Whole class went silent. No more whispers that followed the girl everywhere she went today, no more secret jokes. Everyone kept quiet, anticipating hearing an answer.

“Are you stupid?” Krystal would’ve laughed if it wasn’t a serious matter. If anyone from the school’s staff heard about this rumor, it could cost her and the hottie a great deal. She must put an end to this misunderstanding right here and now.

Jay Park smirked. “Everyone were impressed when we found out you aced the latest test. And to think that few students saw you enter the sub’s car yesterday quite late too…”

Sulli rose up to defend her friend, but another student beat her to it.

“This is almost hilarious. No student dares to ask her out, and then you accuse your teacher of going out with this beast?” Myungsoo’s stoic expression pierced Jay’s eyes. “It would sound hilarious if it wasn’t too dumb to laugh at.”

The accuser seemed a tad embarrassed in front of the girls’ favorite (Krystal haven’t really noticed her seat partner was even more popular than Minho). Chuckling awkwardly, he went back to his seat in the back, muttering, “You’re right. It’s Krystal we’re talking about. No chance, no chance, ha ha.”

Even if Myungsoo might have just saved the girl’s , she wasn’t feeling too happy about it. He could’ve portrayed the idea in a less mean way. And the boy knew it also.

Signing, Myungsoo did something neither of them could have expected. Leaning towards the angry girl, he muttered a simple, yet sincere, “Sorry.”

*

Mark on the other hand, wasn’t sure how to react to the rumor.

Walking through the corridors on lunch break, he accidentally overheard some guys talking about Krystal and an unknown teacher meeting after school. Of course he didn’t show any reaction when passing them by, but the other occasion just threw him off. Hearing Krystal’s name being brought up in the topic of this absurd rumor in a group of girls, he secretly listened to what was being spread across the school grounds.

“You heard about that senior, Krystal, and the rumor about her?”

Another girl responded, “The one who scares other guys away? What about her?”

“There been some talks since morning; someone from her Physics class saw her yesterday with a teacher after school hours ended. Some are saying she even got into his car.”

Disgusted with the mere idea, other girls gasped and threw some curses. “Ugh, that’s disgusting. Who do you think the teacher is?”

“He has to be someone pretty young, don’t you think?”

“Maybe music teacher?” Another girl suggested.

“Can’t be,” the first one disagreed, “My boyfriend has music class with her; he always tells me how the teacher gets angry at her for skipping classes.”

“Do you think… it’s the new teacher? You know, the substitute one?”

The group fell silent for a while, contemplating the possibility. “The Hottie?”

Mark rolled his eyes at the nickname he got.

“Krystal and the Hottie? Aren’t there better choices in our school than her?”

“But if you think about it,” a red haired girl spoke up, “if not for her temper, Krystal Jung is pretty gorgeous. I heard she was a promising athlete in earlier years- that explains her toned body. She’s not into makeup though, so her skin is pretty too.”

Her friend had to agree, “If the Hottie doesn’t care much about the personality, he might as well choose for the body…”

“You make him sound like some sort of ert,” girls giggled innocently, totally inappropriate to their topic.

“She’s well known around school, but having no record of ever being in a relationship, she’s a good catch. Easy to mess with, too, given his charms. Even she couldn’t possibly say no to him.”

 “So you really believe it might be the sub?”

“This rumor started coincidentally after he started working here, so it might be true as well.”

This rumor might bring him lots of trouble, Mark thought while biting his lip. It is true he met up with the student quite a few times given the short time he was appointed as a teacher here. If any of the teachers hear about this…

*

Entering the classroom for the last time today, the young man was quite afraid of what kind of looks he’ll get. From what he knows, all the rumors started with these students. Opening the doors, he didn’t hear any whispers or laughs, whatsoever. Unexpected.

Starting off with the attendance list, he noted that just like usual, half of the class was absent. In that manner, it was another usual Friday. When it was time to say Krystal’s name, he hesitated for a bit, and felt that someone must’ve noticed it.

Throughout the whole lesson, the girl didn’t dare to raise her eyes at the teacher. Like every day, Mark stood by the girl’s desk, though today, he stood near Myungsoo rather than Krystal. She noticed every little detail such as this one, making her wonder if the rumor reached Mr. Tuan. She didn’t dare to address him anyway more familiar than that, even in her mind. Even if others bought Myungsoo’s speech earlier, this situation couldn’t be repeated in the future.

Once the lesson was near the end, Krystal secretly messaged her older brother to come pick her up earlier than usual. She just wished to avoid being near the handsome young teacher as much as possible.

*

Once home, Krystal received a message from an unknown number. “Who is it?” she asked herself out loud. Calling the sender, a familiar voice answered.

“Krystal! It’s Hyuna, remember me?”

“Of course I remember,” the younger girl slightly smiled at the memory of the older female. “What’s up?”

“Nothing much. We had an agreement so since I have nothing else to do on Friday… Can you accompany me on a shopping spree?”

