“No.”

“Please, Soojin. Pretty please? With a cherry on top?”

“I never understood how that is supposed to make things better. Cherry on top? What will an imaginary cherry do for me? Absolutely nothing,” she scoffed.

“Ok then. No cherry then. But please. As a favor.”

“Oh no. I had enough of your favors. Because in the end, you’ll twist it so that I’ll owe you instead.”

“Look, they want to meet you to,” Myungsoo tried again.

She rolled her eyes and stared at the begging man in front of her. “Oh really? Your friends specifically said that? That they wanted to meet me?”

“Well,” he hesitated, “not those words per say. But along those lines? How they’re interested in you?”

Soojin wouldn’t budge.

He sulked, “Ok, fine. You don’t have to meet them if you don’t believe me. But if I come back all used and abused, you know that I was telling you the truth. Oh god. I don’t want to meet them anymore. Lest I fear what harm will come upon me.”

Soojin looked at him with an unsatisfied look. He always had to make her feel bad.

She sighed, “Fine. I’ll go meet your friends.”

His face brightened and he clasped his hands in excitement. “Yes! Well come on! I told them I’d be meeting them for lunch.”

He pulled her in the direction of their venue, and Soojin grudgingly followed behind.

“Myungsoo! Over here!”

Soojin’s eyes followed to the source of the voice where a fair-looking boy waved. Another boy sat next to him with a uninterested expression.

Myungsoo and Soojin walked over to the two boys.

The younger-looking boy smiled at Myungsoo. “Glad you could make it.” And he looked left to Soojin. “And you brought her with you.”

He turned his attention back to Myungsoo. “I thought you were joking.”

Myungsoo frowned in displeasure. “Do you have so little trust in me?” he joked.

“Yes.”

All three turned to the boy who was sitting down and drinking his water in silence.

He made no effort to continue on so Myungsoo decided to introduce everyone.

“So, I’m pretty sure you all know who this is. But for introduction’s sake, this is Cho Soojin.”

“The red string girl,” the younger boy piped up.

Soojin frowned and slightly glared at him.

Myungsoo laughed, “Yeah, that’s her.” Soojin then glared at Myungsoo.

He ignored her and continued on. “And these are my two best friends. Lee Sungjong,” he said as he gestured to brighter-looking boy who waved and smiled, “And Lee Sungyeol.” He motioned to the moodier-looking boy who simply sat there and looked at Soojin with modest interest.

Soojin smiled, “Nice to meet you.”

Sungjong grinned and waved them both down, “Take a seat. Take a seat.”

As they both sat down, Sungjong continued, “I hope you don’t mind, but we already ordered our food. Sungyeol wouldn’t wait.” He looked pointedly at the said boy.

The darker-haired boy looked blankly at his friend. “Why would I wait if I was hungry? I, personally, wouldn’t want anyone to starve just because they had to wait for me. It’s not like they wouldn’t get their food anyways.”

Soojin nodded, “I agree. It’s fine. If he’s hungry, then by all means, eat.”

Sungyeol looked at Soojin with mild interest and nodded appreciatively at her. “At least someone understands,” he grumbled to Sungjong.

His friend merely rolled his eyes. “It’s called bad manners, Sungyeol.”

Myungsoo nodded. “I would have waited. I would feel awkward that I didn’t.”

Soojin frowned, “But if you’re all friends, then it wouldn’t have mattered. And it also depends on the venue. Especially if it’s this sort of fast food joint. If it was a fancier restaurant, then I would have waited.”

Myungsoo nodded in agreement. “You’re right. But I think I would have waited either way.”

Sungyeol sighed, “Why are we even arguing about this? This is ridiculous.”

Myungsoo smiled, “Well then. I’m going to get some food.” He looked at Soojin. “Coming?”

She followed him to the counter, looking at the menu to decide what she felt like eating.

Once they ordered and got their food, they headed back to the table.

As they approached Myungsoo’s two friends, Soojin could hear the two bickering.

“Can’t you be, I don’t know, a bit more courteous? You know Myungsoo has some issues making friends, much less friends of the female race,” Sungjong muttered.

Sungyeol scoffed, “If they can’t accept Myungsoo as whom he is, and that includes his friends, then what’s the point of making friends with them? Who needs such fake friends? I’m not going to change my personality just for the sake of somebody I don’t even know.”

