Jin and Min

Chapter One

Min Hyungsik~

Jin Wook was that guy at school that you wanted to notice you. But no matter what he never acknowledged your presence. He was destined to be a high school crush that was never received back. He was the guy of Min Hyungsik's dreams. Min convinced himself multiple times that Jin didn't even know he existed and he should give up on trying to do very subtle things to get his attention. On various occasions Min would have to snap himself out of Jin Wook filled daydreams. Min was dedicated to his grades, but being in a class with Jin made it hard for him to focus. At times Min would be yelled at by Mr. Byeon for staring out the window for too long. Min would mumble an apology and look down at his lap. He always got embarrassed when he was called out. His cheeks would turn a light pink and he would push his round classes up till it pressed against his nasal bone. Min was truly happy that Mr. Byeon thought he was simply just staring out the window, instead of looking at the extraordinarily aesthetic Jin Wook sitting right in front of the window with the sun hitting his black hair at just the right angle to make it shine beautifully and his jaw bone vibrantly illuminated by the sun's warm glow. Min was now in his last year of high school, soon he would have to learn to live without staring at Jin Wook. He tried an ample amount of times to prepare himself. Challenging himself to go a full week without looking at Jin. He lasted exactly an hour and five minutes. Jin Wook had called someone in class with a similar name as Min Hyungsik. With hopeful eyes Min looked over to where Jin was seated only to see him talking to Min Kyung-suk. Needless to say, Min now holds a forever grudge against Min Kyung-suk.
Min was currently staring at Jin, but as far as Mr. Byeon was concerned he was zoning out again.
"Mr. Hyungsik! Pay attention!" Mr. Byeon's voice echoed through the classroom. Min snapped his head towards his lap so Jin wouldn't know he was staring. His hands looked for each other so they could fiddle together with nerves.
"Sorry, Mr. Byeon." Min stuttered out. A few kids chuckled at Min for being so shy. Min didn't dare to look up. Especially not in the direction of Jin.
"See me after class." That was all the teacher said before going back to the lesson. Min slightly nodded his head. He waited a few seconds before lifting his head up to look at the board in the front of the classroom. The only reason Min would stop looking at Jin for an entire class session is if he got yelled at by Mr. Byeon. He hated all the attention being directed towards him like that. Min will sometimes answer questions or be commended for good work, but if he's not being called out for anything other than appraisal then he doesn't want to hear his name  come out of anyone's mouth. Min faced the board for the rest of the class not even side eyeing Jin. When the bell sounded, Min sheepishly walked to Mr. Byeon's desk.
"Min, what have I told you about staring out that window? You're a straight A student, but if you zone out for too long, it is fairly easy to fall behind." Mr. Byeon gently scolded Min. Min is one of his top students, he didn't want to go extremely harsh on the boy. Min stood with his hands held behind his back and his head hanging low. "And maybe you could try to get up the courage and talk to Mr. Wook?" Min's eyes shot open. He quickly turned around to check if there was any students still in the classroom. The room was empty.
"How did you know? I mean...what are you talking about?" Min was confused, he was sure Mr. Byeon wasn't aware that he was actually looking at Jin. "I'm not staring at Jin Wook, I promise! I'm only looking out the window like you said!" Min had gotten frantic. He was scared that Mr. Byeon was going to tell his mom that he was eyeballing a boy.
"Min, calm down. It's okay, I won't tell your mom. I lived in America for a few years, I've grown accustomed to these kind of things. Believe it or not Min, a lot of Korean parents have grown more accepting of it as well." Mr. Byeon was hinting at Min to talk to his mom about his attraction to the same gender. But min wasn't entirely sure that he liked the same gender. It was just Jin Wook. It has always been just Jin Wook. No one else, no other guy and not any girls. His eyes have always been set on Jin, metaphorically and physically.
"Mr. Byeon, I promise I'll pay more attention in class. May I be dismissed?" Min wanted to run home so badly.
"You May leave. But I'm holding you to that promise, Mr. Hyungsik." Mr. Byeon sighed as Min nodded then bowed and jogged out of the classroom. Min made a quick right turn when he exited the classroom door. He had only made it about five steps out before he crashed into a tall statue. Min bounced backwards falling onto his back.
