We finally arrived at the cave; the tunneling cave bore a brownish-yellow interior and no stalagmites. It was quite comfortable since a fresh breeze came from deep inside it and the Sun wasn’t killing us with its deadly rays of heat.

Once inside Kai threw himself on the rocky-dirt floor, lying face up with his eyes closed, while trying to open the little bundle he so much protected through these last few hours. I slowly let the injured Exotic on the floor, next to Kai, and I kneeled in front of the two. He was still unconscious, and his hood was still in place. Now was the time to take the decision: who do I treat first. Kai was my ally, scratch that, he was my friend already, so I should help him first; on the other hand this guy helped us out and his wound was way worst than Kai’s. I got interrupted by the latter when he sat up and held in front of my gaze his un-wrapped shirt with a bunch of berries, kiwis, and other delicious-looking fruits. He held it towards me like a little kid offering his secret crush a flower.

MJ: (serious tone) Was THAT what you went to get?! We’ve gone through all of THIS because you went to get food!?... (I smiled) Because I told you I was hungry…

Kai happily nodded. I took a berry and popped it into my mouth. It was so delicious, I wish I could have eaten more, but I was concerned for the other guy.

MJ: Thank you Kai, I’m happy you thought about me. And I’m sorry we got in such a mess for my whining. I’ll eat them later, after I’m finished with you two. I hope you don’t mind me working on him first, right?... Try to stay still for the time being, okay?

Kai nodded without hesitation, like the good boy he is. I got closer to Kai and kissed his forehead, in a motherly way. He was startled by my actions, but I guess everybody acts that way around me… except LuHan… LuHan knows I’m a very warm person and that I easily open up to others, so he never thought the wrong way when I hugged or kissed him, or any of the other guys and girls that we knew… Lulu, I wonder what horrible things you’re going through right now. I’ll be there soon… I promise…
 

I breathed heavily and focused on the black-dressed man that lay in front of me. First things first, I un-hooded the man… God, why do beautiful people do bad things! This boy was gorgeous; well, technically not a boy, he looked more mature than Kai, so he must be a young man. Even behind his pale and life-less complexion, a sparkle of beauty gleamed through. Brown-wavy hair, perfect brown brows over plain eyelids that ended in fluttery-long-light lashes; sleek cheeks ended in a rounded chin, right under a pair of dense-pink lips.

He was sweating, yet shivering involuntarily. I put his beauty aside and continued with his cape, ping its long zipper and finally revealing his torso. It was finely molded, not like Kai, but more like LuHan… They even kind of look alike… I gently removed one of his arms from the clothing, and then the other, leaving him only in his long-skinny leather pants, until I saw it… On his right upper arm, this man had a pod… A Cyanide Pod…

MJ: Kai!! Look at this… hurry!

Kai quickly sat up at my sudden orders and locked his eyes towards the man’s arm. He looked at me as if trying to tell me something I think I already knew…

MJ: …do you think….he’s one of us?.... an ally?

Kai looked back at the pod and touched it carefully, as if looking for its validation. Then slowly he looked at the so-called “Exotic” s face and his expression changed. I paid it no mind and started to analyze the injury. It was deep, and the blood was starting to solidify around it, making it hard to actually clean it. I took my blazer off for better comfort and, just like Kai had done for me, I ripped a fairly wide trim from the end of my white school blouse. I dampened it with saliva and gently began to clean the affected area. The man winced from time to time; he was gaining conscious apparently. Was that good? Well, now that we think he might be a good guy, it is a good thing. Meanwhile, as I did this, Kai kept looking at the stranger’s face. At first he was more like trying to decipher it, then it was more like an acceptance gesture, and at the end it was more like hiding a sob while trying to smile. I was too concentrated on my business to ask…

Okay, let’s see: the wound is already clean, but I have to give him some medicine… Aish… medicine in the middle of nowhere, that’s rich!.. Wait, aren’t fruits Nature’s medicine? I remember seeing countless natural products commercials on TV that were made only from fruits and vegetables… My mom buys them all the time… If I could only remember... I looked at the bag of fruits and it came to me… Vitamin…K…K for Kiwi!! I remembered my mom teaching me that one! And Vitamin K was for… coagulation! That’s what we need!! So the wound was already clean and germ-free from anything that it might have gotten form the dirt, since we all know saliva is an antibacterial substance. I knee-walked to the fruit pile and took a kiwi. I took the furry skin off with my nails, and once the little fruit was I squished it in my hand, letting all its juice fall onto the injury. I took some of the smashed kiwi and rubbed it into the area, and finally wrapped the white-blouse trim around the man’s slim waist, making sure it was tight, but not stopping his circulation. The un-known man was now out peril, and his expression was more peaceful now. On the other hand, Kai was still looking disorientated towards the older boy’s face.

