[PG-13] Caught in Between (15/25)
Title: Caught in Between
Characters: Kyuhyun/Taeyeon/Eunhyuk, Donghae/Jessica, Sungmin/Sunny, Siwon/Tiffany
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Friendship, Comedy, Drama
“Are you okay?” Eunhyuk asked Taeyeon, nudging her with his elbow. They were in his house having lunch, along with Sunny and Sungmin and she hadn’t spoken a word the whole time.
“Fine,” Taeyeon answered with a sigh, poking at her pasta.
“You don’t look fine,” Sunny pointed out. “What’s wrong?”
Taeyeon took a deep breath. Whom else would she tell except for her best friends? “Apparently, Kyuhyun has had a lot of girlfriends,” she shared.
Eunhyuk, Sungmin and Sunny exchanged looks. Sunny looked worried, but positively said, “At least he told you about them.”
“He didn’t,” Taeyeon corrected. “Well, he did. But not after I met some of them.”
“You met his ex-girlfriends?!” Eunhyuk exclaimed.
“Yes,” Taeyeon said and proceeded to tell them about what happened.
“So you’re in a fight,” Sungmin concluded.
“I just wish he told me,” Taeyeon said.
“But when he did you became upset,” Sunny responded.
“That was because I had to meet “call-me-when-you’re-bored” Gyuri and giggling Victoria,” Taeyeon said, rolling her eyes.
Sungmin pursed his lips to keep himself from laughing.
“Doesn’t that make you wonder about Kyuhyun?” Taeyeon went on.
“With regards to what?” Eunhyuk asked.
“His experience with girls,” Taeyeon bluntly said. Eunhyuk had to cough at this. “I mean if he went out with someone like that call-me-when-you’re-bored girl…”
“Can you stop that?” Sunny said. “It brings very unpleasant thoughts.”
“She’s very unforgettable,” Taeyeon agreed.
~ * ~
Donghae kicked the soccer ball he had with him as he went to the farther end of the field, the semi-secluded part with benches and tall trees. It was lunch break and he didn’t feel like eating, nor did he feel like socializing with people. Neither did he want to go to the library. He wasn’t in any mood for studying at the moment. The field was the place where he knew he could be alone at this time.
Or not.
“Hey,” Jessica quietly greeted him, standing up. She had been sitting on one of the benches when she saw him arrive. She looked like she had been crying.
“What are you doing here?” Donghae asked pointedly. She wasn’t exactly the person he wanted to see right now. She’d made it very clear from the last time they talked that she didn’t need him.
“I thought you’d be here,” Jessica responded, ignoring his tone. He looked at her expectantly. “Hankyung and I fought again,” she confessed, looking downcast at the thought of it, fresh tears forming in her eyes. “I haven’t seen him since the weekend. He blew me off this morning, which was why I was tardy. And he couldn’t even give me a good explanation for all of it.”
“Why don’t you tell your friends about this?” he told her coldly.
“Yoona would just tell me to break up with him with out listening. Tiffany would tell me that everything’s going to be okay. Yuri would just look at me pitifully. Sooyoung’s never around,” she shared, fighting back a sob.
“And you thought of coming to me?” he went on.
“You always tell me the truth,” she said. “You tell me things as they are. And I really need that right now.” He looked away. “I know what I told you, that you don’t have to worry about me, that I’ve got things under control. The truth is I don’t have things under control. I’m tired of being in control.” She sat down and burst out sobbing.
Donghae watched as the well-built defenses of this pretty and controlled girl crumbled right before his eyes. He had seen her cry before, but not like this, not so helplessly and forlornly. He sat down beside her and slowly put an arm around her, making her lean on his shoulder.
“Shh,” he consoled her, hugging her tighter. “I’m here.”
“Thank you,” she whispered.
~ * ~
“Taeyeon, when are you going to talk to me?” Kyuhyun asked her miserably as he followed her to the quad.
“Not right now. I have some stuff to do,” Taeyeon lied.
“Taeyeon, please,” Kyuhyun said. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you at once. I really am. Please talk to me already.” This was the first time he felt panic over a girl ignoring him and it wasn’t a pleasant feeling.
“Keep it down,” she hissed. People were starting to look at them.
“Not until you talk to me,” he persisted.
He pulled her to the secluded part of the quad.
“Kyuhyun, I’m sorry it’s taking me longer to… process everything,” she began. “But I-mmmppphhh.”
