After class on Monday I didn’t bother to get lunch, and instead I decided to just head to Two Moons, with my backpack and everything. While walking up the steps out of class my friends Victoria and CL called out for me, so I stopped and let them catch up. “Where are you going? Want to get some lunch?” Both smiled and seemed to really want me to go with them, but after Saturday morning (the mere thought still making my one cheek burn) I just wanted to go to the shop. As we walked outside, the sun being pretty blinding, I bit my lip trying to figure out what to do. “Come on, Summer!” said CL, “we haven’t hung out in a few weeks. You keep ditching us for your tea shop non-job.” Victoria nudged me and giggled, “Is there a boy you’re hiding from us?” I looked down, “it’s not like that.” The two girls exchanged a look and then before I was able to say anything they looped their arms with mine. “We demand to find out where you go and the reason.” I guess it would be good business for the shop. And I really do miss hanging out with the girls. “Alright let’s go.” CL and Victoria cheered and we walked, still arm in arm, to the shop.

As we walked they kept asking me questions, “so what’s his name?” “Are you guys official?” “Have you kissed?!” I stopped in my tracks, which made them quiet down, and looked them both in the eyes. “My going to the tea shop is more about the brothers as a whole, not any individual one. I’d love for you guys to meet them but I don’t want to be embarrassed....” Victoria, being the maternal type she is, scooped me up in a hug and patted my head, “don’t worry, hun. We’ll be on our best behavior,” she gave a look to CL, “right, CL?” CL looked off in thought, as if thinking about being good or bad, but when Victoria cleared she nodded, “We’ll be good. For you, Summer.” I sighed happily and wrapped one arm around each of them, “You guys are the best you know that, right?” Chuckling CL sang, “Naega jeil jal naga.” And with that we walked together to meet the boys of Two Moons.

When we arrived none of the boys were anywhere to be seen. I told the girls to take a seat at my normal table, and I went to go see what was going on. Then all I heard from the kitchen was someone yelling “WHAT HAPPENED?!” I hurried to the back to see a bunch of broken dishes on the floor, Chen on the floor trying to pick it all up, most of the boys standing far away, and Kris, Tao right behind him, with the most furious face on leaning over Chen. “Do you know how much it’s going to cost to get new dishes!” Tao was shaking his head slightly, and Chen was trying hard to ignore how loud Kris’s voice was and clean up. I walked over and bent over to help pick up the piece, but Kris grabbed me by the shoulder to stop me, “don’t, this is his mess.” Just then Chen made a wincing sound and blood started to trickle down his finger. “Don’t pick that up, Chen. I’ll get a broom.” I shrugged off Kris’s hand and walked over to the other boys and said “Xiumin, can you help bandage up Chen?” before grabbing the broom. Kris quickly grabbed it from me and handed it to Tao. “No. This is the last straw, his jokes have gone too far.” From over by the sink, where Xiumin was having Chen rinse his hand, Chen sniffled out “but I wasn’t doing anything! I tripped and they slipped out of my hands!” Tao shot the boy a dark glare which made him shut up before turning to me, “let Kris take care of this. He’s right about this. Just like he always is.” Kris chimed in, “And what I say goes. Chen come here and clean this by hand. And you don’t get to eat tonight or tomorrow as payment.”

I stared with my mouth gaped looking at him. “Are you serious? It was an accident, Kris. You’re being dumb.” Lay, with Luhan close behind him, spoke up, “She’s right, Kris. You’re overreacting. Our brother is hurt. And basically scared to tear because of you, for god’s sake.” He looked over at Chen wiping his eyes and shook his head before walking out the back door to the alley while yelling, “None of you know what this means! None! Of! You!” He slammed the door, making us all wince. Chen walked over and wrapped his arms around me hiding his face in my shoulder, “Thank you, Summer, for standing up for me.” I gave him a tight hug before he let go and went to take the broom from Tao, but Tao pulled it away from him. “You heard Kris, use your hands.” That was it, I couldn’t take it anymore. I grabbed the broom while Tao was distracted and glared at him as I handed it to Chen. “He’s already hurt.” The boys all left to go clean up, and left the two of us, Tao and myself, alone in a death stare.

“You don’t get it, Summer. Kris is always right, and if he says Chen should be punished then he should be punished.” I threw my hands up in the air, “One person isn’t always right, Tao! I think Kris is just as great as you do...” Tao cut me off, “No! You don’t! You don’t know him the way I do, and you never will.” I just stared at him, a little taken back, as he continued. “And this is our shop. Our family’s shop. You don’t belong here, and you need to leave.” I blinked, trying to keep back the tears, and turned to leave. Tao followed but stopped when my friends came into view. “We’re leaving.” Victoria and CL could tell something was wrong, plus they probably heard some of the yelling, and they just got their things and followed me to the front door. Just then Kris came back in and saw me leaving “Sum...” Tao grabbed his arm to keep him from following and the next thing any of them knew we were gone.

