~*~

“Why are you wearing that?” asked Baekhyun when he saw Chanyeol wearing a long white gown and a long hair wig.

“I can’t take that ‘toshio’ costume anymore. Besides, my legs are too long to fit inside the closet. So I volunteered to be the ghost,” said Chanyeol.

“If you’re the ghost, then ‘toshio’ is…” Baekhyun eyes grew wider.

“If you’re thinking of Seyoon, you’re wrong! I gave the costume to Sehun.”

“Sehun? But he can’t be here because they have a dance practice,” said Baekhyun.

Chanyeol shook his head. “No. He said, they will have their dance practice in the main hall this afternoon so he’s available in the morning.”

“Oh…and Seyoon?”

“She was assigned to arrange the props in the haunted house.”

Suddenly, two boys entered their classroom. “So, this is your presentation. Not bad. But I’m sure our ‘Flower Boys’ Café’ is more interesting,” Luhan said as he entered the room together with Xiumin.

“What’s that? HAHA!” said Xiumin when he saw Chanyeol’s costume.

“Why? Do you have a problem?” Chanyeol went to Xiumin as he looked down on him, knowing their height differences. Xiumin walked backwards and turned his gaze somewhere.

“Where’s Kai and that fan of his?” asked Luhan.

“Why? Why are you looking for Kai?” said Seyoon who just came from the props room, carrying the boxes of spiders, cobwebs, candles, and all things creepy.

“There you are! So are you ready to lose tomorrow?” said Luhan as he went closer to Seyoon. Chanyeol grabbed the box the she was holding as she went closer to Luhan.

“My question is, are you?” said Seyoon as he glared fiercely at Luhan.

“Tsk,” Luhan couldn’t look directly at Seyoon. He couldn’t say anything more, then suddenly…

“BOO!” Luhan got startled by the sudden appearance of a man covered with white paint and scary eye-lined eyes. Sehun secretly came behind him and scared the heck out of him. The boys including Xiumin, and Seyoon started laughing at his reaction.

“What are you laughing at?!?” he stared at them and at Xiumin, who was trying to hide his laughter. Suddenly, Lay entered the door.

“What are you doing here? They needed help in our classroom,” he said to Xiumin and Luhan. He suddenly bowed when he saw Chanyeol, Baekhyun, Sehun, and Seyoon. “I’m sorry if these two were bothering you,” he said as put his arms around Luhan and Xiumin and brought them outside the classroom.

“Why is he so different from them?” asked Chanyeol.

“I know right,” replied Seyoon.

---

Even though there was no scheduled practice today, Seyoon still went to the practice room as what she and Kai agreed yesterday. Kai looked at the door as it opened. He was nervous since yesterday and he didn’t know if he could pull things out but he already asked Seyoon so today was his chance.

“Oh…you’re not wearing that scary costume anymore?” asked Kai.

“No. Chanyeol volunteered for the role. That’s the reason why I was able to leave earlier,” she said as she smiled at him. “So, why do you ask me to come here early?”

“Ah…well, I thought I need to show you something.” Kai grabbed Seyoon’s hand and brought her to that one empty chair located at the corner of the room. He grabbed the remote control and suddenly a sound of piano resonated inside the room.

“Deoneun mangseoliji ma jebal♪

Don’t wait anymore please

Nae simjangeul geodoo-eoga♪

Take my heart instead

Geurae nalkaro-ulsurog chohwa♪

Yes, it is good as it is sharp

Dalbitjochado nooneul gameun bam♪

Even the moon closed its eyes this night

Na anin dareun namja-yeotdamyeon♪

If I were a different man

Huegeuk an-eue han gujeol-ieotdeo-ramyeon♪

And if I had a passage in a comedy

Neoye geu saramgua baggun sangcheo modu taewuobeoryeo♪

I would set fire to all the changed wounds that you and he made”

 

Kai went at the center of the room. Swift fingers moved with the notes of the piano as he started to move with the beat of the song. His red tank top hugged his body in every move, showing his toned dancer figure.

His body moved, swayed with intensity. His footsteps as light as air. His facial expression reflected the emotions the song brought. The movements of his arms and legs complemented the beat if the song.

And Seyoon just stared at him, immersed in the stage Kai created for her. It was as if the spotlight was casted on the two of them.

“Baby don’t cry, tonight♪

Baby don’t cry, tonight

eodumi geodhigo namyeon♪

After the darkness has lifted

Baby don’t cry, tonight♪

Baby don’t cry, tonight

eobseotdeon il-i dwell geoya♪

It’ll be like nothing ever happened

moolgeo-poom-i dueneun geoseun niga aniya, ♪

You will never become a bubble,

ggeutnae molla ya hae deon♪

In the end you don’t have to know

So baby don’t cry, cry♪

So baby don’t cry, cry

nae sarangi neol jikilteni♪

For my love will protect you.”

 

Kai tried to catch his breath as the song ended. “So how was it?” This was what Kai was afraid of all this time. Even though it was only a minute dance, it was the hardest choreography he ever thought of for one reason.

Kai just stared at her nervously. “Wow! I am 100% sure that you’ll win the competition with that kind of dance,” she said happily to him.

