Chapter 7 - With The Thought That It Must Be Forgotten

Kyu Won is furious!

Lee Shin had stolen her first kiss...while he was drunk...after calling her stupid.

That jerk!  Who is he calling stupid?  Bah!

She rises early the next morning so that she could catch him outside of his house.  She stands next to his bike so that he has to face her in order to get to classes on time.

The door opens, and Lee Shin peeks out in the direction of her house.  He rubs his head and tiptoes out, keeping his eyes locked on Kyu Won’s door.

He backs right into her and jumps sky high.

“Good morning,” she grimaces, as he whirls around to face her.  “How’s your head?”

“Fine.”  He tries to get around her to his bike, but she’s having none of it.

“My back is aching from last night,” she says, and then realises too late how her words could be misinterpreted.  “From carrying you home.”

Lee Shin sniggers.

That just makes her more angry.  She clenches her fists.  “I want an apology!”

“I’ll think about it if you let me have my bike,” he pushes.

“You drunk jerk!  That was my first kiss!”

He smothers a chuckle.  She’s so cute.  “Was it?  I can’t remember.”

She punches his arm and storms away to catch her bus.

“Ah!”  He winces, but the moment she’s gone, he breaks out into a wide smile.

He really likes that Kyu Won.

At the campus, Kyu Won is so busy yelling at the Lee Shin in her head that she bumps into Ki-Young.

“Sorry.”  She smiles, and then notices his anxious face.  “Ki-Young!  What’s happened?  What’s wrong?”

The words come out all jumbled and messy, but eventually she realises that Ki-young is having a romance-related crisis.  She leads him over to the grassy knoll and they sit down on the ground.

“I think I’m going crazy,” he says, his face creased with worry lines.  “I think I’m attracted to men and women.  And if I am, what does that make me?  Do I go and join the circus?  And Joon Hee.  I think I like him.  It’s so messed up.”

Kyu Won’s eyes widen.  “Whaaaaa!  That’s a lot for one person to handle!  And here I was, crying over my first kiss being stolen by an .”

Ki-Young lets out a shaky laugh, and she pats his back.

“I don’t know what to say.”  She softens her voice.  “I-I like...liked Lee Shin.  You like Joon Hee.  We can’t help who we fall for.”

He says nothing.

She pats his back again.  “I’ll be your friend, no matter what.  So don’t be afraid.”

He pulls her into a quick hug, knocking the breath out of her.

“Thanks, Kyu Won.”

“Ah, no problem.”  She pats his back awkwardly, and then sees Lee Shin staring at her.

He looks angry.

He has no right to be angry about anything, not after she had to drag him home last night.

“I should get to my training session,” says Ki-Young.

Wanting to avoid Lee Shin, she jumps up to join him.  “I’ll walk you.”

They climb the steps together, and she pointedly avoids Lee Shin’s glare.

Just when she thinks he’s going to let her escape, he calls her name: “Kyu Won!”

She grimaces.  She and Ki-Young turn around to look at him.

“I want to talk to you,” he says, taking a few steps towards them.  “Alone.”

“Is it an apology?” she asks, standing her ground.

From the wild look in his eyes, it isn’t an apology at all.  He strides forward and grabs her wrist.

The students around them stop what they’re doing to watch the show.

Lee Shin hesitates, and then clears his throat.  “About you liking me...don’t give up,” he whispers to Kyu Won.

She frowns.  Did she hear him right?  “What?”

He walks closer to her.  “About you liking me...I’m telling you not to give up.”

She freezes, and gazes into his dark eyes.

“What?”  She tries to understand what he’s saying to her.  “What do you mean?  You...do you like me?”

He hurts her by looking at the ground and saying nothing.

Who does this jerk think he is?

She clenches her fists.  “Are you saying that even though you don’t like me, you want me to continue liking you?”

His brow furrows.  “What?”

She laughs, but nothing is funny about the way he’s treating her.  “Don’t kid yourself.  Who do you think you are?  You think all the women in the world are like that?  Even narcissism has its limits!”

She pulls away from him, attempting to reclaim her wrist.

He holds on tighter.

“Let me go,” she protests, avoiding the hurt look he’s giving her.

“Kyu Won,” he says softly.

“Let go!” she insists.

Ki-Young steps in and helps her to break free.  He’s had enough of this punk and his territorial attitude towards Kyu Won.  He clenches his fist and smacks it into Lee Shin’s jaw.  He doesn’t put all his force behind it, but he uses enough to teach him a lesson.

Kyu Won gasps.

Angry, humiliated and hurt, Lee Shin hits back, and he puts all his force behind it.

Smack!

Ki-Young crashes to the ground and tumbles down the stairs.  Kyu Won screams.  People are rushing to his side, trying to stop him from falling any further.  He shrieks in pain and then falls unconscious.

Kyu Won and Lee Shin race to his side, but it is Joon Hee that slips in to hold Ki-Young’s hands.

“Hyung!”  The scruffy-haired boy shouts.  “Hyung!  Please don’t die!  I’m sorry I annoyed you!  I’m always annoying people!  Please don’t die!”

Tears rolling down his boyish face, Joon Hee leans down to hug Ki-Young’s body and then takes off his glasses.  “Stand back everyone!  I’m going to give him first aid!”

Everyone is shocked into silence as the drummer takes a deep breath and gives Ki-Young the kiss of life.

Kyu Won bursts into tears, while Lee Shin’s jaw drops.

Not a word is spoken as Joon Hee gives a second kiss, and then a third.

Ki-Young’s eyelids flutter open.

Once again, the two boys are on top of each other, only this time, they’re lip locked.

“Get back!” shouts Professor Kim, startling everyone.  He pushes past the gawking students, and pries Joon Hee away to get to Ki-Young.  Beautiful Professor Jung is behind him, and she notices Lee Shin’s bloody lip and bruised jaw.

“Lee Shin!”  She gracefully floats over to him and touches his chin with one delicate finger.  “What happened to you?  Are you all right?”

“All right?”  Kyu Won splutters, startling the professor.  “Of course he’s all right!”  She walks up to him, tears falling down her face, and looks him straight in his dazed eyes.  “I can forgive you for what you did yesterday, but I won’t forgive you for involving and hurting my friend.”

Lee Shin winces.

“That’s enough, Lee Kyu Won,” says the professor.

But Kyu Won is not finished yet.

“I know that you are popular, but please don’t play with others’ feelings.  I will not like you just because you tell me to.  I am not your slave!” she sobs.

“You’ve misunderstood,” he argues.  “It’s not like that.”

“Whatever!”  She looks up at Professor Jung and laughs bitterly at the irony that even she fawns over him.  She wants to say more, but Professor Jung looks keen to take him to the school medic.

Good riddance.

She goes to follow Ki-Young and Professor Kim to the hospital.