cliche | choi soobin

sorrels

It's quiet in the school this morning, most students still in bed, peacefully sleeping. But that's not the case for our main character.

Gina stares at the ground as she forces herself to put one foot in front of the other. The memories of the night before weigh on her shoulders.

No high school student should pull all-nighters just to understand a math concept, but yet, it still happens. And even after staying up all night, she still doesn't completely how infinity can have a limit if it's in a certain function. That's why she's here so early.

There are always students in the library, especially the smart ones who solve calculus problems for fun. They're the people she is seeking out today.

Clearing her throat and rubbing her eyes, she opens the door and looks up. She immediately sees someone sitting at a table and walks over to them.

"Excuse me," she says, twisting her fingers together. "You're Taehyun, right? I think you're in my calculus?"

Taehyun just blinks at her, not saying anything.

"I mean, it's just, I don't understand how infinity can have a limit if it's infinite. You know?" Gina sighs, rubbing the back of her neck. "I need help; I don't know how this works."

Taehyun wordlessly pulls out the chair next to him and points at it before digging through his bag. Gina sits as he starts talking.

"It's not a difficult concept, when you think about it." Taehyun finds his notebook and shows it to her, completely ignoring his math textbook.

"What about what the textbook says?" She asks, doubtful he'll be able to teach her without the book itself. He just rolls his eyes and scoots closer.

"Yeah, you don't need an outdated book when you have me."

⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂

"So basically, if f is the function, then it's possible that infinity can be placed in the equation-" Taehyun looks over at Gina, who's staring mindlessly at the notes. He clears his throat and starts talking a little louder.

"I think that ramen and Febreeze are the best inventions ever."

When Gina doesn't respond, he rolls his eyes again and leans back, starting to test his limits.

"Well, really, ramen is the best invention. There are a few flaws, like how you can't eat it before bed or your face gets puffy. But there is nothing wrong with Febreeze. Maybe there should be more scents. I would like a chocolate coffee scent or something, but as it goes, Febreeze is pretty nice. So maybe Febreeze is the best invention."

Taehyun shakes his head at himself, invested in his conversation.

"Ah, but ramen though. You would think-"

Gina sits straight up, furrowing her eyebrows at Taehyun. She points at the notebook, her mouth open as she stares at him.

"You're not even teaching!" Taehyun huffs, exasperated, before checking his watch.

"You weren't even listening," he says. "You haven't been listening for about seven minutes. And that's when I figured it out."

Gina sighs, having been caught. Her thoughts wander back to the flowers and her secret admirer. Who could it be? Taehyun notices the wistful look in her eyes and immediately gets suspicious.

"Why do you look like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like you're in love with a fictional character."

Gina shakes her head at him, gathering her books and standing. If she doesn't understand limits in infinity now, she never will.

"I'm going to go now. Bye, Teacher Tae!" Taehyun stares, faking offense.

"That sounds like you're disrespecting me." Gina just shrugs, walking backwards.

"Me? Never."

With those words, Gina walks out of the library and out into the hallway, quickening her pace so she can get to her locker faster. What will be in her locker today?

As she looks to her right, she notices that Soobin is at his locker. She waves at him before turning to her lock. Opening the door, a smile grows on her face as she sees the bundle of flowers and the familiar-looking note.

Sorrels - affection

I wish I could hug you again.

Gina's eyes widen as she stares at the note. Again? She knows the person? No way.

She scans her mind, desperately thinking of everyone she's hugged at this school. She winces as she realizes it's almost everyone. How is she going to figure this out now?