Work Text:
Cumulus clouds drift above him. Jisung stares and imagines a horizontal stroke of multicolored paint on top of it. He saw it on the internet—iridescent clouds or rainbow clouds or fire rainbows, as they call it. Rainbow mist over cumulus clouds. He wonders why such beautiful things are so hard to spot. It’s like, they don’t want to be seen. It’s unfair. He doesn’t get it.
“Lee Donghyuck.”
Jisung turns around. Behind him are Lee Donghyuck and Huang Renjun, his neighbor Jaemin’s friends. They cling unto each other, seemingly appalled at the presence of Mark Lee, who’s walking beside them. The road slopes upwards to the school building. Jisung remains standing on the same place, close to a hedge.
“Button your shirt,” Mark continues. If he’s trying to affect authority, then he’s failing at it, Jisung thinks.
“It’s hot as fuck,” says Donghyuck, fanning himself with his undershirt.
“Dude, what’s the difference if you button your shirt? It’s like when you roll your short sleeves. Like, there’s not much help.”
“There is,” Donghyuck says as he rolls both of the sleeves of his uniform, up to his shoulders, stopping just right next to the straps of his bag. “Try it. It’s not as hot anymore.”
Mark shakes his head and quickens his pace. His eyes hide behind a small glare of light on his glasses.
Jisung watches them walk past him. When Chenle told him about the rumored hatred Mark and Donghyuck have for each other, Jisung thought it’s something serious. This is the first time he has paid attention to their interaction. And it’s just petty.
Chenle claimed to have seen the “dangerous, jealous” glare Donghyuck gave Mark when a bunch of girls were asking for a photo with him a day before the summer break. Just a month ago.
“But why are these girls acting like they’re not gonna see Mark Lee during vacation classes in the middle of our summer break?” Jisung said.
“People think Lee Donghyuck’s mad that Mark Lee is getting all the girls,” Chenle said.
“But who even thought that it’s a good idea to interrupt our summer break for vacation classes?”
Jisung looks up. Same fluff of cotton ball drifts overhead. He wonders why fire rainbows—this name sounds cooler—rarely happen. Maybe they do happen a lot, they’re just rarely seen. Maybe such beautiful phenomenon would rather hide itself because they’re often misunderstood. He has read that some are afraid of it because they think it’s the gateway for aliens to enter Earth. People really like to assume first before trying to understand, huh.
Well, he’s going to be late. He hates vacation classes. Jisung jogs, his bag bouncing against his back. He swears he saw a glimpse of Donghyuck with his sleeves down, shirt buttoned.
☁️
Chenle smacks a book unto his desk, and it reminds Jisung of two things: thunder and the book Jaemin borrowed from him. He might need it anytime soon for their Literature class. So before the first bell rings, Jisung rushes out of their classroom, and goes upstairs where the upperclassmen are.
Jaemin’s classroom stands beside the staircase. First, Jisung sees Jaemin, dangerously close to the ground. Then he sees a mountain formed by Donghyuck’s legs. They’re playing rock, paper, scissors, splits in the hallway.
Jaemin has a stoic expression. But from the way he’s leaning his arm against the wall of their classroom, he’s obviously at his limit. So that’s why their eye-smile friend Jeno is standing so close, it’s to assist Jaemin. Old people.
They shake their fists—one, two, three. Donghyuck throws a rock. Jaemin throws a scissor.
“What the—” Jisung didn’t even notice that Mark is behind him.
They both stand upright. Jaemin whispers profanities. Donghyuck turns around, and he shrugs and he sends Mark a look. Jisung guesses it’s a, “Ha, I won. You amazed?” look.
“How about Mark hyung versus Donghyuck,” Renjun teases. Jeno pushes him.
Sunlight streams through the windows. Its soft, subtle touch against everyone and everything in the hallway seems so strong.
Donghyuck speaks. “If Mark loses against me—which is what would happen, for sure—it wouldn’t feel like he lost. He literally knows how to do splits.”
"Yo, who says I'm gonna lose?"
"Didn't you hear what I just said? I literally complimented you."
"You still said I'm gonna lose against you tho."
"Okay, loser."
The first bell rings. And Jisung thinks that conversation doesn't make sense.
