Before Nayeon and Bambam separated ways, they shared a knowing look. They both promised to not tell anyone else about where she is unless they have to, unless Yoojin agrees to. Nayeon told him what happened about the day before at the restaurant and Bambam felt his tummy flip a thousand times every time he imagines himself being in Nayeon’s position.

It hasn’t been long since she left, but to him it was like a million years have gone past. He’s done his best with trying to crack the people that could possibly know about where Yoojin was currently staying, such as Sehun or even Mrs Tuan but they all just shook their head and said they can’t tell. Nayeon, however, found her without even meaning to. Bambam thought it couldn’t be more coincidental than that.

Yugyeom called out his name and Bambam watched as Nayeon broke their stare with a nod and walked round a corner, disappearing to another hall. Bambam waved as the tall maknae made his way to him, a sad smile on his face.

“Noona talks to you but she doesn’t even look at me” Yugyeom mumbled, looking pass Bambam where Nayeon was last standing. Bambam looked up at him, flustered. It only made the younger scoff and pointed at his pair of eyes, “these aren’t just here for decoration okay. I saw her bag. Nayeon noona is the only one who has that bag”

“Right” Bambam cleared his throat and began to walk. He hoped secretly that he wouldn’t need to explain why they were talking. Luckily Yugyeom didn’t push the conversation and walked silently beside him.

They bumped into the JB and Jackson on the way who was talking about Mark. He wasn’t at school, well not that they know. He wasn’t in any of his classes and they didn’t see him during lunch. JB and Jackson just checked to see if he was checked in the roll during their homeroom but his teacher said that she didn’t see him at all.

JB wasn’t heartless. Of course he was worried even though he was in the middle of biting the other’s head off. Jackson was reassuring him that Mark wouldn’t have gone far since their leader was suspecting him to be running away, but since Sara was at school earlier during the day, it meant he was alone and that made JB’s mouth go dry the most.

“Bambam was with Nayeon noona” Yugyeom said quietly but all of them heard and Bambam smacked his forehead with an open palm. And he actually thought that Yugyeom wasn’t the type to spurt out what he sees. He was hoping that the giant would keep it to himself. He thought wrong.

“And why is that?” JB asked, stepping a little bit closer to Bambam who merely shrugged, trying his best for his face to be content and relax even if deep inside his heart is throbbing nervously. He didn’t know why he was so scared of blurting out where Yoojin was. Maybe he was selfish. Maybe that was just it.

Bambam wanted to be the only one who knows where she is, except for Nayeon of course, he wanted to cherish those selfish one-and-one moment that he is planning to have with her until they all know and spend time with her. He still likes her stupidly and he wants her by himself but Bambam wasn’t an airhead and it was obvious that he will be the only one who will be happy with his plan.  

“I can’t talk to Nayeon? Is that it?” Bambam looked at the elder’s cat like pair that was in the middle of searching his features to sense out any fibs and lies. Either JB couldn’t see through him, or he is pretending not to see it because he stepped back and nodded.

“You’re right. Besides, you’re more closer to the girls than any of us”

“We just talked about school stuff”

“Okay. You’re allowed to talk to her anyway. It’s not like anyone is stopping you, or any of us really” JB looked at each Yugyeom and Jackson before spinning around to continue his walk, “it’s just the best choice right now to avoid any troubles”

The three followed their leader and Bambam’s steps were a little lighter. On the other hand, Jackson was dragging his feet, shoulders sagging and hands stuffed inside his pockets with his head down. Yugyeom was rubbing his shoulders, not knowing what was wrong but hoping to be able to reduce whatever pain or stress he was feeling.

JB questioned him in the end and Jackson said that it just felt weird that they weren’t as a group anymore. That Got7 and 6Mix were in the type of relationship where no one is allowed to speak or hang out with one other. That isn’t friendship. It’s nowhere near it. Whatever it is, it and it was painful to live through.

“It’s better this way” JB told him, “it’s better that they aren’t getting harsh words thrown at them, being called names, being bullied like last time”

The fact that 6Mix were being bashed by students was just plain crazy and Got7 could only help them by apologising. Once they all separated, it finished. It was actually foolish, why were people getting so mad over so little things, why were people so nosy and wants things the way they want it to be. As much as the group would want to hang out together, JB thinks about their safety first and hopefully, he chose the best choice.

