seven 》nct dream

24

When you're used to something running rampant in your life, it's easily noticeable when it disappears. 

Renjun knows this to be true at lunch one afternoon, a certain silence was overtaking the atmosphere. Spread out on the roof, the group was all present, small talk being shared, but something about it felt so quiet, it almost made him uneasy. 

Then it hit him, what was missing.

Donghyuck's obnoxious comments. 

The tan boy was propped up against the wall, chewing on carrot sticks with his eyes off in space. Renjun would account the silence to a certain Canadian's presence, but he knew that wasn't it. There were none of the usual glares being sent in the president's direction, and the two had actually been getting on cordially lately, though Donghyuck would never admit it. It was something else that was pressing on the rebel's mind. 

"Have you ever considered bringing your own lunch or are you just content stealing mine?" Chenle laughed, eyeing the lanky boy beside him. 

Jisung didn't merit this with an audible answer, he just took another item from the Zhong's lunch tray, eyes challenging the Chinese.

Though one might be annoyed with the thievery, Renjun could see the hint of a smile that Chenle was attempting to hide. 

The lack of communication wasn't the only thing that Renjun was picking up on. On the wall opposite him sat Jeno and Jaemin, much closer than usual and sharing the occasional grin, like they knew a secret the rest of the group hadn't picked up on yet. The Huang pretended not to notice the way Jaemin's face turned rosy whenever Jeno's hand would 'accidentally' brush against his own. 

Some people just think they're so slick. 

Instead of pointing out the romantic and sappy elephant in the room like he so wanted to do, Renjun turned his attention to the matter at hand, saving the exposing for another day. 

"Hyuck, you're quiet, and it's worrying me." The Huang took a sip of the juice he had purchased last hour. He had been trying to get chips from the vending machine, but the thing had other plans. Successfully gaining his defiant friend's attention, Renjun's head tilted. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." The obvious, immediate response. Seeing that he had everyone's attention and no one believed him, Donghyuck grumbled the truth, trying not to roll his eyes at his nosy friends. "I spoke to the school counselor this morning. She wasn't too ecstatic about my future."

"What about it?" Though Renjun had never heard Donghyuck mention college plans or career ideas, he was sure things couldn't be that bad. "You've got plenty of potential."

"Yeah, but it'll be a while before I can show it." A despondent sigh came from the boy, who was in no mood to display his usual energetic self. "She says with the course I'm on, I won't graduate."

The statement was unexpected to the group, no one knowing quite how to respond. 

"Apparently skipping majority of my classes and landing myself in detention every day isn't too helpful to my academics." They had never seen Donghyuck so depressed, it was worrying. The boy wasn't himself without those deep brown eyes creased in amusement and his signature teasing smile. "I've managed to get by in my other classes, but I tried taking the practice math test yesterday and bombed it. I've missed too much to be able to understand the final, which puts me at taking the class again next year."

"How long until you have to take the real final?" Jeno spoke up, words clear enough despite his mouth being full. 

Glancing over, Donghyuck spoke the words like a death sentence, counting down till his life was over. "Two weeks."

The news was good to the few who saw an easy solution, Renjun being one of them. "I'll just tutor you. It's what I do every day anyway, you'll be fine."

Donghyuck gave the older boy an incredulous look, eyes narrowed. "You're going to teach me a semester's worth of material in two weeks? Not to mention getting it to stick in my head."

"Give me a chance." Renjun pleaded, quite excited for the endeavor. Moving to the tan boy's side, he tried to sell his services. "Please, Hyuck. If you hate my help, we'll stop."

Donghyuck would never turn down assistance, he just didn't want Renjun, the one person who could stand him, to realize how much of a loser he really was. "Alright, fine."

"Sweet." The Huang grinned, shaking the younger boy's arm in anticipation. "We'll start today, after school." 

Though Donghyuck wasn't one to show appreciation outright, he was eternally grateful. Luckily for him, Renjun knew this well and could hear the hushed 'thank you' over the wind blowing around them.

Having solved that issue, the group member who had remained silent so far had another matter of business.

Clearing his throat, Mark sat up, all eyes turning to him. "Towards the end of the semester, the school hosts a party for the student council to celebrate another school year completed. It's pretty big, this time they're renting out the amusement park for a night."

While the event sounded massive to Jeno for such a small organization, he knew how big of a pull the student council had, how important they were to the school.

"We're allowed to invite someone, so I'm inviting all of you." Mark leaned forward, arms resting on his knees.

Glancing around, Renjun was confused. "All six of us? Is that allowed?"

"Of course." Mark laughed at the curiosity like the answer was obvious. "Being president has its perks."