Day 2 [December 22nd, 2013]

Sulli woke up bright and early to go on a walk with Teddy. They both bundled up to face the snowy Seoul weather.

"Come on, Teddy~" she said while walking out of the apartment.

There was a soft beep of a door opening. He was standing there in his black sweats and hoodie, blankly staring at her.

"Good morning." Sulli quickly said with a smile. He completely ignored her and stepped into the elevator.

"Oh" she awkwardly said while following behind him.

‘Who the hell is she…’ Chanyeol thought

His presence felt heavy; an unpleasantly familiar feeling for Sulli. Even though he wasn't even looking at her, she felt like he was judging her every breath. Teddy sniffed at his shoes and looked up at him; he didn't even blink an eye.

"I'm Choi Sulli, it's nice to meet you. I'm house-sitting for Krystal who lives on the same floor as you." She used the friendliest voice that she could muster up while sticking out her hand. He looked down at her hand and then looked up at her.

His piercing eyes stared into hers.

Many people compliment Sulli for her light brown eyes that sparkle in bliss, and Park Chanyeol was engulfed into them… it was almost impossible to leave her gaze.

Without a word he stepped off the elevator. Sulli slowly put her hand down as she watched him leave.

"He looks lonely, don't you think so?" She muttered to Teddy.

That afternoon Sulli went to Taeyeon’s café.

"Hey~" Taeyeon said as she slid a cup of coffee towards Sulli.

"Haha thanks." She said while sitting down at her usual window seat.

"So is her apartment really that great?!" Taeyeon asked while sitting across from me.

"Yes! It's beautiful! But... Do you know who her neighbor is? He’s supposedly P&K’s son."

"Park Chanyeol?"

"Oh! You know him?" Sulli was surprised.

"Who doesn't? He's P&K Corp.’s son! It’s one of the most influential companies in South Korea."

"How do you know him then?”

“He used to be friends with Baekhyun.” Taeyeon said with a shrug.

"There was also a rumor that he completely stopped meeting people after he lost his sister in a car accident." Taeyeon added.

"Really?" she said in shock.

"Yeah, no one ever sees him. But supposedly he’s a really talented musician. It's too bad he doesn't use it, you know?" Taeyeon said but she suddenly ran towards the counter to help a customer.

'P&K... Stopped meeting people... Lost his sister... Talented musician... Park Chanyeol. No wonder he looked so lonely.' Sulli thought as she tried to connect the dots.
 

"Oh Hi Sulli!" Baekhyun said as he walked into the Cafe.

He slipped behind the counter and gave Taeyeon a back hug.

"Oh! You scared me!" Taeyeon said. He smiled and kissed her cheek.

"Good afternoon~" Baekhyun said.

They first met in this café; Baekhyun came every day to see her, and she waited every day to see him. He fell for her as fast as she fell for him. They’ve been together for 3 years now.

"Sulli, if you want to know more about Chanyeol, you should ask Baekhyun." Taeyeon said.

"Chanyeol?" Baekhyun said as his eyes widened.

"Sulli is house-sitting for Krystal, and Park Chanyeol’s her neighbor. You were friends with him, right?" she asked him.

"Hm..." he said while sitting across from Sulli.

"Well, I don't know what to say." Baekhyun looked out the window with a glossy gaze.

"We were best friends, and we were even in a band together back in High school called Exo."

"Really? So what happened between you guys?" Sulli leaned forward.

"I'm not even sure. It was during winter break around this time, I think... 4 years ago? His sister passed away from an accident. I don't know why but after that he never contacted or met anyone. He became rude and brash towards everyone. That bastard." Baekhyun angrily said.

"What was he like before?" Taeyeon walked over and leaned against Baekhyun.

"He was really cheerful and outgoing. Chanyeol was always talking or joking around haha he was a really funny guy." Baekhyun reminisced.

"I’ve only seen him once but I can't imagine him like that." Taeyeon said.

