As Hayoung  had promised, the bullying slowly began to fade as the weeks progressed. People lost interest in tormenting Minah, and found other things to do with their lives.

 

Minah was now able to walk through the halls freely without many dirty glares, and the students in her class no longer bullied her. Well, some still pushed her around, but it was starting to become uncommon.

 

To be safe, Minah tried her best not to make any kind of contact with EXO during school. More specifically, she tried not to smile or make eye contact with the boys. Of course, she didn’t just start ignoring them out of the blue; she had consulted EXO about it first. Still, there was no way she could just ignore Chanyeol, as they were music partners, but the two tried to keep low.

 

Chanyeol and Minah continued to practice their duet performance, Minah continued her secret meetings with EXO (although they only hung out together one time after the first time), and the lies continued. Junhyun and Taeyeon still did not know the truth about Minah and EXO, and Minah intended to keep it that way, at least for the time being. Minah could not risk losing her two best friends, and she didn’t know how to reveal her secret to them either. If there was only some way she could tell them without anyone else finding out… or without them hating her…

 

Calculus continued to be ridiculously difficult, and Minah still had no idea how to do the homework from the second day of school. Or the third.. or fourth… or fifth… In short, she just didn’t understand anything that was going on. Math was her weakest subject. She really needed a tutor or something.

 

Over the weekend, Hayoung went home to her parents, so Minah had nobody to talk to, since her parents never called her home. However, Taeyeon and Junhyun called Minah on Saturday morning, so the three went out together to eat and shop. Her weekend passed happily. The next weekend, though, Taeyeon and Junhyun were both busy, and Hayoung had gone home again, so Minah just spent her Saturday and Sunday browsing the internet.

 

Eventually, the day for Minah and Chanyeol to perform their song arrived. Due to excessive complaining, Ms. Ji-Eun had granted the class another week to complete their project, which was why they were performing a week after the original due date.

 

There were three performances before theirs, and to be honest, their voices sounded terrible. Many students giggled, but Minah and Chanyeol did not. They respected that the singers were trying their best, and kept quiet.

 

When Ms. Ji-Eun called Minah’s name at last, she stood up shakily and walked to the center of the room. Chanyeol followed behind her, and the two stood together awkwardly. They were the last presenters of the day.

 

“What are you going to sing for us today?” Ms. Ji-Eun asked, whipping out her clipboard and her pencil.

 

“It’s an original,” Chanyeol replied. “We don’t have a title for it yet.”

 

“Interesting! An original…” She scribbled something onto her clipboard, and sat down in an empty chair. Ms. Ji-Eun smiled at the two. “CD player is over there. Whenever you two are ready, I guess.”

 

Minah looked at Chanyeol fearfully, and he nodded comfortingly. Though he spoke no words, the look on his face was enough to soothe her.

 

“It’s okay. You’ll do fine,” his facial expression seemed to say.

 

Minah swallowed her fear down and smiled at him. He smiled back, and inserted their CD into the player. Moments later, a soft melody began to pour out of the small machine. A steady beat joined the music, and Chanyeol nodded with the sounds, listening carefully. He and Minah had split the singing parts equally and strategically; he would sing the first parts of each verse and the entire rap, while Minah sang the second part of each verse. The two of them would sing the chorus together, though Minah’s voice was supposed to stand out more than Chanyeol's in the chorus. So she would sing normally, while he would soften his tone.  

 

Chanyeol continued listening to the music, and recognized that the first verse was coming up. He cleared his throat and opened his mouth. His deep, y voice filled the room. Several girls closed their eyes, shuddering with delight at the sound of his voice. It was all rather creepy, Minah noted, looking at her fellow peers. 

 

A few seconds later, Chanyeol’s part came to a close, and Minah began to sing her part. A wave of surprise passed through the class as they listened to her sing. Some students began to murmur, but Minah could not hear them over her singing. She only hoped that they weren’t making fun of her.

 

The two stood stiffly for the first half of the song, unsure of how to act towards each other. They were singing a love song, so it seemed appropriate to hold hands or to sing while facing each other. However, both of them were so nervous that they had forgotten to move around.

 

Finally, at the beginning of the second chorus, Minah began to forget about the students in the room, and she lost herself in the world of music. Instinctively, she took a step towards Chanyeol, who turned to her, soon realizing his own stiffness. He smiled, still singing, and began to walk to her as well. The two met in the middle of the room, still bursting with song. They left reality behind, only seeing each other and hearing the wonderful melody that they had created together.

 

By the time Chanyeol’s rap came, he was having so much fun that he began to pace around and dance along to his rap.

 

        

 

The girls squealed in delight, while Ms. Ji-Eun chuckled and scribbled something down on her clipboard.

 

In the final chorus that ended the song, Minah and Chanyeol both found themselves floating towards each other again, and once again they met in the middle. Chanyeol reached his hand out to Minah, and she placed her hand in his. They sang with soul and emotion, and they grinned widely at each other when the song ended. They both felt wonderful.

 

A loud clapping noise brought them back to reality. The students were clapping for them.

