Foul | Park Jimin

o n e

Alright Mirae, it's only your first day of your Junior year in high school, nothing big right? This is only the year that literally everyone says will be the most eventful in your entire school career.

School. Right. It's just school. The only thing a new year of school means is a fresh opportunity to better your grades, stop overthinking. You have got this.

I wish I could convince myself that I didn't talk to myself often but to be quite frank, this wasn't a rare thing. Talking to myself is something that happens way too often to be condoned. In fact, it's happening right as we speak... well, as I speak...? Gosh, you (I) see my point.

The first thing I do as I step foot into my small classroom is look around for a seat. To my right I observe as several girls frantically pat on makeup, desperate to get their glass skin finish before the bell rings, it doesn't take me half a second to ignore them and shift my gaze to my left, where I notice a group of boys smirking into my direction. I uncomfortably watch their eyes look me up and down before laughing and talking amongst themselves. They immediately move on to another girl to check out and do the same too, disgusting. I huff and observe the class a little longer, seeing another group of kids make "save the turtles!" posters and yet another yell gaming signals to each other as they aggressively smash their thumbs onto their phone screens.

It takes me maybe another minute or so to notice a quiet boy tapping away lightheartedly on his phone in the back of the class. Finally, I sigh, someone like me. As I walk over to the empty seat next to him, I have to dodge other students unexpectedly backing up into my personal space and jumping up out of no where in front of me. My delayed arrival forces me to observe the boy a little longer, long enough to notice how quiet that he actually is not.

The strangers appearance spoke all too much for him.

His hair, that was previously a splotchy box dyed blondish orange, had faded and grown out to reveal his black roots and was nothing but a catastrophe on the top his head. His outfit was disheveled in every way possible with a couple of his shirt buttons undone, his jacket sleeves rolled up and his tie hanging loosely around his neck. He continued to loosen it up with his silver ring clad fingers that also go up to momentarily play with his matching silver earrings of all shapes and sizes, that were hanging loosely from his ears on both sides. He lowers his hands again but this time to down under his shirt where he pulls out a gold chain, which he brings to his mouth and bits onto almost violently. It's only then in which I notice his busted lip.

I shake my head at the migraine forming from my overwhelming observation skills so I force myself to zoom out on the bigger picture. I finally notice that he is holding up his phone and taking a... selfie?

He snaps a picture before dropping the chain from his mouth and typing away on what I assume are his messages. The mysterious boy finally looks up from his phone and to the side.

I follow his gaze to find a boy with equally messy hair and attire, whom also had a red and somewhat swollen eye, that was being subdued by a short girl struggling to keep her ice pack steady on his face. The second man takes a look at his buzzing phone and immediately, his expression explodes into an unimaginable level of anger. He attempts to get up but the girl pushes him down, cups his face and gives him one small peck on his lips before proceeding to ice, effectively making him settle down. The first boy looks away in disgust and over-exaggeratedly shivers.

Yeah, it didn't really take a rocket scientist to realize that the two had gotten into a physical fight before I had arrived. The first continues to pretend gag but stops with his mouth wide open when he sees me sit down next to him.

"Hey cutie," his expression immediately changes from disgust to curiosity. The once scary boy cutely smiles to me, sending warm rays of sunshine straight to my heart, "what are you doing sitting next to a tough guy like me?"