The silence surrounding him was too much yet he didn't move. He sat by the slide watching as Amber embraced herself and cried silently on the swing. Something had been triggered and all he could do was let it pass. It was an hour past midnight. An hour ago he had heard the yell of a breakup. Thirty minutes ago he had stopped being dragged by Amber when they stumbled into the abandoned park. Ten minutes ago he realized his had fallen asleep.

Tired and cold and coming to the conclusion that they should not be having school tomorrow, Kibum got up. He made noise. He knew he made noise but Amber didn't look up at him. He stopped in front of her and kneeled to see her face. Her face was tear streaked and she looked like she was ready to burst into more tears. She didn't look at him. But watching her made him feel a sort of guilt. He had kissed Krystal and he did not hate it. In fact he almost found it pleasant. It ran warning signs to his brain from the moment of thinking back.

So his guilt made him push her chin up to see her eyes. They were red. She looked so vulnerably. She should look less appealing to him. She didn't. Her crying face was beautiful. Right there, under the moonlight all he saw was her beauty. He was doomed really. That almost kiss was the start of it. Why he felt so hurt that she had fallen into Krystal's trap was even more reassurance. He cared a lot for Amber. It went from being curious about this girl to liking her as a friend. Now to having almost kissed her. All he wanted to do now was kiss her.

"Amber..."

He breathed it out but she closed her eyes and shook her head no. Getting impatient now he stood up, holding onto the chains of the swing. She was startled and held on as well looking at him wide eyed. "Kibum,"

"I don't care about your past. I may have been curious before but I don't care anymore. I care about you Amber. You're not feeling well and I am tired of watching from afar. You don't have to say anything but I'm here. Don't hide it. Don't keep it to yourself and let it eat you up. Hit me. Yell at me. Do something but sit there quietly taking it all in."

Amber's bottom lip quivered and she burst into tears. That was not the reaction he was hoping. He was hoping she would stop crying and just throw punches at him. She just cried and stood up. When she stood up she embraced him and held tightly onto him. Kibum tapped her back awkwardly until he just hugged her back. Her shoulders were shaking. It took a couple of minutes before her shoulders finally stopped shaking and she quieted down. A mumbled thanks was heard. He shrugged.

Amber pulled back and looked at him. She was still embracing him. He was weary. He was tired, cold, and he just wanted his warm bed. If she read that he wasn't sure. He was sure that one minute she looked at him and the next she had pulled him forward as she crashed her lips onto his. He grew rigid from shock. Amber was kissing him. Amber was bloody kissing him! How was that even possible?

His eyes were wide. If his lips weren't being pressed by other lips his jaw would be open. It was brief. It sent a shock wave through his body. He stumbled and Amber pulled back. She was blushing. She looked lost. It was almost like she regretted having kissed him. Before she could speak he shook his head. Needed to compose himself first. It was more than just shock. It was having finally felt her lips on his. 

"I'm sorry. I just didn't want to feel like I lost again."

So it was fueled by the kiss he had shared with Krystal. So Krystal had had a past with Kris as well. It was all clicking in his brain. If she didn't want to lose it meant she had feelings for him. Slowly a smile was forming on his lips. Amber liked him. He was definitely not in this alone. Looking down at her and pulling her closer by the waist he bent forward and whispered "You are so beautiful" before capturing her lips with his.

It was gentle. It was a timid and gentle kiss as he waited for some sort of response. When Amber did response he deepened the kiss, bringing his hand up to hold her face and pulling her closer though it wasn't possible. Amber melded well with him. Her lips tasted sweet in a sense. She was shy but his feelings were being felt from her to him. Seconds seemed like minutes. Too soon Amber pulled back completely ignoring his groan of protest. He rested his head on her forehead before opening his eyes.

When he did, she was looking like a deer caught in headlights. Kibum spoke before he even knew what he was speaking. "Don't run."

But that was exactly what Amber did. She ignored his previous comment, pulled away, and ran. She left him in a playground touching his lips and feeling like an idiot. Clearly her running away could only mean he was rejected and she must have been in the moment. He just wanted to dig his own grave.

*** 

It should have been a rule that the day after the boy auction there would be no school. Clearly that was not the case and Jinri was pulling up to her house feeling like she was doing the walk of shame. Yet she wasn't because she woke up alone in a hotel room with a note from Sehun saying that as much as he would have loved to have slept with her, he wanted her conscious. It was sweet really. She had been taken care of by him. He even had left her medicine for the hangover she was now taking care off. It made her smile. At least someone was treating her nicely.

In the back of her mind the words of Taemin still rung in her head. That cut was way too deep to easily forget. Someone she considered a friend and close to her more than anyone else now thought ill of her. Sighing once she parked her car she looked up. Sitting outside her front door was the last person she wanted to see. Minho was all dressed for school and looking as attractive as ever. She knew that he had seen her. Not hearing a car drive up would make him deaf. But why was he there when Jongin had told him to not be near her?

Jinri got out of the car, fixed her hair the best she could and walked up to her front door. She couldn't put down her façade that everything was okay. At the sight of her, Minho stood up. He had a soft smile on his face. She so wanted to return it but she couldn't. Wasn't she trying to change into what she was made into by gossip?

"Hey there beautiful."

"What are you doing here Minho?"

"Considering you just got back and it looks like you are wearing the same clothes from yesterday, you had a good night didn't you?" 

