Replacement || ‎鹿晗

.twentythree.

.twentythree.

At the same time that both of them let out a horror filled scream, Yena crossed her arms over her chest to cover herself. Yifan brought his own hands up to his face in order to cover his eyes. With a cracking--and nervous--voice he uttered an apology to her that was also laced with confusion. "Shit, shit, shit. I'm so sorry." He was so nervous that he spoke in English to her--his brain going on auto pilot. This was his group mate who was supposed to be a boy--and clearly wasn't. Yena only understood what he said from her basic knowledge of the English language.

While he had his eyes covered, she took it as he chance to finish changing into her brother's clothes. Yifan was about to turn to leave, and possibly avoid Tao for the rest of his life when Yena called out to him. "Wait!" She started, voice laced with worry. It was worry that he might tell everyone her secret when she was still supposed to be filling in for her brother for four more months. Tao wasn't expected to return until the summer time. "I can explain everything. Just...don't tell anyone the truth."

She hurried across the moon bounce and grabbed him by the hand, pulling him to standing inside the moon bounce. She led him towards a back exit on the other side. Since the carnival was taking place in a national park, there were hiking trails that led down into a path of leafy trees. 

They took one of the hiking paths behind the row of moon bounces set up for children to play in--with Yena dragging a still stunned Yifan behind her by the hand. His palms were sweaty with nervousness. They went to a secluded part of the trail, away from the clearing where the carnival was taking place, so that they could speak privately. She knew no one would hear their conversation there.

Yena took one look at his shocked face and heaved a sigh. "Say something. Anything." She urged when he remained silent.

"Why are you dressed up as Tao?" He asked her after a moment of hesitance in which his thoughts were an incoherent mess. Seconds later he followed up with another question. "How long have you been doing this?" They were the first thoughts he could properly put together in his mind.

"SM Entertainment forced me into this, and I've been pretending to be Tao since he suffered that leg injury." Yena explained truthfully. She hoped that if she was sincere, he would keep her secret. Just then, something in his mind seemed to click as he recalled the way Tao had suddenly changed after they picked him up at the hospital. He was different, and he was distant with the other boys. Yifan initially thought it was the shock of his injuries at the time, but now it made sense. That wasn't Tao. It had never been Tao. "I didn't want to do this, but--" She continued to explain until she was interrupted by him.

There was a visible amount of hurt that flashed in his eyes. "So you've never cared about us. Is that it? This was all just a game to you." He accused.

"No, that's not what I said at all." Yena quickly shook her head. "I grew to care about you boys, all of you. You're my friends."

Yifan was the cold guy in the group, hardly ever expressing his emotions. But right then--when it was just him and Yena in that lonely hiking trail--she could read the disappointment in his face like a book. Yena's heart broke at the realization that she had been the cause of that. 

"You care about us, but you've been lying this whole time." He said, challenging her words. He didn't believe a single word that she was saying.

After the time in which he had talked to Tao on the rooftop about their friendship--he was only just now finding out it had actually been Yena--he had started watching his sister's performances on youtube. Just by watching her on his computer screen, playing the violin with such conviction and such passion, it made him fall in love with the music student from the University of Nanjing. He didn't even know her--but he didn't realize he had been spending time with her the entire time.