Jonghyun POV

Don’t turn around. Don’t turn around. She deserved it.

But maybe it wasn’t her? Maybe-

No. It has to be her.

Maybe I was too harsh on her. Maybe she didn’t mean to-

No. Jonghyun, what are you doing? Feeling sympathetic for her; the girl who told everyone lies.

I will myself to continue to walk on.  I still don’t understand why Jung Hye would do such a thing. All the things I said to her were actually true, I really did think she was different from other girls. I thought she was likable. I thought she was trustworthy. I thought she was nice. I thought-

No. But that was all a facade. None of it was true.

As soon as I turn into a corner, away from Jung Hye’s sight, I let out my breath and collapse onto the wall.

Out of all the people to do this, why did it have to be Jung Hye?

And now that the rumour has told, what can I do? What had shouting at Jung Hye really done? Had it really helped? No.

I allow myself to slide down the wall until I’m sitting on the ground.

But really, how could she? She doesn’t know the consequences.

She doesn’t know what could happen.

She doesn’t know what did happen.

- flashback at the old school-

 I wasn’t actually eavesdropping. Really. I was just going to the bathroom to have a poop, and I chose the last cubicle. And I was relaxing. And I didn’t think anything was going wrong until a group of people entered the bathroom with loud steps and rough voices and cigarette smell started coming up my nose.

“So what did I miss yesterday?” A voice asked, maybe to the other four people.

“Heh, so much, man! Finally friggin got him to cry.”

Who?

“That sissy! What happened, didja treat him extra hard this time?”

A laugh. “Hahahaha yeah! But that wasn’t it! Told him we’d get Jonghyun this time and he was on his knees begging for us not to!”

Jonghyun...?

Hey, that’s my name!

Where did that come from?

Curious, I kept on listening.

 “Hah and what happened next?”

“Kicked him on the face. That eyesore, Key. Where the hell did he get that name from anyways? Hurts my ears.”

Key. They were the ones who were hurting him.

“He? Did you get it wrong? It’s she!”

Recently he had bruises, but he never told me where he got them from.

“So gay, such a friggin sissy! People like him who don’t know how to man up are so useless!”

“You got that right. Don’t you feel like having some fun today guys?”

I heard the retreating laughter as they dumped their cigarettes on the floor and walked out the bathroom. I had stood in silence in the cubicle for a while, letting the words sink in, to take meaning. Why would they do such a thing? Why hadn’t Key told me? How could they? These thoughts raced through my mind, when finally I remembered what their final words were. Have some fun? Could they possibly mean-

I got out of the cubicle and began running down the hall, searching frantically for the group of guys.

-end flashback-

 

Jung Hye POV

“Miss Park, you’re late to class.” The teacher said matter-of-factly when he saw my entrance into the classroom.

“Sorry mister.” I mumbled, not in the mood to talk to the teacher right now.

“Why are you late?” He questioned.

“Oh, I was at the bathroom...” The class laughed when I said it, but it was true! I couldn’t enter class with red and puffy eyes... I’d look like a bloody panda.

“Stand in the corner of the class and sit when I tell you to.” Teacher said, before pointing to the corner of the classroom and turning his back to me.

HMPH, AM I A KID? DO I STILL NEED TO STAND AT THE BACK CORNER OF THE CLASS?

I complied, didn’t want to have cleaning duty after school if I mess with this teacher too much.

As I walked over through the tables and the back of the class, I flickered my eyes through the students sitting as I walked past them.

One of them was Jonghyun, who was busy picking at his nails.

I felt anger flare up inside me. I cannot believe I cried because of him! THAT JERK! IF IT WEREN’T FOR HIM I WOULDN’T HAVE TO STAND AT THE BACK OF THE CLASS. WHO DOES HE THINK HE IS, TELLING ME OFF LIKE THAT WHEN HE DOESN’T KNOW A FRICKEN SINGLE THING? OH JONGHYUN YOU’D BETTER TELL ME IT WAS ONE BIG JOKE WHEN I SEE YOU AT HOME TONIGHT, EVEN IF IT WAS A JOKE YOU’D BETTER WAIT UNTIL I POUND YOU BECAUSE THAT WAS A REALLY BAD JOKE!!!

