15 Briwoon oneshots

Deaf Classmate AU

(This is lowkey inspired by A Silent Voice)

"I heard we're getting a new student today," a kid said during recess.

He was hanging upside-down on the monkey bars and as soon as he said that, the whole class surrounded him.

"No way!" another exclaimed.

"Is it a boy or a girl?"

"What does he look like?"

"He better be smart!"

"Is he nice?"

"He? Maybe it's a girl!"

Younghyun didn't add his unspoken questions to the unanswered bunch that were being thrown out, but he did also wonder what this new kid would be like. The last time there was a new kid in school, it had been him. He hoped the new student would find his– or her– spot as soon and easily as he had done.

When everyone was back inside, the teacher came in with a small boy waddling after him. There was a neatly written name tag attached to his t-shirt that was at least one size too big, and it read 'Yoon Dowoon'.

His ears and cheeks were already rosy before he had even spoken, a sign of shyness and nervousness that was also found in his shaky hands which were clutching a notebook.

"Silence, please. I want to introduce you to Yoon Dowoon, your new classmate. Please take good care of him."

Everyone stared at Dowoon, and Dowoon stared at a random spot on the ceiling so he didn't have to look back at all the curious eyes.

The teacher tapped his shoulder, and he jumped up a bit as if he suddenly got reminded of something.

The notebook in his hands opened up, and in black marker– so the kids in the back could read it too– it said:

Hi, my name is Dowoon. I look forward to meeting you all.

The boy turned over a page, and the words that next appeared caused the classroom to be filled with curious whispers and chuckles;

I am deaf

During lunch break, Dowoon's table was surrounded by students who all wanted to write in his notebook. Younghyun had found himself feeling too shy to go up to him for now, but perhaps he'd try again later.

For now, Dowoon was the new interesting thing of that day, but the next day the fuss had already died down, and they had moved on to something different.

Dowoon wasn't able to join them while playing, because he wouldn't be able to hear what they were playing anyways. He'd just have to amuse himself, because what was the point of a friend if he didn't listen to you, and couldn't even talk back?

Younghyun didn't like that. Everybody played with him when he was new, so they had to play with Dowoon too.

"Can't we play something else, so Dowoon can join?" he suggested when some girls wanted to do some sort of nursery rhyme game that Younghyun didn't even understand.

He pointed at the small figure sitting all alone in the school garden with a ladybug on his finger.

"But he's no fun because he doesn't talk. He wouldn't like our games anyways," a boy said.

"How do you know? You haven't even asked him."

"Fine, then we'll ask him."

Younghyun and the boys went up to Dowoon, and one of the boys asked:

"Hey Dowoon, do you want to join us?"

"He can't hear you," Younghyun explained, when the boy got frustrated because Dowoon appeared to be ignoring him.

"You just have to be louder. Watch this: HEY NEW KID, COME PLAY WITH US!" another boy yelled at the top of his lungs.

Younghyun gave him a shove.

"Stop it! He's deaf! It doesn't matter how loud you are."

"I think he's boring. Hey new kid!" the first boy tapped Dowoon's shoulder so Dowoon finally noticed them and turned around.

He was about to get up from where he was sitting, but the boy pushed him so he fell down again and scraped his knee on the gravel path leading through the garden.

"Ha! You're weak! And stupid!"

"Stop it, that's mean!" Younghyun plead.

"What? It's not mean, he can't hear me. It doesn't matter if I call him stupid, I can call him whatever I want! Hey new kid, I think you're dumb! See? He has no idea."

While Younghyun and the boy were arguing, the other kids had already found something else more interesting than them or Dowoon, and moved on.

The other boy got so worked up that he kicked in the sand, probably not realizing that he kicked it right in Dowoon's face, who was still sitting on the ground where he had fallen. The boy stomped away, and Dowoon started to cry. It sounded weird, not like how normal kids cried, because Dowoon couldn't hear himself.

Younghyun looked down at the crying boy, and noticed how seeing someone else crying had never made him this sad before, the way he looked so helpless and confused.

"I'm so sorry for him!" Younghyun exclaimed, as he crouched down next to Dowoon.

"Oh wait, you can't hear me when I talk to you. There there, let's go inside."

He patted Dowoon's shoulder and pulled him up by the hand and took him inside. Inside of the classroom, he helped Dowoon getting the sand out of his eyes, and put a bandaid on his knee.

When Younghyun got home, he stormed into the living room and called out:

"Mommy! Mommy!"

"What is it?" Younghyun's mom asked, surprised by why her son was yelling and running around.

"I want to learn deaf people language!"

"Sign language, you mean?"

"Yes! Mommy, can you teach me? Please?"

"Well, I don't know sign language, Younghyunnie. What about we get a book from the library, and practice together? You can tell me where this sudden interest comes from on the way there, ok?"

Younghyun was jumping up and down in excitement at this point.

The next day, Younghyun ran up to Dowoon at recess. The bandaid on his knee had been refreshed, and had a bug print on it.

"Dowoon! Dowoonie! Look! Oh, I keep forgetting you can't hear me..."

Younghyun mumbled that last part to himself, before he tapped Dowoon's shoulder to get his attention.

Younghyun's tongue was sticking out a bit because he was concentrating very hard, as he slowly, but with the biggest care in the world, signed:

'Do you want to be friends?'

Dowoon blinked a couple times and made a gesture that Younghyun didn't know, but likely meant that he was asking him to do it again because he missed it.

So, Younghyun put his full concentration into again asking with his hands:

'Do you want to be friends?'

And then it clicked with Dowoon, and his face seemed to clear up, as if someone shone a light on it. He was beaming and shining with joy. Like Younghyun had done the day before, he jumped up and down in excitement, nodded his head, and grabbed Younghyun's hands. Both boys laughed, and although it sounded weird and silly, Younghyun decided that Dowoon's laugh was the most precious thing he had ever heard.