axiom academy for extraordinary boys

Part One

Incessant chatter and the occasional laugh are what Choi Soobin hears as he rests his palm under his chin and props his elbow on the face of his desk. His jaded stare is aimed toward the east wall of the classroom, seemingly focused somewhere outside the laboratory window, and he stays silent. The boys around him scramble to finish the potion's assignment they had been given at the beginning of the lecture, and he's glad they don't try to talk to him. Instead, they allow him to keep to himself; he is grateful. There are clutters of raindrops painting the glass, and he's been counting them one by one as the commotion goes on around him. It's all he's been focusing on as the minutes tick by.

Just as he's reached fifty-four, though, he hears one of the boys in the seats next to him speak up. Most likely to his friend at the table behind them, but still loud enough for Soobin to catch.

"—And I heard she'll be here at the new student's assembly tomorrow. Can you imagine the possibilities?" The blonde-haired boy says smugly, tone dripping sickly in what Soobin can only describe as want. He frowns further into his palm and keeps his gaze away from the two boys. After all, they are just needy teenagers, and Soobin doesn't really know them anyway. He decides after that to continue minding his own business, glancing down at his completed assignment before sighing. He always finishes first. The only downside? Having to endure everyone else around who hasn't.

"Hey Soobin." A voice tears his gaze away from his paper and up to a pair of round, excited eyes staring back at him. Soobin blinks once at his friend, Beomgyu, before arching a brow in question. Beomgyu simply laughs and drags his stool over to sit across from Soobin at his desk.

"Did you know? New student's assembly tomorrow, and get this, they're allowing a girl to enroll." The younger boy beams, a slight lilt to his words as he playfully smacks the older boy's arm. Soobin drops his arm onto his desk and sighs again, his friend's word's not exciting him in the slightest.

"Yeah, so I've heard."

"It's like the first time in history there's ever been a girl allowed at Axiom. Like, can you believe that? Why now? Have they even thought about how risky it could be having a girl-"

"I think they know what they're doing, Beom."

Soobin tilts his head and looks toward Professor Song in boredom, watching as he flips through the course syllabus, before adding, "And anyway, why do you even care about some girl enrolling? She's a complete stranger."

"Because," Beomgyu says, wagging his finger knowingly in his friend's face, "Not only is everyone talking about it, but she's going to be living on campus just like the rest of us. Maybe this will be my chance to finally get a girlfriend."

Soobin nods absentmindedly at Beomgyu's words, knowing that every single boy in the academy has the exact same thought.

Well, every boy except him.

It's not that he doesn't like girls or anything – he likes them very much – It's just that he has a tendency to strike out when it came to members of the opposite sex. That and all his focus is usually on his studies; he figures throwing a girl into the mix will just add unnecessary stress into his life. So, he simply keeps to himself. No girlfriend and only a few close friends at the academy. That's all Soobin has.

"Anyway," Beomgyu's voice broke Soobin out of his thoughts once again, "Yeonjun said he'd save us a spot in the dining-hall after potions class ends, so we should probably meet him after."

The dark-haired boy nods at this, perking up just slightly. He is starving, and he misses his other friends. Lunch time was one of his favorite times of the day.

The sound of a beaker tipping and shattering, and loud laughter exploding from a table across the room causes Soobin to sigh again, and he's looking out the window of the room once more as Beomgyu suddenly dives into a conversation with someone at the table over.