“I’m not asking you to make a three-sixty change,” Sungjong replied as he rolled his eyes. “I’m asking you to be a bit more polite instead being a moody grumpy jerk.”

Sungyeol narrowed his eyes at his friend, “I’m not being a jerk. I’m not even being mean to her.”

“You sure seem like it.”

“Well maybe you need to get your eyes checked because obviously you’re being delusional.”

“Am not! You just don’t want to admit that you’re being a grump. You’re in denial.”

“Maybe you’re just stupid.”

“Sungyeol!” he cried.

Soojin and Myungsoo had already sat down and had begun to eat their food. Myungsoo seemed untroubled by their squabbling and was casually listening to them with a slight smile on his face. Soojin, on the other hand, was quite interested in the friendship between these two polar opposites.

“Have you been friends for a long time?” she asked.

The two boys turned their attention to her.

Sungjong scoffed bitterly, “I’ve been friends with this moody since elementary school.”

Sungyeol glared at Sungjong. “Nobody asked you to befriend me.”

“How did you two become friends?” Soojin asked curiously.

Myungsoo laughed, “Now this is a good story.”

The two other boys glowered at Myungsoo who simply continued to eat his food in fake obliviousness.

“I was being a good little boy who simply wanted to have fun. I was trying to scare out teacher, but I tripped and fell. And the only person who saw was this fellow who smirked at me. He smirked at me! What kind of child smirks at such a young age? I hated him ever since,” sneered Sungjong.

“Good little boy? What a liar. He was an utterly annoying kid. Always running around screaming in his high-pitched voice. It’s a wonder how he even survived. I would have thought someone would have done something to him by now.”

“The one thing I remember about Sungyeol back then was his disgusting smirk whenever he saw me,” Sungjong reminisced grimly.

“And I remember that annoying brat who always pulled pranks that always failed,” Sungyeol retorted.

“Evil grouch.”

“Frustrating devil.”

They glared at each other before scoffing and turning the other way.

“And you guys are still friends. That’s something else. Have been friends with Myungsoo for a while as well?”

They looked at each other as if conversing silently of how to respond.

“Well, we knew about Myungsoo during high school, but we didn’t actually become friends until senior year,” Sungjong replied.

Sungyeol monotonously mumbled, “But we sure heard a lot about him.”

Sungjong elbowed his friend, giving him looks to shut up.

Soojin  glanced at Myungsoo who had suddenly gone quiet after the conversation led to him.

Noticing the uncomfortable atmosphere, Sungjong quickly changed the topic. “What about you Soojin? You heard about my annoying friends. What about yours?”

Soojin looked up from her food. “My friends are good people, but they all have boyfriends now. That’s why I don’t hang out with them much anymore.”

“That doesn’t bother you?” Sungjong asked.

She shrugged, “Not really. I know they still think about me. And I’m not that much of a desperate person to constantly ask for their attention.”

Sungjong and Myungsoo nodded in understanding while Sungyeol looked at her with what appeared to be a look of appreciation because she couldn’t exactly read his expression.

“Um. Is something wrong?” she asked Sungyeol.

He shook his head. “I’m just glad that there’s someone like you. That you understand that you don’t always have to constantly bother someone. Especially if he tells you to stop disturbing him.” He turned his attention to Sungjong who gave a look of surprise in return.

“I was just being a good friend! Fine! I won’t ask you to hang out with me anymore. I’ll just hang out with Myungsoo.”

Myungsoo raised his hands in defense. “Hey now. Don’t involve me in your petty love fight.”

Sungyeol gave Sungjong another dark look of victory.

Sungjong turned to the girl in front of him. “Fine, then I’ll just hang out with Soojin.”

“Erm.” Soojin mumbled, taken aback by the sudden turn of attention to her.

“Just say no.” Sungyeol uttered.

Sungjong hit Sungyeol and smiled at Soojin. “You don’t mind right, Soojin?”

“I don’t, but…” she said slowly.

Myungsoo kicked Sungjong. “Oy. You already have Sungyeol. Don’t be stealing other people’s friends.”

Sungjong frowned, “I’m not stealing her. Think of it as borrowing her.”

“Woah, woah. Hold on a minute. Nobody’s borrowing anybody. You can’t treat me like an inaminate object. Because this object has a mind of her own. And I can hang out with anybody I want.”

