Your alarm beeped belligerently a few times before you gathered enough arm strength to flick the button off. Your room was unusually dim and grey; pulling open the curtains you saw that the sky was heavy with black clouds. ‘Maybe there’ll be a storm later’ Most girls’ moods would drop at the thought of thunder and lightening but you enjoyed thunderstorms as they were so rare in the city.

You and Inguk agreed to meet at Hongdae Station at eleven-thirty. Thankfully it was only a short bus ride away so you casually got dressed and ate before waiting at the bus stop just outside the gates of the university. You dressed sensibly; after all, it wasn’t a date just a day to hang out with a new friend. You had selected jeans, ankle boots, a long sleeved shirt and a thick cardigan. The bus soon arrived and the jarring trip took a little longer than expected thanks to heavier and ruder traffic than usual.

You walked to the station and observed the people around; mostly students or busy shop vendors. While it was relatively quiet now it would soon become much more packed. You spotted Inguk standing right next to the flight of stairs leading out of the subway so you hurried over.

“Hey, have you been waiting long?” You asked as the both of you started to walk up the large main street.

“No, I only got here a few minutes ago.” A strong blast of cold air whistled down the street so you shoved your hands into your pockets. “So, what do you want to do?”

“Hm, how about lunch then we can wander around the shops?” You suggested quickly. You wanted to avoid the pointless “What-do-you-want-to-do? I-don’t-know-what-do-you-want-to-do?”

“Sure. Where do you want to eat?”

“Street food, it’s cheaper.”

Quickly you found a small cart serving a variety of hot foods. You bought a plate deokkbokki from the woman while Inguk bought kimbab. You chatted there and ate for a while before going back to the main street and looking for any interesting shops. You entered a few music and clothing stores and spent fifteen minutes helping Inguk decide whether he should buy a green or orange cover for his phone. At around two o’clock the clouds split open and it stated pouring rain. The crowds dispersed quickly into cafes and stores.

You and Inguk quickly ran into a small cake shop down one of the narrow alleyways and sat at the table against the window.

“What luck, huh?” Inguk grumbled while ruffling his wet hair. You wiped off the moisture on your face with a serviette before looking over the small handmade drinks menu.

“I’m not surprised; it was looking pretty black this morning.” You chuckled while choosing between green tea or a milkshake. Childish but who cares?

“Don’t most girls freak out when they get their hair wet?”

“Well, I guess I’m not like most girls.” You rolled your eyes in a playful way. It was nice to be able to talk to someone new as you weren’t really in the mood to argue with Eunseo.

“I’ll go order, what’ll you have?” Inguk grabbed his wallet and stood. You were about to protest or give him enough money to cover you but he held up a hand as if knowing what you would say. “To say thanks for yesterday.” You huffed but told him your order and watched as he walked to the counter with the lone employee. You rested your hand on your palm and looked out the window. ‘The rain’s really coming down, thank god I brought an umbrella.’ Your thoughts wandered to the guys as you saw the gutters start to bubble, on the verge of overflowing. ‘Will they get wet? That grate near the ceiling will leak so much water.’

You groaned slightly and rubbed your eyes. ‘Can’t I stop thinking about them for one minute?’ Great, you couldn’t deny it, you were worried about them. ‘I guess I’ll stop by for a minute just to see if they’re okay. No talking or anything just peek.’ You concluded and turned back around to see Inguk placing a tray of drinks and cake on the table. You took a sip of your drink and started asking Inguk some questions to get to know him better.

“So why did you move from law to architecture?” You asked while taking a bite of your vanilla cake.

“I guess I just realised law isn’t what I want to do for the rest of my life. I like creative things and Lego is a favourite pastime of mine; as immature as that sounds.” He grinned charmingly. “What about you?”

“Same thing. I love creating and typical arts are difficult to get into.” You shrugged as you lightly tapped your fork against the plate of cake. You suddenly remembered something.

“Hey, do you have any siblings?” You asked curiously.

“Yeah, a younger sister. Why?” He tilted his head a little as his brows knitted together.

“Just curious. I… know someone who looks likes you.” Inguk’s expression hardened for a moment before returning to normal; it was so slight you thought you had imagined it.

“Really? How odd.” You thought nothing of it and continued chatting casually for at least an hour before agreeing that you should get back to your dorm before the rain got even worse.

As you walked to the door Inguk’s phone started ringing. You opened the door just as someone walked in; you almost ran straight into them. It was a woman around your age.

“I’m sorry.” You stepped aside and bowed slightly.

“It’s fine.” She smiled a little and moved to the side as you and Inguk walked out, Inguk still looking down at his phone. You didn’t look back to see the twisted expression on the woman’s face as you two left the shop.

You had taken the bus back to university and ran through the rain with your umbrella clutched tightly to you. Thankfully no one else was out so you slipped into the woodland area behind the buildings unnoticed. The trees lessened the rain a little as you hurried to the now damp and depressing house. You quietly slipped into the house even though the pounding rain masked any sound you made.

Going down the trapdoor and through the concrete corridors was nerve racking, bringing about a sense of déjà vu. You flattened yourself against the wall next to the entrance way and took a deep breath. ‘Why do I feel sick at the thought of facing them?’ You inwardly groaned at your stubborn pride before ever so slowly peeking around into the room. Not only was the air cold but the expressions they all wore chilled your heart a little.

Hakyeon, Wonsik and Hongbin all sat numbly in their cells with almost dead eyes. You couldn’t see Taekwoon or Sanghyuk; you didn’t want to face Sanhyuk yet. Jaehwan sat cross legged in the middle of his cell with shiny eyes as he absently scribbled on a sheet of paper. You clenched your fists as your saw water spewing from the grate near the ceiling and collecting on the ground before spreading into each of their cells.

Jaehwan glanced up and saw your trembling eyes. Neither of you said anything, you felt as though you would burst into tears if you opened your mouth. Jaehwan disappeared into the back of the cell before remerging with a paper airplane. He stared at you sadly for a moment before throwing it towards you. It glided to a gentle stop next to your foot. The others noticed this and looked up. You glanced at each of their blank faces before snatching the paper from the ground and running back to your dorm.

You slammed the door shut behind you and unfolded the airplane with cold, shaky fingers. On it was a bunch of hydrangeas realistically drawn in black ink. The shading and dimensions made it jump out of the page; it was beautiful to say the very least. On the top right corner was a short message. Thank you, Seulgi, was written in elegant script. You immediately felt your eyes water and your nose sting as a few tears leaked from the corners of your eyes. ‘Why does pride always get in the way?’  

Author Note: Yo! Sorry for taking a month to update, I got distracted with anime...again... Anyway, 81 suscribers?! Holy crap, thank you guys so much! ^^ Thanks for reading.