HER POV

“You’re pouting again,” Jiyong told me.

I glared at him.

“Don’t give me those stares. You’re looking uglier.”

“Shut up!” I shouted and walked out.

I was strolling by our schoolyard. I picked up my phone from my pocket and dialed a number.

“Hello? Who’s this?”

“We just broke up and you immediately deleted my number?” I scoffed. “Unbelievable.”

“I have no use of your number, that’s why I deleted it,” he said coldly.

I kept silent, gritting my teeth. I didn’t notice that a tear fell from my eyes.

“Look, we’re through, Dara. You can’t-“

“Youngbae…” I pleaded.

“Dara, I told you-“

“I will do everything. Just please come back.”

“You’re pathetic,” he said and immediately hung up.

“YA!” I shouted at the beeping sound from my phone. “AISH!”

Music room… the only place I can truly be myself. People always tell me they admire me because of my charisma, mysteriousness, and fierceness. I’m cold to everyone. That’s why I don’t have friends, no female friends, in particular. I have a few male friends but I don’t really consider them as ‘friends’. They’re more like ‘companions’. But, in school, I’m one of those popular kids. Boys chase after me. Girls envy me.

So, by ‘being myself’, I mean, me being a weakling. I’m always weak at heart. I had boyfriends before. But, being my cold self, I don’t really take them seriously. I play with them for a while and dump them. Maybe this is the consequence. Maybe this is karma. I played with their hearts and karma played with me too. Youngbae is the first guy I’ve ever fallen in love with. He’s sweet. He’s funny. He’s charming. He’s just boyfriend-material. That’s why, after I met him, I made a complete 360-degree change. I’m the good girl in our relationship. While he’s the one who always go clubbing without me and, therefore forgetting to call or text me, I’m the loyal one. I always call him. I always text him. But after a few weeks of being with him, he showed signs of being annoyed by my actions. We always fight. We always had arguments. Since I love him too much, I’m the only one who apologizes to him.

Until three days ago, I caught him making out with a girl named, Jina on the rooftop. I was too dumbfounded to speak back then. My eyes were wide and my jaws dropped. I wanted to run away and curl myself in a ball but my feet were stuck on the ground. Until he noticed me. He wasn’t surprised at all. He just told me that he wanted to break up with me. That was the time I recovered. I ran away and hid here.

The music room. My favorite place.

I cried. I cried and cried. Until I felt someone’s hand on my shoulder.

“Excuse me, are you okay?” he had said.

I looked up and stared at him with my tear-stricken face. “Who are you?” I had whispered.

Instead of answering though, he offered me a handkerchief. I stared at it for a while. Then, accepted it.

He turned to leave but I caught his wrist. I made him face me and without hesitation I leaned my head on his shoulder. I cried again. I felt his hesitation, but I felt his hand patting my back. Instead of being comforted, I cried again.

How pathetic was I? I pulled a stranger and cried on his shoulder. Now I understand how hard it is to not have friends. At least, this guy’s too kind to lend me his shoulder.

That was the time I had my very first friend. He’s Kwon Jiyong.

“Dara?” a voice appeared out of nowhere.

I stared at the source and pulled him towards me. I buried my face on his chest.

“Why are you crying again, Dara?” Jiyong asked.

“He doesn’t want me now, Jiyong. I’m ready to sacrifice everything but he repeatedly rejects me.”

I felt him patting my back like he did three days ago.

“Don’t leave me, Jiyong,” I pleaded. “Don’t leave like everyone did. You’re the only one I got.”

HIS POV

She was sitting there. Her back facing me. As me and my choirmates are singing along the melody she’s doing on the piano, she sits there with her fingers gracefully pressing each of the keys.

Although she looks amazing especially when playing piano, I can’t help but to pity her. She just broke up with her boyfriend and she thinks that it’s the end of her world. I don’t get girls, really. Especially this particular girl. Before, she’s walking around the campus with her chin up and glares thrown to the girls envying her and to the boys who falls head-over-heels for her. Now that a particular guy breaks her heart, she acts as if her whole world has been broken apart.

But what I don’t understand the most is how I was lured to be beside her just because she asked me to. Just three days ago, I offered my handkerchief to her because she was crying all by herself in this music room. When I was about to turn and leave her, she suddenly pulled me and she cried on my shoulder. I don’t know why I didn’t leave her after that incident. Maybe because she just looked too fragile and pathetic that day. Many times, she’s cold-hearted to me, but I can’t leave her side. When I do, she looks like a lost puppy. Most of the time, she looks like she’s pushing me away, but it makes me want to stay by her side more.

It was already the end of our choir practice. Everyone was fixing their things before leaving. When everyone left, she sat by her piano and leaned her head on the keys. She slowly pressed random keys. At first, I didn’t hear it. But, after a while, she sniffed.

“You’re crying again?” I asked.

“What do you care?” she asked coldly.

“Okay fine, I’ll leave you alone,” I said, picking up my guitar.

I felt her hand circling my wrist. “No, stay,” she said, almost pleading.

I sat beside her. She leaned her head on my shoulder. Unlike for the past three days, she was crying silently right now.

“I don’t have a friend, Jiyong,” she suddenly said.

