CORRUPTED

𝘰𝘯𝘦

𝐂𝐎𝐑𝐑𝐔𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐃
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a bitter december night

the sky an abyss of darkness, and

snow

red snow

falling from above,

the icy flakes

landing on your face.

the frigid wind hit your cheeks,

and nearly froze the tears that stained them.

✩✩✩

you quickly ducked into the door of the main building on campus, sheltering yourself from the summer rain. taking your hood down and fixing your hair, you glanced around the lobby of the large school. scanning the space quickly, you looked for him, but didn't see him anywhere. disappointed, you checked the time on your watch and started the walk to your classroom, which was all the way in the back of the building. the whole way there, you looked around for him, down every corridor and inside every room. nowhere.

you reached your class door and swung it open, revealing a lecture hall of students waiting for the professor. you looked around the room for your friend, and heard somebody call your name. "[name]!" hoseok hissed, motioning you over to a seat towards the right side of the room. you smiled and rushed over to him, slipping into the chair next to his. "hey. how'd your weekend go? is hojoon still sick?" you asked him as you placed your jacket on the chair back. "not anymore. you should've seen it, mom told him that if he was really sick, he'd have to go to the doctors. he was up and out of bed so fast, you would've thought jesus christ had just performed a miracle." hoseok laughed. you chuckled. "honestly, i can't blame him for that. i hate going to the doctor."

hoseok laughed again, and you glanced more around the room. "looking for your prince charming?" he asking in a teasing tone. you whipped back around at hoseok, who was smiling playfully at your antsy state. "don't say that so loud." you scolded, "but yes. he said we'd go out again today, to this park he knows. we're going to see the trees one last time before fall starts." you said, beaming. he gave you a tender smile. "well, i hope things go well between you guys. you deserve it." he said, nodding as he spoke.

you smiled back at him just as the teacher entered the room. she greeted the class dryly as her high heels clicked along the tile floors. just before the wooden door could fall shut, another blank-faced student grabbed it and trudged into the room. he stood tall, his height reaching just below the door frame. he had fluffy, jet black hair, that was damp from the storm outside. raindrops ran down the front of his sleek jacket and his shoes left a wet trail of footprints behind him.

it was him

trying to look nonchalant and preoccupied, you quickly focused your attention on the materials in front of you. meanwhile, you were furiously kicking hoseok underneath the table, and you heard him stifle a laugh. the sound of his squeaky wet shoes on the tile floor was louder than the teacher's talking, which put all the focus on him--something that would've made you nervous. but he walked without a care in the world, towards the back of the room.

as he passed your chair, he shot you a charming smile, and lightly squeezed your shoulder--quickly enough that nobody would remember in a few seconds, but long enough for you to remember. you returned his smile, and just like that, he was at the back of the lecture hall. waiting a few seconds, to make sure he wasn't watching you, you spun around to hoseok.

he was already glancing in your direction, and when your eyes met his, he smiled excitedly. you returned his grin with a giddy one of your own, and tried to refocus your attention back to the presentation in front of you. as hard as you tried, your thoughts wouldn't stop rushing, the butterflies wouldn't leave your stomach, and there was probably an eternal blush spread on your face.

this feeling made you feel like you were in high school again, when you first noticed him. you had a crush on him for all four years, and when you found out you'd being going to the same college, almost exploded from the excitement. you took it upon yourself to get him to notice you, to like you, or even to give you some sort of acknowledgement. and last year, after working up the courage to interact and make small talk with him, you grew closer. he treated you like a princess, always buying you new things and offering to take you places.

what shocked you the most about his sudden interest is that you weren't even dating yet. as of now, you guys were still just friends. his behavior as just a friend made you wonder, what kind of guy is he in a relationship?

you had a feeling that the burning question in your mind was going to be answered soon, and that you were going to make it official within the next few days. he told you that he wanted to go to a park and see the flowers again before they all died in the fall, and said he made plans to spend the rest of the afternoon together after that. what else could that possibly mean?

you fought the urge to squeal and kick your feet as you pondered the situation.

everything was going so well...

what could possibly go wrong?

✩✩✩
𝐂𝐎𝐑𝐑𝐔𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐃