「Chapter 29: N's words & Hyuk's past」
=Eryn's POV=
Rachelle had stopped rambling after a while. I didn't realize when she had went silent since the class were still making loads of noise all the same. It was practically a zoo at the back of the bus — the boys kept standing up and freely moved from seat to seat.
"You know," N started, and I turned away from the window where I was admiring the calm seaside view. My now almost-empty bottle of milk was grasped loosely in my hand.
"Yeah?"
"You seem really into yourself," he said. I knitted my brows together, not understanding what he meant.
"I mean, since the first day you came here, you kept to yourself so much. And when I say 'so much', I mean literally excessively. To the point where you even made the students start commenting on you."
I widen my eyes. "Really? Over what? Did I do something I shouldn't do?"
I tried to rethink the events that happened on the first day, skipping the insignificant ones. Then I remembered.
"Will you stop bringing that up? I already explained it to you when you dragged me to the park," I huffed.
N held both his hands up in defense. "I didn't even mention anything yet!"
"Yeah, yeah, but we all know what you mean, don't we?" I said, sneering at him and stifling my bubbling laughter when he sighed in exasperation. I drank the remaining milk from the bottle, emptying it.
"And here I am, trying to start a decent conversation," N grumbled, pouting and looking away from me.
"Sorry then." I shrugged. "So what were you gonna say?"
N turned back to me, hesitating whether to continue with his planned words.
"Well, I'm just trying to tell you not to keep to yourself so much. Everyone's great here," he said, sounding just a little unsure of his last sentence.
"Really?" I probed.
"Yes."
"Hand to your heart, really?"
"Eryn!"
I burst out laughing as N muttered a few 'Oh my God's. "Fine, fine! Go on."
"I really wonder when we'll have a proper conversation together," he muttered, a chuckle escaped his lips as I couldn't stop my snickers. "It's so hard to even have a smooth-flowing conversation with you!"
I laughed even harder at that.
"As I was saying!" he said, his lips still pulled up to a smile.
"Be more free and open, no one's gonna hurt you, you know," he continued. My giggles faded, and I tried to stop a frown from forming on my lips.
"You're really interesting, to me, and I really want to know more about you. We're already hitting off well," he stated. I shot him a weak smile.
"I mean, take it slow, I'm not trying to pressurize you for us to become great friends overnight or anything," he reassured, smiling back. I nodded, telling him I knew he didn't meant that.
I didn't know how to reply him, so I just said one word.
"Thanks."
=Author's POV=
Hyuk could hear Eryn's melodious laughter coming from the seat in front of him, and he heard N speak a few muffled sentences, but managed to make out one of them.
"You're really interesting to me, and I really want to know more about you. We're already hitting off well."
Hyuk looked down at his hands resting on his lap, feeling his blood boil. Over what? He didn't know. Something was just bugging him, tugging at his heartstrings, and the fact that he didn't know what the living heck is the cause of it made him all the more frustrated.
"Hyuk," Leo, who was seated beside him, spoke. Leo had removed his earbuds from his ear, giving Hyuk a casual look. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Hyuk told him, confused at why he suddenly asked. "Why?"
"Your face is like a tomato," he told the oblivious boy, pointing a finger at his face.
Hyuk's hands flew to his cheeks. They were definitely warm to his touch.
"Oh," Hyuk said lamely, fanning himself with his hands. "It's nothing."
"It's about Eryn and N, isn't it?" Leo spoke in his usual hushed tone, nodding towards the two seats in front of them. "I can hear them through my earpieces, too."
"What do you mean, it's about them?" Hyuk muttered. Leo broke his gaze from him, looking to the front and sticking his earbuds back into his ears.
"You never act the same around that girl," he stated simply.
"What? No—"
Hyuk stopped, because firstly, he knew Leo would just completely shut him out no matter what he said, and secondly, he needed to process what Leo just told him.
I never act the same around her? Hyuk thought.
He bit his lip and leaned back on the seat. It kind of made sense.
—Hyuk's flashback—
Eryn collapsed to the ground in the detention room and stayed motionless. I widened my eyes in shock and ran to her, shaking her harshly with hopes that she would open her eyes. I pulled her to a sitting position and she lifelessly slumped into my arms. I panicked, my eyes never leaving her face, which was almost peaceful.
~
I tore a piece of paper from my writing pad, crushing it, and throwing it towards the unknowing girl in front of me. The piece of paper ball hit her head. She turned around immediately, trying to identify who it was, and I kept my poker face on. The teacher caught her as soon as she opened it, and I frowned, wanting to speak up that I was the prankster, wanting to defend her, but the words wouldn't form.
~
I went after Eryn after classes ended, bombing her with the question of whether she was angry. She was, and I immediately felt apologetic, but it didn't feel right. She didn't seem like — or wasn't — one to be angry at matters like this. I checked to see if she was sick, and she wasn't. She tried going past me but bumped into me, and I didn't stop asking her what was wrong, because I hated seeing her being like that.
N came and brought her away, downstairs. I was annoyed now, at almost both of them. Why was she so stiff, and why was N so clingy?
~
I was about to go to bed when her phone rang on the table. It was her brother, and I immediately answered the phone.
"Eryn's missing."
Those words made me start to fidget, made me feel at fault, made me feel worried. I rushed out of the house. Eryn, you can't be alone out there.
—end of flashback—
Hyuk shook his head. No. He barely knew her. It's been just a little over a week. She reminded him of someone, that's the first thing he thought of the first time they interacted. He doesn't know specifically who or what, but he had brushed it off, sure that it's probably just a familiar aura.
Hyuk felt irked as he continued thinking about it. Everyone knew he wasn't one to commit himself to one girl, much less have legitimate feelings of affection towards the opposite gender. He dated a few girls, but everyone knew it was just for show. He wasn't exactly a fuckboy, but every time he dated, it lasted no more than two or three months.
There would also always be reasons why he got into relationships. They were never surreal or official, but the schoolgirls didn't care and just kept going after him and the other boys of the group; though none of the other five ever accepted the other party since they knew they didn't feel anything.
The last time Hyuk was in a relationship was almost a year ago. He had stopped getting into relationships which meant nothing, since the older, N and Leo, advised him against it many times. It somehow finally got into that thick head of his and he started to straightforwardly reject the chasing girls, which made many of them go into a frenzy.
All the girls in the school, Hyuk was sure that none of them knew how to love. But he wasn't in any position to say that aloud, either. The girls all just chased after the leads, the males who were the tops of the school un-academically, the kingkas, which has been the six of them boys, N, Leo, Hongbin, Ravi, Ken, and himself. The girls just rode the wave.
Hyuk was also sure of himself, that Eryn meant nothing more to him. He was going to make sure not to return to his old habits of picking up girls and leaving them alone after. Eryn was just another of those girls whom he had acted like he loved more than a year ago; another of those girls whom he just liked a little more than the average crowd. And he wasn't going to let this little tug at his heart make him see her as more than she actually is.
What did she have, anyway?
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[A/N]
Hello !! How's everybody doing? I hope ya'll liked this chapter :)
I just wanted to let you guys know that I most probably won't be able to update for another two weeks or so since I will be flying overseas for ten days. I usually write my chapter updates on my laptop, but I won't be able to bring my laptop overseas so I won't be able to write. I won't be having much access to WI-FI either so yeahh.
&& do reread chapters 9~12 or something because I have changed the character of Ken being in the detention room to Hyuk, so like if you're too lazy to reread just know that in those detention scenes, Ken > Hyuk.
This chapter is a little longer to make up a little for not being able to post for the next few weeks :)
I'll see you guys when I get back! Take care & stay healthy ~