flipped :: markhyuck

18 | less is more

'eighteen

seeing all the promotion posters for the upcoming formal made mark contemplate.

would haechan reject an offer to go with him? after everything that happened, mark didn't know what to expect anymore.

he sat next to yeri, one of his classmates, during chemistry as they were paired together to do an experiment. haechan sat only a bench in front of him, and mark couldn't help but watch his every move. he admired his tan skin, and his prominent jawline which he saw every time haechan would turn to talk to his partner, and his firm muscles which strained every time he reached for something;

it was as if the less he could have him, the more he wanted him.

mark only stopped staring when he noticed yeri watching him with a raised eyebrow, and he quickly cleared his throat and paused.

"i... there's gum in his hair," mark lied unconvincingly, and yeri nodded suspiciously.

"i don't see any gum."

"oh... i guess it's just his hair," mark said dumbly, and yeri only shook her head before returning to the experiment.

he decided that he was going to ask haechan to the formal. he wasn't aware of anyone else who haechan would want to go with, and at this point, he really had nothing to lose.

♔

haechan wondered through the small school library. it wasn't anything compared to what was once his local library, but it was good enough for a short-term replacement.

as he headed into an aisle, he heard someone whisper, "haechan, let's talk." before he could reply, he was pulled to the side, and he came face-to-face with a girl.

"oh, hey yeri," he greeted. "that was a weirdly conspicuous way of catching my attention."

"shh," she hissed, before a small smile spread across her face. "mark lee likes you."

haechan rolled his eyes. "shut up—"

"i'm serious," she said, inching closer and lowering her voice. "you know how we had chem this morning? i caught him staring at you, and guess what his excuse was? he claimed there was gum in your hair!"

she watched with anticipation as haechan looked down. "maybe there really was gum..."

"alright, you're too dumb to realise he's whipped," she sighed, grabbing his arm and pulling him inside the book aisle. "look through the shelf."

between the gaps of the books, he saw mark talking in a hushed voice to jeno.

"listen in on them, and you'll get your answer," she grinned, patting his back before walking off.

haechan didn't move, but he wasn't sure whether to eavesdrop or leave. as he pondered, he heard jeno's voice.

"woah, this is something he gave to you?" he exclaimed quietly, and mark nodded, showing him the book which haechan dropped - but never retrieved - at mark's front door.

"ugh... he gave you so many signs, man," jeno sighed, closing it. "the drawings, the fact that he even gives you books - they're warning signs."

haechan freezed as mark frowned. "what do you mean?"

jeno raised his eyebrows expectantly. "i mean he's gay. what did you think 'sunny boy' meant? you have to steer clear of him."

haechan felt the lump in his throat grow bigger, but his feet wouldn't let him move. he couldn't escape the conversation which was guaranteed to end horribly.

"but..." mark hesitated, before sighing. "right... right. yeah, i should be careful."

and that was all haechan needed to hear for his legs to finally give in. he covered his mouth as he walked as fast as he could out of the library, and yeri looked up from the table she was reading at with a frown.

she then saw mark walk out of an aisle with jeno, and she ushered him over.

"hey," she frowned, "what the hell did you talk about with jeno?"

"nothing you should be worried about," he replied, making her scoff.

"really? because i just saw haechan leave the library, on the verge of crying."

mark widened his eyes. "you're lying."

"i wish i was," she admitted, standing up and collecting her books. "you know, for someone who's meant to be good with relationships, you kind of suck at keeping those you care about close."

mark didn't say anything else as she walked off, and he clenched his jaw.

he needed to see haechan immediately.