About a week passed before Woohyun had any interaction with Dok Mi again.  It was the following Monday when he brought her over to eat with Infinite once more.  

   “Oh!  She’s back!”  Woohyun started.  

   “She’s back!”  Sunggyu joined.

   “She’s baaaaaaaaaaaaaack!”  Sungyeol screamed.  The table laughed at his attempt of a high note, including Dok Mi.  

   “Miss Dok Mi, I have good news.  You have attained more popularity in one week than Woohyun did in three years.  Congratulations.”  

   Dok Mi was conflicted.  She didn’t like it, but she was being complimented.  She thanked him and awkwardly stuffed her face with food.  Sungyeol poked her food filled cheeks and laughed.  

   “She’s just like a chipmunk~” he teased.  Dok Mi laughed a little and swallowed her food.  

   “Why are you guys so nice to me?”  She asked.  “You’re nothing like Woohyun.”   All of them shrugged and looked around at each other, expecting someone to answer.  

   “We haven’t let the popularity get to our heads,” Sungyeol whispered so that only Dok Mi could hear.  She nodded and looked at Woohyun.  

    How was she going to transform that pride of his? 

   “Wait.  Why are we doing this thing again?”  Dok Mi asked as she looked at Woohyun.  He raised an eyebrow and smirked.

   “Because you don’t see how cold the world is.”

   “You don’t see how warm it is.”

  “You’re too sheltered.”

   “Why would you tear someone’s shelter away?”  She snapped.  He shut his mouth and blinked a few times in confusion.  He didn’t know the answer, either.  

   “It’s not like I don’t know that the world can be cold.  You don’t know what I… Never mind.  But that doesn’t mean the potential for human warmth has vanished,” she hummed.  Woohyun nodded and began stuffing his face, too.  Why couldn’t he argue back?  He wanted to, so badly, but he couldn’t.  “I want to bring back that warmth and to—“

   Woohyun lifted his chopsticks and put a huge chunk of rice in .  “I can’t argue with you today.  Just settle with the idea of being right for once and let me eat in peace.”  Dok Mi nodded and gulped down the rice.  Inside, they were both thinking one thing: indirect kiss.     

   To break the awkward silence, Dongwoo coughed and brought up their school concert for the Friday following the next Friday.  “So, is everyone ready for our first practice today?  Five hours of beautiful music and dancing!”  He smiled.  

   “Five hours of hard work,” Myungsoo sighed as he rested his head on the table.  “At least we love it.  Woohyun, are you done writing your song yet?”

   Dok Mi turned to Woohyun and tilted her head to the side in interest.  “You write songs?”

   “Just the lyrics,” Woohyun admitted.  “Sunggyu hyung usually helps me with the composition.  And no, Myungsoo.  I haven’t.”  For a short while, Dok Mi was impressed.  Maybe Woohyun wasn’t so bad once you got to know him.  His attitude towards his classmates, however, needed to change.  

   “I forfeit,” Dok Mi said.  She looked at Woohyun and waited for him to stare at her, like usual.  He did and she grinned.  “I have no interest in being in this game anymore.  But Woohyun…  I do wish that you would calm that ego of yours.”

   “Yes ma’am,” he said without complaint.  She was taken aback and held her breath.  Did she hear that correctly?  “You heard right,” he said as if he could read her mind.  “You’re obviously the happier one, and I’m sorry I doubted your methods.  And maybe…  Maybe I’m tired of being this way.  So we’ll see what happens.”  

   “Woohyun are you okay?”  She blurted.  He laughed and ruffled her hair.  

   “Let me walk you home today,” he requested.  She nodded and they both continued eating their lunches silently.  Sunggyu was going to protest, saying he’d miss practice time, but something was up between Woohyun and Dok Mi, and it was something that all of the Infinite members supported.  

   “Out of the way,” Woohyun ordered as he entered the classroom.  As told, the boy in front of him cleared the way and Woohyun took an almost effortless walk to his desk.  For the first time since he could remember, he wasn’t late for class; he was actually early.  He watched students flood in and waited patiently for Dok Mi to sit at the front of his row.  

   Dok Mi skipped in with Hye Ri’s arm intertwined with hers.  She was cheerful, like usual, but Woohyun couldn’t help but notice Hye Ri seemed a little annoyed.  He watched her leave Dok Mi and go to another group of friends.  He thought to himself that Hye Ri was a wannabe and was using Dok Mi.  For some reason, he pitied Dok Mi and decided to sit behind her. 

   “I want to sit here.  Move back,” he told a girl.  She didn’t argue and got up to go to his seat.  Before she could leave, Dok Mi grabbed her hand.  

   “Don’t you think you could ask her kindly?”  Dok Mi spat.  Woohyun raised the corner of his lip in agitation and turned back towards the girl. 

   “I’d like to have this seat, please.  Is it okay if we trade spots?”  He asked her with a fake, girly voice.  He saw Dok Mi throwing daggers at him with her eyes and he laughed.  “Please? “ He said like a normal person.  Dok Mi suppressed a smile and turned around after letting go of the girl’s hand.  The girl got up and he bowed.  “Thank you.”  

