ii. 𝑨𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝑭𝒐𝒖𝒓 !
❨ ɴᴏ ᴛᴜʀɴɪɴɢ ʙᴀᴄᴋ ❩
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GIGGLE OF A BOY erupts from the second floor of Köcher High's cafeteria, followed by a flirtatious chuckle that had girls on the first floor squealing like pigs. Felix rested one hand on the railings while the other held the boy's waist, who he had been flirting with ever since entering the cafeteria.
"How's your hips?" Felix asked flirtatiously, rubbing the back of the boy's hips to soothe it in case he was still hurting from last night.
A blush spreads across the boy's cheeks as he wraps both arms around Felix's neck, pouting. "It hurts, but I can bare it. You went hard on me last night." He feigned a sulky expression before glancing down at Felix's lips. The said male smirks and without uttering a reply, smashes his lips on his, making sure to slip his tongue in when the boy opened his mouth to moan.
However, their make out session that had just started doesn't last long as a loud sound of cutleries hitting the floor echoed all throughout the cafeteria and Felix ends the kiss to narrow his eyes at the sudden interruption, in sync with the boy who also turned to look at the first floor, startled. There stood a frozen Hana, Gorya's new friend, holding a tray in front of Thyme who looked pissed, staring at his now food covered shoe before raising his furious gaze to look at her.
Felix grimaced; of all people she could've bumped into, why Akira Paramaanantra?
"Is this your way of approaching a guy?" Thyme's sarcastic voice erupts in the silent cafeteria, everyone's chattering dying out upon witnessing the confrontation. Felix glances at Gorya to see her looking at her lap while fiddling with her fingers, panic and nervousness visible on her body language.
"Thyme, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to." Hana's trembling voice apologized, body shaking in presumably fear. Her eyes already had tears gathering, "I'll have your shoes cleaned or buy you a new pair."
"Buy a new pair?" A hint of amusement plastered the Paramaanantra's face, mixed with annoyance. "Do you know what these are? These are tailor-made in Paris, huh? Can you buy these?" He mocks, as if Hana can't afford to buy shoes as expensive as what he was wearing, which ー truthfully speaking, was true.
Felix scoffs in amusement at his attitude as he pulled away from the boy and leaned on the railings instead, his attention now completely focused on the scene in front of him. It's absolutely ridiculous how Thyme's making a fuss just because someone spilled a food on his precious ugly shoe when he has enough money to buy a new pair whenever he wants to. At this point, he's just coming up with excuses to torment Hana, which couldn't be more pathetic in Felix's perspective.
MJ let out an audible sigh, "Thyme, go easy on her. She's cute." Kavin nods in agreement at what he said while Ren tilts his head, emotionless as always.
"P'Thyme, I want to make it up to you." Said Hana shakily, tearing up. "I'll do whatever it takes just as long as you forgive me." She goes to grab a hold of his hand, but the male avoided her touch before she could.
A wince erupts from Felix; how could she not have any dignity? In this kind of situation, saying things like that is definitely the wrong move, specially to someone as idiotically cruel as Thyme. Perhaps, Hana isn't as intelligent as Felix thought of her in their first meet.
It's obvious Thyme found her fear entertaining as an amused smile took over his face, possibly due to the sentence that Hana had uttered. "Whatever it takes? What would that be?" This caused one of the audience to suggest her cleaning his shoes, and someone else also came up with the brilliant idea for her to lick it clean instead, resulting in everyone else making a noise of approval. "That? I wouldn't mind though. Lick it." Thyme ordered, sliding his now dirty shoe forward towards the poor girl.
"If you do it, I may forgive you."
Everyone began to chant Lick it and clap their hands simultaneously in sync after Thyme's command, while Felix shifts his eyes towards Gorya to see her closing her eyes in frustration. Quickly realizing she was about to defend Hana, Felix moves away from the railings to walk down the stairs and ignore the boy calling out for him. If Gorya intervenes, he knows she will eventually receive the red card regardless of the fact she's a girl, since F4 made it clear that no one gets away when anyone mess with them. Although Felix had been a bystander all along, Gorya becoming a victim of the red card isn't something he could turn a blind eye to ー God forbid any harm to be thrown her way.