JERK! JERK! JERK!

I stared daggers to the back of his head when I passed him by, who didn’t even spare me a single glance.

That friggin stupid jerk, I thought as I kicked the floor.

How could he even THINK that I would do such a thing?! Seriously, after being yelled at by him and after crying, all I feel is anger. How DARE HE ACCUSE ME OF SUCH A THING!? DID OUR FRIENDSHIP REALLY MEAN NOTHING!?

HOW COULD HE ACT IN SUCH A WAY?!

From replaying the conversation in my head countless times from worry, I started thinking about his line: “Have fun ruining people.” Did the rumours hurt him? It wasn’t Jonghyun to start randomly yelling at me. There had to be a reason.

STILL, HOW COULD HE NOT EVEN CARE ABOUT HOW HE MADE ME FEEL?

“Jung Hye, you may sit now.”

STUPID JONGHYUN.

“Miss Park? Do you not want to sit?” The teacher asks rhetorically and half the class laughs.

Stupid teacher.

I slide out the chair of the seat closest to me and sit down.

“Jung Hye! Are you okay? What’s wrong??” Yoo Mi, who happens to be sitting next to me whispers as she leans across.

“Do I look okay?” I reply tersely and look away from her, trying to focus on what the teacher was writing on the board. Hoping she’ll get the hint I’m not in the mood to talk.

“Well, no, but what’s wrong?” Yoo Mi asks obliviously.

“Nothing.” Except for the fact that stupid Jonghyun accuses ME of spreading the rumours.

“I’m sure there is something wrong! Don’t you want to talk about it?” She persists.

“No.” Stupid Jonghyun! How could he think so lowly of me?  Stupid person who spread the rumours! WHY DIDN’T JONGHYUN GO HARASS THEM, INSTEAD OF ME!

“Talking solves things you know! I’m your best friend! You can tell me.”

“It’s nothing!” I lie, but seriously, who spread those rumours? If only I knew who, then I would quickly go and prove my innocence and make Jonghyun suffer from the guilt of falsely accusing me!

“Did something happen with Jonghyun?”

“No!” Despite Yoo Mi being my best friend I really don’t think I will tell her about Jonghyun, because then she will start questioning my relationship (which now doesn’t exist) with him.

“You must be sad cause he is gay right?”

“No- wait.” I turn to look at her, a thumping in my heart. “You actually think he’s gay?”

She scrunches up her nose like the answer was obvious. “You haven’t answered me from this morning when I asked you why you didn’t tell me.”

Oh.

That’s right.

This morning.

I wasn’t thinking much about it before, about why the class was so eerily silent when Yoo Mi declared that Jonghyun was gay.

It starts to click in my head; Yoo Mi was the matchstick to a fire.

She started all the Jonghyun gay rumours.

And she started all the rumours about Jonghyun punching a girl.

The bad boy rumours didn’t affect him that much, but I could see from before, how the gay rumours hurt him so much that he released all his anger on me.

So it was all Yoo Mi’s fault.

“It’s all your fault.” I say, my voice accusing.

“Huh? What do you mean? What’s my fault?”

“You spread all the rumours, didn’t you? Why would you do such a thing? Do you know how terrible Jonghyun is feeling?” I continue, my voice still on the same serious level.

She shakes her head and looks at me uncomfortably. “Jung Hye... what are you talking about? Why are you talking about Jonghyun?”

“Why am I talking about Jonghyun? Why did YOU have to go and talk about Jonghyun to the whole freaken school!? Do you have a grudge against him or something? Do you know because of you, he yelled at me during lunch because he thought I spread the rumours! But it wasn’t me. No. It was you.”

Yoo Mi rolls her eyes. “Yelling at you? Doesn’t that sound typical of Jonghyun? He’s got a bad record after all-”

“THAT’S THE NOT THE POINT YOO MI, GOSH. You don’t know him at all!” I start, my anger rising up a notch again.