"I'm sorry, Min! Are you okay?" The tall statue he hit was apparently a person. A person named Jin Wook. Min hadn't registered the voice yet. He sat on the floor rubbing his eyes with one hand and the other swiping around the ground for his glasses. "Oh, your glasses are right here!" Jin reached in between Min's sprawled our legs to retrieve the glasses. Min had stopped searching the floor. His brain finally caught up and recognized the voice. He looked up at the tall blurry figure in front of him. Jin leaned down to grab Min's wrist and place the glasses into Min's palm. Min mumbled a thank you and put them back on his face. He could clearly see Jin now. Min realized that he should probably get off the ground, so he drew in his legs to get into a squat position. As soon as he was standing on his feet again, Mr. Byeon was exiting his classroom to go home. Jin went chasing after him shouting his name to get his attention. Min watched silently as Jin handed Mr. Byeon some type of assignment. Min looked down at his feet then started to walk out of the school to go home. On the long walk home, Min was thinking about his collision with Jin. It was the only contact Min had made with Jin in all four years that he's had a crush on him. He replayed the scene in his head trying to etch it permanently into his memories. He didn't want to forget a single detail. Min had suddenly snapped out of his thoughts to find that he was standing in front of his apartment door. He quickly rushed to his bedroom and flung himself onto his bed. The thoughts reoccurred. Every moment was fast forwarding and reversing in his mind trying to pause on missed scenes. He laid with his limbs spread out on his king sized bed. It was then that Min's brain paused on a particular scene. The moment right after Min falls on the ground. The moment Min's name came out of Jin Wook's mouth. The moment Min had failed to realize that the infamous Jin Wook actually knew Min's name. He gripped his hair then slid off the side of his bed, falling to the floor with a thud. All this time, Jin had known who Min was. Jin has actually known that Min existed. To Min this was a huge step, but he also knew it was probably the only step he would take. Min may be crushing harder than ever on Jin, but he's still very realistic about it. Jin knowing Min's name was nothing but Jin being a good classmate.
"Min!" His mom had yelled from somewhere in the apartment. Min groaned and got off the floor. He exited his room to go to the living room, where his mom was watching TV. When she saw Min she sighed.
"Yes, mom?" Min mumbled. She simply waved her hand toward the side table next to the couch.
"Take that money and go buy me something to eat." There was about ten dollars on the table, Min swiped it up and stuffed it in his pocket. He headed back to his room to grab his phone and slip on some shoes. Min didn't say another word to his lazy mother as he left the apartment. Min walked down two flights of stairs and pulled his moms car key out of his pocket. Min swiped his moms car key on the way out the door knowing that she wasn't going to know if they were there or not.
    Min's mother has always been sort of reckless. She was never suited to have children, especially at the age she had Min. His mother, Hyuna Park, had only just turned 16 when she met Joo Hyungsik. He was tall with silky black hair and carried himself with overflowing confidence and charm. Hyuna fell in love the moment she bumped into him at the karaoke bar. Although, the only thing Joo fell in love with was Hyuna's body. That night became what Hyuna and Joo will forever call a mistake. Joo left Hyuna to raise Min by herself, if you can even call it raising. Min's mother was never home, she was out partying and waking up in another mans home. She left money on the counters for Min to go buy his own food and missed every single one of Min's birthdays. His father was never heard from after his mother told him she was pregnant. Occasionally he sent Min some money in a pre-made happy birthday card, but it was never Min's birthday when he received them.
    Min returned home from the store and dumped the food in front of his mother. She scavenged through it as if she hadn't eaten in days. The truth was she probably hadn't, she spent the last five days at a festival full of alcoholics. He didn't bother giving the extra money back to his mom, he kept it. Min was saving up for his own apartment so that he could get away from his mother. Min worked long 14 hour shifts on the weekends at a local arcade next to his apartment complex. Each night Min went to sleep, he never wondered where is mother was. He never went to check if she was in her bedroom because the truth is that she's in someone else's bedroom 99.9% of the time. The rare moments he has with his mother is her asking him to either get her food, alcohol, cigarettes, or one of her many medications. Min had a suspicion that his mother was an escort. She was too uptight and privileged to be a prostitute on the streets, she would only be with rich men. A few men in tailored suits have shown up at the door before asking for his mother, but Min wouldn't tell them anything. He would simply say she's not home then shut the door and lock it.
     The next day had slowly approached. Min was excited to go to class after his encounter with Jin and also because he loves learning, but that's besides the point. He was caught in the middle of his emotions. The angel on his shoulder was telling him to keep his promise to Mr. Byeon and pay attention to the lesson. But on his other shoulder was the bright red devil coercing Min into staring at Jin for the whole entire day. Min was never good with stressful situations. In most cases he would listen to authority and avoid getting scolded by his teachers and his mom. Min could never understand why his mother would get so angry when the school called her to say that Min was required to stay after school to help clean due to not paying attention in class. He could only assume that she was worried about her reputation, but even then Min knew nobody thought highly of her anyway. Countless times throughout his school days Min would be picked on for have a "slut of a mother". No matter how much resentment and angst Min had built up for his mother, those awful words spoken out of his classmates mouths cut him deep. But Min wasn't a fighter. He took the words without retaliation. As much as Min was looking forward to another interaction with Jin, nothing happened. The day went by slowly as Min looked at the side of Jin's face. At some point his eyes started to slowly close. It wasn't like Min to fall asleep in class, but last night he couldn't get his mind off of Jin. He replayed the sound of Jin's voice in his head. The way he pronounced Min's name.