Just as he had expected, Gorya slammed her hands on the table causing the entire cafeteria to grow silent once again. She approached Thyme, hanging her head low and avoiding his stare.
"What are you doing?" Thyme questioned, looking at her daringly and intimidatingly.
"Answer me."
"I think it's too much!" She blurts out and raised her eyes to meet his, before looking down again in slightest fear. A sigh leaves Felix as he stops few meters away from the commotion; he knew Gorya will regret this soon enough, but even then, he doesn't make a move to stop her. It was her decision to stand up against F4, he has no right to shut it down. All she needs right now is someone to be there for her.
"What did you say?" Disbelief coated Thyme's expression.
Gorya, figuring there's no turning back anymore, embraces her fate and strongly meets his glare. "I said, I think it's too much. You can see my friend didn't mean to. Can't you forgive her? Please spare her."
Felix raised one eyebrow when Thyme seemed to take offense, "You dare order me around?"
Before she could speak up more or Thyme could get the chance to humiliate her, Felix steps forward with a sigh and wraps an arm around her shoulders, interrupting their confrontation. Both Thyme's and Gorya's eyes snapped towards him as a smirk began to dance across his lips, making the cafeteria erupt in squeals from the girls and some boys. Even the Paramaanantra himself looks dumbfounded and mesmerized by his sudden appearance.
You see, Felix's physical attractiveness is beyond that of humans; compared to others whose looks are considered above average, Felix is a literal God that would take the breath of any human beings on earth, no matter who they are, what their personality is, or how good they look. If mythologists were to be questioned about Felix's unrealistic divine looks, they will certainly answer he's the essence of Eros and Aphrodite, the Greek God of love and sex and the Greek Goddess of sexual love and beauty respectively. Everything about Felix Shinphossawat is appealing to people regardless of gender; he's someone everyone's keen to please or impress.
So, when he stands with great F4 who are known to be a bunch of hotties, they are, sadly, outshined by him because no matter how good they look, no one can outstand Felix. It's actually clear with the fact F4 has to buy their ways into anything while all he has to do is show himself and he'll instantly get a pass.
"You should calm down first, Paramaanantra." Thyme was snapped out of his daze at Felix's voice calling his name, feeling goosebumps rise on his skin. "My best friend isn't ordering you around, it's called negotiating. Her friend already apologized, that's why she's trying to make you forget this ever happened." Gorya squeezes his arm that was resting around her shoulders, wordlessly telling him to back out, which he promptly ignored.
It takes only a second for annoyance to spread all over Thyme's face again as he scowled and shot him a nasty glare. "Forget this ever happened? This girl," He jerks his head at Hana's direction, "Spilled her food all over my shoe and you want me to forget it? If it weren't for her stupidity she wouldn't be in this mess." He takes a threatening step forward and Gorya flinches, but Felix remained still.
The Shinphossawat boy merely raised his brows, almost mockingly. "I think she did you a favor, though. You act as if that shoes are worth more than the entire world when it just looks like an unused disco ball in a boring club."
Everyone widened their eyes at the insult that smoothly slipped past his lips, some even slapping a hand over their mouths as MJ and Kavin's jaws dropped in sync, Ren looks taken aback. Thyme's blood begins to boil, rage clouding his expression and clenching his fists on his side. Amusement flashes on Felix's face at successfully getting under his skin with just few words, and doesn't hesitate to show it by plastering a smug look.
Stepping forward to lean over, Felix even dares to whisper in his ear enough for the other F4 members to hear, giving in to the urge to crush his ego. "You know, anger and stress make a good yet rough fuck. I could use an enraged brat like you." All of their eyes immediately widened in panic as Thyme can't help but swing his clenched fist out of anger and irritation, which Felix used his fast reflex to avoid and pull Gorya away without wasting a time to run off.
