Chapter Text
ricky's perfectly combed hair doesn’t have a single stray apart, even though the roots are already starting to get dark, his blond hair still looks flawless. the official high school uniform is boring; black pants, a white shirt, a blazer, and, if you’re a rule-lover, perfect student like ricky, you also wear a tie. which, according to gyuvin, is so tight around ricky's neck it looks like he’s about to choke and die.
however, no matter how much gyuvin complains, the fact remains: shen ricky looks impeccable, even in such a boring uniform.
gyuvin unceremoniously opens his bag, tosses in his still-plugged-in headphones, and tries to leave the hallway without catching ricky’s attention. meanwhile, ricky glances at the silver watch on his left wrist, checking the time before a second class start. and just when gyuvin thinks he’s escaped this morning's pointless dialogue, a loud shout breaks the silence of the corridor.
“kim gyuvin!” a voice calls out. gyuvin sighs, slowly turns around, and sees ricky approaching him with crossed arms and quick steps. the expression on his face, (which he’d himself probably call intimidating) reminds gyuvin more of an angry cat.
shen ricky is 18 years old. he's tall, chinese, loves to boss around and whenever he tries to scream, he sounds like a cat. that's all gyuvin needs to know about him.
and oh, yeah.
he's also a, class president.
“pres? what did i do to deserve the honor of seeing you so early in the morning?” gyuvin says with a half-smirk. ricky’s expression doesn’t change at all.
“third time being late to school this week. is everything alright at home?” ricky asks sarcastically, staring at gyuvin’s face.
“be my guest and you’ll find out,” gyuvin replies, still smiling.
“no, thanks,” ricky says. gyuvin thinks for a moment that ricky might hit him because he steps forward so fast, but instead he grabs gyuvin’s shirt collar with both of his hands.
“make sure your tie is properly done next time, or you’ll be punished” says ricky and begins to fix gyuvin’s pretty loosened tie by himself.
“will you punish me yourself, or hand me over to the school council?” gyuvin asks, smirking.
"how about both? double punishment sounds exciting, don’t you think?" says ricky but immediately sighs, shakes his head, and continues fixing the tie.
“oh, pres, I didn’t know you were into taking matters into your own hands.” gyuvin is loud. so loud that ricky wants to smack him on the head. "should I mess it up again just to see what you'll do?" gyuvin talks a lot for 10am in the morning.
"you never stop talking? do you?" gyuvin just shrugs his shoulders. but still smiling like an idiot. "keep coming to school late, and we'll see what happens."
gyuvin feels his breath hitch. maybe he’s just sleepy. that must be it. he shouldn't have played the computer games until late night. otherwise, he has no explanation for why he’s suddenly darting his eyes everywhere as ricky comes closer.
ricky and him have never been friends, nor has gyuvin had the honor of being this close to him before, and he doesn’t know why it’s making him feel dizzy. shaking his head, he brushes off the unnecessary thoughts and watches ricky, who’s overly focused on straightening the tie. his lips are pressed together, and his brows are furrowed.
“you really do look like a cat” gyuvin blurts out before realizing what he’s said.
“what?..” ricky responds, confused but still not stepping back. “whatever, it doesn’t matter. get down to the earth. one more day being late to a class, and you won’t escape a report, you know that, right?”
gyuvin chuckles. ricky’s trying so hard to look intimidating, but gyuvin won’t give him the satisfaction, he won’t point that out, obviously.
“you’re not scary at all. and just so you know, because of you, i’m now even more late to the second class.” gyuvin mutters, moving away from ricky.
“lazy idiot,” ricky grumbles under his breath and follows him. biology class is a real nightmare.
biology and advanced math classes went about as fun as you’d imagine. gyuvin was practically dying from lack of sleep, but he wasn’t about to get scolded again. so, he did what he could to fight off the urge to nap. three classes were done (well, two for gyuvin, but who was counting), and it was finally time for lunch. it was a sunny day, and the only thing gyuvin was looking forward to was stepping outside and playing basketball on the field. the warm weather after a depressing cold winter made him feel alive again, and he was grateful that sunny days were becoming more frequent.
“late again today?” gunwook’s annoyed voice hit gyuvin the moment he heard it, and he took a deep breath, rolling his eyes in irritation.
“why are you so surprised? and seriously, who even told you?”said gyuvin quickly, setting his tray of food down on the table. if nothing else, at least the food in this school was decent.