     Min was awoken startlingly when the bell rang. Everyone was gathering their belongings. Min looked at his watch, it was time for lunch. Min was too tired to worry about his surroundings. He didn't check to see if Jin was still in the classroom and he didn't notice Mr. Byeon eyeing him down. On his way towards the door, Mr. Byeon called Min's name. Min dropped his chin to his chest and turned on his heels, making his way back to his teachers desk.
"Min, you promised you would pay attention in class from now on. You've never slept in class before. Is everything okay? How's things with your mom?" Min lifted up his head at the mention of his mother.
"She's the same as ever, Mr. Byeon. I'm sorry for falling asleep. I'll take whatever punishment you give me." Min wasn't in the mood to talk about his mother right now. He just wanted to go sit alone and eat his lunch. Mr. Byeon nodded, he seemed to understand that Min wasn't feeling up to another lecture.
"Okay, Min. Just go help the swim team clean after school today. There's a competition on Saturday and the coach wants the place to be spotless." Mr. Byeon patted Min's shoulder. Min accepted his punishment and left the classroom. He shuffled his feet all the way to the schools garden. Min preferred to be alone in the garden while the rest of the loud teens are in the cafeteria. Min sat on a wooden bench in the middle of the garden. He pulled out a container with ramen in it. When Min was in elementary school, his classmates would tease him for eating cold ramen. But the truth is, cold ramen really is delicious. To keep himself from getting teased in high school, Min distanced himself away from all the other kids. The garden was so peaceful anyways. So quiet unlike the cafeteria. However, Min would always refer to it as the jungle not the garden. Simply because the school stopped tending to it, they knew nobody went in there anyways so why keep up with it. The glass walls surrounding the jungle were filled top to bottom with over grown flowers and weeds. The ground was covered in long patches of grass except for the gravel square underneath Min's bench. Min had finished his cold ramen and looked at his watch. There was 15 minutes before lunch ends. Min took off his glasses and placed them inside his backpack that was on the ground. He then laid himself out on the bench, closing his eyes. Any normal student would've realized that they could hide out in the jungle all day and nobody would even know. But this is Min, the straight A student, who loves to learn, and who would never dare to skip class. Min conjured up fantasies as he stretched his legs out further. He asked himself would he ever skip class if Jin had asked him to. He came to the conclusion that he wouldn't even miss class for Jin, the one and only person who gets Min's heart beating. Min's brain was swirling with thoughts of Jin. How Jin laughs only when something is truly funny, how he manages to write so neatly with his left hand, the way he speaks ever so softly, and the way his eyes smile more than his lips do. Time floated by so quickly, Min had almost dozed off, but the sound of the bell shot him right awake. He gathered his stuff and found his way out of the jungle, ending up in the school hallway where tons of students were pushing their way back to class. Min joined the crowd, slipping through the small spaces between large groups of people. It seemed that everyone had someone at their sides. Min looked around realizing he was the only one without someone to walk with, to speak to, or to even acknowledge as an acquaintance. When he entered Mr. Byeon's classroom something seemed off. There was small giggles being passed around the class. Min picked his head up to see everyone staring at him. They all simultaneously looked at the expo board in the front of the classroom then back to Min. It was obvious to Min what was happening now. He looked at the board himself and saw his name written in a thick black expo marker. He closed his eyes and hung his head back down.
"Min? Pick that chin off your chest and come to the front. All you have to do is read chapter 3 today for us." Mr. Byeon's cheerful attitude slightly annoyed Min. Although, he knew this was pay back for falling asleep in class. He shuffled his feet, walking through the rows of desks as his classmates laughed quietly at him. Min sluggishly made it to the podium that Mr. Byeon usually speaks at. On the podium there was the book the class was reading already opened to chapter 3. Min took a deep breath, he hadn't yet looked directly at his classmates. He kept his eyes glued to the papers in front of him. When he began to read the words on the paper, his slight stutter from nerves wasn't so slight at the moment. The students chuckled and tried to keep there composure knowing that Mr. Byeon would reprimand the students for laughing. He was three pages in and nearing the end. Min was trying so hard to keep his nerves down. He kept telling himself it was almost over. One more paragraph. Two more sentences. One more word. He was finally done. For the first time Min looked up and locked eyes with Jin for a few seconds. Min chocked on his spit a little bit out of shock, Jin had never made eye contact with him before. Min let out a little cough before quickly walking back to his seat.
"Alright everyone, thanks to Min we're finished with chapter 3. If you haven't read the board yet then now would be a good time to do that." Mr. Byeon went to his desk and sat down, letting the students get to work. Min looked up at the board and immediately sighed. He hated partner work. It was always so uncomfortable.
"Min, do you want to work on this with me?" Yoong was usually the only one to go to Min for partner work. Yoong was very similar to Min, in the aspect that they both cared more about their grades than anything else. Min simply nodded and used his foot to push the empty chair next to him back a little for Yoong to sit in. Before Yoong could walk around the desk to take the seat, someone else had already sat in it. Min looked up at the tall figure that had stole Yoong's seat. His face immediately turned pink.