"Did I get it right?"
Kyungsoo's blank eyes scanned through Kris' homework, making sure his working was correct. After Kris failed a recent math quiz, Kyungsoo was now his designated math tutor to help him improve. As if I wasn't seeing enough of his face already. Stupid math teacher. Of course the two of them couldn't be more annoyed by the fact but surprisingly enough, Kris was a fast learner when he actually put his mind to things.
"I'm surprised you aren't completely dumb," Kyungsoo said, handing him back his notebook.
"I'm not dumb," Kris retorted, "And you've only had to explain things to me once so far."
"I guess I'm a good teacher then." Kyungsoo shrugged, making the taller boy sigh. He was never going to actually voluntarily praise him, so there was no point trying. He went to do the next problem but paused, eyeing Kyungsoo.
"Hey, I bet you I can do this next one by myself."
Kyungsoo looked down at the problem and cocked a brow, "I doubt it."
Kris smirked, "Let's make it a bet. Loser has to do whatever the winner wants."
"Technically I can already make you do whatever I want, but okay."
Kris grinned, "Great."
He then spent the next ten minutes on that complicated problem, a frown between his eyebrows as he tried to work it out. He had to erase his working and try again a couple of times, determined to win the bet. The other boy sat back on his bed, amused at how diligently he was solving the problem. Once he was done, he handed Kyungsoo his notebook with a grin.
He scanned the page for a minute, going through Kris' working. It was messy and there were a lot of scribbles but surprisingly enough, he was on the right track. He actually got the answer right in the end.
"Alright, what do you want?" He sighed, putting down Kris' notebook.
"The least you could do is admit I did well."
"You sure you wanna waste your chance of making me do whatever you want on that?"
"You're a pain in the ass, you know that?" Kris groaned, sitting cross-legged on Kyungsoo's bed and thinking about what he could ask him to do. Something that took him out of comfort zone.
Then suddenly it hit him.
"Smile."
Kyungsoo cocked a brow.
"What?"
Kris smirked, "I want you to smile. I've never seen you smile. It's simple enough."
The shorter boy crossed his arms, genuinely surprised at Kris' request. "Why does it matter to you?"
He scowled, "Is it bad that I wanna see you not be a soulless dick for once? Besides, I'm curious to see what you'd look like"
Kyungsoo frowned, looking down at his lap. It did sound like a simple task but to him it was incredibly difficult. Kris had pinpointed one of his weaknesses and was taking advantage of it.
"If you were smart, you could just ask me to keep you in the art club without having to be my assistant."
Kris' eyes widened for a moment, before he scoffed, "Yeah, I totally thought of that!"
"Sure," Kyungsoo rolled his eyes, hoping to drop the subject. But obviously Kris wasn't going to give up so easily.
"Come on, do it already! Unless you're scared."
Kyungsoo sighed in exasperation. He forced the corners of his lips up and parted his lips, giving the taller boy a toothy grin. Kris widened his eyes.
"Oh God, that was terrifying. Never do that again."
Kyungsoo quickly brought his lips back to a thin line, "You're the one who wanted me to smile."
Kris shook his head, "That wasn't a smile. That was just you doing your best Satan impression."
The shorter boy rolled his eyes, "Whatever, let's get back to work."
"We've already done enough for today. Let's do something fun. You technically still didn't hold up your end of the bet."
"Geez, you're stubborn."
"I just figured you need incentive. Okay, tell me, is there anything that makes you laugh? Like a TV show or a cartoon or something? We can watch it together."
Kyungsoo stared at him blankly.
"Come on, there's gotta be something."
Seeing as the the other boy wasn't going to reply, Kris stood up and began digging through Kyungsoo's room, looking for anything that might be funny. The shorter boy sat on the bed, watching the other. What is he doing? Geez... He is so weird. I've never seen anyone so determined to make me smile.
Without even realizing it, the corners of his lips began to curl up. Okay, so I'm not made of stone. As insufferable and ridiculous as Kris was, he was a very genuine guy. He took all of Kyungsoo's insults and taunts but never really let it affect him. Honestly, it only made Kyungsoo envious. He wanted to break him, make him crack, but he wasn't able to. And that pissed him off.
