Cheering Her Up

Apparently, the last class of the day, P.E was cancelled due to some sort of issues involving last minute touches on the other gymnasium building, just opposite of the school. Some students were either happy, annoyed, or disappointed. Not that Haekyung would care if there wasn't fourth period, in fact, she was rather thrilled. Gym anyways, at least for her it was.

The girl unlocked the keypad of her secured bicycle, loosening it in the process before hopping on. Usually, she would walk home with Jaein, but seeing that she had to pick up her little brother from the elementary school nearby, Haekyung had no choice but to go home alone. Strolling along the path leading to outside of the school's gates, she was alert with a couple of things. Groups of people scattering around the area were eyeing her, whispering things she tried to block out as her bike passed by.

Haekyung frowned, shrugging the matter off since she didn't want to be a part of it. Everything was perfectly normal, except for the fact that most of the students at Kangnam started to center in on her. The situation made her felt uncomfortable. 

Was it normal for her to have such thoughts of dislike and irritation towards that guy? 

Nah, not everyone's as annoying as Jeon Jungkook. 

It wasn't long until something else caught her attention. She saw the Bangtan boys making their way towards the parking lot. It was the first time for her to see all of them together, chattering happily and arguing with one another. 

Haekyung blinked, quickly turning around without another thought. The only thing she wanted to do was to get home without another word from any more annoying boys, and eat to her heart's content since she was actually craving for some sweets. 

"Why do you get to ride in the front? it's my turn." Yoongi pointed out.

"I wouldn't have to, if it wasn't so cramped back there. You should really clean up your mess once in a while, jeez." Jimin countered.

"Tsk. What mess? I'm pretty sure some of that stuff belongs to him." 

Jungkook raised his brows, parting his lips to speak, "Yeah right, Yoongi. Don't try to put the blame on me just cause you're lazy." The boys all snickered at his remark, looking at the baffled male on the other end.

"Whatever, guys. You're all mean." Pouting, Yoongi sat himself at the back of the car, waiting for the rest of his friends to start the engine and go home. Jin chuckled to himself, patting the younger one on the shoulder. Turning on some music, the boys drove out of the space, joining the rest of the cars down the street. Taehyung, who had his eyes casually fixed on the car window spotted the girl just up ahead, not too far from where they were. "Hey, isn't that the same chick from period two?" Hoseok pointed at the figure, causing Jungkook to turn and stare. 

"Oh yeah, that's her alright. What was her name again?" Jimin pondered, scratching his head.

"It's Min Haekyung, idiot." Taehyung responded, shaking his head at the boy's bad memory. And to think that his friend had already met the girl, just earlier during the day too.

Haekyung looked rather irritated, as the afternoon wind started blowing on her hair repeatedly, not giving her a break. She lifted one arm to pat the hair away from her face, muttering incoherent words. Jungkook's eyes followed the girl carrying along with pedalling on forward. Just when is that girl ever not in a bad mood? Indeed, an ahjumma who's always annoyed. He grinned, gazing at her with one hand laying on the car's counter edge, tilting his head sideways for support. "Yo, Jungkook. Why are you always smiling and stuff whenever she's around? It's not like you. Don't tell me you're in love with her already." Yoongi teased, smirking.

"OUR Jungkook's in love with a girl?! Since when?" The other boys in the car gasped, eyes wide.

But really, they were just teasing him for the fun out of it. 

The lad coughed, narrowing his eyes at their reactions, flustered. 

Taehyung, who sat next to Yoongi chuckled inwardly to himself, demonstrating a throat-slicing gesture.

The boy couldn't deny that even he himself had found that the girl, Min Haekyung was really one of a kind. Simple, and straight forward. Just what had his best friend thought, when they had both first met? Jungkook turned, flashing the older male a "Really, now?" face. He smirked, nearing the shaking Yoongi, prepared to perform his signature move. "Yah! Not one of those again!! I was just kidding!" Yoongi pleaded, narrowing his eyes at his evil best friend. Darn Jeon Jungkook and his head-flicking talent. 

Backing away, the male laughed, turning his attention back to the windows before responding, "I thought so."

A car drove past Haekyung, startling her in the process. What in the world?

Her curious eyes met that nonchalant gaze of his for a second, before attempting to turn around, acting as if she had seen nothing. A loud honk sounded from the engine followed by a double knock from the windows. A couple of words played on the boy's lips, before Jungkook stuck his tongue at her. See you later, grumpy ahjumma. 

The car sped off further into the distance, preventing the girl from being able to glare at the boy.

Really, how much more irritating could that guy get?!  

Boy, did Haekyung hate disliked Jungkook more than ever now. 

 ---

A couple hours after arriving at her home, Haekyung headed downstairs and into the kitchen. 

Digging into the cabinets and fridge for some decent food was rather difficult, as there was only a bowl of leftover pasta, a couple of soda pops, and some untouched fruits laying around. Haekyung groaned, when her craving for food intensified at the sight of almost nothing. You might probably think that the girl was quite poor or something, but no, she just got used to living alone due to certain circumstances.

Both her parents worked overseas for a well-managed business, leaving their only daughter to take care of herself. It sounded oddly selfish at first, but what could the girl do? It's not like she could prevent them from leaving.

She understood that her parents were grown adults, striving for continuous success. 

But just when was the last time the girl had seen her dear parents' faces up close? Have family get-togethers, taking memorial photos, or was even able to form a decent heart-to-heart talk when she felt frustrated at times? Too long ago. 

She's gotten tired of their excuses. 

Every time she was told that they couldn't make it back home, or simply ring her up for a conversation, the girl got even more broken, hearing them throw the same hurtful words year after year. To know that her parents were simply too busy for her, it made her felt incredibly lonely. But, nothing was going to change, was it? 

