Archive of Our Own

Minho didn't know what possessed him to follow Seungmin.

There were rumours about him all over the school. Minho always ignored rumours because neither did they make sense, nor was Minho stupid enough to believe some of these outlandish stories. There was a rumour that a pervert ghost haunted one of the girls' bathrooms, there was another rumour that a guy had once killed himself in one of the classrooms and haunted the entire floor.

Minho ignored them all.

Sometimes he really hated how plain and simple these rumours were. Always ghosts. Always some supernatural thing. It was like no one in the school was creative enough to come up with anything else. Minho was sure that if he tried, he could have come up with some highly interesting rumours, rumours that would actually make people sit up and take notice.

But, to be fair- if the way everyone talked about the supposed fourth floor ghost was anything to go by- they didn't need creativity to take notice of these things.

This rumour was a bit different though. It was a new guy. He was friendly, nice and sweet. He was boring.

Until the rumours started.

Apparently Kim Seungmin had magical powers. Minho had at first rolled his eyes at the rumour because yeah, sure, Kim Seungmin had magical powers. Very believable.

No one even had any specific details on this rumour. No one knew what exactly his powers were. Just, he had powers.

The school was obsessed with rumours.

But despite all these rumours, Seungmin's popularity did not decrease. If anything, it increased. More and more people began to make friends with Seungmin, obviously because of his supposed powers. He was a marvel. He was someone wonderful. He was someone to be kept on their side, because of his powers.

But like, what were his powers? Minho wanted to knock some sense into some of these stupid kids. What were these powers that made him so wonderful?

Seungmin caught his eye across the classroom. Something about the way he looked at him made chills pass through him. Seungmin looked into his eyes straight, unwavering. It seemed as if Seungmin was reading his mind. Minho didn't know how he could tell, but he was certain about it.

He didn't drop his gaze and for some reason Minho didn't either. Maybe it was competitiveness; Minho would not be the first to get intimidated and break eye-contact. He would not.

Minho didn't even remember who looked away first, all he knew was that his mind was buzzing with questions and his body followed Seungmin of its own accord, paying absolutely no heed to any of the other students, as they left the classroom.

At this point Minho was convinced that Seungmin had mind-control powers. He could read minds and control them. That's how he was stringing Minho along with him like a damn puppet. There was no other explanation.

That's where he was now, in an empty corridor with Seungmin a few steps ahead of him as they simply walked and walked.

Seungmin finally came to a stop. Minho stopped too.

Seungmin turned to look at Minho, then smiled.

"Hello", he said, softly. "I was hoping you would come along."

Seungmin's gaze was as sharp on him as before, despite the soft way in which he spoke. That must be it. If Minho shut his eyes and stopped looking at Seungmin's eyes directly, he could break free of this spell.

Seungmin laughed.

"I am not controlling you", he said and Minho was now totally sure he was. "Trust me, I'm really not."

"Stop", said Minho. "Who are you? What-"

What are your powers?

The question was so absurd, Minho couldn't force it past his lips.

"I can read minds, yes", said Seungmin. "And I have mild telekinesis powers."

Seungmin looked around, as if looking for something. He caught sight of an abandoned bottle and jerked his hand slightly. The bottle moved.

It must have been the wind.

"There is no wind.” Seungmin laughed again, no trace of mockery in his laugh. "It was me. I can read minds and move things...a little bit. Actually you should see Jisung, he is so impressive with telekinesis."

Minho didn't ask who Jisung was. He was more curious about why or how he was standing with Seungmin alone in a deserted corridor.

"What is your name?" Seungmin asked finally. 

"Lee Minho", Minho replied. 

"Oh", said Seungmin. "I have heard about you."

Minho raised his eyebrows. "Heard about me? Literally who talks about me?"

"You would be surprised to know", said Seungmin.

Over the course of the day, Minho found himself inexplicably drawn to Seungmin. They never had a moment where they smiled at each other and declared themselves friends, but they didn't need it. Minho started sitting beside Seungmin; in class, in the cafeteria, everywhere. He met Seungmin's friend Jisung too. He was also a new guy, friends with Seungmin before they even came to the school. However, he had no rumours attached to him.

