You're My Target

chapter 46

Troy laid on his couch staring at the ceiling. his TV was on, but he wasn't paying attention to what was being broadcast. He watched the shadows cast from his ceiling fan spin. over and over. as he sat that thoughtless, there was a knock on his door. he didnt move. his eyes stayed fixed on the ceiling.. the knocking continued, getting louder and faster each time. Troy sat up and glared at the door. his puffy bloodshot eyes, unblinking. he walked zombie like to the door and opened it slightly.

"i told you he was alive." pryor and hank stood on his doorstep.

"whats up with you man? are you sick? you look terrible." hank asked. Troy turned around and walked back to the couch leaving hank and pryor confused at his door. they followed him inside hesitantly.

"so what do you have? the flu? are you contagious?" hank continued to ask questions.

"you got a nice beard coming in there." pryor pointed out the small growth of hair accumulating on troys face. "you should keep it. we barely have any seniors with facial hair. here we have a the lone freshman with potential to out-beard them all."

"out-beard them?" hank shook his head at pryor.

"im just trying to lighten him up."

"so you think im sick?" troy said suddenly as he huddled back on the couch.

"well youve been out of school for 3 days. no ones heard from you." hank replied.

"if i was sick, dont you think soyeon or her friends who have showed some concern?" troy grumbled.

"uhm, i guess? havent they?" pryor shrugged, looking confused at hank.

"no. because im not sick."

"i dont get it.. whats up with you?" hank asked.

"ahh .. trouble in paradise." pryor whispered to hank, but troy could still hear.

"wait so you guys didnt know?" troy asked.

"know what exactly?" hank replied with a questiion of his own.

"nothing. nothing." troy shook his head.

"wait. did you and soyeon... break up?" hank and pryor looked at each other.

"come on.." troy forced an unconvincing smile. "if we did. the whole school would have known by now." hank shrugged, seemingly acceptant of troys words.

"so you guys are like, having another rough patch or something?"

"yea. pretty rough." troy replied.

"well. whatever it is. im sure you will work it out. and if you want to talk about it, we are here for you." pryor said patting troy on the shoulder.

"thanks." troy said gratefully.

"so you want to do something? get out of this cramped apartment?" hank asked. "you know, get your mind off of it?"

"nahh. im just gona slack off the rest of the day. feel free to join me if you want." troy said with apathy. hank and pryor nodded. they hung out with Troy that evening, helping him deal with his soyeon problems, passing the time playing X-station together. the next morning, troy returned to school. he parked his moped and quickly darted inside. he wasnt expecting it to be so cold out. he walked down the hall toward his homeroom. despite his conversation with hank and pryor the day before, he was still expecting to hear all sorts of rumors about soyeon breaking up with him. much to his surprise he made it all the way to his desk at homeroom without any awkward looks, or hear any gossipy whispers. His anxiety subsided a little and slouched in his desk as the homeroom teacher took attendance.as he sat he noticed Hwayoung staring at him from across the room. he pulled the collar of his jacket up and sank in his seat trying to avoid her gaze. hwayoung didnt get his message, and got up to join him.

"i noticed your friend Areum isn't here today. so now you're gona come and bother me?" troy asked.

"i just came to see how you were doing." she crouched beside his desk.

"well. im alive." troy said sarcastically.

"yea. you are. and thats probably why Eunjung made a move on you." hwayoung replied

"wow thats just... wrong." troy was not expecting to hear that.

"too soon?"

"yea way too soon." troy shook his head in disbelief.

"it was a joke. sorry." she apologized to him.

"whatever i thought i was making it obvious i wasnt in the mood." he grumbled

"ok relax. i just wanted to see how you were holding up. has Soyeon talked to you at all yet?"

"nope." he snapped.

Hwayoung just nodded. troy still sat in a funk. hwayoung tapped her finger on his desk.

"so." troy said suddenly. "has soyeon talked to Eunjung"

"well i dont know if you can believe this but, eunjung has not been in school lately." hwayoung attempted another joke.

"i shoulda known."

"i was beginning to think you 2 ran off together." she laughed. troy put his finger over his lip and gave her an angry look.

"don't even joke about that. if anyone hears you say that you know what will happen. rumors in this school spread like a plague." troy had a frantic look.

"my humor is wasted on you troy." Hwayoung said bummed out. "ANYWAY, no i dont think they have talked. soyeon feels betrayed. eunjung feels awkward. a situation like this... needs time."

"maybe Boram was right." troy said.

"she usually is." Troy agreed. Hwayoung stood up and and put her hand on troys."and try not to worry too much. im sure soyeon will come around." she enouraged him. Troy gave her a half smile, trying not to look disheartened.

~~~Later at lunch Boram and Qri met with troy outside the cafeteria.

"SPECIAL DELIVERY." Boram said loudly in a deep voice as she greeted troy. Qri held out a bag toward troy. she placed it in his hands gently and leaned to his ear."i made it just for you." she said, her breath tickled him. Hank watched from the table in an envious rage.

"so you 2 bring me a suspicious bag a few days after what happened.." troy said rubbing his chin.

"you know you cant resist." Qri winked at him.

"its surely poisoned." troy was certain. he handed the bag back to Qri, but she just stared at him looking puzzled. "and is hitting on me really a good idea after all that has just happened?"

"get over yourself. i was testing you." Qri flipped her hair.

"ok you 2." boram had seen enough.

"Qri you can mess with troy some other time. Troy, this is from soyeon."he continued to hold the bag out.

"so.. it IS poison." he said again.

"no, idiot." she pushed the bag back to him. "she couldnt bring it to me herself?" he asked.

"she wasnt sure if you were gona be here today." boram answered.

"but.. she made me lunch anyway?"

"she had left overs from dinner. i was gona eat it but she said offer it to you if you were here. and you are so, eat it. or else give it to me." boram said impatiently.

"alright. but if its poisoned...." troy took the bag hesitantly.

"...food hogging jerk." boram mumbled.

"see you later troy." Qri said waving. Troy walked slowly to his table where hank and pryor were waiting. Hanks eyes were locked on troy.

"what was that all about?" he asked.

"oh. they dropped off some food from soyeon for me." troy said casually. he dropped the bag on the table.

"you and qri were flirting!" hank was upset.

"so are you set on Qri now? cause i heard Jiyeon was interested in you." troy said hoping to get a rise out of him.

"really?" hank was excited, his eyes lit up.

"hey no way! thats not cool!" pryor protested. "you know Jiyeon is all mine!"

"actually, no. not really. i was testing you." troy said with a cocky grin. hank grumbled to himself realizing he had been tricked. the 3 of them sat quietly at the table, and looked at the bag.

"so i was thinking..." troy began to say

"its poisoned." hank and Pryor said, confirming troys suspicions. The remainder of the day and the following day went similarly. Troy managed to pass soyeon a few times in the halls, but they only exchanged brief; tense glances. troy was hoping she would approach him, but she never did. troy knew his weekend was going to be bad.