*a/n: Hey guys! I was thinking of what to do with my fic, so I came up with the idea of sidestories, which is like a chapter with some kind of story of its own. But it’s still connected with the original story, of course! Anyways, I’ll be posting chapters of each of the other individual couples’ sidestories soon! First up, we have HyoHae! Hope you’ll like it!* (^-^V)

Sidestory no. 1:

Now that Lina was out of the picture, everything went back to normal. The gang was happy again and they didn’t hear Lina’s irritating voice echoing through the hallways anymore. And most importantly, Yunho was free again.

Yunho was discharged from the clinic about a week after the warehouse incident and was now hanging out in their dorm room with Jaejoong, talking about random stuff.

“Y’know, Seulgi was really scared about you,” Jaejoong stated.
Yunho smiled. “Yeah… she told me.”
“Oh, and by the way, did you know that she had some kind of haunting past in the warehouse before? She was so scared when she first heard of it. She even almost didn’t go in.”
Yunho’s head snapped up. “A haunting past? What else do you know about it?”
“Apparently, she used to go there with her dad,” Jaejoong told him. “But that’s all I know.”

Yunho thought about it. He wondered what horrible thing could have happened to make Seulgi hate that place.

Donghae suddenly burst in the room, with a guilty look on his face.

“What happened, dude?” Jaejoong asked him.

Donghae sighed and told them his story.

[Flashback]

“Oppa!” Hyojoo greeted Donghae, giving him huge bear hug.

Donghae kissed her on the cheek, beaming.

They sat down on a nearby bench, Hyojoo resting her head on Donghae’s shoulder.

“Sooo…any plans next Saturday?” Hyojoo asked., looking up at him.
Donghae looked at her quizzically. “What’s on Saturday?”

Hyojoo’s expression turned into one of disappointment. “Oh…nothing… I was just wondering…”

Donghae shrugged. “Okay then,” he said.
Hyojoo looked at him again. “So…no plans? Nothing at all?”
Donghae thought for a moment. “Nope,” he said, popping his mouth on the ‘p’.
“Oh… are you absolutely sure?” Hyojoo pressed.
“Yeap, I’m sure. Why? Is there anything I should know about?”
“Uhhh…no..” Hyojoo said slowly.
“Okay, then,” Donghae replied casually. They just continued to stare at the scenery in front of them in quiet.

[End of Flashback]

“So, what’s there to worry about?” Jaejoong asked.

Donghae sighed miserably. “I just made Hyojoo think that I forgot our 3-month anniversary!”

“Why the hell would you do that?” Yunho asked.
“Because I was planning to cook up a surprise for her!” he said dejectedly.
“So, if you were going to surprise her, why you so gloomy?”
“You should’ve seen her face! I felt like I was the worst boyfriend ever!”

Yunho sighed. “I don’t know what to do anymore.” He turned to Jaejoong. “Your turn.”

Jaejoong thought for a while, rubbing his fingers against his chin, like some kind of old-fashioned detective.

“What exactly are you planning to surprise her with?” he asked his love-sick buddy.
Donghae opened is mouth to answer, but closed it again and thought for a while. “Well, I haven’t exactly thought about it, but there will definitely be something!” he said defensively.

His two friends exchanged looks, their eyebrows raised.

“And I thought he was the smart one, out of all three of us,” Jaejoong stated.
Yunho nodded in agreement. “You’re not the only one.”
“Man, love’s a funny thing.”
“You can say that again. I wonder how you’ll turn out to be when Boa finally says yes.”
“Well, I can most definitely tell you that I’ll be-“

“People!” Donghae shouted, getting their attention. “I have a crisis here, and you are not helping!”

“Okay, okay! Sheesh, lover boy, calm down. We’ll think of something,” said Jaejoong.

This seemed to calm Donghae down a bit. “Araso.”

…

Boa and Seulgi were talking about random stuff when Hyojoo burst in the room, tears flowing down her face.