Sungyeol clapped his hands in slow intervals before clasping them into prayer hands. “Thank goodness there’s someone like you. Someone who can control these two crazy people. ”

"Hey!" both Myungsoo and Sungjong cried.

Soojin laughed which caused the other two boys to laugh as well while Sungyeol rolled his eyes and muttered something about how he has the weirdest friends.

After Soojin finished eating and talking with Sungjong and Sungyeol, Myungsoo and she decided to get something to eat for dessert. They walked to the nearby bakery to grab a few small pastries to eat.

They were having a pleasant conversation, just a simple and normal conversation.

“Well, well, well. Look what we have here.”

Both Myungsoo and Soojin stopped and turned their heads to look in the direction of the voice.

Two boys were leaning on the wall while one of them smirked.

He casually slouched off the wall and walked over to both of them.

Myungsoo stepped in front of Soojin subtly while Soojin noticed the tense air between Myungsoo and the two strangers.

The red-haired boy noticed Myungsoo’s action and gasped in mock dejection. He put his hand over his heart and looked at Myungsoo sadly. “Oh my. You think I’m going to do something bad? Why would you ever think that, L? I thought we were friends?” he sighed dramatically.

“We’re not friends anymore, N,” Myungsoo growled.

“Oh is that so?” N pouted. Suddenly he scoffed and his expressions turned darker while keeping a smirk on his face. He leaned closer to Myungsoo.

“I never knew friendships died that easily,” he whispered into Myungsoo’s ear.

He took a step back and glanced at Soojin and smiled. “And look at what we have here. A pretty girl.”

He walked over and reached beside Myungsoo and grabbed Soojin’s hand. He put it to his lips and kissed it.

Soojin’s eyes widened and froze at the stranger’s actions.

Myungsoo stood tensely next to them, looking ready to act if needed to.

 “I wonder if she knows how long we were friends, L? How you were back then? Such a personality you were! But that’s a story for another day.”

He let Soojin’s hand drop and patted Myungsoo on the back. He leaned over and said in a low voice, “I’m always watching you, Myungsoo. You know too many of our secrets.”

He pulled back and gave them both a dazzling smile.

“Maybe I’ll see you around?” he asked with a lazy smile. He gestured to the other boy with a nod of his head, who was still leaning against the wall with his hands in his pocket and with an expressionless face.

“Let’s go, K.”

The dark-blonde boy pushed himself of the wall. He glanced at Myungsoo and gave a small nod before following the other boy.

Once they were out of vision’s sight, Myungsoo noticeably relaxed.

They stood there for a while before Soojin asked, “Friends of yours?”

Myungsoo’s eyes darkened and replied quietly, “Old friends. They’re not my friends anymore.”

“I see. Then…”

He interrupted her sharply. “Sorry, can we not talk about this?”

Soojin opened then closed it. She bit her cheek and nodded.

Myungsoo kept his gaze directed elsewhere. Everywhere besides Soojin’s face.

“I’m sorry, but I think I have to go. I’m sorry we weren’t able to get anything to eat,” he mumbled.

She shook her head. “No, no. It’s fine. But Myungsoo…”

He cut her off again, “Ok. I’ll see you later.”

And without giving her a second glance, he disappeared from sight.

Soojin was left in the same spot, still reeling from the sudden encounter of the two strangers and Myungsoo’s odd behavior because of them.

It was obvious that they knew each other, but the question was it a good or bad relationship.

Soojin was worried, but she knew she wouldn’t be able to do anything. Not without knowing the whole story. And it didn’t seem likely that Myungsoo was going to tell her anytime soon.

And she wasn’t going to force him to tell her either. He obviously wanted to stop any conversation about it, and she was going to respect that.

But she couldn’t help being curious. About whom those two were. Why the red-haired boy called Myungsoo, “L”. And why it seemed that those three had a darker history behind them.

A/N: Yay. A longer chapter. More for you to read.

To regards of the characters who are Myungsoo’s old friends, they are (in case you didn’t know) N from VIXX and K from Wonder Boyz. Haha, I chose them because they all use a single letter for their stage name. I always found that funny and it just sort of fit.

On a side note, VIXX’s songs “Hyde” and “On and On” are great and so is Wonder Boyz’s “Tarzan”. Maybe you should go check it out?

Thanks for reading and see you next time!