I’m late! Jongwoon will make me suffer a fate worse than death if he notices I’m not there!

Being late to practice by fifteen minutes wasn’t becoming of a drum major, and using your best friend as an excuse was even worse. This was the last time I was ever volunteering for the jobs of “Kyuhyun Retrieval” and “Getaway Driver”. The ideas Donghae comes up with are just not worth fifty dollars and protection from the angry percussion captain.

I tip-toed onto the track with assorted band related items on my back like a pack mule and made sure our new drum major wasn’t looking in our direction while Kyuhyun and I were setting up our instruments. For a second, it seemed like we were going to get away with our tardiness, but my hopes came crashing down when a large shadow manifested over me.

“Sungmin, is there a reason why you’re so late?” Jongwoon asked. I wanted to laugh at his attempt to be intimidating, but I didn’t want a repeat of last Tuesday.

I set my mellophone down on its case and brushed the red residue from the track off my knees before standing up. “Kyuhyun needs to lose weight and I need to remember to never leave a stick of butter in my back pocket during a car ride.”

Jongwoon shook his head and gestured for Kyuhyun to join the rest of his section in the arc. I stood in my spot for a bit before taking a step away from the silent senior.

“Where do you think you’re going? I need to have a word with you about punctuality.”

Great, another lecture from another drum major, I thought. Didn’t Yunho lecture me enough when I asked him about his baton twirling technique?

“But it was partially your idea to sneak Kyuhyun out of his house for practice. Why am I in trouble?”

Jongwoon shot me a glare that pretty much told me that I was an idiot. Now I kind of wished that Heechul was drum major instead; he would let me come to practice almost an hour late and not waste his time lecturing me.

“Did Donghae tell you that I helped come up with sneaking my ‘concert-season only’ section member here? Everyone knows not to believe a word that comes out of his mouth, unless it involves movies about talking fish.”

“Of course I know that. It’s just that-”

“It’s just what?” He asked curtly.

I shook my head and let out a sigh of defeat. “It’s just nothing. I’ll go get in my spot before I make the situation worse.”

“Because this was your first time being late and you brought a member of my section, I won’t make you run this time. I just want you to remember that our director is still trying to change Donghae’s mind about refusing your current position,” Jongwoon said icily.

I took that as a warning and ran to my place next to the tenor saxophone section. Strangely enough, I noticed an unfamiliar person standing in my usual spot next to Kibum. After studying him for a while, I mustered enough courage to talk to him. “Are you a new tenor sax player?”

“No,” he replied, “I’m playing mellophone. Do you know who Sungmin is? I was told by the guy standing next to me that he was my section leader.”

I stood with my mouth agape in disbelief. This kid couldn’t possibly be the other mellophone player Jungsu mentioned last week. He just couldn’t be Jinki. “Is your name by any chance Lee Jinki?”

He nodded and smiled at me. “That’s me. Can you please tell me who my section leader is? I need to ask him a few things.”

His obliviousness was killing me. Who else besides his section leader would know what his name was if he was absent for the past week? Let’s just hope he can march better than he can piece together information. “You’re speaking to him,” I said bluntly.

“Oh!” He extended his hand out to me, most likely for a handshake. “Please forgive me for not being here for the past week. My cousin told me that today was the first day of band camp, but it was my fault for listening to him in the first place,” he apologized.

I hesitantly shook his hand and gave him a wary smile. “Don’t worry about it, but make sure not to be absent for the next two weeks. You’re going to have to learn the first half of the show pretty quickly since you’ve missed so much.”

“I understand, but my cousin helped me catch up over the weekend. I think I should be okay for today.”

“If you don’t my asking, who’s your cousin?”

“Kim Jonghyun,” Jinki replied proudly, “I’m sorry if he’s been acting like a douche lately. He’s still mad about having to live with my family.”

How is someone so nice and somewhat adorable related to the meanest trumpet player I’ve ever met? This is madness! No, wait. This is marching band, not Sparta.

“Great, now I can be even closer to my favorite trumpet player,” I cheered with feigned enthusiasm. There was no way in hell that I was going to go anywhere near Jonghyun more than I needed to.

Once I got acquainted with my new charge while we finished the rest of the stretches, I learned that he was quite an interesting guy. I have to wonder if he played clarinet before he began playing mellophone. I’ve noticed that clarinetists have a reputation for being weird or just plain awkward.

