After arriving at the university, you realized you were already late for your 9am lecture so you didn’t bother stopping by your locker and instead headed straight to your class. You were basically running at this point and accidently bumped into a girl who was heading in the opposite direction.

“Watch where you’re going!” she yelled.

You apologized and quickly ran past her, ignoring her scowls in the process. When you finally made it to the lecture hall you were in luck; there were a few seats left at the back so you wouldn’t need to interrupt the entire class (like you’d done in the past). As you were pulling out your notes, a small piece of paper fell out of one of your backpack compartments.

Huh? What’s this?

You opened up the neatly folded up piece of paper and started to read what was written. It was your name, followed by a message.

........................................................... 

I hope you remember me soon.

- Jongin.

........................................................... 

 Your eyes widened at the message and you let out a small gasp. Conscious of your outburst, you quickly looked around as if to hide a secret you had just discovered. But, you soon realized you were being ridiculous and stuffed the piece of paper in your jacket pocket, focusing your attention back to the professor.

That didn’t last long though. You soon found yourself digging it out of your pocket to read it once more; trying to decipher the meaning behind the message. Jongin must have slipped the piece of paper in your backpack when you two were talking.

But, why?

Why did he leave you a message like this? Did he recognize you from the beginning? Even when you first met on the elevator?

Now that you thought about it, you almost felt a little guilty at the fact that you hadn’t acknowledged him like he’d wanted you to.

Maybe that’s why he seemed disappointed.

After all, you and Jongin had been best friends in middle school.

You still remember the first time you met; it was in the locker hallway. As per usual, you were getting bullied. The kids from your school knew how poor your family was; your mother worked three jobs whilst your father was no longer in the picture. Being an only child, you often found yourself crying when your mother wasn’t looking. There was nobody to turn to, nobody who could—or wanted to for that matter, empathize with your situation. Although you were suffering, there was no way you could show your tears in front of your mother. She had already been through enough and you didn’t want to worry her any longer.

The day you met Jongin, it was a regular Tuesday afternoon and you were reading a book by your locker during the lunch break. You were so into your book that you didn’t notice a group of girls trying to grab your attention. Suddenly, you felt your book being ripped out of your hands and you glanced up at the perpetrators.

“Give me my book back” your eyebrows furrowed.

They didn’t do as you asked; they just continued staring at you like you were some sort of insect. Something that needed to be exterminated without mercy. After standing up, you brushed your skirt down and grabbed for the book. It proved to be in vain however, as you were suddenly pushed roughly against the locker. You winced at the excruciating pain that was now shooting through your back.

“Look here.” They spat. “People like you don’t belong at this school.” One of the girls said, intentionally loud enough for the students around to hear.

You were suddenly reminded of those nights you’d stay up waiting for your mother to come home from her midnight shift. She’d worked herself to pieces so that you’d have the chance to attend this elite middle school. Although you told her that a public school was more than enough, she insisted you receive the best education available. Tears flooded your eyes, but you didn’t dare let them fall.

“I belong here just like everybody els-" you were interrupted when you felt an intensifying pain at the side of your face. Bringing your hand up to your left cheek, you felt your ears ringing. It took you a while to comprehend the fact that one of the girls had just slapped you, hard. The girl raised her hand as if preparing to hit you again and a single tear snuck its way past your eyelashes and down your burning cheek. You shut your eyes and braced yourself for another hit. But instead of a ringing in your ears, all you heard was a faint tap. After opening your eyes, you noticed that the girls hand was centimeters away from your face, but it wasn’t touching you. Your gaze moved to the arm that was gripping her hand and saw that it was a tall boy with black hair and tanned skin. The girl gasped when she realized who had just grabbed her arm. You on the other hand were clueless.

“Kai! You’re here! We’ve all been waiting for you!” she cheered.

He didn’t even look at her.

He was looking at you.

He was looking into your eyes, almost like he was searching for something.  He moved her hand away from you and the two of you continued staring at each other for a couple seconds until the girl said something. Before you could reply, the boy grabbed your arm and led you out of the locker hallway. The situation had you completely in shock, so instead of protesting you simply let him lead you out of the school. The two of you walked in silence for a few minutes and you glanced down at your wrist to see it still firmly placed in his hand. What you hadn’t realized however, was that you were still crying. It wasn’t until Jongin sat you down on a park bench and handed you his handkerchief had you realized your face was a complete mess. He didn’t seem to notice though, at least, that’s what it seemed like it. After a few minutes the boy told you to stay put and you nodded. There wasn’t anywhere else you could go anyway; you never really fit in anywhere to begin with. Nevertheless, he stood from his seated position and began walking in the direction the two of you just came from. Your attention was on his long figure, which became smaller as he walked away. Just when you were about to turn away your gaze, you noticed him briefly turn in your direction. He focused his attention on you for a few seconds, then, he smiled. A smile so wide that it seemed to reach his crescent shaped eyes. It was that moment, that very moment that you realized that maybe you did belong somewhere.

