Work Text:
Every Monday Mr. Jeon wakes up at half past six in the morning to drink his coffee and make breakfast for two. He then washes up, packs his bag with folders, copybooks, pens and laptop and leaves home. At half past seven he's already on his way to school.
Mr. Jeon is the physics teacher of Seoul's High School. At 8 am he's already in his own cabinet, makes up the plan for today's lessons in his own notepad with a purple coloured velvet cover. There're a lot of notes in illegible handwriting that only Mr. Jeon can understand in this notepad. Here he looks at his schedule for Monday and what topics have to be discussed with children.
Kids love Mr. Jeon really much. He's that one type of teachers that prefer to do very productive and intensive lessons so that kids won't have a lot of homework to do after. For that and for his kind, tender personality and also competent explanation of such a boring at first discipline as Physics kids consider him one of the best teachers at school.
Mr. Jeon loves his students really much too. He always dreamed of teaching and giving knowledge to others, and therefore decided from school that he would become a teacher.
Mr. Jeon hates school's dress code and always tries to avoid the rules of it by wearing soft sweaters of warm colours in winter and loose t-shirts in summer. Exactly at this time of year you can notice tattoo sleeve on his right hand which all school girls are sighing dreamily of and boys are enviously viewing tattoos from afar.
Mr. Jeon has long hair that curl at the tips, and big shining with kindness eyes in the corners of which are hiding tiny wrinkles from endless smiles.
Mr. Jeon has Mr. Kim.
Every Monday Mr. Kim wakes up at 7 am sharp. He ates his breakfast and then washes all the dishes, takes shower and gets ready to go to work. At half past nine Mr. Kim already approaches the school.
Mr. Kim is the teacher of German language and literature. At 10 am he heads for the class where already tired from the beginning of the day students are waiting for him.
Mr. Kim is a very strict teacher. He amazingly explains the rules of language and gives useful and informative notes. At his first day of work he opened school book right in front of students, looked through some pages, closed it in an absolute silence and threw under the desk saying «I'm not gonna teach you with this piece of trash. Note the topic in your copybooks».
He teaches the literature with the same passion. All students are sitting with their mouths open when he reads an excerpt from German poems.
And even if some slubs knew before the lesson only choruses of Rammstein's songs, they're sitting still and listen carefully to his baritone, almost drooling on the desk - with such a theatrical expressiveness teacher conveys an emotional colouring of the poem.
But he demands the same diligence from students in return. That is why they're the most harsh questioning and homework in his lessons.
Why do you think Mr. Jeon pities his students if they have a lesson with Mr. Kim next?
Mr. Kim prefers classic clothing style. None of his looks are complete without trousers and a shirt which he usually unbuttons on his neck and chest, and elegant watch on a leather strap is always on his wrist.
He has to dress ceremoniously sometimes – for example for the graduation ceremonies or conferences – and wear three-piece suit that chokes and doesn't let him breath and move freely.
After such events Mr. Kim runs towards his cabinet only to rip off the «shitty» - as he likes to express himself – tie, take off irritating vest and jacket, unbutton his favourite shirt and then goes torturing his students again.
You can often see Mr. Kim standing in the hallway or in a cafe with a volume of foreign classic literature and by the way it's not always German literature.
He usually has a cup of coffee in his hand, and there's also a bar of bitter chocolate on the table which mr. Jeon that somehow appears next to man always tries to steal.
Each break Mr. Kim and Mr. Jeon take a walk together through the hallways of school talking enthusiastically.
Mr. Jeon actively gesticulates as if he is trying to explain to a man the law of universal gravitation, meanwhile mr. Kim can only listen carefully, nod when necessary and, perhaps to protect overly excited teacher, care the hand near man's waist.
There always have been mysterious relationships between Mr. Kim and Mr. Jeon about which students make up legends.
Sometimes Mr. Jeon can enter the class where Mr. Kim is giving a lesson just like that and invitingly whisper:
"Mr. Kim, there will be a meeting at a teacher's room after this lesson".
The whispers and giggles are passing through the class and a very attentive student mumbles:
"Aren't meetings carried out in a conference room?"
