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Chapter 11 - A Help From a Secret Friend

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"Knock, knock!"

Donghae is surprised to see Sungmin in front of him. He is with Ryeowook who is grinning at Donghae, and a girl who he has never seen before. "Sungmin!" Donghae gestures and let them in. "What brings you here?"

"Well, I have a very huge favor to ask, Donghae. We really need to buy two tickets for a fan meeting tomorrow, and I don't have money so, I would like to borrow from you," Sungmin says straightforwardly. 

"Min, you're too direct," Ryeowook tells Sungmin. Sungmin went to his house first to ask if he could accompany him and Sulli to Donghae's apartment, which is literally beside Ryeowook's.

"I don't have time anymore, Wook. It's almost five," Sungmin looks at his watch and realizes that it is already quarter to five, and fortunately the ticketing place is five minutes away from there. He then turns to Donghae. "I'll pay you when I get my monthly allowance, Donghae, I promise."

"Sure! How much are the tickets?" Donghae asks.

"Lili, how much is it?" Sungmin asks Sulli.

Sulli shakes her head. "I don't know. I only learned it from Sungjin so..."

"Oh no!" Sungmin exclaims. He gets his phone and dials Sungjin's number. It rings for about thirty seconds, but Sungjin doesn't answer. "Damn Jin, answer the phone!"

"Let's just go there, Sungmin. I'll just bring my wallet and my card. Wait up," Donghae suggests and leaves to get his wallet. When he returns, they all go out Donghae's room and leave.

They reach the ticketing place just in time and look for the window where the ticket for meet and greet are sold. Sungmin almost runs to the window but he sees that the person is putting a sign board that the meet and greet tickets are sold out. "Uhm... excuse me? Are there no available tickets for the meet and greet?"

"I'm sorry, you're a minute late, Sir," the ticketing person apologizes. "A man has bought the last two tickets for the meet and greet. There are no seats left that are  available for purchase."

Sungmin frowns as he leaves the window. "Ugh. It's sold out. Who the hell purchase the tickets a minute before us!?"

"I'm sorry, Sungmin," Donghae apologizes. "If I was not too slow to get my wallet then-"

"It's alright, Donghae. It's not your fault," Sungmin tells him. Then he turns to Sulli who looks disheartened. "Don't be disappointed, Lili. We'll make a way."

"I think, the person who bought the tickets is still here because you were told that the tickets were purchased a minute before, right?" Ryeowook tells Sungmin.

Sungmin's face glows as he hears what Ryeowook says. "Oh my, Wook! You're really a savior! Wait, I'll ask the woman to describe the person," Sungmin tells the three. He runs towards the window again. "Excuse me. May I know how the person who bought the ticket looked like?"

"Sorry, but we cannot disclose that," the woman tells Sungmin.

"Please," Sungmin pleads as he holds the woman's hand and as he uses his manly charms.

The woman blushes and falls to his charms. She later discloses the information that Sungmin is looking for. "I think he's a high school student, but he wears a simple light blue polo shirt. He is tall, he has a dark brown hair, and he is very handsome! I don't know, but it seems that I saw him somewhere but I can't tell where."

Sungmin smiles and winks as he pulls his hand from the woman's hand. "Thank you, pretty lady."

He goes back to Donghae, Ryeowook and Sulli and tells them the exact description of the buyer.

"Let's separate. Lili and I will go look there, and Donghae and Ryeowook will go look there," Sungmin instructs. "Call us if you have already seen him. Okay?"

Donghae and Ryeowook go to where they are assigned, same with Sungmin and Sulli.

But they haven't seen any person wearing a light blue polo shirt with a dark brown hair around the area. They meet up at the same place where they separated.

"How did it go?" Sungmin asks them. Donghae shakes his head as a sign that they didn't find the person. Sungmin sighs. "Oh well. We can't do anything about it anymore. Lili," Sungmin turns to Sulli. "Don't worry. I have an idea to make you and Jin make up."

Sulli smiles and nods. "Thank you oppa for your effort. I am very happy that you're here for me."

"Uhm, guys? Why are we buying the tickets again?" Donghae asks.

Sungmin laughs. "Donghae, you are really funny. You're still willing to lend me money even if you don't know where I am going to use it?"

Donghae blushes. "I-It's because... Y-You're a special friend."

Ryeowook giggles secretly and looks around, and Sulli looks suspciously at Donghae then at Sungmin who is clueless. "I heard that word again. Nevertheless, thank you Donghae."

When they are conversing, Ryeowook looks around and sees someone who looks like Kyuhyun. He just remains silent as he follows the person using his eyes but he immediately disappears from the crowd. He continues to search for him using his eyes, but he doesn't see him anymore.

"Wook? Is there a problem?" Sungmin asks when he realizes that Ryeowook looks like he is finding someone or something.

"A-ah, nothing. I thought I saw Kyuhyun, but I think my eyes are deceiving me," he laughs. Sungmin smirks and looks at him suspiciously. "What?"

"You always look for him, you are even imagining things. He is as the ice cream parlor right now and he is not the type of person who will go here. You really miss him, eh! It's something," Sungmin tells him.

Ryeowook blushes. "Min!"

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"So? Have you bought it?" Manager Han asks as Kyuhyun arrives at the ice cream parlor.

Kyuhyun shows the meet and greet tickets to his manager as he walks towards the employee lounge to change his casual wear again.