I kept silent though.

“Why did you offer me that handkerchief?” she asked.

“Maybe because you looked pathetic?” I said truthfully.

“Yes, I was and still am pathetic. I felt alone that time. And I was so happy that someone finally took notice of me. Not because of my physical appearances or because my appeal to them but because of my feelings.”

“Why are you saying this?” I asked.

“I’m just thankful to you,” she said. She leaned away and sniffed. “I’m going home.”

She stood to leave. Hesitantly, I stood up too. “Um, do you… want to…?”

She turned to me. “What?” she said, her tone returned to her normal cold one.

“Do you want me to drive you home?” I asked. “I’ll just go get my motorbike.”

She shook her head then turned to leave.

I felt disappointed. As if my feet have their minds of their own, they hurriedly ran to my motorbike. I kicked to start the engine and drove. I reached the nearest bus station from our school and from the other side of the road, I saw her standing there, waiting for the bus. I was about to call her when the bus arrived. She got on the bus and the bus took off.

I kicked my engine to a start and drove fast to keep up with the bus. When I succeeded, I looked up and saw her sitting at the window side. I followed the bus until it stopped at a bus station near a hospital. She got off and I did too. I tried my best to be kept unnoticed and followed her.

As soon as she arrived at a room, I stood frozen on my place.

She sat beside the bed of a man who was lying unconscious. Her back was facing me so it was safe to carefully peek inside. I saw that the man she was visiting had been using life-support.

Shocked, I stepped back and leaned on the wall beside the door. A nurse just passed by and I took the opportunity to ask. It turned out that the man was her father. Five years ago, her parents met an accident. Her mother was declared dead-on-arrival but her father suffered being in comatose for five years already.

So that was what she meant about everyone leaving her.

I stayed for a while. After an hour, she left.

“Oh,” she gasped as she saw me.

“Do you want me to drive you home now?” I offered.

“Are you sympathizing me again?” she asked coldly and left.

“Don’t be stubborn. Let me drive you home,” I insisted.

“Next time, don’t follow me,” she said, quickening her pace.

I kept up with her and offered her the helmet. But she slapped my hand away causing the helmet flying out of my hand.

I froze on my spot. I stared at her back while she was walking away. I went towards the helmet and picked it up. It already has a slight crack.

I hurriedly went to my motorbike. While I was driving, I take quick glances on the sidewalk to look for her. After a while, I got tired and gave up. Maybe he rode the bus again. But after sometime, I found her walking slowly on the sidewalk, her head bowed down.

I slowed my driving to keep up with her. I didn’t dare call her. I let her walk alone. I noticed that she was already crying. Then the sky started crying along with her too. She didn’t quicken her pace though. She just stayed slow even though people started bumping into her so they could go find some shade from the rain. She was different though. I didn’t drive fast too. If she’s going to be wet with the rain like this, I will too. For a while we were like that.

But, why am I doing this again? I asked myself.

“Aish!” I grunted, and then drove away so I could go home.

HER POV

I arrived at school, grumpy as always. Though, I was rather surprised not to see someone in particular who always meet me first thing in the morning and make me smile with his rather corny jokes.

“Weird,” I mumbled.

Choir practice…

“Ya!” the trainer scolded. “Kwon Jiyong, why is your voice raspy?!”

“I…” he stammered. I stared at him behind my shoulder. He immediately looked away.

“I told you before, right? If you’re going to be part of this club, you have to take care of your voice. Your voice is the most important here and it should be your priority,” the trainer explained, and then she turned to Jiyong again. “Now, you, Kwon Jiyong. You were rather careless. What were you doing last night? Did you stay all night at the KTV?”

He shook his head frantically. I giggled, earning me a glare from the trainer. I faced the piano again.

“So, where were you then?” the trainer asked.

“I…” he started. “I…”

“Whatever,” the trainer waved off.

After the choir practice, I stayed for a while to clean it up. I didn’t notice though that I wasn’t alone until I heard someone sneeze. I jumped and accidentally cursed.

“YA!” I burst out. “YOU SCARED ME!”

“What?” he sniffed and stared at me innocently. “You didn’t notice me until now?”

I turned away from him and went towards my bag.

“Take out your hand,” I ordered.

“Why?” he asked.

“Just follow what I say.”

Hesitantly, he did. “What is this?”

“Maybe it’s a sweet candy,” I sarcastically said. I went to get him a glass of water. “Next time, don’t drive if it’s raining. It’s not as if your motorbike has a roof.”

He swallowed the medicine and smiled at me.

I scoffed and turned to leave.

“Are you going home now?” he called. “Let me take you home. It’s not raining today so-”

I turned to face him. “Don’t follow me again, okay? Just rest at home. You still need your precious golden voice for tomorrow’s practice.”

Okay, so this Kwon Jiyong is really hard-headed. I underestimated him. I thought he would leave me after that day at the music room. He’s worse than a stalker I had before. My stalkers before would eventually get tired of following me, but this guy is different. He’s unbelievable. I have been lurking around the city for more than hour but I can still feel his presence behind me. I pretended that I don’t notice him though. I think he’s buying it, anyway.

After walking around town, I went to visit Dad.