Haneul's POV:

I watched Yeonjun as he walked away, with that Wendy girl following right behind. Taehyun and I helped Rowoon to stand up, who just had a blank expression on his face.

Kai came back from the restaurant with a first aid kit, handing it to me. I opened the box and grabbed some clean gauze and alcohol.

"I'm okay, Haneul" He muttered, not even looking at us.

"Rowoon, your lip is bleeding. Let me help" I said, with the rest of the boys staring at us quietly "This is going to sting" I warned him, pressing the gauze against his lip. He winced in pain.

I made sure the wound was correctly cleaned. Rowoon didn't even say another word and that made me feel conflicted. I was worried about Yeonjun as well.

"I'll go pay for everything. This is the not-so-cool part of being the other hyung" Soobin said, kind as always. I looked up at him and smiled.

"We'll go with him so you can talk. Call us if you need something" Beomgyu said, lifting his hand and patting my head.

"Thank you, and I'm sorry you had to witness this. I'll make it up to you" I apologized. The three of them just gave me a subtle smile and a nod, walking away. "I'm also really sorry to you, Rowoon. I don't know what's gotten into him... This doesn't seem like Yeonjun at all..." I confessed, feeling a knot on my stomach. Rowoon finally locked eyes with me, a weak and bitter smile formed on his wounded lips.

"I don't blame him" He confessed with a shrug. I felt confused at his words and my brows automatically knitted together in a frown. Yeonjun had just beaten the hell out of him, and he wasn't even mad about it.

"How come?" I asked, genuinely curious.

He took a deep breath and sighed. I could feel his aura tinted in shades of gray. That guy was carrying a painful and heavy weight on his shoulders.

"He just wants to protect you" He assured. "All the pain you've been through has been my fault. Rocky died because of me, and that's why he asked me long time ago to stay away from you. To be fair, I understand his request... But I just had to give this to you". He explained, looking down at his feet. "He's filled with resentment, pain and anger. He doesn't forgive me for what I did... And to be honest, neither do I"

My heart shattered at his words. I knew how bad he felt about everything, and I didn't want him to suffer like that. I lifted my hand and grabbed his, squeezing it tightly.

My gesture made him look at me, surprised, confused. It was like all he could wait from people was to be mistreated, that's what he thought he deserved.

"I promise he will understand someday. It wasn't your fault, Rowoon. No matter how much you think it was... Life just happens. Sometimes it can be a total shit, but what can we do about it?" I smiled at him "I hope you can forgive yourself someday and heal... For you, and for Rocky"

He didn't say a word, but I knew mine got into his head. I wiped away a few tears that had escaped from my eyes and stood up, grabbing the box he gave to me moments later.

"Now... If you excuse me, I have to go and look for Yeonjun. He isn't having a good time either." I said, placing my hand on his shoulder "Thank you for this. Please take care of yourself and I hope next time we meet, it can all be different" I smiled sympathetically, bowing at him before I walked away.

There was probably a lot of stuff we still had to talk about, but that wasn't the right moment and place. My priority was finding that blue haired idiot and make sure he was okay.

A few blocks away, I spotted him sitting on a bench. He was frowning, looking to nowhere whilst that girl kept trying to get his attention. I mentally huffed to myself and kept walking, until they finally noticed my presence and looked up.

I stared at him without a word, and so did he.

"What are you doing here?" Wendy asked, clearly annoyed. "This is all your fault"

I diverted my gaze and looked at her, smirking at her words.

"Who are you again?" I asked sarcastically. She opened her mouth in disbelief and the pissed look on her face made me want to burst into laughter. However, I had better things to do.

I returned my gaze to Yeonjun, locking eyes with him. I crouched in front of him and grabbed his hand, looking at its dorso. A quite deep wound was spreaded across his knuckles, now covered with dry blood.

"You're an idiot" I said to him. The look on his face softened and turned into hurt and regret. He didn't respond but his eyes spoke for him, he needed to vent all he was feeling and I knew it was time for me to listen. "We better clean this up before you get an infection" I said, standing up "We need to talk anyways, so let's go"

I grabbed him by the wrist and he stood up immediately without any kind of objections.

"W-What?! Hey! Where are you going?" Wendy asked in a high pitched tone, crossing her arms over her chest when we stepped forward. "She just called you an idiot!"

I stopped on my tracks and turned my head to look at her.

"I'm sorry Wanda, this is something between Yeonjun and I that doesn't concern you" I spat, turning around and dragging Yeonjun with me.

"Wanda?!" She shouted "What the actual heck? Yeonjun!" She kept calling for Yeonjun from the distance and I tried my best not to laugh in such a serious situation. The girl was getting on my nerves.

I heard Yeonjun's muffled chuckles, noticing he was covering his mouth with the palm of his hand as we walked next to each other.

"What's funny?"

"Wanda" He mouthed, snorting right after.

