CERISIER

THREE

The familiar sound of the outdated telephone that adorned each classroom's ringing interrupted the teacher's lengthy and overheard lecture about the dangers of underage sex, interrupting a certain student's usual afternoon nap. Mr. Yang cleared his throat before answering and listening to what was assumed to be some notification from the office about something that the students would care less about, and it was, save one with his chin being smudged by a short fist that was promptly called on with orders from the guidance office.

It was a few days after the great scale incident featuring the all new nurse, enough time for Baekhyun to push it to the back of his head where he buried and stomped on it after a well deserved (in Baekhyun's mind at least) amount of exercise at the school's open weight room after the day had come to a close for most. But, unfortunately, the incident was not exactly over. As the boy shoved it to the depths of his brain, it was surfaced to the front of the one and only nurse.

Mr. Park didn't normally pay much attention to students unless he was pressing medication into their palms, spreading a bandaid onto their scraped knee, or kicking them out of his office during their study halls. But he was so thin, unnaturally so; his spine looked like a mountain range down his back and his shoulder blades could cut through steel. That was all the man could really see as said student's posture hung to his toes. After a few prolonged nights pondering and fighting against his own thoughts, he decided to report his worries and information to the guidance office where he was hoping Mr. Do would take care of it and the events could be forgotten with time, never to hear of it again.

"Is there anything the school can do about it?" he had spilled to Do Kyungsoo, a man he had albeit only briefly chatted with during a lunch break once. Regardless, he was the only person Park could think to turn to.

The shorter man let out a small sigh before responding with the answer Chanyeol was hoping for. "This is a bit different from the usual cases of self harm or sinking grades, but I guess I could speak to his parents and himself. I'll keep you updated with what happens."

Chanyeol didn't need to be updated by Mr. Do, he was informed by someone else well enough.

Baekhyun had stomped his way to his set destination after a visit with the counselor that had been cut short. The student refused to hear what his father had to say about the matter and the typical comments of worry coming from the man's mouth. It wasn't Mr. Do's fault, the boy knew that, so he made his way to the man who may have just ruined Baekhyun's day and possibly the rest of his high school career.

The senior found Mr. Park sat at his desk, filling in papers and important teacher work that he didn't bother finding out the subject of. The anger flooded his entire body to the brim, bubbling at the very top like a scalding poured glass. He felt that his life was destroyed, his biggest little secret let out. You should have been more careful, he thought, you fucking dipshit, you piece of absolute garbage, you worthless-

"Hello, what can I do for you?" a deep voice called without looking up from the task at hand, expecting the whine of some soccer player who had carelessly fallen or a flushed girl needing pain killers. What the man definitely didn't plan was a palm smacking his beloved mahogany desk and to glance up at turned down lips and brows that belonged to one he tried forgetting about.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing, Park?" he seethed, his entire body practically shaking in place. Baekhyun couldn't think, he couldn't breathe; he felt so betrayed, so exposed. How dare he, how dare he.

"Baekhyun-"

"Don't even say my name, it sounds disgusting coming from someone like you. What right do you think you have to get into my business? Don't even try and lie and say it wasn't you, no one else's seen me, no one else would give a shit," the younger of the two exclaimed, his voice trembling with tension.

Chanyeol couldn't believe what was happening, he would've never guessed something like this would take place after he told Kyungsoo, he thought the boy's parents would be informed and it would all turn out to be fine and an innocent mistake or something of the such. But here he was, his back rigid against his leather computer chair and a student cursing at him with all the might he had in his breaking down form. He had no clue what to do.

"I. Am. Fine. Why the fuck would you think otherwise? Maybe I'm naturally skinny? Maybe you should mind your own, Mr. Park, and let me be."

"How fucking dare you stick your shameful nose where it's not wanted, blabbing your mouth to some counselor that can't help a damn fly. God, the entire school faculty is gonna see me as the little anorexic boy, you know that? Then, the entire student body. I won't be Byun Baekhyun anymore, Mr. Park, I'll be the bulimic bitch, the one that can't hold in a fucking apple, the one who can't keep up in gym because he's too weak, the one that can't go a day without hating himself-" at this point, the boy had collapsed to his knees, tears running down his discolored cheeks like salty rivers, stinging his eyes and streamed down almost lovingly over his strained fingers, a nurse finally standing to his feet, "so much so that he doesn't eat dinner, then breakfast, then-"

It was heartbreaking, to say the least, the broken boy. The broken boy that choked on his own sobs that heaved his body, lifted his lungs and lined the whites of his eyes with red streaks. He couldn't see someone like this, it didn't matter if one was a student or an elderly woman, he couldn't let them just suffer like this. He dismissed the feeling of unease in the corner of his mind.

Baekhyun's body was surrounded by warm, dress shirt clad arms and he stopped. He stopped, he stopped talking and yelling at the nurse that has only attempted to help, his anger falling with his tears and fading to panic, to sheer silence. The two stayed this way, crouched on the ugly tiled floor with the sound of the heat kicking in and Baekhyun's head heavy and exhausted, leaning on Mr. Park's shoulder until the sobs dissipated, leaving behind a dozing and disoriented student with an empty stomach and a teacher with a heavy heart and full arms.