Three days later, the entire student body went to an aquarium. Once again, they were told that they were allowed to scatter as long as they didn't need to leave the building. Since they day that they would have to return was quickly approaching, most of the students split from their original groups to join club friends or other friends.

"A couple of guys invited me to hang around with them, so I'll be leaving first!" Dasom told the group.

"The art club is making me go around and take pictures with Chanyeol. I can't join you guys today," Junhee revealed.

"I'm off to find Hyunwoo! Later!" Jieun exclaimed, scrambling away.

"The basketball members are going around. I told them that I'd join. Sorry!" Byunghun apologized before leaving.

"The student council members who are on this trip are told to keep our eyes on the students. I don't have the time to look at fishes," Taemin explained, excusing himself.

Before she knew it, Eunji found herself standing alone in the middle of a crowd. She blinked her eyes, surprised at how fast everyone had left. 

Incredible, was the only word running through her mind. She glanced around, hoping to spot anyone she knew. Then, she reminded herself of how she didn't really have other friends outside of her group except for Howon and…

Daehyun doesn't even want me near him, Eunji thought. She heaved a sigh, knowing that she was all alone to look at the fish.

As Eunji walked around and passed by the large tanks, she was kind of glad that there was a large crowd. However, she was wondering whether people were looking at her in a pitiful manner. She hoped that they weren't thinking something along the lines like, "Poor girl. She's all alone."

Some people like to be alone, she told herself. She kept trying to convince herself—as she was looking at the school of fish—that she wasn't feeling lonely. She tried to make herself looked like she was absorbed in her own world, but she knew that she was terrible at doing it. Some people liked being alone, but no one really likes the feeling of loneliness.

"Hey, aren't you Byunghun's friend?"

Eunji whirled around, her eyes wide with surprise. She met eyes with some of the basketball members, and amongst the group, she spotted Daehyun. 

"You're Eunjung, right?" Eunji looked at Sunyoung, who was giving her a fake smile. "You're the girl who's always with that one guy stuck in the hospital right now, right?"

Eunji shot her a glare. "It's Eunji, and that guy in the hospital has name—Lee Howon."

"Whatever," Sunyoung said, popping her bubble gum. She looked around. "Did you see Byunghun, by any chance?"

"No. I thought he was with you?"

"Well, he was, but…" Sunyoung's eyes rolled around the crowd. "Well, let's just say that we ended up losing him."

"Of course we'd lose him. You were clinging all over him when he has a girlfriend," Daehyun retorted.

"Byunghun doesn't have a girlfriend," Eunji informed them.

Sunyoung's face brightened up. "You think that I don't know that?"

"Isn't he dating that one basketball manager?" Daehyun asked. He mumbled a few names, trying to think of the manager's name.

"Do you mean Sohyun?" Eunji asked. She smiled. "She's adorable."

"Oh, yeah! That girl! Sohyun!" Daehyun exclaimed. "Isn't he dating her?"

"No," Eunji said. She paused. "At least, I don't believe he is."

Sunyoung smiled. "Well, if one of his best friends doesn't know about it, then I'm sure it's some kind of fling or rumor going around." She glanced around Eunji. "Are you alone?"

Yes, Eunji admitted in her head. "I'm just wandering around."

"Would you like to join us?" Sunyoung offered.

Eunji began to panic. She really wanted to join them just because she didn't want to be alone, but she was sure that it'd be awkward walking around with a group of unfamiliar people. Besides, Daehyun was in the group. He wouldn't like it if she tagged along—

"Join us," Daehyun said, surprising her. "T-That is, if you're alone…"

"Right!" Sunyoung cheered. "Plus, you can keep an eye out for Byunghun, too!" She put her hands on Eunji's shoulder. "Plus, Howon would want you to spend some time with other people. If you hang out with us, you can tell him more stories about the trip when you go back and visit him at the hospital!"

Eunji pressed her lips. It would be a good idea for her to hang out with them. Then, Howon could hear about all the details from and hopefully he'll want to get better to join them on their next field trip. His health had been declining rapidly, but Eunji was always praying and hoping that he get better. 

"I guess it won't hurt to join you for a little bit," Eunji said quite bashfully.

Sunyoung smirked. "Great! Let's go! Oh, and keep your eye out for Byunghun, alright?"

