𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐲

chapter 43

The following Monday is when you finally go back to school, the same day as Suho and Seojun. The school had let you take a leave of absence once you told them your mother was in the hospital. You had been reluctant to go back to school so soon but your mother convinced you, feeling guilty that you had already missed so much because of her and wanting you to get back as soon as possible. You eventually agreed, only after checking with Seojun's mother if it was possible for her to check in on her while you're at school. She agreed, telling you not to worry. She reassured you that she will make sure your mother has everything she needs and that she will keep her company too. You greatly appreciate the help, because it means she won't be too lonely while you're at school.

You're a little worried about all the work you missed because you know it's going to take some time to catch up, but luckily your friends had been sending you whatever you missed and reassuring you that they will help you out as much as they can which you're grateful for. Your mother is already doing a lot better, but you put her on a strict bed rest, making sure that all she has to worry about it getting her strength back.

When you walk into class, Seojun is already in his seat. You wave at him excitedly and he throws you a little smile in response before leaning down to sleep. The sight makes you giggle to yourself, it's been less than five minutes and he's already sleeping. Your classmates all run over when they see you enter, your friends hugging you and asking how you're doing.

They all usher you over to your seat before surrounding you, Sua still clinging to you which makes you smile.
"How's your mum doing?" Hyeongyu asks, and you nod.
"She's doing a lot better now, thank you." Everybody lets out a collective sigh of relief at your words. They were all genuinely worried about you when they heard what had happened, and they missed their cheery classmate while you were gone. It felt so quiet when you weren't there.

Suho enters the classroom a few minutes later and everyone is gobsmacked at the sight of him and Seojun actually having a normal conversation. You can't stop grinning from ear to ear, and when Suho walks to his seat Seojun looks over to see the smirk on your face. Stop smiling like that, he mouths to you with a huff. You just shake your head and stick your tongue out at him mockingly. You laugh at his embarrassment, and because you still have some time before class starts you walk over to his desk.

"You're already sleeping?" you ask, chuckling at the sight as you reach your hand towards his face to poke his cheek. Seojun grabs your hand out of reflex, and you gasp as the two of you stare at each other for a moment, frozen in place. When you remember where you are, you cough awkwardly before pulling your hand back.
"Erm, I have to go to the teacher's office," you say, quickly leaving the room while Seojun just clears his throat in embarrassment.

As you walk through the corridor you mentally scold yourself, why would you do that? At the same time, Seojun just hits his own hand before leaning down and closing his eyes again, his ears bright red. Your classmates all watch the interaction with smirks of their own, amused at how oblivious the two of you are.

The first big change that everybody notices at school is the lack of animosity between Seojun and Suho, almost as if the two boys were now... friends? Your classmates are all in shock at the sight of the two actually being civil and talking to one another, but they're also pleasantly surprised by the fact that you and Seojun seem to be talking again too. You seem a lot happier when they see you, and the two of you seem close, if not closer than you were before.

They had noticed the way you seemed to not be talking to Seojun recently, and they also noticed how unhappy you looked. Recently everybody had realised that the bubbly adorable classmate of there's had suddenly become distracted and reserved, but they're glad you seem to be doing a lot better.

You return to class shortly after, just in time to greet your homeroom teacher.
"Y/N, Seojun, Suho, it's good to have you all back," he says once everyone is seated, and you smile. Your classmates all erupt into cheers of agreement, causing you to laugh.
"Our happy virus is back!" It's good to be back, you think with a smile on your face.

At lunch, you all sit around the cafeteria table where Soojin saved you all seats. You sit beside Jugyeong, taking a quick glance at Soojin, still confused about her behaviour in the hospital a few days before. You all chat happily, catching up on a lot of gossip you missed in the time that you were gone. You also notice there's a new student sitting beside Soojin, since you don't recognise her.

"Hello," you say softly with a kind smile on your face, "I'm Y/N, and you are..." She returns your smile and tells you that her name is Joo Hyemin.
"She's from Yongpa," Soojin tells everyone and you nod in understanding, trying to think about where you've heard that name before. When Soojin suddenly asks Jugyeong what school she transferred from, that's when you realise. Your eyes widen as you turn to see her looking tense. She must be related to Jugyeong's bullies in some way, if she's looking this nervous. You quickly try to think of a way to get the attention off Jugyeong.

"I'm a transfer student too," you blurt out, and everyone turns to you in interest. Luckily the conversation shifts so the attention is no longer on Jugyeong, but you don't hesitate to glare at Soojin when everybody starts chatting amongst themselves again. You don't understand what Soojin's trying to do, but she's really starting to irritate you now. You don't know how she figured out your feelings for Seojun but she blatantly used it against you in the hospital. You've never seen her act like this before.

Jugyeong leaves a few minutes later, claiming that she's not feeling hungry anymore, and you get up to follow her.
"Watch yourself," you mumble quietly to Soojin as you walk past her, causing her to scoff. You throw her one last glare before leaving to find Jugyeong. You find her in the bathroom, and she confirms your suspicions by explaining by telling you that Hyemin was related to the bullies that used to bother her in her old school. You try to comfort her, but she's quick to reassure you that she's fine and thanks you for helping her out. She leaves after a few minutes, telling you that she just needs some air.

You step into a cubicle, needing to use the toilet, but you pause when you hear voices. You recognise one to be Soojin.
"Do you really not know or are you just playing dumb?" you hear her ask.
"What do you mean?" You realise the person she's speaking to must be Hyemin. You clench your fists in anger as you listen, but Soojin's next words anger you completely.
"Can makeup really change people to the point that they become unrecognisable?"

You can't focus at all in class after that. You write down what the teacher says but your thoughts are elsewhere, just glancing over in irritation at Soojin every few minutes. You spend the rest of the afternoon trying to rack your brain for reasons why she may be acting this way, and when the realisation finally hits you your eyes widen. How can she be so willing to break a friendship over a boy? you ask yourself, the realisation making you even angrier.

When the final lesson of the day is over, you pack your belongings away quickly before shooting out of your seat. You walk over to Soojin, standing behind her desk until she finally looks up to see the angry expression on your face. She smiles up at you but you both know it's fake.
"I need to talk to you," you tell her, "follow me." You exit the room before she can even respond, causing her to scoff lightly. She remains in her seat for a few seconds before finally packing her bag and leaving to follow you outside.

You walk past Seojun on your way out the room, the boy looking at you worriedly. He could see your annoyed expression as you left, as well as the glances you kept throwing across the room throughout the lesson. Usually you focus on your work during lessons mostly, every so often joking around with him across the room, but today you didn't even look at him once. When you get up and walk over to Soojin without so much as a glance towards him, he loses the chance to ask you what's going on. At the sight of the anger on your face and the way your fists are tightly clenched, he grabs his belongings before quickly following after the two of you.