Little did he know Kris had stopped moving and was staring at Kyungsoo in surprise, until he finally came out of his thoughts. He realized what Kris was staring at and quickly looked away, pretending to gather the books on his bed.
"You should probably get going already. It's eight," Kyungsoo said, but the other didn't move from his spot.
"You smiled."
"And you're standing, and the Earth is round, and Donald Trump is president of the US. Move on."
"No way, I don't think anyone's ever seen you smile before. This is a big deal."
Kyungsoo rolled his eyes, "You're blowing it out of proportion."
"It's funny, you know. For a second there you actually looked hi a normal human being and not Satan. But it was gone as fast as it came."
The other boy only shrugged and didn't respond. Kris smirked before stuffing all his books into his bag and carrying it on his shoulder.
"Anyway, I'll be off. Thanks for the help. You're a good teacher, as much as I hate to admit it."
"As good as Sera?" Kyungsoo found himself asking without realizing it, but quickly regretted the question. Oh Lord. Could I sound more salty?
Kris smirked at the sudden blush on the other's face. A smile and a blush from Kyungsoo in one day? Is it raining ducks yet?
"Never mind," Kyungsoo huffed, "Goodbye."
"Not even gonna walk me to the door?"
"I'm sure you can do that yourself."
Kris' smile didn't fade from his face though, he was too happy. He'd seen a different side of Kyungsoo that no one had probably seen before. As he was about to leave the room, the other boy called his name.
"Hey, Kris?"
He turned around and looked at Kyungsoo, a little hopefully. "Yes?"
"Take out the trash on your way out."
"I really don't get these manga where they don't even use lube and they have like fifteen orgasms. Do they have some sort of magic self-lubricating butthole?" Amber asked with a grimace as she lay down on the bed on her stomach, reading one of Sehun's BL manga. They were all really cheesy and had predictable, and similar storylines, but she had to admit they were entertaining.
When Sehun didn't reply, she looked up at him. He had his laptop on his lap and his headphones in his ears, seeming really focused on whatever he was watching. She crawled towards him and took a look at the screen, scowling immediately. It was another dance cover by Kai and Lay and it was obvious whom Sehun was so attentively watching. She shut his laptop screen, making him look up and glare at her.
"What the hell?!"
"Why do you keep watching that?"
He scowled, "Why does it matter to you? I'll watch whatever I want!"
"You were watching Kai so of course it matters!"
"Alright," he put his laptop aside and sat up straight, glaring at her. "What's your problem?"
"He is my problem!"
"Well then do something about it, because I'm so done with your salty ass!"
"Maybe my ass wouldn't be so salty if you weren't kissing his all the time! Do you think I didn't see the drawings at the back of your notebooks?!"
Sehun gasped, "How dare you go through my stuff?"
"I was copying notes! And that's not the point right now. You need to stop hanging out with Kai!"
"You don't get to tell me what to do! What are you, my mom?"
"Well, it's either me, or him."
Sehun froze, looking at his best friend with hurt-filled eyes. Did she really just say that? "That's not fair, Amber. He's the only friend I have other than you and you want me to choose between you guys?"
She felt a pang of guilt but quickly shook it away, "Yes."
"Guys, what's with all the yelling?" Sehun's mother walked in, concerned. She could immediately sense the tension in air and froze. "Is everything alright?" She asked hesitantly.
"Oh, everything's fine," Sehun said, voice devoid of emotion, "Amber was just leaving, right?" He looked at her pointedly. Her eyes narrowed, understanding dawning on her. Oh. I see how it is. Be like that then.
"Right," she spoke, voice low as she stood up. "Thanks for having me over, Hazel."
And just like that, she left. Sehun's mother was left to stare at him in confusion, a frown marring her delicate features. "Did you guys get in a fight?"
"She's being a total dick!"
"Sehun," Hazel sighed, "Amber is your best friend- Wait, what is this?" Before he knew it, she was looking at the BL manga Amber had been reading, which was left open at a rather... inappropriate page. She gasped when she picked up the book, before glaring at Sehun.
"Explain."
"I-It's Amber's, I swear!"
Sehun:
What're you doing?
Oh crap, that sounded nosy
I'm just curious
And I'm looking for something to talk about
Kai:
Haha
I'm at the karaoke with Vic
Sehun:
You sure you should be texting me if you're on a date?