Haekyung sighed, smiling bitterly at the thoughts surrounding her mind before shoving them out completely. 

She should really be used to it by now, the feeling of emptiness. But each time she's reminded of her situation, it always managed to create a gap in her heart and mind somehow. It always did, and she didn't like it. Not one bit. Was it a wonder that Haekyung had turned out this way? She really didn't know anymore. The girl looked to her left, watching the hands of the clock tick. 5:34 pm. 

Slipping on a black jacket, and some shoes, Haekyung headed towards the main door. 

Looks like she really did need some sweets to cheer her up right now. Big time.

 --- 

Boxes and boxes of sweet delicacies greeted her when she entered the large supermarket, located just around the corner of her home. If there was one absolute flaw that Haekyung could pin point as a weakness, it'd be the fact that she could be quite indecisive at times. Ugh. Chocolate, Mint, Mango, Cherry. They all look so good! Shoving all of the selected boxes into her shopping cart, she pushed the thought away of becoming fat. It was sweets for goodness sakes. She couldn't help it. Oh well, it's not like she was planning to eat it all at once anyways. 

After gathering some other foods for dinner, Haekyung walked over to the cashier, ready to pay.

The line appeared to be pretty long, which was no surprise seeing that this was a super busy local market for people who resides near it. When her turn came, Haekyung unloaded her items onto the counter one by one. It was no joke that the market was full of loud people chattering among themselves or on their cellphones. But when a couple of loud and obnoxious voices boomed near where she stood, she froze in her spot. She could recognize that annoying voice from just about anywhere already. She mentally cursed when she took a small peek, turning her head to see who the rascals were. From just behind her, she could see a couple of the Bangtan boys strolling around.

.

She was sooo not in the mood for this. Just why was she seeing them everywhere she went?! Ugh. 

Haekyung pulled the sides of her jacket hood up to cover a part of her face. She was going to get out of there without being spot. At least that's what she had planned from the start, but to her surprise, someone called her name.

"Yo, Min Haekyung."

Strange, it didn't appear as annoying as the voice she's heard before, from just earlier during the day. And it didn't exactly sound all that familiar either, or was it just her mind playing tricks on her?  Haekyung turned around, blinking at the guy who stood there casually, holding a box of dessert similar to the ones she was checking out, while staring back at her innocently.

The boy sauntered over to her, lifting one arm to wave at the girl.

"Is it just me, or are we running into each other way too often?" A friendly grin took over the boy's face. 

Haekyung sighed in frustration, "Nope, it's not just you." Really, you have no idea, my luck is just getting worst by the minute. The girl thought, turning back around to pay when the register lady interrupted. Taehyung walked behind her, observing the items the girl had bought. So, that's where it went! "Yah, you just got the last box of mango tarts. I was wondering why they ran out so quick!" The boy pouted, before smiling when Haekyung turned around, shocked at his sudden appearance. Just when had he sneaked up behind her?

"First come, first serve." Haekyung spoke, eyeing the boy victoriously, a small smile gracing her lips.

Taehyung blinked, in thought. So, Min Haekyung had her playful side as well, huh? Adorable.

He stayed by her side, eyes wandering around the different products displayed at the mart. When Haekyung pocketed her receipt, she gazed at the boy, who was looking over the direction of the sweets section. Boy, he really did want to get his hands on those tarts, didn't he? He's so silly, Haekyung thought, almost wanting to give her box to the boy. "Hmm. Done?" His eyes flickered back to hers, eyeing the two full bags she held. Haekyung nodded, slightly biting the insides of her cheek, not knowing what to really say.

They weren't even close, but she felt okay with him being around her.

Just a little bit.

Taehyung gasped playfully, as if making fun of the poor girl. 

"You're buying all that at once?! Won't you be afraid of getting chubby?" He chuckled, facing Haekyung who was feeling agitated. She rolled her eyes at his comment, attempting to walk away when Taehyung smirked and followed behind her silently. So asides from Jeon Jungkook, Kim Taehyung was now another boy who was going to start teasing her, huh? Just greaaat.

Holding onto the grocery bags tightly, Haekyung neared the exit, looking slightly dazed and dejected.

To be honest, she wasn't exactly in the greatest mood today. 

Walking right up in front of her, the male bit his lower lip, gazing at the girl's expression. Haekyung sighed, looking elsewhere. He didn't know why but, that look she sported on her face slightly bothered him. Taking off his light-blue cap, he gently adjusted it onto the girl's head while brushing her hair away, pulling the front down to shield that sad look away. She flinched, looking up. "I was just kidding earlier, Haekyung. I don't know what's wrong, but brighten up, okay? You look better that way." Taehyung spoke, flashing her a soft smile.

With her eyes hidden behind the hat, she blinked in surprise. 

Did he really just...

She felt a small warmth, enveloping her heart. When was the last time she had been comforted like this, asides from the care of her best friend, Yoo Jaein? Pulling the cap higher, she wanted to return it back to him. 

The girl was sort of still deep in her thoughts, when she felt him leaning in closer. 

"See you tomorrow." Whispering softly into her ear from a distance, he pulled back, saluting her casually before reuniting with his friends on the other side. Haekyung stood there, spacing out. Her assumption was probably wrong, seeing that one boy of the group, Taehyung was a quite decent guy. 

Caring, and friendly. She smiled to herself, shaking her head. 

Picking up with her business of carrying the grocery bags home, her brows lifted when one bag felt slightly lighter than the other. Huh. Digging into the bag curiously, her eyes widened. Wait a minute..

My mango tarts! She pouted, whining to herself. 

Kim Taehyung! That sneaky idiot!