Manager Han smiles and speaks again, "That someone is very important to you, as I can see. Enough for you to leave the shop for a considerable number of time and to spend two hundred thousand won, Kyuhyun. Tell me, who is he? I usually see him here recently."

Kyuhyun bows and smiles meekly. "I am sorry again for the trouble and thank you, Manager Han," he says as he enters the employee lounge.

He asked the manager's permission for him to leave and buy those meet and greet tickets that Sungmin liked to purchase. Fortunately, he bought the right tickets. Fortunately, there is only one meet and greet event for tomorrow so he didn't have to guess and spend money for the wrong event. Also, the tickets were already sold out. The last tickets were in his hands already.

It was the first time that he spent money for others. And Sungmin didn't even know it. 

He finishes changing his clothes so he goes out to serve the customers who are coming over.

He is waiting for Sungmin, but the latter isn't coming back yet. Two hours has passed, but Sungmin and the girl haven't returned yet. Manager Han asks him to close the shop since there aren't any customers coming anymore. He changes back to his casual wear and decides to leave after closing the shop. It seems that his effort, time and money are wasted because Sungmin doesn't return.

He looks at the notebooks left by Sungmin. He browses the pages and sees middle school science notes. He learns that the girl is still in middle school. Then he sees the name of the owner of the notebooks. It is owned by a certain Lee Sungjin. It's Sungmin's brother as he can deduce.

He sighs as he plans to keep the notebooks and give them to Sungmin on Monday maybe, if he happens to drop by at the ice cream parlor. He goes out from the lounge.

"Kyuhyun? Where are the notebooks?"

He looks at the ice cream parlor's door and sees the owner of the familiar voice. It is Sungmin. "I thought you're not returning anymore."

"I told you I would come back for my brother's notebooks," Sungmin tells Kyuhyun. Then he asks, "Are you waiting for me?"

Kyuhyun gets frozen for a second because of that question, but he recovers easily. "No," he lies. "I just don't want to bring these home nor leave them here."

"Thanks for keeping these though," Sungmin thanks Kyuhyun and gets the notebooks from Kyuhyun.

"Where's your date?" Kyuhyun asks as he looks away like he is asking for the sake of keeping their conversation. "I can't believe you are such a e."

"What!?" Sungmin laughs at that. "I am not a e. Lili is not my date and he is my closest younger sister!"

"You have a younger sister?" He asks again.

"We're not really related but we are close so," Sungmin trails off as he realizes that Kyuhyun is inrerrogating him. "Why are we even talking about this? For your information, Lili is my brother's crush, and I think, Jin, my brother, likes her too so I am helping them to be closer again."

"So you're being a cupid again, just like what you are doing with me and your best friend," Kyuhyun says. He is relieved when he learns that the girl isn't Sungmin's girlfriend.

"W-What are you saying!?" Sungmin gets startled. "I-I don't know what you are talking about-"

"You, suddenly befriending me, staying here at the ice cream parlor every after classes, taking Ryeowook here even if he obviously is not the person that you are. Tell me, I'm wrong," Kyuhyun enumerates all his observations that leads to his conclusion.

"I don't know what you are talking about, Kyuhyun. I'm leaving," Sungmin turns around.

Kyuhyun speaks again, "Did you manage to buy tickets?"

Sungmin stops and looks back at Kyuhyun. "No because some jerk purchased them-" Sungmin is surprises when he sees the tickets that are held by Kyuhyun. "Tickets! Where did you get that!?"

"A customer gave these to me because she was pleased that I served her well," Kyuhyun tells a lie again.

"Are you going to use those? If not can I..."

"Why are these tickets important to you?" Kyuhyun asks.

"With that, I can help Sungjin and Sulli to make up and to make sure that Sungjin will like her again," Sungmin answers. "I want Sungjin to be her boyfriend!"

Kyuhyun approaches him and speaks seriously, "You can't force someone to love someone, nor to make him or her choose to love a person. You can't teach someone's heart."

Sungmin stares at Kyuhyun. He can't believe how deep Kyuhyum is when it comes to love. It's weird, but he feels that his heart is touched. "But I know that Sungjin likes her back. I can feel it. He is just scared to tell her-"

"It's not being scared, Lee Sungmin. If he really likes her, then maybe he is just waiting for the right time to express it to her," Kyuhyun tells Sungmin.

Once again, Sungmin wants to believe Kyuhyun at that time. His words are very persuasive. It is as if it's based on his experience. The silence between them becomes weird as it longers. Sungmin cuts it and laughs awkwardly. "You are talking like you are experiencing it. I know that it's Sungjin's decision and I guess it's also not wrong for me to help him and Sulli too. I need to help them realize that they have feelings for each other."

Kyuhyun sighs as he gives the ticket to him. "I am not going to use these, so might as well give the tickets to them."

"Thank you, Kyuhyun!" Sungmin is very delighted to have the tickets. "Does this mean you're helping me?"

Kyuhyun looks away. "Who said that I was helping you? I just gave them to you because I will not use it," he denies. "But remember what I said Sungmin. Your help has limits. Go home now. I'm going to close the ice cream parlor now."

Sungmin thanks Kyuhyun again and goes home. He calls Donghae, Ryeowook and Sulli. "Guys, we're going somewhere tomorrow. I'll take Sungjin with me too."

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