Disclaimer: I own the teacher and names or some of the classmates. Anyone canon to Killing Stalking is property of Koogi. I make NO money off writing this.

Dedication: Happy Thanksgiving!

000

Bum stood nervously with his teacher as she introduced him to the class as being new to the area. She had said that most of the kids there went to preschool together.

"I hope you'll treat him just as nicely as you do with everyone you know already." She smiled. "Bum, why don't you have a seat in that open spot?" She pointed to a front table seat.

"Y-Yes…" Bum trudged to his seat and sat down.

The classroom had a large play area with more toys than he'd ever seen in one spot before, a reading corner filled with bean bag chairs and bookshelves with thick picture and reading lesson books, a door that was marked bathroom, and six tables with five chairs each scattered around the room. Bum was seated with two girls with long brown hair, a chubby redheaded boy, and a dark-haired boy wearing a hat. He didn't say anything as he sat down, keeping his eyes on his feet, and then the table.

"Where did you come from?" One of the girls asked.

"Huh?" Bum wondered. "M-My uncle's house…?"

The girls giggled. "You're dumb." The other girl commented. "Where did you live before you moved here!"

"O-Oh...t-the foster home…"

"You're a foster kid?" The redhead wondered, chewing on his fingernail. "Your parents don't want you or something?"

"N-No...they're dead…"

"I'm sorry…" The other boy muttered.

"Thanks…"

"Alright, children." The woman grinned. "I'm Miss. Hee but you can call me Miss Chiun. I will be joining you on your journey through the school year. I hope we will all have a wonderful time together."

000

On the playground later that day, Bum sat on the swings, slowly sliding back and forth without gaining any height or speed. Sangwoo's auntie had taken them to the park over the summer a few times. Swings were Sangwoo's favorite, but Bum liked the slide the best. The line for the slide was too long for him to go near it, so he took residence up on the swings alone.

"Bum?" Miss Chiun greeted, kneeling. "Why don't you go play with the other kids, honey?"

"I'm fine..." Bum muttered. "I don't...I don't know anyone…"

"Would you like me to introduce you to some children?"

"No, that's okay. I'm not supposed to bother people."

"I'm sorry?"

He giggled. "I'm just kidding!" He lied. "I'm okay, really! I'm used to being alone. I mean...I mean I don't really have friends...home...so…"

How could Sangwoo pull off the entire two different people thing so long when Bum couldn't even manage to lie for five minutes?

"I'm sure you had friends at your old school. What did you do together?"

"I don't have friends...just...just Sangwoo…"

"Is that an...imaginary friend…?"

"Huh?" Bum asked. "No! He stays with his aunt and uncle during the summers. We played together this year."

"Oh, I see." She smiled gently. "Well, what did you two do together?"

"Everything! We played with play dough, and rode bikes, and played tag and hide and seek…" He paused. "We were always together...I'm scared without him here…"

She frowned. "I'm sorry you're scared, Bum." She informed. "I think you'll have a good time here. Everyone is nice."

"Y-Yeah…"

She ruffled his hair as she left to go tend to a little girl crying because she scraped her knee. Bum noticed the kids he had to sit with staring at him and whispering. He offered a meek smile but looked away. Why did they have to whisper?

"Hey!" The one girl greeted, and she walked over. "Saw you talking with teacher."

"Y-Yeah...she said I should go play…"

"So, go play." The redhead leered. "Come on, we'll play with you."

"R-Really…?" Bum wondered.

"Yeah, really." The redhead smirked. "I'm Dongyu. That's Jieun, Eun, and Seok."

"B-Bum…"

"We knew that." Jieun rolled her eyes, hands on her hips.

Bum could tell instantly that they weren't going to get along.

"S-Sorry…" He replied.

You say sorry a lot. Hmph. Annoying.

"Come on." Eun pulled him off the swing. "Let's go play."

"O-Okay…" Bum let the other kids lead him across the playground to a big tree.

"Can you climb a tree, Bum?" Dongyu wondered. "I can climb trees."

"I...I don't have any trees to climb…" Bum muttered.

"Lame." Dongyu pulled himself onto a low branch.

"Wow, Dongyu, you're like a gymnast or something." Eun grinned.

