the story of us 》sungtaro

25

Perhaps Jeno Lee wasn't as much of a deplorable creature as I originally thought he was.

The idea came slowly to me, it took a while. While spending time with him, I began to realize that there were other qualities to him that weren't just girls and parties.

He was funny, a hard worker, and a loyal friend, no matter what jokes Sungchan threw at him.

I began to think of him as less of an awkward acquaintance and more of a friend. I also began to pay more attention to him, and draw small conclusions about the things I witnessed.

I'll share my thoughts with you now.

It started at Donghyuck's house. The tan boy had made a comment about Jeno's tendencies to play around, and had jokingly asked him who the new girl was this week.

To all of our surprises, no girl was mentioned. The boy hadn't gone out or made out at all over the weekend for probably the first time in his high school career.

Then his schoolwork changed. As I sat next to him, I noticed he payed more attention, applied himself more.

As Jeno kept things to himself, I didn't know back then why the change had occurred, but it didn't take me long to find out.

My conclusion came one afternoon in the library.

Donghyuck and I were back having a study day, and as I had no interest in the subject, my attention would occasionally wander. One time in particular, I was focused on something out the window, until I heard a laugh from the table in front of it.

To my complete and utter surprise, Jeno was actually smiling, hooked on a story that his tutor was telling. For the first time, I saw their shared eye contact, and my friend didn't appear to wish for death.

The odd pairing was like a movie to me. I watched with a smile as Jeno shared a good score he had gotten on a recent assignment. I marveled at the way he got all flustered when Jaemin congratulated him, wrapping his overjoyed tutor arms around the boy's wide shoulders.

My conclusion? Jeno had it bad.

I had to pretend I had no idea what he was referring to when he sat next to me in math one day, completely distracted.

I watched as he was zoned out, eyes trained on a shirt in front of us the same azure shade as his tutor's fluffy locks.

"Jeno?" The boy was fighting some battle, that was obvious. "Are you ok?"

Slowly turning to me, I met the eyes of a broken, confused man. "Shotaro, can I ask you something?"

Why on earth would I turn down that offer?

"Hypothetically." Jeno started, but stopped himself. "I have this friend."

I couldn't wait to see what kind of story he would spin for me.

"See, my friend used to hate this person at his school. Couldn't stand him." Jeno's gaze wandered from mine, his thoughts racing. "But now, he looks forward to seeing this person. He gets all excited, and he worries about the dumbest things, like how his hair looks and if this person will like his cologne."

Jeno's brow furrowed, finally snapping out of it. "What does that mean?"

What a sweet, innocent boy. I couldn't help but tease. Leaning forward, I raised a brow. "Sounds like your friend and this person have pretty good chemistry together."

The emphasis on the word made Jeno's eyes grow wide. Glancing around, he made sure nobody was in earshot. When he met my eyes, his miserable self shown through. "You didn't buy my story, huh?"

"Not even a little bit." I shrugged, keeping it honest.

Burying his head in his hands, Jeno just groaned. "Shotaro, I don't know what to do. Last week my thoughts were all sports and how the cheerleaders looked in their new uniforms, and now I'm actually paying attention in class so some kid will give me another hug."

Bless his heart, he was pathetic really.

"But you can't tell anyone. Even our friends." In a second, his tone changed to dead serious. I feared what would happen if I crossed him.

Still, there was no harm in teasing him.

Perhaps he saw my mischievous look, because his voice dropped to a whisper, his eyes sharp. "If you breathe a word of this to anyone, I'll tell Hyuck all about how you were holding hands with Sungchan the other night in the car."

Jeno didn't come to play, I should have realized that long before.

"You knew?" I can't imagine how dumb I looked, my eyes probably bulging out of my head. I glanced behind us to an oblivious Sungchan for help, but he was clueless, then currently making all the girls around him laugh with his jokes.

Jeno just smiled, a look of evil, not friendship. "You two are so obvious."

I ignored his superiority complex, holding out a peaceful hand. "I'll keep your secret if you keep mine?"

Luckily for me, Jeno was reasonable. He nodded, taking no time to consider the offer. "You've got yourself a deal."