"Chenle, save those fists for when you truly need them. Step Number Two towards reforming you: keep your reactions under control."
"Ew, imagine having self-control."
⭒☆━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━☆⭒
in which a police office...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"Thanks," Jisung smiled at the lady behind the counter of the canteen. She passed him a bottle of water. It wasn't uncommon for the fridge behind the self-service counter to get a few customers at the tail end of the day, especially for those who had to travel a while to get to school and would want a drink after a long day.
He turned around, waving the bottle at Donghyuck, Mark, Renjun, Jeno and Jaemin. "You don't have to hang around. I'm sure he'll be out soon."
"I want to wait," Donghyuck explained, and Renjun was a frequent user of the after school facilities like the library and the study classrooms. Mark clearly had nowhere else to be and the other two were trying to get Renjun used to their presences.
Jisung shrugged. Whatever they wanted to do was fine with him. "The teacher said she'd only be a little while with him. I'm going to pack my bag and meet Chenle at his locker."
The group made their way through the partially empty hallway to the youngest's locker, watched him open it and pack up his belongings. It was an eery silence for most who didn't spend much time in the almost desolate school, but for Renjun who was often here at these hours, he was at peace with the silence.
Donghyuck tightened his hands around the straps of his school bag, turning to look at Mark. "Do you want to go to the café with me later? I'm planning to work on my English homework there."
"Of course. I can help you if you'd like."
The beam sent Mark's way lit up his day. "Thanks, I'd appreciate it." His own heart fluttered with anticipation. These days it happened more often. His heat was completely over and yet the feelings lingered... I need to ask Chenle about this. Do I like Mark or am I looking for something where there is nothing?
"Where is Chenle?" Jeno asked lightly.
"Our Korean teacher held him back," Jisung and Mark answered together, then looked at each other with a sense of comedic jinx. A high five to the gesture wouldn't have been out of place, but they didn't.
They finished up and headed to Chenle's locker. Even from a distance they could see that he wasn't there. "What was she even talking to him about?" Mark wondered.
Jisung shrugged, "Your guess is as good as mine." But there was a familiar school bag right in front of his locker, leaning against the column. "Is that Chenle's?"
"Yup," Donghyuck nodded. Still, nothing was out of place. They couldn't quite sense the foreboding in the air. "He must've run to the bathroom or something."
"Yeah. Let's wait a moment," Jaemin yawned. He had spent a very boring class on the joys of budgeting with his business teacher, and now he was falling asleep standing up against the lockers. His head began to droop. Jeno smiled to himself.
Jisung put his own school bag on the floor to minimise his energy spent carrying it. A teacher walked past and curtly greeted them, curious as to whether or not Jaemin was actually asleep or just resting his eyes. They were all curious too.
