That Stupid List (A Seventeen Fanfic)

Chapter 26: The Rumor

When Jin went to the library that morning like she usually did, she was surprised to see that Wonwoo was not there. Mingyu was sitting in his usual place, absorbed in his studies, but Wonwoo was nowhere in sight. She had planned to tell him about what happened with Mingyu last night.

She texted him: hey Wonwoo. Where are you?

Wonwoo replied later with: haven't you heard?

J: Heard what?

W: right. You don't use social media, do you?

J: what happened?

W: everyone knows I'm gay now. I don't know how it got out, but it's everywhere on social media.

Jin froze for a moment. She was at a loss for words.

J: omg.

W: yeah :(

J: I don't know what to say...

W: Favor? Can you come over and get me food? I don't want to leave my room right now and I'm verryyyyy hungry, and Sena and Seokmin have a class.

Jin assuredly agreed, of course. After getting his residence hall information, she went and bought him ramen noodles and drinks.

She could not imagine how Wonwoo would be feeling. This was a very personal secret for him, and it was the one thing he had been the most insecure about in te time that she knew him. Now that it was out in the open, she could just tell that he was not in the best state at all.

She also underwent a period where personal secrets of hers ended up in the hands of someone else. She remembered how devastated she felt when that happened. She was depressed, and there were dark thoughts running through her head for a long time. Lucky for her, however, those secrets did not travel beyond Vernon. Not yet at least. For Wonwoo, his secret was everywhere.

She arrived at Wonwoo's dorm. People that were passing by eyed her suspiciously. She could feel the judgment in their eyes. She wondered if it had to do with what they found out about Wonwoo.

When she knocked on his door, he opened it and let her in quickly, before quickly closing it again.

Wonwoo's dorm was different from Seokmin's. It was much smaller, and the walls and lights were clearly older. Wonwoo, however, was a lot more organized than Seokmin. She glanced at the other side of the room, and saw that there were bags and boxes everywhere.

"My roommate wants to move out," Wonwoo explained. He seemed hurt when he said it, sullen almost. Jin noticed a crack in his voice, as if he were really, really tired. He had bags under his eyes, and was all in all in a really bad state.

"Why?"

"Why do you think?" Wonwoo replied.

"I'm sorry," Jin said. She handed him the bag with the food she had bought him, which he heartily accepted.

"It's okay," Wonwoo, said, putting the bag to the side. He invited Jin to sit on his bed as he started a kettle to make the ramen. "I didn't like him very much to begin with," he explained, "but now I would have to pay full rent, which I can't afford with my budget."

"If you need money, I can lend you some."

"No," Wonwoo told her, "I won't accept money from anyone. I just need to find a job somewhere."

Jin nodded. "I can help you look for a job," she offered. She felt like she needed to do something for him.

Wonwoo nodded, and sat beside her. He rubbed his head, clearly stressed out from all that's happening.