«why am I drawn to you this much?»

✎

All of the students in the hallway turned their head towards me. Seojun was one of them. He raised an eyebrow as he saw me hurrying to him while Sohye was screaming her lungs out from behind.

I could've begged him for help or continued to walk past him or act like a princess in distress and run into his arms, but no. I chose to bring up what Sohye told me in the restroom.

Seojun noticed the tears dripping down from my cheeks and immediately reached out for my arm, gently yanking me towards him as he looked over my face with a concerned expression.

"Why are you cryi-" he didn't get to finish his words once I pulled my arm away from him in a flash. I sniffled once more before I questioned him about Sohye's snarky remark, "are you friends with Sohye?" my tears came in between my sentence and caused my voice to become shaky.

He tilted his head in confusion and instantly shook his head, "no I'm not and who told you that?" Seojun noticed my heavy breathing and attempted to calm me down, "let's get you some tissues..."

I felt someone tug on my elbow and forcefully spin me around. An angry Sohye stood with her dogs behind her, "where are you going you crazy bitch!" she raised her hand to strike me but Seojun immediately pushed her arm away before she got the chance to come in contact with me.

"What's wrong with you?" Seojun shouted as he walked up to her. Sohye was in shock at his reaction and distanced herself from him. Her eyes widened in rage and she couldn't help but tighten her fists, "she disrespected me!"

"Yeeun," I heard a voice softly call out for me. My head turned and I was met with a worried Suho, who kept looking at my shoulders, "you're bleeding..."

I tugged on my shirt and gasped once I saw a huge blood stain on my uniform. Sohye dug her nails so deep into my shoulders that she drew blood. Suho brushed past me and joined Seojun's screaming match with Sohye.

"What did you do to her? Why is she bleeding?" Suho kept his cool, which was the complete opposite of Seojun's yelling, who only became silent when Suho began speaking.

Sohye nervously looked around before finally coming up with a lie to cover up the fact that she put her hands on me, "it was self defense! Yeeun hit me first!"

"Bleeding?" Seojun said to himself. I held onto my shoulder as small amounts of pain turned more and more agonizing. I gulped down the saliva that was built up in my throat when Seojun

alarmingly glanced at me.

Seojun left the others behind and hurriedly walked up to me. His eyes widened at the sight of the blood seething through my shirt and gently dragged me away from the crowd of chattering students.

"How did that happen?" He asked me worriedly.

My words broke up as I struggled to answer him through my tears, "Sohye started attacking me after I defended myself..."

Seojun never told me where he was dragging me to. This was the first time I've seen him so angry, and the way him and Sohye were arguing with each other looked like it was going to get violent. The yelling quickly began to fade away and I never got to see what happened between Sohye and Suho. He seemed more concerned than angry.

I realized Seojun took me to the rooftop of the school building. He slammed the door open and finally released my arm. More tears streamed down my face as the pain in my shoulder only got worse.

Seojun quickly spun around at the sound of my cries and could only stand there, not knowing what to do with a girl with a bloody wound. He sighed before awkwardly looking around, "would it be okay if I checked your shoulder?"

At first I was confused at his reaction, but then I became aware that it meant I had to remove my shirt. Because you know, the blood was coming from my skin.

"Oh my gosh," I muttered to myself as I began quickly opening the buttons from my uniform to get this over with, but then came to a halt and shot a disgusted look to Seojun, "why can't we just go to the nurses office? Are you trying to see me naked?"

I whacked his chest, "you pervert!" giving him another whack as he put his hands up and started defending himself, "the nurse didn't come!" he stated, "I just wanna see how bad it's bleeding! Because that's a lot of blood. And it's not like you're going to show me your boobs," giggling at the word .

I sarcastically laughed and pretended to be okay with his little joke, "you're right!" Seojun smiled at my response and exhaled deeply, "Exactly! Now unbutton your shirt," still having that smile on his face since he didn't notice how weird that sounded.