With Thyme's raging voice echoing in the background, two best friends exited cafeteria to run upstairs where the rooftop is located, slamming the doors shut with heavy breaths. They stumbled towards the center before collapsing on the ground facing the sky, chest heaving up and down as soothing wind blows past them. Soon after a couple of silence engulfed the best friends, they found themselves bursting into laughter at the previous incident, also at themselves for acting impulsively and stupidly. Though, Felix was moreover laughing at the look he saw on Thyme's face than at himself.
"Holy shit, what did you just do?" He cursed between laughter, holding his stomach.
Gorya giggled and smacked his arm, "What did you just do? Thyme was freaking mad! He looked like he was going to murder you any second!" Her voice held amusement yet worry was evident as well, making Felix lay on his side to look at her.
"He can come at me all he wants, I wasn't gonna fucking let you stand up to him by yourself." He plastered on a genuine, reassuring look. "You were brave back there, but I know you did it out of impulse. I didn't want you to be alone in regretting your life decisions." Shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly, Felix returns to staring up the sky.
The girl stares at him for a moment and pressed her lips into a thin line. She couldn't help but feel guilty knowing Felix would get in trouble now that he got himself involved to save her from Thyme's storm of rage. They had promised when they were kids that they'll be by each other's side whatever happens, but that doesn't mean she wants him to get hurt protecting her.
He's her best friend, not protector.
Realizing she had grown silent, Felix move his hand to pat her head without looking at her. "Don't worry about me, Gorya. I'll be fine even if I get the red card, the only people who'll torment me are my ex-one night stands that I rejected 'cause the others worship me too much to even lay a hand on me." He cockily states, which Gorya chuckles at, before a serious look crossed his face. "You should worry about yourself. Girls aren't off-limits, even though they haven't given the red card to any. Paramaanantra can be unpredictable."
Gorya smiles. Felix showing his concern isn't something you see everyday. "Not as much as you, though." Her words made him chuckle and nod. "You seem to hate Thyme so much. You call him by his surname."
Shaking his head, Felix placed his arms behind his head to rest on them as a sour look appeared itself. "I don't hate him, I just dislike him. The four of them. I've got no right to dislike them when I'm a bystander myself, but they somehow remind me of Lian. Both power-hungry, both egotistical, and both cruel maniacs. It's better to deal with zombie apocalypse than with their kind." He sighs, closing his eyes.
"But don't you think Ren's a little different?" Gorya asked, rolling over to lay on her stomach instead, feet drumming against the concrete.
Felix peeked at her through one eye before closing it again, disinterest quickly adorning his face. "Sure, he surrounds himself with that kind of people and doesn't even intervene to stop his friends, instead tolerates their actions, but that doesn't make him as bad as the other three, right?" Sarcasm laced every bit of his tone as he spoke. "If anyone could put an end to this game, it's him. He's a part of F4, those three have a higher chance of understanding his reasons than other people's."
A pout unknowingly appeared on Gorya's lips when she realized he had a point, going back to laying on her back and spread her arms.
It's certainly upsetting when Thyme could probably hear Ren out, but Ren doesn't speak up on the issue at all. However, the two of them also felt sorry for him due to the fact he grew up with these kind of people as his friends without any other choice. It's rare to find a rich person with the heart of gold and down to earth nowadays, so with all sincerity, they can't blame him.
"What should we do starting tomorrow?" Gorya questions, sighing. Their peaceful school life had come to an end, since there's no way F4 would let them pass without proper punishment for going against Thyme. Just when she made a promise to keep herself hidden away from trouble, destiny shattered it within not even ten seconds.
Felix sits up, making her sit up as well and pull down her skirt when it almost revealed her thighs. The male paid no attention, looking at her eyes with soft gaze. "If there's a red card on your locker tomorrow, you should hide from everyone as much as possible while I try to simultaneously protect you and avoid getting tormented. Our goal is to survive a day, okay? Don't do anything stupid, sweetheart."
Shooting him a playful glare, Gorya punches his arm and smiles a small one. "I definitely won't do that anymore. You should hide too if it's necessary, Felix. There might be guys out there who are waiting to get their hands on you." She softly said and placed her hand on his shoulder, giving it a persuading squeeze as worry plastered her face.
