The following morning I was surprised to see Baekhyun walk into PE class. He was dressed in knee-length basketball shorts and a white v-neck shirt. After handing a slip of paper to Miss Hyo, he caught my eye. He gave a low wave and joined me in the bleachers.

"I was wondering when we'd bump into each other again," he said.

"I never heard why you transferred here," I said.

"I lost my scholarship and my parents couldn't afford the tuition."

Miss Hyo blew her whistle. Baekhyun looked at me as if asking what the whistle had meant.

"Ten laps around the gym." I pushed up from the bleachers. "Are you an athlete?"

Baekhyun jumped up. He threw punches into the air. Grinning, he said, "An athlete? To the core."

Baekhyun and I jogged the ten laps together, then headed outdoors.

"I need two captains for softball," Miss Hyo yelled.

Baekhyun raised his hand.

"Alright," she said to him. "And how about...Jung Soojung as captain of the red team.

Soojung's eyes swept over Baekhyun. "Bring it on."

"Baekhyun, go ahead and take the first pick," Miss Hyo said.

Rubbing his finger at his chin, Baekhyun examined the class. "Jinri," he said

Soojung tipped her neck back and laughed. "Thanks," she told Baekhyun, flashing him a toxic smile that can mesmerize the opposite .

"For what?" said Baekhyun.

"For giving us the game." Soojung pointed a finger at me. "There's a hundred reasons why I'm a cheerleader and Jinri's not. Coordination tops the list."

I narrowed my eyes at Soojung, then made my way over beside Baekhyun.

"Jinri and I are friends," Baekhyun told Soojung calmly, almost coolly. Soojung looked like she'd had a bucket of ice water poured at her, and I was enjoying it.

"That's because you haven't met anyone better. Like me." Soojung twisted her hair around her finger. "Jung Soojung. You'll hear all about me soon enough." I don't know if her eyes just twitched, or she winked at him.

Baekhyun gave no response whatsoever, and my approval rating of him shot up a few notches.

After dividing the teams, Baekhyun lead ours. Handing me a bat, he pushed a helmet on my head. "You're up first, Choi."

I stepped onto the plate and balanced the bat on my shoulder.

Soojung took her place on the pitcher's plate. She held the ball out in front of her. She flashed another toxic smile and threw the ball at me.

I hit it, sending it flying into the dirt on the wrong side of the foul line.

"That's a strike!" Miss Hyo called.

Baekhyun shouted from the back, "That had a lot of spin on it. Send her a clean one!" It took me a moment to realize he was talking to Soojung and not me.

Again the ball left Soojung's hand. I swung, a miss.

"Strike two," Park Chanyeol said through the catcher's mask.

I gave him a hard look.

Stepping away from the plate, I took a few more practice swings. I almost missed Baekhyun coming up behind me. He reached his arms around me and positioned his hands on the bat, level with mine.

"Let me show you," he said in my ear. "Like this. Feel that? Relax."

I could feel my face heat up with the eyes of the entire class on us. "I got it, thanks."

"Get a room!" Soojung called to us. The class laughed.

"If you'd throw her a decent pitch," Baekhyun called back, "she'd hit the ball."

"My pitch is on."

"Her swing is on."

Baekhyun dropped his voice, speaking to me alone. "You lose eye contact the minute she lets go of the ball. Her pitches aren't clean, so you're going to have to work to get them."

"We're holding up the game here, people!" Miss Hyo called out.

Just then something in the parking lot drew my attention. I thought I had heard my name called. I turned, but even as I did, I knew my name hadn't been said out loud. It had been spoken quietly to my mind.

Jinri.

Taemin wore a grey baseball cap and head-to-toe black, leaning against a chain-link fence. His eyes were inaccessible and hard to understand as he watched me, but I suspected there was a lot going on behind them.

Another string of words crept into my mind.

Batting lessons? Nice...touch.

I drew a steady breath and told myself I just imagined the words. Because considering that Taemin had the power to talk through my mind was ridiculous.

"Choi! Head in the game!"

I blinked, jerking to life just in time to see the ball rolling through the air toward me. I started to swing, then heard another set of words.

Not...yet.

I held back, waiting for the ball to come to me. As it descended, I swung with everything I had.

A huge hit sounded, and the bat vibrated in my hands.

"Run!" my team shouted. "Run, Jinri!"

I ran.

"Drop the bat!" they screamed.

I threw it aside.

"Stay on the first base!"

I didn't.

Stepping on the first base, I rounded it, sprinting toward the second. Left field had the ball now, in position to throw me out. I can hear the word "Slide!" that came from my team.

The second baseman snagged the ball out of the air. I dove headfirst, arms stretched out.  My body crumpled on the dirt, leaving me with a mouthful of gravel and sand.

"And she's out!" cried Miss Hyo.

I tumbled sideways, scanning myself for injuries. Limping back to the team, I collapsed on the bench.

"Cute," Baekhyun said.

"The stunt I pulled or my torn-up leg?" Tucking my knee against my chest, I gently brushed the dirt away.

Baekhyun bent down and blew on my knee. Several of the larger bits of dirt fell to the ground. A moment of awkward silence followed. "Can you walk?" he asked.

I stood up, showing him my legs are still useful.

"I can take you to the nurse if you want. To get you bandaged," he said.

"Really, I'm fine." I glanced at the fence where I'd last seen Taemin. He was no longer there.

"Was that your boyfriend standing by the fence?" Baekhyun asked.

I was surprised that Baekhyun had noticed Taemin. He had his back to him. "No," I said. "Just a friend. Actually, not even a friend. He's my bio partner."

"You're blushing."

"Probably windburn."

Taemin's voice still echoed in my head. My heart pumped faster, but if anything, my blood ran colder. Had he talked directly to my thoughts? Was there some strange link between us that allowed it to happen? Or was I losing my mind?

Baekhyun didn't look completely convinced. "You sure nothing's going on between you two? I don't want to chase after an unavailable girl."

"Nothing."

Wait. What did Baekhyun say? Chase after...me?

"Sorry?" I said.

He smiled. "There will be a party by the beach this Saturday night. More like a carnival. Suho and I are thinking about going out. Maybe you and Suji want to come?"

I took a moment to think over his offer. I was pretty sure that if I turned Baekhyun down, Suji would kill me. Besides, going out with Baekhyun seemed like a good way to escape my uncomfortable attraction to Taemin.

"Sounds good to me," I said.

I updated as fast as I can to make up for my super late update of chapter six.

All is well, right?

And thanks for the comments. Especially Chanyeols_cheese.

I'd like to commend her (I'm assuming she's a girl) for her consistent comments in every chapter.

I appreciate it a lot. And to those who comment a lot too.