I now faced Kai. I took off the trim he had wrapped around my arm earlier on the day, and wetted one end with my tongue; my wound had already healed. I began cleaning his shoulder, and he finally noticed that I was near him.

MJ: Kai, what’s wrong? You’ve been looking at the guy for a while now. Do you think he isn’t trust worthy?.. You think that maybe that Cyanide pod is a fake?

JongIn shook his head. He pointed with this right arm at the body lying next to him, followed by an OK sign. I’ll take that as a “he’s one of us”.

MJ: Then what is it? Do you know him?!

Kai nodded. He looked at me and mouthed the word “chingu”. He knew I was gonna keep inquiring him, so he just went ahead trying to explain with his gesturing. He pointed at the guy and then to himself, followed by twisting together his index and middle finger. After, he waves off his hand a few times, as if sending someone away. And signals at the ground.

MJ: Take it easy JongIn!!! I can’t take so much information in!! Go slowly… start again…

I was now putting some of the kiwi mixture in his injury, while trying to decipher his gestures. After a few tries, and some other gestures he made, I think I got it…

MJ:  the guy and you… were together... as in friends… some years ago… here in this game... He was a prisoner just like you, and that’s where you guys met… One day he didn’t return after a game… You though he had died… You gave up looking for him… But here he is now…

I was about to cry! I mean, I don’t cry over anything, but this just got to me. Such Bromance made me want to hug Kai, and even his un-known friend. I finished wrapping Kai up and patted him on the head.

MJ: Well Kai, I’m glad you found your friend again… I know what it’s like losing a friend too… (The thoughts made me sad)… I use to have a friend: Shin HaeRi. She was my best female friend since we were in 4th grade. But she magically disappeared two years ago. The police said she was kidnapped, but after so much time and effort she still hasn’t appeared… I think we both know where she is… (my tears well up but I don’t let them go any further than my eye rims).
 

Kai put a hand on my shoulder, and I looked away: I don’t like people seeing this weak side of me. I continued…

MJ:…so, after that the only Best Friend I had left was LuHan. I’ve been very motherly since then, always trying to take care of him, even if his older than me… I’m just afraid of losing him…of loosing another loved one…

A tear fell and before Kai could see it I stood up and went to the fruit bag. I picked up a few berries and threw them into my mouth, as I took the opportunity to wipe away my tears in animosity. After a few seconds I calmed myself and I noticed something: Kai was still shirtless. And his shirt was all smeared with fruit juice and berry pigments. I took this opportunity to lighten-up the mood.

MJ: Hey Kai, you don’t have to keep being . Here, you can wear my blazer mean while; that is until I can wash your shirt in a fountain or something. (I threw the blazer at him)

Kai looked at me with an “Are you serious?” face.

MJ: …what!? You don’t think you’re going to fit in it? Let me tell you a secret: I’m very deceiving. You might think I wear small sizes, but to tell you the truth… I don’t. …You see, my ‘age’ doesn’t allow it. (I innocently signaled to said area)

Kai turned all shades of red before laughing out loud, and I just had to join him. We laughed for a few moments, until we calmed down and he finally put the uniform on. It looked good on him…Okay, it looked “MIND BLOWINGLY AWEOSOME” good on him. But still, he left the majority of the buttons unopened, so we didn’t make much progress.

We ate some more fruits, leaving a portion for our unknown friend when he woke up. We then lay next to each other, looking to the cave’s ceiling, trying to rest for a while.

MJ: (sigh) I which we didn’t need to wait until shadows appeared so we can move on. Just waiting around makes me impatient. The more time we take, the greater the danger LuHan might be in… (I closed my eyes)

I feel Kai touching my shoulder and gently shaking me. I open my eyes to find him staring at me. He then raises both hands next to his head and shrugs.

MJ: Huh? What do you mean “what”?

Kai points at me and mouths “LuHan”, followed by another shrug.

MJ: You don’t know who Luhan is?.. Wait, I haven’t told you about him yet. Still I’ve mentioned him a few times now. You should have asked me earlier.

Kai smiles while touching the back of his neck with his good arm... looks like such an innocent boy.

MJ: Now that I think about it, I haven’t told you much about me either… And you already told me much about you. I guess we should take advantage of this time, until…um… what’s your friend’s name?

Kai takes my right forearm and writes with a finger a few characters. After re-writing them a few times I finally make out what they are…

MJ: …L...Lay?

Kai happily nods. He then signals me to go on with my monologue.

MJ:  Okay… until Lay wakes up…now, where to start…

I took my time explaining who LuHan was, what he looked like, how I met him, the reasons why we were Best Friends, and how I had develop other feelings towards him. I also told him who I was, why I act the way I do, and pretty much anything important. It felt good opening up to someone, and not being criticized or misunderstood. When I finished, Kai tapped me on my shoulder and gave me a reassuring look, as if he were saying “Everything’s gonna be alright. I’m here to help you”.