Nodding his head, Felix stares at her with a promising look while putting his hand over hers for assurance, before removing it to take out a pack of bubblegums from his pocket and shove one into his mouth. He offered Gorya a bubblegum as well and she gladly accepts, laying back down on the concrete after throwing it inside her mouth. He doesn't join Gorya in gazing up at the sky due to multiple thoughts beginning to crowd in his mind and makes sure she isn't aware of the state he was in, not wanting her to worry more.
Although there aren't much things Felix should feel concerned about, he still has no idea how bad could people treat him once he gets the red card. The world is full of liars and two-faced people who only shows their true colors when their opponents or rivals are at the lowest, or when they're given a chance to torment those opponents with no consequences at all. As much as Felix didn't want to admit, it could be possible that he'll be tormented by everyone including those he slept with or wanted to sleep with him. He can't confidently say no one would dare to, because in all honesty, there could be at least someone that dislike him for whatever reasons he can come up with and at least someone that will take the chance to betray him.
When it comes to the red card, all students in Köcher High cannot be trusted ー of course, with the exception of Gorya ー especially F4. Not like Felix has someone to trust though, as he never made friends with anyone despite sleeping with more than 2/5 of the school. The only best friend he ever wanted is Gorya and Gorya alone; that never changed and never will.
Letting out a frustrated sigh upon realizing there's no decent human beings in this school, Felix's hand shoots up to touch the silver necklace around his neck and he looks at one of the silver rings decorating his fingers. His mother used to wear them when she was alive; Felix often found her rubbing the necklace's dragon pendant or kissing the black diamond on the ring's center ever so gently, as if they were the most precious treasures in the world. The ring was obviously for men because of its size, but she somehow found a way to fit it on her finger and never once had she removed it along with the dragon necklace, which made him understand how important they are.
Felix wore three rings on both of his hands without any particular reason at all and removes them whenever they get in the way, yet he never removes his mother's ring no matter the situation, even though he sometimes struggle with it. That's due to the fact he always had a habit of taking precious care of everything that once belonged to his mother. He only ever removed the ring and necklace to clean them before the time to go to bed, so his mother wouldn't worry about them getting filthy and just being tossed aside.
Although never once had he understood love, Felix speculated everything he does for his mother despite she no longer lived, is out of pure love. There's no certainty in his speculation; it'll only be confirmed once he comes to understand love, which is probably far in the future, but Felix chose to believe it regardless.
Nowadays, he found himself touching either of the dragon pendant or the ring whenever he seeks comfort and wants to feel close to his mother spiritually. Felix didn't know if it was a good thing, but he couldn't be bothered to care, as long as he can remember his mother by touching her things.
"You know," Gorya suddenly speaks up, breaking the comfortable silence between them and making Felix turn to her. "I think mommy Clara's watching us and laughing at how troublesome we are. She used to make fun of us when we got into trouble at nine years old." A smile takes over her face at the memory of his mother.
Felix sighs as he fiddled with the ring instead and ignored the other rings that decorated his fingers, nodding his head. "Yeah, I think she is. But even though we got into trouble for fighting someone, she always asked if we won and said about how proud she was when we said we did." His tone was delicate, afraid he would end up disturbing his mother's resting spirit if he spoke any louder.
"Honestly, she was such a bad influence and a fun person to be around." Gorya chuckled and a laugh erupted from Felix, agreeing. However, their smile quickly fell and was replaced by a sad look. "I don't know how humans can be so cruel. Mr. Lian, Mrs. Tanya, and now F4."
Felix couldn't help but blink a few times to stop the tears from gathering in his eyes. "It's just in human nature, sweetheart. We can't do anything other than accept it as it is."
Funny, how he has the money to buy anything he wants yet can't afford anyone to bring his mother back, who Lian and Tanya ruthlessly tormented to death. Felix doesn't know what's the purpose of living with a luxurious life and having countless amount of money if none of them can be used to bring her back to life.
He'd rather have his mother alive and his best friend than have those cursed piece of papers and coins that brings out the evil in most humanity. But there's nothing he can do to change the past ー only welcome it with acceptance no matter how difficult that is.