86 The Talk on the Rooftop.....

Jun climbed up the stairs hurriedly and opened the half- closed door of the school's rooftop.

Panting a bit, he looked around and saw Ray standing at the railing, staring in the distant.

"Hey!" Jun called out.

Ray instantly looked back in the response of the voice.

Jun ran and stood before him with a smile.

But Ray didn't smile; his expressions were serious; his eyes had got dark circles below it. Jun wondered what's wrong with his friend. He had never seen him like this.

'Is something bothering him that he couldn't even get proper sleep?' Jun thought as the smile on his face also disappeared gradually.

"So?" Jun talked first. "You texted me to come up here; is there something important you need to talk with me?"

Ray didn't say a word for a couple of seconds, instead kept analyzing his friend's expressions. 'No, he wouldn't do it without a proper reason. I trust him. I trust them both!'

"Yes! There is something really important I need to talk with you." Ray talked finally.

"…Ok-ay….What is it? Anything serious? Your expressions are….different…than usual."

"Well, how do I start?" Ray stopped and turned his back to Jun, again standing at the railings, staring away.

With a bit hesitant steps, Jun walked towards the railings and stood beside his friend.

Ray suddenly looked at Jun, which really startled him a little.

Looking right into his eyes, Ray spoke, "I need you to answer only in "Yes" or "No". Okay?"

"Uh….Um…Okay!" Jun talked somehow, breaking the eye contact.

"Okay.…..On the day of Mia's birthday, we all went to her house to give her

A surprise."

"..Yeah…"

"And at that time, without any such intentions, I got to know about something…"

"…." Jun's eyes got widened as he understood where this conversation is going.

"Yes. You got it right." Ray said as he observed Jun's expressions. "I know that Mia and you are living together at her house!"

"Listen, Ray…"

"No! First you listen to me. Let me finish what I have to say."

"…." Jun went silent on that.

"I never had a doubt on you two. But I don't know, somehow the things came before me and the secret you two were trying to keep, revealed itself." Ray stopped himself talking and then looked at Jun's face which had gone completely pale by now.

'Oh no! He knows it! Now, Mia would kill me, if she gets to know about this.' Jun was really freaked out by now. Nothing could come out of his mouth.

As Ray was observing Jun's face, his eyes saddened.

"You know what Jun?" Ray asked and Jun looked at him in response.

"I don't care if you two live together or whatever that is. I just….I just got hurt that you two lied to me…." With those words, Ray's face turned darker and darker.

Jun could see the changes in his friend's expressions. He lowered his eyes, feeling guilty. '….We hurt him….I hurt him….The only guy friend of mine.

Who had always been so nice to me that I never even thanked him about it….

And he is not bothered that we live together, he is just upset because we didn't tell him…..'

"You lied to me, didn't you?" Ray asked again.

"…." Jun thought for a second before answering. "…Actually… No!...We didn't actually lied to you…."

Ray looked at him in shock.

"…Wait…First listen to me…." Jun said as he gestured his hands, trying to calm down Ray. "Do you remember the first day of the school when you tried to introduce me and Mia to each other?"

Ray's expressions changed as he tried to remember.

"That time Mia told you about us being childhood friends and neighbors. Well, that was true, as her Nana and my Grandma are neighbors.

At that time I asked Mia, that why didn't she tell you about two of us living together? And the reason she gave, seemed convincing to me."

As Jun was talking Ray interrupted asking "what was the reason?…Did…Didn't she trust me?"

"No!!!" Jun said. "It was not about you; it was about the others."

"What do you mean?" Ray asked.

"I don't know because she never gave me the details. But it happened in the last year of her middle school. And she said, because of that experience, she didn't want to get in people's eyes and didn't want to give birth to any false and rootless rumors.

So that's why she told me, not to tell anyone about us living together." Jun's words made Ray's eyes moist, as he remembered the whole thing which had happened.

'I thought…. That she had overcome that experience…. But… But it has given her a scar….A scar, which will keep reminding her of those days…' The feeling of uneasiness made Ray's hands shake. He quickly grabbed the railing and tightened his grip.

"I'm sorry Ray…" Jun was talking. "I know that we shouldn't have kept this a secret from you. We should have told you.

But then, I played along with her to keep this thing to us and now it has revealed itself in front of you, in such a stupid way.

I know that it really broke your heart so I want to apologies to you.

And it will be better if you won't tell anyone about this…."

"What are you talking about? I would never tell anyone about this and you also don't need to apologies to me. Because I know what she went through and because of whom." Ray said letting go of the railing and putting his tightly clenched fist in the pocket of his jacket.

Jun wanted to ask what he is talking about, but he kept the silence as he felt the agony in Ray's voice.

"So? Are you not angry with us anymore?" Jun asked.

"Angry? I wasn't angry Jun… I was just upset. But now as you have told me the reason, I don't have any reason to be."

"Huhhh…." Jun sighed loudly, "It is better actually, that you got to know about it and not the others. I am relieved."

Ray smiled as the hint of pain was hiding in it.

"If that So Hee had known about this it would have been published in school's magazine by now."

On that Ray laughed " Haha…That's right!"

"And yeah, I would have been dead too, as Mia would have murdered me with just fire spitting gaze of hers." Jun joked.

And both of them burst into laughter.

"Hahahaha…!!!"

"Hahahaha….!!!"

After catching the breath when both of them looked at each other, Ray spoke,

"Can I ask you something?"

"….Yeah. Sure!" Jun said as he wiped his laughter tears.

"Do you….Do you like Mia?"

"!!!"