THE next day, Felix came to school jumping up and down and smiling more sincerely than before. He hurried towards Mal's locker, where he found her standing with her friend Ava.

"Hey, do you think I can get a minute with Mal? I need to tell her something." Felix politely requested, making Ava nod with no hesitation.

"Of course, Felix! I'll see you later, Mal."

"See you later, Ava." Mal waved at her friend goodbye, then turned to her boyfriend, slowly admiring his beautiful, happy face. "Good morning, sunshine! How are you doing? You look so happy today."

Felix nodded, tears of happiness threatening to stream down his face as he hugged her tightly.

"Mal, my friends are alive! They moved into the apartment next door, and I met them yesterday!" he spoke in Korean, while tears began to stream down his face.

"Oh my God, I'm so happy for them, and you!" she hugged him back, running her hand through his soft, long hair. "Felix, I love you so much... I'm so happy for you."

They let each other go after a few minutes. Mal cupped his face through her palms, wiping away his tears.

"Felix, I know a lot of things had happened to you, this past few months, but I'm so proud of you for getting through them. I want to thank you for trusting me with that information."

Felix nodded, more tears streaming down his face. "I love you so much, Mal, and I'm proud of you too. I trust you with everything."

She smiled weakly at that.

"You're the best person I could ever ask for, Felix." she paused for a few minutes, to wipe her and his tears away. "Do you think I can meet with your friends after school today? I honestly can't wait to meet them."

"Of course! They can't wait to meet you too. I told them all about you yesterday. Although I hope I had a phone to tell you about that earlier..." he muttered the last sentence, which made Mal lost in thought for a second.

"It's okay, baby! You told me eventually, right? That's all that matters."

He sent her a small smile. "Of course."

The pair hugged each other once again, making a few people stare at them as they passed by.

☂︎

Later that day, the car pulled up in front of the apartment building. The couple strolled out and held each other's hands as they entered, climbing the stairs at a normal pace.

"I can't wait to meet them, Felix!" She smiled enthusiastically, "Thank you so much for telling them about me."

"Of course, babe. How can I not, anyway? You're the only thing I love around here."

She giggled, holding his hand tighter. "I love you too, sunshine."

As soon as they arrived at the apartment, Mal let go of her boyfriend's hand and inhaled nervously, cracking her knuckles.

"Don't be nervous, please. They're going to love you."

Mal nodded. Felix stretched out his hand and knocked on the door, causing them to wait for a few moments. The next thing they both knew, the door was opened, revealing Hyunjin, smiling and welcoming them with open arms.

"Hey, come in!"

The boy gave Felix a tight hug, then shook Mal's hand with a sincere smile. "It's so nice to meet you," he spoke in broken English.

"It's nice to meet you too!" she replied in Korean, which made Felix smile proudly. Hyunjin stared at her, baffled for a moment, then sent her a wide grin, turning to Felix.

"I think we're going to get along just fine."

The couple then proceeded to greet the two other friends, who were named Jisung Han and Chan Bang. Felix introduced Chan as the leader of their former band.

"So, where did you learn Korean?" Han asked, sitting down on the chair across from the couch.

"I started learning around five weeks ago." she explained with a shy smile, "When me and Felix went on our first date."

That made the three members let out awestruck replies, clearly impressed.

"That is so sweet!"

"Thank you!"

"But you're already speaking so well! How did you manage between learning a language and school?" Han asked.

"I learn languages better than I learn... Well, anything else! You could say that I'm better at languages than I am at mathematics."

"Yeah, we know how that feels."

"Except that, I don't speak English that well," Hyunjin spoke in Korean, making Mal nod sympathetically.

"I know how you feel because I wasn't born an English-speaker myself."

"Oh. Where are you from?"

She smiled at all the memories that came across her mind. "I'm originally from Egypt. My family moved here when I was fifteen."

They all glanced at each other and grinned. "Nice! How is that like?"

"It's honestly good! I feel like I stepped up my game in school every year in Spirit Week."

They all laughed.

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