“Ms. Song! Ms. Song!” a chorus of voices called out.

Jamie turned left and right, thinking if there were really loud voices calling her or was there any other Ms. Song in the middle of the street other than her.

“Ms. Jamie Song! Over here!”

Jamie turned to her left and saw several smiling faces and waving hands. She grinned. It was a small group of her students from the school. She walked over to where they were, and was greeted enthusiastically.

“Whoa, teach! You look hot!” Insoo, a senior student grinned, whistling admiringly.

A girl slapped his head upside down. “Yah! She’s still our teacher! Have some respect!” her name is Yoojin, one of the class presidents of the seniors. “Hello, Ms. Song. What are you doing out?”

Jamie grinned. “I was just strolling around. It’s Saturday and I got nothing to do. What are you guys doing here?”

“Oh! We are here to do some fund raising.” Insoo piped, jumping off his seat and offering it to Jamie. “Have a seat, Ms. Song.” he smiled widely, gesturing to the bench with a hand tucked behind him.

“Thank you, Mr. Cha.” Jamie smiled. “I always knew you were a gentleman.” she laughed.

“See, president? Teach said I’m a gentleman!” Insoo said smugly.

“Shikoro! Stop up! It wont help your grades.” Yoojin snarled.

“Oh my. Even out of school, the two of you still bicker.” Jamie shook her head with a smile. “Well, what kind of fundraising are you doing? And for is this exactly, Yoojin sshi?”

“It’s for one of our projects, miss.” Yoojin replied with a smile.

“Project? This early into the semester?” Jamie frowned.

“It’s actually for the kids we are helping at the center, miss.”

Jamie turned to her other side where one of her shyer students was sitting, holding a small rectangular case tightly. Her name’s Ina, a sophomore student with straight A’s but sort of poor on the socialization part of life.

“Center for kids? You mean an orphanage?” Jamie inquired.

“Yes, miss.” Ina nodded.

“Really? Wow. I never knew you were doing those kind of fundraisings.”

“It’s noting really. We enjoy performing out here. Since we have got nothing else to do during weekends, we decided that we’ll help the orphanage. It started the summer last year. We did pretty good back then but this past summer, we didn’t really get to collect that much money. Some of our previous members had to attend makeup classes.” Yoojin explained.

“There’s more than the five of you?” Jamie asked, pointing at other two students who were just listening at the back, one senior and a sophomore, both were good in music class, especially in playing the piano and guitar.

“Yeah. Some freshmen also signed up, but none of them had arrived yet. We’ll be starting in a few minutes with or without them.” Insoo said, fishing out his drumsticks out of his back pocket.

“So…you perform music out here? And donate whatever you collected to the orphanage?” Jamie gestured at the park in front of them where lots of people are passing by.

“Yeah. We sometimes perform in other parks nearby, sometimes in some functions or parties.” Insoo grinned.

“Cool. Can I sit down and watch?” Jamie said.

“Sure, teach. Better yet, how about you play with us? I haven’t really heard you play anything other than classics.” Insoo wiggled his brows suggestively.

“Is that some kind of a test for me to keep my position as a teacher?” Jamie narrowed her eyes at Insoo, a small smile on her lips. “I heard about what you guys did to Teacher Ma.”

“We had nothing to do with it! It was those brats form class A!” Insoo almost spat out the name of the class. “They think they’re so good they can make a teacher resign just because they all think she’s incompetent.”

Jamie knows what Insoo was talking about. Class A is composed of top students of the school. Though she could not really complain anything about her class with them, she did hear about some things from other students.

“Yeah, yeah. Well, I doubt the same trick will work with me.” Jamie grinned mischievously. “So!” she clapped her hands. “How about you start that performance now? I really want to see!”

With a loud whoop, Insoo dragged the others to where they had planned to set up for a performance, beside the fountain where most people where, just in the middle of the park surrounded by benches under shades of trees. Soon instruments were arranged. And with Yoojin’s amazing and captivating intro with her organ, the performance started.

Jamie couldn’t help but smile at how amazing the five of her students were. Of course she had heard them play before and she knows just how great they were, especially the seniors. But the way they play with huge smiles on their faces, the way they enjoy their music as much they made the people around them enjoy too, was just spectacular. She clapped her hands to the beat along with the people who were watching. The crowd steadily grew until it became a mini concert.

As the performance went on, Jamie realized that some freshmen from school had arrived, and a couple of them went to join the performance, adding music from two different instruments. There were three others who went around and hold donation boxes which started to fill after a few minutes. Jamie felt so exhilarated and happy.

