LUNCHBOX FRIENDS | changlix

.23

felix was doomed.

fully, utterly doomed.

"so, have you made any progress?" miss yang asked, tapping her nails on a wine glass. under these bright, led lights, each tiny wrinkle was fully visible, as though with each day felix strayed further from the end of the mission, she grew older. she kept on, "any tiny, minuscule progress?"

"i have," felix insisted, trying to explain but unable to. "but—"

"but i don't see any," she rebutted. "so, what have you done?"

"it's just—" felix sighed, propelling forward on the chair, containing the frustration inside his own body as opposed to busting out of the door screaming in madness. "whenever i break through something, more obstacles get in line to take me down!"

"let's not be dramatic here, felix." she put the glass down, untouched, still full of wine. felix's stomach churned just from thinking about alcohol. he would never drink a drop of it ever again! "i know it's not a simple job, especially for a student like you, but there's no other way. the police won't do it. it has to be you."

yeah, no pressure at all.

she rose from her chair, walking around the room. it was way neater than the first time she'd dragged him there, back then, this same room was full of dust particles and cobwebs clinging to the walls like icing. now, the hoarder-like mess was pushed clean into shelves and on top of desks. as if renovated, the walls were wiped clean and even whiter than before. she'd done a beautiful job on the place. maybe she was getting bored.

miss yang fished out an overpacked binder from one of the stack compartments, busting from its hinges. once she opened it, instead of a guff of dust to blow into felix's face, a photo of felix's biology teacher popped out, like in an interactive picture book. she showed it to him, almost plastering it onto felix's face.

"this is the face of the man corrupting your school, felix," she said. her nail tapped right at his face. "think of yourself, of your peers. think about jeongin."

"why won't jeongin do it?" felix chimed in. he'd had alcohol yesterday, a drop of rebellion in an ocean of obedience, but enough to poison the waters. he stuck up his chest, first time standing up against an adult. "why don't you make him be janet wilson? why me?"

felix doubted he was the chosen one, the golden child. felix wasn't cut out for an epic adventure, wasn't like the heroes of his childhood kids' animations. he was just felix, miss yang's son's friend.

"jeongin is a baby, felix," she said, "and he always will be, at least for me. you're much more down-to-earth, responsible, and strong. plus, i thought it'd benefit you greatly to have a hobby. it's no good for a boy your age to be cooped up at home alone."

of course. of course miss yang knew about his situation.

"well," felix said. then gulped. it wasn't like he was completely opposed to his given role although difficult and too time-consuming (and felix totally didn't use it to slack on some homework). he even made it into a sports team! "uh, well... gahh! okay, i'll try harder. i mean, harder than i am trying. i just want my efforts recognized!"

"and they will be," miss yang promised, shutting the book closed. "you're doing something noble, felix. and you have my full support. i did not have that, back then."

felix felt a pang in his stomach. he didn't know much about jeongin's extended family tree, didn't even know whether jeongin had a father or whether miss yang collected him from the golden beak of a stork. maybe the stork was his father. that'd explain a lot. regardless of how many years (all of them) felix had known miss yang and jeongin, he didn't know much other than the surface. it was like their life was an iceberg, and jeongin's big head was the tip of it.

"you might be in luck this next week." miss yang was using a phone—not the flip-up phone, but her own phone. felix watched her swipe and bang her fingers to the screen, a bit harder than needed, seeming too unfamiliar with the touch-screen. "your teacher's google docs have been updated. he's planning a field trip into the woods."

felix gaped. "what? maaaaan, why?" he whined, wishing for anything but that. going around school and scheming against his classmates? sure! joining a sport he'd never played before just to go undercover? sign him up! now, being set up to hike aimlessly around the forest—the very same forest that now used his vomit as fertilizer—in plain daylight, and expected to take notes while huffing and puffing... felix wished to never have been born. high school was the place where dreams went to die.

"it's no big deal, felix," miss yang said. "and, if all goes well and you do your job thoroughly, this might just be the end of it. how's that?"

is that it? felix thought, that's what people mean by 'hostile workplace?'

"fine," felix huffed. then sighed out loud. then slouched back and reached for his janet wilson phone, playing with the pink fluff of the keyring, cursing every god for the lack of games in the device.

suddenly, a loud creak surged from the door. felix's head snapped up, amazed at having miss yang be so angry at his attitude as to walk out of the room. but miss yang had the same alarmed body language, and dashed to the door at the same time a very familiar voice uttered, "mom?"