If you live life by other people's standards, then your life is no longer yours. 

Jiyoon stared out of the window of Classroom 2-2, overlooking the baseball field. Just like how Suho predicted, the rumors died down pretty
quickly. Luhan began to accompany Jiyoon to her class in the (using his term) ungodly hours to avoid the gossiping students and his fangirls. He'd then rush back to the dorms after class ended and even skipped his football practices which he vowed never to do because it was too annoying hearing his team mates about Jiyoon even after explaining a million times that there was nothing going on between the two. On the other hand, Jiyoon received double the hate - not that it mattered anyway because she grew accustomed to it. However she still freaked out occasionally when she found a dead rat or cockroach accompanied with notes like "Get away from Luhan oppa", "You're not fit to be his girlfriend.", "Luhan is mine!" in her locker on days that she forgot to lock it up. She sighed, feeling jealous of the birds soaring freely across the blue sky among the fluffy white clouds. Life was hard, really hard.

"I'm sorry."

Jiyoon snapped back to reality. When she finally registered the voice in her head, she slunk backwards out of reflex. It was Hyerim fidgeting awkwardly next to Jiyoon's table. Next to her was an impatient Ahyoung tapping her feet.

"Satisfied? Let's go." Ahyoung didn't wait for Hyerim to react and dragged her out of the classroom by her collar.

It wasn't that Hyerim actually wanted to apologise. Heck, apologising was something that will result in an Error 404 in her dictionary. But because of that incident, Chanyeol started to ignore Ahyoung more than he normally did. Not that he ever acknowledged her existence but it was much worse than before when he was still on friendly terms with her; when she could touch and cling onto him without Chanyeol flinching away in disgust or leaving the room, unable to stand the thought of breathing in the same air as her.

Which was the very case now.

"Let go of me!" Hyerim squirmed under Ahyoung's firm grip. "Do you know that it hurts!"

"And it didn't hurt when you hit Jiyoon?" Ahyoung snapped at her. It disgusted her that her best friend would resort to such unsophisticated methods that only uncouth and uneducated people would do - bully. It was disgraceful for a person of such a high status like status and it only got Ahyoung fuming mad. "This is the last time I'm saving your sorry ."

"But she hangs out with them all the time and it got on my nerves!" Hyerim cried out, feeling unfair. 

"That doesn't mean you should resolve this through violence."  Ahyoung hissed, hitting Hyerim on her . "And you call yourself the daughter of the director of S.M Entertainment? Shame on you-"

Out of the corner of her eyes, she spotted Chanyeol's tall figure disappearing down the long corridor. Thinking that she could deal with Hyerim another time, she threw her aside and chased after him.

"Yah!" she shouted after him in echoes down the corridor. It was apparent that Chanyeol heard her but he refused to respond, walking with hastened footsteps.

"Yah Park Chanyeol!" growing impatient, she grabbed his wrist and made him turn around.

"What?" Chanyeol threw her a hostile reply. He had no time to deal with her childish nonsense.

Ahyoung bit her lips anxiously. She looked down onto the ground, afraid to meet his fierce glare. "S-she apologised."

"So?"

"So stop being angry at me like it's my fault for goodness' sake!" Ahyoung was frustrated with Chanyeol. "We are engaged and can't we even act like we are?"

"I don't remember being engaged to a childish kid like you." Chanyeol's face was void of emotions as he pulled his wrist away from Ahyoung, voice stone-cold. "Neither did I choose to be."

There were a million thoughts racing through Chanyeol's head, the what-ifs, what could have been and if things could be changed so this awkward situation will never exist. But there weren't. Not when two powerful and influential families scrutinised by the public eye was involved in the picture and not just themselves alone. He gritted his teeth and turned away from Ahyoung.

"Maybe, maybe we could still be friends if we weren't engaged you know."

"Are you leaving? Park Chanyeol stop there!" Ahyoung screamed after him, the corridor was empty and the echoes resounded after her. "PARK CHANYEOL!"

She took in a deep shaky breath, his words ringing in her head. What right had he to be acting all high and mighty as if she was the one clinging onto him? Well yeah she was but- She brushed the tears b in her eyes and spun on her heels, walking back in the direction she came from. 

"Yoo Ahyoung, you're not giving up now are you? 2 years, you've endured this for 2 years so you can endure it for 2 more."

"She apologised?" Kai set his earphones on the table in surprise, "That's new."

"Y-yeah..." Jiyoon was also shocked by the change in attitude. "I think Ahyoung made her do it."

"So you're going to be friends with her now?" Baekhyun asked innocently.

"Would you be friends with someone who slapped you on the face and tried to drown you in a toilet bowl?" Sehun asked dryly, unamused by Baekhyun's question.

"Of course not," Baekhyun scrunched his nose in disgust. "That's not very nice."

"Precisely."

"I bet Ahyoung made Jiyoon apologise because hyung is ignoring her." 

"Hyung who?" Jiyoon was befudled by Kai's statement."

"Chanyeol."
 

"Chanyeol and Ahyoung know each other? They seem pretty close." Jiyoon blurted the question lingering on her mind for the past few weeks.

"They're engaged." Kai coolly replied, twirling his cables around his fingers. 

"Eh?! They are?!" Jiyoon gasped, this was a news unheard of. "Since when?"

"Since your grandfather's era." the boys and Jiyoon freezed at the emotionless voice from behind them. A shadow loomed over Jiyoon's table and she could feel the intense gaze boring holes into her head. Jiyoon was sure it could cause a second-degree burn and gulped nervously.

Ahyoung stared at the four of them with arms folded. "It's really heartwarming to see you gathered together and talking about me behin