My smile dropped and I smacked him once more on his chest, cursing him out and accusing him of being a sick individual. I stopped when the pain on my shoulder worsened with my movements.

Seojun glanced at the blood and sucked in his lips, "Yeeun just show me," his head dropped to the ground when I made eye contact with him, "just take off the sleeve where the blood is at."

I stared at him for a few seconds before finally nodding, "turn around," I told him and he obliged. My fingers slowly unbuttoned from the top to the button and removed the left sleeve, "you can look now."

Seojun shyly spun back around and kept his eyes fixated on the wound. He mouth shifted into an "O" shape when taking a closer look at my shoulder, "yeah, you just need a band aid."

I avoided meeting his eyes and immediately began closing the buttons of my shirt, when I was done I looked back up at him and was surprised at how well he was able compose himself around a somewhat shirtless girl.

Seojun was fixated on my eyes and had absolutely no emotions in his face. I giggled at his awkwardness and poked his chest, "why are you standing like that?"

He didn't change expression, "for your privacy," the corners of his mouth slowly lifted themselves when I poked him once again, "you are so respectful. I hope your future wife is grateful to have you," almost immediately regretting including the last part in my compliment.

Seojun's smile vanished after a few moments of us standing in silence and dropped his head, "I'm sorry," he muttered to me.

I scrunched my eyebrows, "for what?"

He sighed deeply and pointed to my bloody shoulder, "that happened because of me. Sohye was bothering you about Suho and I, right?"

My whole body turned tense at the mention of her name. Not only did she bring me anger, but she also brought a great amount of fear. I never once thought I would get attacked by another classmate, if I could predict the future then I probably would've been prepared to give her a bloody wound too.

I squeezed my eyes shut and nodded, trying my best to stop a tear from trailing down my cheeks. My face turned pale and I couldn't stop myself from another breakdown, "none of this would've happened if I knew how to defend myself," my voice quietly cried out.

Seojun clicked his tongue and held onto my hands, squeezing them gently as he comforted me, "this isn't your fault. Sohye is a bitch she shouldn't be treating you like this."

My face turned red as I began sobbing loudly, "I should've never convinced you to go along with the fake relationship. Sohye wouldn't have gone this far if I didn't get involved with you," Seojun began ranting about how everything was his fault and didn't even realize his words were doing more harm than good.

My voice trembled as I tried speaking, "this isn't your fault Seojun," I weakly said but he ignored my pleas and instead clasped my cheeks with his hands.

I expected Seojun to try to comfort me with more of his rambling but he just stared at me, wiping a tear away with his thumb, "I'm not going to let her get away with this," he spoke lowly.

My lips quivered as I struggled to sniffle. I couldn't understand why Seojun was acting so emotional over this. He was being strange, and honestly I didn't know whether to feel appreciative or not.

"I'll report her to the school," he whispered as he began squeezing my cheeks. "she needs to learn that there are consequences in life."

I shook my head. Sohye's parents always attend the parent union meetings, otherwise known as the 'paying the school to pass my child' meetings. If I even did try reporting her, nothing would happen. Money always wins in the end.

Seojun released his grip in frustration, "you have to listen to me, Yeeun."

His soft voice made me feel more at ease. Maybe Suho was wrong. Maybe Seojun did care about me. I've been craving for a friendship like this my entire life. Although I liked him, there was no denying I was happy I finally had a friend. He had his moments, but there were times where he made me feel better about myself.

"Seojun," My head dropped to the ground, "thank you for being a good friend to me," I muttered to him. Seojun jokingly pulled my hair and laughed softly, "I hope we can be friends for a long time."

Friends.Thats all we will ever be. Seojun only views me as his friend, not someone he wants to eventually be in a relationship with.

He began rubbing my elbow gently, and for the first time in a while those tingles in my stomach returned. I felt so much relief being near him, as if I was away from any danger.

"Don't you think that we should-um," I began, "go back inside or something?" my hand reached over my shoulder as I winced in pain. I need to clean this wound. The nurses office should be open, or I can just wrap toilet paper over my shoulder.