Besides, what Mark said at them was the start of it all. The kid was almost drunk, throwing his hands in the air and yelling nonsense stuff that triggered his so-called ‘fans’ attacking the group of girls. Mark’s popularity wasn’t something that anyone could avoid. JB secretly hated that.

“Man, how can something change so much?” Bambam breathe, thinking back to the old times, to the times were they ate happily in one table, laughing, joking, having fun and relaxing. The last time that happened was… the last day that Yoojin was there.

Even though near the end of the day their laughter was getting softer and emptier because it could’ve been the last time they see her, they were still happy at that moment. Yoojin was somehow always the perfect solution to everything, but she didn’t know, she didn’t believe and now she wasn’t there to fix everything that’s why they are lost.

“I miss her, Yoojin” JB confessed, looking out the carpark where most cars have left leaving the carpark somewhat empty excluding the handful of students that were wandering around or doing extra classes. “I wonder if she’s fine right now”

“I miss her too. She was always so cute and bubbly. I loved noona” Yugyeom sighed, a grin on his face.

Jackson flicked his cheek, “don’t talk about my girlfriend with a smile like that again or else I’ll punch your face”

Yugyeom poked his tongue out and Jackson chased him around the carpark. JB looked back at Bambam and smiled at him. Bambam could only give him a weak one back. He felt guilty but it didn’t matter, he will tell them later, he’ll tell them when he’s finish with what he wants to do.

‘Soon.’

Yoojin jumped up when the doorbell of the apartment she was currently living in rang. She didn’t pick up her mother since she knows that Sehun was going to pick her up since Ms Baek wanted to give Mrs Tuan at least some of their debt back, and besides, if it was her mum she wouldn’t have rang the doorbell.

Yoojin ran to her room and grabbed an envelope of cash to pay off their rent. The person would most likely be the owner, they were a week late and should’ve payed off their rent earlier but didn’t get to.

Once she unlocked the door she closed her eyes tightly, bowed and held out the envelope in front of her, “We are so sorry. We should have payed you earlier but…”

She stopped talking, not because she didn’t know what to say next, it was because something was her calf and it sent shivers in her body. Not shivers where she felt afraid, but more likely a shiver of hope.

“Are you redoing that part in the drama where the girl gives a guy a confession letter?”

The voice made her stood upright, eyes wide and a hand in front of her obvious open mouth. Yoojin stared at the boy in front of her. He still looked the same, though his hair looked lighter, it looked like he dyed it in a tone of brown that she couldn’t explain but she liked the colour. The colour made him look younger, happier and vibrant even though his tired eyes were the complete opposite.

“How… Wh- Bambam?” Yoojin wanted to cry. She didn’t know why but the back of her eyes pricked with incoming tears. She sniffled and smacked her cheeks lightly to wake her back to the present. Bambam grinned at her actions, thinking that she spent way too much time with Jackson.

“Come out and exercise with me. Shiro needs a walk. He’s been moping in his bed for days, weeks even”

Yoojin almost forgot the puppy that stopped her and was then sitting in front of her feet, looking up with his big puppy eyes that she loved so much. Yoojin didn’t argue and grabbed a jacket once Bambam reassured her that Ms Baek knows he was there and won’t mind if they head out for a few minutes.

“Hey, slow down you” Yoojin chuckled when Shiro was bounding off on the footpath, his ears flapping, fur slightly brushed back due to the wind and tail wagging greatly behind him. He has been pulling her to go faster and Yoojin had to take mini breaks when she felt like her legs were becoming like jelly.

“I’ll hold him” Bambam offered to take the leash off her but Yoojin shook her head. She smiled when Shiro rocketed ahead when he saw a bird perched on one of the street signs. He barked at it making it fly away and then tried to follow it. Yoojin told him to stop and upon hearing her voice, Shiro hurried to her feet once again and snuggled his head on her jeans.

“He missed you a lot”

“I missed him too”

“What about me?”

Yoojin raised a brow but Bambam was serious, “I miss you too silly. How could I not?”

Yoojin saw him try to stop his smile from getting larger but decided to just let it show in the end. She thought he was cute when he was acting shy. He was rarely like this, this side of Bambam was unusual to her but she liked it a lot. He looked like a little kid in front of a candy shop with his eyes gleaming and large, his grin up to his ears and just dazzled with happiness.

