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The day of the opening day arrived, and Jeno was forced by Jisung to look after the directions. So as he stood at the front door, directing parents and potential students to wherever it was they wanted to go, he inwardly willed time to move faster.
Thanks to Renjun, he wasn't hungry for once. The older brought in 'too much food' and gave it to him so 'not to waste it'. Jeno couldn't tell if he was being charitable or genuinely had far too much to eat. Either way, the past couple of days around the Chinese senior hadn't been the absolute worst.
As he leaned back against the wall, clasping his hands over his waist, he watched out the glass door. Groups of adults and teenagers had gathered in various places, and he felt tired just imagining them coming in for directions.
His eyes started to flutter closed for a moment in the warmth emitted from the sun through the glass. It wasn't until a strong hand gripped his shoulder that he was brought back to reality.
A familiar cheeky smile greeted him, the blonde male illuminated by the sun.
"Jaemin?" The older almost choked, standing up straight and viewing him properly. He hadn't actually laid eyes on him since he pushed him away that day.
The younger nodded, pulling out his phone and typing out what he wanted to say.
'Hey. It's good to see you.'
Jeno swallowed hard, unable to take his eyes away. He wanted to apologise for being so rude the other day, but he also didn't want to bring that up so suddenly if the younger had already chosen to forget it.
"H-hey. What brings you here? I thought you were homeschooled."
The blonde pursed his lips, pouting like a deva and typing again.
'My parents want me to make friends. They also think I'll start talking if I'm around speakers.'
The younger tilted his head, "Will you?"
He shrugged, mouthing without sound 'I hope not'.
A woman walked over behind Jaemin, holding his his shoulders familiarly. "Hello. I was wondering where the main office was?" She enquired.
Jeno raised his hand and pointed down the hall. "It's your first right."
She beamed, tugging Jaemin along, "Thank you very much."
With that, the pair walked away. But Jaemin continued to look over his shoulder at Jeno, and Jeno refused to peel his eyes away from the mute teen.
Another mother in need of assistance broke Jeno's staring, and helped him focus on something else. Once Jaemin was out of sight, he was able to continue with his task.
..........
Renjun watched as the juniors did their best to explain what the drama club was all about. He had helped them prepare lines the day before, and now he felt like a proud parent seeing them recite. The background on the stage had turned out beautifully, and the soft but modern music playing in the background raised his mood.
His phone vibrated in his pocket, and he took one last glance at the younger students who appeared to be doing fine and sauntered off to a quiet corner to see who it was trying to reach him.
It was a FaceTime from Mark since he couldn't hear Renjun's voice. Without hesitation, the ravenette accepted the call and waved at Mark as the blonde waved back.
"Hello!" Renjun signed to him, smiling excitedly since he hadn't talked to the older in a little while.
Mark signed a greeting back, looking behind Renjun and asking "Are you at school? Should I call some other time?"
Renjun waved his hand dismissively, "Don't worry about it. We aren't in class."
They continued the non-verbal conversation for a little while, Renjun starting to feel nostalgic as Mark described with his hands how his life was. He was almost tempted to go back to him.
Of course, he managed to skip telling the older about the two boys he had met. That would lead to the question of feelings, and he didn't know exactly what he felt for them.
Curiosity? Admiration? Infatuation? It was still yet to be decided in his head.
Mark smiled warmly, running his hand through his sandy blonde locks. They were interrupted when a student called Renjun over.
The older panicked, quickly signing 'goodbye' to his deaf friend before telling him he would call back later.
Sliding his phone back into his pocket, he raced back out to the front of the stage and wondered what was wrong.
"What do we say for the art and set design crew?" One of the younger students asked. "The parents are wondering if it's part of our club or a different one."
Renjun sighed, "We technically share members. Tell them we're a joint club."
The junior nodded thankfully, running back and relaying the message.
As his eyes scanned the crowd before him, Renjun couldn't help but notice a tall enough frame pushing through chattering people. His eyes followed him as he made his way closer.
To his shock, he depicted the blonde as Jaemin. At first he didn't trust his eyes, but the longer he stared the more obvious it became.
The younger looked up from his position wedged between two older women and spotted Renjun almost immediately. At first he didn't know what to do. Neither would've been able to hear even if Jaemin did talk.
Instead, Renjun raised his hands, signing to the younger "Can you understand me?"
The blonde's eyes widened, never having met anyone other than his sign teachers and his parents that understood sign language. He smiled excitedly, responding with "Of course I can."
The ravenette smirked, looking around once or twice to see if he was still needed. When he realised he wasn't, he pushed down towards the crowd, using his hands to speak to Jaemin.
"Want to go somewhere quieter?"
"Sure. I don't know where I am."
"Let me give you a personal tour."
People gave them strange looks as they waved their arms around like madmen. Once the older reached Jaemin, they both started to squeeze back through to the exit.
The theatre was large, and it was a harder task than they would've been given credit for.
"Over here," Renjun called, pushing Jaemin through the door and stumbling out on top of him.
The younger caught the Chinese, holding him up while he found his footing again. They looked at each other for a short moment of silence before bursting into laughter.
"Oh the conversations we shall have while nobody understands," Renjun snickered.
Jaemin nodded with a knowing grin. Signing, "How did you learn this?"