Seojun nodded and motioned to the door, "let's get you that-" his mouth went silent once the creak of the rooftop door slowly opened. A head popped out and to my surprise it was a wide eyed Suho with a band aid in one hand, and his school blazer in the other.

He closed the door gently as he began walking towards us, "I got this from the nurse's office," handing it over to me and I responded in a smile.

I thanked him as I retrieved both items from his hands, and Suho softly spoke, "I think you should go home."

I wrapped my body with the blazer and glanced at him, "no it's fine," a feeling of warmness shot through me and I sighed in relief. Yes I was still in pain, but this blazer gave me some sense of security.

"I'll just put this band aid on and go back to class," saying that calmly as if I literally didn't have blood leaking from my shoulder. Suho, as a concerned friend should, instantly shook his head, "you're going home."

Before I could even try arguing with him, Suho spoke once again, "how are you going to class with blood? You can barely move your arm," his eyebrows raised in frustration.

"Nothings going to happen if you miss school for one day. Go home Yeeun," Suho insisted. My brain came up with random scenarios of me getting yelled at by my mother for skipping school. If a neighbor saw me walking home, there was a chance they would snitch on me.

I shook my head, once again nagging with Suho over me skipping school, "but I don't want to get in trouble with my mom-"

Suho sighed heavily and reached for my arm, where the bloody shoulder was at, and pulled me towards the door, "call your mom and say you're feeling si-" suddenly Suho stopped in his tracks as his arm was grabbed harshly by another.

"Don't grab her like that," Seojun curled his lips, giving the confused boy a dark look. Suho, who still had me in his grip, scoffed at him, "are you seriously starting with this again?" he asked in disbelief.

Seojun motioned his head over to me, "don't grab her like that," repeating himself, this time more sternly. The two boys had a stare down and the only thing I could was force a giggle, "wow. It's so cold I hope it snows," I tried my best to lift the mood but I was ignored.

"I don't want to argue with you," Suho told him. He began walking away from Seojun, dragging me alongside him. I had to urge to look back at Seojun, but I didn't want to start another argument between them so I just kept my head down.

"Agh," I whispered to myself as I cleaned up the wound with water. It took over ten minutes for Suho and I to sneak past the chatting teachers in the hallway. I was close to crying in frustration because they just wouldn't walk away.

My eyes refused to look up in the mirror, if I saw how much of a mess I was then I might just burst into tears again. I winced each time I made contact with the wound. Sohye really knows how to hurt someone.

I slowly applied the band aid over the now clean cut, exhaling deeply once I finally finished. Suho was waiting for me outside of the restroom so I hurriedly buttoned up my shirt and wrapped myself in his blazer.

Before I could even open the door, a pair of voices were little by little raising their voices. I immediately recognized who they were from and rolled my eyes. My hands gently pushed the door open and I was met with both Suho and Seojun rapidly turning their heads towards me and their voices shutting off.

I latched onto one of my book bag straps and glanced at our home room, "you guys should go back to class," turning my body away from them, "bye," giving them a soft smile as I attempted to walk away before Seojun pulled me back by grabbing onto my book bag handle.

"Class already started," Seojun said,"and I don't want to get in trouble for being late so I'll go with you," he wrapped an arm around my shoulder and quickly dragged me to the entrance doors.

It wasn't long until Suho joined us, "uh," he began, "I also don't want to get in trouble so I'll go with you guys," flattening his lips as he shoved his hands in his pockets awkwardly.

Seojun and Suho were unusually quiet as we walked to the nearest cafe. Personally I thought it was strange, because they would always somehow find a way to start arguing.

"So," I sipped on my cup of hot coffee before speaking, "today felt like something out of a tv show," giving them a cheeky smile, "two boys who are very handsome saving me from a bully like you can't get any more dramatic than that!"

Seojun rolled his eyes, resting his elbows on our table as he leaned in close to my face, "how is this funny to you?"

I frowned at his seriousness, "next time let her beat me to death then," snarling to him as I turned my head towards Suho, "thank you for the band aid and blazer."

