"What?! You asked in shock. Nobody answered. Everyone was just staring at you, at the ground or at each other. "Why? That can't be."
"The decision was made through voting," Suho said glumly. "Coach Yunho and I tried to defend them but..."
"But they didn't believe us," you finished for him. "But isn't it a little too early for them to decide on this? Isn't there supposed to be some kind of long process for things like this?"
"There were some who were still neutral and wanted to postpone the verdict until we get more information on what happened but...most of them are already difficult to convince, and it was a majority decision so there was nothing much we can do about it."
"But this is...this isn't right!" You said helplessly as you looked at the equally helpless faces of your friends.
"Joo Ri's right, hyung. This is unfair. Even before our side could give our explanations their minds were already set on not believing in anything we say," Chen said.
"Damn them. Why did they even arrange for all these hearings?" Baekhyun huffed in frustration.
"It seems like all these are just for formalities," Lu Han said.
"And my testimony just made things worse. If I had known...I'm so stupid," you said in frustration as you pressed your palm on your forehead.
"Guys let's just not jump into conlcustions yet," Suho said.
"And don't be too hard onyourself Joo Ri-ya. We all know that Kai and Chanyeol-hyung's reputation with the teachers is not that good to start with. Not to mention the the bad history the soccer team had with Lee Hee Jun's group," Sehun comforted you.
"What do you mean?" You asked.
"Well this isn't the first time the soccer team had a clash with his group," Baekhyun told you.
"Jinjja? Why didn't I know about this?" Lu Han asked.
"It was a few weeks before you transferred," Sehun told him. "It was during the tryouts last year, wasn't it hyung?" He asked Suho.
"Ne," Suho answered.
"What happened?" You asked them.
"It was the last tryout of the year. And the club was still pretty new back then, just on its second year. A lot of students tried out that day, you know, with the excitement of a new club and soccer being a popular sport and all. And not to mention the sunbaes in the club are some of the most popular bunch here. And since the club was just starting out, the school didn't want to invest in too many members yet so the slots were limited," Chen explained.
"Aaah...it was a tough competition," Baekhyun reminisced.
"Now Baekhyun here," Chen continued, "was paired against Lee Hee Jun. The tryouts went this way, it's a one-man team match. Two players will play against each other until one of them scores a goal - no teammates, no goalies, just them. It's the kind of game where it doesn't really matter whether you win or not since Coach Yunho and the sunbaes were looking more on how you play, so it wasn't really an elimination match. But it might as well have been. If the game was good and you won, you''ll definitely get noticed and get a better chance at being a main player rather than a sub."
"Anyway, to cut the long story short, Baekhyun-hyung and Lee Hee Jun got into a heated game, and Baekhyun-hyung hit Lee Hee Jun in the crotch with the ball during one of his kicks," Sheun laughed.
"I didn't hit him. It was an accident," Baekhyun said defensively.
"I doubt it was," Chen disagreed.
"I swear it was an accident. Aahh jinjja," Baekhyun grumbled at Chen and D.O.'s unbelieving faces.
"So what happened after?" Lu Han asked.
"Of course, you could already guess that the imp got angry and punched Baekhyun in the face," Chen said.
"Omo!" You said.
"And Chanyeol-hyung, who was already in the soccer team back then, well you know how he is towards his friends. And he and Baekhyun-hyung were close even then so he sent Lee hee Jun flying across the field before Baekhyun-hyung even realized what happened," Sehun continued.
"Idiot," D.O. murmured.
"And just like what happened at the recent fight, Lee Hee Jun's gang joined in the fight and so did some of the guys from the soccer team," Chen said.
"It wasn't as bloody as this one though. But it was still quite a mess. Almost everyone got suspended," Suho said.
"Of course the bastard never got into the team. Since then there's been bad blood between the soccer team and Lee Hee Jun's gang, even among the sunbaes," Baekhyun told you.
"Now with that bad record, things really didn't look good with this incident," Suho said.
