The Whispers (Underworld 6) VK

27: People Talking

It was an ordinary morning, or at least that's what Seungkwan kept telling himself as he walked into the classroom, trying to act as normal as possible. Just another day, he thought. Just another day where absolutely nothing out of the ordinary happened between me and Hansol. Except for the fact that he and Hansol had, for the first time ever, cleared the air, and now the tension between them wasn't filled with insults or bickering. It was... something else. Something Seungkwan couldn't quite put his finger on, but something that made his heart thump a little harder than it should.

He walked in with Hansol trailing behind him, both of them oddly quiet, which immediately caught the attention of everyone in the classroom. Normally, Seungkwan and Hansol bickered from the moment they saw each other. Whether it was about whose bag took up too much space or who was being too loud, it was a guaranteed argument waiting to happen. But today? Silence.

As they took their seats, side by side— side by side!?!—Seungkwan could feel the curious stares of their classmates burning into the back of his neck. The tension was almost worse than if they had been bickering, and he could already sense that Moonbin, of all people, was about to make this situation ten times worse.

Sure enough, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Moonbin sitting two rows back, watching them like a predator ready to pounce. His smirk was so wide that it practically took up his whole face, and Seungkwan had to resist the urge to throw his pencil at him.

Just ignore him, Seungkwan. He can't bother you if you don't give him attention, he thought to himself, clutching his notebook as if it were some sort of protective shield. But of course, Moonbin was the kind of person who didn't need permission to stir the pot.

Moonbin leaned over to Chan, who was sitting next to him, and whispered loud enough for the entire classroom to hear, "Hey, Chan. Does something look off to you today?"

Chan blinked, glancing around in confusion. "Uh, I don't think so? Why?"

Moonbin gestured toward Seungkwan and Hansol, who were both sitting quietly, not a single insult flying between them. "Look at those two. What do you notice?"

Chan squinted at them like he was trying to solve an algebra problem in his head. "Uh... they're sitting next to each other?"

Moonbin nodded, leaning back in his chair like a detective solving a mystery. "Exactly. And do you hear anything?"

Chan furrowed his brows, looking even more confused. "No?"

"Exactly!" Moonbin grinned like he'd just won the lottery. "They're not fighting. No bickering, no insults, no passive-aggressive comments. It's peaceful. Too peaceful."

Chan blinked a few times, clearly still trying to process what Moonbin was getting at. "Okay... but what does that mean?"

Moonbin chuckled, enjoying this far more than he should. "It means something happened between them."

Seungkwan immediately whipped his head around to glare at Moonbin. "Nothing happened!" he hissed, his voice slightly too high-pitched for comfort, which only made Moonbin's smirk grow wider.

Hansol, ever the unbothered one, just leaned back in his chair, stretching casually like this whole situation wasn't awkward at all. "Yeah, we just decided to... take a break from the fighting. You know, for a change."

Chan, still completely clueless, looked back and forth between them, frowning. "Wait, wait, wait. You're telling me you two aren't fighting because... you chose not to?"

Seungkwan could feel the heat rising to his cheeks again. Oh great, here we go. He cleared his throat and tried to play it off as casually as possible. "Yeah, what's the big deal? We're adults, we can sit next to each other without arguing for once."