Yoongi was an invisible boy.
During his school life, he always remembered being an outcast, not because he didn't like what all the other kids liked, not because he didn't dress the way all the other kids dressed, but because he chose to remain an outcast.
He didn't have any friends. He didn't raise his hand up when the teacher asked a question. He doubted whether the teacher even knew of his existence in their class. He would always sit at the last bench. He would always wear a black hoodie in order to not draw too much attention his way. He sat alone on the roof at lunch.
In school, Yoongi barely had a voice and face. He didn't have an identity, he was just part of the shadows as no one noticed if he was present or not.
Going to college, he intended on maintaining his invisible identity - it helped that he was majoring in music and there were many other music majors that also played the piano like him. On the second day of college, he cut his hair in the exact same hairstyle that most boys had just to camouflage even more.
Yoongi wanted to remain hidden from the world for a very simple reason - he had social anxiety. Interaction with another human being was a beyond scary imagination. Everytime a person even glanced at Yoongi he got flustered. His social anxiety was on a very intense level and he hadn't done anything to improve it - in fact, him distancing himself from people made it even worse.
But his condition was the worst pair up for his major, because he was required to perform solo piano concerts.
Yoongi was in his final year of college and at the end of the year he was to perform a solo concert playing a very hard piano piece in front of at least a thousand people. Yoong had always skipped playing at concerts, but this one at the end of his college life was going to determine if he graduated or not. Not to mention that CEOs of famous entertainment companies were going to be there and if they liked what Yoongi was playing there was a good chance they would hire him in their company as a composer.
Yoongi had no issue composing a hard piece for his upcoming concert at the end of the academic year - truth be told, that was the only part he was excited for. He dreaded playing the piano in front of a thousand people. No matter when, he will never be ready for that.
The college library was huge. It was a maze of bookshelves that one would easily get lost in. It was so big that there was a map of the library pasted at the entrance, so that people would know where they were headed.
What no one knew that there was a tiny area among the maze, a slight crack of an entrance created by two bookshelves forming an L shape. The small crack led to a completely deserted area of the library, a perfect square of carpeted floor. A huge window was placed on the wall of that area, giving it enough light.
That was probably Yoongi's favourite place in the whole world. He discovered the crack that the two bookshelves created and found the area. When he became aware of the fact that no one knew about the space, he came and set up pillows and beanbags there, and even rearranged the books so that all the books that talked about music and famous artists were in the bookshelves that surrounded one third of the square space. It was the perfect getaway where he could escape from the world and plot on how he could take over the planet with just his voice.
If he wasn't in class, he would sneak into his favourite spot and compose music, watch videos or be studying musical theory. Sometimes he even stayed there when lectures in the college were done.
It was another day where he had successfully crept through the crack without being noticed and crashed on a bean bag, revelling in his victory of going through a day without having to talk to anyone. He opened his laptop and began completing one of his assignments. .
About half an hour had passed and Yoongi was so focused on what he was doing that he barely noticed the soft footsteps approaching his secret place. His forehead was crinkled with focus, his eyes never leaving the screen of his laptop.
"I think your laptop is fully charged," said a voice and Yoongi jumped in his seat to look at a smiling girl standing in front of him. A grumpy expression seeped into his features when he looked at the girl.
Ew . . . a human.
The girl was short and had a classic combination of forest green eyes, light freckles and the deepest shade of red hair that fell down to her lower back. Her striking red hair was split in an even middle part, one section of hair loosely flowing onto her face, the other section clipped back tightly with a clip that adorned a large white daisy.
Even with the irritated attitude evident on his face, he could internally feel his anxiety boiling up. He instead decided to focus on the blinking white light indicating that his laptop was fully charged and removed the charger to put it back in his laptop bag.
To Yoongi's annoyance, the girl smiled even wider and plopped herself down on one of the bean bags. "You decorated this whole area? It's so cozy in here!"
Yoongi was really not in the mood to talk (he never was), so he decided to just pack his bags and leave.
"My name is Kanao!" the girl happily chirped and Yoongi closed his eyes because her loud happy voice was already starting to get on his nerves. "What's yours? I've never seen you before in any music periods."
"You don't know what I major in," he replied, still avoiding eye contact with Kanao and pretending to act nonchalant while packing his bags. In reality, her presence really disturbed him.
"I know you major in music, you were doing an assignment that was given to the music majors."
Dammit!
"So you're a music major too?"
"Yup!"
"How horrible to know. Now bye."
And with that, Yoongi packed his bags and left his secret place. He was really hoping that Kanao would forget about him - the last thing he needed was a friend tailing him. So how surprised was he the next day when he came to class and saw the redhead sit right next to him.
