Real Trouble

8

P.E. class. My least favorite part of the day. I mean, sure, I'm athletic thanks to ballet, but dodging balls that people are purposely trying to throw at your face isn't exactly my idea of fun. We are split into two groups—girls versus girls, boys versus boys—and today's game is dodgeball. Great.

As the game starts, I try to stay as far away from the center as possible. I am doing pretty well avoiding getting hit, until, our team's ball flys out of bounds. I jog over to pick it up. But just as I reach down to grab it, I feel a shadow loom over me. And then, a foot lands right on top of the ball.

I look up and, of course, it is him. Han Seojun. He looks down at me with that annoyingly smug grin of his.

"Looks like we meet again," he says voice dripping with confidence.

I roll my eyes ,"Wow, lucky me. I was dreaming for this exact moment."

He smirks, clearly enjoying the banter. "You know, you still have my helmet."

Before he could say anything else, I interrupt , pointing over his shoulder. "Watch out!"

He turns his head, just in time to get smacked right in the face by a dodgeball. I can't help it—I burst out laughing, the kind of laugh that makes your sides hurt. Seojun rubs his face, clearly annoyed, while I grab the ball and skip back to my side of the court. Serves him right for being so full of himself.

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At lunch, I am heading back to class because, I forgot my phone in my desk. Just as I turn, I see a flash of white racing down the hallway. It is Ju-kyung, but her face is completely covered in some kind of white foam.

"Unnie?" I call out, but she doesn't even acknowledge me. She is too busy screaming, "Get out of my way!" as she bulldozes through a group of guys like her life dependes on it.

Before I can figure out what is going on, she steps on someone who is crouched down, tying his shoes. He falls flat on the floor, and I stifle a laugh when I realise who it is—Han Seojun.

As Ju-kyung continues to run, the other boys move out of the way just in time—except for two of them. They collide face-first into each other, accidentally kissing. That's when I lost it. I double over, laughing so hard that my stomach hurt. But before I can fully recover, I see a group of students chasing after Ju-kyung, yelling, "Ju-kyung! We need to clean your face!"

It suddenly hit me why she is running away, and my amusement quickly turns into concern. I have to help her.

I take off after her, but in my rush, I accidentally knock into Seojun again, sending both of us crashing to the ground.

I land on top of him, we just stare at each other. His dark eyes looking straight into mine. His group of friends, of course, start whistling and yelling like they are watching a drama unfold.

I quickly get up, brushing myself off. "You seriously need to stop being in my way," I mutter.

He scoffs, getting up slowly. "Maybe if you weren't always falling all over me, we wouldn't have this problem."

"Me?" I shoot back. "You're the one who keeps showing up at the worst possible times. And by the way, I still have your stupid helmet."

"Oh yeah?" he crosses his arms, giving me that smug look again. "When are you gonna return it?"

I roll my eyes. "Sooner than later, if it means getting rid of you." We are bickering, going back and forth about whose fault it is, when something caught both of our attention.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Suho walking down the hallway, his jacket draped over Ju-kyung. He is guiding her away from the crowd, trying to hide her foam-covered face. For a second, I stop, my concern for my sister kicking in again. She must've been so embarrassed.

Seojun notices too, raising an eyebrow as he watches Suho walk away with Ju-kyung. "Huh. So, he cares about her," he mutters.

I don't have time to process whatever that is supposed to mean. The day continues on, and I barely made it through class without getting lost in my thoughts.

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Later that night, after ballet practice, I am finally heading home, exhausted. As I walk through the front door, I nearly have a heart attack. There is Ju-kyung, lying face down on the floor at the entrance, looking like she'd given up on life.

I step closer. "Ju-kyung? What are you doing?"

She mumbles "Suho has figured it out"

"WHAT?"