After the group was continually yelled at by Jongwoon and Yunho to shut up, we were finally dismissed to form the warm up block. Per usual, I took my place as center guide toward the back of the group, and Jinki followed me, taking Kyuhyun’s usual place next to me.

“Sungmin, tell him to move. We both know that I’m always on your left,” the irritated sophomore whispered loudly.

“So? Just stand on my right. It’s not like the world is going to end if you’re not where you usually are.” Kyuhyun’s insistence on everything following a specific order was going to make the rest of the practice miserable for both of us. I could practically feel the negativity emanating from him and he didn’t seem to be anywhere near as annoyed as when he rants about keeping a routine to avoid unnecessary chaos.

“We’re going to go over different stride sizes today. I noticed that we were having trouble with that last week and I wanted to get rid of any confusion before we continue with the rest of the show. We’re going to start off with eight to five strides all the way to the other goalpost.” Jongwoon switched on the aggravating metronome and the large block marched the distance we were told to. Well, most of us were marching.

Jinki kept tripping and nearly killed everyone behind him. As his section leader, I was being blamed for his apparent clumsiness even though I hadn’t seen the guy before in my life. The only person not giving me a hard time was Kyuhyun, and he was busy glaring at Jinki with disapproval. There had to be a reason for his instability on his feet. Perhaps this was his first year marching and we just thought he already had a year of experience.

“That was great, guys. Mellophones please stop tripping. I know it’s Monday, but neither of you are freshmen.”

Everyone turned to stare at us and I hid my face behind the bell of my instrument in embarrassment. Never once has my section ever been called out for something like tripping, and it wasn’t going to happen again as long as I was section leader.

The rest of the warm up went smoothly, aside from the near loss of the low brass and Kyuhyun almost lashing out at his fellow sophomore. I made a mental note to have a sectional about marching in the very near future and possibly one about not wearing your shirt backwards to practice.

“Good warm up, everyone. Now get some water and go to set twelve when you’re done.”

All of us ran off the field to where all of our belongings were sitting idly in the small shade the bleachers cast. Because I was so late and couldn’t make it to the usual mellophone spot, I was taking a break with the clarinets.

“Sungmin, you have to do something about Jinki. His marching is atrocious and I nearly died again,” Kyuhyun snapped.

“I kind of got that when everyone near me was giving me dirty looks. Anyway, you shouldn’t be saying anything. You were worse than Jinki and still trip occasionally.”

“That’s not true!” he shouted defensively. “I was much better than him and you know it.”

“Yes, I do know it because I was the one who taught you how to march. Jongwoon gave up since you wouldn’t listen to him.”

“Jongwoon didn’t give up on me. He was just spending an awful amount of time with the flutes and then made you do it.”

“Keep telling yourself that, Kyuhyun.”

I stood up and was about to go to my spot on the field, actually “off” the field, when I heard a girlish shriek next to me. I turned around and an angry Ryeowook was standing behind a dripping Kyuhyun.

“Look what you did, Yesung! You made me spill my Kool-Aid all over Kyuhyun! Do you know how long it took Henry to make that?”

The look on Jongwoon’s face made me scurry to the ladder on the other end of the field. If there was one thing that freaked me out in this world, it would definitely be Jongwoon when he’s angry. Even at a presumably safe distance, I was still slightly daunted by the intensity of the argument that was clearly getting out of control. The good thing was that there was a crowd around the two so there would be someone to stop anything before it got violent, which was highly doubtful.

“Set!”

The thunderous, irate voice from the track nearly made me fall from where I was perched. One can only imagine what was said that could possibly make our usually calm drum major so upset. I predict the death of our timpani player in the near future.

“Sungmin, what are you staring at?! Get your hands up!”

I avoided the smug glares from the percussion captain and low reed section leader and began conducting in sync with the suddenly intense clarinetist. His hardened expression was noticeable from across the field and that was what worried me. Never once had I ever seen him so concentrated on anything, and I witnessed him try-out for drum major last year.

“Stop conducting already! We haven’t learned past set seventeen of the show yet, and there’s a time signature change after set seventeen too!” Jongwoon yelled.