"Nah, I'm just bigger than you!"

"Yeah! A lot bigger!" Seok jiggled the other boy's stomach.

"Hey!" Dongyu complained, almost falling off the branch.

With the exception of Bum, who was quite nervous around them to begin with, the others laughed. Dongyu flushed red and climbed higher.

"I dare you to come up here and say that, Seok!" He teased.

"No way!" Seok replied. "I can't fit up there!"
"I bet Dongryu's going to get stuck!" Jieun mocked, sticking out her tongue. "Big boys belong on the ground. Not in trees!"

"Shut up, Jieun! Mom says it's not nice to make fun of people for being big!"

"I'm not making fun of you! I'm teasing you!"

Bum rubbed his arm and looked away. He wasn't comfortable with these kids. Sure, they had attitudes like Sangwoo's default one, but they weren't Sangwoo. He couldn't tell what they were thinking like he could with his friend.

"Hey, Bum, why don't you go up and get him?" Seok wondered, shielding his eyes from the sun with a hand. "You're skinny enough to fit!"

"I...I don't know…" Bum replied. "I don't really climb…"

"Don't be such a baby!" Jieun taunted. "Seok will help you up. Then you just gotta go higher. It's not hard!"

"Then why don't you do it…?" Bum muttered.

"What was that?"

"I said I'll do it…" Bum corrected himself.

"Yeah, I thought that was what you had said." She flipped her hair over her shoulder. "Go on, Seok. Help him up."

"Why do I have to?" He complained.

"Because you said you were gonna!"

"No, I didn't! You said I was gonna!"

"Same thing!" She whined. "Just do it!"

"Fine!" Seok groaned, cupping his hands. "Here, Bum, stand here."

"But...i-is that safe…?"

"Who cares?" Eun wondered. "Just do it. Quick, before teacher sees!"

"Okay, okay…" Bum stood on Seok's hand with one foot, using his shoulders for support.

"Now jump. I'll push, and you grab the branch." Seok ordered.

"Okay…"

Bum jumped when he felt Seok give him a little push. He gripped the branch with his arms and kicked his legs, trying to get up more.

"Hey, watch it!" Seok complained as Bum almost hit his face.

"S-Sorry…! I'm try-trying…!" He tried to pull himself up, but his arms were too weak to hold him. "I...I'm slipping…!"

"Come on; just do it!" Dongyu shouted down at him. "It's not hard! Don't be pathetic!"

"I-I'm not…! I'm really…!"

Bum's arms slipped from the tree, though he tried desperately to grab at it with his thin fingers. He felt himself falling towards the ground and landed on his back as his so-called friends moved out of his way. Jieun played with her fingernails as Bum blinked away the pain.

"You okay…?" Seok wondered, leaning over him. "That was a far fall…"

"You didn't...c-catch me…" Bum complained.

"He said he'd help you up!" Jieun wagged her finger at Bum. "Not that he'd help you down!"

Tears welled in Bum's eyes as he sat up, back screaming at him in pain.

"Gonna cry?" Eun wondered, poking his cheek. "What a crybaby."

"I am not…!" Bum complained, wiping away his tears. "That hurt…!"

"Whatever." Jieun replied. "I'm bored with the tree anyway. Let Dongyu hang up there like a fat monkey! We'll find something else to do!"

"Don't call me fat!" Dongyu shouted at her as he started to climb down the tree. "I'm going to get you, Jieun!"

She squealed, grabbing Eun's hand and pulling her with her. "He's gonna get his gross fat boy cooties all over us!" She complained.

"Hey!" He roared, finding the ground finally and chasing after the squealing and giggling schoolgirls.

Seok shook his head as he watched, looking down at Bum when he got bored.

"Aren't you getting up?"

"It hurts…" Bum whined.

Seok shook his head and put his hands in his pockets, walking after his friends.

"Wait…!" Bum reached out towards them. "C-Come back…!"

Seok threw a hand in the air to dismiss him as he disappeared around the corner towards the playground. Bum just sat there and cried a little, rubbing his sore back.

You were wrong, Sangwoo. I won't be okay here...I don't even have real friends...not like...you…