"I actually saw him a few months ago; he didn't even look at me." Baekhyun said with a sigh.

"Maybe he didn't recognize you?" Sulli tried to be positive.

"That's bull. There are 11 other members in Exo, and he was cold to every single one of us. Honestly, he shouldn't do that to us especially with all we've been through."

"What a jerk..." Taeyeon said.

"He probably had his reasons. I just... feel bad for him. He seems lonely." Sulli slightly pitied his solitude.

"That's his own fault; he did that to himself."

"Still... There must be a reason" She softly said while looking out the window that was flustered with white snow.

"Well, we should get going." Taeyeon said to Baekhyun.

"Oh yeah! We're going on a date." he said with a smile.

"Thanks for watching the Cafe today, Sulli."

"No problem, have a fun date!"

“Also, a friend of mine is going to come and help you later.” Baekhyun said.

“Alright~ Bye!” she waved as they left.

Sulli grabbed an apron and tied her hair. There were a few people in the cafe just chatting and drinking. She leaned over the counter and slowly fell into deep thought.

‘Park Chanyeol, P&K’s son who lost his noona due to an accident. He was close friends with Baekhyun and the other members of Exo… He used to be cheerful; now he’s cold, but why? It doesn’t make sense. Why is he avoiding the people around him?’ Sulli had an endless reel of thoughts.

*tap tap*

She was startled by the sound of someone tapping on the counter.

"What would you like?!" she immediately blurted out.

"Are you Choi Sulli?" a handsome guy with a sweet smile asked her.

"Yes, that's me."

"Hi, I'm Xiumin! Baekhyun asked me to help you today."

"Oh~ I see. Haha are you a good barista?” She joked.

“Um… I know a little bit about coffee haha." he shyly said while walking behind the counter.

They chatted and got to know each other. Xiumin was shy but very nice, and he knows a lot about coffee.

"So how do you know Baekhyun?" Sulli asked as she watched him drip coffee.

"We were in a band together."

"Exo? The one with Park Chanyeol right?" she casually asked.

He suddenly froze and slowly looked up at her.

"You know Chanyeol?"

"I'm house-sitting and he lives on the same floor as me. I don’t know much about him though" she said, Xiumin nodded and went back to dripping.

"Yeah, we were in Exo together."

"Why were you called Exo?"

"Hahaha we made up this whole story about how we were from an exoplanet. We even had our own supernatural powers."

"Really?" she giggled at their ridiculous storyline.

"Yep! Actually... Now I think about it, Chanyeol made that story up. He was pretty creative~"

"I see." she said with a slight nod.

"This isn't really important but... If you ever see him, can you tell him that Exo misses him, the Chanyeollie we all used to know."

"He probably won't listen to me but I’ll let him know the next time I see him." She flashed him a smile.

"Thanks, Sulli." he said while ruffling up her hair.

They closed up at 11 pm.

"How are you getting home?" Xiumin asked as he shoved his hands in his pockets.

"I'm going to ride the subway, what about you?"

"I'll take you home. I can't let you ride the subway alone." He quickly said.

"No~ it’s really okay!" she said with a reassuring smile.

"Don’t be stubborn, now lead the way." He playfully pushed her towards the subway station.

They rode the subway together and walked towards the glamorous apartment building.

"This is it?" he asked and she nodded.

"Oh a few boys from Exo live here." Xiumin said.

"Really? Maybe I’ll see one of them.”

"Haha maybe~ Well, I hope to see you again." He said with his cute smile.

"Of course! Thanks again for helping me today." she slightly blushed.

"Anytime, just call me whenever you need anything okay?"

"Thanks! and I should at least see you off." She stood in front of the door.

"Alright, good night Sulli!" he said with a wave. She happily waved back.

She went up to the 21^st floor and fumbled with the keypad once again. However, before walking in she took a glance at Chanyeol's door as if she was waiting for him to come out.

'I hope I see him again…' she thought.