Had I gotten so absorbed in my thoughts that I made such a mistake? I’m Lee Sungmin, and I haven’t made such stupid mistakes since I was a freshman. Why am I screwing up so much today of all days? Why not yesterday?

“Go back to set twelve and we’ll run this part again! Backfield Drum Major, stay focused this time! We still have to learn sets eighteen through twenty-two and there’s slightly less than two hours left.”

This went on for almost hour and the sun had already set. Everyone was bumping into each other and nearly being killed by rogue trombone slides since the lights in the stadium weren’t on. I had a hard time seeing Jongwoon and the distance between us wasn’t all that great. Secretly, I prayed that Jongwoon would let us leave a bit earlier because of the odd chill that was in the air and we all knew that it was only going to get colder.

“Since we’re short on time, go set for the final run through. Make this good or we’ll do it again until it’s the best it can be.”

I climbed down from the ladder and dusted any clinging turf off of my mellophone before running to my spot toward the front. It was actually quite amusing watching everyone struggle to find their places in the dark. This was just another reason why I loved night practices.

“Come on everyone! I want to get home as much as you do, so let’s get this over with.” Jongwoon raised his hands to conduct, or at least that’s what I think he did. Who could see with all the darkness surrounding us? Seriously, the man needs to conduct with flashlights at times like this.

Because of my impaired vision, I couldn’t see when he started waving his dinosaur arms around and as a result, there was an awkward silence while everyone was waiting to move into the next set. This led me to think that nobody was counting the rest in the beginning and that they simply waited for the whole note to end to start marching.

“Why aren’t any of you moving?! Can’t you see my hands up here?” Jongwoon furiously asked.

“No.” The entire group said in unison. To be honest, this was the most in sync we’ve been since we started learning this show.

A loud huff was soon followed by the slight creaking of the ladder and Jongwoon may have flailed his arms in frustration. I couldn’t really tell if he was upset or if he was trying to dance to that one song that got stuck in his head a few days ago.

“You know what, there won’t be an after practice meeting. Just go home and be ready for a run through at the beginning of practice tomorrow. Band dismissed.”

There was a loud cheer from the group and many people were almost trampled when everyone ran to put their equipment away. Being the responsible section leader that I was now expected to be, I tried my best to find Jinki to have a talk with him about certain things that needed to be discussed. Soon after, my efforts proved fruitless and I simply gave up. I stumbled over various instrument cases and possibly some of the guard members to find the clarinets since my belongings were mixed with theirs. Luckily, the sound of Jongwoon’s ranting led me to my destination.

“…you’re my successor. How do you expect to take my place as section leader if you can’t even count for yourself? I bet you wait until Sungmin finishes his small solo before you even think about moving your feet. Honestly, I’m very disappointed with you, Kyuhyun. I know you’re aware of my expectations for you, so stop letting me down.”

I cautiously tapped the aggravated drum major’s shoulder and waited for him to strike me dead. Instead, he turned around and stared at me emotionlessly.

“Kyuhyun, you may go home now. Our reflection is over.” Jongwoon didn’t move and he continued to stare me down. It felt as if he were blaming me for what happened when I had nothing to do with it. It wasn’t my fault it was so dark, and it wasn’t my fault that he didn’t give any indication that he was conducting. “Why are you still standing there, Sungmin? Don’t you have to take a certain sophomore home before his parents realize he snuck out for band practice?”

“Jongwoon, I understand that you’re upset about how the practice went, but that’s no reason to start menacing your fellow drum major.” I pushed past him and fished around for my mellophone case. How is it that I couldn’t find it when it was surrounded by smaller cases?

“You were never officially made a drum major, Sungmin. Stop saying that you are and focus on paying attention to other things around you.”

I turned to face the suddenly cold and merciless clarinetist. What happened that got him to act like this? I blame the sadistic band gods of Band Land.

Jongwoon took a step closer and looked down at me. “Donghae was supposed to be drum major, not you. Honestly, I don’t get why our gracious director would ever let someone so unqualified help lead the group. Now drop the drum major business before you start believing that you have any kind of authority when you’re nothing but another junior with a plethora of sophomores to look after.” He aggressively snatched up his case before stomping away.

What he had told me cut me worse than when I was thrown into a rose bush by some stupid trombone players who had an issue with Kyuhyun’s attitude last year. I knew that Donghae was much more qualified to be drum major, but he never wanted the position in the first place. If Jongwoon was looking for an outlet to express his discontent and dissatisfaction, then he really must have been feeling worse than we thought.