I rolled my eyes, pressing my lips together to stop myself from smiling. I was still upset with him, so I couldn't show anything different.

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We had arrived at my house. We took off our shoes and Yeonjun sat on the couch placed in the living room. I walked upstairs and grabbed some medicine and clean bandages before I met him again.

I sat next to him, quietly preparing the antibiotic cream.

"What about your parents?" He suddenly asked. I grabbed his hand and started to clean the wound without looking at him.

"They're visiting some friends, don't worry" I assured, applying a bit of antiseptic on his skin.

I felt his muscles tense and I looked up. He scrunched his face in pain, sucking air between his teeth.

"Does it sting too much?" I asked, now trying to be more gentle and careful with my touch.

"Not as much as the way you've been looking at me"

No, please stop. Don't make me weak. You're my closest friend and I can't be mad at you but you need to understand what you did. Looking at me that way and making me want to hug you won't help with anything.

His words took me by surprise and made me stop moving. I took a deep breath through my nostrils and sighed right after, diverting my gaze until I looked him in the eyes.

"Okay, listen..." I started saying, finishing up the bandage and releasing the grip on his hand, placing mine on my lap. He looked at me with a hint of guilt and concern, knowing I was about to scold him. "What you did was unacceptable"

"I know... And I'm sorry" He said, almost in a whisper. He glued his gaze to his lap, and judging by the way he spoke, I knew he meant his apology.

"Yeonjun... What were you thinking?" I asked, tilting my head. I was trying to sound firm, but sympathetic. All I wanted was him to understand what he did wrong whilst being aware that I wouldn't hate him for that.

He sighed, finally connecting his dark orbs with mine in a strong glance.

"I don't know. I got really angry and wasn't thinking straight"

"Yeonjun..." I murmured, but he quickly cut me off.

"I asked him to stay away from you" He firmly said, his piercing gaze now making my stomach flip for some reason.

"You attacked him, Yeonjun. You didn't even ask why he was there"

"I saw you crying and couldn't help it. You've cried enough because of him"

Ugh, you're so dumb. Why are you always so sweet? I should stay mad at you... But you make it so hard.

"He was there because brought this for me" I explained in frustration, grabbing the little box from my purse. He looked at it confused, so I handed it to him.

"What is this?"

"Open it"

He hesitated, staring at me with a hint of insecurity, but did as I said.

"A necklace?"

I nodded.

"With a ballerina"

He tilted his head once again, furrowing his brows. I knew he wouldn't be able to put all the pieces together, because this was something only Rocky and I understood.

"I've never been a ballerina, but Rocky was a dancer... It was a symbolism... I learned to love the dance even when I never did it myself. Rocky bought this for me a while ago... And somehow he left it at Rowoon's place. He wanted to give it to me long time ago, but it was until now he gained the courage to"

Yeonjun seemed lost of words. His expression softened and I could've sworn I even noticed his eyes getting glossy. His mind was probably a total mess... And I couldn't blame him for that.

"I never knew about this..." He muttered, probably hurt because he just found something Rocky didn't share with him, but Rowoon instead.

"That's because Rowoon was the one who took him to the store" I explained. The knot that formed earlier on my stomach just kept growing inside me with the whole situation. A mixture of heavy feelings and memories kept trying to bring me down... But I needed to try to stay strong.

Yeonjun sighed, handing the box back to me.

"I'm sorry..." He whispered. He sounded even more regretful this time, which made my heart ache.

I moved my hand and lifted his face with my index finger, so our gazes could meet. I knew I was making that moment something too intimate between us... But it just seemed right.

"Don't you think it's time for you to talk to him?"

He shook his head.

"I can't. I still can't forgive him"

"Yeonjun... He's your friend"

"Was" He spat, glaring at me.

I sighed in frustration.

"He is. He didn't do anything bad."

Disbelief. That's what instantly appeared on his face. He probably was still controlled by his own pain, and that led him to just humorlessly laugh.

"Rocky died because of him. Almost destroyed your life and mine in the process. Isn't that enough?"

I took a breath, staring deeply into his eyes filled with resentment and pain. It was obvious that he was struggling to open his own mind to forgiveness.

"It was an accident" I whispered with a saddened smile, placing my hand on his shoulder.

"That could've been prevented" He muttered, not daring to look at me. Finally his real feelings were showing up, those that he kept bottled up inside when I was the one being dragged by my own pain. That made my heart soften... He always tried his best to seem strong for me, and that's what helped me to be where I was now.

It was meant to be. I needed to get better so he could have someone to support him. If he had let his feelings take over him back then, I don't know what would've happened to us. We would've just hit the rock bottom.

I grabbed his hand, forcing him to look at me.

"Life isn't rainbows and shades of pink all the time... If there's something I've learned from all of this and therapy, is that I had to accept the fact that it was an accident... A really unfortunate accident. Fate is something we have no control over. Don't you think you're being too hard on him?"

