- BEOMGYU -
A honk of the car horn outside startled himself from gazing in the mirror at his reflection. Beomgyu had been off all morning, ever since he realized that it truly was the first day of school. He had been dreading this day since the very first day of summer vacation. He never liked school, not a single bit. Beomgyu would love nothing more for school to be a social hour, so that basically is what it turned into for him. He had made some good friends, no one closer than Yeonjun, though, and spent his time at school either talking or drawing in his notebook.
His grades weren't the worst, but they certainly weren't the best either. He never really thought about his future, but he really needed to consider that now before he got too low on his grades. His mother and father encouraged him to do better in school, but he had told them that he just wasn't passionate about school subjects. They let him be most of the time. Beomgyu wasn't even sure if he wanted to go to college yet, which would be a major blow to his father's pride if he didn't. His father spent over ten years in college and other training requirements, as he was a lawyer at one of Seoul's biggest law firms. He would want nothing more than for Beomgyu to follow in his footsteps and get trained as a lawyer as well. Unless something changed in his mindset within the next few years, Beomgyu knew for damn sure that his father's dream wouldn't come true.
The honk of the horn jolted him again from his daydreaming, causing Beomgyu to drop his backpack to the floor. He quickly picked it up, zipped it, and slung it around his shoulders. Yeonjun had always picked him up for school in the morning ever since he got his driver's license. Soon, Beomgyu would be trying to pass his test, as well.
He checked his appearance in the mirror one last time before walking out of the door, locking it on his way out. Yeonjun was blasting some song with a heavy beat and soft vocals. Yeonjun had a good taste in music, and he was always suggesting songs to Beomgyu that he enjoyed.
As he walked across the grass towards Yeonjun's car, he noticed him checking his appearance in the mirror. Beomgyu wanted to tell him that he didn't need to worry about what he looked like. Yeonjun always looked perfect in his eyes, even on days when Beomgyu could tell that he was emotional or hadn't gotten enough sleep.
A pang of hurt struck him suddenly as he remembered back to the unrequited love Beomgyu had expressed at the party. Since then, Beomgyu couldn't fully meet Yeonjun's eyes since then without feeling the hurt he experienced then. The day after the party, then two of them talked on the phone before deciding that they needed to talk in person. So, the two of them went to their spot in the park in their neighborhood where they had so many memories together.
Beomgyu had originally planned that he was going to tell Yeonjun his feelings in sober state of mind, but the conversation shifted and Beomgyu couldn't admit his true feelings. It changed into a conversation of how crazy people get when they're drunk. Beomgyu had to pretend that he wasn't thinking straight and that he really didn't understand what he was doing. That would've been all fine and dandy if only it was the truth. He had the chance to admit that what happened at the party was actually his true feelings, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He didn't want to risk the friendship that he and Yeonjun had built for so long. He didn't want anything to happen between the two of them. Yeonjun's reaction to the kiss had told him all he needed to know. He thought it was a mistake and that meant that Beomgyu needed to see it that way too. Maybe someday he would be able to admit to him that it wasn't it mistake, but that day wasn't anytime soon.
"Hey, I was about to text you, I thought you were still sleeping," Yeonjun said, flipping his mirror back up as Beomgyu opened the car door.
"Nope, just can't believe that it's finally my sophomore year," Beomgyu said, sliding down into the passenger's seat and closing the door, "I've been in a daze all morning."
"I know, it seems like just yesterday we were kids playing on the playground and our moms were screaming at us to not run up the slide," Yeonjun said with a laugh as he put the car in gear, "I can't believe I'm a senior already. You'll be one soon enough. Time flies by so fast."
Beomgyu laughed a bit, reminiscing their childhood days. That all seemed like just yesterday, yet here they were, in high school. So much had changed yet stayed the same at the same time.
"Got any advice for me next year without you?" Beomgyu asked.
"Just cruise, enjoy the ride," Yeonjun told him as he began to drive, "You only experience high school once, so you may as well make the most out of it. Oh yeah, and don't drink too much anymore at parties."
"Yeah, I'll try not to do that," Beomgyu said and laughed, but he felt another pang of hurt cross over him.