“Sungmin, I found your case. Can you take me home now?”

I ignored the sophomore and continued to think of possible reasons why Jongwoon was so petulant. Then it hit me. “Kyuhyun, why were Jongwoon and Ryeowook fighting earlier?”

“Ryeowook spilled his Kool-Aid on me and Jongwoon got mad when he found out that Henry made it. That led to a huge screaming match between the two about how Jongwoon was being too possessive. Luckily, I managed to overhear exactly why Jongwoon was so uptight the rest of the practice.” Kyuhyun proclaimed.

“Then tell me what happened.”

“One thing led to another and someone got butthurt because they were rejected by their favorite sophomore. Strangely enough, Jongwoon didn’t cry after like I was expecting him to. All he did was tell Ryeowook that he was going to be running laps after practice for the rest of the month and then he started yelling at you for staring at him.”

“So Jongwoon is punishing Ryeowook for rejecting him? That’s just messed up.”

“I know, so I told Ryeowook that I would run his laps for him.”

I smacked Kyuhyun’s arm since I’m sure everyone would know how that was going to turn out. “Are you insane? You just came back after doing that for me! Stop being nice to others and stay selfish. I don’t need you dying of exhaustion and an excessive amount of kindness.” I took my case from his hands and carefully set my mellophone away in the one place I knew it wouldn’t be damaged by prideful sophomores.

“Thanks for the permission to dye your hair orange the next time I sleep over at your house,” Kyuhyun spoke with a devious smile creeping onto his face, “Now take me home before my mom sends out a missing person report.”

I shook my head at his mention of his mom’s tendency to be overprotective. While it seems that he’s exaggerating, his mother really did send out a missing person report when he went on the spring trip with the group without telling her. I wouldn’t blame her since my parents would’ve done the same thing and then put me under house arrest for the rest of my life. “Don’t be silly, Kyuhyun. I’m sure Jungsu managed to convince her to let you be in marching band for one more year, so you have nothing to worry about,” I reassured.

“No, he didn’t. My parents almost murdered him when he said that he didn’t make me stop running, and it took a lot of begging from me and Jongwoon to persuade them to let me be a ‘concert band only’ member. Now get me home before the police are out searching for me.” Kyuhyun jumped on my back, almost making me face plant on the various scattered cases on the track. “Take me to the motorized carriage, noble steed!”

I struggled to stay on my feet with the weight of a clarinet, a large backpack full of unnecessary items, and a clarinetist taking its toll on my already sore back. When will this kid learn that playing Starcraft while eating a bag of Doritos doesn’t count as exercise? “I’m not a horse and you’re not some nobleman, so get off my back before it splits in half from the weight of the Twinkies you stuffed yourself with for the past week,” I choked out.

“That’s why I called you my noble steed, so quit your whining. Now take me to your car before you prove to everyone that you’re a lot weaker than you let on.” Kyuhyun dug his heels in to my sides, making me yelp in pain. Not wanting to experience more torture than I had to, I made a run for my car to unload my cargo before I was unable to stand upright ever again.

On our way there, the percussion and sound crew broke out into laughter as we passed by. As expected, Hyukjae gave me a disapproving look and went back to pulling the large wagon full of speakers and various colorful extension cords.

“Kyuhyun, I’m getting you a gym membership for your next birthday.”

My comment was met with a light slap on my shoulder and some muttering about hair dye, which somewhat worried me. After two excruciatingly painful minutes, I shook Kyuhyun off and did a few quick stretches to relieve the tension in my lower back.

“Sungmin, is stretching more important than saving me from a fate worse than death?”

“Yes, so shut up and get in the trunk.” I laughed. If having to be home by six was a “fate worse than death”, then I must have suffered a ton in junior high.

“Put me in the trunk again and I’ll make sure I dye half your hair orange and shave off the other half when you’re sleeping.” Kyuhyun walked in front of me and pretended to cut a large portion of my hair.

“I’d love to put you in the trunk, but I’m stuck. I guess you’re walking home tonight, Squidward.”

“I’ll walk home when you wear a pink wig to a competition and call yourself Alice for a week.” Kyuhyun forcefully adjusted my posture, causing a loud cracking sound to be heard.

