Your first class just finished and you have time to spare, what would you do?

Your Answer: "Explore the school."

Your head move from left to right as you walked down the seemingly endless hallway. Some other students here and there chatting near the windows, sipping on drinks or eating snack during the break. Some would notice you, others wouldn't but you didn't really mind as you were still trying to get used to everything. Which was why exploring the school seemed to be a good idea and gave you time to yourself.

You turned a corner at random and noticed that the further down you went, the emptier the halls got.

"Should I not be going this way...?" You ask yourself while looking for anything, any signs of anyone being around. Just as you were about to decide to turn back before you got lost, a soft melody grabs your attention.

It was soft, would've been completely unnoticeable if the hallway wasn't so empty... But even though you could barely hear it, it drew you in with it's beauty and calmness.

Soon you found yourself standing at the door of one of the many music rooms that was left slightly open. Slowly, you pushed it open little by little, revealing who was the source of such a beautiful melody.

A student was sitting at the piano, his back facing you while his fingers effortlessly glided across the keys. There was a mirror across from him that allowed you to see his face, the concentration and emotion he had in every movement and key he pressed. You couldn't help but lose track of all sense and time as you listened to the melody he was playing. Now that you were listening to it from the source, you noticed it's beauty like before... but also the hidden sadness.

"What are you doing here?" His voice cuts through your thoughts and wakes you up. You hadn't even noticed he had stopped playing and was now half turned, facing you. His expression unreadable.

"Ah, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt..." You stumbled a bit with your words, but quickly expressed yourself, hoping to remedy the situation, "But I just heard that melody... it was so beautiful... please don't let me stop you."

A look of shock flickers across his face as his eyes lit up.

"You liked it?"

You nod your head multiple times before taking another step into the room, "I've never heard it before. What piece is it?"

He didn't seem to mind your presence as much now as you kept getting closer and closer until you were standing beside the piano, at a diagonal to him.

"I wrote it... actually." He admits but doesn't look up at you as he presses a few piano keys to dismiss his embarrassment.

"You wrote that?!" You couldn't help but exclaim, "That was brilliant. You must be a genius!"

Unknowingly to you, his blush grew redder but he continued to hide it while looking down at the keys.

"Thank-- I mean, whatever. It's not that big of a deal." He says with a cough before closing the lid over the piano keys and standing up from the bench.

"It is a big deal. Does anyone else know you can play like that?" You ask, a little overly excited by the newfound discovery you made today. But that was immediately shot down as he suddenly turned.

"Don't." He says bluntly, but immediately softens seeing that he made you flinch, "Don't tell anyone."

You wanted to ask why, but already felt like you had pushed several boundaries. "Alright, I won't... I'm sorry."

"Stop." He starts again but this time sighs, "Stop apologizing. You didn't do anything wrong..." He shoves a hand into his pocket while bringing the other one up to scratch the back of his neck. "And thank you..."

"Thank you?"

He glances at you and shows a shy smile, "Thank you for saying that it was good..."

It wasn't the time and place for it, but you couldn't help but blush from seeing his smile. It was enough to make your heart race.

"Um, what's your name?" You ask, to distract from your face as you point at his chest where his name tag should be.

"I'm Dong Youngbae..." He answers and rummages through his pockets revealing his name tag and puts it back on, "You're the new girl, aren't you?"

"Eh? How'd you know?" You ask and look down at your own name tag, wondering if there's a sign somewhere that you weren't aware of.

"No one comes down these halls. Everyone thinks it's haunted." He answers while making his way to the door, with you following behind him.

A sudden chill runs up and down your spine as you gulp, "H-Haunted?"

He catches on to your sudden nervousness and sees your eyes scanning the room. He chuckles, "Yeah, late at night people say they hear the soft tune of a piano playing... but there is no one there..."

A cold sweat starts to appear at your forehead, but suddenly you frown. "Or... that's just you trying to freak everyone out." You look up at him as you walk side by side down the hall, back towards the classrooms.

He doesn't return your look but you see a knowing smile on his lips. He doesn't have to answer to confirm your suspicion.

"How often do you come here to play?" You ask, trying not to be too obvious, but it seems you're either too easy to read or he's very observant.

"Why? Are you going to eavesdrop again?"

You pout, disappointed that you didn't get the information you wanted. But to your surprise, Youngbae continues.

"I'll be there at lunch. Bring me something good to eat and I'll let you in." He states, stopping at one of the classrooms 2-B.

"Deal!" You agree, excitedly but notice the time before running off to your own classroom. "I'll see you at lunch then!"

You don't wait to hear his reply as you hurry down the hall, Youngbae taking a moment to reflect on what had just happened. But as much as he wanted to ignore it, he couldn't help but look forward to lunch.