 

“Very nice!” Ms. Ji-Eun said when the clapping died down. “Very nice.” She wrote something else on her clipboard, then stood up and smiled at the class. “Well, that’s all the time we have left today. The remaining groups will perform on Thursday and Friday. You may have the last two minutes to yourselves. Feel free to chat, just don’t be too loud, or you’ll disturb the other classes.”

 

“That was great,” Chanyeol said, grinning at Minah. He lifted his hand up for a high five.

 

Minah had to tiptoe to reach his hand. She slapped her palm against his and grinned back. “Yeah, it was really fun. We should be partners next time we do this kind of thing.”

 

“That’d be great! Chanyeol smiled goofily. Actually, it was slightly creepy… “You don’t mind, though? People might give you crap for it.”

 

“Let them,” Minah said, shrugging. “Anyhow, they’ve mostly stopped. I think I’ll be fine.”

 

“That’s good,” he nodded. “Things are going back to normal.”

 

The bell rang then, and the two moved on to their next classes.

 

Literature was boring. Nothing new.

 

The moment sixth period ended, her cellphone began to vibrate. It was a call from Taeyeon.

 

“Hello?” Minah said into the phone.

 

“Meet us at that Buckstar café in ten minutes!” Taeyeon cried. “Or whatever it’s called!”

 

The line went dead. Minah raised her eyebrows in confusion. Buckstar…? Did she mean Starbucks? Probably. Minah walked over to the café.

 

When Minah entered the shop, she was greeted by a loud “ MINAHHH!!! HELLOO!!”  Taeyeon ran over, while digging through her purse. She whipped out her phone and grinned widely. Then, she dragged Minah over to a table, where Junhyun was waiting. The three sat down, and a waitress approached them, holding drinks.  She set them on the table, smiled at the trio, and left.

 

“Thanks for ordering for me, guys,” Minah said gratefully. “Ooh! My favorite! You two are awesome.”

 

Junhyun nodded and smiled, but before he could speak his girlfriend interrupted him.

 

“Look!” She shouted, holding her phone up for Minah to see. Junhyun sat next to Taeyeon, his nod becoming even more vigorous. If he nodded any harder, his head would definitely detach from his neck.

 

Minah squinted at the screen. It was a video… of her and Chanyeol singing.

 

“Your voice is so pretty! Why didn’t you ever sing for us?!” Junhyun demanded.

 

“Umm…” Minah responded. “You guys never asked? And I’m kind of shy about it…”

 

“Well, you certainly didn’t seem shy singing in front of Chanyeol,” Taeyeon giggled. “We totally have to go to karaoke sometime!”

 

“Sure,” Minah smiled. “I’d love to.”

 

“And you have to let me meet B.A.P when you get famous and befriend all those idols,” she added.

 

Minah laughed. “What? Famous? Me? No way!”

 

“No, seriously, you have potential,” Junhyun said. “You should go sign up for one of those singing shows! OH!  I KNOW! YOU SHOULD AUDITION TO JOIN ONE OF THOSE COMPANIES, LIKE YG OR TSENT!”

 

“No thanks,” Minah responded. “You guys know that I don’t like to deal with rejection or anything like that. I definitely won’t win, so why audition?”

 

“Aish, so pessimistic,” Taeyeon clucked her tongue. “You won’t know until you try, right?”

 

“I guess…” Minah said slowly. “I think singing is more of a hobby thing though.”

 

“What a shame,” Junhyun said, feigning disappointment. He shook his head dramatically. “I was so close to meeting SNSD, too.”

 

“Wow,” Minah laughed. “Just admit it, you only want me to win so you can meet your kpop idols!”

 

“Well….” Taeyeon and Junhyun spoke in unison. The three of them burst out laughing.

 

“Still though,” Taeyeon said, her face growing more serious. “Your voice really is pretty. I bet Chanyeol thought so too. This could be your ticket into their little ‘circle of friendship’! I think it’s a perfect opportunity for you to befriend them. Don’t you think so, oppa?”

 

“Definitely,” Junhyun nodded. “Next time there’s a music project, be sure to pick Chanyeol again. And now that you two were partners for this one, you have permission to talk to him freely.”

 

Taeyeon leaned forward eagerly. “Tell me what his personality was like! When you two worked on the project together!”

 

“I already told you like a million times,” Minah replied, raising an eyebrow. How come Junhyun didn’t get jealous at any of this? Taeyeon was practically drooling. Wasn’t he even the slightest bit concerned for his girlfriend?

 

“Well, tell it to us again!” Junhyun giggled.

 

Of course. It was because they were both obsessed.

 

Minah could not help grinning at her silly friends. “He was really nice,” she said. “He brought two discs: an instrumental that we would use while singing, and one with him and his friends singing. I swear, Baekhyun and Luhan have the most angelic voices ever. And Chen.. his vocals, oh my god. Oh! Sorry. Off topic. Anyway, we listened to the CD for a long time. He’s really considerate. He obviously already had it all memorized, yet he sat through it with me. I’m pretty sure he was starting to get annoyed of the song after five replays, but he didn’t say anything. He complimented me on my singing.  And he held the door open for me when we left.” Minah paused. “There is one thing I left out from all the earlier retellings though… I wasn’t sure if I should tell you guys. ”

 

Taeyeon’s eyes widened, and she jumped out of her seat, onto Minah’s lap.