“Who told you that story?!” I panicked. “How did you know about that?”

The smirk on his face told me he had made everything up and that I had just condemned myself to a life and possibly afterlife of taunting.

“Heechul told me the ‘Pink Lady’ story when Jongwoon dragged him to visit me over the weekend. Honestly, I wasn’t surprised when he said that you still shave your legs two years after that incident.”

I didn’t know what disturbed me more, the fact that Heechul actually told someone that story or that Kyuhyun thought I shaved my legs. I’m one hundred percent man and I don’t shave anything except my face. “I don’t shave my legs, Kyuhyun. I keep mistaking my brother’s girlfriend’s hair removal cream for lotion and it’s not my fault the bottles look similar to me.” I felt my face heating up from embarrassment and I was sure that I was a darker shade of red than Donghae when he tried playing my mellophone.

“Sure, because white and dark pink look so similar. Just get me home before my parents find out-”

“That you snuck out for band camp even though they said that you were to only participate in the concert band?”

Kyuhyun nodded. “Precisely. That’s why I need to get home right now.” He became stiff for a brief second before slowly turning around. “H-Hi, Mom. What brings you here at eight thirty five in the evening?” He gave a nervous smile and began shaking slightly.

“I came to find Sungmin or Jongwoon to ask if they knew where you were.” She gave me a small smile and waved at me before glaring at her obviously very guilty son. “Then I find you in your practice clothes talking about how Sungmin shaves his legs. Honestly, do you think that I wouldn’t figure out that you weren’t home when I went up to check on you five hours ago?”

“Actually, I kind of did,” Kyuhyun replied bluntly. How was he not scared by his mom’s piercing gaze and her impatient foot tapping? I technically didn’t do anything wrong and I was scared less right now.

“Kyuhyun, as soon as your wonderfully responsible friend drops you off at the house, I’m making sure that you never set foot outside your room and you won’t be seeing your computer or clarinet for a very long time.”

Kyuhyun fell to his knees and yelled at the sky dramatically like he usually did when things didn’t go his way. “Mom, you can’t be serious! I’ll die without my videogames and my wife! You can’t take HyeSu away from me!”

Mrs. Cho simply stared at him with an unwavering gaze and waited for the overdramatic sophomore to finish his hysteria. “Are you finished defending your wife’s honor?”

“Yeah, pretty much.” Kyuhyun stood up again and hung his head in shame. “Are you and Dad going to sacrifice me to the great gods of death once I get home?”

“No, but I’m calling Director Park tomorrow morning and getting you out of the music department. All it’s done is hurt you academically, physically, and socially. This year you won’t be marching around in a dark blue uniform at two in the morning and you’ll be at home studying for your exams like a normal student.”

Kyuhyun clawed at his shorts and began to shiver. “I understand, Mom. I’ll be home in an hour, so you can just go home now,” he whispered.

The middle aged woman nodded her head and quietly walked away to the car parked a few spaces away. That was it. My best friend was now officially out of the music department and I didn’t have a proper excuse to stay in the group. Kyuhyun’s mother did what she felt was needed and I couldn’t help but agree with her. Everyone had some problem with their work and only a few of us had adequate grade point averages since they were the ones up until five in the morning finishing every bit of their assignments.

If I could, I would definitely leave with Kyuhyun, but my family had already paid in full at the huge informational meeting last year. Quitting now would just waste my father’s hard-earned money and make my efforts to get to practice despite my still blistered feet and possibly sprained ankle worth nothing.

“Sungmin, stop standing there and take me to Taco Bell. I might as well eat before I get yelled at by my dad for sneaking out.” Kyuhyun’s voice was shaky and slightly higher in pitch, almost like before he began to cry for whatever reason. Being that this was one of the few times he sounded like this, I knew that this was serious.

“Why Taco Bell? I doubt they’re open this late anyway.”

“I don’t care. Just get me to a Taco Bell. Considering how my mom reacted to me being here, it may be my last meal.”

I ruffled through my pockets to find the keys to unlock the door that was going to be rained on soon. Almost five minutes of rummaging later, I finally managed to locate them and pressed the small gray button to unlock the doors. After getting inside, I made a mental note to come up with a quicker and simpler way to find my keys.