"Are you Minho?" said Jisung, as soon as he spotted Minho sitting beside Seungmin. "Nice to meet you man!"

"Hello", said Minho, smiling despite himself. Jisung was a jovial guy, it was hard not to smile back at that gummy smile.

"He is usually shyer than this", muttered Seungmin. The way he talked to Minho made it feel like they were friends for ages. He had missed it. Missed having people to talk to and feel close too, even though he hadn't realised it. Somewhere along the line, he had lost all his friends and he had no idea why.

Seungmin smiled at him warmly, making little butterflies dance in his stomach. "It happens sometimes. It happens to all of us."

"Alright, I'm not gonna ask what exactly Seungmin is talking about,” said Jisung, settling down on Seungmin's other side.

Talking to the two guys was easy. They fell into comfortable banter and Minho laughed more than he remembered laughing in a long time. His next few days passed in a blur of shared jokes and snickers and laughter. Minho felt rejuvenated. He felt alive.

But something always bothered him. The way Seungmin looked at him sometimes made him feel uneasy. Seungmin could already read minds, why did he need to stare at Minho as if he was trying to dissect him with his gaze?

"You are doing it again", said Minho on a random day in the cafeteria. Jisung wasn't there and Seungmin had started his intense staring thing.

"Doing what?"

"As if you don't know. You can read minds, Seungmin. You know full well what I'm talking about."

Seungmin had the grace to look embarrassed. He looked away. He didn't look at Minho again throughout the entirety of the lunch break. Minho felt some sort of panic rise within him, but he didn't understand why. He wanted Seungmin to look at him again.

But he didn't, so Minho resorted to screaming in his own mind for Seungmin to turn back and look at him, smiling when Seungmin flinched at his mental screams.

The next day, it was like none of that had happened. Seungmin was back to normal.

He was solving some question paper at the same time, pausing at some particularly frustrating questions.

Minho took a look at the questions.

"Calculus sucks huh?" he said, when Seungmin's pen stilled in mid-air while solving one question. "Want me to help?"

"You can?" asked Seungmin with some surprise.

Minho frowned. "What? You think I can't solve a mere calculus sum?"

"It's not mere", said Seungmin, sighing and shaking his head.

"Whatever. Let me help your sorry ass."

Minho explained the questions to him, pulling up knowledge from crevices of his mind that he didn't know existed. He didn't even remember the last time he had touched a math book.

He spotted a scar on the back of Seungmin's left hand. It was thin but it must have been deep at some point or else the scar wouldn't be so obvious.

Forgetting everything, he reached out to trace the scar with one finger, marvelling at the way the scar felt under his touch, foreign, yet strangely familiar, as if he had forgotten what scars felt like and was reacquainting himself with them.

Seungmin tensed up but didn't tell Minho to remove his hand. Instead he turned his head to look at their hands.

"Your hands are tiny", teased Seungmin. And well, he wasn't wrong. Next to Seungmin's huge hands, his hand looked extra small.

"Shut up", he grumbled, but instead of pulling away his hand, he laced his fingers through Seungmin's fingers.

Seungmin looked surprised.

Minho himself was surprised too.

"Go back to your sums", said Minho, tightening his hold at the smile Seungmin gave him.

Jisung arrived and, like always, settled down on Seungmin's other side. Before he could be properly seated though, he knocked over the little packet of ketchup. Red splattered on the front of Seungmin's white shirt.

Minho let go of his hand immediately.

"Oops", said Jisung, quickly picking up the packet before it caused further damage. "You okay, bro? Sorry, I didn't mean to."

But Seungmin didn't reply to Jisung, he was looking straight at Minho. "Minho? You okay?"

Minho nodded but it was pointless. Seungmin could read minds. He could feel the waves of uneasiness that were taking hold of Minho, the nausea that he was struggling to keep under control.

"Minho", said Seungmin again, worry etched on his features. His voice sounded strangely far away, as if Minho was detached from reality, floating around in some dreamlike space. "Minho, come back to me, hey!"