Mark yells “Okay!” and then passes by them. Donghyuck follows Mark with his eyes. Jisung fails to see a glare. Donghyuck’s eyes are as soft as the sunlight.
“Oh! Jisungie! I’m sorry but I forgot your book!”
Jisung saunters back to their classroom. On the way, he thinks about how powerful yet dangerous fire rainbows are, with thunderstorm always tagging along with them. He’s already settled on his desk when he realizes that he and Jaemin are neighbors. Whatever. Maybe Jaemin is as lazy as him.
☁️
It’s late in the afternoon in mid-July. It’s hot. It’s humid. Perfect moment for fire rainbows to appear. But there’s no sign of a thunderstorm. Jisung checks the inside of their classroom’s trashcan one last time. Empty. Time to get out of this heat and get back to their classroom.
Jisung walks along the courtyard. His eyes on his feet dragging themselves against the asphalt. With every step, he curses whoever it is who suggested vacation classes and assigning students cleaning duties. He looks up and sees the steps leading to the building’s entrance. He also sees Mark. Seems to be in a hurry.
Then Jisung pauses. His eyes are tricking him. He blames the stink of the garbage that stung his eyes and nose. That’s probably it. Is he really seeing things in slow motion? Donghyuck is going down the steps, trashcan in hand, and now Mark, Mark is going up. Why is this taking them so long like they’re dealing with a hundred steps.
There are only seven steps.
Mark glances at Donghyuck. Donghyuck too, from the way his head moves. Jisung thinks their arms brush against each other too. If they really hate each other, wouldn’t their arms bump against each other, not brush? Jisung has a lot of thinking to do and this should not be it. He continues on his way. Cleaning duties are something.
☁️
Fire rainbows are rarely seen, rarely photographed. Jisung wants to ask nature why it does not like showing off such beautiful things. But then he thinks, maybe it’s the people. After all, gazing at the sky and looking for some beauty in there are not the first few things one would do when it rains.
Jisung keeps his head down as he walks towards the drinking fountain near the school field. The sun is extra blinding today. He needs water.
A breeze kisses his skin. Jisung stops. Under the shade of the trees, Mark is standing by the drinking fountain, his hair softly swaying with the wind. Donghyuck’s drinking. His opened shirt flapping. They’re looking at each other.
Jisung changes his mind. He wants something from the vending machine instead.
☁️
“They want to throw hands,” Chenle says the next day. “They’re probably just controlling themselves.”
The leaves whisper. Clouds silently move along.
“Wait, I forgot something.” Chenle runs backs inside the school building.
Jisung wonders when he’s going to see something as beautiful as fire rainbows. The sun hides behind the clouds. On the third floor, the windows in the hallway are open. He sees two figures in two separate windows. Mark and Donghyuck.
They’re both resting their elbows on the window sill. They’re watching the same sky as Jisung. Both embracing the wind flirting across them. It’s peaceful, how the strands of their hair and the sleeves of their uniform flutter about.
“Let’s go!” Chenle slaps his arm.
Jisung thinks Mark and Donghyuck are controlling themselves from something else.
☁️
It’s the last day of vacation classes. And Jisung is sure he’s gonna need the book now. As soon as their science teacher says her goodbye, Jisung dashes out of their classroom and then runs upstairs. His Literature teacher might arrive soon.
He peeks through the rectangular window on the door. Jaemin’s classroom is empty. Are they having their physical education class now? He’ll rummage through Jaemin’s bag anyway.
Jisung is about to slide the door open, when he catches a glimpse of the curtain billowing in the breeze. A folded gym uniform lies on a desk. The curtain is white and it rises up once again. Then he sees Donghyuck. His opened shirt flails as if reaching out to what’s in front of him. Donghyuck has one arm dropped at his side, holding a pair of glasses, the other arm raised, clutching unto a shoulder. Mark’s. Mark’s shoulder. Mark’s glasses. Mark has both of his hands on Donghyuck’s hips. The curtain drops on them, then it flies up again. Their heads move subtly, in sync.
He’ll just tell their teacher he left his book at home.
Jisung goes back down to their floor, and in the middle of the hallway, he halts. July is ending, he remembers. He goes to the window, and pokes his head out. Puffs of clouds glide over the clear sky. No cumulus clouds today. But it’s okay. Jisung gets it now. He gets it.