“Hyojoo, what’s wrong?” Boa asked and Seulgi had concern written all over her face.

“OPPA!!! HOW COULD YOU?!?!?!” Hyojoo shouted to no one in particular.

Boa and Seulgi exchanged anxious looks with each other and turned back to their friend, who was burying her head into a pillow and making it wet. She raised her head up and Boa and Seulgi saw a big puddle that her tears left on the pillow.

Seulgi winced. “That was my favorite pillow,” she said weakly.

“Mianhae,” Hyojoo sniffed. “I just can’t believe that my Donghae oppa would do this to me!” she wailed.

Boa cracked her knuckles. “What exactly did he do?” she asked menacingly.
“He forgot…” Hyojoo began, but she couldn’t go on.
“What did he forget?” Seulgi pressed on, she and Boa leaning closer.
“He forgot...” Hyojoo’s lower lip trembled.
“He forgot what?” Boa asked.

Hyojoo whimpered loudly. “HE FORGOT ABOUT OR 3-MONTH ANNIVERSARY!!!” she wailed.

“Oh, you poor thing!” Seulgi cried, sympathy going towards her heart-broken (well, not exactly, but you know what I mean) friend.

Boa put an arm around Hyojoo’s shoulder and Seulgi did the same. “Don’t worry! He’ll remember! But why didn’t you remind him about it?” said Boa.

“Because I wanted him to remember it himself! That would show how much he cares for me!” replied Hyojoo. Then, she paused, her whole mouth trembling. “OH MY GOSH, MY OPPA DOESN’T CARE ABOUT MEEE!!!” she wailed again, a fresh batch of tears running down her face.

Her two friends sat on either side of her and rested their heads on each of her shoulders. Seulgi grabbed a box of tissues and handed them to Hyojoo, who accepted it gratefully. Then, she put her two arms around her best buddies, and gave them a hug.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you guys!” she said, still sniffling. “You guys are the best!!!” she said, wailing as she said it. “Waaah! I always told my oppa that he was the best!” she wailed again.

Boa and Seulgi looked at each other, anxiety etched on their concerned faces. Hyojoo was acting like she just drank a whole tank of soju.

They patted her again. “Don’t worry! We’ll think of a way to make him remember!”

…

The next day, at the cafeteria, Boa and Seulgi walked towards their table, which they now shared with the guys. They saw the trio sitting there and spotted Donghae, who looked like his usual self. Hyojoo was still moping in their dorm room.

”You know what to do, right?” Seulgi asked, as she and Boa moved closer to their usual seats.

Boa nodded and they quickened their pace a bit.

“Morning boys~” Boa sang, as they sat down.

Jaejoong instantly brightened up at the sound of her voice. “Morning, Boa!” he greeted her cheerfully. Boa blushed as she greeted him back and they engaged in an animated conversation.

Seulgi rolled her eyes, seeing the exchange between the two. “Jjinjaro, they should just get together already,” she thought to herself. She said hi to Yunho, who was sitting across her and he blushed immediately. He cleared his throat in embarrassment and waved back. Seulgi smiled at his cuteness.

Donghae looked around the table and didn’t find his girlfriend. “Where’s Hyojoo?” he asked the two girls. They looked up and said, “She’s still upstairs, for some reason, all puffy-eyed and red.”

This seemed to trigger Donghae’s heart. He swallowed and said, “Oh.”

Boa and Seulgi started their plan.

“Hey Boa, do you know what I love the most?” Seulgi asked loudly, so that Donghae would hear.

Boa turned to Seulgi. “What could it possibly be, Seulgi?”

Seulgi gave her a beam. “Special occasions!”

Boa beamed as well. “Oh yeah! Me too! But you know which special occasion I love the most?”
“What is it, Boa?” Seulgi asked with mock cheerfulness.
“Anniversaries!!!” Boa answered cheerfully.
“Oh my god, I love them, too! They’re just so romantic and important!”
“I agree with you, girl! They should always be remembered!”