“i overheard ricky talking to matthew-hyung, saying something like, ‘i don’t know how much longer i can cover for gyuvin.’”
gyuvin stared at him, puzzled. “ricky? covering for me? me?” he pointed at himself, sipping his juice.
“yeah, that’s what it sounded like. why else would he be so concerned?” gunwook shrugged.
“i never asked him to! he already nags me every morning. I’d be fine if he just leaves me alone!” gyuvin rambled, turning his attention back to the roasted chicken and rice in front of him.
“or, you know, you could just stop being late. then you don’t have to deal with ricky nagging you or him covering for you” gunwook suggested plainly.
“do you think i want to be late, gunwook?” gyuvin shot him a pitiful look. “no, but what can i do? i’m always so tired.”
“uh, maybe set your alarm properly and don’t crawl back into bed as soon as it rings” gunwook said, clearly annoyed.
“nah, too much of a hassle” gyuvin waved him off.
“you’re driving me insane how is that hard? Is that harder than ricky’s morning lectures and scolding afterward?” gunwook didn’t even realize that gyuvin’s attention had already drifted from the conversation to something, or rather, to someone.
“good afternoon, pres!” gyuvin called out enthusiastically, waving towards ricky, who was making his way to his friends table. ricky looked at him, barely reacted, only slowing down enough to gesture for gyuvin to fix his tie. gyuvin smirked, completely ignoring the suggestion, and cheekily winked at him.
gunwook, watching all of this, nearly choked on his food. “so, uh, when did you two become friends?” he asked, moving toward gyuvin.
“who? us? me and ricky?” gyuvin looked genuinely surprised. “we’re not friends. and for your information, we never will be. can you even imagine what that’d be like? god, it’d be a total disaster. i don’t even want to think about it.” he snorted and went back to eating.
“got it” gunwook muttered, deciding to drop the topic completely.
saying that kim gyuvin doesn’t care about school would be an exaggeration, but if you asked shen ricky, he’d scoff and say it’s absolutely true. in fact, he’d argue that gyuvin should’ve been expelled from the school long time ago. but here’s the thing: korean society doesn’t change, and gyuvin is just the kind of guy who gets away with lots of things.
he’s too handsome, to start with. the kind of handsome that makes people forgive him for almost anything. he’s taller than most of his friends, towering at 188cm, and his reddish hair makes him stand out even more. during basketball practice, when his damp hair sticks to his forehead, it’s honestly unfair how good he looks. his small nose gives his face a softness, but it’s his big, honey-colored eyes that blinds everyone. if you ask anyone in the school (especially the girls), they’ll tell you, those eyes could get away with murder.
gyuvin is the star player on the basketball team, and his height definitely helps. despite being the most clumsy, uncoordinated person off the court, he somehow transforms the second he picks up a basketball. ricky doesn’t know how to explain it, it’s almost like magic. gyuvin has carried the team to so many victories that his place as a school favorite is practically set in stone. and it’s not like gyuvin doesn’t enjoy the attention, it’s that he just doesn’t take it too seriously. he jokes that basketball is his only priority, but the truth is, no one has really gotten into his heart since his first middle school girlfriend.
gunwook swears that gyuvin exists just to make his life harder. “my lifespan has been cut in half because of you” gunwook has said more times than he can count. even though he’s a year younger, gunwook doesn’t hesitate to keep gyuvin in check, or at least try to. not that it always works. their relationship is one of constant bickering and teasing, but underneath all that, it’s solid. gyuvin can’t imagine finding anyone other than gunwook so perfect for him. they just make sense. at least that’s what gyuvin thinks.
gyuvin might be a disaster in a lot of ways, but one thing he’s not, is dumb. ricky has seen it himself, those rare moments when gyuvin actually tries, it’s frustrating because it’s clear he has potential. his way of thinking is unique, and ricky can’t understand why he doesn’t care more. it’s a waste, and ricky doesn’t like wasted potential.
but here’s the thing, ricky is nothing like gyuvin. where gyuvin floats through life on charm and luck, ricky has had to fight for everything. moving to korea, learning the language, adjusting to a new culture-it wasn’t easy. but it’s that drive that’s brought him this far. now, as the chinese class president of a korean high school, ricky carries himself with a quiet pride. he works hard because he has to, and because, deep down, he knows it’s worth it.
and maybe that’s why gyuvin gets under his skin.
because as much as ricky tries to deny it, there’s something about gyuvin’s carefree attitude that’s equally infuriating and, at the same time, fascinating.
ricky yawned, quickly glancing around to check if anyone had noticed. it was instinctive, but thankfully, no one was paying attention. matthew, sitting across from him, was busy eating his lunch, clearly trying to finish before the next class. ricky, on the other hand, just stared at his food, his appetite nowhere to be found. he wasn’t sure why, but something about today felt really off.