"If what happened back then is affecting Kai and Chanyeol's reputation, shouldn't it also be the same for Lee Hee Jun?" You asked.
"Well yes. However this time it was Chanyeol who gave the first blow. And Lee Hee Jun's condition after the fight is not helping either," Suho replied.
"Not to mention the lies those scums came up with during their testimonies," Baekhyun said.
"What do you mean?" You asked him.
"They managed to use the fight before against us. They're saying that the soccer team has been trying to get back at him since then. That some of the members have been harassing him before this," Baekhyun said in disgust.
"Mweo?!" You raved. As far as you were concerned, Lee Hee Jun has been the one harassing people around, you in particular. "And they believe that?"
"I don't know. Maybe. As what Lu Han-hyung said, it seems to me that all these hearings are just for formality. Except for the teachers, those board members don't even know half of the students here, why would they care about anything? They'd rather believe whatever is easiest to believe than waste their time with what they only see as childish fights," Baekhyun ranted. You just realized how much Baekhyun is affected by the situation. He is a Student Council member so he has been trying to appear unbiased that you forgot just how close he and Chanyeol is.
"Keep your voice down Baekhyun," Suho reprimanded.
"Wae? It's true! If it isn't then they wouldn't have come up with the decision this fast," Baekhyun answered.
"I understand how you're feeling but we need to be careful. We don't want to have any more reason to be on their bad side. Things are already difficult as it is," Suho told him.
"Is there anything we can do about this, hyung?" D.O., who had been keeping silent the whole time, finally asked and all eyes hopefully implored on Suho.
Suho gave a half-sigh before answering, "We'll think of something. As you said, it's a little too early for them to have made the decision. There might still be a chance that they might reconsider. "
You highly doubted what he said, and it gave you little comfort since Suho didn't sound sure himself. You fidgeted restlessly. Your mind was screaming for you to do something but you don't know exactly what you can do about the situation.
"What about Kai and Chanyeol? Do they already know?" You asked.
"The school will notify them about the decision soon. Probably within the day since the official announcement will be made tomorrow. Their parents too will be notified and will be called in tomorrow," Suho said.
"I think it's better if we tell them first, hyung," Sehun said.
You stared at anything but at them, and so did the others.
"Guess I'll have to do it then," Suho sighed. "Baekhyun come with me. I'll see you guys at dinner."
"I'll go too, hyung," Sehun said as the three of them went on their way.
You felt guilty, but you really didn't have the heart to tell your friends that you might not be seeing each other soon. You guessed the others must have also felt the same.
"Guess we have to fly too. We only have a couple of minutes before practice," Chen said.
"I don't think anyone will be in the mood for practice today," Lu Han told him.
"Yeah, you're right," Che sighed.
"Joo Ri, we'll walk you back to the dorms," D.O. told you.
"H-huh?" You asked. Your head had been lost in space for a while now.
"Don't worry too much about it Joo Ri. Everything will be okay...hopefully," Chen said.
"You guys go ahead," you told them as you suddenly dashed inside the building.
"Where are you going? Ya, Joo Ri! Jamkaman!" Chen called but you ignored him.
You bolted through the chairman's office. You looked through the open door of the now empty conference room. You found the chairman sitting behind his desk.
"Song Joo Ri-sshi," he greeted you, a little surprised at your sudden entrance.
"Joo Ri!" You heard Chen's voice as he, Lu Han and D.O. also bolted through the office. Apparently they decided to follow you there. The chairman gave your group a curious smile.
"Chairman, is it true? Are you really gonna expel Kai and Chanyeol?" You asked him.
The chairman smiled sadly at you. "It was not my decision to expel them Joo Ri-sshi. But I wish the decision about the matter had been mine alone to make."
"But you're the chairman, isn't there anything you can do? Unless...you believe them too," your heart fell when you said the last sentence since you just realized the possibility the moment you said it.
The chairman didn't answer. He gave a sigh before he stood up and faced the window behind him. "The truth, most of the time, is a matter of perception. What you believe as the truth, may not be true for some people. More often than not, it's not a question of what they want to believe, but who they choose to believe."