He didn't want to think about what happened at the party or what next year would be like without Yeonjun at his side. He just wanted everything to stay exactly like this. Despite everything that happened at the party, Beomgyu could convince himself that nothing actually did happen, based upon how normal the two of them were acting around each other. Maybe Yeonjun was thinking that it was best that they didn't think about it either. Still, it hurt to think about how he was rejected by his best friend. Why couldn't they? Beomgyu wanted to ask him in the park, but he just couldn't. He was afraid of the answer Yeonjun might have given him.
The two of them rode together, chatting about various school topics. What would Huening Kai be like in high school, and would he be as hyper as they all knew him to be. What was the latest drama and newest couples that got together over the summer. It was easy to talk about those sort of things, and it took Beomgyu's mind off of the dread of losing Yeonjun at the end of this school year.
When they got to the school, nothing struck out to Beomgyu as far as a change in appearance went. He knew that the school board was discussing some sort of building improvements, but it seemed like that didn't end up happening, like a lot of things. Yeonjun parked in his usual spot near the back and glanced over at him.
"Another day of hell. I can't wait to graduate."
"Me too," Beomgyu murmured, starting to open the car door until a horn suddenly honked from behind them.
In one quick motion, a SUV whipped up in the parking space beside them and Beomgyu recognized a smiling Soobin in the driver's seat. Soobin had recently gotten his driver's license as well, but he wasn't the best driver. Beomgyu would likely trust Huening Kai to drive better than Soobin, and he didn't even have his driver's license.
Beomgyu carefully got out, trying not to clash his door with Soobin's as he slid out. Soobin seemed to not understand that vehicles needed a lot of space between each other to get out. Soobin opened his door carefully, smiling at the two of them.
"Sorry, I didn't realize I got that close!" He exclaimed as Beomgyu steadied his door to prevent it from hitting Yeonjun's passenger side mirror.
Yeonjun walked over to the two of them and his eyes immediately widened when he saw the lack of space between the two vehicles. Beomgyu chuckled a bit as he watched his reaction.
"Choi Soobin, what are you trying to do, get us trapped?" Yeonjun asked in a high-pitched tone while Beomgyu shut Soobin's door.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm still learning," Soobin said with a cheeky smile before leaning forward and squeezing Yeonjun's cheeks, "Don't pout, Yeonjunie."
"I'm not, but I'll have to be really careful pulling out of here," Yeonjun said and chuckled slightly, taking his hand away and squeezing it, "Maybe I should teach you how to drive."
Beomgyu watched their affection, biting his lip to distract himself from his sudden feelings of jealousy. Yeonjun had suggested that he teach Beomgyu how to drive, and now he was going to help Soobin. It wasn't any shock to him, but it showed that Yeonjun's bond with Soobin could have competed with his own. The two of them had grown closer together, since they were around the same age and had a few elective classes together.
Beomgyu had nothing against Soobin, but when it came to Yeonjun, it seemed like the two of them had a secret competition to see who could hold his attention. It was silly to think about, but the possibility wasn't too outlandish. Soobin was pansexual, which made Beomgyu think that there was a possibility that he liked Yeonjun.
"Where's Kai, I thought you were picking him up?" Yeonjun asked.
"He decided he was going to be a loser and ride the bus," Soobin said with a shrug, "I think I scared him the other day. We were driving downtown and let's just say, I had a really hard time trying to parallel park. That's the most I've ever seen Kai freak out before."
"Why am I not surprised?" Beomgyu chuckled to himself.
"Oh, Soobin," Yeonjun said with a sigh, "I don't know how they issued you a license."
"Hey, I'm getting better, truly," Soobin said and shrugged, "Anyways, we better get inside before we're late."
The three of them started walking towards the high school, laughing along the way obnoxiously about Soobin's awful driving. A realization hit him like a ton of bricks. Beomgyu didn't regret walking into school his first day as much as he had dreaded it for the past few months over summer vacation. There was something about today that seemed to signal a change. Not only was he now a sophomore, but he felt like fate had something in store for him this school year. Maybe Yeonjun would come around and Beomgyu would be able to finally be honest with him. Or what if his parents decided that he didn't need to go to a fancy university in order for them to be proud of him. The possibilities rolled through his mind, but nevertheless, he was anticipating what was coming next.
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