"I told you, I didn't do it! How many times do I have to say it?!"

Baekhyun was at his wit's end as he argued with the principal. It's like the second he walked into the principal's office, it was determined that he was guilty. He should've known, Kyungsoo had warned him that something like this could happen. He just didn't think that Yujin was that petty. It was mindblowing to him because there was nothing between him and Chanyeol so why was she insistent on making his life hell? It was frustrating because framing him for theft was the perfect way to get him kicked out. After all, he was the only one in the class who would do such a thing. What filthy rich person needed to steal? 

"I'm sorry Baekhyun but the wallet was in your backpack, if you didn't steal it, how did it get in your bag?" The principal argued with a loud sigh, annoyance clear in his demeanour, making Baekhyun even angrier. Why was the principal annoyed when he was the one being falsely accused?! 

"Oh, I don't know I guess I wanted to get in trouble! Silly me, I stole the phone and then pulled it out of my bag because I wanted to get kicked out of school!" he stated, sarcastically. He couldn't believe the absurdity of the situation. If he had really stolen her phone, why would he willingly pull it out of his backpack? It was painfully obvious that he was being framed but of course, no one wanted to actually use their brains and realize that clearly, it was someone else's doing. 

"So you're admitting that you stole the wallet? This is a very serious crime Baekhyun," the principal shook his head,  disapproval on his face but a barely noticeable quirk of his lips made it obvious that he was trying to hold in a smile, infuriating Baekhyun further until he could feel his face get heated while his hands formed a fist as if his body was preparing to go into fight mode. 

Baekhyun got out of his chair, to insert dominance of course, before yelling, "no, you idiot! It's called sarcasm! ever heard of that old man?! I got framed because these rich s don't want me around! I got my locker vandalized this morning, is that not proof enough? Also, why would I pull that wallet out of my backpack if I stole it? I pulled it out because I didn't know why it was there! You wouldn't even let me explain! We've been here for like half an hour and all you're doing is trying to get me to confess when I haven't done anything! Ever heard of 'innocent before proven guilty?'" 

"That is enough Baekhyun. First, you steal and now you curse and insult me and your peers? This behaviour will not be tolerated. You should be grateful that your employers even paid for you to be in the finest institution in South Korea! That's it, I'm going to be calling your parents and your employers for a meeting to talk about your behaviour and decide on a punishment," the principal stated with a deadly glare, "and sit down boy, you aren't going anywhere anytime soon." 

To say Baekhyun regretted his actions was an understatement. He really needed to learn when to keep his mouth shut. If his fury didn't overtake him, he would've probably gotten away with a couple of days of suspension which, although unfair, would've been a lot better than having his furious mom and a disappointed-looking Mr. and Mrs. Park staring at him as his principal tells them about all of his wrong-doing. He grimaced at the look his mom shot him when the principal told them that he called him an idiot and an old man. As if his mom's anger wasn't enough, his employers were looking at each other, eyes wide in shock at what the principal was telling them. He could feel the blood rush to his face as they shook their heads, clearly appalled at his lack of respect. 

As the principal rambled on about how ill-mannered Baekhyun was and how he should be ashamed of his actions, a frantic Chanyeol opened the door, catching everyone's attention as he walked into the room. His eyes locked with Baekhyun's, a reassuring smile on his face before he faced everyone else in the room. 

"Baekhyun didn't do it. He didn't steal. He was framed and I have proof. Come in Hyunwoo." 

"Chanyeol? What is going on?" Mr. Park questioned, looking at his son in confusion. 

All of them watched as a boy came in. Baekhyun recognized him, he was in a couple of his classes. His head was down and he looked petrified as he made his way towards the centre of the room, standing right next to Chanyeol. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before looking up as if he was trying to gain the courage to look everyone in the eyes.

"Baekhyun didn't steal the wallet. I put it there in order to frame him," the boy confessed, his voice shaky. He looked down once again, playing with his fingers as the room fell into a long silence. 

"What! Hyunwoo, why would you do such a thing?" The principal questioned, looking dumbfounded at the boy's admission. Baekhyun had to hold in a snicker at how defeated the principal looked. 

"Yujin made me do it. She said that she would get her dad to pull out of the business deal with my dad if I didn't do it. I'm sorry, I know I shouldn't have done it but I didn't know what else to do" Hyunwoo confessed, his eyes glossy with unshed tears. "I'm really sorry Baekhyun," he apologized, turning towards the brunet as he bowed, genuine remorse evident in his tone. 

"What you did was wrong Hyunwoo. I'm going to have to suspend you for two days," the principal stated, shaking his head in disappointment. 

