“Here!”

Jieun’s eyes were fixed on the flower boys who were playing basketball despite the cold weather. It’s the middle of autumn. Her eyes followed the ball being passed around. Baekhyun was making some weird actions while dribbling the ball. Junmyeon ran towards him and stole the ball in a matter of seconds. She laughed at Baekhyun’s reaction when Jongdae scolded him for letting the other team score. As she moved a bit, she grimaced because of her leg. Sighing, she fixed her crutch lying beside her.

It’s her first day back at school after the incident and she would be lying if she would say that she’s not affected. Once in a while, she would overhear some students talking about Ara. The school’s shocked by the sudden turn of events. Who wouldn’t be? Jieun, for the first time, thought that she managed to make friends with a girl. She couldn’t even explain what she’s feeling at the moment. She feels bad for herself.

“Are you not cold?”

Jieun quickly turned to her left when she heard that familiar voice. Sehun was looking back at her with a small smile on his face. She found herself mirroring that same smile. Sehun walked towards her and handed her a can of warm coffee. “Thanks,” she said, reaching for it. She held the can with her two hands, feeling the warmth from it. Fixing his coat, Sehun sat beside her after a while.

“You need to tell me if you’re not okay so that I can comfort you.”

Those words suddenly popped inside her mind. Jieun unconsciously touched her cheeks. They’re so warm. Why am I reacting like this? She shook her head and just looked at the flower boys. Sehun just sat there without saying anything. Drinking his own coffee, he looked so concentrated while watching the game in front of them.

Jieun slowly turned her head towards him to get a glimpse of his face. Just like any ordinary day, he looks just fine – more than fine. His orange hair looked naturally styled with some strands sticking out. She was reminded of the first time that they met. There’s a charm on how he just stay expressionless. Sehun suddenly looked at her, catching her spacing out while admiring his features. She couldn’t even look away.

“Why?” Sehun asked with curiosity laced in his tone. “Is there something on my face?” He started rubbing his face with his hands and even fixed his hair. She chuckled a bit because she finds him cute. Behind that expressionless face which some people would think of a sleeping furious lion is a cute kitten. He looked clueless as to why she’s suddenly acting like that. “Do I look funny right now?”

Jieun shook her head while stopping herself from smiling. A period of silence came next when she successfully managed to calm herself. She opened the can of coffee and sipped from it. Pursing her lips into a thin line, she played with the can in her hands. “Sehun,” she started. “Thank you.” They met each other’s gaze. “Thank you very much.”

Sehun stared at her for some moments before nodding. “You’re welcome.” And just like that, they fell into another period of silence – a comfortable kind of silence. Jongin told Jieun everything – even the fact that Sehun was the one who figured out who the culprit was. That’s one of the reasons why she feels like she’s going to be eternally grateful to the orange head. Because of him, Ara’s being punished for her actions.

“By the way, did you return it?”

Jieun shook her head. “Not yet.”

“Do you want me to return it?”

“No,” she replied, shaking her head once again. “I’ll return it to her. I just don’t have the courage to do it right away.” She looked down at her hands. “I actually feel bad for suspecting Sarang for everything that happened.” Jieun took a lungful of air before turning to Sehun. “I’ll return her necklace before the day ends. I’m sure she’s feeling sad and frustrated for thinking that she lost her necklace.  It’s a very special necklace for her. You see…It’s a birthday present that she received…from Jongin.”

Sehun just stared at her as she looked at Jongin who was in the middle of instructing his teammates on how to continue the game. Sehun’s the one who saw Ara rummaging Sarang’s belongings during their P.E. subject. He wasn’t able to come up with a conclusion as to why she’s snooping around at that time but when Jieun told him about the necklace that she yanked from the night of her encounter with the culprit, he was able to tie things up. Ara planned everything. She got Sarang’s necklace to plant it as evidence to frame her as the culprit. She successfully made Jieun suspect Sarang and that’s the reason why Jieun’s feeling bad for thinking that way.

 “Hey! Oh Sehun!”

Startled by suddenly being called, Sehun looked at the flower boys. Jieun also turned to their direction. Jongin was holding the ball. The others were taking a breather. “You’re in!!” Jongin shouted as he gestured for Sehun to go to where they are. Chanyeol slowly walked to where Jieun and Sehun were sitting. Sehun was still in the process of what Jongin meant by what he said.

“What are you doing? Come here. Let’s play!” Jongin called out once again. Surprised by the sudden invitation, Sehun slowly stood. Jieun looked at him as he removed his coat and laid it on the bench. Chanyeol tapped Sehun’s shoulder as he walked past the orange head as if telling him to have a good time playing.

As Sehun approached the group, Jongin passed the ball to him. Agile enough, Sehun was able to catch the ball even after being surprised with the sudden pass. Satisfied by his ability, Jongin couldn’t help but smile. “Kyungsoo and Junmyeon are on our team,” Jongin stated as he gestured the others that the game’s resuming.

Jieun couldn’t believe what she’s witnessing. Sehun and Jongin are playing on the same court without the latter getting pissed off at the former. A smile crept on her face. It looks like Jongin’s warming up towards the orange head.

“Is it just me or those two really look close with each other?” Chanyeol suddenly asked as he sat beside Jieun. “Sehun actually reminds me of Jongin. No, he’s actually like a carbon copy of Jongin,” he commented while ruffling his hair.

“What do you mean by that?”

“They both look stubborn and rude but they’re actually nice,” Chanyeol replied and Jieun found herself agreeing to what he said. She’s heard many comments about Jongin looking stubborn and rude back in grade school because he rarely smiles. That was back when their classmates were clueless about his real personality. When Jongin started showing his real and natural side, people started hanging out with him and he was able to make friends with a lot of people.

If Sehun’s just like Jongin, then there’s a possibility that he’s also going to make friends with people in their school. Seeing Sehun’s good side, she’s sure that that’s not actually impossible. He’s a nice guy who’s just a bit awkward in showing it.

“Are you not cold? Wear your coat,” Jieun asked as she looked at Chanyeol.

He shook his head. “After playing, I think I can withstand the cold for the whole day,” he replied. “Look, I’m even sweating like this.”

Jieun just chuckled as she handed him some tissue to wipe his sweat. The two quietly watched the others play. Yixing’s dribbling the ball and he’s being guarded by Sehun. From the corner of her eyes, she managed to notice how Chanyeol’s expression changed. “Chanyeol, are you okay?” she asked after a while.

The giant forced a smile. “Yeah, I’m okay. It’s just that…I feel bad.”

“About what?”

Chanyeol lowered his head, not having the courage to look at Jieun. “About what happened to you. I couldn’t believe that someone who’s been stalking me for years would so such thing. I feel bad for not knowing anything.”

From what they’ve learned, Chanyeol never became classmates with Ara back in middle school but from Ara’s entries in her diaries which were taken from her place, she’s been writing about Chanyeol as if the two of them knew each other. The entries ranged from happy thoughts to murderous ones. The doctors who evaluated on her situation said that she was suffering from Erotomania or De Clerambault