Kyuhyun crushed his lips to hers. Taeyeon whimpered in shock and tried to push him away. They were in school, after all. But he kept a hand on her neck and an arm around her waist, pulling her even tighter. He expertly kissed her slowly yet persistently. Soon, she responded by relaxing in his arms and moving her lips against his.
When they pulled away, Taeyeon was feeling breathless and faint.
“Do you forgive me now?” Kyuhyun asked.
“Cheater,” Taeyeon muttered. She would never win against him if he kept on kissing her that way. “We should have rules against these kinds of things.”
“So does this mean we’re talking now?” Kyuhyun asked innocently, snaking an arm around her waist.
“Kyuhyun,” Taeyeon warned him. “Stop it. We’re in school.” She tried untangling herself from him.
“No one can see us,” he assured her, putting another arm around her waist. “Please tell me you forgive me,” he proceeded, leaning closer to her until their breaths mingled together.
“I…” she began, her mind going blank. This was getting to be a problem. How was she ever going to be able to think rationally when he did that? “Uh…”
“What?” he pressed, kissing the corner of her lips. “Say yes, Kyu, I forgive you.”
“Are you manipulating me?” she said, coming out of his spell for a second.
“I’m sorry,” he insisted, resting his head on her shoulder, breathing on her neck. He smiled as she swallowed nervously. “I’m really sorry.”
Taeyeon closed her eyes and willed herself to focus. She slowly pulled away from him and took a couple of steps back. “I can’t think straight when you keep on doing that,” she honestly told him. “I can’t just… Let’s talk about this after school?”
Kyuhyun took a deep breath and nodded. He was going to have to tell her everything now.
~ * ~
Eunhyuk sighed as he watched Taeyeon and Kyuhyun walk hand-in-hand. They’d obviously patched things up. He wasn’t a person who was easily scared. He always put up with everything bravely. If there was one thing he was scared of, it was Taeyeon getting hurt. She was very important to him. They’d grown up together and every time she got hurt, he couldn’t bear it. It hurt him, too. With her relationship with Kyuhyun, he knew for sure that she was going to get hurt. He wanted so much to stop that from happening, but there wasn’t anything he could do.
Sighing again, he got up and walked towards the field and went under the bleachers, which was a favorite spot of couples. But there wasn’t anyone around at that time because it was hot. He sat on the ground and buried his face in his arms. He wondered if he was doing the right thing by not telling his best friend the truth about her boyfriend.
“Are you alright?”
He looked up and saw a familiar face. He looked curiously at her then he remembered. “What are you doing here?”
“I come here all the time. You’re Shindong’s friend, right?”
“And you’re the girl who has a crush on him,” he said with a smirk.
“I’m Hyoyeon,” she said, blushing as she sat down on the space beside him.
“Eunhyuk,” he offered. “So what are you doing here? This is an unlikely place for a hangout, even for geeks.”
“I could say the same to you,” she said.
He chuckled. “Right.”
“I come here every lunch time, even just for a couple of minutes,” Hyoyeon shared willingly. “It’s a nice place to think as no one comes here.”
“What do you think about?” Eunhyuk asked curiously.
“I think about my grades,” she answered. When he chuckled at this, she went on, “I’m on scholarship. My parents don’t have a lot of money and staying on this scholarship is the only way I know how to help them.”
He nodded, both apologetic and understanding. “I’m sure there’s no danger of you losing your scholarship.”
“There are dangers,” she admitted. “There are some subjects that I’m not very good at. It’s a good thing I hang out with people who help me understand better.” She looked at him. “Why are you here?”
“I just needed some place to relax,” he explained.
“You look really upset about something,” she observed, somewhat concerned. He looked tired, too.
He looked back at her. “I’m worried about this friend of mine.”
“Why?” she asked.
“I’m afraid she’s going to get hurt.” He looked at the ground. “I’m sure she’s going to get hurt,” he rephrased softly, closing his eyes.
“I’m sure you won’t let that happen,” she told him confidently.
He looked at her. “What if I do?”
“Then you’ll be there for her,” she answered simply. “We can’t always prevent the people around us from falling. What we can do is catch them when they fall.”
“That’s very wise,” Eunhyuk said after a moment, smiling at her.
Hyoyeon shrugged. “I am a geek after all.”
Eunhyuk felt his phone vibrate. He took it out and checked the message. “I have to go,” he said, standing up. “Thanks for, uh, this.”
“You’re welcome,” Hyoyeon said with a smile, looking up at him.
~ * ~
“You’re here!” Yuri happily said.
“Yuri, what is it?” Eunhyuk asked tiredly as he arrived at the quad. He sat down and stared at the food on the table.
