By The Window | YeonBin

eight

Yeonjun arrived at school incredibly early. He hadn't had any of sleep last night, and when he was about to get a shut eye, he heard it again. His parents began to fight for what feels like a thousandth time.

He ended up staying awake until the sunrise, and as soon as he heard no sound from downstairs. He just freshened up a bit (that's a generous description for it), put on his sweater and headphones, then went straight out of his house before his parents could look for him, not that they care.

Yeonjun sat on one of the benches outside the school, tugging his hood lower over his face as the early morning chill bit at his skin. His headphones played a steady hum of music, but it did little to drown out his racing thoughts.

He hadn't been able to shake the memory of Soobin's hands covering his ears, of the boy standing there, calm and steady, as chaos raged around them. The gesture had meant something to Yeonjun—something he wasn't sure how to process.

He felt grateful, sure, but he couldn't help the creeping sense of dread that followed it.

What if Soobin had heard too much? What if he now saw me as broken or weak? The idea of it twisted his stomach.

Pulling his knees up to his chest, Yeonjun stared at the ground. He knew Soobin wasn't the type to run away easily—he was annoyingly persistent, if anything. But that just made it worse. What if Soobin stuck around out of pity? What if this was the beginning of him seeing Yeonjun as a burden, someone to take care of?

Yeonjun scoffed quietly to himself, tugging at the sleeves of his oversized sweater. He hated feeling like this, so vulnerable, so exposed. His parents had already taken so much of him—his sleep, his peace of mind, his sense of safety.

He didn't want them to take his friend too.

Friend? Have I considered him as a friend now?

The school grounds were still quiet, only a few students trickling in. He had arrived far earlier than usual, desperate to escape the suffocating atmosphere of his house. The empty halls felt oddly comforting, but it didn't stop the uneasy knot in his chest from tightening.

As much as Yeonjun tried to act like he usually did, he couldn't deny that Soobin had started to wedge his way into his life. And now, with everything that happened the night before, Yeonjun wasn't sure how to face him.

The last thing he wanted was to explain anything. What would he even say?

Yeah, sorry you had to hear that mess. My parents can't stand the sight of each other, but hey, let's hang out like nothing happened.

It sounded ridiculous in the boy's head.

Yeonjun rubbed his hands over his face, trying to wipe away the exhaustion that clung to him. His mind kept spiraling, each thought more suffocating than the last.

Suddenly, he felt the presence of someone approaching, and his heart sank.

He didn't need to look up to know who it was. He could tell by the slight drag of footsteps, the slow, steady rhythm of someone careful with their steps.

He could feel Soobin's gaze on him, but Yeonjun stayed hunched, trying to make himself as small as possible, hoping that if he didn't acknowledge him, Soobin might just walk away.

But, of course, he didn't.

"Yeonjun?" Soobin's voice was soft, cautious, as if he could sense that something was off.

Yeonjun clenched his jaw, pretending not to hear, but the the slight jitter made that a little unbelievable.

There was a long pause before Soobin tried again, stepping closer. "Hey... I, uh, didn't see you at the front of the school. Are you okay?"