FOR THE FUTURE ⋮ nohyuck/markhyuck/markhyuckno

Chapter Five

Donghyuck came into a lecture room only when a minute or two were left. He avoided looking around and sat on the first empty chair he spotted. Although he was never affected by the chairs put into a circle, that day, he felt exceptionally irritated. He realized he sat right in front of Renjun and Jaemin, and one of them even started at him.

"Oh, Lee Donghyuck," the professor said as he walked inside. "How are you? You could've taken another day off."

"I'm fine, Professor," Donghyuck faked a smile, trying to prove it and end the conversation as he was getting attention.

Thankfully, the professor must've understood it and started the class, turning everyone's attention elsewhere. It was the worst class if you ask Donghyuck. They had to do a presentation on the composed song, explain it shortly, and give a few motives for why they wrote it. Donghyuck found out this only just now, as Renjun and Jaemin no longer reminded him about academic stuff. It was great that the boy was quick-witted and could plan everything just in a few seconds.

"The main theme of my song is my doubts about my future," Donghyuck said after he read a few lines he thought explained the concept. "How a few words or even the slightest action can distort it and turn it into a fate worse than death."

As he presented, he looked at everyone but Renjun and Jaemin. These two also didn't look at him, which made Donghyuck's time a little easier.

"That's a very interesting concept, Lee Donghyuck," the professor commented. "Actually, when I first read your song, I thought it'd be cute and bright. But this is different. You showed your other side. I'm impressed."

Donghyuck smiled and thanked him for the compliments. It seemed like with a face like this, he fooled everyone into thinking that he was always cute and optimistic. What a lie...

"Why don't we listen to you, Na Jaemin?"

"I wrote a song about betrayal."

Donghyuck locked his eyes on the floor. Suddenly, the mood about compliments that made him happy just a few seconds ago melted away.

Jaemin read a few verses that sounded like an indirect monologue to Donghyuck. In his song, he expressed pain and disbelief that someone so close and reliable could become unpredictable.

"I told you this before, but I'll gladly repeat it," the professor said with a subtle smile. "The best songs are when the words come right out of your heart. Don't be scared to share something personal as it'd make the song more realistic, which would affect its listener."

That was true. Donghyuck used to hear that if an author cries while writing, his readers will cry too. This same belief could be adapted to composing songs.

"I'm glad you two listened to my advice and didn't hesitate to write about yourself and your minds. In the last course, only your senior Lee Mark composed a song, using his own experience and thoughts. If you'd like, I can show you his work after class. That was a masterpiece."

Donghyuck chuckled under his nose. No matter where he was―in a singing class, or dancing, or even watching baseball―everyone mentioned Mark. He was indeed one of a kind to ace both courses and leave everyone impressed.

The brunette fell deep into his thoughts as he continued staring at the floor. He didn't hear how other students presented as he suddenly felt anxious. Clenching his fists, Donghyuck looked up, trying to listen to what a female student said about her song. He started at her lips, and heard her words, but couldn't understand anything. It was like they were just a system of sounds with no meaning.

Right after this class, he had to meet Jeno and tell him about Mark and what happened. But Donghyuck felt like it was too much for him to do. He thought that taking a few days off would help him fight off the negativity and passive way of taking action. It turns out, it didn't. It took enough strength for him to show up in this lecture, talk, and listen. Donghyuck was exhausted. Maybe he should meet Jeno tomorrow?