"Hey," replied Minho faintly, head beginning to spin now. It wasn't dizzying, rather it was a slow, sluggish kind of spinning, like Minho's mind was struggling through....something. Something Minho couldn't explain.

When he came back to himself, he found himself in Seungmin's warm embrace, both his arms weighing down on him comfortingly. He took a deep breath and buried his face into Seungmin's chest. He still needed some time to come out of whatever the hell that was.

When he looked up again, he saw Seungmin glaring at Jisung, who held his hands up in apology. Jisung didn't seem apologetic though and Minho couldn't blame him. It wasn't really his fault.

But Jisung was staring at him with a strange look in his eye and when Minho pushed himself up and away from Seungmin, he saw a lot of people staring at them with varying levels of disbelief.

"It's nothing", muttered Seungmin, caressing Minho's palm with his own. "Don't mind them."

Minho couldn't shake off the stares though. It made him feel on edge the entire day.

He continued to grow closer to Seungmin, despite the weird looks people gave them, despite the passive-aggressive way Jisung treated him after the ketchup incident. They sometimes sneaked off together, back to that deserted corridor which no one seemed to bother coming to. They used to share stories.

"What are your parents like?"

Seungmin's face lights up with a smile Minho wished he could capture in a camera and save it with him always. Most of his friends had disappeared from his life without a trace, it was only a matter of time before Seungmin did too. He probably should take some pictures.

"They are the best", said Seungmin. "They are really supportive."

"Really? They are not the kind of parents who put great pressure on you? I thought with your high grades, they must be."

Minho didn't mean to make it sound like that, but he couldn't help it.

Seungmin was about to answer before his face fell.

"Your parents..." whispered Seungmin and Minho couldn't stop all his memories from spilling out into the open in his mind. Seungmin could no doubt read and see them.

"I'm so sorry", he said and reached out to squeeze his hands. "So sorry."

Minho shrugged. It didn't bother him much anymore, he had learned how to ignore it, how to lock it up in a box and abandon it in some dark, desolate corner of his mind. But every now and then the box would crack open and the memories would come out to haunt him.

But Seungmin was pure and brought unadulterated joy to Minho. He could not afford to mix Seungmin and the contents of that box. They would have to be separate.

“Seungmo,” he whispered and Seungmin’s eyebrows shot up at the nickname. “Can I call you Seungmo?”

His eyes twinkled with stars that reminded him of a bracelet he used to own, that he had lost somehow.

“Yes,” replied Seungmin.

Seungmin often asked Minho for help in various subjects. They would sit in the cafeteria, side by side as their routine was, and Minho would explain concepts to him. Minho suspected that Seungmin actually didn't require as much help as he asked for.

It was a strangely intimate moment for them and so Minho never questioned how much help Seungmin really needed (out loud at least. Seungmin could read his mind and the twist of his lips whenever Minho would think about it made it all the more clear to him that he exaggerated how much help he needed). They had created a bubble for themselves that other people rarely ever disturbed, despite the glances they sent their way.

Seungmin sighed. "I don't know how they found out about the fact that I have some sort of powers but they have never stopped staring at me like that since."

"You do have this magical aura about you", said Minho, without thinking.

Seungmin stared at him with big, amazed eyes.

"Really?" he said and suddenly the look in his eyes was teasing. It was not like Minho had never thought such sappy things before and that Seungmin hadn't read his mind right as he was thinking it. But to lose his brain-to-mouth filter like that and say it out loud was a whole different story.

Minho turned his eyes away, refusing to make direct eye contact. He could hear Seungmin's laugh in his ear as he leaned closer and said, "What was that, Minho? Can you repeat that again?"

“No. Shut up.”

Minho stilled when Seungmin's hand reached out to grab his hand which was nervously clenched into a fist, prying it open gently.

"Thank you", said Seungmin, sounding unbearably sincere. "That is very kind of you."