The entire trip to the nearest Taco Bell was quiet…too quiet. On a regular day, the only thing anyone would hear was German Sparkle Party or very loud whining. Having a food run to Taco Bell or any place that sold some type of food was never this silent, and I almost crashed into a light post a couple of times because of the lack of sound.

“Kyuhyun, you’re too quiet. Please say something to end all of this awkward silence,” I pleaded.

“You just ended it,” he replied before looking out the window.

I frowned slightly at his response. Usually, Kyuhyun would reply with some sort of a snarky remark and then say something about one of the times we nearly got in trouble. Seeing him so somber and downtrodden was just so disconcerting and almost unnerving. It was like I was being forced out of band with him.

“Well, what do you know?” I asked, trying to break the ice. “They’re still open. I guess you’ll be getting your food after all.”

All I got in return was a small grunt and more silence. Worried, I gently shook the silent sophomore until he turned to look at me.

“What do you want now? Do you want me to tell you you’re pretty?!” Kyuhyun snapped.

“I just want you to cheer up a bit. It hurts me seeing anyone like this, especially someone who used to be so lively. I get that you’re hurt about not being able to stay in band, but please stop sulking. It’s not going to make you feel better.”

“You just don’t get it, do you?” He angrily stepped out and disappeared inside the building. I stayed behind to let him cool off by himself. Perhaps that one Doritos taco will help him calm down enough that he won’t nearly murder me if I say anything. Maybe he’ll even pour his heart out to the heap of ground beef in a Doritos shell and spare me the emotional breakdown.

There was a loud knock on my window and I jumped slightly in my seat. I looked outside and saw Kyuhyun staring back at me with his phone in his hands. A few seconds later, my phone beeped loudly and I checked the message that he sent me.

I’m out of money. You’re paying.

Of course he would tell me to pay. It’s not like I was the one who wanted to come here in the first place.

I looked back at Kyuhyun and he gave me a small shrug. I got out of my car and waited for him to say something to me or about me.

“So are you paying or are you broke too?”

I shook my head and dragged him back inside. Having him ask me to pay was better than getting nothing out of him, so I was much more content. I let go of him once we got in front of the register and I started searching for my wallet. “Did you already order?”

Kyuhyun nodded and held out his hand for the money that I was being forced to provide. I slapped the bills into his hand and went to sit down in our usual booth toward the back. It felt weird being here at night when there were no other band or guard members cramming into booths like sardines, but at the same time it was much more peaceful.

“Thanks for loaning me the money, Sungmin. I’ll pay you back if my parents decide to let me live,” Kyuhyun laughed.

I let out a small sigh of relief at his improved mood. I guess he just needed something to eat after being hit with such a significant blow. “It seems you’re in better spirits. Would you mind telling me why you were so upset earlier?”

“Wouldn’t you be upset after finding out that you were being taken out of the music department after so much hard work and buying things you wouldn’t be able to use?”

“Of course I would, but I meant about you yelling at me earlier. You’ve never raised your voice at me before.”

“About that…” Kyuhyun nervously scratched the back of his neck and looked outside. “I’m sorry I yelled at you. You and I both know that when I get mad, I’m worse than the Hulk when someone insults his shorts. It’s just that your attempt to get me to say something just made me feel even worse and I kind of lost it.”

I nodded in understanding and we went back to saying nothing. Once the silence got too much for me, I sat up again. “Am I pretty?” I asked while batting my eyelashes at him.

Kyuhyun nearly choked on his drink and it took him a while to recollect himself. “You’re seriously asking me that? I didn’t know Heechul’s insecurity was contagious.”

I shot him a glare and gave him a light slap. “I’m not insecure! You asked me earlier if I wanted you to tell me that I’m pretty, so I’m taking you up on your offer. Now tell if you think I’m pretty.”

“I still think Seohyun’s prettier than you, but that’s just because I don’t call other guys pretty.”

I let out a loud chuckle and clasped my hands together on the table. “So if I was a girl, you’d say I was pretty?”

“If being a girl fixes the huge mess you call your face, then I might consider you average,” Kyuhyun retorted before taking another sip of his drink. “Then again, my definition of ‘pretty’ is kind of skewed since I’m so biased. Say, if I were to put the female version of myself next to the female version of you, then I would definitely say that I’m prettier just because I love myself that much.”

