Ice Cream | NoMin

Chapter 18

Tension hung heavy in the air as Jeno faced the woman who had always been a pillar of authority in his life - his mother. Her stern gaze clashed with his defiant one, the undercurrent of an unspoken battle raging between them.

"I can't believe it! Why were you together? Why are you hanging out with that boy? Didn't I told you before to stay away from him? What did he tell you for you to not listen to me? It's so obvious that he is a bad influence for you!"

Jeno mess his hair up as he looks back at his mother who's furious. He knew he shouldn't talk back and he's not even planning to do that.

However, stating so to Jaemin is not acceptable. Jeno isn't looking forward to this since he knows deep down that his heart won't be able to handle it.

"Don't say that to him, please. He's not that kind of person." He said softly, trying not to stress his mother out.

"I've seen this before," his mother's voice dripped with ice as she spoke of Jaemin, her eyes gleaming with something akin to disdain. "He's using you. He will try to befriend you and find your weakness and when he finds it, he will use it against you!"

Jeno's jaw clenched, his knuckles white as he held onto the strap of his bag. The memory of the countless hours he and Jaemin had spent studying side by side, the laughter they had shared, and the unbreakable bond they had formed came flooding back. He couldn't stand to hear his mother's words pierce through that connection.

"You don't understand," he managed to rasp out, his voice wavering only slightly. "Jaemin's my friend. He's been with me through everything and he's not using me. You don't have an idea how great and kind he is." And you have no idea how happy I am when I'm with him.

A mirthless laugh escaped his mother's lips, sending shivers down Jeno's spine. "Friends like him are the first to stab you in the back when they see an opportunity, Jeno. Don't be naive."

The weight of her words bore down on him like a suffocating blanket, crushing his spirit. It was true that Jaemin had always been right behind him together with his friends in terms of achievements, even those times that they're not talking to each other and Jeno had never felt threatened by it. Until now.

A single tear slid down Jeno's cheek, his vision blurring as the turmoil inside him intensified. "No... you're wrong," he whispered, his voice cracking. "Jaemin's not like that."

Jeno's mom's gaze grew gentle as she caught sight of her son's teary eyes. She was kind of baffled about his behavior, yet her heart twinged since she'd witnessed this exact scene with her older son, Jaehyun, before. A memory flashed in her mind of Jaehyun in the same situation for the same reason.

Could it be?

Why is this happening to them?

Jeno's shoulders trembled as the dam he had built to hold back his emotions finally broke. The floodgates opened, and he crumpled into a chair, his hands covering his face as he wept. The weight of his mother's words and the fear of losing Jaemin crushed him, a storm of conflicting emotions raging inside him.

"Why?" he questioned. "Why do you really hate him? You barely know him. I'm confused about why you don't like him, and why you think I should too. We've been classmates for years, and he's never done anything mean to me."

"I'm just worried about you, Jeno." She said firmly. "He's not doing anything now, later he will so stay away from him as soon as possible."

Jeno shakes his head.

"Just why, mom?"

Jeno's eyes are locked on his mom, anticipation hanging in the air as she stands before him, her words caught in uncertainty. His brow furrows, a whirlwind of confusion swirling in his mind. What's the deal with all of this? It's like he's flipping through a puzzle book without a clue, unable to unravel the mystery no matter how hard he squints at the pages.