"So what are we supposed to do Chairman? No matter what we do those people have already set their minds on thinking that we're lying just to save our friends," Chen said.
"He's right," you agreed, remembering what happened during your trial a while ago. "No matter how hard we try to convince them, it's already too late."
The chairman faced you and gave you a smile. "Seeing how all of you care so deeply for your friends, it touches me. Friendships like this is very precious and very difficult to find. Take care of it."
Your face fell. You were somehow hoping that he would give you some kind of resolution, but he sounded like he was indirectly telling you to still keep the friendship even when Kai and Chanyeol won't be around anymore.
"Oh! I didn't notice it's already this late," the chairman said as he took a quick glance at his watch. "I still have a lot of things to do, I'm afraid I have to go. You kids can stay here a little longer if you like. Maru is baking some cookies in the mini kitchen."
None of you said anything.
"There now. Don't wear such long faces. Remember," the chairman said as he approached you. He took your hand and encircled it around something he was holding. "Nothing is ever too late," he told you and gave you a meaningful smile. He patted your hand before he let it go and walked out of the office. "I'll see you kids around!" His voice echoed in the hallway.
"There goes our last hope," Lu Han said.
You gave a sigh as you looked at the can of coke in your hands.
"Let's go," D.O. said and all of you started heading out of the office.
As if in mutual agreement, you all took the route back to the dorms instead of heading to the soccer field. You gave a sigh. Every step you took felt as heavy as your heart. Even the chairman, who's the most powerful man in the school can't do anything to help Kai and Chanyeol. You don't want to believe that you've reached a dead end.
No one said a word the whole time. It seems like the others were also thinking the same things as you.
You sighed again for the nth time.
If only I hadn't lied to Doctor Jung then we wouldn't have a problem. Why do I always have to screw things up?
You stopped on your tracks.
"Joo Ri?" Chen asked when he noticed that you stopped walking.
"I can't let that Lee Hee Jun expel Kai and Chanyeol!" You gave an irritated huff as you stomped towards the direction of the infirmary.
"Where is she going this time?" D.O. murmured.
"Joo Ri, where are you going?" Chen said as he called behind you.
"If they believe that Lee Hee Jun more than us then I'm gonna make that jerk tell them the truth even if I have to force it out of him!" You answered without stopping.
"Joo Ri, wait! We should think about this first. Ya! Jamkaman!" Chen called.
You know Chen was right. You probably should think about it. You don't even have an idea how you're gonna make Lee Hee Jun tell the truth. And as if you're strong enough to fight him if it comes to it.
Whatever! He's injured anyway!
"That girl never listens," D.O. said.
"Aish! That stupid grizzly!" Lu Han huffed as they started after you.
You bolted through the infirmary door and immediately found Lee Hee Jun who looked shocked when he saw you. Most of him was covered in either bandages or casts. You would have pitied him for a moment if not for the evil smirk he immediately plastered across his face.
"Hey dung! Came to see me? How nice of you," he sniggered. "And you even brought friends," he added when he saw Chen, D.O. and Lu Han behind you.
"Tell them the truth!" You told him.
"Mweo?" He laughed.
"Whatever lies you told the board, I want you to take it back and tell them the truth!"
"Or what?" He mocked. "Besides, you don't have to tell me that. I already told them the truth. My truth," he winked and leaned more comfortably on his bed.
You clenched you fists, slightly denting the can of coke that the chairman gave which you were still carrying around. You wanted so much to throw it at his disgustingly irritating face.
"I've heard what happened to your friends. They're gonna get expelled aren't they? Well good for them," he laughed.
"You little - "
"Hajima!" Chen said as he and Lu Han were trying to restrain D.O. from doing God-knows-what to Lee Hee Jun.
"What? You want to beat me up? By all means go ahead. Then all of you will get expelled just like your good for nothing friends."
"You're the one who should be expelled!" You yelled.
