Heartstrings || Joshua Hong

Chapter 2

Rina POV

"RIIIIIIIIINAAAAAAA!!!", a familiar voice screamed from across the cafeteria.

I barely had any time to put down my food tray and brace myself before a girl barreled into me at full force, embracing me in a bear hug.

I laughed, crying "AHHHH SERAAAA NICE TO SEE YOU TOO" and hugged her back. Sera Moon was one of my childhood friends back in Florida where I had grown up for most of my life before my parents got new jobs. She and I were practically inseparable, or so we thought, until her entire family moved to LA when we were in the 6th grade. I hadn't seen her since, but it was definitely a dream come true when my parents announced that I was transferring to her school this year.

"Man, I'm so bummed that we only have one class together though", she said, sulking. I nodded and replied, "Sameee, but at least we have the same lunch period." She smiled and we caught up with each other lives' over a meal of mediocre cafeteria food. All of a sudden, I heard a crowd of girls screaming. Alarmed, I looked around to see what the noise was all about. I was about to ask Sera what was going on when I saw a dazed expression on her face.

"Um, Sera, what's going on?", I asked, utterly confused. 

"Oh, you probably haven't met him since you just got here, but Joshua Hong just entered the cafeteria. Ahhh, that guy is just such a gentleman", she swooned.

Did I just hear that right? Joshua Hong? Gentleman?? Those two things just did not go together at all. Unless there are two Joshua Hong's in this school?

Keeping my composure, I replied, "You're right. I probably haven't met him. Do you know which homeroom he's in?"

"3-17, if I'm not mistaken", she said, practically drooling at this point.

Okay, what the fuck?? There is no way the Joshua Hong I met today could even come near the definition of gentleman. How fake. I really ought to avoid him then. Oh, and his crazy fangirls, too. I sighed and told her I wasn't really interested in getting to know him and dropped the subject. Luckily for me, lunch was about to end in five minutes anyway.

Joshua POV 

The bell rang signaling the start of lunch. Usually, I went to the rooftop to eat and avoid the crowds of girls that followed me wherever I went. Today, though, I was so hungry that I just walked straight into the cafeteria, nearly going deaf as girls screamed all around me.

"OH MY GOSH, JOSHUA, YOU'RE SO HANDSOME!"

"AWW, YOU'RE HOLDING THE DOOR FOR US, WHAT A GENTLEMAN!"

"PLEASE SING FOR US WITH THAT HEAVENLY VOICE OF YOURS!"

"YOU MAKE MY DAY, JOSHUA HONG! I LOVE YOUUU!"

As much as I resented everything they were saying, I smiled and acknowledged them while silently gritting my teeth. I looked around the cafeteria to find something to distract myself and found the girl from my homeroom this morning: Rina Song. I was about to make my way over to her, but stopped when I saw who sat next to her: Sera Moon, one of the fangirls, probably telling Rina all about what a "gentleman" I was. I groaned inwardly.

It's not like I didn't want people to think I was nice. That wasn't the problem. But somehow going on a school talent show once, singing "Sunday Morning" by Maroon Five and playing guitar, made every girl in the school suddenly think you were some perfect, gentle person with a voice from heaven, or something. Guys tried to get close to you hoping to rub off on this fake popularity and girls only wanted to date you for your so-called "saint" image. Sure it's better than being seen as a jerk, but I was just tired of that crap altogether. 

So when Rina, the new kid, walked through the door this morning, I did everything I could to avoid that image. It would've worked, too, if Sera didn't go blabbering about me every chance she got. So much for that.

Sighing, I grabbed a tray, left the cafeteria and headed for the rooftop to eat in peace. 

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A/N The timeline of the story does start before Joshua's part of Seventeen, but I'm just borrowing his gentleman image for his character because why not.