"What about Yujin? she's the one who made him do it by threatening him. Is she not going to get punished?" Chanyeol asked, holding Hyunwoo's shoulder to comfort the boy, who looked like he was about to burst into tears. Baekhyun felt terrible for the boy. From what he knew, the boy was one of the top students of their grade. He must be terrified of his parents finding out about his suspension. 

"Ah, well, I will arrange a meeting with her parents later and we will work out the details," the principal replied before quickly changing the topic. "You might not have stolen the wallet Baekhyun but you will still be getting punished for the things you have said. It will be three days of suspension." 

Baekhyun sighed, nodding his head in agreement. Once they were allowed to leave the room, his mom turned to him, eyes filled with rage. It looked like she was about to burst into flames with how livid she was. However, as soon as she faced the Parks, her whole demeanour changed. Her lips lifted into the fakest smile Baekhyun had ever seen and then she bowed, so low that her face pretty much touched the ground. 

"Mr. and Mrs. Park, Chanyeol, I am so deeply apologetic for my son's behaviour. I greatly appreciate that you both took time out of your insanely busy schedules to be here. I assure you that nothing like this will ever happen again! Please find it in your generous hearts to forgive us." His mom got back up, gesturing for Baekhyun to follow her in apologizing. 

Baekhyun also bowed, "I am so sorry for my actions Mr. and Mrs. Park," he said, feeling the glare that his mom was shooting towards him. He gulped at the silence that followed his apology, too afraid to stand back up so he continued bowing, staring down at Mrs. Park's expensive red-bottom Louboutins. 

His head shot up when he heard the deep chuckle coming from Mr. Park followed by a giggle from his wife. 

"Stand up straight Baekhyun, you don't have to bow this long," Mrs. Park said, covering as she contained her laugh. 

"Don't worry son, we aren't mad. You were just standing up for yourself. And that principal really is an idiot, accusing a student with no proof. Just try not to get into too much trouble again," Mr. Park winked, before turning to address his former employee. "Say hi to your husband for us Mrs. Byun, we will get going now and Chanyeol," he turned towards his son "see you at home." 

The three watched as the Parks left, amazed at their reaction to the situation. Baekhyun couldn't even describe how relieved he felt. He was prepared for the absolute worst and the fact that he still had his job was incredible. Maybe he was completely wrong about the Parks. Just like how he was mistaken about Chanyeol. Maybe they weren't completely evil and all those years that he spent detesting them was all a misunderstanding. What if it was his parents who willingly missed most of his childhood to work. But... why? Did his parents not love him? 

"Byun Baekhyun. You are dead." 

The brunet faced his fuming mother who, once again, had that murderous look in her eyes. He gulped, awaiting the two-hour scolding and then the punishment he would undoubtedly receive. There were very few things that scared Baekhyun but his mom when she was angry, never failed to terrify him. He closed his eyes, preparing himself for her fury. 

"It's really nice to see you again Mrs. Byun." 

They both turned to the youngest Park, who looked at them with a wide smile on his face, forgetting he was there. 

"Ah, Chanyeol. It's nice to see you as well. Thank you so much for saving Baekhyun from getting falsely accused. Well, I should go now. Baekhyun, make sure to come visit this weekend, alright?" 

Baekhyun nodded his head frantically, watching his mother smile at Chanyeol, genuinely this time, and wave at him as she walked out of the school. 

He let out the breath he was holding, wrapping his arms around Chanyeol in gratitude. "Thank you thank you thank you. You saved me from getting kicked out and from my mom yelling at me! Oh Chanyeol, I am so grateful I just can't thank you enough!" He pulled away from a dazed-looking Chanyeol, the brightest smile on his face. "How did you even manage to get Hyunwoo to confess? He's the top of our grade, isn't he? How did you convince him?"

Chanyeol calmed down his rapidly beating heart, trying to seem like that hug didn't affect him when in actuality, he felt like his heart would implode with how fast it was beating. 

"Well, actually what happened was that I saw him talking to Yujin after class so I confronted him. He didn't tell me anything, he just told me to leave him alone and walked away. But then, I met Sehun and told him everything, including seeing Yujin and Hyunwoo talk crazy enough, Sehun actually knows Hyunwoo's family and apparently, they have a lot of shady underground businesses that they could get into a lot of trouble for. Sehun threatened to expose Hyunwoo's family unless he confessed that he and Yujin were the ones who framed you and of course, he did it. I guess having Yujin's dad pull out of a business deal with his dad was a better option than having his family behind bars. But why did you still get suspended?" Chanyeol questioned. 