Minutes later, you noticed Jongin walking out of the trees holding two ice cream cones. A smile formed on your lips and you glanced at your hands. Jongin handed you one of the cones and sat down beside you. You two sat in silence eating your ice cream, but it didn’t feel awkward. Rather, it was calming. For once in your life you felt calm.

“Do you feel better?” Jongin asked, still staring straight ahead.

You cleared your throat.

“I do.” You replied. Glancing at him from the side, you noticed him nod slightly. “Thank you. For helping me, I mean.”

He half-smiled, acknowledging your gratitude. Jongin shifted his body, moving closer to inspect your face. You suddenly felt conscious of how close the boy had gotten and backed away slightly, Jongin didn’t notice though. “Your cheek looks a bit red, you should get some ice for that.” he suggested.

“Oh.” you placed a hand on your warm cheek. It didn’t hurt as much as it did a few minutes ago, but icing it did seem like a good idea. “I will, thank you.” you replied. He nodded and focused his attention back at the park goers in front of him.

You however, felt like an idiot. This guy seemed far too popular to be sitting next to you right now, so why was he? Why did he help you? Nobody had ever stood up for you when you got bullied; your classmates would just watch and sometimes even join in. Even your good friend Sera hadn’t stood up for you; she never joined in, but merely turned a blind eye to it. That fact hurt more than anything else.

Your thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a heavy voice.

“I’m Kai by the way, I just moved here from Korea.” he said.

Korea? He’s an international student?

It surprised you how perfect his English was. He didn’t even have an accent. After nodding at his introduction you introduced yourself. As the discussion continued, you realized this must be the Kai all your classmates had been gossiping about days before. Sera had told you that the Kim family owned an immensely successful corporation in Korea which also had an international scope to it. Jongin’s family was very wealthy and the Kim Corporation funded a few elite schools in America and Canada. Making Jongin, the only son, the heir to his father’s company.

✥✥✥✥

Weeks had gone by and you and Jongin had grown close. The two of you would often study together in the library a couple times a week because your grades were dropping quite a bit. That was mostly due to the fact that you’d decided to get a part-time job. It wasn’t a lie that your mother struggled to pay the bills, even with her three jobs. At one point you decided you couldn’t bear to see her struggle alone anymore and it was time you contributed. However, your mother was far from happy with your decision.

“Honey we’ve been over this, you don’t need to get a job I’m handling things just fine!” she shouted.

“Omma, don’t pretend like you’re fine.  You’re working multiple jobs and you barely sleep anymore. Please just… just let me do this, for us.” You pleaded.

She ran her hand across your hair and kissed your forehead. “I’m so sorry your life is like this darling, it’s all because of me it’s all my-“

“Stop.” you cut her off. Tears began to sting your eyes so you allowed yourself a few seconds before speaking again.

“Dad left you, he left us, and it’s his fault not yours.” you managed to say. Regretting it almost immediately. The divorce was a topic of discussion that never came up, it was far too painful for your mother to recall the memories of her first love. The one who had promised her everything and in the end, left her for another woman. Men were cruel, love was cruel, and you decided you would never pursue love if it ever came your way.

Your mother sighed and walked over to the couch to sit down. For several moments she didn’t say a word. It was evident that your words hurt her, but it was the truth and she needed to hear it. It was time your mother stopped taking the blame for something that wasn’t her fault to begin with.

Although your grades were dropping, you were content with the decent amount of money you were bringing home. The extra cash really seemed to help with the bills, and since Jongin had offered to help you study, you eventually found that your grades began to improve as well. It was decided that every Tuesday and Thursday the two of you would meet at the school library at 4PM sharp. While you were hesitant at first, Jongin assured you he didn’t mind helping you out. The boy himself never seemed to study though. Even so, Jongin always seemed to be at the top of the class.

Nonetheless, the two of you grew quite close as a result of the study sessions. This fact, of course, attracted negative energy from other female students. Even some male students began to bully you, though they never got physical. That is excluding one instance in which three boys cornered you after class one day.

“Hey loser.” One of the boys called. “What did you do to make Jongin give you so much attention? You aren’t his slave or something like that, are you?” he smirked. The trio laughed as you stood their confused at their questions.

“? What do you mean by that?” you asked.

The three boys gazed at you with disbelief before bursting into laughter once more. “Oh man. I can’t tell if she’s stupid or just naïve.” One of the boys said. The third boy, which seemed to be the leader, smirked and headed in your direction. He eyed you up and down before grazing his knuckle across your cheek rather roughly. This caused you to flinch in response and you backed away from his touch. The boy widened his eyes.

“So you really are the innocent type.” He said. “You know, you’re pretty cute now that I’m looking at you.” He smirked.

