Next Door |•YEONGYU/BEOMJUN•|

~3~

"Gyu!" Soobin yelled from behind. "Wait for me! Are you deaf?!" he stopped beside the boy, out of breath.

Beomgyu took off his headphones and looked back at Soobin.

Catching his breath, he continued, "Why are you out so early? And you even got the nerve to ditch me!" he rose to his full height and gently pushed the other's shoulder. Looking at Beomgyu's eyes, his voice softened, "Is everything okay?"

Beomgyu nodded lightly and shrugged off the topic. "Nothing much, just my grades."

Soobin wrapped his arms around Beomgyu's shoulders in a comforting gesture as they settled into a steady walking pace. "Why is it bothering you, hm? You aren't planning on finishing your studies, Gyu." Soobin looked down at Beomgyu."It shouldn't matter then."

Beomgyu looked down at his feet and shook his head slightly. "I really don't want to disappoint him, Soobin."

The elder man just sighed. "We've talked about this before, Gyu." He looked Beomgyu in the eyes, his own filled with sincerity. "He's your father. Man up, don't be a coward. He will figure this out sooner or later. It's your dream, not his. Remember that."

I know, I know! But he's so short-tempered at times that he scares me. He loves me a lot... I don't want to ruin it.

Beomgyu fixed his gaze away. Anywhere where things weren't so complicated. And that's when the cold caught him off guard.

"Gosh, it's freezing," he said with his teeth chattering. He crossed his arms and rubbed his forearms to get some warmth. "Let's go for a run."

"You know I can not run that much-" The last part turned into a steady yell as Beomgyu ran off with a quick sprint, smiling wickedly. "Choi Beomgyu!"

Beomgyu laughed as the cool winter air brushed his face, trying his best to put the topic at the back of his mind. He was the mood maker of the group. If he were upset, what would happen to the others? He'll tell his father when the time is right. Not now.

He stopped in front of his college gate, his hands on his hips, with his body all warmed up. He looked over his shoulder to see a panting big bunny trying his best not to pass out. When the elder came beside him, he smacked the younger's head. Beomgyu laughed, "I still don't know how you're still coping with me. I'm a total maniac."

Soobin's face warmed at his words. "The only way a normal person can be with a psycho if they themselves are mentally sick too," he teased.

Beomgyu narrowed his eyes at him and poked the elder on the shoulder as they started walking. "What did you need a band-aid in the middle of the night?"

"Um.. uh ah" Soobin's face ran hot. "It's nothing, just a minor cut on my pinkie."

Beomgyu grimaced at the elder and checked the wound. "What are you? Five? Who needs a band-aid for that?"

Soobin sighed for the nth time, "Let's just get to class."

Beomgyu could not keep his eyes open for a single second in History class.

He pulled out his phone, sneaking it under his desk. The teacher will throw him outside the class if he sleeps one more time.

It was nearly the last period. So... Yeonjun was probably doing a live, right?

He opened the Weverse app to check. Yeonjun really was live. He was in a car with Huening Kai. He clicked on it and smiled, hearing Yeonjun's voice, before quickly changing it into a cough so the teacher wouldn't find him suspicious. He just watched for a while. It wasn't until Kai was reading the comments that an evil idea sparked in his head.

I got a 19 on my history test.

He commented proudly. He saw the way Kai's expression changed visibly when he read the comment.
He looked at yeonjun, trying to hold back his laugh. "Hyung, a fan said they got a 19 on their test."

Yeonjun looked at the camera, then covered his mouth with a hand, his eyes crinkling in the corners. "You got a 19 on your test?" His eyes shone in disbelief. "I was bad in school, but I wasn't that bad," they broke into laughter.

Beomgyu laughed mentally with them at the small prank he pulled.

"We're so sorry," Yeonjun apologized, before cracking again.

"Hope you do well in the next one," Kai added, failing miserably to control his own laughter.

Beomgyu closed the app and turned off his phone as the bell rang. He groaned. He still had Calculus for the ending fairy.

The idea of jumping off a damn building has never been more appealing

Beomgyu stood up and left the classroom as soon as the bell rang. A microsecond longer here, and he will have a damn stroke. He quickly went up to the lockers to meet with Soobin. When the elder came, they started walking home.

"Calculus put you in a shitty mood again, Gyu?"

"Duh, that's like the universal truth." He stopped in his tracks and looked at Soobin dead in the eyes. "Hyung, you know that a new family moved in next door the other day, right?"

"What about it?"

"They have a son who's almost our age, older, I mean."

"That's nice, we can become friends with him if you want." Soobin looked at the trees, drenched in life, and covered with snow. "What's his name, if you know that, that is."

"Yeonjun."

"Should I be surprised that his name coincidentally matches your bias or nah?" He said sarcastically.

"He is that Yeonjun. The go hit that gum jil-geong Yeonjun."

"Stop lying to me, Gyu." He smiled, looking up at the sky.

"I know it sounds unreal. I was happy out of my mind when I saw him, but..." he paused.

"But..?"

"He's intimidating."