He straightened his posture and beamed at my words, "you looked like you needed some help," suddenly becoming upset as he spaced out for a few seconds, "I hope Sohye doesn't try hurting you again."

Seojun waved his fingers in the air, "that's why I'm going to report her," he said in rage. My eyes widened as I shook my hands in panic, "her parents are going to pay the school to declare her innocent. If you report her nothing is going to happen," I warned him.

He sighed, placing his hand on his mouth and slightly bit his knuckles, "this isn't fair at all," Seojun grunted, "I don't understand why bullies always have to get away with everything."

"Because they know they have people to back them up," Suho added, "Sohye has a large friend group and parents who pay the school. She thinks she's untouchable."

Seojun glanced at him before looking down at the table, "I can't stand her," he groaned as he threw his head back. Suho nodded in agreement and chewed on the brownie he bought.

I rested my cheeks on my hands and turned my head to the window. A group of students from another school were wandering around the street. They looked at all the stores around us before finally pointing at the cafe we were in.

One of the students though, caught my eyes. I felt like I've seen him before. His tall slender figure, slicked back hair, and cocky posture seemed familiar. When the group of students entered the cafe enthusiastically, I was able to get a good look of the boy. My eyes nearly bounced out once I realized who I was staring at.

Before Han Seojun came into my life, I had Kang Wonbin. I considered him my first love. Although I've said Seojun was my first real friend, Wobin also managed to become my friend. He "fell" for me first, then eventually I felt the same way back.

I thought all was going well for us, until suddenly he completely abandoned me and dated that evil girl. Sohye. His reasoning was that he enjoys confident girls. Which I obviously was not. They didn't even last a year though, he transferred to another school. I used to think he liked me, but then I realized he only enjoyed the attention I was giving him.

I immediately looked away and lowered my head, using my hands to somewhat cover my face. Suho noticed and tapped my arm, "what's wrong?"

"Nothing! I'm just looking out the window," still refusing to turn towards them. Seojun yanked on my arm, causing me to completely expose my face to anyone who I was visible to.

Seojun scrunched his eyebrows together, "what are you doing?" I thought of ways to dodge their questions but with the both of them refusing to stop staring at me, I told them about Kang Wonbin.

I bobbed my head to the group of students behind them, "this guy I used to like is right there," my voice whispered, "and he kind of broke my heart by dating Sohye."

Seojun and Suho turned their heads at the same time, making me feel anxious as they were making it obvious to anyone that they were staring, "which one?" Seojun asked loudly.

Suho pointed to Wonbin, "I think it's him. He looks like he breaks girls heart," shoving his last piece of brownie down his throat as he kept his eyes fixated on Wonbin.

I grabbed onto their arms and tried turning their attention back to me. My anxiousness only got bigger and bigger as the nosy boys were making it obvious as to who they were gossiping about. I finally managed to turn Suho around, who was the only that listened to my pleas, and squeezed his arm tightly, "lower your voice please!"

Suho let out a soft laugh, "what?" he positioned himself to face me, "you think he's going to come over and start talking to you?" clearly teasing me but I was having none of it.

"Calm down Yeeun," Seojun chimed in, "we're about to leave any-"

"Yeeun?"

I tightened my grip on Suho's arm and I could physically feel one of my eyes begin twitching. This is what I didn't want. For Kang Wonbin to speak to me again after what he did in the past.

My head slowly turned to the direction of where his voice came from and I plastered a fake smile on my face, "Wonbin?"

A huge grin appeared on his face as he happily began reminiscing about our school days together, "we used to come this cafe a lot after school. Who would've thought we'd meet each again here?"

I nodded slowly, "yeah. That's like, so crazy to think about it," my voice sounding clearly annoyed at his presence but he continued to open his mouth, "and you've gotten much prettier. I could fall for you all over again."

"Oh! Thank you!" I struggled to say after he blurted that out, "you've gotten handsome too," adding a compliment to make myself interested in this conversation.