Seulgi nodded in agreement. “So, any plans for this Saturday???” she asked loudly, more like redirecting her question to Donghae.

He just sighed and said, “I know what you girls are doing, okay?”

Boa and Seulgi put on the most innocent faces that they could come up with. “What are you talking about?”

“Look, I’m not an idiot. I know you’re trying to make me remember my 3-month anniversary with Hyojoo this Saturday, right?”

The two girls’ eyes widened. They sighed simultaneously.

“Wait a minute. If you remember it, why did you maker her think that you forgot about it? She’s been moping around since last night!” Boa scolded.

“Yeah! Do you know how soiled may favorite pillow is with her tears right now? Not to mention, she’s depressed! Sad! Emo!” Seulgi added.

This piece of information made Donghae feel even more miserable. “It’s worse than I thought!” he said, burying his head into his hands.

“If you feel so guilty about it, then why did you do it in the first place?” asked Seulgi.

“I planned a surprise for her, that’s why!” Donghae said miserably. “I wanted her to think that I forgot about our monthsary, so that if she saw the surprise, she’d be more touched! But now, since you said that she was all emo, that makes me the worst boyfriend in the world.”

“Hyojoo has the worst boyfriend in the world!!” he screamed, making some of the people in the cafeteria turn their heads to look at him.

Boa and Seulgi’s hearts softened. “So you didn’t forget…” Boa said in understanding.
“Of course I wouldn’t,” Donghae responded. He looked at Boa and Seulgi.

“I might need you help with my whole situation,” he told them, and in they leaned closer in response. “I need you guys to keep Hyojoo busy, while a plan the surprise! Just make sure that she doesn’t know about it, and act natural!”

This new mission seemed to make the two girls excited. “Yes sir!” they said and saluted at the same time.

Hyojoo suddenly came in the cafeteria, looking as normal as ever. She spent a really long time in front of the bathroom mirror to get rid of the red eyes and the tear-stained cheeks.

“Hi, guys! She greeted them as cheerfully as she could and sat down across her boyfriend. Donghae leaned over the table and gave her a peck on the cheek, acting like nothing happened at all.

…
“Okay people, we have one week to plan the special surprise for Donghae’s girlfriend,” Jaejoong said, laying down a large piece of paper on a round table, between him, Donghae and Yunho.

“What’s the big paper for?” Yunho asked.
Jaejoong chuckled. “I just thought it’d look cool if we did the whole ‘blueprint on the table’ thing, like in the movies,” he said.

Donghae slapped him on the head. “We don’t have time for games!” he said seriously.

Jaejoong gave him an apologetic look and sat down, beside them.

Donghae rested his elbows on the table. “So now, we think of ideas. What can I do for next Saturday?”

The room was silent for a ridiculously long period of time as the guys were thinking hard.

“I got nothing,” Jaejoong finally spoke up.
“Me either,” Yunho said.
“Ditto,” Donghae added. He sighed. “This is harder than I thought.”

“Tell me about it,” the other two said.

The room was quiet again.

“I got it!” Jaejoong exclaimed. “Donghae, didn’t you mention that Hyojoo likes that American song, by 98 Degrees?”

Donghae nodded. “Yeah…so what do you suggest?”

Jaejoong made Donghae and Yunho lean forward as he told them his idea.

“That’s a great idea!” Yunho exclaimed, patting his friend at the back. But Donghae looked unsure.

“Do you think I’ll be able to do it?” he asked.

His two friends nodded. “Sure you can! You have a week, don’t you? You just worry about that, and we’ll handle the rest! All you have to is tell us what you want the whole thing to look like!”

Donghae bit his lip and thought for a while. He really wanted to impress Hyojoo, and she really did love that song. “Okay,” he finally answered

Then, they started planning on what they would do for the special day.

…

Seulgi and Boa entered their history classroom, excited about their new assignment.

