BREAKROOM | 3racha

ONE

I made it so that the color of the string signifies when the soulmates will meet. The brighter the string, the closer they are to getting together with their soulmate.

The day was going by impeccably slow. Especially today it seemed, as the world decided it was going to be a total bitch about Changbin not wanting to move from his bed. He'd been blamed for tripping a student in first period, late in third, and talked back to a teacher in evening homeroom. Now, sitting in detention watching the clock tick by seemed to almost stop time completely.

Since students weren't alloud to do anything but read, he looked around the half full room. Watching for any strings, he noticed one connected to the pinky of a girl near the back. She had her head resting in her palm, and gazed towards a boy near the front. Her string connected to the finger of the guy and was a bright candy apple red.

Her and Changbin locked eyes for a second before she glanced down at her string, meeting his eyes in silent recognition only to receive a small smile and nod from Changbin. He looked over to the boy and raised his eyebrows, the girl blushing and hiding her face in her hands.

Boredom really does do things to one's mind.

Changbin had busied himself very recently with a keen interest in fate. Specifically, the red string tied to the fingers of those destined to be together. He'd never really appreciated the fact that he could actually see them, the whole concept just something he didn't really understand. It was quite a rare trait though. But c'mon, having people assigned to you like homework? What happened to free will? Why should that be something to look forward to?

Those were the types of thoughts he used to have, but recently, he started paying a little more attention whenever he saw one. He was a wallflower, sure, but had never really embraced the title until he started analyzing the directions of the strings on strangers.

Sometimes they seemed to know who their soulmate was, and sometimes they were completely unaware that there even was such a concept. Seeing two people who seemed to be best friends was the most interesting, because Changbin had developed a knack for reading body language. Copied movements, consistent eye contact, and lingering touches were a few of his favorite hints, despite the fact that he was totally not a romantic.

Yes, he's thought of what it would be like to have a soulmate a few times, but that does not mean he's happy about potentially having one. Whoever they were, wherever they are, they can just fuck off and leave. He hadn't known his for eighteen years, what would the difference be if he kept to himself for the rest of his life?

Changbin was finally excused with a flick of the teacher's hand towards the door. Walking down the semi-busy hallway, he knowingly dodged the same boys that seemed to run down the corridor after every period and started stuffing his books in his locker. Cramming his history textbook in the little top shelf, he slammed the locker door shut and looked to his right to see Minho leaning against the wall of metal.

"Well isn't somebody in a pissy mood today, huh, little Binnie?" He smiled his signature cheshire cat grin and pushed off the lockers, turning to his little menace of a friend.

"I'm 5'5 you ass." He huffed, proceeding to stroll down the hallway.

"5'5, 4'10, what's the difference. Anywho," Minho blocked the incoming hit from a swinging fist and caught up enough to walk backwards besides Changbin. "Wanna come to the court with me and the boys? One of them is gonna bring one of his friends too, but he said the guy was good so it'll be fine."

Changbin contemplated the offer for a second, weighing his options in his head. On one hand, he did want to play basketball with Minho's friends. And he needed sun. On the other hand, luck was not on his side today and he might end up actually breaking something.

"Sure, I'll go. But don't expect me to stay outside for too long. I need nature breaks, otherwise I go into cardiac arrest." Minho laughed, patting him on the back and telling him to go get ready. He ran to his gym locker, twisting in the code to his lock before pulling out a change of sweats and a tshirt. He stuffed them in his messenger bag and speed walked towards the front of the school.

Changbin met up with the group a few minutes later, smirking at the few strings throughout their friends. Minho didn't have his yet, but a few of the other boys did. The youngest, Jeongin, had one a deep burgundy, and it was connected to another student nearby.

Changbin remembered when they came out as nonbinary in freshman year, going by Jaein instead, and had a surprisingly positive response from the majority of the students. Jeongin had talked about how they were pretty cute, so Changbin hoped everything worked out in the future for the two. Especially how he knew Jeongin was a hopeless romantic.

One of the other most noticeable fate strings was Hyunjin's. His was nearly a neon pink-red, with a faint sheen to it as it was trailing towards Seungmin in the back. Changbin almost laughed, because at this very moment they were practically making heart eyes at eachother.

Minho announced for everyone to stop stalling and start moving, so they all arrived at the park a mere ten minutes later. The games were set up 3v3, and Changbin was on the right side of the court with Jeongin and Seungmin. The game was about to start when Felix and another boy ran up, both seemingly out of breath from running.

"You guys were almost late! C'mon, pick a team and let's start." Hyunjin laughed at the two, patting Felix on the back as he introduced himself to the new guy who was heaved over, trying to catch his breath.

"Sorry. I had to pick him up from our place, so it was a little ways away. This is Jisung, my roommate." As soon as this Jisung had looked up at them, Changbin felt the wind get knocked out of him. Yes, the kid was beautiful, but that's not what the burning feeling around his finger was. He looked down in a panic and nearly passed out when he saw a strawberry red fate string tied from his pinky to Jisung's.

"Shit."

Jeongin's is like that because he hasn't truly met his yet, and the girl's is like that because she knows the boy, but they aren't dating yet.

mar. 26th, 2020