I watched my team play from the sidelines. I watched them struggle with one of the worst players on the team. They refused to put me on the court. I looked at our coach who didn't seem to care. She taught well, in my opinion. Most of the time she was off doing her own thing, leaving us to our own devices.

Our team lost the match, though, it was to be expected since they prefer to choose everyone but me. Our coach gave us her usual pep talk then walked off to do god knows what. I felt myself being dragged out by Seoho. Soon Hyogi, Youngjo and Harin joined his sides. I could only imagine what they planned to do to me.

Seoho pushed me and my backside collided with the wall. The back of my head hurt. They started yelling at me for not doing any beneficial for the team and sitting there on my ass the entire time. I kept silent. Seoho rolled his eyes then reached into his bag. He opened his water bottle and doused me with water. The other three handed him their drinks and I found myself being doused in more water and pink lemonade.

"Why don't you just quit? It'd be better for everyone." spat Seoho before leaving.

His crew followed behind and boosted his swelling ego. I lifted my arms but felt no will nor desire to stand up. I found myself sinking back into the negative and dark place of my mind. Degrading words plagued my mind along with thoughts of ways to die that wouldn't be torture. I covered my face with my hands and cried. I couldn't stand it anymore. The constant physical pain, the emotional pain, the psychological pain.

I felt my hands being pulled away from my face. I looked up and saw Minhyun looking at me in a crouched position. What was he doing here? If anyone saw him here, he'd end up getting bullied too.

"Does it hurt...?" he asked softly while pulling me into his arms.

I pulled away then pushed him. He shouldn't be doing this. He shouldn't be near me. I'd just ruin his life.

"Please go... they may come back... You'll get bullied too!" I said as my voice cracked.

"Giwook..." he said moving closer, but I pushed him back.

Why wasn't he understanding? Did he want to be bullied? Hasn't he seen what it can do to people? Why was he being so stupid?

"Go... just go... You don't want to be their victim..." I said then limped away. My ankle had started to act up again.

🏐🏐

I lied in my bed, hoping the pain I felt would subside. I had disinfected any cuts I saw. I couldn't tell what was old and what was new. My mind shifted to Minhyun and how he idiotically worried over me. Why would he jeopardize his popularity just to see if I was hurting? I rolled onto my other side then checked the time. 10:03 in the morning. We had a day off from school. Practice wasn't canceled. I decided to make most of my day before I was subjected to being beaten and told how worthless I was.

I walked down the street then noticed a person standing off to the side. They looked suspicious, so I moved over to the other side. I didn't have a destination in mind, but I always liked going to pet stores. My mind automatically remembered the route to the shelter where we got our pet bird from. She died a few months ago though.

🏐🏐

I entered the shelter and the sound of animals filled my ears. I greeted the clerk who at this point knew me by name and face. I heard the door open behind me and was surprised to see Minhyun. I thought of asking him, but I decided to just ignore him. I walked over to the cats then gently rubbed their heads with my finger. I felt myself smile then let it falter. I was stuck in a cage too. Unlike the animals here, I was treated poorly. Beaten, degraded, shamed, exposed.

The cat meowed then bumped my finger with its head, bringing me out of my thoughts. I wiped my eye and noticed my hand was slightly damp. I've been crying a lot lately. Things were finally starting to get to me. I jumped and freaked out at someone touching my shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it..." said Minhyun worriedly. "I'm sorry..."

"Are you here to adopt a pet?" I asked.

"No... I have one. A hamster..." he said with a smile.

I left it at that. I said my goodbyes to the worker then headed out. I still had some time before I had to head home and go to practice. I decided to go on ahead early like the other day. My wrist was feeling better, so I decided to talk the opportunity. I turned around and saw Minhyun waiting behind me. I figured he'd go home sooner or later.

🏐🏐

I locked the door then freaked out. He was waiting at the bottom of the stairs. Why was he clinging to me? Did he not care about his own safety? His popularity would go down the drain. Who's to say someone hasn't taken pictures? I was upset. I marched down the stairs and his smile had faded.

"What's wrong...?" Minhyun asked.

I hit him. Maybe now he'd have some common sense and get the hell away from me. Then it hit me. He was probably working with Seoho. He wasn't concerned about me at all. It was just another ploy by Seoho to cause me more misery. I was now even more glad I hit him.

"You can't fool me anymore. I know you're working with Seoho. The plan is you'll get close to me then drop me after gaining my trust... kind of like he did..." I said before brushing past him. "Go and tell him the plan failed."

It hurt, but what did I expect? One of the popular kids wanted to hang around a bullied kid? As if. It's the 21st century. Everyone's looking out for themselves. Friendship is a terribly fickle thing. Romance as well. I felt something grab my hand and wouldn't let me pull away.

"Minhyun, the plan won't-" I said then was silenced by his sudden hug.

"Seoho didn't set this up. I came here on my own. I can't sit idle anymore. So what if I get bullied? If that's the price I have to pay to be by your side, I'm willing." he said with a serious look.

He was good at acting. He really planned to see the plan through to the end. It didn't matter to me.

🏐🏐

I pulled open the door and as expected, I was the first one there. I pulled the balls out of the storage room and set up the net. Minhyun watched from the sidelines. It was obvious once Seoho and his crew show, he'd either be running or joining them. I sighed heavily then picked up one of the balls. It felt good being able to hit them over the net. I decided to try a run and jump serve. I've only practiced a few times before as the time after my wrist was sprained along with my ankle.

"Well look who it is. Lee Giwook actually showed up to practice. Guess who won the bet?" said Seoho as he collected money from his friends. "Oh? Is that Sohn Minhyun I see?"

My head snapped in his direction quickly. He didn't run with his tail between his legs, which only meant one thing. He was working with Seoho. I was glad I had caught on. I moved to serve then felt a ball hit me.

"Oops, my hand slipped." Seoho said with an evil grin. "Hm, what secret about you should I expose today. Ah! What about the one where you drowned your neighbor's cat?"

I felt all eyes on me. I wanted to hide. It was true the cat drowned, but only because it was helping me not drown. No one would believe me if I spoke up. Now Id be known as an animal killer along with being an asshole to girls. I couldn't imagine what he'd throw at me next.