Ara gnawed on her lower lip as she watched Sehun carry Lee Miyoung to the infirmary, tightly gripping her books and the gym shoes. The said male seemed awfully natural when carrying the petite girl. So much that Ara couldn’t help but wonder about how comfortable they actually were around each other. However, she forced herself to put away any spark of jealousy before it could come close to inflaming in this moment. It wasn’t up to her to judge the friendship between Sehun and another person. Because realistically, she didn’t own him, nor did she have the right to forbid him any interaction with the opposite bender. And right now her focus was on Miyoung as she was unconscious.

And so Ara only stared at the girl in Sehun's arms, internally wishing that they'd reach the infirmary as quickly as possible for the girl looked really frail and for she was wishing to see Sehun's arms not carry anyone. Fortunately, they did reach the infirmary in no time, and Sehun carefully put down Miyoung and excused himself, saying that he was going to call a maid from the Lee mansion and inform them. Ara's gaze followed him as he walked outside. Indeed, Sehun seemed to be very familiar with this situation. Ara wouldn’t have dealt with it so naturally and calmly. The only explanation was that Sehun had already experienced such a situation a few times at least.

Ara frowned. Did Lee Miyoung often faint? Why – her thoughts halted when the other girl's eyelids fluttered open. Feeling responsible to treat Miyoung, who looked really weak at the moment, properly, despite having just exchanged rather unfriendly words with each other, Ara leaned forward and asked, “Are you okay?”

She watched as Miyoung's eyes widened at the sight of her. The short moment of surprise, however, disappeared as fast as it came. It was replaced by a tired expression. “Why are you here, Ara-ssi?” Miyoung sounded tired. Tired and defeated. It was unmistakable, even for Ara. The latter almost felt bad for the other girl, if it weren't for the other one's ridiculous request of Ara leaving Sehun alone. That one request had cast a rather unlikeable shadow upon Lee Miyoung.

“Sehun and I brought you here because you just suddenly fainted.” Just as Ara finished answering, the door opened and Sehun stepped inside the infirmary again. “Her driver is going to pick her – oh you're already awake?”

“Yeah, thanks for calling.” Miyoung gave him a weak smile. One that wasn’t filled with cuteness or any kind of cheerfulness. It simply showed her exhaustion. “And I'm sorry … ah, Ara-ssi, I know I'm asking lot from you today, but could you please leave us alone for a minute or two?” Miyoung asked, and Ara could hear a clear difference between the request from before and now. It seemed as if the latter was much more sincere, not filled with any faux sympathy and softness, but simply showcasing Miyoung's wish at the moment.

Ara's gaze hushed to Sehun, whose eyes seemed to ask for the same as Miyoung did. Not even a second later Ara nodded and made her way to the door. Although it felt strangely sour to be asked to leave Sehun alone with another girl, she knew, she had no right to say something against it. She trusted Sehun's feelings for her, so she had to let him deal with his own problems alone.

Once the door was closed, Sehun left Miyoung no second to say something, as he had immediately understood once he had noticed Miyoung on the rooftop, but he had chosen not to say anything until she was awake and they were alone. “Why did you involve Ara? I thought, you wouldn’t–” “–Oh Oppa, don’t think that I am nice enough to accept everything the way it is. I told you I wouldn’t tell your parents because I would really never want to cause trouble for you. But I never said a thing about Park Ara,” Miyoung interrupted him as she gripped the blanket tightly. In the end, it is always easier to cause harm to a stranger than to someone you hold dear.

“But you did cause trouble for me,” Sehun replied and although he didn’t want to put blame on the girl, there was one thing she had to realize. “Do you know how worried I was when I saw Lee Byunghee and Ara on the rooftop? He could have hurt her,” he took a deep breath, “And I can't bear to see her in pain.” It would hurt Miyoung to hear that, but she needed to realize that harming Ara would only anger and worry him.

Sehun's eyes wandered to Miyoung's hands that were formed to fists. “I know; I have realized. There is no need to tell me, Oppa,” she whispered. “I've been defeated, she has won.”

Sehun grew suspicious at Miyoung's phrasing, but at the same time there was a part of him that wanted to cheer her up upon seeing how downhearted she looked and sounded. “What did you … ?”

“Don't be so suspicious Oppa. Your dark gaze is hurtful,” she chuckled hollowly. “I haven't done anything severe. I only wanted to talk with her, but in the end she didn’t give in, so no need to be worried.”

Sehun could see that she was telling the truth and he felt guilty for not having been able to hide his suspicion. It was an instinct. The Miyoung right now was the one who had put down her mask of a spoiled and cheerful girl. It was the broken Miyoung. He hadn't seen this side of her often. Maybe once? And he felt bad for her, but at the same time he was still disappointed that she dragged Ara into all this.

“And what about Lee Byunghee then?”

“I didn’t ask him. He offered his help, and I thought that securing my safety was only logical. However, I told him I didn’t want violence. You know how much I hate violence, Oppa,” Miyoung sighed and sat up straighter.

Sehun nodded understandingly. She had told him very often during their stay abroad that she loathed physical violence so much she cringed every time she had to see it. Which was also the reason she didn’t go between Byunghee and Ara other than the fact that the other girl hadn’t looked as if she needed help. Violence brought many memories back to Miyoung and most of the time she couldn’t help but feel helpless.

However, Sehun didn’t know about the memories; he only knew her dislike for violence.

“Ah, and Oppa, thanks for keeping your promise.” Miyoung smiled weakly. “But in the end, that Lee Byunghee hadn't kept his word,” she muttered. “But it doesn’t matter anyway. Nothing has happened, neither to his favor, nor to mine.” She shook her head lightly. “I'm not going to interfere again, Oppa. This time for real. I mean, it's useless anyway,” she mumbled, still sounding so defeated as she replayed the scene of Ara telling her she wouldn’t let go of Sehun. Her eyes had reflected the same determination as Sehun's yesterday when he'd told her he wouldn’t waver. The same trust in the other person's feelings. The same love.

And when Sehun had rushed to the rooftop; all the worry directed towards Ara … it had made Miyoung realize something. The strength of their love.

Please Subscribe to read the full chapter