“How did you find me?” She suddenly remembered how random it was, just seeing Bambam in front of her front door like it was completely normal.

Bambam crouched down and smooth down Shiro’s fur, “Nayeon told me where you were a few days ago, I went to that place and saw your mum” He chortled when he tried lifting Shiro’s paw up to high-five his other hand but the puppy couldn’t do it and snarled cutely, “she told me you don’t work there and just gave me the address to your apartment”

“Why would she though?”

“Why wouldn’t she more like” He looked offended when he gazed at Yoojin who mumbled a sorry, “anyway, I took Shiro since he missed you like heaps and when we were at your front door, he was bouncing as if he just knew”

Yoojin’s heart melted. Shiro always acted as though he hated her, well not literally hated her, but liked to annoy her and at the end of the day he would cuddle with her. He was like a tiring boyfriend who didn’t want the other person to know he actually loved them crazily but was too embarrassed to show it.

 Seeing Shiro once again was definitely something that she has been dreaming about ever since she left, and the fact that it happened due to her best friend being the best friend in the world, was something that she would keep deep in her heart.

“I didn’t tell the others. Nayeon wouldn’t tell the girls. But this won’t be the last time I’ll see you” Bambam said.

“But you’re busy. I can’t see you as well, I’m busy too”

“I’m fine, as for you –I’ll come when you do have time”

“But Bambam I-”

“For god sakes Yoojin, we all know this can be the only time where we’re together alone without anyone else around us. Let me just appreciate this, even if it’s just for a short time”

Yoojin inhaled a sharp breathe, she was left speechless. If Bambam was just a little earlier, if Mark haven’t made a fool with her heart then they would’ve been together, Yoojin knows that as well and Bambam regretted everything.

The latter couldn’t look up once again, he felt shy all of the sudden and pretended to be curious with the way Shiro’s fur curled over his finger’s when he runs it through them. In the corner of his eyes he saw her shoelaces untied. Without a word he took the two loose ends and tied a knot.

Yoojin told him that she’ll leave it but he was already finished. The girl could only smile at him.

Bambam jumped up and took Shiro’s leash this time. They turned to go back to the apartment building since Bambam promised to take Yoojin back before it gets dark to Ms Baek.

 On the way there, Bambam wasn’t completely happy. Yes, they were walking next to each other, watching Shiro ran around, sometimes even tangling up the leash while he does so, but the problem was their hearts weren’t one. He could tell that the person that Yoojin wants walking next to wasn’t him, even if he, however, were screaming that all he ever wanted was for time to stop.

It turned up that Mark was busy practicing, not even bothering to go to classes and hiding when teachers are going up the room to see who was making the music. He mastered a way to practicing the dance with the volume to minimum sound, it helped him focus a bit more and make the flow better.

JB was only glad to know that he was alive, to know that he wasn’t mad, to know that Mark didn’t hate him which was pretty surprising because JB was mad at himself for saying the things he did when the person who received it took it as a wakeup call.

“I was being a jerk, you were right” Mark told them when he asked Got7 to go up the practice room to prove that he’s been working hard over the minimal number of days that he had used to go over the moves. “I want to say sorry. This competition is a big thing and I’ve been doing my best with making it perfect”

Jr stood up and the music, standing beside Mark whom he forced to look at the mirror. He told the others to do the same, to go on their position that they planed when Mark wasn’t there. “You were never here when we were going over positions, but as a team I’m sure it’ll flow”

“Are you actually making me dance without me knowing where I’m supposed to go? That’s impos—”

“–shush, you just missed a beat!” Jackson hollered. Mark noticed that everyone was already dancing. He laughed the whole time they practiced, accidentally stepping on foot but most of the time he flowed the rest of the team. There were seven of them and in the reflection the number looked perfect. Not too crowded and not too small. Just right

☺☺☺☺☺

Mark let himself be dragged around the streets filled with mini boutiques by Sara who had a steady grip on his wrist. He looked around and wondered why there were so many shops where most of the time they all just sell the same style clothes.

He promised the Li’s that he would try his best and enjoy the time with Sara, he said that he won’t mind where they go, because all in all he doesn’t care. It wasn’t like he was going to have a good time. It wasn’t like whatever they would do would leave an impact to him.

