Opposites Attract || svt { HIATUS }

chapter two: the fire inside

Seungkwan hated going to school in the Fire Kingdom.

He's managed to trust a few Firebenders but it was harder when they found out about his past. The Forgotten Ice Prince, they'll say, loud enough for Seungkwan to hear. Such a shame. He could've been on top of the world with those powers of his... oh wait... Then they would laugh and leave him alone to wallow in the words.

It wasn't the fact that he couldn't bend, but he didn't want to. It was too painful, seeing the snow clump on his fingers, sticking to him. Now they left his stomach in knots and tears threatening to run down his face. "Come on hyung, stand up for yourself!" Chan would say. "I can't," He wanted to cry. "It's true." 

Seungcheol and Jeonghan hyung would work at the palace for hours, leaving at dawn and coming back before dinner. They would groan about how crazy the family is and Seungkwan would sit there, not listening, waiting for until Mingyu was done cooking and they could sit down and eat and the others would talk about their day. Usually it was about Joshua talking about the vocal club and a kid named Seokmin ("you'll really like him hyung, he's so happy and bouncy"), Mingyu going on about the audacity that some customers have, and Jeonghan teasing Jun about Minghao.

Then they'll clean up and go to bed, all of them cuddled up together and fall asleep. Usually Seungkwan would be the last one to close his eyes, curled up against Mingyu.

Then he'll repeat the process of waking up, showering, walking down the block to school, suffering through the school day, then going to the bakery to do homework and help if needed, then eat dinner when Jeonghan and Seungcheol came home, then sleep until the next day. Weekends were full of flour covering his hands and apron or spent studying outside.

The bakery was like his safe space. Mingyu's infamous pumpkin bread recipe always scented the air with cinnamon and other spices, and mixed with herbal tea blends and baked goods. It made for a relaxing atmosphere, besides the occasional customer and asshole-y classmate. But Seokmin and Soonyoung were always with him. He loved them because his humor matched theirs perfectly.

It was a normal day when it all started.

When it appeared.

It was the last class of the day, which was homeroom. He was working on algebra when he heard the gong ringing. The school sound system crackled to life. "Students at the International School of the Fire Kingdom, we have a special announcement. Royalty is going to be walking your hallways soon. Please be prepared to greet them with outmost respect. This is a top school, not a pigsty. Be on your best behavior. Monday morning will be when they arrive."

Kids in Seungkwan's class looked at each other with excitement. The girls squealed about the royal family, and Seungkwan knew damn well that they were talking about the Prince himself. "He's so handsome... should I ask him out?" A girl asked her friends, but Seungkwan didn't listen to the rest. The girls were hopeless. As if he would want to date scum like you? The words threatened to spill over his lips but he swallowed them down. "Maybe the Prince would want to play kaui ball?" A class jock (known as a frequent idiot who would make fun of the Icebender) murmured out loud and Seungkwan took all of his strength to blurt out, "NO!"

He went home after the bell rang and walked by himself down the street to the bakery. Mingyu was already there, finishing up pies and a fresh kettle of tea was on the stove. "Kwannie, help me out," Mingyu said, not looking up from the bread he was kneading in the back.

"Of course hyung..." He mumbled.

He dropped his bag in the office and sighed before coming over to the older. He washed his hands and placed his apron on. "How's school?" Mingyu hummed. "Fine, I guess," Seungkwan replied. Mingyu pushed a ball of dough towards him and, and Seungkwan took it. "The Headmaster said that the royal family were going to start coming to our school." Mingyu stopped, and stared at a wall for a few moments. "Really?" He asked quietly. Seungkwan panicked, thinking that he did something wrong. "I-I don't know why though-" The older boy stopped, and placed a dirtied hand on his shoulder. "You'll be ok with it, right? I can try to convince Seungcheol to let you stay with me in the bakery and we can, like, homeschool you and stuff and the work load wouldn't be too big with me and you."