1 Hyung: older brother - honorific used by younger male to older male.   He has thought about it over the weekend. After what they have had and based on what he knows about Krystal’s feelings towards him, he cannot let her go. Just no. Not to anyone. She is his and he is going to make sure it stays that way.   “Krystal! We need to talk!”   Krystal ignores his desperate plea and glares at hi. “There’s nothing to talk about, Myung Soo! We’re done!”   Myung Soo flinches, instantly regretting his decision for approaching her in class. He should’ve called her to meet up. He should’ve taken her for a talk at lunch, or after school. He blames his impatience for landing him in that situation. Embarrassment hits him because in that moment; Krystal’s classmates stop whatever they are doing and they shamelessly watch a couple fight ensuing before them.   He notices the flash of guilt in her eyes as soon as the words leave her lips and hangs in the air. Her face contorts in both affliction and regrets. opens as if she is trying to say something to repent her attitude, but nothing comes out.   And her indecisiveness hurts him even more.   Anger boils in him. Everyone now knows that Krystal has dumped him. The Krystal who without shame had declared her affection for and claimed him just a year ago. The Krystal who made him fall for her, only to dump him like an unwanted Christmas present.   Couldn’t she at least save him the embarrassment?   “Why are you treating me as if what we’ve had in the past year was nothing to you?!” he questions, trying to hold back tears that surprisingly are just around the corner.   Not now, it’s embarrassing, he tells himself.   “Is money really that important to you?” he growls, not caring anymore that everyone is staring as if trying to drill a hole on their faces.   Although she has made the earlier reaction, her expression changes quickly as she snaps, “Yes! It is! So can you please just leave me alone?! I want nothing to do with you from now on!”   He feels his lips quivering and immediately stomps away from her in order to stop making a fool out of himself. But as he almost reaches the door, his thought halts. He recalls the many times he rejected her, but not once did she waver and instead, she stood back up and kept coming after him. For her to persevere like that given her character, there is no way her feeling has been fake. Sung Yeol’s question echoes in his mind as he rethinks it over. “If Uncle and Aunty suddenly go bankrupt and the only way to save your family is to marry a certain girl, would you leave Krystal?”   Krystal is doing this for her family, not because she doesn’t love him anymore. She still cares, as evident in the way she reacted earlier and was in remorse following her attitude. The cold face—her mask—the one she puts on when she doesn’t want anyone to see through her. That’s not Krystal’s angry or contempt expression, Myung Soo knows this. She becomes maliciously sarcastic and uses sweet, subtle words to send her messages across to the people she despices. There wasn’t any hint of these when she spoke to him; in fact, she seems transparently upset with the whole ordeal. There is hardly any light in her eyes these days.   Don’t play fire with fire.   Before you consider giving up someone because of a mistake, consider this: Would you leave for the one thing that was done wrong? Or would you rather stay for all the things that person has done right?   this.   I’m staying.   And if that means I’m going through a lot of hell, then let it be!   He whirls around, startling a student who has been watching his move the moment he turns away from Krystal. Krystal herself is staring at her desk as if something has peaked her interest, obviously pretending that what just happened does not affect her at all.   “Hey, Krystal.” When Krystal sends him the most hateful glare she could muster, he smirks. And he does not miss the blush that appears on her fair cheeks. “I’ll say this once and for all, so you better listen carefully,” he speaks with confidence and courage, just like she had the previous year. “One day,” he pauses as tension and expectation thicken in the air, “I’m going to make you mine again, so you better plan your life accordingly.”   Gasps, croons, and gawks fill the classroom.   He must have made himself really cool there, but he couldn’t care less.   “I’m going to make you madly and irrevocably fall for me again.”   Locking her gaze for another three seconds for effects, he makes his exit and breathes in a large gulp of air. He lets the fresh, relaxing sensation wash away the hurt he felt just minutes ago.   It seems that when you take confidence in yourself, you make yourself feel better and the world seems a lot more colourful with the optimism that fulfills you.   It doesn’t matter that he doesn’t know how he is going to get Krystal back. And it doesn’t matter that he might fail.   Because he isn’t going to take ‘no’ for an answer.   ---   Amber feels a finger on her chin, pushing her jaw up. Apparently, she has been gaping without her knowledge.   “Hyung1.”   Amber turns to her side to see the doe eyes that belong to Sulli Choi, the closest friend she has in this school and whole Korea. Despite being younger than her, the girl’s height has unbelievably surpasses her by more than five centimetres. Amber notes how she seems to have grown another centimetre over the weekend as the girl’s laugh fills her ears.   “You were drooling!”   Amber scowls, “I so wasn’t, kiddo!” She resumes walking along the corridor, past the class that is usually used for Physical Development and Health lesson. Students from Year 7 to 12 whose homeroom and lockers belong there have gathered for the roll-taking by their homeroom teacher before going to respective classes.   “That was really cool of Kim Myung Soo, wasn’t it?!” she remarks, eyes gleaming.   “Oh, so you like musicians huh, Sul?” Amber nudges her ribs playfully.   Sulli giggles and steps away from her. “Nah, I like sporty more.” Beaming, she adds, “Like you!”   Amber laughs and ruffles her hair, not noticing the way Sulli’s cheeks reddens and becomes dry as all knowledge of words are gone out the window, and not even the way younger’s heartbeat takes an erratic rhythm as a welcoming warmth fills her. And the way it always happens whenever Amber makes as much as a skin or eye contact with her.   “You’re too cute.”   Although Amber wouldn’t admit it publicly, but she does think that what Myung Soo Kim said back there was “really cool” and definitely hits the bulls’ eye in regards to her situation. Thanks to him, she has retrieved her optimism and courage. Still, to boldly declare such thing in public is not going to happen in her case - she has so much pride to preserve and is much more content to do this as low-profile as possible, just like how she has tried to keep her relationship with Se Hun that way, although it never happened since Se Hun was never afraid of public display of affection.   The main thing is that she cannot give up on Se Hun Oh like that.   Adding up to what she has decided over the weekend, she sets off on her mission to find Se Hun at his locker. Over the sea of students, she notices his caramel brown hair buried into a locker as it turns to the side every now and then. Probably talking to Jong In, she supposes.   She looks to her right and left for a secluded place to talk and when her mind registers one just around the corner, she increases her speed towards the boys. Grabbing Se Hun by the arm before he could leave her sight, she drags him into the quiet corner, ignoring Jong In’s shout. Se Hun is surprisingly quiet, not making any noise or fight at all. Though, he still wouldn’t meet her eyes as he asks for her purpose of taking him there.   He keeps fidgeting, looking at anywhere but her. He gnaws in his lower lip and Amber suddenly realises