Eunji forced a smile. "Yep, I will… I definitely will…"

"If you can make five baskets in a row, you can get this adorable penguin plush key chain!" 

A worker was holding onto a microphone, raising a penguin key chain will she anxiously tried to get people to participate. Behind her stood a tall portable basketball hoop. Several other aquatic dolls and prizes hung at the booth next to her, waiting for someone to come and take them home.

Eunji paused for a brief moment and stared at the game. She saw her own classmates try to make the baskets, but they kept failing and ended up getting a lame sticker. 

If it was a bigger prize, I'd probably want it, Eunji thought, staring at the small keychain. She turned to continue her trip with the basketball members.

"If you can make ten baskets in a row, then you can get this large dolphin doll!"

Eunji's ears perked up. Her eyes glowed and she stared at the life-size baby dolphin doll in the booth. She quickly grabbed ahold of Daehyun's sleeves, turning him around.

"What?" Daehyun asked, slightly annoyed.

"Tell the group to go ahead! I'm going to do something on my own!" Eunji whispered to him.

Daehyun widened his eyes. "You're going somewhere alone? Eunji, I can't leave you al—"

Before he got to finish, she was already dashing to the game booth. Daehyun groaned and looked at his group, who were already leaving without him. Thinking that Eunji might need him more than his club friends, he scurried over to her side.

Once he made it out of the crowd, he saw Eunji nervously holding onto the orange basketball. She was standing behind a white line, and from what Daehyun saw, there was a pretty big gap between her and the basket itself.

"What's this?" Daehyun asked her.

"I'm taking that—" She pointed to the doll. "—with me. I have to make ten shots in a row."

"Ten?" Daehyun laughed. "Eunji, stop. Even I tried to do ten, and trust me. From this distance, it's going to be hard."

"I don't care," she said, glancing at him from the corner of her eyes. "I'm not going to give up until I don't have any money left!"

Daehyun groaned, but he watched. He watched her get three baskets in, but by the time she got to her fourth basket, the ball had bounced off the rim and fell to the ground. 

"You're doing it all wrong," he told her. "Did you learn anything I taught you?"

"You yell at me, and I don't like the way you teach me," Eunji said, defending herself. She turned to the worker. "Let me try again!"

"That's—"

"No, no, no," Daehyun said, interrupted the worker. "You're not going to try anymore, Eunji. We're done here. Let's go."

Eunji pouted. "But I really want the doll…!"

He shot her a quick glare. He stopped when he saw her adorable pout. A blush rose up to his cheeks when she wouldn't budge from her spot. Feeling tense, he only took out some money from his pocket and handed it to the worker.

"Give me a few minutes. It's ten shots in a row, right?"

The worker smiled. "Yes! Good luck!"

He began dribbling for a few moments, then started shooting behind the line. One by one, the ball swooped into the net. The familiar whoosh! sound brought a smile to Eunji's face as she watched Daehyun make the basket.

As he began to sweat, Eunji couldn't help but realize how attractive Daehyun was. She knew that other girls found him handsome, but for the first time, she thought he was pretty cool, too. His serious expression told her that if he did have a girl, he'd probably treat her very well.

He finally turned to her and glared at her. "Hey!"

Eunji quickly snapped out of her thoughts? "Huh?"

"Congratulations!" the worker exclaimed, handing the doll to Daehyun. "You have received the large dolphin doll!"

"Give it to her," Daehyun said. He stared at her. "Well?"

The worker handed the doll to Eunji, who gave it a tight squeeze. When the worker left, Eunji smiled at Daehyun.

"This is great!" Eunji cheered. "I can give this to Howon when we get back!"

Daehyun's facial expression dropped. "Oh." He frowned, then glared at her even more. "Shouldn't you be saying something to me?"

Eunji stuck out her tongue. "Thank you, sweaty face!"

Daehyun dropped his jaws and groaned. "After all the baskets I did for you… Let me tell you right now, it wasn't easy!"

"I know, I know. I tried it earlier, remember?" Eunji pointed out. She paused, then looked at him in the eye. "But that was pretty cool."

He stopped glaring and froze. "W-What?"

