Joshua entered the school, trying to ignore the fact that his look was completely different. However, the thought kept creeping back and making him feel a bit uncomfortable. People would stare at him a little longer while he walked through the halls. Joshua smiled at them, but felt incredibly nervous inside.
Joshua ducked into the bathroom to escape everyone. He stood in front of the mirrors to look at his new style once more. His normally gelled hair was fluffy and soft as it fell over his forehead. Glasses no longer covered his face and Joshua was still getting used to not having to push them up every so often. It was different for him to see himself wear a hoodie and black skinny jeans, especially to school. He matched it with a pair of white shoes as well.
It's not back, Joshua thought. Just different.
After a last deep breath, Joshua left the bathroom to go to his locker.
"Joshua!" Vernon called with a bright smile on his face. Although, Vernon also seemed a bit out-of-the-ordinary today as well. He decided to wear glasses, a button-up shirt, and khakis. He even combed his hair down. "You're looking good!"
"What are you doing?" Joshua asked as his eyes scanned his friend's attire.
"Since you're dressing a bit more like me," Vernon shrugged, "I decided to dress like you."
"You're ridiculous," Joshua exhaled as he opened his locker.
Soft laughter could be heared coming down the hall. Joshua could already tell it was coming from Kyungmi. He turned in her direction, admiring her lovely smile and squinted eyes. Kyungmi's gaze drifted over to Joshua as she walked close by his locker with a couple of friends. She did a double-take before realizing who it was.
"Josh?" Kyungmi opened her eyes more. "Is that really you?" She excused herself from the group and came walking up to Joshua. Her eyes ran over his outfit, and then face. "What's with the new look?"
"Um," Joshua cleared his throat and looked over to Vernon for some help.
"My boy here is just expressing his inner self," Vernon spoke for Joshua. His arm fell over Joshua's shoulders while Joshua gave a tight smile.
"Oh?" Kyungmi cocked her head to the side.
"Yeah, Josh is a really cool dude," Vernon went in. "He just doesn't normally dress like this because he's humble and comes from a very proper family. Rich, I should add."
Joshua shot a nervous look at Vernon from the untrue statement, but returned a smile to Kyungmi. Joshua's family was what you could call proper, but they are considered middle class.
"I didn't know Josh was one of the cool guys," Kyungmi laughed.
"Oh, he totally is, right?" Vernon squeezed Joshua's shoulders and gave him a looking, prompting him on.
Joshua just nodded along.
Vernon chuckled and slapped him on the back. "Anyway, I should head to class and let you two chat. See you later." Before completely walking off, Vernon secretly winked at Joshua.
"So what's cool-guy Joshua going to be doing with the freedom of his true self?" Kyungmi giggled, holding her books tighter.
"Um, well..." Joshua gave a breathy laugh as he tripped over his words, trying to fight back his embarrassment. He suddenly remembered the party. "Mingyu is hosting a party tonight after the basketball game that I'm going to. I was told about it last night."
Kyungmi's eyes widened. "Usually Mingyu announces his parties the day of it at school. Are you and Mingyu close?"
Joshua shrugged, starting to get in the groove of acting cool. "You could say that."
"Josh really is a cool guy." Kyungmi nodded while smiling. "Maybe even the coolest."
Joshua began to blush and chuckle. He drew in a big breath, building courage. "Do you want to, maybe... go to the party with me?"
Kyungmi seemed a bit surprised by Joshua's question. She gave him a soft and angelic look while thinking about her answer. "You know what, Josh? I would love to go with you."
Joshua beamed. "That's great! I can drive us there after the game."
"Cool-guy Joshua must know a lot about parties, right?" Kyungmi giggled.
Joshua nodded with a smile. "Oh, yeah. I've been to a lot." This is my first.
"I've actually never been to a party," Kyungmi told him. "A high school party, that is. Of course my family goes to a lot of high-class house parties, but those don't include blasting music, chips, and underage drinking. Though, you must understand those too considering what Vernon said."
"Yeah, I do," Joshua lied. His stomach started to hurt from the lies that were piling up, but he wanted Kyungmi to like him. She seemed to be growing more interested.
"Well, I should go to class. I'll see you later, Josh." Kyungmi have a small wave and smiled brightly. "I'm looking forward to tonight."
