Cold || Cai XuKun

Dating ?¿

     Cai Xu Kun burst into the room like a hurricane. His eyes blazed furiously, which confused me. Did I do something wrong? Before he came in, I realized that the music was Autumn's. Why did Cai Xu Kun make a copy of Autumn's music? There were so many questions, but they obviously weren't getting answered. One look at Xu Kun's face told me enough.

     "What are you doing?" He snapped. He grabbed the sheets off the piano. 

     "I just wanted to help-" 

     "Help? A rank C like you?" He sneered. He actually sneered.                   

     "This is a group project," I informed him angrily. "It doesn't help when you hide things." Cai Xu Kun's face was cherry red. He opened his mouth as if to shout, but instead, spun on his heel and walked out the room. Nope. Not on my watch. I sprinted out the room. When I caught up to him, I grabbed his arm.

     "Hey, what is wrong with you? You don't just walk off like that." He quickly pulled his arm away.

     "And you don't just barge into someone's privacy like that," he growled.

     "What's your deal with Autumn anyway?" I demanded. "Like, bro, chill. All I did was play the piano!" 

     "Woahh, what's going on?" Justin pushed his way in between us.

     "She took things that don't belong to her," Xu Kun muttered, casting a furious glare in my direction.

     "Well, he's not bothering with team cooperation," I defended. Justin raised his eyebrows.

     "Yo, you guys need to work it out." All three of us looked up. The rap coach- Jackson? -was leaning casually against the doorway of his office. His gaze swept over us.

     "Cai Xu Kun, change your attitude. This is a group project." I smirked smugly. But then his eyes landed on me. "And Irene, you have nothing to smirk about. A project doesn't entitle you to going through someone else's things." Then his face turned into one of absolute exasperation. "Justin, why are you even here? Yoonji looks pretty lonely back there." Yoonji was gaping at us from the doorway of their practice room.

     "Yes, teacher." All three of us bowed. He nodded and went back inside with a sigh.

     Neither I nor Cai Xu Kun spoke on the way back. We didn't try when we finally got back inside our room either. Silence. I kept my head down, unsure of doing anything. This whole situation was so irritating. If I had been partnered with Iris or Justin, I would've never had this much trouble completing a project for this class.

     "Why are you like this?" I didn't know I had voiced my thoughts until Cai Xu Kun looked at me. Resignation emitted from the both of us. I studied his gaze. It was calculating but something seemed softer in his rigid features. Sadness. There was no way it was from Jackson's scolding. It must have to do with something more important. Something like...my eyes drifted to the papers still in his fist. Something like Autumn. And for the first time, I wondered: who are you, Autumn? 

     I couldn't bear being in this suffocating room anymore. "I'm going," I mutter, slinging the bag over my shoulder. Cai Xu Kun studies the paper in his hand, ignoring me. Just like always. I almost smile. When I step outside, Iris is waiting outside. Iris and the entire class.

     "Um..." I look around. "What's going on?"

     "Heard about you and Cai Xu Kun," Iris laughed. "I didn't know ya'll were getting along so well." Uh, it's the complete opposite.

     "No? Not really?"

     "It's ok," Grace patted my shoulder in a not-really-reassuring way. "You don't need to hide it. We all know."

     "Were we that loud?" I ask. I didn't think the entire corridor overheard our conversation with Jackson. But was that what they were referring to? 

     "Loud?" Indie shook her head. "You won't believe how many people know."

     "Know what?" Indie shot me a funny look.

     "That you and Cai Xu Kun are dating, of course. What else?"        

A/N:

Sorry about the delay. This week might be a bit slow because of final exams and a heckload of work and also because I have writer's block.

Thanks for reading Cold!