Hung Up On The Stars • ChenJi

seventeen

The next day, Jisung doesn't remember what he ate last night and later realizes that he didn't eat at all.

This is what a fourteen-hour sleep does to him.

When he returned to his house, it was forenoon and he didn't speak to anybody thereafter and even when his mother tried to, his grandmother stopped her. All the later that happened was only him catching his head and applying balm to it and going to sleep straight away.

Once he remembers his father's image on the bed beside him during the night or evening Jisung can't make out; when he wakes up for a few seconds and his father just kisses his head, patting it and asking him to go back to sleep.

He observes his swollen face and eyes due to excessive sleep. He groans thinking about his fucked up sleep schedule. There are days when he gets two hours, three hours, six hours, eight hours, and oh, a new record, fourteen hours.

And the bonus with anxiety and overthinking issues.

He thinks that even a working individual wouldn't have the versatility of sleep time.

He gets down with a decision to himself that 'Fuck it, I'm not crying anymore.'

While combing his hair, Jaemin asks him, "You sure you wanna attend school today?"

Jisung thinks about that and answers with his lips protruding outwards, "Monday no afternoon classes. So it's fine I guess."

"Okay."

"Moreover, I had slept enough so I am not tired or anything."

As Jaemin sees him struggling with the injured hand, he asks, "Do you need help?"

He needs to recover from this.

"I guess I do," he says, handing over the comb to him. Jaemin trims his hair and in the same process helps him to tie his tie.

"Thank you," he says and Jaemin gives a thumbs up.

Jisung knew he had a lot to ask and Jaemin had a lot to tell but he decided to let the time take the toll.

His mother grazes him with a hug taking him to her chest when he sat down to eat his breakfast. She asks him to eat more, giving a rightful reason that he was starved for almost the whole day and there was no way he wouldn't feel hungry.

And she was right too.

He munched down pretty well, although he didn't eat as much as he expected him to, after a gap of eighteen hours, he still ate a lot more than he usually eats.

"Don't do any work in the school today. Your hand still needs to get better."

She kisses his hair and all he does to dignify her with a response is a blank face.

Jisung went to school with repeated mental reminders that he needn't cry anymore because 'how much do I need to cry to get over this?'

Chenle was the first one to notice him as he waved at him from a distance. Jisung, too distracted by the premises in the school, waves with his injured plastered hand. As he comes nearer, Chenle asks him while walking to their class.