Tao hummed a relaxing tune as he strode to the city center, enjoying the breeze of autumn. He shivered slightly though when a particular strong wind passed. It was getting pretty chilly and he wondered if Jamie was getting warm enough. Speaking about the little girl, Tao's face lit up. He liked the young girl a lot. She's everything he wished for, cute, adorable, caring, considerate and all the wonderful adjectives he could think of. Sometimes she could be so stubborn it annoyed him, still he liked her a lot. 

Everyone called him silly, stupid and oblivious but Tao was anything but that. He could read people quite well, despite s' knowledge. And of course, he knew Jamie's affection for him. The girl was so obvious that it's adorable watching her blush every now and then when Tao's near. The way her cheeks would blossomed a pretty shade of pink, the way her grin would seemingly stretch all the way to her ears or the way her hands fidgetted constantly; Tao couldn't help but yearn for such reactions, however to him but nobody else. They made him feel wanted, loved and appreciated. Something he had missed for quite a while. 

When he first came to Korea, he barely left his dorm except to go to practice. He didn't have any friends so what's the point. His struggles were unknown of because apparently you needed to stand out to get notice. It's a talent agency after all. 

So he basked himself in loneliness for months, staying away from the crowd, going home immediately after practice. He never interact with anybody since he thought nobody would want to talk to him. 

But the peace didn't last too long when he was the subject of bullying, by some jealous senior. Rumor had it he's going to join the new boy group which will be debuting next year which himself was unheard of. Wushu or not, he's not one to promote violence so he endured it, for the sake of his dream. 

It was just childish teasing at first; then rumors were spread around the agency he was involved in some kind of gang activities which he was questioned by the CEO; when he came out clean, they got more personal with the 'punishment'. They would call him out, insult him, slap him, punch him, kick him until he couldn't cry anymore. At the end of the day, Tao would be lying on the concert with a heavily bruise body and a sore throat from the amount of crying one's months worth. 

He didn't register for this, literally. Not for the bullying nor the debuting. He started to doubt himself, he wanted to back out but the expectation was too high, he stayed. And he met the most amazing people ever. 

His EXO members were friendly and welcoming who never judge him for his appearance and accepted him for just simply who he was. Tao was grateful to meet such understanding boys who had become his family which he cherished with his whole heart. From a depressed kid, Tao became the lovely baby everyone adored. 

And Jamie was like his turning point. The girl intrigued him with her fierce eyes, strong personality and mostly that small stature. Contrary to common belief, being short will make you dull among the crowd but in the midst of long legged tall girls, the girl caught his eyes in the weirdest way ever (credit may go to her purple hair too). Actually he had been watching her for quite a while but never got the chance to talk to the lonely girl. She always appeared when he got his hand full and disappeared every time he planned to say hi. Until that day he saw on the floor, girls surrounding her, laughing, mocking and humiliating the small girl, Tao was quick on his feet to help her. Or so he thought he was. 

Tao froze, finally noticing the crowd, passer bys, not making any effort to help the young vulnerable girl. Indifference, amusement, pity but no desire to help. He realized how so familiar it was. Eyes all around, look down on the small and weak being, laughing at its misery. He couldn't move as the painful memory crossed through his mind. He didn't want to think about it. 

Shaking his head, Tao noticed the crowd had dispersed, leaving the young girl, still on the floor, struggling to get up. He rushed to her, pulling her onto her feet worriedly. Finally got a good look, the girl instantly reminded him of a cat. He chuckled mentally as the girl stared wide eyes at him, a rosy color slowly grew on her pinch worthy cheeks. As she opened , he squealed, again, mentally at her silvery voice. 

She probably has an amazing voice. He thought. 

Despite her tough attitude, Tao has problem opening her up to him but once he saw her little smile, Tao was the happiest man on Earth. He felt special and in a way a little possessive the little girl. 

Therefore when he discovered her feelings for him, Tao decided to keep it to himself, pretend not to know. Because he wasn't sure about his. 

There's no telling what will become of them if he knew. He's afraid she would drift away from him. He's afraid they would never be able to look at each other the same way again. He's afraid. The most part was that he's afraid. He didn't have the guts to confront her. He's a coward but he couldn't help it. As long as she's near, he'd do anything to keep her close. Even if it meant him being a coward. 

It changed though, drastically when different males seemed to flock around her. That Kyungmin guy who he had not found, Baekhyun who seemed to take a liking of the young girl and just minutes ago Sehun who developed his first crush on the girl. 

Why didn't life just let him keep her for himself? Instead invited those three to join him in this game of tug&war.  

Love is a game that Tao wasn't sure if he wanted to be a part. 

Author's note 

I'm sorry guys it's such a short chapter. I couldn't really continue it so I left it this way for now. The next chapter would be more interesting I guarantee. I don't have a great day today. I skipped 2 lectures today cuz I woke up exhausted so I just slept. Hopefully I'll recover by tmr. :) Forgive me for the crappy chapter. I'll get back to you as soon as I can.