Maybe I should ask Jonghyun. HAH no, considering how protective he is of his sister, not the best idea. Or maybe Yuri. No, her mom’s the enemy. And Hae doesn’t know . Hyoyeon… Yeah. Best idea ever, Hyukjae, BEST IDEA EVER. “ARGH!” Eunhyuk yelled. 

 

The other boys looked at him worriedly. Eunhyuk hasn’t been himself for quite some time now. They don’t know when it started; some thought it was the night Hyoyeon came, others believed it was since the first musical rehearsal. No matter when it began, one thing’s for certain - it has to do with Hyoyeon.

Donghae couldn’t understand. His best friend hasn’t been talking much to him for three days, even though he was sure he did nothing wrong. Well, Eunhyuk hasn’t been ignoring him, if he was to be honest, he was just avoiding him. And to Donghae, that felt a hundred times worse. He didn’t know if it’s his mistake, or maybe, just maybe, Eunhyuk did something he was ashamed of and couldn’t face him. But what could it be? 

 

“ARGH!” groaned Donghae. He was sick of this. Sick of this uncertainty, this mystery. The boys now shifted their attention onto him. Okay, something was definitely up. “Alright, you two. Hae and Hyuk, WHAT’S THE MATTER WITH YOU KIDS?” Leeteuk demanded. 

 

Donghae looked at his hyung. How was he supposed to explain this situation when he didn’t know what was going on himself? “Ask him.” He pointed at Eunhyuk who simply shrugged. 

 

“Nothing much.”

 

“OH I KNOW! HYUKKIE’S JEALOUS!” cried someone at the back of the room. Everybody turned to face the voice. “Well, now that Hyoyeon’s here, he’s probably afraid he’ll lose Donghae to the girl,” Yesung explained, proud that he made the link. Everyone rolled their eyes.

 

“Really, Yesung?”

 

“Yeah, that must be it! What else could it be, huh?” The 8-dimensional boy faced Eunhyuk. “Don’t worry Hyukkie, you still have Heechul hyung.”

 

“SAY WHAAT?” yelled Eunhyuk and Heechul at the same time. 

 

“No way! Not after he ate my egg the other time. He’s a thief!”

 

“Excuse you. YOU were the one who offered the food!”

 

“I did it out of politeness, you idiot. You were supposed to decline it graciously. Hmph, seriously, where were your manners? ”

 

Yesung grinned. He knew he seemed weird, with all his crazy outbursts that seldom made sense. But he did it, once again. Saved the world. He has cut through the ice that has kept Eunhyuk cold and quiet the past few days. 

 

Donghae looked over at his hyung, grateful. Yesung always managed to make things less awkward, often at his own expense. And he admired him for it. He made a mental note to show more aegyo to the elder to show his appreciation. After all, all his hyungs loved his aegyo. 

 

Furthermore, maybe Yesung spoke some truth. He was excited that Hyoyeon came. Not in the romantic way, of course. His best childhood friend has appeared in his life again, how could he not be happy? Hyoyeon was a big part of his childhood, the only person who took the effort to get to know the new boy, and introduce him to her group of friends. He remembered how they used to play catch in the garden, how they tried to hide from the math teacher who insisted that they learn their multiplication tables by heart. He remembered going to the amusement park all the time, the four of them: Hyoyeon, him, Jonghyun and Yuri. Then, there were the not-so-good memories. He remembered how he had promised to protect the girl back when they were kids, especially after she got bullied by the evil Witch. He remembered how he had sat in the rain with her when she refused to talk, knowing she just didn't want him to see her cry. His eyes widened.The Witch. Oh my goodness. I hope Hyoyeon's okay. And Jonghyun too. I really don't have the time to go chase after Eunhyuk now. I need to make sure the two of them are fine. I need to go get a teddy for Hyoyeon. I'm sorry Hyukkie, I'll come back to you when this is all sorted out. I promise.

 

Donghae stood up and made his way to the door. He turned to steal a last glance at is best friend, tried to tell Heechul to be nice to the boy telepathically and left the studio, making his way to Shinee's practice room.

 

 

***********************************

 

 

"Hyung, who was that woman the other day, the one everyone called a witch?" asked Minho as he laid on his stomach, trying to search for some good soccer animations on his computer. It had been days, but he still couldn't believe how Hyoyeon could do so many push-ups on one knuckle. It was super hard. He should know. After watching it that day, he spent his nights in the dorm trying to do it too. After all, if a girl could do it, why can't he? 

 

He doesn't know. It was the strangest thing he that had happened in his life so far. He had never met anyone who can do something he can't, not even a guy. But getting beaten by a girl who didn't even know there was a competition? The world must be coming to an end. He had to know more about this mythical creature. 

 

Jonghyun looked over, a smile playing on his lips. He knew why Minho was asking that. He had peeked into the younger's room one day when he heard him cursing. And he'll never forget the sight that greeted him for a long, long time. After all, you don't always see the one they brand the Ace of Sports shaking on a knuckle, doing something that seemed effortless to a girl. "Uh, she's a teacher at the dance school. Oh, and Minho? I can do that knuckle thing too. In fact, the Witch made me do it all the time," he bragged.

 

Minho threw Jonghyun the dirtiest look he could muster. He can't believe he had gotten caught. But since he has, he might as well cut to the chase. He closed his eyes and shook his head vigorously, calming himself down. When Jonghyun looked up from his phone again, he was looking at the biggest, most brown puppy eyes he had ever seen. "Teach me how, please?"