But, well, Hyuna is the teacher’s friend. Wouldn’t it be weird hanging out with someone you barely know, furthermore, you got to know through someone you can’t associate with anymore?

“Alright. Where should we meet up?”

An hour later, the two met up in a popular shopping district. At first it was uncomfortable to the duo, but as the two hit the shops everything started falling in places.

“Try on this blouse. It’s a bit more classy, a look that would fit you well,” Krystal handed her new ‘friend’ the mentioned cloth. Choosing a pair of chic jeans herself, the teenager went into the dressing booth near Hyuna’s one.

“Wanna take a look?” she heard the older woman’s voice; zipping the jeans, Krystal walked out of her own booth.

“It looks amazing,” Krystal herself was shocked how the chosen piece improved Hyuna’s look. Satisfied with the youngster’s reaction, the older girl quickly dashed back to the booth.

“I’m buying this right this moment!”

Giggling at such childish behavior, Krystal herself was contemplating whether to buy the jeans or not, when a voice interrupted her thoughts.

“And do not buy another pair of pants! I want you to try something else, also!”

Still smiling widely, the younger one did as instructed and left the jeans where she took them from. “What do you have in mind?”

Hyuna wondered out loud, “You mentioned having brothers, right? Maybe that is exactly why you have this chic style. Have you tried being a bit more… girly?”

“Um, I just have my preference when I’m choosing the clothes for myself, though I’m pretty flexible when it comes to choosing wardrobe for my friend,” Krystal answered truthfully, also interested in the idea. “You want to make me look girly?” she chuckled.

“Wouldn’t it be fun to try on something new, Krystal?”

“I guess. But I still have to dress you up as well,” the youngster reminded.

Heading towards another shop, Krystal inspected how childish (in her opinion) and pink it looked inside. Hyuna leading the way, the two arrived at the dresses’ section. A bit concerned about each dress she was given, the teenager kept shut. Hyuna herself didn’t look too confident about this either.

Even Hyuna said, “I have no idea how this will turn out. As you might have noticed I’m not into girly style myself. I’ll ask for some help.”

Left alone for a minute, Krystal started trying out the dresses. Just as she fit into the first yellow one, the said help arrived.

“Come out whenever you’re ready.”

Stepping out, Krystal couldn’t really pinpoint whether it was a good choice for her or not. Maybe not.

“Next,” the shop’s worker, a tall and jet black haired Chinese girl (she had this particular accent unusual to Koreans), said before Hyuna could. Obediently Krystal changed into another one.

“Not good enough.”

“What’s up with this choice?”

“How about showing some legs?”

“An ‘S’ line dress would be way better.”

“I don’t even… Next!”

Yeah, the ‘helper’ was restless. Obviously she wasn’t a good worker, since she hasn’t sold any dress to the young girl yet, though her determination proved she was looking responsibly at making her customer happy.

“I don’t think it’s working for me. Dresses, I mean,” Krystal finally gave up, actually disappointed.

“That’s because your friend didn’t have a good eye for what could benefit you. Hold on a bit,” the worker quickly dashed to the center of the shop.

“She seriously is more determined than I am,” Hyuna chuckled upon seeing ‘the help’ come running towards them with various clothing in her arms.

“Now get back in the booth and try these on,” she instructed the younger girl and the next time Krystal came out, she was finally delighted. “Now onto the next dress…”

*

“Thanks for hanging out with me,” Hyuna sat down on a bench, her shopping bags lying on the ground.

“It was fun,” Krystal admitted, “I bought a lot today. I wonder how my friend Sulli will react to such… unusual clothing.”

“Oh she’s gonna be impressed. You really pull these off,” the older woman praised. “I bought a lot more, thanks to you. You could really become a stylist.”

“Only if I never had to deal with girly clothes again.”

“Never say never.”

“So who are you waiting for? I could call my brother to pick up both of us.”

Hyuna glanced at her phone. “No need. Mark should be here any minute now. I already told him you need a ride back home, too.”

“Mark?” Krystal gasped; so much for trying to avoid the image of him all day long.

“Is something wrong?” There was an evident worry in the woman’s eyes.

“I would’ve called my brother to come, you could have told me.”

“It’s too late now. As I said, he should be here any moment now.”

Krystal gulped and looked around. “I remember I had something else to buy that I forgot. You should go ahead and head back home, I’ll call Jaejoong later.”

“Huh?”

Without anything else left to say, Krystal almost sprinted with bags in her hands through dark streets and tons of people (mostly couples). Running past people, sometimes even bumping into some, Krystal cursed at herself at how ridiculous she looked. Stopping by one food stand, the teenager ordered some warm snacks to regain her energy. Getting her phone out of her jacket’s pocket, only now she noticed it had no energy left. Shocked, she cursed even more about her inability to think straight. She always gets herself in such unneeded troublesome situations. Bewildered, she bit onto the food.

“Aunt,” she addressed the lady in charge of the food stand, “do you perhaps know how much it would cost to take taxi from here to another side of the city?”