Minho knew Seungmin was not just talking about what he said, but also what he was thinking. It was hard not to run a mental flashback of all the angelic smiles and reassuring touches Seungmin had given him in their short time together. It was hard not to fantasise about pressing his lips softly to Seungmin's and-

He heard Seungmin inhale sharply.

"You wanna?" asked Seungmin, voice getting lower, making Minho shiver.

He nodded. Then they were getting out of the cafeteria and going to their favourite corridor. Minho finally got to know what Seungmin's lips felt like, what they tasted like.

It was like  a dream come true. He wasn't lying when he said that Seungmin had a magical aura about him. To have all his attention and magic focused solely on him as he kissed Minho like he was going to devour him....it was a lot.

Seungmin broke the kiss with a groan. "Being able to read your mind is a curse", he said, resting their foreheads together.

"Why?"

"It makes kissing you so much hotter."

Minho could feel himself flush and he tugged at Seungmin's head to slot their lips back together.

Jisung's passive-aggressiveness turned into downright hostility.

Minho had no idea what was wrong, but Jisung just seemed to despise him. He would look at Seungmin accusingly, as if he was doing something he shouldn't by choosing to be with Minho.

It made confusion and resentment churn in his gut. Was he so undeserving of Seungmin's affections?

"Jisung, cut it out", said Seungmin sharply. Minho had never heard him like that before. "What's your problem?"

"You know damn well what my problem is", hissed Jisung. "He's...he's not good for you."

Minho felt his heart sink. So now he was outright insulting him, as if he wasn't even there?

"No offense", said Jisung to Minho but his eyes were hard and unforgiving, screaming "Full offense!"

"You just aren't the best...person for him", Jisung continued. "Seungmin has developed an unfortunate attachment to you."

"Stop it!" said Seungmin. "Minho-"

Jisung suddenly placed a broken piece of glass in front of him, edges jagged and deadly.

"Jisung!" yelled Seungmin but Jisung yelled right back at him.

"What? You know this has to be done, right? You would have done this if you hadn't-"

Minho's brain began to block out words and conversations and noises. All that remained was the sight of the shard in front of his eyes, mocking him.

His head hurt. His mind was spinning, just like the way it had the last time. Everything was going in and out of focus, the only constant being the piece of glass.

Its edges shone in the reflected light, making it look more menacing.

Vaguely he heard Jisung say, "Broken window."

Minho got up and left. He went to their favourite corridor, waiting for Seungmin to arrive, not wanting to be anywhere near Jisung or the glass.

Seungmin never came.

"I'm sorry about yesterday", said Seungmin. "Jisung was...a bit mad for reasons. And I couldn’t come to you because I had to calm him down."

Something was terribly wrong. People stared at them constantly. Seungmin had claimed that they stared because of the rumours about his powers.

But that was a lie, wasn’t it?

"Minho, you there?"

All his friends, gone. His last memories of them were smiling and happy and joyful, even though he didn't remember feeling any of that joy in his own heavy heart. All of that gone in one instant.

What was wrong with him?

"Minho", said Seungmin, cocking his head to one side. "Are you...thinking?"

What was wrong with him?

Minho managed to shake himself out of his thoughts when a guy came over to them with a look of concern so intense, it was most definitely fake.

"Dude", he said, directing his question only to Seungmin, not even sparing Minho a glance. "You okay?"

Minho watched Seungmin's jaw tighten.

"Yes", he replied shortly. "I'm busy."

"Busy talking to-"

"I'm busy. Go away."

"Calm down. I was just concerned."

"Don't worry about me", said Seungmin. "I'm fine."

"Where's the short one?" asked the guy, looking around.

"Jisung didn't come to school today", said Seungmin. "Go. Now."

"No need to be so rude, you know. The fame has clearly gotten to your head. I doubt you even have any powers."

"I never claimed to."

"Just a suggestion...stop going to the fourth floor."

Seungmin looked like he was about to manhandle the guy.

"My telekinesis isn't that great", said Seungmin darkly, "but it's about to be in like two seconds."

"What?"

The guy stumbled back suddenly, a scream leaving his mouth as he landed on his butt a few feet away. Seungmin was breathing heavily while still glowering at the guy.

