Badboy (Exo Kai)

CHAPTER 7

You've broken a dam. Ever since Kai, with his confusing words and contradicting expressions, had briefly showed you evidence of his vulnerability, he's been less apathetic toward you. He still doesn't go out of his own way to see you, or talk to you, but he's not that type of guy. He's never been that type of guy. He'll only say things when he feels like it, and he never does things when other people prod him. He follows his own set of rules, but even then the breaks his own guidelines.

But he's still distant. And it's that part of him, that side of him that he keeps hidden, that makes you want to reach him, somehow; but that's not your choice. You can try all you want with all you have to get close to him, but in the end it all boils down to whether he'll let you in, and you doubt that, with your shaky, unestablished friendship, he'll accept you any time soon.

The bell for the last class has rung. You've finally memorized the layout for the first two floors in the building, so you don't bother to take out your schedule as you pack your school books into your bag. Walking out of the classroom, you approach your locker and collect your notebooks. You sense the other students doing the same, and hear a variety of calls begin shouted in the hallway. Finishing up, you adjust the strap of your bag on your shoulder and shut the locker closed before you head for the stairs.

You quickly speed down the stairs, your bag slapping on your hip as you lightly hop down from the last step and approach the exit doors. Someone pulls it open for you, and you thank him and step outside. The sun is shining extremely bright, and you squint as you walk toward the parking lot, where many students have already begun to drive out. You wonder whether you should go to the dorms and do your homework or procrastinate a bit more when your name is called.

You turn around to find Hyunsoo jogging up to you, her hair bouncing about her shoulders. She stops in front of you and raises a hand to jangle a set of keys in your face, her eyes alight with mischief. "Hey. You wanna help me?"

You stare warily at the keys. "With what?"

"Well, someone decided it'd be fun to park in front of my car," she explains as she starts to lead you to her vehicle. You follow her to the back part of the parking lot where her car, a snazzy red Camaro, is parked. You realize what she's referring to when you see that two cars are parked right behind her own, not giving any space for her car to back out. "Like seriously. I don't know what to do, and I need to leave."

"And you think I can help, how ... ?"

"Well, don't you know where Kai is?" She asks. Her question catches you off guard for some reason, and it takes you a moment to reply.

"No ... ?"

"This is his car," she says, pointing to the black Shelby Convertible that's stationed right behind her car, the middle vehicle in the line of three. "I don't know why he decided to park here but, um, he better help me get out, because there's no way he can leave with this other car," she says, making a face at the white truck behind Kai's car, "in the way."

You shrug. You're not going to find Kai. Yes, you want to see him, but you don't know where to look. You get the feeling he's in that abandoned, old club room, and you don't want to go looking for him if he's busy there. Plus, hasn't he already said, however indirectly, that he doesn't want you mentioning his being there?

"Don't ask me," you say, starting to walk away. Maybe you can find a substitute to help Hyunsoo, because you certainly don't have the ability to do what she's requesting of you.

"Oh, come on. Don't you want to find him?" She asks, and when she sees your reaction, a teasing tone enters her voice. "Hey. You know ... this is the perfect opport - "

"Hyunsoo!"

You both turn around to see another girl walking towards you. You belatedly recognize her as being one of the girls you've sat with at lunch, which makes you realize that you hardly pay attention to your meal companions. You should probably work on that.