“didn’t sleep well last night?” matthew asked, breaking the silence as he noticed ricky’s slow movements.
“woke up in the middle of the night and couldn’t fall back asleep” ricky muttered with another yawn. “you know how it gets.”
“weren’t you taking those herbal pills or something to help with that? what happened, don’t they work anymore?” matthew’s voice held a smallamount of concern, his brows furrowed.
ricky shook his head lightly. “they don’t really help these days, hyung. and honestly, i don’t wanna be dependent on anything stronger, you know? i don’t think it’s a good idea.”
matthew sighed, clearly not convinced. “okay, but how long are you gonna keep going like this? you’re gonna burn yourself out, man. you barely eat, you don’t sleep properly, it’s not normal.”
“i’m fine, hyung. really.” ricky tried to smile, but the exhaustion in his eyes betrayed him. he knew matthew was right, but what else could he do?
matthew didn’t push any further. he glanced at the clock and stood up, slinging his bag over his shoulder. “just… take care of yourself, okay? i gotta go. we’ve got a quiz in chemistry.” he gave ricky one last worried look before leaving him m to sit alone with his untouched tray of food.
ricky sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, his mind drifting. suddenly, he remembered the overdue library book sitting in his bag. “shit.” he muttered to himself, quickly stood up and head out from the cafeteria.
the school library, perched on the fourth floor, was his little escape. the cozy sections and quiet corners made it his favorite place to rest, study and sometimes sleep too. after returning the book, ricky wandered aimlessly between the shelves,loking for the new arrivals. nothing caught his eye, but it wasn’t like he was really trying.
with fifteen minutes left before the next class, ricky knew he should’ve probably head back. but he found himself heading toward the table by the window, where the view of the schoolyard spread out below him.
everything was so beautiful, even if it wasn’t as vibrant as it would be in april. spring was still a little way off, but the thought of cherry blossoms and the promise of warmer days made ricky’s chest ache in a way he didn’t fully understand. propping his head on his hands, he let his gaze drift across the scene outside, trying to ignore the weight of the exhaustion coming at him from behind. just a few more minutes of peace, he thought. just a little longer.
gyuvin could feel every minute of the world history class. the teacher droned on in her usual monotone, and gyuvin was counting down the seconds until it was finally over. just as he began mentally preparing to escape, the teacher announced that they would be working on a project.
gyuvin groanedin his head,not daring to be loud, already tired from the task of finding sources and, even worse, choosing a partner. but just as he was preparing for the inevitable, she spoke again, informing the class that she had already paired everyone up. a collective sigh of dissatisfaction filled the room, but the serious expression on her face silenced everyone.
“han taesan and jo, you two are partners. kim leehan and park minju will work together. anton lee and bae jinsol as well. yun seo and yang jungwon together, kim gyuvin and shen ricky…”
ricky? gyuvin froze, his irritation forgotten. where was ricky? he scanned the room, but familiar face was missing.
“ricky?”the teacher called out, looking around the class. “where is ricky?”
gyuvin couldn’t believe it. after all the years he had known ricky, he had never missed class, at least not without reason. never had he just vanished halfway through the lessons.
“has anyone seen ricky?” the teacher asked.
yang jungwon hesitantly raised his hand and said shyly: “i think i saw him heading to the library earlier, but i’m not sure.”
“alright, we’ll deal with that later. moving on,” she continued, her attention back on the project details. “anton, no, you’re not leaving yet. we need to go over the details..please sit down, yes, thank you..so..”
gyuvin’s mind, however, wasn’t on the project. he couldn’t stop thinking about where ricky had gone. what could’ve happened to him? it was strange, ricky was always at the front of the class, and now he had just disappeared? gyuvin shook his head, irritated at himself for worrying. why did he even care where ricky was or what he was doing? it was just a project, right? yeah, just the project. that’s all that mattered.
gyuvin wasn’t exactly sure what he was doing at the library door. he had exited the classroom and, instead of heading straight to the basketball court to practice, he had ended up here, wanting to confirm if something had really happened to ricky or if he had just gotten lost. ‘i must be crazy’ he thought to himself but then without thinking, he opened the library door. immediately realizing he should’ve been more careful. he caught the disappointed look of the librarian, to which he just smiled politely and carefully closed the door behind him.
