chapter 10
"Aishh!" A deep voice cried out, grumbling curses under their breath. Recognizing the familiar voice, Yoon-ah swiveled back to see an annoyed Seojun glaring at her.
"Han Seojun?" Yoon-ah choked out. "What the hell? Why would you do that?!?"
"I- ahhh, who else did you expect it to be?" Seojun cursed, holding his jaw in pain.
With annoyance evident in her eyes, Yoon-ah took in the scene in front of her. The boy's hair was messy and his bangs fell over wild, disbelieving eyes as he cradled his face with his hands. "Where on earth did you learn how to hit like that?" he asked incredulously.
Yoon-ah felt awful but she couldn't help but laugh at the horrified look on the boy's face. She smiled sheepishly in response. Reaching out to tuck her messy locks back in place, Yoon-ah's eyes widened to see Seojun flinch at her action.
"Stay away from me," Seojun warned, backing up. "It still hurts."
Yoon-ah's hands fell limp by her side and she stared at her shoes guiltily. "I'm sorry," Yoon-ah whispered softly, moving closer to him. "I didn't realize it was you."
The boy eyed her warily as Yoon-ah approached him. Trying to be as gentle in her movements as she could, Yoon-ah gently brushed away his hand from his face, slipping her hands under his jaw in order to examine the place of injury. Yoon-ah gently touched the wounded area, massaging it to ease the pain.
Seojun could feel a slight pain forming on his jaw when the girl touched him. He shifted his weight on his feet, only to feel his back brushing against the wall behind him. Suddenly, Seojun felt insanely aware of just how close the two were standing.
The boy felt warmth rush to his cheeks. He coughed in an attempt to conceal the growing redness on his face and gently stepped away, distancing himself from her.
"Good news is nothing's broken," Yoon-ah piqued up, smiling. "You may have few bruises though."
"How can that be good news?" Seojun sputtered, looking at the seemingly indifferent girl with incredulous eyes. "You just hurt my face."
"I told you I was sorry," The brunette said, pursing her lips. "What else do you want me to do?"
"The 'sorry' doesn't fix my precious face," Seojun grumbled at the apology.
"Who asked you to grab me like that?" Yoon-ah retorted. "Anybody would think they're being abducted."
"As if it makes sense for somebody to attempt to abduct you," Seojun snapped back with a teasing smirk. "I don't think anyone would go so far to invest their time and energy in you, Yoon-ah-ya."
Yoon-ah turned her head away and perched on top of the nearby desk with a scowl.
"What was it?" she asked.
Song Yoon-ah looked absolutely divine sitting on the bench with her arms crossed. The sunlight that hit her warm brown eyes made them look a deep chocolate brown with shimmering golden specks dancing on the edges of her big orbs. Brown no longer described them for they felt like they were a part of the eclipse, blending with the golden rays falling on them.
"Huh?" Seojun asked dumbly, not being able to maintain his attention on the words she was speaking.
"I asked why you dragged me into this room like that, you psychopath," Yoon-ah repeated, pointedly looking away from the boy. Her face was bare of the traces of guilt and concern, replaced by her signature stoney expression, which made people unfamiliar with her think that she was haughty and mean. Despite her seemingly haughty demeanor, really anyone who knew her could see that she was actually very charming, chivalrous, and humble.
Upon looking up, Yoon-ah saw Seojun look at her with an intense expression on his face. He regarded her for a moment longer but then turned his back on her with a dismissive sigh.
Yoon-ah felt as though he had something he wanted to say, but had decided against it. She decided it was better left unspoken. He was bound to tell her eventually if it were important, and if not, well...lunch awaited her.
"If it was for no reason, I swear to god Han Seojun I will kill you," Yoon-ah threatened, her stomach positively grumbling by that point.
As Seojun failed to respond to her, Yoon-ah rolled her eyes at him, and rose exasperatedly from her seat, gliding toward the door, well aware of his dark eyes trailing behind her.
A thought slipped into Yoon-ah's mind as she was about to walk out of the door, and she spun back to see the boy looking leaning against the desk, staring at his feet.
"Is your mom feeling better now?" she asked in a much softer voice. Looking at her for a moment, the icy gaze in his eyes grew softer.
"She's doing much better now," he said, giving her a small smile.
Not knowing what else to say, Yoon-ah curtly nodded and was about to leave when she felt his rough hand clasp her wrist again, preventing her from leaving.
By taking two long strides to bridge the gap between them, Seojun decided to talk to her and get rid of the thing nagging at his mind once and for all. He softly tugged her back to face him only for the girl to collide with his chest.
Compared to how warmth had radiated from his eyes mere moments ago, Yoon-ah noticed Seojun's expression to be much more severe at that moment.
"Be honest with me," Seojun spoke quietly, eyes searching the girl's face. "You like him, don't you?"
"I- what?!?" Yoon-ah asked, bewildered. Surprised at the sudden question, her questioning brown eyes met his dark gaze."What are you talking about? Like who?"
"Lee Suho," Seojun growled through gritted teeth. "You kept staring at him throughout the class."
"Oh," Yoon-ah squeaked.
