TW: indirect and direct mentions of self harm and suicide
Sunghoon had always been told he was too cold towards people, or that he should try to be more open and welcoming to people, especially new people, but he could never find it in himself to change how he naturally was to suit other people - it didn't sit right with him. And because of that, he had few friends, most people choosing to avoid him altogether. But the friends he did have were arguably closer to him than his family.
He had always had family problems, many of them stemming from the lack of love between his parents, which often led to arguments and disputes over even the smallest of things. He would have to play peace-keeper to allow him and his sister to have at least a few moments of peace and quiet without the constant shouting and noise from their parents.
This had a knock-on affect on his life outside his home life too.
He had lost many friends over the years due to his lack of commitment to keeping any sort of relationship with people, not to mention the fact that people actively avoided him at school, and also the fact that teachers had given up on him completely too.
There were only two people who Sunghoon could actually call friends, who had stuck with him through everything, including the breakdown of his parents' marriage, when everyone else just saw him as more of a outcast because he didn't have two parents who loved each other and were still together.
Jungwon and Sunoo both knew that they needed to stick by Sunghoon as much as they could. They had heard the comments and rumour spread by people behind the poor boys back and didn't want him to suffer unnecessarily, even if that meant just being shoulders to cry on. They were the ones who helped him patch himself back together and talk him down from things both of them would rather forget.
The two younger males were literally Sunghoon's lifeline for the past four years, and as much as he hated it, he depended on them for almost everything. After all, between them they had helped him get good enough marks to stay in the school and not be expelled for lack of effort and work, along with the aforementioned things.
That was until a puppy-like male turned up at the start of the last year of school, and Sunghoon was intrigued by him.
The news about a cute new male spread quickly through the year group, and it wasn't long until Sunghoon had been told everything people knew about him, mainly from Sunoo, who seemed to attract gossip.
"I heard his name is Sim Jaeyun, but he doesn't use his Korean name." Sunoo sat down at their usual lunch table in the corner of the canteen.
"Yeah, I heard he uses his English name, Jake." Jungwon butted him, earning a glare from Sunoo, who wanted to spill everything to Sunghoon.
Jake. It suits him.
Sunghoon thought, not forgetting to roll his eyes at his friends, who were bickering once again.
"Why an English name?"
Jungwon looked at him weirdly. "Why do you care? It not like you."
Sunghoon shrugged. He didn't know either. He knew he wouldn't be able to get close to the new male due to his position of a social outcast, so he settled on learning more about him from a distance.