She thought that the performance would just be the students playing for the crowd, but a after a few classical favorites which the students mixed with modern beat and tempo, a slight change to the music occurred. The beat became faster and soon there was more hip hop beat than the classics. Then several kids parted one side of the crowd, suddenly dancing their way into the middle of the mini stage.

The crown roared with delight as the kids started to dance to the music, all synchronized and beautifully choreographed. Little kids were jumping up and down in front of the crowds and trying to mimic the movements of the dancers. People were cheering and laughing and enjoying the show.

Jamie had seen many performances like these before, since university students tend to perform on streets too back in US. But she never felt more proud of seeing her own students play and perform for the crowd with big smiles like the one she was seeing, and knowing that they weren’t just doing it because they want attention or just simply showcasing their talents, but it as for something greater than that. Who said you can’t enjoy life and help others at the same time?

The performance lasted for about an hour and a half and when the crowd dispersed, Jamie stayed and cheered for her students, clapping her hands loudly even though her palms were red already.

“Wow! That was amazing!” she cheered as they run to her with loud laughter.

“Thanks, teach!” Insoo, who was sweating profusely thanks to the heat and his energetic playing with the drums, grinned. “You should have joined us! It’s lots of fun!”

Jamie just laughed. “I enjoyed watching you. And you!” she pointed at the small groups of freshmen who danced. “You were just amazing! That was so great! You should join the dance troupe or something!”

“We tried to audition but… we didn’t make the group. They said we’re too young.” one lanky boy, who is just about Siwon’s height, said with a shrugged. Insoo-hyung said we could perform with them.

“The school’s dance troupe joins international competitions, so they pick new members meticulously.” Insoo explained.

“Besides, we have great choreographers! You should meet them, Ms. Song. They’re fun!” the kid said.

“You ask help from people outside of school?” Jamie asked. She was quite concerned. Youngsters are prone to trusting adults and sometimes those people used that trust to mislead the young ones.

“Yeah. One of them actually is a great choreographer who studied abroad. The other one is Ina nuna’s brother.”

“You’ve got a brother?” Jamie asked Ina.

The shy girl nodded. “He went abroad three years ago and studied there. He came back a couple of weeks ago.”

“Well, that’s good. At least you guys know them. But what about the other one? Is he someone’s brother too? You know you can’t just trust strangers. There are many people out there who are up to no good.” Jamie warned.

“Stranger danger.” someone said from behind Jamie.

She froze. She know that voice too well.

“Oh! Han-sung hyung! You came!” the lanky kid ran past Jamie. “Did you see us dance? What do you think? We practiced real hard to do your routines!”

“You were cool. Really big improvement since three days ago.” Han-sung chuckled, patting the kid’s shoulder. He can’t get over the fact that the sixteen year old was almost as tall as he was.

“Thanks, hyung.” the kid grinned. “Oh! Before I forget. Let me introduce our Music teacher. She came to see us today too. Well, technically she didn’t, but she was able to watch the performance!” he babbled. “Hyung, this is Ms. Jamie Song. Ms. Song, this is Han-sung hyung, he’s our chorographer other than Ina-nuna’s brother.”

Jamie looked at Han-sung. She felt her heart constrict and just like before, it’s suddenly hard to breath. It’s the first time she heard him laugh again after almost five years, the first time she’s ever hear his cheerful voice. She know she missed him, but she didn’t know it was to this extent.

“Hello.” Han-sung said.

Jamie cringed inwardly at the politeness of his voice. It’s as if they don’t each other.

“Hi.” she replied in a small voice.

“Hyung, what do you think of our teacher? Isn’t she just a beauty? And she’s cool too! If only you’re single! You two really suit each other!” Insoo slung an arm around Han-sung’s shoulder, clucking his tongue and shaking his head.

Yoojin snarled at Insoo, “Yah, your such a blabbermouth, aren’t you? Zip it up!” she made a threatening facial expression.

“You’re married?” Jamie’s eyes widened in surprise.

Han-sung’s expression didn’t change, a polite look on his face but a blank expression in his eyes as he faced Jamie. “No.” he replied.

“That’s not what I mean, teach!” Insoo laughed rather nervously. “I meant that he’s a relationship! But he isn’t married!” he explained with his hands flying in the air.

Jamie couldn’t help but to remember Siwon hand gestures.

“Oh… I understand. He’s got a girlfriend.” Jamie nodded, tearing his gaze away from Han-sung’s cold eyes.

“Uh…” Insoo laughed nervously again. “Uh… oh yeah!” he piped. “Teach! Since you say we’re good, why don’t you treat us to a meal? Man, performing made me hungry!”

