Minseok coughed harshly into his elbow. A collective groan swept through the classroom, as this had been Minseok's twelfth time disrupting them. Minseok nearly choked inside his throat as he tried to stifle his next cough. Ms. Hwang sighed and excused Minseok to go get some water. Minseok quickly shuffled out of the classroom. Once he was a good distance away from the closed classroom, he proceeded to hack up his left lung. He leaned against the wall and cleared his throat. Joy didn't believe him when he told her he was sick. Maybe he shouldn't have faked it so much before. Minseok dragged himself to the 2nd floor bathroom and sat down next to the end of the row of conjoined sinks. He let his head fall gently against the white and green tiles on the wall. It felt cool on the back of his head. He lolled his head from side to side to feel the bumps of the tiles across his skull. He loved the second floor bathroom. Hardly anyone ever came in there during class time because it was completely out of the way for all second period classes. Minseok came here often when class got the best of him. He had been at Gangnam District High for a few months now and the year was creeping into second semester. The school had treated him well enough, besides the constant stream of aggression coming from a certain group of rich Chinese boys. Minseok had been making decent grades in most classes, with the exception of high grades in Chorus, and unsatisfactory grades in Gym. Minseok felt his stomach churn at the thought. He hated that class with a burning passion. Not only was it entirely unnecessary, but it was an open and inviting window for Luhan, Henry, and Kris to pick on him. He felt sick to his stomach as he imagined the useless class he was required by law to attend today. Minseok's head launched off the tile as he heard the bathroom door open and close. He stayed completely still and waited in fear for who would turn the corner and see him. He dreaded it would be a teacher or even worse, Luhan. Minseok held his breath. The first thing he saw was an unrecognizable head of mid-length, silky brown hair. The body it was attached to was tall and slender. When Minseok caught a glimpse of the face that was framed by that beautiful hair, he lost his captured breath. She turned towards him with a confused look on her face.
"Are you okay?" She asked in a unique and cute voice. Minseok couldn't help but smile slightly at her voice. Minseok held on to the wall to pull himself back onto his feet. He rubbed the back of his neck and coughed slightly.
"Yeah yeah I'm alright." He voiced nervously. The girl stared at him a moment before smiling sweetly in his direction.
"I was walking to class from the office and I heard you coughing. You sound like death." She explained bluntly. Minseok laughed quietly and nodded.
"Oh yeah, my stepmom made me go to school today even though I was sick." Minseok said looking down at his sneakers. The girl made an understanding sound and nodded.
"Hm I gotcha. My stepdad's like that. How long have your parents been divorced?" She asked plainly. Minseok looked up at her with a quizzical look in his face. He chewed on his lip and grunted.
"They aren't. My mother died." Minseok answered, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible. It didn't really work. The girl gasped very quietly and apologized for intruding. Minseok smiled and brushed it off as nothing. There was a bit of an awkward silence between the two teens. For once in his life, Minseok was the one to break it.
"So, what's your name?" He asked after some thought of what to say. The girl seemed to be relieved that the conversation was continuing.
"I'm Sooyoung. And you are?" She grinned.
"Minseok. Nice to meet you, Sooyoung." Minseok put his hand out in front of him and Sooyoung gladly shook it.
"What year are you?" She asked after parting her fingers from Minseok's.
"I'm a junior. What about you?" Minseok answered. Sooyoung was tall but she had a youthful face which made it difficult for him to figure out how old she was. He hoped she was close to his age.
