done.” And he turns on his heel and walks off.

Tarian watches him leave in a sort of shocked silence, the key hot in the palm of her hand.

She doesn’t understand what has just happened. She’d been pretty convinced that Yongguk liked her – he doesn’t seem the type to let just anyone crash at his place – but apparently she’s been wrong. Maybe he really has been just using her all this time. She feels like such an idiot for letting it happen.

She ditches the rest of school that day. She goes over to Yongguk’s now-familiar apartment and gathers up the belongings she’s managed to scatter across the two rooms over the past few days. She shoves them haphazardly into her bag and, like Yongguk had told her to, she puts the key to the apartment under the mat after locking the front door. Part of her wants to throw the key away or to leave the apartment unlocked, but she’s not that petty. If Yongguk wants to be an , so be it. She’s fine with it. She’s done with him anyway.

Naeun is more than a little surprised when she walks in the door and finds Tarian sitting on the sofa, eating a snack and watching some mindless drama on the television.

“U-unnie,” she says uncertainly, toeing her shoes off in the entryway. “You’re back…”

“Yeah. I’d rather not go to a correctional facility,” she says sarcastically, but honestly, that’s not why she’s in such a bad mood.

She just doesn’t understand why Yongguk is such a bipolar little .