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Three different thoughts passed through the three teenager's heads as they looked from one to the other. For Renjun, he was wondering why he had never seen the blonde before, and why Jeno seemed flustered and irritated. For Jeno, he was hoping to find a way out this mess and continue on with his miserable existence. For Jaemin, he liked Jeno's face and wanted to work out what the pair before him were like.
"Okay, can someone say something? I'm not a fan of silence," Renjun finally raised his hands as a mock surrender sign and glanced at both boys curiously.
I don't speak, Jaemin typed on his phone, showing it to them quickly before changing the message and facing the device to them again. But I would like to 'talk' more.
"Why?" Jeno sighed, eyeing the supplies that had dropped to the floor and massaging his temples wearily. Jaemin chewed his lower lip, seeing a challenge in the older and wanting to accept.
"I don't mind talking, but we have school. I'm not a rule breaker," Renjun admitted. The blonde didn't hesitate to pout, checking the time on his beloved phone and drawing a short breath.
Jeno seemed to notice the time as well and nodded to himself. "Look, I'm sorry I knocked you over."
"And I'm sorry I knocked Jeno over that caused him to knock you," the oldest added. Jeno continued;
"If there's something I can do within my ability, find me. I don't own a phone, but I literally never leave this town."
Renjun tilted his head curiously, "What's a teenager like you doing without a phone?"
Jeno shook his head dismally, dodging the sensitive topic, "Don't need one."
"But-"
"I'm gonna be late, and the juniors are relying on me. I'll see you guys around," the taller finally bowed slightly, eventually facing Jaemin. "It was nice to meet you...."
Jaemin typed his name out on his phone, showing both males.
"Jaemin," Renjun beamed, "It's nice to meet you too."
The youngest smiled in acknowledgement, though inside he was bitterly disappointed by not being able to spend a little more time with them. They were clearly studious and busy, so he didn't want to come off as arrogant and make baseless complaints to make them stay. So instead, he accepted Renjun's number in hopes that he would stay in contact with the other while the older stuck with Jeno.
As the little group grabbed all the things they needed and paid the cashier before exiting, it was finally time for the proper goodbye.
Unlike the other two, Jeno had no intention of pursuing any relationship with the others. Jaemin and Renjun were more than happy to cross paths again, even if it were only by coincidence. But Jeno had a deep phobia of falling too deep into that sort of thing.
Jaemin didn't trust people. It was how he was after what he had been through from an early age. But it didn't prevent him from talking to others, knowing they didn't mean him much harm. Renjun was smiley and friendly regardless of who it was he was talking to, hence why he had a wide friend circle.
"So, I'll see you sometime?" The oldest waved to Jaemin, giving him an assuring glance that this wasn't the end. Jeno nodded in his direction and began following Renjun back to school.
As Jaemin watched them disappear up the hill, he inhaled a deep breath, looking up at the sky that was starting to cloud over. He gripped the bag of art stuff he had bought, suddenly feeling inspiration to paint.
His walk back to his house felt shorter than his walk down. Of course, his mother was at the door to greet him as he entered the average sized bungalow. She was always keeping an eye on him since she felt immensely guilty for what his aunt had done.
Even years later, that shadow still hung over the household. When Jaemin smiled, it still wasn't enough for the parents....they couldn't find it in their hearts to forgive themselves for not seeing it sooner.
He grinned and bore the pain, but somewhere deep inside, in the very depths of his being that he couldn't reach, Jaemin blamed them too.
He couldn't have done anything when they could've.
But he pushed that idea away, anytime it arose. He didn't want to believe in it, and think of excuses for what happened in the past. He needed to move on.
"I have dinner cooking," the older woman informed her son, ruffling his hair gently and closing the door behind him. Jaemin gave her a thumbs up, pointing at his bag and wandering upstairs to unpack everything.
His room was artistic to say the least. Painting and sketches lay scattered around the place, some on the walls and some needing to be put away.
His favourite was a water painting of a mermaid. She was singing while brushing her hair. The glittery scales that he had worked so hard on turned out perfectly.
I want to sing too, he thought to himself while putting the bag down. He looked over at the easel his father had gotten him for his birthday two years prior. There was a blank canvas on it, waiting to be designed.
A certain face appeared in his head as he saw the untouched white surface. Unfortunately, he didn't have a picture of Jeno, or any proper way of recalling his face.
He just remembered it.
As he wandered over to the canvas, he traced his fingers over it. With one image in mind, he tried to finalise it with colour and outline.
It was always easier to paint things he thought looked nice.