There was something dangerously intimidating about his set expression. Yoon-ah felt her cheeks grow hot. She knew she couldn't argue with his observation, since both of them knew it to be true. But she couldn't fathom why he came to the ridiculous conclusion he was riled up over. It didn't occur to her that anybody would be paying attention to her as she snuck glances at Suho during class, least of all Seojun, who she knew to barely stay awake during classes.
"Don't get involved with him," Seojun warned. "Lee Suho...he's bad news."
It was lost to Yoon-ah how she could defend herself in this situation, and frankly, nor was it reasonable of her to be compelled to do so given the fact that she could as easily avoid the confrontation as Seojun had started it.
In response to his words, Yoon-ah cocked a brow and leaned closer to him in order to look directly into his dark eyes. "Are you speaking of our top-of-class Lee Suho? If he's bad news, then what do you have to say for yourself, monsieur Han?"
Her eyes pointedly roamed over his tall and gangly figure. Seojun's tie was hanging loosely over his chest, while the top two buttons of his school shirt were undone. Traces of a bruise had begun to form on his sharp jawline and his hair was still an unruly mess.
Seojun watched Yoon-ah's brown eyes take in his current state and cleared his throat, positively flustered. The boy subconsciously tugged at his tie as he looked up to face the smirking girl.
"I really mean it," he said, his stern face in stark contrast with the pink dusting his cheeks.
"Sure, whatever you say," Yoon-ah teased, clearly having no intention of listening to him. She smiled innocently at him, causing a chuckle to escape his mouth, as much as he willed otherwise.
The two jumped apart when the door slammed open, announcing Hyun-kyu's entrance. Neither one spoke as he stared at them with wide-eyed doubt. Are they together?
He stared at them for a bit longer, making Yoon-ah roll her eyes under his suspicious gaze.
Not possible. Hyun-kyu shook his head as if to clear his mind of the ridiculous thought.
"Ohh, you two came into the music class early to grab the only backbench left," he exclaimed, his eyes finally holding a glimmer of seemingly intellectual understanding.
"I thought I would be the first one to reach, but anyhow-" Hyun-kyu continued to mutter under his breath.
Yoon-ah regarded Hyun-kyu with an intrigued expression, wondering if she ever even wanted to know what went on in the strange boy's mind, while Seojun scoffed and flopped down on the bench next to them, which happened to be the last seat.
"You're right," he said, looking at Yoon-ah cockily as realization dawned on him. "I came early to claim my seat."
Upon realizing he did indeed just claim the backbench for himself, both the music room and classroom, Yoon-ah scowled at him.
However, the scowl on her face melted away when students started streaming into the classroom.
The girl pursed her lips as she looked around to see the music teacher enter the room as well. Straightening out his uniform, Seojun quickly buttoned up his shirt and pulled up his tie.
"Is the lunch break over?" Yoon-ah questioned, a pout making its way onto her face.
Before Seojun could reply, Sua bounded up to Yoon-ah, followed closely by Jukyung and Soojin.
"Yoon-ah-yaa," Sua called out, taking the girl by her arms. "Where were you? We had been waiting for you in the cafeteria. I thought you'd be hungry since you mentioned you hadn't even had breakfast."
"You didn't even eat breakfast?" Seojun interrupted Sua with a worried look crossing his face.
Yoon-ah pursed her lips and hummed in response, her mood immediately souring. She had been looking forward to lunch as her favorite dish was going to be served today.
A certain somebody's housekeeper had once again made the decision that Yoon-ah's sleep was more important than attending school. Yoon-ah shook her head, annoyed. She really ought to start setting an alarm in the morning, instead of relying on the kind lady to wake her up.
"Whatever," she muttered, growing irritable with the lack of food, and walked to her seat with a huff.
The students quieted down when the music teacher raised her voice. They were instructed to sing verses they had previously learned in class.
"That kid Han Seojun seems kind of scary," Jukyung muttered under her breath so that only her friends could hear her while the class the chorus on the top of their lungs. Sua and Tae-hoon nodded.
"He does have a bad boy image," Sua whispered back. "There's a frightening rumor that he didn't just take time off, but was suspended for almost killing a kid during a gang fight."
Yoon-ah looked amused at Sua's remarks, ceasing her singing. Her eyebrows cocked at the ridiculous claim, a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth to see Jukyung's horrified expression.
"Really?" Yoon-ah uttered, with a mock gasp of horror. "You don't say...."
"Yes yes, that's what I heard," Sua replied in all seriousness.
"What're you talking about?" Soojin commented in a low voice, rolling her eyes. "He took leave for family reasons."
When Yoon-ah heard this statement, her expression became grave. She glanced up and saw the boy staring back at her while the other girls continued to ponder over the rumor.
Seojun was already slightly startled to be caught looking at Yoon-ah, mentally cursing himself, but it felt as though his chair practically snapped out from beneath him when the boy beside him began screaming violently, scaring him out of his wits.
Seojun glanced back up to see Yoon-ah let out a weak laugh. The girl was still smiling when she turned around, mumbling a small apology to her music teacher who was staring daggers at her.
