"Although, if these are what I think they are, why are they here and how did they get here?"

“Guys?” Hope didn’t understand why the house was suddenly so quiet, it was never quiet with the seven of them under the same roof. It all suddenly looked emptier than it normally did and Hope grew alarmed, horrible thoughts filling her mind and dread taking over her body. She called out for all of them, yelling their names but still getting no response. She felt like she was trapped inside one of her worst dreams, her hand slapping against the wall so that she could hold herself up. She traveled up the stairs on shaky legs, praying that they were in that room, behind the desk as they talked to their general or even their king.

“Guys?” The door was left slightly ajar so Hope put her hand against it, pushing it open and taking in the sight of an empty room. Hope could feel her heart shattering when she came to realize that there was nothing left in the room. She pinched her arms, slapped her cheeks and rushed around the house another time but it was useless because she could tell that they were gone. She felt so dumb and dense to have thought they were all just going to continue to lives safely together. They had known they would be returning to their home planet, they just chose not to tell her that bit of information, she now realized that.

She felt so lost, like it was another hopeless case, she didn’t know where she was meant to go from here. If she was meant to just continue living alone from now on with no one by her side. Tears fell. Hope sat on the kitchen floor for what like the longest of times, tears falling and whimpers leaving her lips. And when she finally stopped, she looked at the time she realized it hadn’t been the longest of times after all. She stood up and let out a deep breath.

If things are going to go back to normal for them, then that means it should be the same for me right?

I’ll go to school, keep my chin up just like when mum and dad left and treat life like I did before I met any of them.

She wanted to forget those bittersweet memories now, and then one day their faces too. She wanted to let their names slip her mind and have a future where when she found a piece of their existence somewhere, she could brush it off as having forgotten, just like she imagined they would be doing with her existence. She wanted her independence back, to be strong and functional on her own like she had been before them.

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Hope felt extremely awkward and out of place with all the eyes that were on her when she got to school the next day. People were staring at her again, whispering behind their hands about the four boys that weren’t walking with her this time. Much to her disappointment, Hope had to bite down on her lip, hard enough to distract her from the tears that wanted to be let out. She swung the door to her locker open and took her things for class as quickly as her shaking hands would allow her to. Then she left for her class where she sat down with quivering lips and the sound of something dropping before her caught her attention.

“What?” She muttered, unaware of what could have possibly made the noise. He pushed her books aside with a scrape and then a silver object caught her eye.

Hope + Zelo

It was so childish but so sweet, where her heart should have swelled up it just crumbled more, she took the locket attached to the necklace in her hand, her thumb brushing over the letters on the heart shaped locket and it only made her eyes blur with tears. She scoffed shoving the necklace away from sight and folding her arms on her desk to hide her face in.

Maybe you should just give me my actual heart back instead Zelo.

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That first day had passed by to slowly and the following two weeks after had done the same, but only slower. It gave Hope time to find things all around her, as if they had left her small gifts that asked for forgiveness, at least that’s some of the thoughts that she tried to shove out of her mind, leaving her to get angry at most of the things that she would find. She was too stubborn, so every time she found something that was theirs or reminded her of them, she would put it out of sight in that room that was once their office, and then she would lock the door and walk away as if she had never gone in there.

“Hello would it um, be ok if I sat here?” Hope looked up, pulling away from her thoughts and she was met with a tall girl who was smiling brightly down at her. Hope looked at the empty seat beside her and then back to the brightly smiling girl, she nodded and the fellow female giggled as she made herself comfortable in the seat rather hurriedly. Hope watched as her books slammed down on the table that had Hope jolting in her place and widening her eyes as the newcomer got settled.

“Good morning, my name is Park Soo Young. I’m new here and I need friends” The girl, Park Soo Young. Was still smiling and Hope wondered how she managed to hold that grin for so long. Soo Young’s hand shot out and Hope spluttered, meekly putting her hand in the other girls for a handshake.

“Lee Hope” She muttered and Soo Young’s smile widened, much to Hope’s shock. Soo Young cheered, stunning Hope once again when she pulled her closer by the shoulders, bringing them face to face.<