Yoongi sat on the last row of benches in the corner, that was his spot in every single lecture. He was used to people not having their gaze go his way - he rather preferred it that way. And usually if someone sat next to him he wouldn't bother because that person wouldn't notice him, too busy chatting with their friends or doing something else. But today he was bothered by the person sitting next to him: Kanao smiled at him politely and Yoongi sighed in annoyance when she did so.
He hated this. Four years he had managed to be invisible in the campus and someone finally at the end noticed his existence.
"Who the heck are you smiling at," Yoongi snapped at her under his breath.
"You!"
"Just go somewhere else and sit. Why'd you have to sit next to me?"
"You haven't told me your name yet!" Kanao chirped and Yoongi rolled his eyes again at her cheerful voice.
"I don't have to -"
"Oh so your name is Yoongi!"
Dammit!
Yoongi realized that his name was written on his book cover and quickly hid the book in the space under the table.
"Listen just don't talk to me from now on ok?"
"But I'll have to talk to you to be your friend right?"
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That girl was truly a pain. The more Yoongi tried to run away from her, the more he went closer. He had done everything: when he'd snap at her to leave him alone, she'd just stare at him blankly, and then tail him again like he hadn't said anything before. If he tried running away and hiding from her inside the boys washroom, she would just wait for him to come out.
Kanao usually initiated light conversation but those interactions were cut way too short because Yoongi wasn't going to give in and be this girl's 'friend'. He'd snap at her so much that eventually he had to internally admit to himself, that he started getting impressed by her persistence. She would simply chirp an "okay!" when he told her to stop talking to him, and then she wouldn't say a word to him but would still follow him like a lost puppy. When Yoongi told her to stop following him, she'd smile and chirp a "but I don't want to! I want to be your friend!"
And so now Yoongi was stuck with this redhead girl trailing him all over the college campus. It sure made it hard for him to stay invisible when he had a girl who was literally the freaking sun walking behind him all the time. He had to admit, her perseverance and determination to want to be his friend was admirable, so much that she didn't bat a single eyelash when Yoongi screamed mean things on her face.
Yoongi at a point got so annoyed by Kanao following him that he had stooped down so low to actually insult her looks, so that she could leave him alone. After saying that she looked like a mushroom, referring to the numerous freckles on her face, Kanao simply laughed and said: "good one!"
Nothing worked on the girl, she was too light-hearted to care about insults and snaps. And although admirable, her determination of being Yoongi's friend was really messing with his invisibility in school. He noticed that people actually started gazing at him in college, and every time somebody did, his face would get as red as Kanao's hair.
He was sitting on a bean bag, sharing his little secret space in the library with a certain unwelcome presence. Yoongi kept snatching annoyed glances at the redheaded girl who was humming a tune while brushing her hair. Even though Kanano had a sweet voice, her presence simply annoyed Yoongi, and that itself cancelled out any good qualities that she had.
He was fed up with her.
He slammed his laptop shut this time, loud enough to catch the redhead's attention. With a stern face he started pacing his bag, ready to leave the hell out of this college building.
Kanao looked up at Yoongi, while fixing her big daisy clip on her hair. "Are you going somewhere? I'll come with -"
"No."
Yoongi's voice was as cold as his expression."
"Don't follow me. Stop following me. I hate being around you."
"But Yoongi I like being -"
"I couldn't care less about what you like and what you don't! This stupidity has to come to an end, so just quit it will you?! I hate being around you and your stupid little happy chirps drive me insane! You're annoying and pathetic, and I don't like being around you! I don't like talking to you! And I don't want to be your friend! Got it!"
"But Yoongi . . . I want to be your friend! Everyone needs friends!"
"No Kanao," Yoongi put the backpack straps on his shoulders. "Not everyone needs friends," he said, before rolling his eyes at her blank expression and storming out of the secret area.
Not everyone needs friends.
He really had said such mean things to her yet her expression remained an emotionless rock. It didn't break, and she hadn't given up that day either.
Yoongi was frustrated. He hated her so much yet he was here in the Muhan Train, painting that large white daisy that she always wore on her hair. He hated the thought that maybe, he was getting fond of Kanao.
He asked Taehyung whether he could take the painting home, and was now walking towards his barely functioning apartment in borders of Seoul,
With his backpack on his shoulders and the painting under his arm, Yoongi was deep in thought under the night clouds.
Kanao had really done it.
Yoongi had now realized what had happened. Up until now, there were only two groups of people: him, and everybody else. But maybe for the first time ever . . . someone had crossed into his world. . .