Under the pouring rain, they stared at each other in dismay. The lines of the two's faces stiffened. One of them seemed to be clenching his fists, trying not to explode. While others, try their best not to be weak.
Under the sky that seemed to want...
Seoham found the paper in his desk drawer that morning as soon as he arrived. His seatmate had been missing since he arrived and he didn't want to ask anyone and a commotion ensued. After looking at the contents of the paper, Seoham thought he knew who the author was. He folded the paper and put it in his pants. The morning seemed brighter.
Shortly after the bell rang, Jaechan came in with Seungyoun who was laughing at something which made Seoham curious and suspicious.
Was Jaechan telling Seungyoon about his embarrassment?
Were the two of them making fun of his parents?
Did Jaechan think the problem was just a joke?
Seoham thought about it. He stared at Jaechan until the boy sat down on the bench next to him.
"Seungyoun go to your class!" Teacher Kim shouted and asked Seungyoun to stop standing in front of the class while smiling stupidly.
"Sir, can I study in this class next week? Looks like I fell in love with your student there." Jaechan's classmates laughed at Seungyoun's absurd remark.
"Although love is boundless, I'm sure Jaechan still has the common sense to accept you. Now, go back to your classroom!" Teacher Kim threw the blackboard with the eraser at Seungyoun, causing the boy to run away.
Seoham grew suspicious that Jaechan had confided in Seungyoun about his problem. He crumpled the paper in his pants pocket and looked at Jaechan in disbelief.
Jaechan looked back from his seat. "WTF?!"
***
After the first class ended and the next class was empty, Seoham decided to stay awake and pay attention to Jaechan's movements which he found strange since morning. In his eyes, the boy wasn't his usual self - although he was a little pretentious since they weren't close. Jaechan seemed to be avoiding him and was very quiet. Was Jaechan's worry a few nights ago just a bunch of nonsense? Was he confused by the boy's attitude? Seoham didn't have a chance until free time ended.
The two were silent as they listened to the art teacher's explanation.
Seoham was surprised when his two friends sitting in the front seats turned around and smiled annoyingly.
"Get lost!" Seoham said breaking the gaze he was giving Jaechan.
"Just go away!" Jaechan called out.
"You better listen carefully Park Seoham. We are a team now."
"Is there nothing better than being in a group with you two?" Seoham smirked while pointing his chin towards Jonghyeong and Kyungyoon. "I want to talk to Jaechan alone. Can't you guys go to the other side of the earth?" Seoham turned the shoulders of his two friends to face forward.
"We're having a discussion." Jaechan whispered, reluctant to respond expressively. He wanted to get the discussion underway and over with quickly. Seoham was wasting his time.
"Do you think that my problem is a joke?" Seoham went straight to the point. He wasn't worried about the two friends on the desk in front of him overhearing his conversation.
"Do I look like I'm laughing about it?" Jaechan asked back as he double-checked the explanation of the group project in his notes.
"This morning you gave me this and then I saw you laughing with Seungyoun as if it was a joke. Then Seungyoun teased you by saying he was in love with you in front of the class. A man expressing his interest in another man in front of everyone even though it was a joke. I'm guessing that you guys just wanted to make fun of me." Seoham became angry and didn't realize that his voice had risen.
Jaechan looked at the classmates who were paying attention to Seoham. He sighed and kicked Seoham's chair. "Come with me to the library," he insisted. "Kyungyoon, I'm going to look for books as reference material in the library. Can you guess what materials we need and write them down while we're both gone?" he asked.
“Of course.”
Seoham and Jaechan walked hand in hand. Seoham couldn't wait to talk about his anger when Jaechan seemed very lazy to correct things that Seoham had misunderstood.
"Finally, why do I feel burdened by the misunderstanding he feels?" Jaechan thought. He shook his head repeatedly. "Think of it as your concern, Jaechan. That's it."
They arrived at the library and chose a rather quiet corner.
Jaechan sat on a nearby bench while Seoham stood leaning against the window frame.
"How do you explain your attitude?" Seoham. spoke impatiently.
"First, we are not close. Second, I'm not interested in sharing other people's stories with others. Third, I am in a hurry. Fourth, you yourself are speculating about all sorts of things. Don't pretend to make decisions about anything that isn't yours. You're always suspicious, right?"
"So what?" Seoham took out a crumpled piece of paper. "In class, then. "
Jaechan sighed. "My form of concern. It seems that last night you talked about something with your father. So this is my way of encouraging you to stop putting on that tired face like you're fasting. Life isn't fair. Enjoy it."
Jaechan stood up and started looking for a reference book when Seoham pulled him closer.
"Do you care about me?" Seoham asked quietly, not intending to release his grip on Jaechan's wrist.
"Actually, I'd rather hit you." Jaechan let go of Seoham's hand from his wrist and took a few steps back. “Now, instead of busying ourselves, it's better if we look for a book suitable for our task.” Seoham was still in his place and didn't move an inch from his eyes, looking at Jaechan.
“I'm too cute to be loved by Seungyoun anyway. So stop thinking negative." Jaechan moved away leaving Seoham who was unconsciously smiling at how coquettish Jaechan was being.
"I guess I'm just jealous," he muttered while ruffling his hair.
* * *
Jaechan's letter for Seoham
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