7.

Jongdae shuts his eyes close, brows furrowed as his fingertips softly trails down the jaw, a silent breath escapes from his parted lips. He rests his back leaning to the chair the first thing as he arrived just now, then again after a few minutes of reviewing the topic he is supposed to teach in another 30 minutes. Only a few pages flipped yet his mind gives up once more, again flying him back to what just happened earlier on the roadside, a few seconds after that incident happened.

“Despite all that, perhaps you’re quite kind too.”

The lady’s face turns red, earning the guy’s smirk as he thought he won in teasing her however it eventually loosens up when the former notices a pair of Ga Eul’s shaky pupils and pursed lips trembling while her eyes are b with… tears. Her hand then feels cold as their skin touches each other, hastily made the guy asks in worry, “Miss Ga Eul? Are you okay?”

Her hand drops soon as Jongdae’s grip to her wrist slackens, she could feel her heart is currently quivering due to the situation a while ago, she has never thought that the incident from almost 10 years ago is still affecting her. Especially when she did not witnessed it happened to her dad thus the lady imagined that it would be easy to shoo everything off her mind. Things doesn’t work that way, though.

Slowly, the tears dam breaks, making the hot fluid falls down her cheeks, earning more concern from the other however when the young man tries to pull her close towards him for a pat on her back, Ga Eul is faster to make her way out from the situation.

“I’m okay,” she breathes almost inaudibly. Even her own self does not expect it coming.

In a flash, her stomping feet to the ground has led her to stride away, leaving the guy in confusion and curiosity.

For a whole minute, Jongdae stayed at that same spot, wondering whatever reasons that could bring the lady’s unexpected emotional reaction. Was his joke is too excessive or is it due to other external factor? – all those kinds of question gush through his mind on that one moment. And he is surely still thinking about that; it bothers him to see a person like that – whom he saw as a bold and persistent lady breaks, showing her fragile side.

She looks like she was scared of something.

“Is it men that she is scared of? That’s why she pushes me away each time?”

Jongdae is a person who couldn’t stay in the dark, he hates not having the idea of something he is dead-eager to know. He murmurs to question himself, knowing that he would not get an answer this way, which of course, has made him never expecting a reply from another voice right by his ears, “Maybe if you ask her then you would find out?”

“Byun Baekhyun!” he yells in surprise, hands on his chest to calm his heart down from the shock of his friend’s appearing out of nowhere, like a ghost.

Meanwhile the latter grins teasingly, eyes narrowing at him then coos, “Isn’t it fun to have someone to think of like this?”

“What do you mean?” Jongdae backs off, sending a death glare to the other. He wonders why that one friend of his is always acting this way, showing himself at this kind of moments, no different than the sidekick character in weekend dramas that he watches. Doesn’t he has a job to do?

Baekhyun’s teasing gaze and smile are still intact on his face, he walks from where he appears to the other side of desk with hands in the back like a training instructor, “I just came from the briefing for the new hires.” He turns then steals a glance to Jongdae, “Your new girlfriend seems pretty cute too.”

“New– what?”

“The one you,” Baekhyun motion a quick gesture of arms slamming to the wall then continues, cheekily, “…do this to earlier. Do you think I didn’t see it?”

The former’s jaw drops before he panics to the point that he springs off from his seat, “What? Did the others saw it? It’s just you, right?”

“Relax, just me…probably,” Baekhyun chuckles. “Since it was my bike that almost ran over you two.”

“What the ? Baekhyun!” Jongdae frowns, “You scared a person off!”

“I know! Not that I did it on purpose at the first place…!” The man who is clearly at fault shrugs, briefly raising a pout from his pink lips, “I was about to apologize but when I turn around, I already saw you two…like that. And I don’t want to ruin your moment.” The younger rolls his eyes, his headache worsen that now he knows who is the ‘culprit’. Again, a glare is shoot straight onto Baekhyun’s face that makes the other flinches, “I’m sorry, okay? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it.”

“It’s okay then.” Jongdae is quick to forgive, then