“So you would consider your not-so-secret admirer prettier than me because I’m not a girl? Where exactly does insulting my face fit anywhere into this conversation?”

“It doesn’t. I just wanted to entertain myself while I was waiting for my food.”

We had a few laughs before falling into silence once again. Never once had one of our outings been this awkward. It was like we had just barely met each other and even our actual first meeting wasn’t nearly this awkward.

“Sungmin, can we act like idiots when my taco is ready?” Kyuhyun asked meekly.

“Sure, it’s probably going to be the last time we’ll get to do this anyway.”

“Don’t say that! You make it sound like I’m moving to Kazakhstan or something. Now pay attention. It shouldn’t be long now.”

We were on the edge of our seats waiting for his order number to be called.

“Order 357!”

As we usually did, we jumped out of our seats and tackled one another until we were rolling on the floor in our over exaggerated excitement. The lady up front was staring at us until we finally finished our strange display of enthusiasm. Kyuhyun got up as if nothing had happened and calmly picked up his taco.

“We’re going to have to stop doing our ritual or we’ll get kicked out next time. It’s not like anyone will know who we are.” Kyuhyun scoffed and sat back down.

I pointed to a small black half-sphere above our table. “There are security cameras and your name is on the back of your shirt. I’m sure they know who you are.”

“This is what happens when you’re practically threatened to wear a shirt the guard made you. Why are they so scary when they choose to be?” Kyuhyun whined before taking a massive bite of his taco.

“It’s because they’re women, a completely different species of humans. You never know what to expect from them.”

Kyuhyun nodded in agreement and shook his half eaten taco at me while speaking gibberish. “…I have no idea what Seohyun’s problem is. If I said no the first time, then I’m not going to change my mind if you keep asking. Am I right, Sungmin?”

“I know what you mean. Sunny was relentless, but I stood my ground and said I was married.”

“Married?”

“Yes, I said I was married…to my mellophone and occasionally had side affairs with my flute. I told her that if I couldn’t stay committed to my mellophone, then I couldn’t stay committed to a woman.”

“That’s a good idea, but I’ll say that I’m dating HyeSu so Seohyun thinks it’s an actual girl.” Once again, another loud crunch was heard and more gibberish followed. Someone needs to teach Kyuhyun not to speak with his mouth full. It’s disgusting to watch and listen to.

“I’m glad I can help, but I think I should be getting you home already. Your parents might be even harsher with your punishment if I don’t get you home soon,” I warned while looking at my watch.

“Forget them. What more can they do to me? They already took me out of the music department, so they can’t do anything worse to make me feel guilty. I say we stay out for another two hours just to piss them off. What do you think?”

“I think I should get you home before I get lectured for keeping you out late. I don’t want your parents to see me as a bad influence.”

“They know you’re harmless. All they’re worried about is me possibly corrupting you, so let me stay out later. It might be the last time we get to hang out like this for a very long time.”

“I guess staying out a little bit later won’t hurt anyone. What’s the worst that can happen?” I laughed.

“Hold on.” Kyuhyun got out his phone and answered the pending call. “What?”

I waited while he finished arguing with the person on the other line, disrupting the calmness that had once occupied the restaurant. The half-asleep cashier was staring at Kyuhyun as he became louder and louder with each word that came out of his mouth. I was about to tell him to lower his voice because we were in a building, but the call was ended before I managed to say anything.

“Sungmin, can I sleep over at your house tonight and every other night after that? I doubt my parents will want me anywhere near them until school starts,” Kyuhyun grumbled.

I nodded obediently and slowly got up from my seat. It was getting late and the last thing I wanted was for my parents to give me a lecture with a guest accompanying me home. Seriously, the season hadn’t officially started yet and I was already having band people crash at my house. Though, it could’ve been worse.

“Where are you going? I’m still not finished with my taco. You are going to sit down and listen to my problems until I’m done eating!”

I hesitantly sat back down and sighed as Kyuhyun ranted about the “unfairness” of his parents. After hearing the first few seconds of his rant, I knew this was going to be a long night.

I sincerely apologize for the large gap between updates, but school started last week for me and it's been hectic. Updates will be slower since I'm going to be very busy with all of my schoolwork and performance-oriented activities. Anyway, I hope you liked the chapter and I'll do my best to update soon.