Against All Odds (Chaeryeong x Male Reader)

A New Beginning

"Damn, I didn't know you had that in you!" exclaims your best friend Justin Nguyen, who, is ogling at your Facebook profile picture befitting the product of a professional photo shoot. 

A crowd of your middle school friends huddles around, marveling at the stunning candid shot that took everyone's Facebook feed by storm the night before. You yourself admire your dad's handiwork upon your umpteenth examination: the radiant afternoon sunlight reflecting off the pastel blue swimming pool overlooking the hills, and your shirtless figure taking in the scenery, your sharp side profile teasing a smile.

"Yeah, I guess I was just feeling it in that moment," you chuckle. This picture with such a textbook "not a care in the world" feeling was a complete paradox to the million thoughts running through your mind in that moment. The mere idea of transitioning from middle to high school itself took you the whole summer to fully process, and now that it was finally here, your nerves have gotten the best of you. 

"I'm so nervous. I still can't believe we're already in high school," says one of the boys, echoing your thoughts. 

Not long after, a bell rings to signal the official start of the school day. You trudge through the uncharted territory that was this oddly scented English hallway and find your first period classroom, surreptitiously taking a seat. Soon after, your English teacher, a short blonde woman with angular features, enters the room and introduces herself. 

"I know today is a big day for you... and no, there is no official lesson planned for today," she begins, quite contrary to your expectations. She continues with surprisingly reassuring rhetoric and inspirational Youtube videos that do quite well to calm you down. Bidding your new classmates farewell, you feel a newfound burst of confidence to take on the rest of your first day. 

Your second period passes with a blur and already you arrive at your third period Honors biology class. Already feeling the urge to go home and boot up your favorite video game, you opt to seat yourself in the back of the classroom for a chance to be left alone with your own thoughts. Suddenly, a female voice calls out to you.

"Y/N! Over here!" It's Chaeryeong Lee, your childhood friend of 8 years, donning a black, long-sleeved top tucked into a pair of high rise blue jeans, beckons to you from a lab table on the right side of the room, tiptoeing and bunny hopping as she's doing so. 

Chaeryeong gives you a hug as you join her side, and the two of you exchange stories of your activities over the past summer. Soon enough, your infamous profile picture comes up again mid-conversation. The thought of Chaeryeong seeing you shirtless makes you blush a bright tomato red, causing Chaeryeong to laugh so hard that she has to grip the lab table to save herself from falling over. Just then, a girl with short, pink hair materializes behind your friend. Flashing a smile that exposes a pair of whisker dimples in anticipation, she proceeds to give Chaeryeong a backhug, who snaps out of her fit of giggles in surprise.

"Ryujin!" exclaim you and Chaeryeong simultaneously in greeting. 

"Wait, you know each other? Wha-" Chaeryeong struggles to find her words as she momentarily switches to Korean to converse with Ryujin.

That's right, you think to yourself. Somehow, you managed to leave out the fact that you recently started mixed martial arts training. That was where you met Ryujin Shin, and Yeji Hwang. 

"This is a training partner from the MMA gym I talked about in Art," explains Ryujin. "He goes by Y/N, but I call him 0 and 2." 

At Ryujin's cheeky comment Chaeryeong almost doubles over in laughter, to which you defend, "Tch, in the past week, sure. But for the record, we're still-"

"39-39-1, but I totally would have you beat if I hadn't forgotten about the 12-6 elbow,"  finishes Ryujin with a hint of exasperation.

"What other classes do we have together?" you ask, curious to the other ways fate had arranged this unexpected trio to cross paths. Other than biology, the three of you did not share any other classes, though you did have orchestra and history with Ryujin.