“I-I have to go.” You stated, turning on your feet and heading in the opposite direction. He caught up to you and placed an arm in front of you. “Why so soon? Can’t we talk for a bit?” he smiled.

His eyes gazed into yours. But his gaze wasn’t friendly, quite the contrary. He seemed like he wanted to hurt you, to play with you, just like the rest.

“I have nothing to say to you.”

“What if I said I’ll be your friend?” he said. “Or we could be more than friends, if you know what I mean.” He smirked.

“No I- “

Before you could finish the sentence, your gaze was blocked. After peering out from behind the stranger, you noticed the said stranger was Jongin; he was standing in between you and the boy, blocking your view.

“That’s enough Jackson.” He smiled. Though, it didn’t seem like he was happy. In fact, you noticed how his finger nails were digging into his palm, his knuckles becoming white. Why was he so angry?

“I’m just playing Jongin. This girl, she’s quite something.” He chuckled, moving his head from side to side in an effort to catch another glance of you. Jongin however didn’t seem like he was going to let that happen. He grabbed his shoulders which caused the boy to widen his eyes.

“I said, that’s enough.”

Jackson glanced back at his friends then at Jongin. “Fine.” He stated, unhappy at the fact that his “fun” had been ruined.

Once the boys had retreated, Jongin turned back around. “Are you okay?” he asked. It was difficult to form coherent words, especially when someone like Jongin spoke to you. “Y-Yes.”

He let out a breath, and then cleared his throat. “Good.” Then without another word he walked past you, glancing back at you a few seconds later, indicating that you were to follow him.

It was Tuesday after all.

You followed behind him, not thinking much of the smile that snuck past your barriers. Jongin had helped you for the second time. All the while, not asking for anything in return, not having a secret agenda up his sleeve. He helped you simply for the sake of the deed, not because he wanted something.

It didn’t take long for the two of you to become close friends. Jongin was always willing to help you, to listen to your problems. And while you were eternally thankful for his friendship, you felt slightly guilty since you could never really return the favor. It was as if Jongin knew all about your family life and you knew nothing about his. You didn’t want to make him uncomfortable and ask, but you were always curious.

That is, until he opened up to you one day.

Jongin told you all about his controlling father who wanted him to move to Canada and pursue higher education so that one day he could take his place as the rightful heir to the family company. When he spoke about his father he always had a frown on his face, he hated how his father imposed things on him.

“I feel like I’m in a wooden box that’s been screwed shut from the outside.” he would often say.

Nothing was ever said in response, you tended to just listen to him pour his heart out. Similarly, Jongin would just listen to your problems because that’s all you two wanted; just someone who would listen.

As the days went by, you never realized it but you relied on Jongin a lot. Somehow, somewhere, he would be there. It was as if he had a sixth sense for when you needed him. Eventually, the bullying stopped completely. Students, and faculty for that matter, had gotten used to the fact that the two of you came as a pair. While rumors circulated about the two of you being more than friends, neither you nor Jongin paid much mind to them. The two of you were friends, and hadn’t thought of becoming anything more.  

Soon, however, your feelings began to change. Soon, you noticed how his jokes became just a little bit funnier. How his dorky laugh gave you butterflies. The way he ate his food, the way he looked when he sometimes fell asleep in the library after a long Thursday study session. Everything that Jongin did was somehow a thousand times better than before. Or maybe, that was your feelings talking. You never did tell Jongin how you felt though. Primarily because you didn’t quite understand what the feelings meant yourself. It was also because you were almost certain Jongin didn’t feel the same way. How could he? He was quite the catch; you on the other hand weren’t anything special.

Nevertheless, you cherished the friendship you two shared. He was always there for you and you, for him. It almost felt like he was your safety blanket. He was someone you could lean on.

But then one day, he wasn’t there anymore.

You had heard rumors all around the school that Jongin had gone back to Korea and you knew exactly why. He had told you how much he hated when he was pressured to do things he didn’t want to do, and perhaps this was his way of rebelling against his father. His father’s dream of him taking over the company was something he despised. He only had one dream; to dance. His father of course, was furious about this fact and decided it was best for him to pursue his education abroad.

Although you understood why Jongin left, you were heartbroken. He was the one friend you trusted with your life and he left without even a goodbye. Perhaps the bond between the two of you wasn’t as strong as you had led it on to be. It seemed very easy for him to leave everything behind, but for you, it was a different story. Jongin’s departure broke you, but somehow, you felt stronger than you had ever been before. But it wasn’t a lie that Jongin had abandoned the closeness you once cherished.

And worst of all? The story of your first love had ended before it even had the chance to begin.

A/N:

Hello! sorry if this was super boring! just thought I should add some backstory! hope you like it :)

ALSO! I know many of the other characters haven't been introduced yet, but they're coming soon!