𝗶 𝘄𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝗶'𝗺 𝗶𝗻 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 (𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙨𝙤 𝙘𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧) | 𝙝𝙖𝙤𝙗𝙞𝙣

i

Hanbin was casually setting up his desk in the teachers' lounge, when the principal came inside, with a man he had never seen before in tow. He wore black glasses, looked really young, and Hanbin instantly thought he was cute.

'So the reason I've gathered you all here today is that we are welcoming a new intern teacher among us.' Said the principal while slightly looking at the younger man who was standing next to him.
— 'Hello everyone, my name is Zhang Hao and I'm 25 years old. I just got my bachelor's degree in early childhood education and before that, I was a music teacher. I'm looking forward to working with you.'

He bowed deeply and smiled at everyone. He has such a bright smile, though Hanbin. Their age gap is pretty small so at that moment, he hoped that everything between them would go smoothly.

— 'Right, said the principal, since you're only an intern, I thought that it would be a great idea to pair you up with someone experienced, and I know Hanbin would be a good choice. What do you two think?'

The principal looked at the two young men, waiting for an answer. But Hanbin had no idea what he should tell her, because he couldn't make such an important decision on the spot. He looked up from his chair and saw that his new coworker looked slightly embarrassed. He probably had the exact same facial expression at that moment. So he nodded awkwardly and the word 'yes' rolled out of his mouth.

Hanbin never really knew how to say 'no' to anyone. Maybe he was a bit of a people pleaser, but it never actually caused him problems. But that was until Zhang Hao came into his life.

[...]

This was that one time when Hanbin should have answered 'no'. Since Zhang Hao and he started to work together, his life had 'spiraled into hell' as he had described to his best friend Matthew, with whom he talked a few days ago.

You see, Hanbin had the reputation of being the best teacher in the school. Everyone agreed to it after the first year he spent within his current school, because not only was he an amazing teacher praised by every parent, but he was also a really charming coworker. He never spoke badly of anyone and was always ready to help out. Thus, that's why the staff as a whole agreed to nominate him as the best teacher.

At first, he took it as a casual joke, but after a while, he started to like this unofficial title and went along with it. He didn't want to be arrogant but somehow, he took pride in the fact that a lot of his coworkers looked up to him when they had been doing this job for more than a decade, while he barely had two years of experience.

When Zhang Hao started to work with him, he somehow instantly snatched this title from him. Hanbin knew he was acting childish, but that was the only way he could describe how he had been feeling for the past week.

Despite being only an intern, Hanbin had to admit that this guy was excellent with children. He could see in the way he acted around them, helping them put on their coats and jackets and speaking softly to them with so much kindness, that Hanbin sometimes wished he had been treated the same way when he was a child.

Zhang Hao just seemed so perfect, that it started to annoy him. Not only did he get super close with Hanbin's students, but he was also liked by all their parents. On top of that, he also got along with the rest of the staff in the blink of an eye. Hanbin could clearly remember during recess, on the first day of his internship, when all the teachers had gathered up in the middle of the schoolyard and started to chat with each other. Zhang Hao looked really awkward and slightly embarrassed and stayed mostly silent. A little girl suddenly came to Hanbin, crying because she hurt her knee. He took her to their nurse's office and when he returned, he found everyone chatting happily, including Zhang Hao.

Since then, Hanbin started to feel that Zhang Hao had taken his place.

'Hyung, I think you're just jealous and maybe overthinking the situation a bit, don't you think?' Matthew had said when Hanbin told him the full story the last time they hung out. 'You know you're not that easy to replace.'

Hanbin scoffed lightly.

— 'I know, I know', he said jokingly. 'It's just that he's so effortlessly good, that's kinda unfair.'

Though Hanbin loved his best friend and really appreciated that he tried to make him feel better, he couldn't help but feel jealous.

☼ ｡ :*•. ─────.•*: ｡ ✧

hi there
i have an appointment in like ten minutes and a train for paris to catch later on, but i chose to update this instead
anyway, let me know your thoughts about this ?