“I can’t believe how difficult that quiz was!” Yoonmi groaned as she slammed her tray down on the table and plopped into her seat “pop quizzes should be illegal.”

“Maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad if you spent a little less time with Baekhyun and a little more time hitting the books” Dahee best friend of six years.

“Oh shut up Dahee. Not all of us can be geniuses like you”

“Not everyone spends all their time with their boyfriends and ignores their studies and their best friends!!”

“Cheer up Dahee! You’re probably the most gorgeous girl in this school. Just work a little on your social skills and boys will flock to you. I promise!”

“Now you’re just proving that you’re dumb” Dahee shifted in her chair uncomfortably before shoving a spoonful of rice in .

What Yoonmi had said was absolutely true. It wasn’t that Dahee was completely socially inept…but when it came to boys Dahee was totally hopeless – reduced to a flustered, withdrawn ghost of her usually bubbly self. As a result Dahee was seventeen and had never so much as held hands with a boy.

“See like that guy over there is totally checking you out” Yoonmi blurted a little too loud for you comfort. Your eyes darted up from your lunch as Dahee nodded toward a table full of boys. Hesitantly, you followed her gaze over to the piercing stare of a boy seated directly across the cafeteria. You recognized him as Oh Sehun, a boy you had frequently seen in the company of the one and only Kim Jongin. His eyes met yours and he smirked and lightly shook his head before turning his attention back to his friends who were engaged in some lively conversation. Your face flushed bright read and you quickly shifted your attention back on you food.

“See what I mean?”

“Park Yoonmi! Shut up! He was definitely not looking at me.” You said but the dark blush on your face still lingered.

“You underestimate yourself” Yoonmi tutted and you just shrugged in reply.

“Oh my god that pop quiz was soooooo hard!!!!!” both you and Yoonmi looked up to see Sujin taking a seat at the table.

“Right!?” Yoonmi chirped “That what I was saying! But Dahee here seems to think everyone can give up their social lives for school work.

“Hey! I still have a social life” you kicked Yoonmi in the knee and she glared back at you unfazed.

“Yeah if you count hanging out with us dorks as having a social life” Sujin laughed as she picked up chopsticks and began to eat.

“She has a point” Yoonmi sing-songed. Sujin scooted in her chair to make way for the sudden crowd of students taking their trays. You ducked your head as a particularly rowdy group of boys approached, as was your nature.

“Hey Yoonmi” a couple of the boys greeted as they passed.

“Hello boys” she laughed. You admired her easy confidence – she could talk to simply anyone and come off as cool and relaxed. She had a fun, warm aura that made everyone feel comfortable around her. Dahee started to tune everything out as Yoonmi began to converse with the guys. It was all she could do to keep from hyperventilating about her own shortcomings. Thinking about how awkward she must look at this very moment, eyes averted and head ducked, made Dahee’s tongue feel like a useless cotton wad in . Why did she have to be so nervous all the time? Why couldn’t she think of one amusing thing to say? The realization that she might never be able to talk to people the way she wanted to made her skin go ice cold in a flash. But it wasn’t just fear making the icy cold wash over her body, she was suddenly aware of a cold, sticky liquid washing over her.

“Oh my god!! I’m so sorry!” Dahee was roused from her daze by the voice of one of the boys.

“H-huh??” She gulped and stared blankly at the boy who was looking at her clothes with a horrified expression. She looked down at her blouse. . Her once pristine white blouse was now stained by grape juice. Dahee’s face went completely white – not because her clothes were irreversibly ruined but because she was suddenly aware of the many pairs of eyes now glued to her.

“! It’s gonna stain..really I’m so sorry…..Dahee was it?”

“ah – y..yeah! I mean yeah…I’m – my names Dahee. But it’s….ok. I’m fine.” Dahee’s face went completely white as she tried to speak like a normal person. But, unfortunately, her social life never seemed to play out that smoothly. “I – I’ll just go to the uh the bathroom. To wash the stain, I mean. But really it’s ok. Don’t worry about it!!!!” Dahee grimaced as soon as the words left and rose from her seat. Without a glance back at the scene, Dahee balled up her fists and walked briskly to exit the canteen. Sighing, she leaned against the closed door of the canteen. She felt like a complete idiot. This happened every time she talked to a boy even if she wasn’t in the least bit attracted to him – and each time she had such an encounter she was left wondering how she could ever show her face in public again.

As expected the stubborn stain only spread with water. Dahee ruffled her hair in frustration and murmered curses as she scrubbed her blouse as hard as she could (probably more for stress relief than actually removing the stain). Nothing was going right for her today. Abandoning any hopes of erasing the stain Dahee quickly dried the shirt with the hand dryer and set off to retrieve the extra sweater she kept in her locker. It was the only solution. Dahee had almost made it to her locker when she heard a voice that made her stop in her tracks.

“Hey Dahee” his voice was smooth and boyishly charming. Jongin. Dahees heart stopped as, slowly, she turned to face him – the boy that had captured her heart the day she entered high two years ago.

“H-hi Jongin” flustered, Dahee gulped unintentionally.

“What are you up to? Shouldn’t you be at lunch?” Jongin was always this friendly to her, despite her severe shyness. He went out of his way to be kind to people and she loved that about him.

“Oh I – I was just –” Dahee was at a loss for words as Kim Jongin’s eyes panned down to her ruined uniform. Great…

“Woah Dahee,” he chuckled “Didn’t know you had such a unique fashion sense.” The way his eyes glittered as he laughed made a warmness unmatched by any other feeling grow in her heart. She smiled awkwardly back at him. “Well I’d better get going! See ya later Dahee!” Jongin jogged down the hall and rounded a corner, disappearing from sight. Reaching her locker, Dahee squealed as she pulled her sweater over her head. Of course the encounter wasn’t ideal – she had barely talked and undoubtably came off as awkward once again; not to mention he had seen her current grape juice-covered state. But Dahee couldn’t help but feel ecstatic every time she was around Kim Jongin.