The Hideout I Need

Chapter 34: Nothing to hide

Hyeong-jun sat at the bus stop, staring into the ground. He wondered if maybe he sat still enough he'd turn invisible. He was fidgeting with his fingers, a somewhat scared feeling growing in his chest. He was wearing headphones but he wasn't listening to music. Among the dozen high school students who were waiting for the bus, maybe three or four other students were wearing the same uniform as him. He could feel their gaze on him and knew that the whispering between two of the boys was probably about him. He had kind of forgotten about this feeling over the weekend. It wasn't very nice.

But this feeling wouldn't last forever now that he wasn't alone anymore. Tae-young came jogging up to the bus stop, his heart instantly fluttering at the feeling of being near his boyfriend again. His loud steps were the only thing that made Hyeong-jun look up from the ground, a smile slowly growing on his face as he noticed Tae-young. As he finally stood in front of him, his face fell to a soft smile as he looked down at him, "Hey."

Hyeong-jun's eyes fell softer and his smile appeared as he saw Tae-young. He resisted the urge to get up and hug him right then and there. His heart already felt calmer just at the sight of him. He looked up with glowing eyes and an endearing smile, "Good morning."

The four students that went to their school seemed a little surprised at the small interaction. Hyeong-jun probably hadn't smiled at school for weeks now or even as much as talked. And to see Tae-young talk to him first seemed to be odd to them. Everybody was aware that Tae-young was in the video as well, but people figured that he tried to avoid Hyeong-jun after that.

"Oh, the bus is here," Hyeong-jun got up from the bench. Tae-young just chuckled, happy to be near him.

There weren't a lot of words exchanged between them on the ride to school. They didn't really speak as they got on the bus, just quietly smiling and enjoying each other's presence. It felt like they were keeping some sort of secret, enjoying the feeling as if they were sneaking around. As they walked further into the bus, Tae-young nodded his head towards some seats to silently tell Hyeong-jun that they should sit together. Hyeong-jun just nodded as a response, and the two of them sat down. It was as if their energy recharged each other, despite none of them talking.

Hyeong-jun softly felt a smile creep upon his face as he could feel Tae-young's fingers softly fidget with his own. He peeked down at their hands as he saw Tae-young's pinkie quietly wrap around a couple of his fingers. He let out a small chuckle before finally letting Tae-young intertwine their fingers, shielding their hands with the bag on his lap so other people wouldn't notice. Tae-young let out a tiny giggle and looked over at Hyeong-jun with a soft smile. He felt his heart flutter so much as he smiled back.

Arriving at school was also somewhat of an experience. Because now, being surrounded by people who knew about Hyeong-jun, it wasn't just a couple of people wondering why the two of them were walking together; it was everyone. And for every weird look Hyeong-jun received, the more Tae-young wanted to hold his hand again.

As they finally arrived at the top floor, they walked down the hall towards their class. And while they did, a lot of people couldn't help but stare. After all, the last thing most people probably remembered was the scene that Hyeong-jun caused in their lunch break before the weekend, fighting with Han Min-ki. And the fact that Tae-young, someone so popular and well-respected, seemed to still hang around the gay kid was a little peculiar to some of them.

"Why would Kim Tae-young still be friends with someone like Song Hyeong-jun after all this?" a kid whispered to one of his friends as they were walking past them.

The two kept walking, but Tae-young noticed how Hyeong-jun's expression changed a little as he heard that. Even though Hyeong-jun tried as much as he could to let the words roll off him, they still kind of got to him. It was after all one of his biggest fears: bringing Tae-young down. Nevertheless, they kept walking.