The next day, Taemin woke up with a stiff neck. He checked his watch and realized that he had already missed his first class of the day, and his mind was too preoccupied to focus on school, so he decided to skip the day and only go to his detention that was scheduled. He didn't have the energy to concentrate on his studies and he was too tired from having spent the previous night doing research on Kai's strange condition. Kai is...he's something else. Taemin concluded that Kai was hiding something from him and lying to him. He spent the rest of the time on playing video games before detention, to help get his mind off things for a while.

– WITH KAI –

Kai woke up in the comfort of his bedroom, warm and cozy. As he sat up, memories of the previous night flashed in his brain, and caused a throbbing headache. Taemin...I woke up next to him...he tried to...and then Jonghyun...in that alley, and... His pulse accelerated. Jonghyun...he...he saw me...and his friends too. And then what happened... He sealed his eyes tightly and forced his brain to remember. After a while, his heart dropped from the realization. Taemin...oh my God, Taemin saw me. I tried...I tried biting him. . He punched his pillow from frustration and then buried his face in his knees. What do I do, what do I do! It's all over now, I'm screwed! I put myself in danger, I'm putting my family in danger.... He was shaken from his thoughts as his alarm went off, indicating that it was time to get up and get dressed for school. I'm not supposed to tell anyone, especially not humans, about us vampires. But, I don't have a choice anymore. He's already seen my transformation, and he's probably guessed by now that I'm something other than a human and that I was lying to him. He must feel so mad right now...I have no choice but to explain everything to him. He got out of bed and got dressed, wanting to get to school as soon as possible to see Taemin.

When he reached there, he stood at the gate, where he and Taemin normally meet. After waiting about ten minutes, with no sign of Taemin, he decided to go to his locker. Even there, Taemin was absent. Kai began to feel worried. After a while, the bell rang, indicating that the first period class was about to begin. He quickly gathered his textbooks from his locker and headed to class. When he arrived at his desk, he noticed that the seat next to him where Taemin always sits was empty. He looked around the classroom, but his eyes laid upon Jonghyun, who stared at him with a mix of curiosity and anger on his face. Kai quickly looked away, ashamed.

The rest of the day went by very slowly. Kai figured it was because he felt alone without Taemin to keep him company. He also felt angry at himself for behaving the way that he did with Taemin, scaring him and almost biting him. But he couldn't help it, it was those damn vampire instincts of his. Sometimes, he wished he was never born. Being a vampire has never been easy, and ever since he came-of-age, it only proved to be more difficult. It's ok, it's not too late. All you have to do is say the whole truth to Taemin, and that way, he might understand why you hid your true identity from him. 

After what seemed like an eternity, the last school bell rang, announcing the end of the day. However, instead of going home, Kai had to go to detention. As he walked towards the detention classroom, he saw a familiar figure with blonde hair. From the scent that he was carrying, Kai recognized him as Taemin. He quickly ran to join his side.

"Taemin, you're here! Where were you all day?" he said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Taemin had a blank expression on his face. He looked very stressed. his eyes were bloodshot and dark circles could be seen under them, like he'd had a very troubling night. Kai felt horrible seeing his friend in such a state. Guilt overcame him, because he was sure that it was his fault for making Taemin sleepless. 

"H-Hey...are you ok...?" Kai knew this was inappropriate to ask, but he wanted to talk to him and didn't know how else he could do it. 

Taemin barely looked at him and had a very disappointed expression on his face. 

That reaction from Taemin was more painful that all the bruises that Jonghyun had left on his body. Taemin barely acknowledged his presence, as though they were strangers. 

Kai stood in the emptying hallway, his eyes on the floor. He was ashamed, sad, and angry for being the way that he was. The sudden feeling of a hand on his shoulder brought him back to reality as he turned to face who had touched him.

"What are you doing outside, Jongin-ssi? Detention is in the classroom," said a teacher, motioning him to head inside. Kai did as he was told. He went inside to find that there were no available seats near Taemin, so he had no choice but to sit elsewhere. Jonghyun entered some time after Kai and sat at the desk behind him.

The detention classroom was quite empty; besides Jonghyun, Taemin and Kai, there were only three other students.

After giving out instructions, the teacher announced that he'll be back in a few minutes and headed out the classroom. One of the other students shut if eyes and rested his head on his desk, letting his light snores fill the classroom a few minutes later. As for the two others, they plugged their earphones in and listened to their music, not wanting to be bothered by the rest. Kai wanted to speak to Taemin, but he was at the other side of the classroom. Jonghyun, however, didn't shy away.