He then gets pushed by his classmate and she hisses so loudly that everyone in the class including teachers hears:
"Shut up, they're on a date!"
Classmates are trying to hold the laughter, and Mr. Kim winks at embarrassed teacher:
"Don't worry Mr. Jeon I won't be late". And the named one instantly disappears.
For the Teacher's Day kids as always bring presents to their tutors. And of course there's more urge to bring joy to the favourite teachers in school, and that's why for their gifts students are preparing especially thoroughly.
Someone once proposed to take a risk and ask Mr. Kim what will be a better gift for Mr. Jeon.
Man smiled then proudly and answered without hesitation:
"Gift him something sweet, you won't be mistaken".
On the same day they decided to ask Mr. Jeon too, what would be better to gift Mr. Kim.
The teacher looked at students in confusion, blushed and, stuttering, asked:
"W-what makes you think I know which present mr. Kim would like to receive?"
Students then gave him looks that scream "Man, are you serious?", and he whimpered quietly, hiding his face in hands, and then mumbled:
"Gift him a pack of grain coffee or a book about the history of architecture and he'll die from happiness".
No one is surprised anymore when sees Mr. Kim in his favourite grey coat outside the school after the lessons, reading something in a foreign language once again. They know: Mr. Kim is waiting for Mr. Jeon to be free to go home together. It's still a secret for everyone wether it's one home or different.
Once some girls literally attacked mr. Jeon in the hallway with embarrassing questions like: "is Mr. Kim as strict at home as in class with us?", "How did you meet?", "For how long?.."
Mr. Jeon —blushed, confused, discouraged by such questions— helplessly tried to ward off the clingy students, not knowing what to say.
Help came from a strict, unusually angry and indignant Mr. Kim, who shouted:
"Young ladies, you have nothing better to do? Get to the classroom now and repeat the grammar, seems like I haven't questioned you for a long time, you got completely out of hand!"
The girls gave a startled yelp and ran into the classroom under man's menacing gaze.
Mr. Kim really didn't spare anyone that day. And if it seemed that he was a strict teacher before — oh, believe me, this was nothing.
Frustrated, with a detached look — that's what Mr. Kim looked like during that lesson. He said after the end of lesson: "Free", and, without looking at the children, began packing. The girls, stricken with guilt, came up to apologize, to which man replied with a sigh full of disappointment:
"Apologize to Mr. Jeon, whose personal life you have entered so rudely and unmannerly. Have you ever heard me, Mr. Jeon, or any of the other teachers asking your classmate who's that young man she leaves school with? Or why does only the boy's mother come to the parent meetings, and the father never does?" The girls shook their heads. "No? So why the hell did you decide that you could take advantage of the teacher's kindness and put him in an awkward position? Adults, it would seem to me, but empty-headed in reality". He shook his head and stood up, looking at the students who lowered their heads in shame. "I hope it was the first and last time. Have a nice day".
And left the class, facing a cheerful Mr. Jeon, who looked at the man with a concern before entering the classroom.
The lesson went on as usual, Mr. Jeon was calm and didn't make a scandal — as if this incident had never happened. But girls still approached the teacher after class, staring at the floor and apologizing for their behavior.
Mr. Jeon, to everyone's surprise, just smiled wearily:
"Seems like Mr. Kim intimidated you in the previous lesson. I accept your apologies, but let's learn to respect other people's personal boundaries, and everything will be fine".
The children sighed with relief and promised to behave better in the future.
They do not even know that, after banishing girls from the teacher, Mr. Kim looked anxiously at the still confused man and, lightly touching his fingers with hand, asked quietly:
"Are you okay, darling?"
Mr. Jeon shook his head, banishing bad thoughts, and answered just as quietly:
"Y-yes, thank you... without your help, I could have blurted out something unnecessary".
Mr. Kim just smiled and assured:
"Even if you said something, I wouldn't blame you, really".
Few people know — or rather, no one, not even friends — that walking through the hallway, Mr. Kim and Mr. Jeon are not discussing quantum physics and poems, but what to cook for dinner, and whether they should go to the supermarket after classes.
