Chapter 10 

Jaejoong stood on the grass, next to Yuri's dorm. The chilly air whisked through his hair. Autumn was cautiously moving into winter territory. Earlier that day, he had gone to the doctor and to his surprised; they decided to let him off his casts earlier than expected. The doctors were actually amazed at how quickly Jaejoong's leg had healed. It was one in ten people, the doctor had explained. As cool as that sounded, Jaejoong didn't feel like thinking about his super human healing skills. Instead, he had other thoughts in mind. Or rather, he had another person in mind. 

Over the past few weeks, he had finally managed to sneak his way back into Yuri's life. Suddenly, their past, the good one, was beginning to catch up with this one and it felt ing amazing. Every time he got to see her laughed or become all shy around him, he felt like he was floating on cloud nine. For the first couple of weeks, he thought maybe she had feel as strong as he felt for her. It was impossible, of course. They were just not reconnecting and he couldn't forced her to feel for him what he felt for her. What exactly did he feel for her? 

He didn't let his mind wondered any longer because he knew the answered. He just didn't want to think about her answered. In fact, most of the time, he forced himself to think about Yuri and him only as friends. Now wasn't the time to get his hopes up. For now, he had worked on their relationship from the ground up. They had get there eventually. Hopefully. However, when Yuri texted him, serial killer him, about the whole friend thing, it struck a chord in Jaejoong. Yeah, whatever, he was being childish. He was feeling every bit of insecured about their relationship. Like he would ever admit that to anyone though. Jaejoong decided that night that things needed to change and he needed Yuri to see him as someone who wasn't just a friend. Hence, he sent a text, inviting her to a party that hadn't even existed yet. 

Man, he was an idiot. As if on cue, Yuri calls him one. She's smiling though and he's glad she's not just pissed, "What the heck are you doing?" Yuri calls down to him, and he forgot what he's worrying about. Jaejoong shifted his weight a little on his legs. The doctor had given him a small strapped around his leg that fit tightly for more support until he finished physical therapy, "You are not so crippled anymore." She added, her chin falls into her arms to comfortably watched him struggle to stayed standing. 

"I'm all healed and my first request as a non-crippled person is for you to come down here." Jaejoong told her, with a few gestures of his hands. 

Yuri pretended to think about his requests while she leaned against her opened window and scrunched her nose ever so slightly, "Hm, since you are not crippled anymore, doesn't that mean you are able to come up here then?" Jaejoong's raised his eyebrow and pressed his hands onto his hips. His grinned was spreading from ear to ear, "Here I was, trying to be considerate to you. I know you don't like to break the rules but if you insists that I sneak up there, past the RA, I had be more than willing." 

Yuri pressed her lips together. A small voice inside her, a savage one, told her to invite him upstairs. A larger voice said that if she couldn't confront him in these past few weeks about that party invitation then she most certainly couldn't be alone with him in the middle of the night. Suddenly, her eyebrows crinkled together as she stuck her head further out of the window, "Don't you think this is a little cheesy? You, knocking on my window, in the middle of the night? How could you possibly know I had be awake?" That was a good questioned. 

Hesitation raced across the boy's eyes. It was a good thing that she was so far away so she couldn't see it, "I just had a gut feeling. You are ignoring the situation, Yuri. If you don't come down here soon, you are going to make me struggle my way up those stairs to see you." 

Finally, after a long lingered on Yuri's part, she signaled for Jaejoong to hold on for a second. After what felt like an eternity, Yuri arrived outside. She slipped through one of the back exits on the bottom floor. Jaejoong became perky at the sight of her. 

"You looked good." Jaejoong smirked, which made Yuri looked over her outfit which consists of a blue plaid Nautica three piece button front shirt, tank top and shorts. A soft tone of pink bloomed over her cheeks. 

Ignoring his comment, she stepped forward with crossed arms, "What do you have to tell me that couldn't be said through my window? Oh, and what couldn't be said at decent time? Also, you could have called or texted." Yuri went on, making Jaejoong scoffed. His eyes rolled around. 

"Those are all really great options, Yul, but you have been avoiding me." He told her, with a serious tone this time. Yuri's lighthearted smile began to dropped. Her bare foot fooled around in the chilly grass. It was true. She had. She just hope he hadn't noticed. 

"I really haven't..." 

"Yes, you have. " 

Swallowing, her fingers began to fiddle with each other, "What did you want to talked about then?" 

"Yuri, I..." Jaejoong started to say something, but it ended with an unsure sighed. Damn it. He should have practice this a whole of a lot more. Ever since school started and they actually started talking, all he wanted was to prove to her that he wouldn't hurt her anymore. He wanted them to be ok and it feels like all he's done is try to convinced her to give him a chance. It's worked to some extent but it's really frustrating because it feels like there's still this wall between them and he knows he helped build it years ago, however, all he wanted to do right now was take a bulldozer and run it down, "I don't want you to just think of me as a friend." There, he ing said it. The shift in Yuri's uncomfortable stance didn't give him anymore confidence but he went on, "I'm here because I couldn't wait another damn second to say that I'm so into you that I don't think I can handle another minute of you only thinking of me as a friend!" 

"Jaejoong Oppa, I..." 

"Wait. Before you say anything, I want you to know that I don't want an answered right now. I want to be with you, I do but if you are not ready, I get it." He hated those words. It made him feel like a coward. Like he couldn't take rejection. 

Yuri's head was swirling. Suddenly, her legs felt weak like they were made of gelatin. If she couldn't sleep before, she certainly wouldn't be able to sleep at all tonight. Hopefully, serial killer was going to stayed up tonight because she needed him more than anything right now. Had Taeyeon been right? How could she have seen this coming before Yuri did? 

"I don't know what to say." 

"You don't have to say anything. I just needed to tell you that." 

A ringing played in Yuri's ear. She felt dizzy. Jaejoong was turning away as if he was bowing out. Yuri wasn't sure how she felt exactly but she knew that she couldn't just tell Jaejoong yes because it wouldn't be fair to him. The last time she was in a relationship, it lasted for four years and ended in a heartbreak. 

"Wait." Yuri barely whispered. Jaejoong turned until he felt his eyes bursts opened. He was the one that was about to collapsed now because Yuri's arms were wrapped around his slim waist. Her fingers grasped his black white slim-fit plaid flannel button-down shirt. He couldn't see her face as she buried it into his chest. 

"Yuri." 

"I'm not ready for a relationship but I'm glad you are my friend right now." Yuri began, and didn't really care if it all came out in mumbles. She refused to looked up at him. If anyone knew how hard it was to put yourself out there like he was, it was Yuri who spent years trying to learned how to be confident in herself. As her heart felt like it was about to bursts out of her chest, she felt him shifted and then his arms were around her. He pulled her closer which she didn't realized had been possible. 

"Ok." He said, and that was just about all he could get out. Jaejoong could barely breathe and that was a shame because Yuri smelt so ing good. 

The two of them stood there in the middle of the night, holding onto each other for different reasons. However, they both had one thing on their mind. They would be in each other's life for a long time from now on. There was no uncertainty there. 

Lurking in the dark stood a figured. Hidden. This figured stood quietly, unmoved by the cold wind in the night sky. Their dark black sweater covered most of their skinned. A menacing smiled grew on their faces while they watched a young couple that was never meant to be together. Lee Jihoon would have nothing of it. Yuri would be his and Jaejoong would be gone.