Chapter Text
Chapter One: Hwagae Market
For Jung Hoseok, an 11th grader, Min Yoongi was like a unicorn. He had heard of him – but really hasn’t seen him nor encountered him around the campus.
Hoseok recently moved to a new Senior High School in the district of Gangnam after moving from Gwangju Science High School. With his older brother recently got accepted at Korea University and his father got a new job at a start up company in Seoul, it just made sense for the family to move to the bigger city.
Oh, and his sister is also graduating from SNU.
It was never difficult for Jung Hoseok to get along quickly with new people. People are just naturally drawn to him (think of all the beautiful metaphors in the world). Perhaps it’s his blinding smile, or his cheerful and positive attitude, or he is just that good looking. Jung Hoseok is very pleasing to the eyes. He is not the best looking in the campus. But he carried himself well. It’s the way he walked – with that natural confidence but humility, and the way he talked – even his mumbles and unintelligent words when he talked while laughing so hard could make other kids just want to stare at him forever.
For Jung Hoseok, life is going just great.
Until one day.
“YAH!” Someone screamed. Yelled? At him?
Jung Hoseok looked around. He noticed few students in the school yard also turned to look. It was the end of the school day and most students still stayed in the campus for club meetings or sports activities. Others meet for group projects or simply hanging out until the skies get dark to beat the hot sun walking home. For Jung Hoseok, it is the latter. He is a smart boy – coming from a science middle school in Gwangju. But no, he doesn’t like to spend this god-given after school hours to do more school work. It’s his ’party party’ time with few friends.
Jung Hoseok followed the direction where the other kids are looking at and saw a boy, probably a senior, walking towards him. He suddenly got confused, ‘me?’ this boy is approaching me?’ He looked around and noticed that the other kids have this knowing look what’s about to go down. And he’s even more confused!
“Min Yoongi-ssi,” his friends gently bowed at the boy’s presence.
‘Min Yoongi?’ Hoseok remembered the name – ah, this is THE Min Yoongi he’s heard of.
“What’s your name?” Hoseok only snapped when the boy was few inches away from him. He’s shorter than Hoseok and his skin is pale – so much paler than Hoseok. And his lips are pretty. Wait, what?
“M-me?” Hoseok barely pointed at himself, but his hand crumbled his gray necktie nervously.
The boy just looked at him. “I’m looking at you, aren’t I?”
His voice is low. Like he lacks sleep or something –
“Jung Hoseok,” he managed to reply. He glanced at his friends who are also just sitting waiting for what ever is going to happen. ‘You guys are shit’ he thought. But he couldn’t process this utter betrayal from his so-called friends with this little angry person in front of him.
“Jung Hoseok, will you please come with me to the teacher’s lounge?”
Then he heard everyone’s silent giggles. He looked around and even his friends were holding their snorts and giggles.’
“I’m sorry? W-why are you taking me to the teacher’s lounge?” He managed to ask.
The boy pulled his hand from his pocket and simply pointed at his hair like that should mean something. And it doesn’t! At least to Jung Hoseok.
Hoseok instinctively and part of his unknowing mannerism gently fixed his hair with his forefinger. He managed to tuck few strands behind his ear while nervously looking at this boy.
“Dude, your hair’s below you ears,” one of his so-called ‘friends’ whom Hoseok would remember from this day forward as Kim -mothereffing- Namjoon said almost in a whisper.
Oh! Hoseok finally understood! Not really – but oh, that’s a thing here!
“Oh!” He managed to say. And the boy nodded in understanding. Which looked something like, ‘glad I didn’t have to talk much,’ “Ah…well, okay,” Hoseok finally smiled. He smiled! “Well then, let me just get my bag,” he snatched up his bag and maybe unintentionally hitting Namjoon’s arm in the process.
“Ow!” Namjoon yelped. Hoseok briefly gave him a disbelieving look. Namjoon is 6ft tall and he’s built so much better than Hoseok. Hoseok just rolled his eyes when Namjoon started giggling and sort of teasing him as he walked away with the student council.
On their way to the teacher’s lounge, Hoseok learned that Min Yoongi is part of the student council. He mainly patrols students with longer hair than what the school allows.
“I came from a public school in Gwangju,” Hoseok tried to lighten up the mood to also hide his embarrassment by starting a small talk. In the last five minutes of walking back to the main campus building, Min Yoongi hasn’t said a word. “We really didn’t get called out for growing our hair,”
“My family is from Daegu,” Min Yoongi mumbled.
Hoseok’s face lightened up! He spoke a word! Few words even. A complete sentence!
“You know there’s a market in between our provinces ---”
“Hwagae Market,” they both said. And they both looked at each other. For Min Yoongi, it was just a glance. But for Hoseok, he stared just a little bit longer then burst into a laugh. He could see Min Yoongi gave a gentle smile.
Then it was a quiet again.
“Uh—do you know what the teacher would do to me?” Hoseok got more nervous as they got closer to the teacher’s lounge.
Min Yoongi halted as they got to the door while holding the knob and looked at Jung Hoseok, “probably expel you,” and opened the door with the evilest grin on his face.
The horror on Jung Hoseok’s face as he slowly walked into the room with teachers busy with paper works. And then to Min Yoongi standing outside the door.
“See you around, Jung Hoseok,” Min Yoongi sounded like an echo from a distance – in a dark empty hallway (although it was loud and the room was brightly lit) as he slowly closed the door and walked away.