Guilt flashed across Seojun's dark eyes. Despite his hatred for Suho, he still felt bad for holding her back merely because he chose to over-examine seemingly insignificant details. The girl may as well have been zoning out. Whatever his own reasons for interfering had been, he realized he ought not to let his spite for Suho interfere with his other friendships. It was almost certain that she now considered him to be prying and intrusive.
After class, Jukyung insisted on going to the roof alone.
"Who are you going to meet there? Is that a gift in your hands?" Soojin teased, nudging the blushing girl.
"I just want to be alone for a while," Jukyung uttered under her breath, hiding the bag behind herself.
It was obvious Jukyung was lying, but Yoon-ah had neither the energy nor the will to pester her further. Before Sua could rejoin the conversation and begin talking endlessly about her thoughts and experiences with dating, Yoon-ah quickly ushered Jukyung away.
"Go," Yoon-ah urged, glancing over her shoulder. "We'll see you in class."
It was unknown to them that Jukyung was rushing to the roof to hand the jacket and comic book to the one and only Lee Suho.
Nonetheless, the two remaining girls, now accompanied by Sua, decided to linger a little in the hallway before their next period began. Yoon-ah tried sneaking into the cafeteria but to no avail. Her mood was being dampened by the hunger gnawing in her stomach. She leaned back against the wall with a sigh.
Sua piqued up to see Tae-hoon bounding up to the group of girls, as he greeted them enthusiastically.
"What's up Yoon-ah-ya?!" Tae-hoon exclaimed, offering his hand for a high-five.
"I'm tired" Yoon-ah replied groggily, rubbing her eyes, oblivious to Tae-hoon's attempt for a high five. "And I hate my life. That's what's up..."
"Ouch," Tae-hoon muttered, slapping his own raised hand away.
"You're hungry," Soojin laughed. "This is why you hate your life."
"I'm sick of school, tired as hell and starving to death," Yoon-ah said, glaring at Soojin. "That's why I hate my life."
Yoon-ah crossed her arms in a huff, while the others laughed around her.
"Yoon-ie," Sua sighed, shaking her head. "Always so dramatic."
Yoo-ah looked at her in mock horror before cracking a smile herself. She looked away from the laughing lot, gazing outside.
"Anyways, let's go," Soojin piqued up, taking Yoon-ah by the hands. "Let's get this human theatre to class."
Yoon-ah let herself get dragged along, but she landed a few playful punches on Soojin's arms with the usual "How dare you?" delivered with just the right amount of horror and betrayal reflecting on her face.
"We have Literature with Mr. Han now," Sua said, guiding the lot to class.
Mr. Han was already there, directing the students to sit at specific tables for their group assessments. Being the first student in the room, Yoon-ah slumped down on her assigned table with a sigh as Soojin and Sua took their seats beside her. The grumbling in her stomach continued to intensify as the day wore on. Devoid of energy, Yoon-ah rested her head on the table.
Moments later, she felt something nudging her shoulders. Thinking it would either be Tae-hoon asking for a high-five, or Sua wanting to start a conversation, Yoon-ah let out a soft sigh.
"Buzz off," she huffed, without lifting her head from the table. Hurt flashed across the male's face. He nudged her shoulders with the bottle once again.
"Yah!" Yoon-ah whirled around on the seat, annoyed. When she turned back, she came face to face with a grinning Seojun, who was crouching down at her level.
"What do you want Seojun?" Yoon-ah huffed out, laying her head back on the table.
A soft thud next to her head made her peek up from the crook of her elbow. A fruit smoothie bottle sat beside her on the desk.
"I found it on the way," Seojun said, reaching forward to shove the drink in her hands. "Drink up."
Slowly but surely, Yoon-ah's face started to lighten up. She straightened up in her seat and looked at him with bright eyes.
"Thank you Seojun-ah, I would have died of hunger," she said, throwing him a finger heart. "Saranghae"
"Aigoooo, look at this girl," Seojun tsked, chuckling at her dramatic claims, and crossed over to sit opposite her.
"Why did you get her a drink?" Sua interrupted, her eyes darting between the two. "Is there something going on between you two?"
Yoon-ah rolled her eyes, too distracted by the arrival of the fruit smoothie. She sipped the drink idly, entirely unaware of the wide-eyed stares of the students in her group.
"Nothing's going on," she said, looking sternly across at Sua. "By the way, where's Jukyung?"
"Jukyung is on her way," Sua said, still looking skeptically at Seojun. "Besides the four of us and Jukyung, we have Suho and Hoon-ie in our group."
A look of annoyance flashed across Seojun's face when he heard Sua's statement. Purposefully ignoring the dark look in Seojun's eyes, Yoon-ah hummed in response to Sua.
When Seojun saw her eyes clearly scanning the room in search of someone, he cleared his throat loudly to draw the group members' attention.
"Should we begin the discussion?" he asked through gritted teeth.
"I'm not so sure," Yoon-ah replied, clearly distracted. "I think we should wait until everyone is here."
"Since when do you give a damn if 'everyone' is there or not?" he muttered and looked away scowling.
As his fingers drummed on the table, Seojun's mind drifted back to the recent events that had transpired.