The next few hours I spent in my room, switching between crying because I was sad and crying because I was so frustrated. My friends barely got me to go eat dinner with them at the dining hall, and even then I only picked at things and barely ate at all. I soon returned to my room and just collapsed on my bed, unsure of what to do and what to think. Maybe Tao was right, maybe I didn’t belong there. Kris probably doesn’t like me as much as I do him, and I probably didn’t do much to help him. Turning onto my side I closed my eyes and tried to just sleep these thoughts away, but all of a sudden my phone started to light up and sing “Ring ding dong ring ding dong.” I didn’t recognize the number, but answered anyways. “Hello...?” “Ayo, what up?” I heard his chuckle and shot up so fast that I hit my head on the wall by accident. “Kris?” He cleared his throat, “Yeah...can you open your door?” “What?!” I went over and opened my room’s door and there he was, standing there with his hands behind his back.

“Hi,” he said softly before showing the little white flower he had behind his back. “Your friends saw me and showed me to your room, I hope you don’t mind.” From the hall I could hear CL and Victoria running into their room and closing the door before they got caught. “Can...can I come in?” I stepped aside and he stood there in the middle of my room as I closed the door. “You can sit at my desk if you want....” He nodded and held out the flower, “I got this for you. As a small sorry....” I couldn’t help up smile slightly as I took the flower and watched him sit down, and I sat on my bed across from him. “I actually owe you a bit apology. Not just from my actions, but for Tao’s as well.” All I could do was nod and let him continue. “I can admit I was overreacting to the Chen accident, and I did apologize to him and the others, just so you know. But you’ve seen the finance papers, we’re not in a good place and those dishes are a big loss for us.  I also didn’t want to see any other way but mine, which you’ve seen me be stubborn before when we discuss the finances, but I know what I did wrong now and I’m so sorry, Summer. I hope my yelling didn’t upset you.” He reached over and held my hands, “And I’m sorry for what Tao said. Luhan took me aside and told me what happened.” I looked down at this point, thinking about what Tao said. But Kris cupped my chin and made me look at him, “After all you’ve done, and how close al...most of us are to you. You do deserve to be at Two Moons. Just as much as the rest of us. You are our family, Summer.” His hand moved and caressed my cheek, before he got up and sat next to me on my bed. “Can you forgive me for everything?” I smiled, probably bigger than I meant to, and nodded, “Of course, I do.”

He nodded and smiled. “Thank you.” His arm s around my side, and he held me close to him. I couldn’t help smiling as I looked up at him. We stayed like that for a little until I heard him sigh sadly. “What’s wrong?” He shrugged and replied, “I don’t know what we’re going to do. All of the few dishes we had are broken, but we don’t have extra money to replace them. But without dishes we can’t serve people and get the small amount of money we make to stay afloat. I can’t let something this bad happen to my family....” I wrapped my arms around his middle and hugged him, resting my head against his chest. We sat like that as we both tried to think of a solution. Then a thought popped into my head. “What if we went to good will or something? They always have dishes for sale there. The stuff may not match but it’s a start.” He looked at me, with an inquisitive look on his face as I continued. “And I know you’re worried about money, it stresses you out so much...it makes me worry about you. All of you really.... What if we tried putting up flyers and promoting on my campus?” I looked up at him to see his reaction. His eyes opened widely and a smile spread on his face, “That’s a great idea!” He stood up suddenly and took my hand, “let’s go!” I chuckled and pulled his hand back a little, “It’s too late right now, but we’ll go tomorrow.”

“Right, right. I knew that,” he blushed and tried to play it off, I couldn’t but laugh at him. “Summer, you are like the angel our shop needed.” I stopped laughing as he squeezed my hand. “You’re the angel I really needed.” I could feel the heat on my cheeks, and as if he wanted to feel it too his hands caressed my face, only making the warmth turn into a fire. He made me look into his eyes, which were normally cold and tired, and were now warmer than I had ever seen them. Those warm eyes came closer, too close to keep mine open. The only thing I felt then was his lips pressed onto mine. My heart was pounding as I registered what was happening in my mind, and instantly I kissed him back. My arms wrapped around his middle without thought as one of his hands cupped the back of my neck. The kiss deepened from there, and just as soon as it started it ended. We were left breathing heavily, our faces inches away from the other’s. We smiled at each other as he rested his forehead on mine. “Such an angel.”