Jamie blinked a few times. “A meal?” she looked around and counted the students who were with them. “You mean all of you? You’re almost half of a class!” she said with a slightly aghast expression. There were 17 students all in all, and plus her and Han-sung, 19 people is quite a large number to feed.

“If your teacher won’t then I will treat you to a meal.” Han-sung raised his hand in the air, a smile on his face. The kids cheered. “Alright, then! Let’s go! I’m hungry too!”

The kids were delighted and gathered up their things, chatting happily. Jamie frowned when Han-sung threw her a smug look, as if telling her that he won. She didn’t even know what they were competing for, and the thought of Han-sung competing with her to get the students’ hearts is just something she can’t even accept Han-sung was actually trying to do.

“Who said I wont treat them to a meal?!” Jamie said loudly, huffing a bit as the students looked at her.

“Teach?” Insoo raised a brow.

Again, Jamie remembered Siwon with the gesture. She smiled at the bewildered kid. She walked over to them and slung an arm under Yoojin’s, who was also giving her teacher a confused look.

“Let’s go get something to eat! Come on!” Jamie yelled at the students cheerfully, a huge smile on her face.

The students cheered louder. “Alright!!”

It’s quite fun actually, to be with her students outside the school. She could easily see their carefree selves, the ones that are not burdened by schoolwork and peer divisions which is usually observed inside the school campus. Here, it doesn’t matter if you’re a shy senior, a gangly sophomore, or struggling freshmen. Here they are all just themselves, kids who are united by their common interest and something they all love.

She used to have someone who share that same feeling with her. Someone she had lost a long time ago.

She turned to look at Han-sung. Only to be met by his gaze at her. She froze for a moment, locking up gazes with him. It was a different look from him somehow. For the first time since they had met again, she didn’t see that cold hard stare that seemed to mock her for what happened five years ago. She doesn’t even know if she did see what she did. But she could swear that what she saw in Han-sung’s eyes was the same feeling she feels inside her.

That same longing feeling for a friend she used to have.

But he took his gaze somewhere else. And Jamie sighed silently, turning to answer a small question that one of the freshmen students asked her, something about her experience abroad as she studied.

“Oh, Han-sung hyung! How about you tell us the rest of that story you were telling us the last time we had practice?” Insoo suddenly piped up, nodding his head at the others who cheered him on. “We want to know what happened to that boy!”

The others cheered their agreement, filling the restaurant with their loud optimism. They clapped their hands and egged Han-sung on.

“Yah, you brats! You’re disturbing the other customers!” Han-sung shushed the students down and apologized at the several people who looked at them disapprovingly. “I’ll tell it to you next time! Next practice!”

“Aw… but we want to hear it now! And Ms. Song can listen to it too!” a freshmen girl pouted. “Come on, oppa!”

“What is this story about?” Jamie asked Yoojin curiously.

“It’s nothing!” Han-sung blurted out before Yoojin can answer. “Just eat you guys!” he said rather loudly, ushering the kids to pick up food from the table.

Jamie could easily read Han-sung even after all the years. The way he was acting, diverting the kids from forcing him to tell whatever the story was, and how he glanced at her for a flitting moment before looking away, only means that he doesn’t want her to hear the story he told the students. She wonders what story it was.

“Yah, Insoo-yah. What is this story about?”  Jamie asked Insoo, whom she knows would easily tell here what she wants to know.
“Why do you always ask about things even if you are told that it’s nothing?” Han-sung growled at Jamie. He ignored the shocked gasps of the students. “Is it not enough that I said it was nothing?”

Jamie couldn’t say a thing. It’s one thing for Han-sung to be cold towards her. Directly getting angry at her was another thing entirely. And it was in front of her students. She can’t help but to think about how he had just somehow acknowledge that he actually know her in front of other people.

“Why don’t you ever change? Still so annoying.” Han-sung scoffed before standing from the table. Leaving some bills beside his plate, he turned and left the table-full of shocked students.

Silence covered the whole table for a few moments.

“What… just happened?” Insoo asked no one in particular.

The students started asking each other what happened.

“Ms. Song. What…why was he suddenly…” Yoojin looked at her teacher curiously.

“You…you were his best friend.” Ina said quietly, earning curious glances from the other kids.

“Me?” Jamie asked dumbly. The thought of Ina meaning her as Han-sung’s best friend almost made tears start pricking her eyes. She used to be Han-sung’s best friend…used to be.

“What do you mean?” Insoo and Yoojin asked in unison.

“That boy’s best friend. The one who he swears to hate but he still longs for.” Ina continued.

“The boy in hyung’s story?” Insoo asked, frowning.