Minho placed an arm on Seungmin's shoulder. He didn't say anything, just willing Seungmin to read his mind.

Seungmin didn't relax. His head turned to look at Minho, face screwing up a little as if he had to make an effort to read Minho's mind.

Several moments passed.

Finally, Seungmin relaxed slightly in his hold. As if he was forcing himself to relax. He nodded a little, smiling. "You are right, he's not worth it."

The smile didn't reach his eyes.

And for some reason, Minho wasn't surprised.

"I'm sorry", said Jisung, throwing the apology at Minho before walking away. Minho didn't have time to react or even process. He just came, said sorry and left.

"Did you tell him to do that?" asked Minho, looking at Seungmin.

Seungmin looked slightly guilty. "Not exactly but I was pretty mad at him and might have implied I won't talk to him again if he didn't apologise."

"Why does he hate me?" asked Minho. He wasn't bitter, just curious. Jisung had been friendly enough with him at the beginning. It was a very confusing change.

Seungmin shook his head. "He doesn't hate you. He just thinks..." Seungmin paused, choosing his words carefully, "that our relationship is doomed."

Minho didn't know what that meant. But some part of him agreed.

"Okay", he said. He spotted two girls staring at them directly as they whispered among themselves, passing by the table he and Seungmin were sitting at.

"I think it's Lee Minho", he heard one of them say.

He remembered asking Seungmin who in this school talked about him and Seungmin replying with "You would be surprised to know."

Minho no longer felt surprised.

"Come with me?" asked Minho, standing up and looking at Seungmin expectantly. Seungmin looked a bit surprised, which was weird because he could read minds. But Minho expected that.

“Seungmo?”

"Sure", said Seungmin, standing up himself and following Minho.

It was like a recreation of the first time they had met, only the roles were reversed. Minho could feel some sort of purpose rising in him, tugging him along as he led Seungmin to their favourite corridor.

He felt like he had something to give Seungmin before they inevitably separated.

He stopped and paused. Turned and looked at Seungmin behind, who was staring back at him with apprehension.

"Minho-" he began.

"Broken window", said Minho, simply. "Fourth floor."

Seungmin went absolutely still.

"Minho", he said again, and his voice cracked terribly this time. He was holding back tears. Minho could see it clearly, could feel the pain and frustration rolling off him.

Minho stepped closer, picking up Seungmin's hand and tracing that scar. An unnatural calmness spread through him.

"That's why Jisung hates me, right?" said Minho and Seungmin didn't answer. "I think I get it now."

"He doesn't hate you”, he hung his head while speaking. “I was just too weak, I got attached to you. I was selfish. If anything, he hated me."

"No", said Minho. "He just wanted what's best for you."

"Please", said Seungmin, lips trembling. "Don't go."

Minho frowned. Don't go, said Seungmin, an echo of every single thought he himself had condensed into so few words. People had left Minho behind even though somewhere in his mind he had screamed Don't go.

But they never left him. He realised now.

Minho had just fallen behind.

<<<

Minho stared at the broken window, contemplating.

That was a lie, he wasn’t contemplating. He had already made his decision.

His parents' screams and taunts most of the time, their negligence the rest of the time, it all weighed down on him and he was desperate to be free.

He didn't want this anymore.

His friends were out there, waiting for him but Minho didn't want to see them. Didn't want to see the happy smiles that they didn't have to fake.

Not anymore.

He could be free. Free from his bitterness, free from the ache inside of him which got stronger everyday despite his friends telling him it will get better someday.

It won't. It was a lie. It would never get better. He would never get better.

There was no one in the classroom. In fact, the entire school was down in the cafeteria, happy and unaware of Minho loitering in the fourth floor classroom, watching the window which had been accidentally broken by some students playing catch with a ball.

Someone would be here anytime to sweep up the glass pieces.

Minho picked up one piece. It seemed sharp enough. He lifted his other hand.

There was a bracelet on his wrist with little silver stars dangling and glimmering in the light. It was too beautiful to witness something like this. He took it off and kept it somewhere safe, to be treasured even though he would not be the one to treasure it.