“I prepared lunch for you,” Yuri told him, smiling as she opened the covers of the containers. “I made Kimchi fried rice, ramyun, Kimbap…”
“Yuri,” Eunhyuk began, looking surprised at her preparations.
“Oh wait,” Yuri said. “I forgot the drinks. I’ll be right back.” She hurriedly left to get the drinks from the cafeteria.
Eunhyuk sighed as he checked out all the food that she prepared. They were his favorites and he couldn’t help but wonder how they tasted.
“Here,” Yuri said, coming back and pouring some soda for him.
“Yuri,” he began again.
“Utensils,” she said, interrupting him once more. “Here.” She placed chopsticks, then a spoon and fork on his bowl. “What do you want to try first?”
“Yuri, sit down, will you?” he gently said, patting the space beside him.
“What is it? Don’t you like what I prepared?” she asked, confused.
“Of course I do,” he assured her. “But you really didn’t have to.” He looked intently at her.
“But I want to,” she insisted. She crossed her arms on her chest, looking disappointed. “You don’t like it.” She looked away. Of course he didn’t like it. He never liked anything the she did for him.
“Yuri, look at me,” Eunhyuk pleaded, holding her hand. She slowly looked at his hand on hers then up at him. “I appreciate everything that you’ve done for me. I really do.”
“But…” Yuri prodded him.
“But I don’t want you to waste your time and effort on me any longer,” Eunhyuk finished. He grabbed her other hand. “I can’t… I can’t reciprocate your feelings for me. I’m sorry.”
“I’ve tried…” Yuri began. “I did everything I could…” She sniffed.
“You did,” he agreed. “You’re a great girl, Yuri. I know you’ll be a wonderful girlfriend, but...”
“Just not yours,” Yuri ended, looking at him, teary-eyed.
“You’re really not missing anything by not being my girlfriend,” he honestly told her.
“How would you know?” she said, pouting.
He chuckled. “I just know. But,” he went on. “I know you’ll regret it if you don’t offer Yunho all this delicious food that you made.”
She looked at him in surprise. “Huh?”
“There he is.” He nodded towards her right. “Call him over. I hear he loves Kimchi fried rice,” Eunhyuk said, standing up.
“But Eunhyuk,” Yuri began.
Eunhyuk leaned down and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Good luck,” he whispered urgently then walked away, smiling.
Characters: Kyuhyun/Taeyeon/Eunhyuk, Donghae/Jessica, Sungmin/Sunny, Siwon/Tiffany
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Friendship, Comedy, Drama
“Are you okay?” Eunhyuk asked Taeyeon, nudging her with his elbow. They were in his house having lunch, along with Sunny and Sungmin and she hadn’t spoken a word the whole time.
“Fine,” Taeyeon answered with a sigh, poking at her pasta.
“You don’t look fine,” Sunny pointed out. “What’s wrong?”
Taeyeon took a deep breath. Whom else would she tell except for her best friends? “Apparently, Kyuhyun has had a lot of girlfriends,” she shared.
Eunhyuk, Sungmin and Sunny exchanged looks. Sunny looked worried, but positively said, “At least he told you about them.”
“He didn’t,” Taeyeon corrected. “Well, he did. But not after I met some of them.”
“You met his ex-girlfriends?!” Eunhyuk exclaimed.
“Yes,” Taeyeon said and proceeded to tell them about what happened.
“So you’re in a fight,” Sungmin concluded.
“I just wish he told me,” Taeyeon said.
“But when he did you became upset,” Sunny responded.
“That was because I had to meet “call-me-when-you’re-bored” Gyuri and giggling Victoria,” Taeyeon said, rolling her eyes.
Sungmin pursed his lips to keep himself from laughing.
“Doesn’t that make you wonder about Kyuhyun?” Taeyeon went on.
“With regards to what?” Eunhyuk asked.
“His experience with girls,” Taeyeon bluntly said. Eunhyuk had to cough at this. “I mean if he went out with someone like that call-me-when-you’re-bored girl…”
“Can you stop that?” Sunny said. “It brings very unpleasant thoughts.”
“She’s very unforgettable,” Taeyeon agreed.
~ * ~
Donghae kicked the soccer ball he had with him as he went to the farther end of the field, the semi-secluded part with benches and tall trees. It was lunch break and he didn’t feel like eating, nor did he feel like socializing with people. Neither did he want to go to the library. He wasn’t in any mood for studying at the moment. The field was the place where he knew he could be alone at this time.
Or not.
“Hey,” Jessica quietly greeted him, standing up. She had been sitting on one of the benches when she saw him arrive. She looked like she had been crying.