 

“Ah!” Minah squeaked in surprise.

 

“What is it?!” Taeyeon asked, grabbing at Minah’s hands. “What is it?!”

 

“Well.. er… I kind of.. got his number,” Minah said slowly, revealing one of her forbidden secrets. She decided that she would reveal her relationship with EXO to her friends, but she had to do it slowly. It was her fault that she had lied to her friends earlier. Now she had to fix it.

 

“OH MY GOD!!!!!!!!” Taeyeon screamed. Junhyun just stared at Minah, open mouthed. The spoon he had been holding clattered to the floor, but he made no attempt to pick it up. He just kept staring at Minah. Suddenly, coffee ice cream started to dribble out of his mouth, and Minah began to snort with laughter.

 

“Why are you laughing?! This is serious!” Taeyeon cried. “When did you get his number?!”

 

“Uh, a few days ago? When we started the project, he requested that we trade phone numbers.” This was definitely the truth, but Minah still felt the guilt rise up. She was only telling a portion of the truth. She had been with the rest of the boys when she received Chanyeol’s number.

 

Junhyun rose from his chair rapidly, and the chair fell down behind him. He paid it no attention. “LET ME SEE IT!!!” he thundered. The people that were sitting nearby in the café turned to give Junhyun a weird look.

 

“Quiet down!” Minah laughed. “Everyone’s staring at you, weirdo!”

 

“Let me see it!” he repeated, holding out his hand.

 

“No!” Minah said, frowning slightly. “If this gets out then everyone’ll keep bothering him and he’ll have to change his number. If you want it so badly, get to know him yourself.”

 

“Ooooo!!” Taeyeon exploded into a stream of giggles. She fought for air, gasping like a dying pig. “She told you!”

 

Junhyun pouted and sat down.

 

Taeyeon wiped her eyes and smiled at her boyfriend. “In all seriousness, though, I think it’s a good thing that you’re not giving his number to us, Minah. Shows that you’re loyal. And I’m sure that I’d scare him away if you ever gave me his number.”

 

“I suppose,” Junhyun grumbled. “It’s for the best.”

 

Minah smiled. “Thanks, guys. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to tell you guys earlier, because I’m sure that he wouldn’t want me spreading his number around.”

 

“Omo!” Taeyeon said. “The fact that he trusted you with his number….. OMO!”

 

Minah cocked her head to the side and pursed her lips, her signature look when she was confused. “What?”

 

“He must trust you a lot,” Junhyun nodded in deep thought.

 

“I’m sure he just gave it to me because we needed to work on the project,” Minah said confidently.

 

Taeyeon clucked her tongue again. “Denial! You’ll see. When he confesses.”

 

“Aish, you’re getting way ahead of yourself again, Taeyeon.” Minah grinned.

 

“Nope,” Taeyeon smiled back. “Just being observant.”

 

The three continued to chat for another ten minutes, but then they had to leave. Junhyun and Taeyeon both had to attend a club meeting at five. Minah returned to her dorm.

 

…

 

“Hey,” Hayoung greeted.

 

“Hello,” Minah replied. “How was your day?”

 

“It was pretty good. You? I saw the video of you and Chanyeol singing. You’re so good at singing!”

 

“Thanks,” Minah smiled. “How’d you hear about that?”

 

“You forgot, I like to gossip,” Hayoung laughed. “Plus, pretty much the entire school knows, even the freshman. This whole EXO business is huge!” 

 

“Ah… really?” Minah asked, setting her purse down on the table.

 

“Yeah, but don’t worry, they don’t say bad things anymore. It’s mostly just neutral. I think some of them are even starting to like you.”

 

Minah pondered about this. Why would strangers start to like her?

 

“That’s good,” she said at last. “At least they don’t talk crap about me anymore.”

 

“Yeah,” Hayoung replied. She picked up a textbook and a pencil. “I’ve still got some homework to do. I’m sure you do too. We should get started on it.”

 

“Yeah,” Minah agreed. The two sat down on the couch together and worked on their homework together. To be more exact, Hayoung worked on her homework. Minah was staring in her calculus textbook, still completely unsure what was going on.

 

Six hours later, Minah lay in her bed. She closed her eyes, and after a long while, fell asleep.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Okay I PROMISE PROMISE PROMISE that we'll be seeing more Kris from now on !  ^^

 

 

 I have been slowly leading up to something (although you guys don't know what it is. I'm trying to keep it subtle haha. Been dropping hints though ~ High five to anyone who knows what I'm up to) 

 

 

But yeah. Anyways, Kris will be coming in more and more now. Sorry for the delay, I know we haven't been seeing much of him and it's already the 8th chapter :O Sorries! Thanks for being patient with me <3 haha