"Too bad. I'm not going anywhere. And guess what? It's all thanks to you, dung. I heard what happened during your testimony. It's all you fault your precious little boyfriends are gonna get expelled and you will be nothing more than a dirty little liar. "
"Shut up!" Lu Han growled.
"And you, you have been getting in my nerves. You're getting fucking annoying. I just don't get why you people even give a damn for trash like her - "
"I said shut up," Lu Han repeated coldly.
"Oh yeah? Make me," Lee Hee Jun taunted.
You heard Lu Han growl and in a split second he was already beside the bed, holding Lee Hee Jun by his shirt while his other hand curled into a fist as he was about to punch Lee Hee Jun.
"Lu Han don't - "
"What's going on in here?!" You were interrupted by a shocked Mrs. Lee at the door. "You!" She growled when she recognized your group. "Get away from my son!"
Mrs. Lee half-run, half-leapt towards Hee Jun's bed. She grabbed Lu Han by the front of his shirt and threw him across the wall.
"Lu Han!" You gasped in horror as you and the others ran towards him. Lu Han grunted as he pushed himself up into a sitting position.
"How dare you lay a hand on my son!" She growled, her eyes red, her hand looking lethal with long, sharp, nails. "I'm gonna kill you!"
"Enough!"
You spun to see Lee Hee Jun's father standing by the door.
"They tried to hurt our son!" Mrs. Lee hissed. "I'm gonna kill these rascals - "
"I said enough!" Mr. Lee bellowed as he walked towards where Mrs. Lee is. "All of you, get out!" He barked. "I will deal with all of you later."
"Let's go," Chen said as he helped Lu Han up.
"I'll make sure you will pay for this!" Mrs. Lee shouted behind you as the four of you went out of the infirmary.
"You okay?" Chen asked Lu Han as you all walked down the hallway.
"Yeah," he answered. You felt relieved that he doesn't seem to be hurt.
"What were you thinking?" Chen scolded.
"What?" Lu Han answered. "That bastard deserves more beating."
"You shouldn't have done that you know. Besides, it's Chanyoel's job to be reckless. Now we're gonna be in more trouble," Chen told him.
You remained silent, biting your lip and clenching your fists in frustration. You really wanted to strange Lee Hee Jun to death, but you also know you couldn't. It was frustrating, to not be able to do anything. If only you hadn't lied to Doctor Jung. If only you weren't so stupid. If only you weren't so weak. And now you only made things worse.
You staggered on your steps, but good thing D.O. was able to hold you by the arm for support just in time.
"Gwaenchanha?" D.O. asked.
"C-can we stop for a while?" You answered. You went to the nearest window and stood there for a while, holding the window pane for support.
"Ya, you sure you're okay?" Chen asked.
"I...just need some fresh air," you told him. Your knees were trembling and so were your hands. Your heart was beating so loud you could hear it even without putting your hand to your chest. Your heart was a jumble of emotions that you couldn't even tell what exactly you're feeling strongest at the moment. Right now it seems like all those emotions were squeezing at your chest.
It was a bad idea to go there. You just went there without thinking and now your friends are in more trouble because of you.
"Hmmm..," you muttered as you clutched your chest.
"Joo Ri?" Chen said in alarm.
"Hmm!" You muttered as you crumpled into a sitting position. Your chest felt so tight you think it was going to explode. Your vision swirled and your heartbeat was drumming loudly in your ears, muffling the other sounds around you.
"Ya, Joo Ri what's wrong?!" Chen said as he and the others knelt beside you.
"Hyung look," D.O. said and pointed at your limiter. It was flashing red and you could hear faint, steady beeps coming from it.
"Take it off," Chen said.
Lu Han took your hand and unclasped the limiter from your wrist.
"HNN!" You cried. The pain on your chest increased. You writhed on the ground as the pain travelled through your whole body. Your head felt like it was splitting in two.
"What's happening?" Chen panicked.
"I'll get Doctor Jung," Lu Han said.
"Joo Ri. Joo Ri!" Chen called but you could hardly hear him.
You gave one last cry of pain before your vision was consumed by darkness.