"You were pretty cool," she said in an acknowledging manner. "You know, the way you play basketball? I always watched you play basketball, but this time it was pretty cool." She laughed. "It's like those scenes in a comic book, right? You know, when the girl sees the guy do something cool and have their heart skip a—" She abruptly stopped when she saw Daehyun's red face. "—beat…"

Her voice slowly faded away when she saw Daehyun become flustered. She stared at him, trying to figure out if he was blushing because it was just a compliment or…

"Ah! There you are, Jung Eunji!" a teacher called from the crowd. Eunji turned around, while Daehyun fanned himself to calm down. The teacher ran over to her, clutching a phone in her hands. "Eunji, you have to go back home immediately."

Eunji and Daehyun widened their eyes.

"What?" Eunji cried out. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No," the teacher said. "Actually, it's your choice to go back home, but I'm sure you will."

"Why?" She began to worry. "Did something bad happen…?"

The teacher took a deep breath. "Lee Howon called us from the hospital, and he requested that his last wish was to see you."

Eunji frowned. "What? What do you mean by 'last wish'?"

The adult bit her bottom lip. "You know how Howon doesn't have to healthiest body around?" Eunji nodded. "Well, it looks like he isn't getting any better anymore. In fact, he's getting worst."

Oh no, she thought. Please, no.

"Are you saying that he's—"

"Yes," the teacher finished. She looked straight into Eunji's frightened brown eyes. "Howon is dying."

When Eunji arrived at the hospital and figured out what room Howon was staying in, she ran up the stairs because the elevator doors didn't open fast enough. She climbed up the stairs, followed by her own friends. She was lucky enough to have them end their summer field trip to be with her. 

"We have another field trip next year," Dasom had said when convincing the rest to go back home with Eunji. "Besides, Eunji needs us. We have to be her moral support!"

He's not dying, Eunji thought, trying to convince herself. How could he just be dying? He's not dying. He's—

She pushed the door open and held her breath. Her world broke down when she saw several tubes attached to Howon's body. His body was deadly pale, almost colored to death's purple shade. His chest hardly rose to breath, and if he did, he had to in the oxygen through another line in his nose.

Her steps were quiet and slow. Her whole body trembled at the sight of seeing her bread nearly dead on the hospital bed. His eyes were closed, and she didn't want to wake him. However, when his eyes slowly lifted and when his head struggled to turn to her direction, she knew that he had been awake the entire time—it was just hard to open his eyes.

A weak smile crept up on his lips. Eunji bit her tongue, holding back her tears. She quickly rushed to his side, as if she was afraid that he would die on her at the exact moment.

"Oh my gosh, Howon," was the only words that escaped her lips. She glanced at him from head to toe, following the tubs of various size trail down his body. "What happened to you?"

"My…body…suddenly…collapsed," he told her, barely able to breathe. He took deep breathes between the words, and sometimes he would slightly pause. His voice croaked, but he kept smiling. "Sorry that…I…called…ay…last…minute…"

"It's okay, it's okay," she cooed softly. She took a seat besides him. "You look terrible."

He managed a quiet laugh. "I know…I know…"

She pursed her lips. "How long?"

"If I'm…lucky…a month." He stopped talking for a really long time, scary Eunji. "If not… few weeks…?" He inhaled loudly. "Doctor said…to…do the…things…I…wanna…do…" He tried to smile, and Eunji patiently listened. "And I…wanted…to see…ay…"

Eunji held her breath. She wasn't sure what to do.

"So what do you want to do?" Eunji asked. "I'll help you make your dreams come tree!"

She saw a very faint blush on his cheeks. 

"I…want…a…girlfriend."

Eunji paused. She thought of all the girls she knew, but she realized that all the girls she knew were her friends. No matter what she thought, she knew that none of her friends would be a good match for Howon. They wouldn't be ask patient as she was with him, and they weren't close to him in the beginning.

"Okay," Eunji said, nodding her head. "I'll go find a really kind, beautiful girlfriend for you. You just have to stay in there until I find one, okay—"

"No…" he said a bit too quickly. He arched his back as if he was experiencing some kind of seizure. He gasped for air, and Eunji panicked. She looked around, trying to find some kind of button to call for the nurse. He stopped her by brushing his finger tips against her hand. "I-It's okay…"

Eunji felt her heart race. "A-Are you sure…?"