slowly, he began walking between the library sections, patiently observing the walls painted in one color and the shelves filled with books. when he found nothing interesting and couldn’t find any trace of ricky, he sighed and was about to leave when he spotted a familiar t-shirt near the last window. the same t-shirt ricky had worn that morning when gyuvin had bumped into him, or maybe it was the other way around.
gyuvin approached the silhouette quickly and noticed that the sunlight from the window was playing on ricky’s face, while ricky himself was peacefully sleeping.
gyuvin caught himself when he let out a sigh of relief, realizing ricky had simply fallen asleep. but a sudden desire to mess with him swept over gyuvin. despite this, he couldn’t bring himself to disturb sleeping ricky. after all, he would wake up eventually, right?
annoyed with himself, he waved his hand and sat down on the opposite side of the table. his sitting blocked the sunlight, and ricky shifted in his sleep but didn’t wake up, continuing to rest peacefully. gyuvin chuckled and pulled out his phone.
gyuvin: we need to work on the project details, my partner and i, i’ll be late to practice today.
gunwook: ?????
since when do you care about projects?
gyuvin??
don’t ignore me!
gyuvin: i’ll text you when i’m done)))
gunwook: are you crazy?
gyuvin??
the coach will get mad
even I can’t help you this time..
gyuvin put his phone down, and just as he did, ricky stirred in his sleep. he hugged himself tightly, shivering a little, and then fell back into a peaceful slumber. gyuvin sat there for a while, watching ricky. after a while, he sighed, took off his jacket and carefully put it over the boy. ricky didn’t even move.
gyuvin stared at him for a momentr, still amazed by how someone like ricky, with his bright blonde hair, was allowed to wear it to school. sure, the teachers all loved him, but that didn’t explain everything. he found himself lost in thought, realizing that this was probably the first time he’d seen ricky like this. the class president, the person who always gave cold, emotionless remarks, now looked completely different. it was hard to believe that the same person who always acted like nothing ever fazed him was now so peaceful, so human. sometimes gyuvin even thought ricky wasn’t even a human being. but this time, it was different. he was feeling different.
time passed, and gyuvin couldn’t help but feel amused. ricky, the perfect class president, had never once let his guard down in front of him. yet here he was, in the most vulnerable state possible. it was strange. he knew that their personalities were polar opposites, but before he didn’t care enough to try to understand ricky. to him, ricky was just a figure in his life, someone he interacted with when it was only necessary, but now gyuvin thought it would be changed.
another half hour passed, and ricky still didn’t wake up. gyuvin sat there, watching him, unable to bring himself to wake the older boy up. he could’ve done it, and they could’ve finished everything quickly, but deep down, something told him ricky needed the rest. when a full hour passed in silence, gyuvin sighed and finally stood up. he carefully tore a page from his notebook, wrote a few lines, and then left the library quietly.
that day’s practice had been even more exhausting than he had imagined. the coach had scolded him, and gunwook had been relentless with his questions. but gyuvin didn’t mind. it was probably for the first time in his life that he left school looking forward to the next day.
ricky suddenly opened his eyes wide and jumped up. as soon as he glanced at the clock, he realized he had completely missed his last classes and had fallen asleep sweetly in the library. startled, he stood up but then realized something was resting on his shoulders. slowly, he removed the gray jacket and squinted his eyes. he couldn't quite remember whose jacket this was. then, as if it came back to him,with blurred mind he remembered the morning and his conversation with kim gyuvin. this jacket was definitely kim gyuvin's. a mix of embarrassment and gratitude washed over ricky’s face. what was gyuvin doing here? why did he come? had he seen ricky asleep? ricky felt his cheeks warm up, and only later did he notice the letter on the table. He carefully opened the letter:
‘for the world history project next week, the teacher paired us together. i wanted to discuss the details, but it seems like the sleeping beauty was too tired :))))
it’s fine, you can call me, and we can arrange when to start working on the project.
- xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
p.s. my jacket seems to suit you better, feel free to keep it. ;))
k.g.v.’
the project? with gyuvin? the one who seemed so eager to discuss it together? what did this all mean? what was the younger one trying to achieve? they weren’t exactly friends, so why had he left his jacket with ricky?
suddenly, ricky felt a headache, a wave of hunger and fatigue overwhelmed him. quickly, he grabbed his bag, added gyuvin’s number to his new contacts as K.G.V and with a mind full of thoughts, disappointment in himself, and anticipation for the upcoming week, he made his way to the bus stop.