Hyojoo followed behind with a sad look on her face. “He didn’t even remember. Or at least felt like he was forgetting something,” she said, looking down and pouting

Her two friends were at her side at once and patted her on the shoulder. “Aww, don’t be so sad, Hyojoo! Tell you what, we’ll go somewhere this Saturday,” Seulgi comforted her. Then she winked at Boa. By ‘somewhere’, she was really referring to the place where Donghae had told them the surprise would be.

“Yeah!!!” said Boa a little too excitedly. Seulgi gave her a warning look and Boa responded with an apologetic one. Hyojoo was watching them suspiciously.
“Is there something I don’t know about?” she asked them.

Boa and Seulgi’s heads snapped up and they looked at Hyojoo as innocently s they could.

“Of course not! Why would we keep something from a friend like you?” Boa said, trying to flatter her so she wouldn’t ask any further questions.

But this made Hyojoo even more suspicious. “No seriously, what’s up?”
“What’s up? What do you mean, what’s up? Nothing’s up?” said Seulgi, starting to get nervous. She was slightly shaking.

Hyojoo leaned forward and took a close look at her face. “Are you really sure?”
Seulgi gulped. “Yes.”

Just as Hyojoo opened to ask more questions, Mr. Kim entered the classroom.

“Anneyong Haseyo, sungsaemin,” the class greeted him.
Mr. Kim nodded and told the class to sit down.

Hyojoo gave her two friends a look and narrowed her eyes. “This isn’t over,” she said, and pointed her two fingers on her eyes and then pointed them at Boa and Seulgi, and mouthed, “I’m watching you.” After that, she turned to their teacher and listened t his lecture.

Boa and Seulgi sighed in relief. Well, at least she left them alone. For now.

…

The rest of week passed by slowly for Boa and Seulgi, as they had to dodge Hyojoo’s frequent attacks. She was really coming onto them.

Bur for the guys, it was the exact opposite. Time seemed to fly for them, as they were preparing fro Hyojoo’s surprise. Jaejoong and Yunho were being helpful friends, assisting Donghae in any way they can.
That night, everything was set, and all they had to do was to get Hyojoo to where the surprise was.

And she was as miserable as ever. She was in the room, crying on the bed when Boa and Seulgi came in.

“Aww, come on, Hyojoo! It’s not that bad!” Boa said, in comfort.

“What do you mean, it’s not that bad?!?!?!” Hyojoo wailed. “I’m just lying here, on my 3-month anniversary, and my boyfriend is out there doing who knows what, while I cry on the bed, missing him!”

“Okay, that’s obviously not a good thing, but at least you have us…” Boa said.

Hyojoo wailed even louder.
“Okay, now what’s that supposed to mean?” Boa said, putting her hands on her hips.

Hyojoo sniffed. “It doesn’t mean that I don’t like you guys, okay? I’m just really sad,” she whimpered.

Seulgi walked over to her and put an arm around her shoulder. A while later, she pulled her up.

“C’mon, let’s go somewhere,” she said.
“Where?” Hyojoo asked. Plus, she didn’t feel like she was in the mood of going anywhere, especially when she was supposed to be somewhere with Donghae at the time.

“You’ll see,” Seulgi replied, pulling her up. “Now, turn that frown upside down and get dressed! And make sure you look pretty!”

Hyojoo reluctantly did as she was told and went to the bathroom to freshen up. Seulgi turned to Boa and gave her a two thumbs up.

“Successs!”
…

The three girls went downstairs, Hyojoo being the most dressed-up one among them.

She looked at the pretty skirt and blouse she was wearing and looked at Seulgi’s ripped jeans and Boa’s t-shirt. “Aren’t I a bit… over-dressed?” she asked them.

Her two friends looked at her and laughed. “Don’t be silly! You look great!” they said, and gave her outfit nods of approval. “In fact, you look perfect!”

Hyojoo looked at them uncertainly and said, “Okay.”