These days, Mark just doesn’t feel anything any longer. Everything was just neutral; if not then it annoyed him. Well, except for the time where he apologised to Got7, that time he meant it and he has been hanging with them a lot more than the other time where it looked like he was completely ignoring him.

He just let the rest talk and he listens to their conversations. It was a lot better than spatting out nonsense crap like before. He regretted that but he just couldn’t get himself to apologise to 6Mix.

The girl behind the counter smiled at Sara and him when they went pass her. Sara was busy talking to the worker while Mark wandered around the shop. He thought it was amazing how makers could make such stitches in such mini parts while he flicked through the dresses on the rack closest to him.

Sara found his arm once again and pulled him to the headband area. She tried them on and asked for his opinion. Mark would usually just shrug but that day, he noticed how small Sara really was. She was pretty of course, like a doll but she looked so delicate. She caught him staring and waved her hand in front his face, telling him to snap out of his daze.

“Is anything wrong?” She asked him, putting back the black ribboned hairband back in its place and took out a metal one with pearls glued on the surface as a design. Mark shook his head.

“Maybe Got7 should wear headbands during your performance” She reached, going on her tiptoes to take the Mickey Mouse headband and tried putting it on Mark. He couldn’t help but laugh once he visualized s wearing a Mickey Mouse headband. Sara smiled, her cheeks blushing.

Not once has Mark laughed sincerely whenever they hang out together and hearing his soft giggle gave her tummy butterflies. Butterflies of massive hope that maybe Mark could start feeling something rather than hate towards her.

She begged him to wear it and Mark did. He gazed at his reflection at the full length mirror near the windows and laughed out loud when he saw his reflection. Sara joined him. He looked happy in the reflection. His smile reached up to his eyes and a hand immediately ripped the item off his head.

Sara listened to him whine that it was the most scarring thing he had ever done to himself and that headbands like that should never be near him once again or else he will remember it for life. He sounded like his normal self from two years ago.

 Her heart kind of felt heavy since he didn’t remember that two years ago, they came at the same shop, the same worker was still there that’s why she was smiling at them as if they were friends. The worker thought they were still together and Sara couldn’t say anything about her comment and just asked for the headbands. Two years ago, Mark was helping her try on the headbands with his nose crinkling adorably at each time he didn’t like the look or smiling greatly when he did.

Mark’s ranting stopped when something caught his eye… well more like someone. He didn’t say anything and just bolted out of the shop, running after the person he just spotted. But there was a huge crowd blocking him.

He didn’t know when the place started to become crowded, but he felt like it was on purpose to , to make fun of him, as revenge. He just pushed through, not bothering to apologise but only laid eyes on the head of the person he was focusing on but all of the sudden, their crown disappeared.

He stopped, panting hard. While staying on his spot, he pivoted, his eyes searching wider. He turned back, going through the corners that he missed or didn’t check but they weren’t there.

A hand interlocked with his and he jumped. Sara.

“Mark?” She mumbled, her voice trembling. He shook her hand away not noticing her face falling massively, but let him run away.

“Mark!” however, Sara wasn’t going to give up. Even though the tiny hope she had felt while they were at the shop had died down due to obvious reason, she was persistent. The timing was so right that she loathe it to her grave.

The latter groaned and ran a hand through his hair. There was no point. He lost the person. Or maybe it was just his mind playing tricks with him.

“No” he snarled out loud. He knows what he saw. He was right, of course he was, but he was just so slow. So pathetically slow to let the only chance he had so hard slip right through his fingers. “She’s here. I saw her. I know… I just know”

Sara felt stupid but decided to ask anyway. Her body felt cold, her face paling but she was still brave enough to make herself feel worse than she already did. She didn’t know why she does it to herself, she didn’t know why she always try and make it hard.

“Who? Who is ‘she’, Mark”

The boy dropped his voice to an aching whisper, a hint of beg in it as well, “Yoojin”

Author's Note:

Last time I'm doing this hahaha, please check out Fervently xx

It's Mark's birthday in a few hours time!! YAY!!! (I decided to update early even though I wanted to do it at midnight KST) He'll be 22 yes? Oh my god, my son is growing so well~~~~

Happy birthday marknae, you stay humble and adorable xx

   x

Birthday Prince^^ EXCUSE ME WHILE I DIE