Baekhyun blushed, "well I um... may have...called the principal an idiot and an old man and called everyone rich s..."

Chanyeol couldn't contain his laughter, doubling over at Baekhyun's confession. He knew that Baekhyun was sassy but calling the principal an idiot and an old man? He loved the shorter boy's lack of filter and his brazen personality. He knew how to stand up for himself and wasn't afraid of authority. It made him even more attractive in Chanyeol's eyes, if that was even possible. Every aspect of Baekhyun that he discovered, every quirk, made Chanyeol fall even deeper until it was like he was helplessly falling down a bottomless hole, unable to catch himself to prevent falling even deeper. 

"Baekhyun, Yeol! What happened? Did Hyunwoo confess?" Sehun ran towards them, confusion on his face as he saw Chanyeol laugh like he heard the funniest joke in the world while Baekhyun smiled sheepishly. 

"Sehun!" 

Baekhyun ran towards the blonde-haired boy, wrapping his arms around him, effectively catching the boy off-guard. "Thank you! Chanyeol told me that you got Hyunwoo to confess! I appreciate it so much, you saved me from getting kicked out!" 

Sehun just stood there, holding in a breath as Baekhyun hugged him tightly. He had never gotten hugged like that before. Actually, he barely got hugged ever. It felt so... warm. The boy's head barely reached his neck, pressed just against his chest, making the blonde worry that his racing heart could be heard by the smaller. Eventually, Sehun followed the boy's motions, wrapping his arms around Baekhyun's waist. He closed his eyes, enjoying the comfort he felt hugging the other, almost groaning when Baekhyun pulled away. 

"So, uh," Sehun cleared his throat, fighting off a blush as he looked down at the smiling boy, "you found out huh? I can't believe that Yujin is petty enough to do something like that. You really got her crazy over you, haven't you Yeol?" 

Chanyeol shrugged, "I guess," he muttered. He tried to act casual and hide the raging jealousy he felt but the stifling tension in the air was apparent to everyone. Even Baekhyun, who was as oblivious as it gets, could feel the weird atmosphere between the two taller boys. They were staring at each other as if they were about to start a fight, which really confused Baekhyun. They were being friendly just a minute ago. What happened to make them look at each other like that? 

"So, why were you guys laughing earlier?" Sehun eventually questioned, effectively cutting through the thick tension. 

"Oh, I... I actually got suspended for two days for calling the principal an idiot, an old man and then also for swearing and calling everyone rich s." 

Sehun chuckled, looking impressed at Baekhyun's courage. He thought the boy was a goody-two-shoes because of how seriously he took school but clearly, there was a lot more to Byun Baekhyun. Sehun couldn't help but be curious, he wanted to know more. He wanted to discover everything there was to Baekhyun.

It was his last class of the day and fortunately, it was also the last day of the week. He would face his three-day suspension after the weekend. Although Baekhyun was dreading the "talk" he would have to have with his mom, he was dying to see his dad again. He missed the older man so much. His father's lame dad-jokes, his cooking, his joyous laugh. Baekhyun missed it all so much. 

He had to blink away the tears forming in his eyes. The last thing he wanted was for someone to see him cry and assume that it was because of what happened earlier. Everyone in the room was already staring at him, whispering theories of how he's still there and hasn't been kicked out already. Some people 'whispered' so obnoxiously, clearly on purpose so he could hear what they were saying, saying that he probably seduced the principal into letting him stay. 

Baekhyun rolled his eyes, holding in a snort at how ridiculous they sounded. Rich people really needed to learn how to bully. If they thought he would get upset at their 'theory,' they were mistaken. 

"Oh, wow, you actually made it to class? How?" A surprised-looking Kyungsoo asked, taking a seat next to him. 

"Well because I didn't do anything wrong. The kid who actually did it confessed. He said that Yujin made him do it," Baekhyun shrugged. 

"What?! why would he confess?" Kyungsoo questioned, looking astonished. "In the many years I have gone to this school, I've seen scholarship students and those who are not as rich get bullied and pretty much kicked out of this school. These people, they don't like anyone who's not like them. They are all spoiled and think that anyone less rich is below them. Not to mention, you're all buddy-buddy with Yujin's man. That's like asking to get the whole school against you."

"Why? What does the whole school have to do with Yujin?" Baekhyun wondered. 

"Oh? You didn't know? Yujin's family pretty much owns this school. Her dad is always investing in and donating to this school and they heavily rely on funding from her dad. That's why she gets away with anything. She has gotten teachers who didn't bend to her every desire fired and has gotten students kicked out for no reason. Everyone is terrified of her and that's why they will literally do anything she says," Kyungsoo explained. 

