ZB1/ZeroBaseOne Oneshots

My rival | Matthew x Taerae

There's always that one person everyone collectively agrees is perfect. You know, the type of person who all the teachers love. The one that aces every test. The kind of guy who'd turn up to school during a hurricane and not have a single hair out of place. They avoid controversy, they have tons of friends, and you can guarantee, they'll probably become some sort of philanthropist in the future, ending global warming once and for all. How can you hate a person like that? It only makes you look like the scum of the earth. 

Well, Seok Matthew wouldn't dare to let anyone know how much he despised Star Academy's golden boy. It would completely ruin his own reputation. Everyone saw him as this friendly, hardworking ray of sunshine, and he wasn't looking to replace that any time soon. He could admit that this rivalry was petty, especially since his rival wasn't even aware of it. However, he'd spent years angrily watching him from the sidelines, this wasn't something he could simply shake off. 

It all started on the first day of high school. He assumed that he'd slot right in at the top of Star Academy's social and academic hierarchy, just as he was in his middle school. Unfortunately for him, there was someone else destined to take that spot. Throughout the entirety of his first day, all he heard people talking about was this boy called Kim Taerae, and from that day on, they never stopped. At first, Matthew didn't mind being second best, or even third, as long as he was somewhere at the top. Although, he soon learned that no one could even come close to the shinning star that was Kim Taerae.

Sure he was amazing, but Matthew just couldn't wrap his head around why everyone considered him the best thing since sliced bread. 

"Did you hear about this?" A flyer slaps down in front of Matthew, snapping him out of his daily internal rant about Taerae. His eyes veer down to the flyer, then up to the person who put it there. Obviously his best friend, Sung Hanbin, was standing across from him. He looks down to the flyer again, this time he picks it up and reads it over. It seemed to be a flyer for the senior talent show.

"So is he gonna enter?" His other friend, Zhang Hao, questions as he walks over, carrying a lunch tray in his hands.

"We haven't talked about it yet." Hanbin says, sitting down across from Matthew. Hao takes the seat beside him.

"Should I even bother? We all know who will win." Matthew huffs, putting the flyer back down on the table. Hanbin and Hao were the only people who knew about Matthew's disdain towards Taerae, which is why they didn't need to question who Matthew was talking about.

Though, Hao did seem a bit confused about something. "I didn't think Taerae would enter, does he have a talent?"

"Yeah, he sings and plays guitar. He played that charity fundraiser for the local pet shelter a few months ago."

"Wow, you keep close tabs on him don't you?" Hao smirks. "Anyone would think you're in love with him." 

Matthew instantly rolls his eyes. "Can you stop saying that?" This wasn't the first time Hao had made that implication. "I never have and never will love Kim Taerae alright? He's my rival that's all."

"Okay okay, we're straying from the main point," Hanbin interjects, eager to get this conversation back on topic. He points to the flyer. "You should enter, the winner gets a special page in the year book. I think you've got a good chance of winning."

"I don't know..." Matthew mumbles. He felt hopeless, because no matter how hard he'd work, Taerae would probably win like he always does. Though that prize was tempting. It would give him something to look back upon proudly, and he'd have the pleasure of knowing he beat Taerae. 

"Just think about it." 

____

After a full day of thought, Matthew decided to go for it. What was the point in giving up this early? Winners never quit and quitters never win. He needed to back himself, deep down he believed he was good enough to beat Taerae. So, once school had ended for the day, he headed off to find his music teacher Mrs Choi.