The said lady looked almost pitifully at the teenager. “You really have no idea, do you? You wouldn’t have the money to pay even half the price.”

Ashamed, Krystal casted her eyes to the food and continued eating. She always had Jaejoong or her father to drive her anywhere she wanted to go. Even today, her brother drove her to the meeting spot. That’s reminds her of how she ran away from Hyuna when the young woman had already arranged their ride home.

“Stupid, stupid!” Krystal cursed silently at herself, angry and on the verge of crying at the same time.

“I hear that a lot from you,” a husky voice spoke up behind her. “Aunt, another round of whatever she ordered.”

“Coming right up.”

“We thought we wouldn’t find you,” another gleeful voice appeared on Krystal’s left side.

Hyuna on her left and Mark on the right, Krystal was trapped between them. Screw pitying her situation earlier. Now is the real embarrassment.

“My brother is coming to get me, so you can go home freely,” Krystal turned to Hyuna, still unwilling to look at her teacher. As much as she wanted to see his face. His shining honey orbs. His plump pink lips…

“Uhuh. So we’re just going to stick with you until he comes,” Mark grinned from ear to ear. She was obviously avoiding looking at him all day long. Not that he couldn’t understand why. That rumor seriously changed the whole game.

It took so much self-control for the girl not to let out a swear word. Not that she cursed badly, but nowadays she cursed quite a lot. All because of this guy on her right.

When the food arrived, Hyuna and Mark dig in their order, leaving Krystal to wonder how could she abandon the two. No escape plan seemed good enough when Mark spoke up again.

“Is he coming soon? Lot of time passed by already. It’s getting cold.” At the mention of the winter breeze, the younger girl shivered under her plain jacket. The winter struck her out of nowhere, it seems.

Mark noticed it and being the gentleman he is, offered the girl his coat. He was wearing a warm red sweater underneath it, so he’ll be fine. “Take it,” he instructed when the girl’s surprised eyes finally met with his gaze. Nodding obediently, Krystal let the young male put the coat on her shoulders. Even if she wasn’t wearing it correctly, she felt it was too big for her, once again making her wonder how much he likes to work out to have such broad shoulders.

“Thank you,” the teenager blushed instantly, her rosy cheeks bringing a sincere smile onto the boy’s lips.

Hyuna quietly watched the exchange, her knowing eyes curling into an eye-smile. The streets filled with laughter and Christmas’ music, couples everywhere, and these two…

Silently paying for the food, the young female excused herself to a small antique shop nearby ‘until the brother comes’.

Left alone with the male wasn’t something Krystal wished for. On the contrary, she started feeling shy all of a sudden. Maybe it was the atmosphere surrounding the two while they walked around the street, or the look he was giving her. Her heart thumping too loudly for her liking, Krystal fixed the man’s coat on her shoulders.

“Is your brother really coming?” Mark asked out of nowhere after a prolonged pause. By now he was more than sure she lied about her sibling coming to pick her up. Again, he knew the reason she would lie about it.

Krystal glanced at the tall man on her right, his glittering eyes and reddish nose and cheeks. “I’m not asking you to accompany me,” she tried to avoid the question.

“I could just drive you back home, you know.”

“No, there’s no need,” Krystal looked upfront. Maybe it was actually the chance to just accept the offer and end this unexpected meeting. But what would she say? That she lied because it’s awkward to be around him after the…

“Rumor.”

“Huh?” Krystal obviously missed something the young male was talking about, but this one word caught her attention.

Mark signed. “I know about the rumor. It is ridiculous, yes. Expected? Probably. But should you be concerned about it any longer? Rumors are just rumors; they get forgotten after some time.”

“It sounds like you never were in high school,” Krystal smiled bitterly. “Sometimes rumors can destroy reputation, friendships and jobs.”

“But, Krystal,” he stopped in his tracks. Sliding his hands upwards her slender arms, the man locked his gaze on her eyes. “You are a strong girl who didn’t really care about what was said about you behind your back even before this, or am I wrong?”

Feeling encouraged, she nodded and was about to turn sideways, when a peck on her forehead made her freeze on the spot.

Mark, unsure of exactly was going on in his mind when he did that, dropped his hands right away and started coughing uncontrollably. Embarrassed, his face flared scarlet red beyond recognition. It was exact contrast from the girl’s pale face and unmoving position.

When the couple finally came to understand that this shouldn’t be talked about, they quickly went to find Hyuna and the awkward trio headed to the car.

Naturally, Krystal sat in the back, making it even easier for Mark to glimpse at her from time to time through the mirror in the front. If Mark was getting his normal color back, only now Krystal started blushing. Grinning to himself, he tried hard to concentrate on the road. Somehow he remembered where Krystal’s house was without any word from the said girl.

Hyuna innocently turned to the girl, “Is Jaejoong no longer coming to pick you up?”

Krystal bundled up inside the young man’s coat. “Yeah.”

*