It all started to make sense to Baekhyun. How the principal didn't even give him a chance to explain and how he punished Hyunwoo but didn't even mention Yujin until Chanyeol brought up the topic. It was obvious to him now that nothing was going to happen to her and she was just going to be let off even though the principal knew she was behind it. She was just too powerful. 

"But Kyungsoo, why does she have a vendetta against just me? Chanyeol and Sehun are best friends and way closer to each other, why doesn't she hate Sehun?" 

Kyungsoo laughed at the question, thinking it was a joke before seeing the serious expression on Baekhyun's face. Wow, Kyungsoo thought, is he really that oblivious?

"It's not the same," Kyungsoo eventually answered.

"Not the same? Why not?" 

Kyungsoo didn't know how to answer. It was obvious to literally everyone that Chanyeol had a crush on Baekhyun. Never before had he seen Chanyeol smile that much in all the years he's known him. Even the way he looked at Baekhyun, it was like his eyes formed hearts every time he looked at the boy and the way that he always stood up for Baekhyun. It was undeniable. Baekhyun had only been at the school for a couple of days but the latest gossip going around was how Chanyeol fell in love with his cook. 

"Next time you're with Chanyeol, pay attention to how he acts around you. Maybe then you'll understand what I mean." 

As Kyungsoo and Baekhyun made their way out of the classroom, talking about how boring the class was and what they would rather do than have to endure sitting in that class, they didn't realize that most of the class had already left and it was just the two of them along with a couple, who were passionately making out as if they were alone. 
 

"What the hell?!" Baekhyun shrieked, quickly looking away from the sight.

 The girl was pressed against the wall, letting out loud moans as the guy kissed her neck. It looked like the two were about to rip each other's clothes off, making Baekhyun feel the most uncomfortable he had ever felt. Did they not realize that they were being watched?! 

Baekhyun looked over at Kyungsoo whose eyes were wide and glossy, looking like they were filled with tears. The boy looked down at the ground, quickly wiping at his eyes. Baekhyun could hear a quiet, almost inaudible sniffle, causing him a lot of confusion. Was Kyungsoo... crying? Was the boy just crying because he was uncomfortable? 

"You two better stop it right now or I swear I will record this and show it to the principal," Baekhyun warned loudly, getting irritated by the exaggerated moans. The last thing he wanted to see was these two get it on in the middle of a classroom. 

Thankfully, the two pulled apart from each other, panting like they just ran marathons. Their faces were flushed and their lips were swollen. The girl's shirt was ed, showing off her entire cleavage. She flashed a smile, pulling down her skirt which he had pulled up. The boy next to her looked familiar. Baekhyun recalled being introduced to him. His name was something like... Kim Jong Min? Or Jong Il. Baekhyun couldn't remember but he knew that the kid was friends with Sehun and Chanyeol. 

"Oh my gosh! we are so sorry! we totally didn't see you two there, right Jongin?" The girl said with an obnoxiously high-pitched voice and an over-exaggerated smile. 

The boy nodded but he looked distracted. He was staring directly at Kyungsoo, who had his arms crossed and was looking down at the floor. It was really tense in the room and Baekhyun felt like he was in the middle of some kind of drama. The girl was staring at Jongin, the sweet smile on her face nowhere to be found. She looked irritated that he wasn't looking back at her and so he took the boy's hand, looking frustrated when he still didn't look towards her. Jongin, on the other hand, was too busy looking at Kyungsoo. Baekhyun couldn't decipher the emotion present in his eyes. He looked... remorseful? He was staring at Kyungsoo like he wanted the other to look back at him but Kyungsoo just continued keeping his head downwards. 

The whole thing was strange. There was obviously something going on that Baekhyun didn't know. 

"Let's go Kyungsoo." 

Baekhyun took the other boy's hand, leading him out of the classroom. Even as they walked, Kyungsoo continued looking down but this time, his sniffles were louder. Baekhyun stopped, sitting the boy down on a bench before sitting next to him. He placed a hand on the boy's thigh, comforting him in silence as he broke down, tears streaming down his flushed cheeks. 

Baekhyun had no idea why Kyungsoo was crying but he could sense that the boy didn't want to talk about it, he just wanted someone to comfort him while he cried. And that's what Baekhyun did, he sat there with Kyungsoo, letting the male cry until there were no tears left. 

A/N: Hi everyone! So if you guys haven't noticed, I've made some changes. I have decided to make the chapters longer so I have combined the previous chapters. I haven't made any other changes to the plot or anything though. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Please leave a comment if you did!