"So does this make you two professional fighters now?" Zay asked as we walked through the large entrance to our school, his arms hooked around me and Lucas' shoulders.

Zay and I had both gotten a ride from Jack and we ended up meeting Lucas in the parking lot.

Lucas scratched his head, "I mean, technically yes."

"Since Mad Dog isn't underground and they became their own league, I guess that does make both of you pros." My blonde friend chimed in.

"It doesn't really matter though, does it?" I asked. "Nothing about the club has changed, it's just a bit more crowded."

"No, a lot of things have changed. I don't think you really understand the amount of attention Mad Dog is getting right now. It's being televised all over the world, and I don't know if it's because of Byung Joon's connections, but it's super popular in Korea too," Jack told me as we approached my locker.

I shook Zay's arm off of my shoulder and grabbed an extra binder for my class. "So it's getting international attention? That would explain the increase in followers," I muttered to myself.

As I was closing my locker a couple of guys from the football team approached me. We gave each other puzzled looks.

"Hey Kai, what's up?" One of the guys asked me. He was wearing a black and blue letterman jacket which made his already hefty frame appear even bigger.

He stuck his hand out and we did a quick bro shake, "Hey..." I trailed off since I didn't know the guy's name.

Over the past three years, I had been less than interested in the people at this school. This was the first time I had talked to anyone on the football team so I wasn't sure why he was being so friendly.

"Ryan," He finished for me.

"Oh," I guess that's his name.

He didn't say anything for a moment so I interrupted the silence, "Do you need something?" I asked.

"Nah, just wanted to talk. I saw you on TV the other day. I've seen you fight Lucas a couple of times, but who knew you were a legit pro!" He was a little too excited.

Another one of the guys added, "How did you even know about Mad Dog? I heard a rumor that they were an illegal drug smuggling business, I didn't know they had a fight club!"

I grimaced at his words. Drugs? Illegal fight clubs are bad enough, why'd someone have to bring drugs into it.

"Yeah, man! If I had known I would have signed up and kicked some ass!" A third jock added.

Just because they were big didn't mean they could fight, they would all get their asses handed to them.

I scoffed as yet another block-headed imbecile spoke, "The announcer guy said you started fighting there when you were 14, how do you even get into something like that?"

I rolled my eyes, clearly annoyed. Who knew the football team would become my fanboys.

"Hey um, I gotta get to class so let's talk another time. Maybe." I gave a curt smile and locked my locker, turning around to head toward my first period.

I was walking and Jack and Zay were talking behind me. I didn't see Lucas with us so I turned to see where he was and it looked like he was swarmed by a bunch of random people.

He looked uncomfortable and awkward so I walked back over and shoved my way through the crowd of people, grabbing Lucas' arm, "Sorry guys, we've got class to get to so I'm just gonna borrow him real quick," I said as I practically dragged Lucas away.

"What was that about?" I asked.

"I don't even know. The second you left I got blocked in and a ton of people were asking me about Friday night. I guess everyone at school watched it."

Jack and Zayden stood waiting for us as we finally caught up, "Why are you two surprised. You're practically famous now," he teased.

"Don't kid yourself," I countered.

"I think you're the one kidding yourself, Kai," Lucas butted in. "I didn't take you for an idiot. You've always been popular, even at school. You should have figured it out the first time someone said they were your fan. Remember that receptionist? And then all the fan accounts. Not to mention the cheers when you fight. And don't even get me started on how fast your social media grew. Come on, Kai, modest is not a good look on you." Lucas laughed while shaking his head.

"Yeah, whatever. It doesn't really matter to me anyway." I huffed as the four of us started walking up the stairs to the second floor.

"So what are we grabbin' for lunch today?" Zay asked. His mind was always on food, I swear the guy had the appetite of a panda.

"I'm craving Taco Bell," Jack told us, taking a sip from his water bottle.

"Oooh I'm totally in, Taco Bell's my shit." Zayden licked his lips, practically drooling at the thought.

"Eh, I'm not really in the mood for food poisoning," Lucas scrunched his face up at the thought, rubbing his stomach, probably having flashbacks to a burrito that didn't sit quite right in his stomach.

