Sojin's POV

 

I quietly entered my house, careful not to make too much noise when I closed the door. My nose was painfully pounding and my cheek had swelled up. But it didn't matter. For the first time in several years, I had a friend. It felt like I was going to explode with happiness just by thinking about it, and it was a wonderful feeling. Maybe everything wasn't so hopeless. 

 

"Sojin? Is that you?" mom's cold voice called from the living room.

 

"Yes", I answered.

 

"Come here", she demanded.

 

I walked up to the door opening, seeing her sit in a armchair with a glass of water in her hand. Her hard eyes found mine, and I tensed up.

 

"What happened to your cheek?" she asked me, not a single sign of concern in her voice.

 

"I... I tripped", I answered quickly.

 

She frowned at my answer. My answered was not satisfying, since it told her that I was clumsy.

 

"You should watch your steps", she said coolly, taking a sip of her water.

 

I nodded. 

 

"I only wanted to tell you that your brother's coming home for a visit", she said, looking away from me and out the window.

 

"He is? When?" I asked, trying to hide my reluctance.

 

If Dongsung was coming home, it ment that I would look even more dull next to him than I already was. 

 

"This weekend", mom answered, not looking away from the window.

 

I nodded, even if she couldn't see it, and then turned around. There wasn't anything else to say, so why should I stay there and disturb her peace. I walked up the stairs, feeling a weak pain in my knees, and then closed myself in my room. I sat down on my bed heavily, trying to sort out all of the feelings I was experiencing. Pain, humiliation, reluctance. But in the middle of all those other emotions, happiness forced itself in, making all the bad things a little more bearable. Just the fact that Minhyuk was going to be in school the next day, waiting for me, made me happier. 

 

Minhyuk's POV

 

As soon as I saw Sojin walk through the doors, I hurried up to her. I was a little worried that anyone was going to do something to her if I wasn't around. She looked alarmed when she felt someone coming up behind her, but when she saw that it was me, she immediatly relaxed.

 

"Hello!" I greeted her cheerfully. 

 

"Hi", she replied quietly.

 

"How's the nose?" I asked, concerned.

 

Surprise colored her face for a second, before she pulled her expression together.

 

"It's fine", she answered.

 

I gave her a disbelieving look, but she avoided my gaze. I did notice the glares we recieved, but they didn't bother me at all. It was none of their business, and that made their opinions irrelevant. We both stopped infront of her locker, and I waited patiently for her to get her stuff. I'd already gotten my own stuff, since I'd arrived earlier. While she was looking for something, I took my time to look at the door of the locker. It still made me angry to see those things carved into it, but that one creation of mine made it better. When she was done, I walked with her to her class, before I ran to my own. 

 

Between every break I repeated that cycle. When the class ended, I waited for her to come out of the classroom, I walked with her to her locker and made sure that she got safely to her next class. Some might see it as a duty, but I thought it was great. I got the chance to get to know her better, and I showed everyone that they couldn't do anything about it. But when the lunch break came, and I was starting to walk towards the cafeteria, I noticed that Sojin wasn't following me. When I turned around, I found her standing in the middle of the empty hall, her arm tightly crossed over her chest and staring down the floor.

 

"Aren't you coming?" I asked her.

 

She shook her head, not looking up from the floor. I bit my lip, and looked at the direction that the cafeteria was, and then back at her. It was obvious she wasn't going to come.

 

"Well... where do you usually eat?" I asked. 

 

That made her glance up at me, looking confused. She did eat, didn't she?

 

"Nowhere", she admitted.

 

Of course she didn't. I looked at her for a moment, before I got an idea.

 

"Okay. If you go out and sit on the stairs at the entrance, I'll be there soon", I said, backing away from her.

 

"What?" she asked in confusion, looking up at me completely.

 

"Just do it", I smiled at her.

 

I ran to the cafeteria, quickly getting two lunches, but just when I was about to leave, I bumped into Peniel.

 

"Oh. Hi, Peniel", I said.

 

"Hi. Where are you going?" he asked me, looking at all the food in my arms.

 

"Uhm... I'm eating outside, with Sojin", I said hesitantly.

 

"Oh, I see..." he said.

 

"Yeah... Wanna join?" I asked.

 

He looked at me with doubt and then shook his head.

 

"I better not. It's better if you do it alone", he answering.

 

"Okay. But I'll see you around?" I said, beginning to walk away.

 

"Yeah", he said.

 

I turned around and left the cafeteria. I actually understood why he didn't want to eat with us. He wasn't one of them who bullied Sojin, but he stayed away from it completely. He was a cool guy, but I was a little upset at all of them for not doing anything about the situation. When I came out to the stairs, I found Sojin sitting on the bottom step, looking down at her feet.

 

"And here's lunch", I said while I put the food down next to her.

 

She looked up at me in startlement, and then down at the food. 

 

"Oh, Minhyuk, I can't-" she begun, but I cut her off.

 

"Of course you can. I'm your friend, so I'm allowed to", I said, sitting down next to her.

 

My words made her give up, even bringing a small smile to her face, before she dug in. I watched her eat in fascination, never knowing before that such a small body could fit so much food into it. She noticed my stare, and looked away with red cheeks, embarrased.

 

"You should eat too", she mumbled.

 

I did as she told me, reaching over her to take a bottle of water, and I couldn't avoid her sweet scent. It was all natural, which made it even better, and I was forced to bite my tounge to force the thoughts away. I sat up straight, making a little more distance between us, and took a mouthful of the water. She actually made me nervous. That quiet, careful, wronged girl made me nervous.