ℂ𝕝𝕦𝕖𝕝𝕖𝕤𝕤 ✓ || ʲᵘⁿʰᵃᵒ ˣ ˢᵉᵛᵉⁿᵗᵉᵉⁿ

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Avoiding

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Minghao came back to the dorm at about two in the morning when the night guard was out for a smoke. The boy drove back with Jeonghan and Jisoo but stayed outside until he was sure nobody will be up. The last thing he wanted was to see Jun after their talk at the party.

He was pleasantly surprised when the door opened just by twisting the handle. The boy realized the older didn't lock it in case Minghao would come back. And although the younger did say he'd be spending the night at someone else's room, it felt wrong to leave Jun like that.

After all, he couldn't even understand what Minghao was feeling.

The boy creeped up to his bed, hoping his roommate will already be sleeping and was instantly greeted by excited Lucky. However, even though his eyes were sore from constant crying and his body felt heavy, Minghao lied sleepless throughout the whole night, trying to find some comfort in the kitten's soft fur..

A sharp sound of gushing water woke Jun up. After looking around the room, he sighed in relief as he realized Minghao was back. The boy layed in his bed, thinking about the previous night and why the younger became upset. That said, he didn't say for how long he wanted to be alone, so when Jun heard the bathroom door clicking open, the boy closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep.

He wasn't at all surprised when Minghao ran out of the room in less than a minute after coming out of the shower..

Meanwhile the younger wandered through the hallways, debating whether or not he should wake Jeonghan up. Finally he knocked, hoping the older wasn't sleeping anymore. After a couple long minutes, Minghao turned away thinking nobody will answer, but then Jisoo appeared on the doorstep.

"Morning, Minghao!"

His cheerful smile soon dropped as he noticed the younger's frown and dark circles under his eyes.

"Wanna talk about it?" Jisoo whispered gently and after seeing Minghao's faint nod, he grabbed a random jacket and the two boys went outside.

Minghao kept silent until they reached the park. Somehow it had become the conversation place and the silver haired boy always felt calm there.

"Hyung," he finally spoke, his voice sounding a bit raspy from staying silent too long.

"What would you do if you knew your feelings will never be reciprocated?"

By the way his voice shook when saying those words, Jisoo understood everything and motioned for the boy to sit on a swing near the pond.

"Honestly, I'd find a way to keep them in my memory. Even if they're one sided, feelings are a part of the time you spent with that person. I wouldn't want to lose that.."

"It's hard to accept it at first but peace comes with time," he added after a short pause.

Jisoo's calm and comforting voice eased Minghao a bit. The younger looked up to the pond. A vision appeared before his eyes as he remembered the time he spent there with Jun and a small smile shone on his face upon the memory.

"Should I let go then..?"

The question came out as a mere whisper. It felt scary to even think of a possibility like that.

"If you think that'll help you, then yes. But I wouldn't give up that easily," Jisoo nudged the younger playfully and continued.

"I'm a firm believer that the heavens can help us in the darkest moments of life. So if the universe sends you a sign, don't ignore it. Maybe it's worth trying again after all."

The younger felt much better after talking it out with Jisoo. And even though his heart was still hurting, at least he knew he'll be okay. Eventually..

Jisoo left shortly after as he was getting cold, however Minghao decided to stay a little more. Some unknown force was drawing him near the pond. The boy leaned over the muddy greenish water and let his fingers dip into the cold. The water felt soothing and refreshing to his skin.

Suddenly his eyes caught a glimpse of red fabric behind a thick reed bush. Curious to see what it was, Minghao took a long thin stick, which he found near him and began fishing the unfamiliar object. And only after a couple minutes the boy finally saw what that red thing was.

It was his own lost shoe..

By the time Minghao came back to the dorm, it was almost noon. The life seemed to flow just like before. Everyone was chatting, laughing at stupid jokes or simply studying for the next quiz. The only difference was that his friends weren't as cheerful as before, but Minghao didn't notice that, due to Jisoo's last words constantly echoing in his head.

"Does anyone want a sandwich?" Chan asked once the eleven of them were sitting in the cafeteria. Wonwoo and Mingyu were the only ones missing from their group.

Without uttering a single word, Seungcheol took the unwanted sandwich and began to chew on it absentmindedly.

"How's your performance going?" Hansol asked Soonyoung but the latter couldn't hear as he was still distracted by the pain in his back from that unlucky tattoo.

"Good," Jun answered concisely, gaining an eyebrow raise from a few around. The boy wasn't exactly known for such short conversations, unlike Jihoon.

As he gave his answer, Jun subconsciously looked at Minghao but just when the younger caught Jun's eye contact, he immediately looked away coldly. His reaction felt like a dagger to Jun's heart. The boy couldn't understand what went wrong but at the same time he knew it was somehow his fault.

Seungkwan and Seokmin tried their best to cheer everyone up, however, unsuccessfully. The mood was down but no one really knew why.

The bell rang, signalling the lunch break was about to end. Suddenly a figure ran into the cafeteria and rushed to the group. It was Mingyu. The poor boy looked distressed and on the verge of tears as he desperately tried to regain his breath.

"It's Wonwoo.. He wouldn't open the door.. I heard him scream.. Please.. Help..!"

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