"Yeah, I'm not really in the mood for my ass to be on fire cause of some fast food." I agreed with Lucas, I didn't have any plans for tonight, and I didn't want to carve out several hours just to spend some alone time with my toilet.

Right when I said that Jack choked on his water and went into a coughing fit, his face turning red.

"You don't need Taco Bell for your ass to feel like it's on fire, Lucas does that job on his own just fine" Zay snickered.

Lucas burst into laughter, "Hey! Why are you assuming I'm the bottom??" I asked, flustered.

Zay couldn't keep himself together and sputtered out, "Jack told me about what he found in the trash can!"

Lucas rested his elbow on my shoulder and leaned in toward my ear, "We both know that you are, why are you denying it?" He had a devilish grin on his face.

Jack was still recovering from choking and Zay was clutching his stomach, "I-it hurts," he wheezed, "so much."

I shoved Lucas off of my shoulder, "Fuck you!"

"Sure, whatever you want, babe," Lucas blew a puff of air into my ear.

I hated the ticklish feeling and immediately brought my hand up, covering and rubbing my ear.

I grabbed hold of his shirt and pulled his face close to mine. "I told you, next time it'll be your ass. This time I'm not messing around, seriously," I seethed.

I shoved a smirking Lucas away from me, "I'd like to see you try," he taunted.

"You!" I moved to kick him but he was already running away, laughing as he entered his classroom.

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair.

"Damn, yall are starting to get bold. Not only were you flirting in front of your friends, but also in public," Zay wiped the sweat off his neck, he certainly got a kick out of Lucas' teasing.

"I never wanted to know this much about your sex life," Jack finally composed himself and put his water away.

"You've got nothing on what I've seen," Zay moved over toward Jack and leaned in toward his ear, bringing his hand up to cover his face so no one could see his mouth.

"One time, I went over to Kai's and I caught them in bed together," I could feel my face turning red at Zay's words from a mixture of embarrassment and anger. The man really needed to learn how to whisper.

"And then right after that," Zay turned to look at me, "Kai wanted to show me something on his computer, but instead some intense gay po-" I jumped on Zay and wrapped my hand around his mouth to keep him from talking.

He struggled to get out of my grasp as we wrestled in the hallway. He licked my hand and I instantly pulled away, "Ew, what the hell, Zay!" I said wiping my now wet hand on my jeans.

I was running after the brown-eyed boy as he began shouting for everyone to hear, "HE OPENED HIS COMPUTER AND THE PORN WAS SO FUCKING LOUD! Kai, you're one kinky bastard!" He was laughing like a mad man as I chased him, swerving in and out of people, accidentally bumping into and possibly knocking some down.

"You little bitch! You better shut the fuck up!" I yelled after him.

-----

"Ughhh," I groaned, rubbing my temples.

"Why did no one tell me we had a test today?" I complained to Lucas.

"Dumbasss, I did tell you. I literally texted you yesterday," he pulled out his phone and showed me.

Lucas: don't forget we have a pre-calc test tmrw

Kai: I know, you don't need to remind me

Lucas: Sure, sure. Whatever you say, big man

"And then I reminded you again after first period. And then I asked if you wanted to study during break and you said no."

I rubbed my hands up and down my face, "Fine, I get it."

"Zay just texted me, he and Jack already left to go get food," Lucas told me. "Do you wanna go get something?"

"Yesss, I want something good that will make me forget about that damn class." I said as we walked toward the exit.

Once we got to the parking lot I climbed into the passenger side.

"Is there anything specific you want?" He asked.

"I could really go for some good Korean food right about now," I licked my lips just thinking about it.

"I've never had Korean food before, do you know any good places?"

"Jeongsik Chicken is my favorite place. I've been going there since I was little, but it's not super close. If we go you'd probably miss your last class," I told Lucas.

"That's fine with me, unlike you I don't have anything to lose if I skip a class," he laughed as he backed out of his spot.

I pulled up directions on my phone and told Lucas when to turn and what exit to get off at.