"Yes… It's just…part of…the…illness," he assured her weakly. 

"Did you have to face this every day at school, too?" Eunji asked quietly.

"Medications…helped…before…" he confessed. Eunji felt her heart drop. "Anyway… g-girlfriend…"

"Right," Eunji said. "I'll find someone—"

"No," he breathed. He looked at her in a bashful way. "Can…you…do it…?"

Eunji felt her heart stop. She never loved Howon in a romantic way. He was a good friends of her, and that was all she thought of him.

A brief picture of Daehyun came up in her head. She quickly brushed him away from her head, trying to focus on her current situation.

"It's okay…if…it's out…of…pity," he whispered. "Because…I…still…love…you…"

Pity love. The words caused Eunji to shiver. A pang of guilt stabbed her chest. Here was a dying boy, requesting for her to love him, to be his girlfriend, even if it's out of pity because he's going to die in less than a month.

As much as she hated loving someone for pity, she knew that she would regret not being Howon's girlfriend. It was one of his last wishes, and for her not to grant him that wish would be terrible. 

She took a deep breath. "Okay, I'll do it."

This time, Howon smiled even bigger than he had been smiling for the past few minutes. He wanted to hold her hand, to cheer loudly that he got the girl he liked to love her. However, he had to remind himself that he was stuck on the hospital bed, and that he had to refrain himself from doing any rough activities.

"Thank you," he managed to say in one breath. He wished he could kiss her right now. "Thank you…Eunji…"

She smiled at him sympathetically. "It's the least I can do…" She turned to the door. "You know what? I'll be right back. I haven't used the restroom in a really long time."

He chuckled weakly. "Go…ahead…"

She did. She got up and left the room to use the restroom. Dasom, Junhee, and Jieun, who had been eavesdropping, followed Eunji to the restroom to talk about the situation. Byunghun waited outside of the room, while Taemin decided to step in.

Howon looked up, thinking that it was Eunji. When he realized that it was Taemin, he looked away from the door.

"Hello, Howon," Taemin greeted him.

"Hel…lo…" Howon replied.

"I guess you won't be needing to do all the homework assignments I gave you," Taemin said.

"I guess…not…" Howon answered, slightly nodding his head.

Taemin looked down at Howon. "You're being selfish."

"What…?"

"You're going to hurt her," Taemin said, as if he was predicting the future. He looked at him eye-to-eye. "You know you're going to hurt her."

Howon sighed. "I know…"

"And you're still going to date her?" Taemin asked. "You realize that you're her first boyfriend, right?"

He smiled. "That…makes…me…feel…special…"

"I'm serious, Howon," Taemin snapped. "Eunji is a good friend of mine. I don't want to see her hurt."

"What…can I…promise…you?" Howon asked him.

Taemin kept quiet, thinking. "Promise me that when you do hurt her, you'll help her heal and find someone better than you when you get to heaven."

Howon scoffed. "What makes…you think…that…I'm…going…to…heaven?"

"Eunji's a good girl. She thinks of herself to be normal, but she's special," Taemin said. "You know, right? She's a special girl, and you know that." He looked at the window. "She'll make you feel like you're in heaven." He looked back at Howon. "So, can you promise me that?"

Howon kept quiet. He looked dazed, maybe a bit sleepy. Then, Howon gently closed his eyes and smiled.

"Yeah," he answered confidently. "I can do…that…"

"Good," Taemin replied. "Then I wish for your relationship with Eunji to be the best."

"Thank you," Howon murmured. 

Taemin only nodded his head. He walked out of the room, and found Daehyun standing next to Byunghun.

"Why are you here?" Taemin asked, frowning.

"I-I came because I thought I could help Eunji," Daehyun said. "I heard that Howon is dying, right?"

"News sure spread fast," Byunghun commented. "So did you hear about Eunji and Howon dating?" 

Daehyun widened his eyes. "W-What?"

"Ah, you didn't know!" Byunghun exclaimed. "Howon and Eunji are dating right now! They just agreed to date."

A trouble expression appeared on Daehyun's face. "B-But why…?"

"Howon's last wish," Taemin said simply. 

Daehyun was unable to say anything else. He felt lost, unable to understand the full situation except for the fact that Eunji was dating Howon. 

He kept his mouth shut, but he felt his heart drop.