"Are you okay?" Minseok jumped from the sudden voice behind him. Baekhyun sat down next to him. Minseok looked over and gave a slight nod.
"He's lying." Lay interjected from Minseok's other side. Minseok elbowed him in the side.
"Thanks, man, I appreciate it." Minseok said sarcastically and Lay just shrugged.
"What happened, Minnie? Did you get hurt at all? Were they mad?" Baekhyun continued to ask Minseok. Lay spoke up again.
"Everyone was. Some showed it more than others though." He offered. Minseok obviously didn't want to talk right now, so Baekhyun continued his inquiries with the ready and willing Lay.
"Okay, who did what?" He asked.
"Well, I already knew, but Kris, Luhan, Zhoumi, Henry, and Vic were all pretty ticked. Amber and Tao were disappointed, but they weren't going to be dicks about it. But after class, Kris, Henry, and Luhan all tried to take Minseok to go beat him up, but then, Luhan let him go for some reason." Lay explained. Baekhyun furrowed his brows.
"Why on Earth would he do that?" He asked no one in particular.
"Because, he likes Kris more than Henry. And Kris' relationship with Tao was in danger. So, obviously, Luhan chose Kris over Henry, and also himself." All three boys turned their heads to the tall Chinese girl giving the explanation.
"Victoria, what are you doing here?" Lay asked as Victoria sat down next to him.
"I'm waiting for Zhoumi. He went to the bathroom, but he'll be out soon to drive us home." She explained absentmindedly. Minseok swallowed hard.
"Hey, Victoria, I'm sorry about ruining that class for all of you. I really didn't pick the class myself. I'll try to switch to Japanese or English tomorrow" Minseok apologized. Victoria leaned forward and looked over to him. Minseok couldn't read her face, but she didn't seem to be upset anymore.
"I don't care what you do. Personally, I'd recommend switching, for your own safety. But I don't care if you're in our class." She said complacently. Minseok raised his eyebrows.
"You aren't mad?" He asked. Victoria shrugged.
"Not particularly. I usually just read in that class anyway. And I already know everything so, I can still do that. The others are just being childish because they can't be complete barbarians to each other during a real class." She explained further. Minseok nodded with a seemingly unnoticeable smile. Minseok jumped a foot in the air when he heard Baekhyun cry out in surprise.
"You ASS! Don't scare me like that!" Baekhyun shouted at Chen who had just arrived.
"Hehe, sorry. Your scream was cute, though." Chen snickered. Baekhyun hit him in the shoulder as he sat down. Chen made a pouty face at his boyfriend, who in turn, kissed it away. Lay made a gagging face that made Victoria laugh. Minseok giggled a bit. Chen looked at him.
"So, how was your first day?" He asked cheerfully with his arm wrapped tightly around Baekhyun's shoulders. Minseok looked down.
"It was alright. For the most part. Well, not really. But, it was bearable." He finished honestly. Chen and Baekhyun frowned in unison.
"We're sorry about those Chinese kids. You don't deserve the shit they give you, Minnie." Chen comforted. Baekhyun elbowed him and pointed to Victoria. Chen smirked.
"Like I said, you don't deserve the shit those bratty Chinese ass holes give you." He repeated, a little louder. Victoria didn't move her attention away from her conversation with Lay. Chen frowned at her non existent reaction. Baekhyun hit him again.
"Don't be a dick! Victoria didn't do anything to him, actually." He explained. Chen shrugged. Minseok gave him a slightly disappointed look. All three Koreans shifted their glances over to a sudden ruckus coming from the right of Minseok.
"Hey! You don't have to be so forceful!" Victoria yelled at her older brother, who had yanked her from the place she sat with Lay and the other three boys. He gripped her arm tighter as he pulled her to his car.
"Damn it, Zhoumi, let up will you!" She shouted, drawing attention from all sides. Lay shot up, but didn't move from there. He wanted to go and help her, but he was too scared. He calmed his guilty mind with the excuse that Victoria was a big girl, and she could handle her brother just fine herself. Zhoumi pushed Victoria into the passenger seat of his car and got in the other side. Victoria huffed and crossed her arms.
"That was a real dick thing to do." She spat once he slid into his own seat.
"Why the hell were you sitting with that little shit?" He argued without addressing the previous comment.
"Who, Minseok? I can sit with whoever I want, Mi." She answered spitefully.
"I hate it so much when you are protective like this. You have no idea how annoying it is!" She continued. Zhoumi backed out from the curb and began driving. He sighed.
"I'm just trying to make sure you make good choices." He reasoned with a calmer voice than before. Victoria groaned.
"What's your problem with Koreans anyway? We go to a school filled with them. We live in a neighborhood filled with them. We live in a FUCKING COUNTRY FILLED WITH THEM! Why can't you learn to get along with them??" She shouted, losing her control. Zhoumi breathed out.
"I don't have a problem with Koreans, Qian. I just have a problem with Koreans who think they can do whatever they want and push us around. I don't want you hanging out with people who are going to treat you badly. We are a minority. We need to stay with our own kind." Zhoumi explained with a tone that could make anyone believe his reason. Victoria kicked the dashboard.
"There's nothing wrong with Minseok! I'm not saying I want to be all buddy buddy with him, or even be his friend at all, but there's no reason to be an ass hole to him! It isn't his fault that he was put in our class, so stop blaming him for it!" She shouted. Zhoumi put his hand on her leg in an attempt to calm her down. She quickly slapped it away.
"Don't fucking touch me! When you're an irrational, head strong, condescending douche bag, you don't get to touch me!' She screamed. Zhoumi scowled.
"Why are you getting so upset about this? You obviously don't care a great deal about this kid, so why are you reacting as if he's your best friend, huh?" He asked with a slightly raised voice. Victoria became quiet. She didn't really have an answer. Zhoumi sighed.
"Listen, dad asked me to pick up some milk and eggs for dinner tonight. I'll drop you off at home before I leave." He changed the subject. Victoria internally raged but spoke calmly.
"Don't call him that." She said quietly. Zhoumi raised an eyebrow.
"What? Dad?" He asked as they pulled up beside their house. Victoria lost her calm exterior.
"YES! Don't fucking call him that! He isn't your dad and he never will be! And your mom will never be my mom! EVER! So stop acting like we're a regular family! We aren't! Your mother hates me and I hate her and you aren't allowed to call my dad yours! Jesus Christ, not a day goes by that I don't wish your dad was still alive and my mom hadn't left! Then I'd never have had to meet you and never have had to move to this stupid fucking country AND LIVE WITH YOU AND YOUR MENTAL BITCH OF A MOTHER!!" Victoria screamed at the top of her lungs as she got out. She slammed the door shut as hard as she possibly could and ran to the front door. She let herself in and slammed the door shut with the same force as the car door. Victoria sobbed against the door and slid down until she was sitting on the floor. She buried her face into her knees and cried until she was just coughing and gasping for air.
Zhoumi gripped the steering wheel and tried to hold his tears back. He knew that Qian didn't really hate him or his mother has much as she sounded like she did. Her mother leaving was hard on her. Before she was an addict, she and Qian were very close. She loved her mom more than anything. Zhoumi couldn't really relate. He hated his father for what he had done to him and his mother. He was an angry drunk and it led to his own death. Zhoumi rested his head on the steering wheel and tried to calm down before he began driving again.
"I'll get her some chocolate. That usually works." He said to himself before putting the car back in drive.