Once we got there I opened the door to the small restaurant for Lucas. The place was the exact same as I had remembered. The walls were a light yellow color and the floors were wooden. In the back was a long counter with two large pink curtains behind it, hiding the kitchen. There were several low tables placed all around the one-room restaurant with a couple of seats against the window. I don't know if it was the lighting or because of where the shop was located, but the atmosphere here was always peaceful, it felt safe and comforting.

I followed as Lucas walked inside and I could hear a woman shout from the kitchen, "Eoseooseyo! (welcome)"

I gave a small bow, "Oh, annyeognhaseyo. (hello)" I replied as I motioned for Lucas to sit at a small table on the ground. It was a traditional Korean spot so instead of chairs we sat on cushions.

Lucas gave me a confused look. He opened the menu and his eyebrows became tightly knit together, "I don't know what any of these are. What should I get?"

"Um, do you like noodles?" I asked. It was something simple and I felt like it'd be better than having his first Korean dish be something super spicy or exotic.

"Yeah, noodles sound good." he put the menu down and then asked me, "What are you going to get?"

"I'll probably get something you can try too, maybe some beef?" I put the menu down.

I raised my voice a bit, not so much that I was yelling, but loud enough for the lady in the back to hear me, "Jeogiyo? (excuse me)"

"Ne? (yes?)" She replied, coming around the counter with a small notepad and pen for our order.

I recognized her immediately, she was the owner of the restaurant and I saw her nearly every week when I was in elementary school.

She walked over to us, not looking up. I hadn't seen her since I was around nine years old, she looked the exact same.

She was a short woman, probably around 5'2. She wore a red apron and her sleeves were rolled up. Her black hair that had some greys here and there was tied into a loose bun and her pale skin had smile lines around her eyes and mouth. She was a cute woman and you could tell just by looking at her face that she had a kind heart.

"Mwo deusigesseoyo- (What would you like to ea-)" She stopped before she finished her sentence as she made eye contact with me.

"Eomeo! Yeogi nuga issani? Kai? (Oh my! Who do we have here? Kai?) She exclaimed.

"Ne, olaenmanieyo, (Yes, long time no see)" I gave another slight bow of the head. "Jal jinaesseoyo? (have you been good/how have you been)"

"Heum, olaenmanida. Wa.. neon neomu jal saeng gyeossda! (Yes, it's been a while. Wowww, you are so handsome!)" She complimented. (It is normal to compliment someone's looks when seeing them for the first time in a while/ say they became handsome)

Lucas was looking at the both of us, completely lost in the conversation with no clue what was going on.

I laughed at her and waved my hand dismissively, "Anieyo. (No/ no I'm not)" (In Korean when people are complemented they usually reply with this instead of saying thank you)

I moved to grab Lucas' menu and stacked it in mine, holding the two as I ordered, "Bulgogi hanalang jabpchae hanajuseyo. (One bulgogi and one japchae, please)"

I handed her the menus and she walked away, shouting our order to her husband, the cook.

I could hear them talking about me. The lady told her husband that "Kai" had come to visit after several years. He stuck his head out from behind the pink curtains and waved. I smiled and gave him a small bow.

"I have no clue what just happened. I didn't even know you spoke Korean," Lucas said with a proud look on his face.

"You didn't know?" I asked, surprised. "Korean's my first language though?" I laughed.

"Wait, what??" Lucas was surprised.

"I was born in Korea so I learned Korean first, we moved to California around the time I was starting kindergarten," I sighed and leaned back a bit. "Learning English was so hard, but because I was young I needed to be fluent in at least one language so I went to a Korean after-school," I spoke with a smile on my face, enjoying seeing Lucas dumbfounded.

"But I thought you said your dad and Joon moved here around the same time"

"He did... when I was like 5. I also speak some Japanese too." I told him, bragging just a little.

"For real? How?"

"I'm taking it at school."

"Say something in Japanese too," he asked me.

"Why is that always the first thing people ask me when I tell them that?" I rolled my eyes, "What do you want me to say?"

"I don't know, anything," His eyes were sparkling in anticipation.

