"I just don't get it. Of all people, Lee Sora was the one to break down  that poker-faced jerk's walls?" Kim Junsu loudly muttered to him in disbelief, with two girls on either side of him, who merely shrugged, but hugged onto his biceps. 

 

Sora and Kris were chatting by the lockers and Junsu was surprised to see not Kris shooting daggers at him with his eyes, but Sora. She looked furious. Kris tried to hold her arm as if to tell her not to do anything, but she pulled away from him, and marched towards Junsu.

 

He was a full foot taller than her and merely looked down at her with boredom. "Kim Junsu, why woud you even say such a thing? Do you have any idea what Kris oppa's gone through? Maybe he seems cold to a lot of people, but at least he doesn't go around treating girls like they're dispensable. He's actually really warm-hearted, but you or anyone else around this school wouldn't notice because you're all too..." Sora was started to get fired up and Kris quickly pulled her away.

 

"Thanks Sora, but it's not worth wasting your breath on him." He said matter-of-factly, and led her away.

 

The two girls linked to Junsu were shaking a bit, at Sora's biting words, and Junsu was merely amused.

 

"So she's already at the "oppa" stage is she? Interesting." He said simply, and turned around walking the opposite way with the girls out of the building.

 

~

 

"Alright! I need five laps, back and forth, and make it snappy!" The swim coach told the men's swim team, who nodded quickly as they awaited their starting positions. He blew his whistle, and the team started their laps.

 

Sora, who was a volunteer time-keeper, kept a close watch on them, with her stopwatch, and record book. She frowned at Junsu as he kept trying to wink everytime he surfaced in the air.

 

"Babo. You'll get water in your eyes that way." She muttered to herself. Passing through the indoor pool area, was the boy's basketball team who were heading towards the gym court on the next part of their stadium.

 

Sora waved to Kris as he walked passed with his other teammates, as he waved back. Junsu, having finished his laps, surfaced from the water, and grabbed Kris' leg, and tossed him into the pool, much to everyone's shock. 

 

He tried to surface and started sputtering water.

 

The swim coach blew his whistle, and Sora dropped the record book and stopwatch with a clang and quickly dived into the water, to pull him out.

 

She wasn't exactly strong enough so another swim team member helped her, while Junsu slowly backed out ot the pool area, while the coach yelled at him to stay where he was.

 

When Kris, Sora, and the team member got to the side of the pool, Sora and the team member laid him down, while the swim coach started to do chest compressions.

 

After a few presses, he started sputtering up water, and coughing. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, while Junsu had been detained by two of his fellow team mates.

 

Kris slowly sat up groggily. "Ach. Why did you push me?" He asked Junsu slowly as everyone looked at him with dissapointment.

 

He simply shrugged. "I...I didn't know you couldn't swim it was only a joke." He stuttered.

 

"Unexcusable you're expelled for a week and off the team." The swim coach said and Junsu gaped at this.

 

"But coach.." He started to protest.

 

"No. Go to the office. Now" He commanded. Junsu sighed and stalked off.

 

Kris noticed that Sora was soaking in her clothes too.

 

"Did you get pushed in too?" He asked, glancing at Junsu's retreating figure darkly.

 

Sora shook her head.

 

The team member who'd assisted them spoke up. 

 

"Dude she dove in the water like crazy fast! Sora ssi, you should be a lifeguard!" the guy praised.

 

Sora flushed as Kris looked at her in amazement.

 

The swim coach quickly brought the both of them towels to dry off.

 

"You should go home Yi Fan. I'll tell your coach what happened." He said.

 

Kris nodded, and walked out of the pool arena. 

 

Sora walked back to her timing station, but glanced back at the swim coach.

 

"Um, ahjussi...?" She hesitantly started to say.

 

"You can go too. Ithink we're good here." He told her.

 

Sora quickly bowed and left the pool to catch up with Kris.

 

She slowed to a walk when she was beside him, and he glanced back with a smile.

 

"You really look out for me huh?" He said thoughtfully, as they walked along the sidewalks, draped in the big towels.

 

Sora smiled back, shrugging. Kris rubbed the back of his head. "It's a bit embarassing actually."He admitted and Sora stopped walking, raising her eyebrows.

 

"What do you mean? Because I'm a a girl and you're a guy? Woah. We're really going to bring stereotypical gender roles into this? Really Kris really?" She joked,but Kris looked a bit serious.

 

She blinked at him, confused.

 

Instead of replying he merely  lifted the large towel cape she had over her clothes and gently dried her hair a bit and rubbed her shoulders with it warmly.

 

Sora wasn't sure what to make of this, but she felt a strange tingling sensation come over her.

 

"Oppa." She said softly, still unsure of why he was being so gentle like that.

 

Kris looked down at her with affection, and pulled her towards him.

 

"Thank you for not giving up on me." He said sincerely, smiling.

 

Sora beamed back. "Thank you for opening up to me. See? You're not an ice prince after all." She said simply.

 

He pretended to look offended. "What? So I don't have princely looks? that hurts Sora, that really hurts."He joked back.

 

Sora rolled her eyes, but gently brushed his bangs away from his face with her fingertips.

 

"You'll always be a prince to me." She said simply. 

 

He raised an eyebrow at this. "Then will you a be my princess?" He asked extra cheesily.

 

Sora burst out laughing, and gently pushed him away, and shook her head.

 

"Nope. But, I will be yours." She said cheekily.

 

He laughed back, and pulled her back to him again, ending their banter with a soft kiss.

 

Smiling into their kiss, she rested her hands against his shoulders, while he wrapped his arms around her waist.

 

When they broke apart, they linked hands, intertwining their fingers as they walked towards his house, both smiling.

 

"Let's make oa jian (oyster omelet) !" She said randomnly and broke away from him, starting to run.

 

Kris gaped at this, shaking his head and smiling as he caught up to her, and draped an arm around her shoulder.

 

"Only if we make enough for Xiaobin too." He reminded her.

 

She smiled, nodding, as they happily walked down the street.

 

Hopeless?

 

Not anymore. 

 

~