"Haneul... If only--"

"Shh" I hissed, cupping his cheek with my free hand. He looked at me dumbfounded, and a single tear in the corner of his eye, that I wiped away with my thumb. "We can't change the way this world spins. Just think about this... I was suicidal, I felt like my world was going to end... But you were there. When I cried, you held me tight, when you cried, I gave you my shoulder... We always had each other. But him? He not only lost his best friend and is constantly feeling the pain and the guilt, but he, as well, lost you. He's been all alone with his pain, with his mourning, with his demons."

Yeonjun looked away and stood up, walking around the room with his back facing me.

"I don't know..."

I stood up as well, following him.

"Yeonjun, Rocky wouldn't want you to be like this with one another... You've always been close. He didn't even try to defend himself. He didn't fight back, what does that tell you?"

I saw him drop his head down.

"I'll think about it..."

I smiled, stepping forward and turning him around by the shoulders.

"That's all I ask for" I cooed.

He weakly smiled at me.

"I must say that I'm surprised... Your words... I don't know... How's that you're not mad at me?"

"I am, but you always forgave me for being impulsive and messing up. You tried and tried until I learned the lesson... And I also know that you were just trying to protect me. Although it wasn't the right way, I'm always grateful to you"

"As much as I hate to admit it, I know you're right" He confessed, a gentle smirk in his lips.

"I'm always right" I grinned "Wait, what do you mean you hate to admit it?" I pouted.

"Pride..." He admitted, making me giggle.

He chuckled as well, pinching on my cheeks. The way his previously sad eyes turned into cute little crescents made my heart swell in comfort.

"Ow, my hand hurts" He giggled.

"Not as much as it hurt Soobin having to pay for all the food"

He widened his eyes in shock, smacking his forehead.

"I totally forgot"

I giggled.

"You better make it up to him and the rest"

He nodded, with a subtle smile on his lips.

"I will" He promised. "And to Wendy as well. I left her on her own. I should apologize"

"No one invited her anyways" I shrugged.

Yeonjun laughed.

"Don't be like that" He said, poking on my forehead with his finger "Meanie"

I clicked my tongue.

"I know she's probably a nice girl and she's only jealous because I spend a lot of time with you, But she's annoying" I shrugged.

"Should she?" He suddenly asked, raising an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Feel jealous of you"

I chuckled.

"You tell me? I haven't done anything for her to hate me"

"I don't think she hates you. She just says I shouldn't be with you all the time. I guess she feels intimidated by pretty girls"

Yeonjun and I quickly realized what he just said, making us feel embarrassed. He scratched the back of his neck and cleared his throat.

"I mean, you... You're not ugly" He added, sighing right away and covering his eyes with the palm of his hand in embarrassment.

I felt awkwardly flustered at his sudden comment, but I couldn't hold back my laugh. He looked like he wanted to be swallowed by the ground, so I decided to just say something else.

"I least we're okay now" I poked his chest "And I even made you laugh."

He smiled, looking at me sweetly.

"Yeah. And gave me an advice for the first time. You have matured"

I shrugged, smiling.

"What can I say? it was time for me to return the favor... Hold on, did you just say I was immature and brainless?

He laughed.

"I never said that"

"Oh but you surely insinuated" I glared at him, he just laughed again.

"I would never... Indeed, I'm glad you did" He smiled. "I better go now... But, thank you, for everything."

"Wait, Yeonjun" I called out, tugging on his sleeve. He turned his head to look back at me "Would you do something for me?"

He tilted his head and furrowed his brows as I turned around to grab the necklace, handing it to him.

"Please... would you put it on me?"

He kept quiet for a second, but then nodded with a soft smile.

I turned around and lifted my hair up. He placed the necklace carefully around my neck from behind. I could feel his hot, nervous breath against my skin, and his cold fingers grazing my skin, which sent chills all over me.

"Done"

I turned around again and smiled.

He stared at me silently and we were probably closer than we should have. I nervously looked up and felt like freezing when our eyes connected. My smile vanished, and his was nowhere to be found either. It all felt silent around us, a deafening silence.

"It looks pretty... On you" He muttered, but instead of looking at the jewelry, he kept looking into my eyes.

Silence kept filling the room for a few more seconds. I thought about making a joke out of it, but the truth is I felt like if I tried to speak, I would just stutter, which was something that had never happened before. He finally cleared his throat and turned on his heels, scratching the back of his neck once again.

"I'll get going now. I'll see you tomorrow with new plans. I'll call the boys" He said, grabbing his shoes and opening the door.

He turned around one last time. "And again, thank you... For everything". He smiled, and waved at me afterwards. I waved back at him and closed the door.

I rested my back against the frame, placing my hand on my chest and letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

What's wrong with my heart? That was weird.