But maybe someone someday would.

The last thing Minho remembered seeing was the pooling blood as his life slowly drained out of him and then his vision went blank.

>>>

Seungmin gasped, a single tear escaping his eye. "I can't- I can't read your mind anymore. Not even a little."

Minho smiled and wiped away the teardrop with the hand that wasn’t holding Seungmin’s left hand. "So you can't read minds after the ghost remembers that they died?"

Seungmin didn't reply, just buried his face in the crook of Minho's shoulder. He hugged Minho tightly, not letting Minho breathe.

Not that Minho needed to breathe.

“So this is why everyone used to stare at us weirdly”, said Minho, suddenly finding it very funny. “You were literally talking to air the whole time. People must have thought you were insane.”

He felt Seungmin giggle through his tears. “They thought I was haunted.”

“I mean, they weren’t wrong.”

“Shut up, this is supposed to be a sad moment.”

Minho chuckled, still tracing Seungmin’s scar. “How did you get this scar by the way?”

“A ghost got a bit violent once when I made her remember that she was dead.”

Minho grew quiet. “Is that what you and Jisung do? Help ghosts remember their deaths?”

He felt Seungmin nod. “So that they could move on. We can see and touch ghosts. I can read their minds too. At least until they realise they are dead.”

They stood in silence for a few minutes.

"Jisung was wrong, you know", said Minho. "Our relationship isn't doomed. What we had was special, don't you think?"

"You are already disappearing", sniffed Seungmin. He was right. Minho's body looked more translucent than usual, a sure sign that he won't be there for long. There was a glow emanating from him, having no describable colour.

"So?" asked Minho. "Just because it's coming to an end, doesn't mean it was doomed."

Seungmin lifted his head, looking at him with a tear streaked face. "You think so?"

Minho nodded. "It was special and it came to an end. It wasn’t doomed, it was beautiful. Now, I have a thing for you. Come with me."

Minho pulled him towards a door gently. He opened it.

Or at least tried to. His hand passed straight through the knob.

"Being a ghost sucks", he grumbled and Seungmin gave a feeble laugh. "Here, can you open it?"

Seungmin obliged.

Yes, this was the classroom.

"That's why the corridor was always empty", chuckled Minho, hindsight making everything humorous. "Because I haunted the entire floor."

"You haunted the entire school, Minho", said Seungmin. "You just liked hanging out on this floor a bit more and regular humans do have some instincts."

"I see."

Minho let go of Seungmin's hand and pointed at the drawer in the teacher's desk.

"Go ahead", he said and Seungmin opened that too.

It was still there, seemingly untouched and Minho was glad.

"This is- was- my bracelet", said Minho, hooking his chin over Seungmin's shoulder to look at the bracelet together. "Take it."

"You want me to have it?" said Seungmin, a sweet wonder filling his beautiful voice. Maybe Minho could be a little more cheesy before he left.

"The stars match your eyes", he said and watched as Seungmin looked ready to cry again. "It will look good on you."

"Thank you", said Seungmin. He put on the bracelet immediately, then pulled Minho in for a kiss.

Minho remembered wanting to feel free back when he had held the glass piece in his hand. He remembered never actually feeling free even after his death, because his death wasn't the solution.

But now he felt free. The glow got brighter, so bright that Minho could see it through his closed eyelids.

"You are leaving", murmured Seungmin.

"I think so, yeah. Tell Jisung that I forgave him."

He opened his eyes to see Seungmin nod.

"Minho, I-"

Minho waited and his glow seemed to wait as well, as if saying it won't take Minho away until Seungmin said his last words to him.

"I love you."

Minho chuckled and put his hand up to ruffle Seungmin's hair. "Trust you to fall in love with a ghost."

"That's not funny", said Seungmin, even though his lips were lifted in a fond smile. "I really love you."

"I love you too", replied Minho. "Take care, Kim Seungmin."

Maybe sometimes rumours were true. Seungmin was magical, just not in the way everyone else thought.

The glow got brighter and Minho could no longer see Seungmin.