Minho was joking but she wasn't in the mood to play along. She walked past him to open the door. He moved aside and stood behind her. When she opened the door she looked to Minho. In response he smiled. "I'm guessing you want to come in?"

"That would be great."

Rolling her eyes she walked in and kept walking towards the stairs. She heard the door close behind her. It didn't need to be said but she was going to get ready before she would talk to Minho. Getting upstairs to her room she noticed how much of a mess she was. Her makeup wasn't necessarily smeared because she made sure to clean up before leaving the hotel but she looked a wrecked. How could Minho even think she had a good night? Had she been crying the previous night? She wasn't sure but her eyes were swollen like she had been. Asking Sehun would be weird. One way or another she would have to find out.

As she took a quick shower and got ready in her school uniform she received a text. It was from Jongin letting her know that he wouldn't be able to pick her up for school. She groaned. Now she was stuck either driving or getting a ride from Minho and Krystal. Seeing Jongin's name reminded her that he had been there with her last night. She could ask him to fill in the details of her haziness.

Once ready she took one last look in the mirror and flattened her hair before heading downstairs to where Minho was sitting on her couch. He had his arms spread out on the top of the couch. It was weird to have him there. They never really spent time at each other’s home. There was no need to spend time at their homes. Yes they were childhood friends but since Minho started dating Krystal it was almost unspoken that they would never go to each other’s home. Something was off about everything. Krystal was mad at her because she had confessed about liking Minho. Taemin believed the gossip about her. Jongin was ditching her and Minho was on her couch. 

The creak of the last step made Minho lean his head back and look at her upside down. He immediately smiled. "Wow, you're beautiful."

She would have blushed but she sneered. "Why are you here?"

"Oh that's right." Jinri took a seat on the chair beside the couch while Minho sat up and leaned on his knees. "You left school early. I also forgot you're not really in talking terms with Taemin or Krystal. I would have thought Suzy would have texted you."

"What was I meant to hear from Suzy?"

"I broke up with Krystal last night."

His nonchalance made her scowl and roll her eyes. "I can see you're really torn up about that.  Besides had I know, do you think I would have allowed you inside?"

At her words his expression changed. He had an air of playfulness seconds before. Now he looked up at her from under his eyes with sadness written all over them. Minho really did love Krystal. Just seeing how his shoulders slightly sagged and how he deeply sighed.  He was a lot more broken up about it than he would allow himself to be. "I guess you're right..."

"Minho, I'm sorry."

He shook his head while letting out a dry chuckle. "Me too. But I'm not here to get pity. I was here because I want answers. Did you know that Krystal isn't a ?"

"What?" That shocked her. All Krystal would talk about was how she was waiting for that perfect moment with Minho. "Minho that's crazy. She has been waiting for the right moment to be with you. If Suzy told you this—"

"She had evidence Sulli. Suzy had an actually video of Krystal sleeping with Kris! I stopped watching the second I saw her face clearly." He yelled. Minho raised his voice for the first time at her.

"She slept with Kris?"

She never knew why suddenly Krystal and Amber never talked. She didn't understand what had created a rift between them. She always had a feeling that Suzy was somewhat involved but she never thought something like that would happen. The frustration visible on Minho and hearing him yell was proof that he was as clueless as she had been. The next reaction he had of laughing scared her. He started to laugh almost maniacally. 

"I don't understand what is so funny about this situation."

"I remember that night. I do. Just briefly. It was the night when it was announced the opening of our new store. Amber had brought Kris as a date. It was his first event. I remember being wasted and Suzy dragging me somewhere. Almost like that time at school. She had put me in a room. I know a camera was in there because I remember playing with it. But before whoever was supposed to be there with me came, my mom found me and dragged me. I couldn't taint my father's image. Not that night. Suzy had said she was trying to prove that Kris was a bad person. So why was I in that room first?"

Jinri remembered that night too. She just remembered it differently. She remembered how Suzy had slipped something in Amber's drink. She also saw as Jongin helped Amber around while he was pretty wasted as well. That was the last she had seen of Suzy because minutes later she was too busy with Taemin in their own hotel room. That night was the first time she had felt something more than just lust. There was no need for them to have been together. She wasn't sad. She wasn't trying to forget. It just happened. She had looked at him. Smiled at him. And then the next thing she knew she was kissing him. 

That was the same night Taemin had made her heart skip a beat. He had been so gently and loving. He had said he loved her the moment he ed. He played it off as meaning as a friend but it didn't sound that way. She should have paid more attention because he had meant it. Now he hated her. A day after confessing to her. He now saw her as a . Who else had she supposedly slept with? She had only slept with him. She had only heard the words “I love you” come from. So only repeated those words to him. How much did she mean those words spoken? A lot more than she realized at that moment. If she had no feelings for Taemin and just slept with him for the physical aspect she wouldn’t have been so hurt by his words. No. Far deep inside her she always had feelings for him. She was just too blinded by her attraction to Minho to pay them any attention.

Putting that all past her Jinri stood up and sat by Minho who had stopped laughing. Instead she could see his silent tears falling down. All she could so was soothe her friend. She had feelings for this man. Although at that time those feelings she felt were not the reason she was comforting him. She comforted him because he looked so broken and she was his friend. As his shoulders shook she gently rubbed his shoulders up and down. His tears were almost making her cry. In fact she was crying. She knew the tides were changing. This was not the outcome she thought they would have had as friends. What happened to being inseparable? Feelings and lies occurred.

Minho rubbed his face and