“And you know him?”

I feel my anger rising, but instead choose to ignore her question. “You should apologise to Jonghyun.”

“Sorry Jung Hye... but-“

“I said you should apologise to Jonghyun, not me.”

“Jung Hye... Jonghyun is gay! Maybe you like him, but you’ve got to know that he’s gay, and-“

“He’s not gay!” I hissed. “How many times do I need to say that?!”

“But, but-“ Yoo Mi started, but was interrupted by the bell, signaling the end of school. Both of us stayed silent until after the teacher dismissed the class, but it was a tense silence. From the corner of my eye I occasionally saw Yoo Mi shooting a worried glance at me.

 “Go apologise to him, tell him YOU spread the rumours not me! Tell him you are the person he should be mad at, not me! WHY WON’T YOU JUST ADMIT YOUR FAULT!? WHY COULDN’T YOU JUST KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT?!” I said, words tumbling out of my mouth, but I was feeling so frustrated that I didn’t know the weight of my words.

“Jung Hye... l-let’s just drop this, a-and be friends, okay?” Yoo Mi uttered, after a short silence.

“Friends? That’s what Jonghyun and I were you know. Maybe that’s what we WERE too.”

 “Jung Hye, c-calm down, I-I-I didn’t mean...” Yoo Mi’s voice was cracking now as she looked onto me with glassy eyes, I didn’t take much notice of it.

“Calm down? You don’t even know what you’ve done do you? Seriously Yoo Mi, apologies mightn’t even help now.” I said finally as I grabbed my books and stormed out the room, ignoring Yoo Mi. I saw a familiar blonde head not too far away, standing in the corridor looking like he was waiting for somebody.

“Taemin?” I approached him.

Taemin looked up and instantly smiled, making me suddenly feel a lot happier. “Gosh Jung Hye I haven’t seen you this whole day! Are you free now?”

I forced a smile. “Why?”

He grabbed my sleeve. “Let’s go somewhere now!”

Yoo Mi POV

“Ah, wait, Jung Hye-“ I called, but by that time she had already walked out of the classroom.

I don’t understand, why was she so mad? I thought she didn’t like Jonghyun!

I quickly fumbled to get all my things in my bag. I must catch up to Jung Hye quickly, and to tell her that-

Tell her what?

The more I think about it the more I see Jung Hye’s point.

It is all my fault.

I’ve never seen her so mad though, at least not at me.

I collapsed onto my seat and realised that I was the only person still in my classroom.

Was I really like those bullies who spread rumours about people? Had I really hurt Jonghyun that much?

I thought he was open about being gay.

I thought everyone knew!

Did I really make him feel bad?

I put my arms crossed in front of me on the desk and rested my head down on it, seeing only the dark random scribbles on the desk before I closed my eyes.

Why can’t you just shut your mouth? Admit it’s your fault! Apologies won’t even be enough. Do you know how terrible Jonghyun feels? It was you! You spread the rumours!

I hear Jung Hye’s voice replaying in my head.

It really was my fault wasn’t it?

Now I’ve lost my best friend.

But I didn’t even-

 I feel the tears start trickling down my face, and I let them flow, because I deserve it. It is all my fault.

All my fault.

“Hey… you okay?”

I jump up at the sudden unfamiliar voice, hastily wiping away the tears.

The owner of the voice holds out a tissue. “Here," he said, "use this.”

---

 

A/N: Hey guys!

oh no everytime we're so slow with updating LOL

i hope you haven't forgotten the story already!

cuz sometimes i do LOL

but yeah haha school's started again!!

BTW, don't blame jung hye or jonghyun for being mean!!! more than anything, they're just a bit angry and not really thinking that well, haha...

THANKS EVERYBODY FOR COMMENTING AND SUPPORTING! WE REALLY APPRECIATE IT!!! SO MUCH! THANK YOU!!!

 

BTW GUYS WOULD YOU RATHER

- FASTER UPDATES, SHORTER CHAPTERS OR

- SLOWER UPDATES, LONGER CHAPTERS??

thanks guys <3