Jung Hye Pov

However luck wasn’t on my side (not like it ever is) and instead of finding Yoo Mi, I see the one person who is questionably the cause of all this mess.

I see Jonghyun.

He’s a few steps in front of me, walking with his head slightly down and his shoulders slumped.

“J-“ I begin to say before I realised what I was actually doing.

What was wrong with me? I was actually about to call out his name and ask if he was alright!

WHY WOULD I DO THAT?

He isn’t even a friend Jung Hye! He is just a stranger. A stranger who happen to live in the same house as you, but nevertheless a stranger. Nothing more, nothing less.

So why did I feel the urge to go and ask if he was okay!? I bet there was something wrong with me. There must be something wrong with me.

But, he looked so, just so… sad. It was hard to explain, but he definitely didn’t seem like someone who would do what the rumours said.

No Jung Hye, you don’t know anything about him! Just because he played some random tune for you on the keyboard, it doesn’t mean you have him all figured out! Maybe he was just tricking you!

I sighed in exasperation, why was I even arguing with myself!?  I should be hurrying to find Yoo Mi! Not trailing behind Jonghyun!

So I quickened my pace and walked hastily past him, pretending I hadn’t seen him at all.

I finally find Yoo Mi in the classroom looking quite normal considering the rumours that are going around.

“Is it true?” I say, as I approach Yoo Mi.

“Hello to you too Jung Hye!” Yoo Mi replies with a smile.

I force myself to smile back. What was I doing? Why was I getting so worked up over this? It wasn’t like it actually effected me!

But I had to get to the bottom of this right?

“Is it true?” I repeated. “All those rumours?”

Yoo Mi looks at me with a confused expression at first, but then she frowns. “You mean those rumours about Jonghyun?”

I nod.

She frowns again.

“I didn’t mean it to be big,” she says quietly. “I just told a few more people after you, in the exact words I gave you... I’m not sure what exactly happened, but I think they told more people after that.”

WHAT?

“... and the problem just got worse.” Yoo Mi ends off, and looks insecurely at me.

“So,” I started off, “this means that the story just got huge? OVERNIGHT?”

Yoo Mi reluctantly nods. “Yeah. I guess.”

I frown as well.

“No! It wasn’t supposed to happen this way! Really! I just got rejected so I just felt like telling friends about it! I can’t believe it’s such a full blown subject! I mean Jonghyun wouldn’t punch me!”

I don’t believe the part about Jonghyun punching Yoo Mi either... I mean there are no bruises or black eyes on her anyway. And it sounded too exaggerated and weird. Why did people believe it anyways?

“So you just told a few people... and it got out of hand?”

Yoo Mi nodded furiously.

“What about the rumours about his old school?”

Yoo Mi shrugged. “I don’t know. Someone else made it up. I bet it’s true though. Didn’t someone say he had a bad record once?”

I instantly thought of the first day of school, when Jonghyun flipped the teacher off. Nobody cared then so why did they care now? “So you think he beat some people up?”

Yoo Mi shrugged again. “I don’t know, BUT HE REJECTED ME SO CRUELLY, I WOULDN’T BE SURPRISED!”

“Are you guys talking about Jonghyun? He’s such a player!” A nearby girl chimed in as she walked past our desk.

“Yeah! He rejected me AND her, geez, how many girlfriend does that guy even have?” Another girl said as she joined the previous one.

I frowned, “But he always rejected you guys, how does that mean he is a player?”

They turned to look at me, “Well, it’s kind of obvious! Besides I have seen him with girls! Why are you defending him anyways?”

Yes. Why WAS I defending him? Why should I even care?

Just as I was about to reply, our teacher walks in, “Now class, please get into your partners for the research task! Oh and I have changed my mind and it is due in two days time!”

The class groaned, but didn’t argue, knowing that if they did, it would be due the next day.

I gave Yoo Mi a sympathetic look as I walked over to Taemin. Poor Yoo Mi.

Yoo Mi POV

No. NO. NOOOOOOOOOOO NOT THE RESEARCH TASK!! I DON’T WANT TO DO THE RESEARCH TASK!! NO. NO!!

I BET JONGHYUN IS GOING TO GLARE AT ME FOR THE WHOLE PERIOD AND HE IS GOING TO HATE ME NO! AND THEN WHAT IF HE REALLY DOES PUNCH ME!? OMG NO!

I look around, trying to avoid Jonghyun’s eyes he comes and sits down next to me.

This is so awkward. I am so awkward. WHY DID I HAVE TO OPEN UP MY BIG MOUTH AND TELL EVERYONE ABOUT THIS? This is so sad. Maybe  I should apologise, I think I need to apologise, “Um.. about yesterday-”

“Can we just get on with the task.” He says tersely as he opens up his book with the part of the research task that we already have done.

Well, THAT was rude! He just completely cut me off! And I was going to apologise!

“I just wanted to-“

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

Ok. Somebody is feeling very angry today. But I suppose I can’t exactly blame him, he’s got basically the whole school hating on him.

All because of me.

Jonghyun looked scary for the rest of the period, so he worked on the task all by himself and I couldn’t gather up the courage to talk to him again.

Taemin POV

For some reason, Jung Hye seemed worried when we were working together. Sometimes she was spaced out when I asked her a question, or half-heartedly answered me. And she also, I noticed, kept on glancing at Jonghyun and Yoo Mi.

Oh well, must be worried for her friend. All these rumours flying around about Jonghyun, and they weren’t even true. He was pretty pissed too.

“Jung Hye?” I asked.

No answer. Again. I sighed, and tapped her. “Jung Hye??”

She instantly turned around to me, suddenly alert. “Oh, oh – yes? I’m sorry!”

“Do you think we can meet up again soon? Maybe today? To finish on it? Please?”

Jung Hye smiled. “Of course. Today is fine. Library again?”

I chuckled and nodded. “Sure.”

And then Jung Hye smiled back at me.

I like it with Jung Hye smiles. When she smiles, you can see her cute little dimples.

“Are we going to eat dinner again?” she asked.

Dinner? Did she say dinner? “Yespleaseyespleaseyespleaseyespleaseyesplease-“

She smiled again and I swear one day those dimples will be the reason why my balance of life goes wrong.

Jung Hye POV

As I walked closer to the door of my apartment, (and Jonghyun’s I thought a little bitterly to myself), I heard the sound of a piano coming from inside.

The tune, compared to yesterday’s was the opposite.

It was not upbeat or fun at all.

Is Jonghyun playing the keyboard? I thought excitedly, hoping for another chance to hear him play, but when I inserted the key through the door, the tune seemed to stop.

Jonghyun was still sitting in front of his keyboard, but not playing.

Right, I thought, and suddenly I remembered that I should be ignoring him too. Of course I shouldn’t be worrying about him, because after all he is only a stranger.

So I wordlessly carried myself into my room and closed the door.

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A/N Sorry for the boring chapter!!