“What are you doing here?” Donghae asked pointedly. She wasn’t exactly the person he wanted to see right now. She’d made it very clear from the last time they talked that she didn’t need him.
“I thought you’d be here,” Jessica responded, ignoring his tone. He looked at her expectantly. “Hankyung and I fought again,” she confessed, looking downcast at the thought of it, fresh tears forming in her eyes. “I haven’t seen him since the weekend. He blew me off this morning, which was why I was tardy. And he couldn’t even give me a good explanation for all of it.”
“Why don’t you tell your friends about this?” he told her coldly.
“Yoona would just tell me to break up with him with out listening. Tiffany would tell me that everything’s going to be okay. Yuri would just look at me pitifully. Sooyoung’s never around,” she shared, fighting back a sob.
“And you thought of coming to me?” he went on.
“You always tell me the truth,” she said. “You tell me things as they are. And I really need that right now.” He looked away. “I know what I told you, that you don’t have to worry about me, that I’ve got things under control. The truth is I don’t have things under control. I’m tired of being in control.” She sat down and burst out sobbing.
Donghae watched as the well-built defenses of this pretty and controlled girl crumbled right before his eyes. He had seen her cry before, but not like this, not so helplessly and forlornly. He sat down beside her and slowly put an arm around her, making her lean on his shoulder.
“Shh,” he consoled her, hugging her tighter. “I’m here.”
“Thank you,” she whispered.
~ * ~
“Taeyeon, when are you going to talk to me?” Kyuhyun asked her miserably as he followed her to the quad.
“Not right now. I have some stuff to do,” Taeyeon lied.
“Taeyeon, please,” Kyuhyun said. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you at once. I really am. Please talk to me already.” This was the first time he felt panic over a girl ignoring him and it wasn’t a pleasant feeling.
“Keep it down,” she hissed. People were starting to look at them.
“Not until you talk to me,” he persisted.
He pulled her to the secluded part of the quad.
“Kyuhyun, I’m sorry it’s taking me longer to… process everything,” she began. “But I-mmmppphhh.”
Kyuhyun crushed his lips to hers. Taeyeon whimpered in shock and tried to push him away. They were in school, after all. But he kept a hand on her neck and an arm around her waist, pulling her even tighter. He expertly kissed her slowly yet persistently. Soon, she responded by relaxing in his arms and moving her lips against his.
When they pulled away, Taeyeon was feeling breathless and faint.
“Do you forgive me now?” Kyuhyun asked.
“Cheater,” Taeyeon muttered. She would never win against him if he kept on kissing her that way. “We should have rules against these kinds of things.”
“So does this mean we’re talking now?” Kyuhyun asked innocently, snaking an arm around her waist.
“Kyuhyun,” Taeyeon warned him. “Stop it. We’re in school.” She tried untangling herself from him.
“No one can see us,” he assured her, putting another arm around her waist. “Please tell me you forgive me,” he proceeded, leaning closer to her until their breaths mingled together.
“I…” she began, her mind going blank. This was getting to be a problem. How was she ever going to be able to think rationally when he did that? “Uh…”
“What?” he pressed, kissing the corner of her lips. “Say yes, Kyu, I forgive you.”
“Are you manipulating me?” she said, coming out of his spell for a second.
“I’m sorry,” he insisted, resting his head on her shoulder, breathing on her neck. He smiled as she swallowed nervously. “I’m really sorry.”
Taeyeon closed her eyes and willed herself to focus. She slowly pulled away from him and took a couple of steps back. “I can’t think straight when you keep on doing that,” she honestly told him. “I can’t just… Let’s talk about this after school?”
Kyuhyun took a deep breath and nodded. He was going to have to tell her everything now.
~ * ~
Eunhyuk sighed as he watched Taeyeon and Kyuhyun walk hand-in-hand. They’d obviously patched things up. He wasn’t a person who was easily scared. He always put up with everything bravely. If there was one thing he was scared of, it was Taeyeon getting hurt. She was very important to him. They’d grown up together and every time she got hurt, he couldn’t bear it. It hurt him, too. With her relationship with Kyuhyun, he knew for sure that she was going to get hurt. He wanted so much to stop that from happening, but there wasn’t anything he could do.
Sighing again, he got up and walked towards the field and went under the bleachers, which was a favorite spot of couples. But there wasn’t anyone around at that time because it was hot. He sat on the ground and buried his face in his arms. He wondered if he was doing the right thing by not telling his best friend the truth about her boyfriend.
“Are you alright?”