"Yah, Taemin, I saw something really interesting yesterday," he began. Kai's heart started beating faster, feeling targeted. Taemin didn't bother looking at them, investing his focus on his homework. "You know, it made me think about a lot of things. The most innocent ones keep the deepest secrets." Kai looked at Taemin. Jonghyun had definitely caught his attention with those words, because Taemin could no longer pretend he was studying. Jonghyun continued. "It made me realize that sometimes, you might think that someone is a certain way, but they turn out to be what you least expect." Taemin was visibly confused. Kai gave Jonghyun a threatening look. "Oh don't worry, Kai, I won't tell him. I think you should."

At that, Taemin finally turned to face Jonghyun. 

"Ahh, so I finally have your attention now, Taemin. Well, your friend here," he said, putting a hand on Kai's shoulder, which Kai shook off, "how should I say it...He's uhh, quite special."

"Stop it Jonghyun," Kai mumbled. Taemin had a curious look on his face. 

"He's kind of, like, out of this world. Almost as if...he's not one of us," Jonghyun mocked.

Taemin was surprised at Jonghyun's claims. Something was telling him that he was talking about Kai's transformation. Why is he saying these things? Does he know something? Has he seen it too?  "Jonghyun, what do you mean?" he finally said.

"Well, Taemin, you see, Kai is a m–" he began, but he was cut off by Kai who grabbed his collar. 

"Shut up!" he said. Jonghyun smirked, pleased that he finally made Kai snap.

"No Jonghyun, continue what you were saying!" Taemin said.

Jonghyun looked back at Kai with an intense glare. "Tell him Kai, tell him who–​ no, WHAT you are. Go ahead, tell him that you're a m–​" he began, but was cut off by the sound of the classroom door creaking as it opened to allow access to the teacher.

"Hey hey hey, what's going on here!" he said concerned, as he saw Kai gripping Jonghyun by the collar. The teacher slammed his book against the desk, causing the sleeping student to shoot up in surprised and begin to wipe the drool that fell from his mouth. The two others quickly took their earphones off and stuffed them in their bag. "Sit down and do as you're told! No music or sleeping allowed!" he ordered, after which he sat on his desk. Kai let go of Jonghyun's collar and changed seats to be as far away as possible from him, fearing that Jonghyun will say another word that will make Kai unable to control his anger and start fighting with him. 

For the rest of the detention time, the students stayed quiet. 

Taemin thought about Jonghyun's words. What was Jonghyun going to say? It seems like he knows something about Kai...

After what felt like an eternity sitting in the dense atmosphere that had settled in the classroom, the teacher announced the end of detention. In a split second, Kai grabbed Taemin's wrist and led him out of the classroom into a corner nearby.

"Let me go!" Taemin said, pulling his arm away.

"Listen Taemin, I really need to talk to you," Kai said.

"No, I need to go right now," Taemin answered, pushing Kai away.

"No, please Taemin, listen to me, I can explain everything. Don't listen to what Jonghyun is say–" 

"Oh, and I should listen to you instead?! How do I even trust you again after what I've seen? I spent the whole night searching for any medical condition similar to yours, but there aren't any! Kai, what are you?!"

Kai wanted to run away. From the sound of his voice, it was as though Taemin said he was an animal, like he was something dangerous and to be feared. His heart shattered.

"I can explain if you let me. I swear I'll tell you everything, every detail. Give me a chance."

Just then, Jonghyun joined them. "You shouldn't trust him, Taemin! Believe me for once when I tell you that Kai isn't trustworthy, I've seen it with my own eyes."

"Tell me what you've seen Jonghyun!" Taemin said.

"Well, it looks like you've seen something too, from the way you've been acting around Kai today. He's a liar, Taemin!"

Kai placed his hands on Taemin's shoulder and made him focus on him only. "Please Taemin. I know it's really hard for you to trust me right now, and I completely understand, you have every reason to do so. But please give me a chance to clear things out. Please."

Taemin looked into Kai's eyes. They were so pleading, so desperate. He had every reason not to believe a word Kai was saying at the moment, but there was something in his eyes that told Taemin that he was being sincere. A little voice in his head was telling him to give Kai a chance. 

"Don't be stupid, Taemin," Jonghyun said. 

Taemin sighed. He was caught between the two. I know I shouldn't trust him, but why is my gut telling me that I should..? He suddenly grabbed Kai's wrist and started walking towards the exit. 

"You're going to regret it!" Jonghyun's voice echoed through the empty halls, but Taemin continued until he and Kai were out of the school.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

A/N: Sorry, this chapter wasn't as eventful as the past few, but it had to be done >.< Things will start to get interesting now, please anticipate the future chapters (^-^)

Have an awesamazing day!