Yoojin had not been elected as the class president of their class for nothing. She quickly managed to put two and two together.

“You… and Han-sung oppa… you were actually those best friends on his story.”

“You mean Teach was the girl who that boy, which is actually Han-sung hyung, was looking for and wanting to meet again?” Insoo’s frown got even deeper. “Are you kidding? It’s just a story.”

“No. It’s not.” Ina said quietly. “I know. I’ve heard it before from my brother.”

Yoojin and Insoo gave Jamie the same surprised look.

Jamie clutched her mailbag, which was on her lap, tightly. “He… he wanted to see me…again…?” she asked softly, not really knowing if it was towards her students or herself or God. “But he’s… he said… he said he never… wants to see me…”

With a sudden motion, Jamie was running out of the restaurant, looking for Han-sung in the middle of pedestrian-filled streets. She needs to talk to him. She needs to tell him she’s sorry for what happened. She needs to know if he really wants to see her again. Just like what that story he told her students.

She saw him walking fast to catch the pedestrian lane’s green light. She ran faster, muttering apologies when she accidentally pushed people in her haste.

“Han-sung!” she called out. She saw him look back but he didn’t stop and walked faster instead, crossing to the other side of the street. “Han-sung!” she called even louder.

Jamie saw the green light blink in warning. She ran even faster. If she waited for it to change color again, she would lose Han-sung. She needs to talk to him now. She’s afraid she’d lose the courage to face him and ask her questions if she didn’t do it now.

But then when she was nearly over to the other side of the street, cars started to cross.

And then a truck was coming her way, horn blowing.

When she watch movies where protagonists are in the middle of the street with a car coming to collide with them, she would laugh at the ridiculousness of it. She would think that who would be stupid enough to actually wait for the car to hit them? The amount of time that they spend staring at the oncoming car could be used to run to the side of the street and be safe.

And standing in the middle of the street with a truck coming to hit her felt surreal. It’s like you’re in a slow motion. She wanted to move her feet but there felt like they were rooted to the ground. Now she knows why people get hit. Your brain seems to stop the moment you see the car coming towards you. It’s like all your body functions stop, you can’t move a muscle. Every inch the truck  takes towards her, a picture of her life passes by her eyes.

All she could think was she’s going to die without even making up with her best friend.

And how someone who she had been trying not to think of all day, but manage to pop into her mind anyways even if she doesn’t want him there, would feel if she’s suddenly gone from his life. She’d got so many things to ask him. So many things she wants to tell him, do with him, enjoy with him. She wants to tell him that she enjoys being with him and would like to get to know him even better… but it seems that it wont happen now.

“Siwon…” she breathed out just as the truck horned loudly a few feet from her.

“Jamie!” Siwon blurted out, bolting to sit upright. His hand is on his chest and he could easily feel his heart beating fast as if he had just run a marathon.

“Siwon?! Are you okay? Did you just have a nightmare?” Sungmin asked, awakened by Siwon’s sudden outburst. The two of them were at the backseat of the car, sleeping side by side to save some energy since they had been packed up with schedules for the past two days. “What’s wrong?”

Siwon pressed on his chest, feeling that circular object underneath his clothes, hanging beside the cross he always wears. “I… I just felt… Jamie…” he said in almost a whisper. “Jamie. I don’t know. It’s like there’s something wrong that’s happening. I don’t understand, hyung.”

“Relax, Siwon. If something wrong happened, then someone would have informed you already. Jamie’s fine.” Sungmin put a reassuring hand on the other’s shoulder. “What’s wrong? Why are we stopping? The light’s green.” he asked the driver.

“I think there’s an accident ahead.” the driver replied.

“An accident?” Sungmin frowned, looking out the tinted window. He rolled it down a bit and looked outside. There’s a commotion on the side of the road, “Did someone get hit?” he asked.

“I think so. There’s a truck ahead that is halfway to the other lane.” the driver answered. “Oh! I think a girl almost got hit.” he clucked his tongue. “People are careless sometimes.”

Siwon and Sungmin peered outside. They could see a small crowd parting to let a guy who was carrying a seemingly unconscious girl towards somewhere.

“Hey, isn’t that the new guy trainer?” Sungmin pointed out.

Siwon was surprised. It was indeed Han-sung.

Han-sung carrying an unconscious Jamie on his arms, an extremely worried look on his face.

“Oh my God! Jamie!” Siwon could only say, feeling his heart almost burst with concern. He was suddenly out of the car and running towards Han-sung, hoping, praying, desperately that Jamie was alright. He doesn’t know why, but the thought of Jamie getting hurt just make him want to go … mad.
 

a/n: i'm bad... really really bad... XP