They were walking to the door leading to the outside world when Boa gasped.
“Omo! Seulgi, I forgot my phone! Come with me!” she said and pulled Seulgi along. They gave Hyojoo an apologetic look and Boa said, “Hyojoo, you can just go to the park already, wait for us, okay?”

“But-“ Hyojoo began, then sighed as she didn’t get to finish. “First, my boyfriend forgets our 3-month anniversary, and now my friends leave me. Just my luck.”

She sighed again and made her way to the park.

Meanwhile, Seulgi and Boa were watching from afar and saw Hyojoo leave. Boa whipped out her phone and called Jaejoong.

“She’s on the way. Over.”
“Roger that,” Jaejoong replied. Then they hung up.

“Do you really have to do that military stuff? You’re not even using a walkie-talkie,” Seulgi pointed out.

Boa looked at her innocently. “It’s fun,” she simply said.
Seulgi rolled her eyes and they went back upstairs.

When Hyojoo arrived at the park, it was cold and unusually dark. There were no streets lights on and she felt scared. She jumped when her phone rang, saying she got a text message. It was from Seulgi. It read:

‘Go to the garden. Wait for us there!’

Hyojoo sighed and did as Seulgi instructed. As she arrived at the garden, a bright light suddenly shone. It took a while for Hyojoo to realize that they were emanating from Christmas lights.

The lights were wrapped around the trees and bushes of the surrounding area and along the pathway. At the end of the pathway, there was some kind of man-made canopy. It was made of four white wooden pillars, and they were connected by a roof. The pillars had some vines wrapped around them, where beautiful flowers grew along, and the vines were also wrapped with lights.

As Hyojoo walked along the path, with an awed expression, she suddenly heard a familiar tune, coming from behind the trees.

She gasped when she heard a beautiful voice singing the words of her favorite song.

“The loneliness of nights alone, the search for strength to carry on
My every hope has seemed to die, my eyes had no more tears to cry”

Hyojoo frantically looked around, looking for the person who the voice belonged to.

" Then like the sun shining up above, you surrounded me with your endless love
Coz all the things I couldn't see are now so clear to me”

Then, as she was just about to give up, Donghae appeared from the other side of the pathway, and was on the canopy. He was holding a mic and was walking towards Hyojoo, singing to her.

“You are my everything, nothing your love won't bring
My life is yours alone, the only love I've ever known
Your spirit pulls me through when nothing else will do
Every night I pray on bended knee
That you will always be my everything”

He reached her and pulled her close, dancing with her as he sang.

“You're the breath of life in me, the only one that sets me free
And you have made my soul complete for all time, for all time”

Hyojoo could feel tears stinging her eyes. “So, he didn’t forget,” she thought to herself. She felt so elated and ecstatic to be in his arms. He continued singing.

“You are my everything, nothing your love won't bring
My life is yours alone, the only love I've ever known
Your spirit pulls me through when nothing else will do
Every night I pray on bended knee
That you will always be my everything”

Hyojoo buried her head in his chest, sniffing as he ended the song.

“Oh my everything”

As Donghae ended his song, he said into the mic, “Saranghae.”

Hyojoo was in his arms, crying tears of happiness. Donghae looked at her tear-stained face, worried that he had somehow disappointed her.

“Are you okay? I’m so sorry! I know my English isn’t that good, but-” he jabbered, but Hyojoo cut him off. She hiccoughed and nodded. “I thought you forgot,” she said in between sniffs.
Donghae chuckled as he pulled her closer. “Pabo. Would you really think that I’d forget a day like this? Three months ago was the best day of my life.” He nudged her head lightly.

Hyojoo stopped sniffing and so did her tears. “I guess I was kinda foolish,” she admitted.
“Nah,” said Donghae. “To me, you’re never foolish.” He then leaned down to kiss her passionately.

Hyojoo beamed and responded by kissing him back.

“Happy 3-month anniversary,” Donghae said as they pulled apart. “Saranghae, Han Hyojoo.”

“I know,” Hyojoo teased. “Na Do Saranghae, Lee Donghae.”

<3--------------------------------