   For the rest of the day, Woohyun kept teasing Dok Mi and she was about to throw a fit.  He would blow her hair, poke her shoulder, ask her questions and rest his feet on the seat of her desk.  He would push her forward and she had to push the desk back to get it aligned with the others.  After class, she decided she would leave without saying goodbye.  She waited for Hye Ri, only to be scolded.

   “I took notes today,” Hye Ri snapped.  “You don’t have to follow me to cheer practice again.”  With that, she walked off.  Dok Mi’s jaw fell in confusion before she collected herself and turned to get her books.  Woohyun had already picked them up and was hugging them to his chest.  

   “I’ll carry these to your locker,” he said with a smile.  Dok Mi groaned and tried to get her books away from Woohyun.

   “No, I can do it.  It isn’t far.  And I don’t want your company.”  She mumbled the last part.  

   “What was that?”  Woohyun asked.  He cupped a hand to his ear and turned it towards her.  “You want my company?”  

   “Just give me my books,” she whined as she tried to slip them out of his hold.  Just when she thought she had them, someone came up from behind her and pried her off of him.

   “Give her the books,” Taejoon ordered.  Woohyun frowned, looked at Dok Mi, then back to Taejoon.

   “Taejoon, calm down,” Dok Mi said.  She grabbed his arm and pushed him away from Woohyun.  “He’s just joking around.”

   “But Dok Mi, he joked around with you all class.  It’s on the verge of bullying,” Taejoon whined.

   “Stop worrying about me.”  Dok Mi huffed.  

   “You know I can’t do that,” Taejoon responded softly.  Woohyun felt like throwing up and handed her books to him.

   “Fine, you carry them to her locker,” he said and walked off.  Before leaving the classroom, he looked over his shoulder at Dok Mi.  “I’m still walking you home, right?”  He asked her.  She nodded.  He watched Taejoon practically faint.  “This really is fun.”  

   “That Taejoon…  He seems to like you quite a bit,” Woohyun teased.  Dok Mi blushed and Woohyun went crazy.  “What?  You like him too?!”  

   “No!”  Dok Mi yelled.  Woohyun was relieved and patted her back.  

   “That’s a relief.  You’re too good for him,” he stated.  Dok Mi stopped and yanked on his jacket sleeve.  

   “No I’m not,” she protested weakly.  “If anything, he’s too good for me.”

   “How so?”  

   “He cares about me…  More than I’d ever care about him.  I love him as a friend.  But he wants more, and I don’t have anything more to give him.  He deserves more.  He deserves someone better,” she admitted.  Woohyun was touched and aggravated at the same time.  It was sweet that she was so modest, but it was also annoying.  To Woohyun, she had to be the nicest girl he knew.  

   “Whatever you say.  But I think…  With a heart like yours, anyone would be happy to be your companion,” he complimented.  She scrunched up her nose and shook her head. 

   “Apparently I’ve done something really bad.  Hye Ri is angry with me, and I don’t know why.”  Dok Mi was tired of walking and sat on a bench.  Woohyun sat beside her and crossed his arms.

   “Doesn’t make much sense to me, either,” he agreed.  They both sat in silence for a while until Dok Mi turned to start up another conversation.

   “Why did you call her ugly?”  She asked him.  He gulped and looked away.  “I’m pretty sure Hye Ri is the most beautiful girl in our school.  You could’ve turned her down without telling her she was ugly.”

   “You don’t understand, because you’re too close to see it,” Woohyun sighed.  “Think about it.  She jumped at me.  Is it normal to beg a guy to be your boyfriend without any previous confrontation or flirtation?”

   “No, but—“

   “I know you won’t agree with me, but she wants to be a Queenka.  She doesn’t like me; she wants to use me.  And it seems like she’s used a lot of people,” he stated.  Dok Mi looked as if she was about to cry and argue, so Woohyun grabbed her wrist and pulled her up.  “Let’s drop it.  I have something else to tell you.”

   Dok Mi trudged along and Woohyun stayed by her side.  He contemplated how to properly say what he wanted to until Dok Mi interrupted his thoughts.

   “You know, we’re almost at my house,” she reminded.  He nodded and clasped his hands together.

   “I just wanted to tell you…  What you told me the other day really hurt.  About the appreciating others’ existence and such.  And it hurt because you were right.  When I see people hanging around with you, they’re smiling.  When people are around me, they’re silent and statue-like.  So, while I moped around and debated how to prove you wrong, I realized something: if there’s anyone that appreciates my existence, besides my family and Infinite, it’s you.”  Dok Mi froze and he laughed at her.  “You did me the favor of making me face reality.  I’m thankful.”

   Dok Mi couldn’t believe what she was hearing.  She let go of her grudges and jumped up to hug him.  “You’re welcome,” she replied.  He didn’t hug her back and she laughed.  “You could pay me back by hugging me, you know.”  After she said that, Woohyun hesitantly embraced her and patted her back.  

   “I’m not much of a hugger,” he shyly admitted.  

   “Just pretend,” she playfully snapped.  She soon pulled away and began skipping.  “I don’t suppose you’d like to skip to my house with me?”

   “No,” he rejected with a grin.  She lightly punched his shoulders and skipped off.  

   “I’ll go on my own~” she cooed.  “Thank you Woohyun!  Bye!”  

   He waved farewell to her before she could turn and skip off.  With a full smile, he turned back towards school to go practice.