No one knows that after the embarrassing incidents, Mr. Jeon is very worried that he said something wrong, that's why he always questions Mr. Kim:
"Are you very angry that I answered them?"
To which Mr. Kim just shakes his head:
"My soul, I've never been against it. If it were up to you, I would kiss you in the middle of the hallway, — for which he receives a poke and an indignant babble in the shoulder".
And also no one knows that after school on Wednesdays, Mr. Kim waits for Mr. Jeon to take him home by his car, because:
"My love, you're too tired. Let me drive you home today, and tomorrow we'll go to school together by my car, how 'bout that?"
That Mr. Kim gives the sweets gifted by the students to Mr. Jeon, since he himself loves only bitter chocolate, and it's a pity to waste food. But it's not a pity at all to admire mr. Jeon's cheeks smeared in sweets and cream.
That in the evenings they cook dinner together, and then check the students' work, sitting on the floor side by side.
And if there is no work, they lie in bed, and while Mr. Jeon draws some ornaments on Mr. Kim's chest with fingertips, the latter reads poems in German to his man.
And, although he knows perfectly well that Mr. Jeon hardly understands what he is reading about, he still appreciates how the love of his life breathes faster at the culmination moments in poems when Mr. Kim suddenly raises his voice. He stops sometimes in the middle of reading and asks the man running his finger over the mr. Kim's chest:
"What are you drawing so passionately?"
Mr. Jeon then, sticking out his tongue from diligence, replies satisfied:
"Puppy".
And then the poetry reading goes down the drain, because Mr. Kim throws his giggling love on the mattress to kiss until those pretty cheeks go red and eyes begin to shine.
Mr. Kim loves detective stories and science fiction. He enjoys watching thrillers and horror.
And Mr. Jeon, contrary to his profession, reads with delight classic romance novels translated from French and Russian, cries over melodramas and musicals.
Mr. Jeon has a little crush on the atmosphere of old books, where young heroines address their husbands as "mister". And, although they are equal in status with Mr. Kim, he cannot deny himself the weakness to address his beloved man in the most respectful and official form.
He doesn't demand the same from his beloved one, but God, how much his heart trembles and beats faster in his chest when Mr. Kim accepts the rules of their little game and pretends that such treatment is quite a normal thing!
Few people know — just friends of their small family — that the young men met in the army. Mr. Jeon realized that he had fallen in love when a man with low, pleasant voice read to the company before the bedtime an excerpt from some poem in Italian, so expressively that there was total silence in the barracks - just not to disturb this mysterious atmosphere.
Mr. Kim realized that he had fallen in love when, on joint duty on the railway, the boy enthusiastically told him about the stars and the big bang theory, looking with big, glowing eyes into the night sky.
They still have this tradition with night talks. Sometimes in the evenings they go out on the balcony with a bottle of wine, so that Mr. Kim reads an excerpt from the classics in French or German, or so that Mr. Jeon excitedly tells another theory of quantum physics he's read about in the science magazine; or so that they just have trivial talks about life, their future or a stupid principal in their school.
Sometimes, when it's cold outside, they turn on jazz or Elvis Presley on the phone, Mr. Kim reach out his hand to Mr. Jeon and pulls him into a slow dance. He holds Mr. Jeon gently by waist and runs his nose over the delicate skin of a man, who closes his eyes and allows himself to surrender, allows Mr. Kim to lead in the dance, to circle him around the room in warm, gentle hands.
And no one, absolutely no one knows that Mr. Kim and Mr. Jeon are collecting money and documents, information to move to France, which the young men dreamed of from the very beginning of their relationship.
That Mr. Kim improves his French, always exciting his love with pronunciation. Mr. Jeon especially likes to be taught French in bed. However, so far he only knows "baby", "pretty" and "good boy", which are huskily moaned into his red ear while he spreads his legs with all his might and arches in his lower back.
That they are going to settle in the suburban area, get a golden retriever there, work at the school or University and adopt a little girl; they're studying moving issues, employment in the other country, consult a family psychologist and a dog handler. Together.
But this is already a small beginning of their big and long journey, right?