He looked up and saw a familiar face. He looked curiously at her then he remembered. “What are you doing here?”
“I come here all the time. You’re Shindong’s friend, right?”
“And you’re the girl who has a crush on him,” he said with a smirk.
“I’m Hyoyeon,” she said, blushing as she sat down on the space beside him.
“Eunhyuk,” he offered. “So what are you doing here? This is an unlikely place for a hangout, even for geeks.”
“I could say the same to you,” she said.
He chuckled. “Right.”
“I come here every lunch time, even just for a couple of minutes,” Hyoyeon shared willingly. “It’s a nice place to think as no one comes here.”
“What do you think about?” Eunhyuk asked curiously.
“I think about my grades,” she answered. When he chuckled at this, she went on, “I’m on scholarship. My parents don’t have a lot of money and staying on this scholarship is the only way I know how to help them.”
He nodded, both apologetic and understanding. “I’m sure there’s no danger of you losing your scholarship.”
“There are dangers,” she admitted. “There are some subjects that I’m not very good at. It’s a good thing I hang out with people who help me understand better.” She looked at him. “Why are you here?”
“I just needed some place to relax,” he explained.
“You look really upset about something,” she observed, somewhat concerned. He looked tired, too.
He looked back at her. “I’m worried about this friend of mine.”
“Why?” she asked.
“I’m afraid she’s going to get hurt.” He looked at the ground. “I’m sure she’s going to get hurt,” he rephrased softly, closing his eyes.
“I’m sure you won’t let that happen,” she told him confidently.
He looked at her. “What if I do?”
“Then you’ll be there for her,” she answered simply. “We can’t always prevent the people around us from falling. What we can do is catch them when they fall.”
“That’s very wise,” Eunhyuk said after a moment, smiling at her.
Hyoyeon shrugged. “I am a geek after all.”
Eunhyuk felt his phone vibrate. He took it out and checked the message. “I have to go,” he said, standing up. “Thanks for, uh, this.”
“You’re welcome,” Hyoyeon said with a smile, looking up at him.
~ * ~
“You’re here!” Yuri happily said.
“Yuri, what is it?” Eunhyuk asked tiredly as he arrived at the quad. He sat down and stared at the food on the table.
“I prepared lunch for you,” Yuri told him, smiling as she opened the covers of the containers. “I made Kimchi fried rice, ramyun, Kimbap…”
“Yuri,” Eunhyuk began, looking surprised at her preparations.
“Oh wait,” Yuri said. “I forgot the drinks. I’ll be right back.” She hurriedly left to get the drinks from the cafeteria.
Eunhyuk sighed as he checked out all the food that she prepared. They were his favorites and he couldn’t help but wonder how they tasted.
“Here,” Yuri said, coming back and pouring some soda for him.
“Yuri,” he began again.
“Utensils,” she said, interrupting him once more. “Here.” She placed chopsticks, then a spoon and fork on his bowl. “What do you want to try first?”
“Yuri, sit down, will you?” he gently said, patting the space beside him.
“What is it? Don’t you like what I prepared?” she asked, confused.
“Of course I do,” he assured her. “But you really didn’t have to.” He looked intently at her.
“But I want to,” she insisted. She crossed her arms on her chest, looking disappointed. “You don’t like it.” She looked away. Of course he didn’t like it. He never liked anything the she did for him.
“Yuri, look at me,” Eunhyuk pleaded, holding her hand. She slowly looked at his hand on hers then up at him. “I appreciate everything that you’ve done for me. I really do.”
“But…” Yuri prodded him.
“But I don’t want you to waste your time and effort on me any longer,” Eunhyuk finished. He grabbed her other hand. “I can’t… I can’t reciprocate your feelings for me. I’m sorry.”
“I’ve tried…” Yuri began. “I did everything I could…” She sniffed.
“You did,” he agreed. “You’re a great girl, Yuri. I know you’ll be a wonderful girlfriend, but...”
“Just not yours,” Yuri ended, looking at him, teary-eyed.
“You’re really not missing anything by not being my girlfriend,” he honestly told her.
“How would you know?” she said, pouting.
He chuckled. “I just know. But,” he went on. “I know you’ll regret it if you don’t offer Yunho all this delicious food that you made.”
She looked at him in surprise. “Huh?”
“There he is.” He nodded towards her right. “Call him over. I hear he loves Kimchi fried rice,” Eunhyuk said, standing up.
“But Eunhyuk,” Yuri began.
Eunhyuk leaned down and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Good luck,” he whispered urgently then walked away, smiling.