Kai shook his head. “No. This dance is not for the competition. It’s…it’s the first time I showed it to someone.”

“Huh?” Seyoon stared blankly at him. Her mind was so immersed with the dance that she couldn’t think properly right now.

“Remember when you told Luhan that I’m a better dancer than him. Based on what I knew, you’ve never seen me dance before. So I decided to make this dance for…you,” said Kai but she couldn’t look straight into Seyoon’s eyes

“For me?” And the beating starts again. Seyoon knew it but denied that weird sensation coming from the left side of her chest. She didn’t know what it was back then. It’s unexplainable.

“Ahh…” Kai kept on thinking. “It doesn’t mean anything. I mean, what I meant was…ahh…I don’t want you to make false claims to Luhan. I don’t want to think that not just because we’re friends that you were at my side. I wanted to prove to you that I could really dance.”

“Ahh…haha…of course, that’s what I thought to!” said Seyoon. They looked at each other nervously. “Ah..why don’t we start eating. I brought a lot today since you’ll be having your final rehearsal later.”

“Oh so you knew about it?”

Seyoon nodded. “Sehun told us. By the way, where are you this morning? Sehun was there to help us in the haunted house but you were nowhere to be found.”

“Ah…I was sleeping?” ‘What a lame excuse,’ Kai thought. He knew it was a lame excused because he knew that he was practicing the dance since this morning. He doesn’t want to fail more than anyone else, not in front of her.

---

By this time, Seyoon went to the usual place she was going in the past days. She was already carrying the big box of props to the props room. The guys especially Chanyeol, insisted on helping her. But she doesn’t want to depend on them most of the time. Besides, Chanyeol already gave her a favor by wearing her costume today.

When she entered the props room, a familiar figure was there again. “Ah, you’re here again,” she greeted him with a smile.

The mascot nodded at her. He immediately went to her when he saw her carrying the big box. “Thank you again,” she said to him. She didn’t know that the mascot blushed underneath his costume.

“We’re always seeing each other but I never saw your face. Can you show it to me?” she asked him. Suddenly, the mascot felt his heart was thumping so fast. He was so nervous. Seyoon just stared at him. “Ahh…I know. You don’t want to show it because you’re afraid that I will tell your fellow mascots that you’re resting here.”

The mascot nodded vigorously and gave her two thumbs up. ‘Woo, that was close,’ he thought.

“Well then I have to go now, I still have an important thing to do at home,” she said as she stood up and ready to leave.

Suddenly, the mascot grabbed her hand. “Huh?” she turned around and looked at him. The mascot moved his hand in motions as if he was performing a magic trick. And all of a sudden, a can of juice appeared in his paw. He gave it to her.

“Is this for me?” she asked. The mascot nodded again. “Thank you. Ahh, and it is persimmon juice. That’s another thank you,” she said smiling at him. “Well I really have to go now. See you again and I hope without your costume.”

The mascot nodded at her and waved goodbye. ‘Tomorrow, I’ll probably tell her,’ thought that mascot as he sighed again.

~*~

 

‘Wow, this is the third day and he’s totally avoiding them? What’s wrong with him? Practicing dance? I doubt it’s true. No matter how much he wanted to perfect his dancing skills, he shouldn’t skip lunch,’ Luhan thought as he observed Kai grabbing his bag and went to the opposite direction from the cafeteria.

Luhan couldn’t keep on thinking about Kai’s strange acts lately. ‘That’s it. I know I am crazy but I really couldn’t help it. I’ll just follow him where he goes,’ he thought as he grabbed his purse and followed Kai.

He followed Kai as he went down the stairs. Kai went to the vending machine to buy not just one, but two cans of orange juice. ‘Two cans? Is he that thirsty?’ Luhan thought. Suddenly, he went upstairs again. ‘Where is he going? This is not the way to the practice room.’ Luhan kept on following him until they reached the uppermost floor of the building. ‘This floor is empty but why is he here?’ he thought.

Luhan has been very careful with his footsteps especially that they were in an empty floor where the slightest noise could be heard by anyone there. Kai reached the farthest room at the end of the hallway. ‘Music room? What is he doing there? Don’t tell me he’s into singing now and he already left dancing. Maybe that’s the reason why Seyoon kept on insisting that I shouldn’t call her a fan anymore,’ Luhan contemplated a lot before he reached the door of the music room.

On the door was a small window where students could peek to see what’s inside the room. ‘It’s now or never,’ Luhan thought as he was determined to find out Kai’s mysterious acts in the music room. When he take a look, his eyes grew wider. Kai was kissing someone as if he was greeting her. When their heads were withdrawn from each other, he was surprised to see who it was. ‘Krystal? Kai and Krystal? Wait…what?!?’ He took a peek again and tried to listen to their conversation.

“So what did you brought today?” Kai asked her.

“What else? You’re favorite food. Tada! It’s fried chicken,” said Krystal as she opened the lunchbox.

“As expected of my girlfriend,” said the smiling Kai.

‘Girlfriend?!? But…but…,” Luhan was lost for words and even thoughts. He didn’t know what was happening. And there’s only one way to find out as he hurriedly went downstairs towards the cafeteria.