"Okay," I paused to think. "Bakajanaino? Fukusu no gengo wo hanasu hito mo iru. Aho. Kono warugaki fuzakeruna, (Are you an idiot? Some people speak more than one language. Stupid. Fuck off you brat)" I sighed at Lucas' dumbassery.

"What does that mean?" His eyes were full of wonder and amazement.

"Oh, I just asked if you were excited to try the food here," I coughed, "Or something like that."

"Damn, that's cool. Oh, right. What did you order? I didn't really understand what was going on."

"I ordered Japchae for you. It's basically stir-fried noodles. And I got Bulgogi which is marinated barbecued beef," I explained.

"Sounds good," Lucas smiled.

The woman came around the corner with both of our meals on a tray and as she was laying them down on the table she smiled kindly and said, "Yeogi issseubnida, mas issge deuseyo! (Here you are, enjoy your food!)"

"Ne, gamsahabnida, (thank you)" I smiled back at her, getting up to grab two pairs of chopsticks.

"Okay, try it," I urged him as I took my chopsticks and started eating my food. Damn it's good.

Lucas looked like he was having trouble holding his chopsticks so I got up from my seat and sat next to him, crossing my legs into a pretzel position. I grabbed his right hand in mine.

He looked up at me surprised and stared into my eyes. I chuckled at him and then proceeded to move his fingers to the correct place on the sticks, he didn't move his gaze from me the entire time as a soft, endearing smile fell upon his face.

"There, that should make it easier," I told him as I moved back to my spot.

"Thanks," a light blush dusted his cheeks. "I've never used chopsticks before."

Who would've known that me sharing my culture would end up getting Lucas flustered?

With shaky hands, Lucas finally managed to take his first bite. I paused in anticipation, "So?"

"It's really good!" He said, going in to take another bite.

I picked up a piece of beef and moved my hand so that it was in front of Lucas. I held one hand below the food to make sure it wouldn't fall on the table, "Lucas, try this."

He looked up at me, surprised that I was willing to feed him. He cheekily smiled and opened his mouth. I pulled my hands away and his eyes lit up, "Mmm," his eyebrows were raised in surprise at the taste.

While Lucas was still chewing the food in his mouth, "Oh, I forgot something. This is a must-have with Korean food. It's a staple in every Korean person's diet." I looked away from him and turned toward the woman by the counter, "Ajumma, yeogi gimchilang mul jom deo juseyo. (Ms. would you get us kimchi and water, please?)"

"Ne, (yes)" she drew out her words as she disappeared and quickly came back out with a small bowl of kimchi and two cups of water, placing them on the table and walking away before I got the chance to thank her.

"This is kimchi. It's salted and fermented vegetables, this one has napa cabbage and Korean radish." I told him.

"Is it good?" He asked me.

"I don't think I've ever met a Korean who doesn't like Kimchi." I grabbed a piece of meat and put it in my mouth and then took some kimchi and started chewing them together.

With his wobbly hand, Lucas tried to pick up a small piece of kimchi and he slowly placed it in his mouth.

He moved his jaw and I heard a crunching noise, but then he stopped moving with his jaw offset. His hand was frozen in the air and his eyebrows furrowed, a look of pain consuming his face.

I couldn't help the large smile that took over my face and I erupted into laughter. I clutched my chest as I was heaving. I picked up his cup of water and pushed it into his hand, "Drink some water."

He practically swallowed the piece whole, not wanting to keep it in his mouth for another second, then chugging all of his water. Once every last sip was gone he stuck out his tongue and started fanning his mouth, "Why is it so fucking spicy? And sour?"

He looked around panicking and then his eyes zoned in on my cup. He didn't even bother to ask and just grabbed my water, finishing the whole thing.

He placed the empty cup down with a heavy hand, "Some warning would have been nice."

"I don't think it's that spicy. It doesn't bother me at all so I didn't even think to tell you. How was I supposed to know you have the spice tolerance of a toddler?"

Lucas' face was bright red because of the heat and he was sweating quite a bit. "You look cute when you're all red in the face," I pointed at him.

"And you're hot when you speak a different language," he countered, his face less red and more composed than before.

As I put another piece of meat in my mouth, I winked at him, "I know."