Chapter Text
Hwang Hyunjin was just walking with his hands on his pocket, and already managed to steal some glances across the room. There were murmurs, either fascination or simply curiosity as to how it feels like to finally being in the same room with the school's heartthrob.
"Hyunjin-ah!"
The blond turned his head, waving his hand with a straight face to some brunette clad in an unkempt uniform.
He sat beside Lee Minho, immediately feeling at ease for a sip of familiarity in his new, foreign surrounding.
"Told you we're gonna be classmates again."
"I kind of hate it, tho."
"Awww i know you didn't mean it,"
Hyunjin was in the middle of swatting Minho's hand away before those god-knows-how-unsanitary thing came in contact to squeeze his cheek, when his eyes spotted a loner aura from the corner of the room.
And a loner, he was, indeed.
Minho's eyes followed Hyunjin's instantly, his lips forming a straight line. "Lee Felix. Kind of weird. People can't maintain more than 5 words conversation with him. Free yourself start from this moment."
When the other didn't give any response, Minho felt his stomach twisted.
"Hyunjin."
Gone was his playful demeanor, replaced by a strict, deep voice he always used when things got out of hand because Minho knew better.
"What?"
He didn't like the expression on Hyunjin's face.
"Not him."
Hyunjin only chuckled on two kind of situations: when he's nervous or... when his interest is piqued, and unfortunately Minho wasn't stupid enough to understand that it's anything but the former.
"Chill, I'm not going to do anything, Min."
Minho should've done anything.
Throughout their 17 years of friendship, this was the first time he saw Hyunjin's ass, actually, not being tardy to the school.
The said boy already slouched his long limbs on top of ....
"Why are you here?"
Hyunjin shot Felix an innocent stare. "Didn't know our desks have some sort of license?"
Felix continued giving Hyunjin a kind of warning look, the one that'd instantly made his presence avoid-worthy but the other man was totally unwavered.
"You don't usually sit there."
"I don't feel like being my usual self today."
In a split second he stood tall on his feet, easily towering the mullet-haired boy, could've felt intimidating if it wasn't Felix we were talking about.
He minimized the gap between them, close enough to feel each of his breath tingling as he spat every syllable,
"So tell me, Felix, do you own this table?"
Minho watched the whole scene uncovered with half amusement and half horrid feelings. He couldn't help but to sense a start of something.
Felix came to the class the next day, only to find his locker empty. The one under his table, where he always put his unfinished Pride and Prejudice novel.
He tried to keep his cool even though his stomach twisted, thinking about who could possibly be the culprit. He didn't even sit on his usual table yesterday and his hunch rarely betrayed him. He definitely had someone in mind.
Throwing his glances everywhere, Felix swore under his breath. Really, the last thing he wanted to do was to ask their classmates, should he even call them that? Class acquaintance might be more suitable. Stranger forcefully sitting inside one room. Whatever, anything but mate.
He hates interacting with people. He hates it because he was already a helpless introvert even before the scrutinizing stare that made him forgot how to form coherent words, yet could he even blame his appearance for being starkly different from others?
Being born a natural blond. A frame too frail for a boy his age. His star-dotted face he wished he could cherish as much as his mom always does.
He thought he was happy in Australia, but again, the Lee in him never seem to fade and eventually dragging him to his root whenever it could. Through the tug of his heart whenever he saw any stranger wearing a hanbok, through the subtle mocking being passed to him on lunch time, through the rough treatment he got while queueing for his burger.
"You'll be even more happier there."
He always trusted his loved one's words. Not until he simply couldn't anymore.
He hates this city. He hates his hometown. He hates either being Lee Felix or Lee Yongbok. He hates how he couldn't seem to belong anywhere.
All the sci-fi he consumed and these bubbling feelings sometimes made him wonder if aliens were real and he was simply one of their reincarnation.
A sudden crash on his shoulder brought him back from his reverie.
"Watch your way!"
He didn't even have enough energy to fight the stupid person who practically bumped first into his chill, still figure.
The commotion from the hallway caught his attention somehow.
He watched as two students walking his way with a stack of things on their hand. Wait, were that ... books?
"I can't believe i got these classics cheaper than my tteok."
Felix's heart and head was instantly pounding. With a long, rushed stride, he stormed to the school's field.
Fuck.
"Oh, hi, would you buy some classic literatures, too?"
Hyunjin's voice was dripping in sweet but all Felix wanted to do was to punch him on the face.
The familiar yellowish pages he knew too well was perched on top of the display and his knuckle turned white.
Before he could even took his Pride and Prejudice back, a long-haired student came to the picture and Hyunjin didn't even wait to give her his utmost practiced of hospitality.
Felix watched as the crimson shades on her cheeks deepened. Oh, someone was not just selling books, apparently.
She gripped her new novel tightly on her chest and chuckled some more with her peers on the side.
"What was that for? Was yesterday not enough?"
"Woah- chill, dude. You make me sound like i killed some of your fellas the day before," Hyunjin nonchalantly stood up from his spot while swatting the dust from his black slack.
"Cut the crap, Hyunjin."
Gasps were heard and Felix forced the urge to scoff. Is cursing such a fascinating thing?
"You know what I'm talking about."
The other man put his index finger under his chin and Felix so very much wanting to wipe that faked-confused facade that made him 200% more annoying than he already was.
"Oh- you mean, the old book on the lower shelf?"
That high voice really triggered him to puke.
"You know exactly it was mine," Felix practically growled. If it wasn't for his professional self-control, he would've exploded and ended his peaceful nobody career.
"I told you, Felix, nothing is owned in this school." Hyunjin just had to display a pout. "Did you mark it? The book?" The crooked smile was there in an instant, in addition to some bellitling tone. "Oh, Felix, we just talked about license, yesterday..."
Felix was sure his entire face was red. The midday heat didn't help at all.
"I simply thought it was a trash. So old, so lanky, some of the pages were literally crimpled. Better being owned by someone else who could take care of it, no?"
It was the moment Felix knew he could never talk to Hyunjin.
"I told you to stop bothering him."
There was this kind of edge around Minho's words that made Hyunjin wanted to probe.
"I didn't bother him, tho."
"You wanted him to react. He interests you," the brunette said in a matter-of-fact tone.
Hyunjin gave him a lazy look. "I just need a new toy."
This wasn't exactly the first time it happened, but for Hwang Hyunjin to actually make some sort of effort for the loner of the school? Definitely the first ever in history.
"Just... Can't it be someone else?"
He shot Minho an inquisitive stare because there was it, again, the subtle intimidating tone that reminded him of his own hateful parents, he almost snapped at his bestfriend.
Fortunately, before he could reply, his attention was forced to shift to the newly-walking homeroom teacher.
Somehow, his irritation about Minho's recent whining didn't really subside.