Songbird's POV

"So....what is the mystery behind the rumors that surround you? I'd rather hear it from you then from petty gossip. " Tàiyáng said as he sat on top of my desk.

"Out of all of the empty chairs, why do you have to sit on my desk?" I motioned to all of the empty chairs around us. It was after school hours and we were in our empty homeroom after classes had started at our new college.

"It's a bad habit, besides......it's way more comfortable up here." He gave me a mischievous wink. I slightly blushed as I feigned looking through the classroom window.

"Oh, speaking of bad habits, why were you sleeping during morning classes?" I turned to him when I asked. Maybe it will distract him from his question.

Tàiyáng ran his fingers through his thick brown hair. "I must have stayed up too late last night."

He is so cute when he does that......what am I thinking?! I slightly shook my thoughts away.

"How late?"

"3:00 a.m."

"Aish! No wonder you were sleeping, what where you doing that was so important?"

"It's a secret." He laughed as he masked his face with another one of his smiles.

Since we played more than studied, our books were stacked in a neat pile to the side.

"You didn't answer my question."

With a heavy sigh, I knew that I couldn't avoid it. It was bound to come out anyway.

"My village was considered a social experiment. If a community of people were hidden from society, how long will they last before eventually dying out or over populating. The villagers called it the Doomsday Project. From what my father told me, I was part of the fourth successful generation to be born in the village."

"How come they used you and your minority instead of picking random people?"

"We were considered expendable at the time since we were the smallest of all the minorities."

Nodding his head, Tàiyáng allowed me to continue my story.

"Our village was known for it's secret library which we kept underground. We were used having people come visit us as  they were our only source of information to the outside world. But one day, a new group of vusitors entered our village in search of someone. We showed them our library hoping they would find what they we're looking for. "

I paused in my narrations as the memory of the suffocating smoke and the sound of gunshots flashed before my eyes.

"For some reason...they burned down our library and began slaughtering everyone. I don't know how I survived...sometimes...just sometimes...I wished I hadn't." With that,  my voice broke as I quickly cover my mouth with my hands as my eyes began to water up.

Instead of saying the typical "I'm sorry" response,  Tàiyáng just silently wrapped his arm around me. "It's okay to cry. It doesn't mean you're weak, it just shows you're human."

I nod my head but I doubt he could see me. Once I was able to compose myself,  I slowly receded from his embrace.

"You good?" He gave me a sad smile as he gently cupped my face with my hands.

"Yeah....I'm good."

"Do you remember anything about those visitors?" Tàiyáng hesitantly asked me I had put enough distance from him.

"It was weird.....something that started with an L....what was it."

"Don't push yourself to hard." He joked.

"Oh, I got it! Lacerta! Have you've heard of them?" I asked excitedly.

"I have.....once." Startled at the change of his voice, I stare up at him and notice his eyes dulled.

"Tàiyáng .... Tàiyáng .... Chén Tàiyáng!" I yelled as I waved my hand in front of his face. As if waking up from a dream, Tàiyáng jerked his head up and repeatedly blinked eyes.

What just happened?

"I need more sleep....." he muttered underneath his breath.

Before I could ask him what just happened, we heard a soft knock on the homeroom door. Turning our heads toward the sliding door, we see a brown haired boy with blonde highlights peak his head through the entrance.

"Jùn!" Tàiyáng jumped off my desk to greet his friend.

"I brought Měi along as well." Jùn informed us as he removed his book bag from his shoulders and threw it onto the floor. Měi entered the room behind him and waved to us. When I saw Jùn and Měi enter the room, I got up from my seat and bowed in greeting. Měi bowed in return before choosing a place to sit.

"Hope we aren't disturbing you from studying." Měi said as she chose a seat right next to mine.

I shook my head. "You're not intruding."

We both turned to watch the boys as they seemed to be in an animated discussion.

While we were talking, Jùn and Tàiyáng walked over to join us. Tàiyáng leaned his back against an empty desk while Jùn chose to sit backwards on a chair while hugging the back of the chair.

"S,  did you hear about the rumors?" Jùn asked.

"What rumors? " I asked in fear. My heart began to beat very fast as I looked at him with worry.

"The ones about our home teacher. His mood has definitely gotten better. Do you think he is dating anyone?"

I laughed in relief as Mei just shook her head in shame. "I can't believe I'm listening to boys gossip. "

While we were going over different theories, I began to yawn from the lateness of the day.

Looking at his clock, he groaned. "I'm going to be late again...." Gathering his stuff, he whispered something in Jùn's ear before he waved goodbye to us.

"What is his rush?" I asked

"That is another one of Tàiyáng's fault you will learn sooner or later." Jùn told me with a smirk.

"He's always in a rush for everything," Měi and Jùn both said in unison.

Once we gathered all of our stuff, we left the empty college building and checked out through the school's security guards. Looking up at the sky, I calculated in my head how much time it would take for me to reach the facility .

Will I have to sign another form on my absence? That certain guard has been at his post for almost a month. Should I start remembering his name?

While I was going over the many things I needed to do before I go home, I noticed that Jùn continued to followed me.

"Did you forget something?"

"No, I just need to buy something from the college book store." He explained.

I shrugged my shoulders nonchalantly, but I have to admit..... I felt relief that I wouldn't be walking in the dark alone.

Walking in silence with Jùn was nice, but it wasn't the same as walking with Tàiyáng.

"What is being a Chaoxianzu like?" Jùn's eyes sparkled when I asked him.

"Beyond words. Being born in China but being a nationality of a different country is a scary thing for people because they don't understand us. Maybe it's because they don't know where our allegiance lies..."

"Did you have kids pick on you?"

Looking down at me silently, he nodded his head in agreement.

"Tàiyáng told me about your bullying situation." Jùn said. "I was also shunned in my class, it probably didn't help that I'm a quiet person. I never enjoyed socializing until I met my first friend."

"Let me guess...was his name Tàiyáng?"  I smiled.

"Yeah, Tàiyáng would talk to us in Korran when Měi and I would have a ..."difficult" day. Well, he tried to speak Korean. His efforts meant more than his pronunciation to us though."

"Are you and Měi ...."

"Childhood friends. Our parents lived in the same aprtment conplex so we grew close since we usually walked to school together."

"Oh and one more thing."

"Yes?"

"Whenever you get in trouble, please don't hesitate to ask. It's custom for the guys to take care of the girls in both Korea and China. So I'll be your Gēgē from now on, okay?"

Smiling at his sweetness, I agreed. "Deal!"

When I reached the front part of the facility, I waved goodbye to Jùn. But before we parted ways, Jùn leaned over and whispered in my ear: "I know you like Tàiyáng. I'm cheering for you." I look up at him in surprise, but he just turned and walked back where we came from.

"The book store is that way." I yelled, but the wind muffled my voice.

Smiling,  I walk over to my prison. The same guard was positioned there. "Good night..." I look down at his nametage,  "Mr. Liao."

He smiles back at me before I enter my room and close the door with a click.

Letting out a big sigh as I fall onto my bed, I recall what happened with Tàiyáng. What was that about? After getting ready for bed and snuggling under my warm covers, I contemplated what Jùn said to me.

Do I really like Tàiyáng? Is it that obvious?

Hello readers! Sorry, I haven't updated like usual. Who knew studying for tests could be so time consuming. I updated because of a good friend, DeepanshiNegi. Hope you liked this chapter. Good luck on your exams and thank you for supporting this story <3

Oh, and check out her story "Be Mine", it's awesome!