Kai:
She's too busy singing to care lol. Think we could meet up at 7?
Sehun:
No can do. I'm grounded.
Kai:
Why's that?
Sehun:
I've been caught with some indecent reading material.
Kai chuckled as he read the message, typing in a reply. When he looked up, he found Victoria staring at him curiously.
"You sure look happy."
"I'm just texting Sehun," he responded absent-mindedly as he typed away at his phone.
"Oh," she nodded slowly, having gotten used to hearing the name repeatedly over the past couple of weeks. Sehun this, Sehun that. It was getting redundant and frankly, kind of annoying.
Victoria liked to believe she wasn't the jealous type but she had her limits as well. For the past three weeks, her boyfriend had been getting really close to Sehun. She didn't mind the fact that Kai made a new friend, heck, he started to become a lot more cheerful after meeting him. He smiled a lot more and she was glad he found someone he could be himself around. Kai didn't talk much about his social anxiety but she knew him well enough to understand his struggle.
But now, he spent so much time with Sehun that she felt like he was drifting away from her. Even when they were together, he was either texting Sehun or talking about him, so often that she was sick of hearing his name. She didn't want to feel like this, she didn't want to be upset at him. She knew she was just being petty and that was why she didn't complain and bit back her jealousy.
I trust Kai.
She let out a small sigh, fists clenching as she juggled a thought around in her head. A thought she found herself lost in a lot more often than she'd like to admit. Maybe if I...
"Vic?"
She looked up to find Kai starting at her worriedly, his cell phone now face-down next to him and his full attention on her.
"You okay?"
"Uh... yeah. I'm fine," she forced a smile. Before he could say anything in reply, she spoke again. "I was wondering... My parents are going out of town this weekend and I'm gonna be home alone."
Kai nodded, "That so? Make sure you lock the doors and windows well."
Okay, here goes. "Y-yeah, I will," she nodded. "Would you, um, like to come over and.... stay the night?"
Kai could only frown at the obvious suggestion in her words. It wasn't like she was just inviting him over to have a slumber party, paint each other's nails and gossip.
It wasn't that Kai didn't want to do it with her, it just... didn't feel right. She looked apprehended and nervous, like she was having a little war in her head. She clearly wasn't ready for this step but she was asking him anyway, for some reason he wasn't sure of. It sort of reminded him of that one incident at the beach. It still bothered Kai but he chose not to bring it up and make her uncomfortable. What changed between then and now?
"I-I'd love to but... I was going to watch the game with the guys this weekend. I promised them I'd be there." He wasn't lying about that. They had planned to stay the night at Kris' place to watch the game, doritos and beer and all. He had been looking forward to it all week.
"You know my parents aren't out of town everyday right? You can always watch the rerun."
"We've been planning this for a week now, I can't just ditch all of a sudden. I'm sorry, Vic."
"Oh," she had a blank look in her eyes. Kai hated that look. She had it when she was trying to shut people out. "I see."
"Victoria..."
"Forget it, okay?" she stood up, "I'm leaving."
Kai held her arm before she could leave the karaoke booth, "I'm so sorry. Please, don't leave."
She looked down at the floor, refusing to meet his eyes, She couldn't stay with him any longer, she just needed some time alone. There were too many emotions running through her head and she just need to sort her feelings out.
"Let go of my arm," she said quietly. Kai looked at her sadly but eventually sighed and gave in. She didn't waste any time before leaving, barely holding back the tears in her eyes.
She wasn't mad at Kai. No, she was mad at herself. She was embarrassed with herself for stooping so low. Even though she knew she wasn't ready. That the thought of any guy touching her terrified her to no ends. Even if she trusted Kai with all her heart, she couldn't, she just couldn't. And yet she forced herself... swallowed back her fear and invited him, and she was so mad that he just rejected so simply. After she'd finally mustered up the courage, she was rejected. And she wasn't even sure if she was mad at him for it, or relieved.
She just felt like a mess at that moment.
She found herself walking out of the karaoke place and into the street, not even paying attention to where she was going. She just needed to get away.
As she mindlessly began to cross the road, not looking at the car that was quickly approaching, she was suddenly yanked back before she could get hit. She gasped at the sudden pull, breathing labored and heart beating wildly in her chest. Holy shit... I was about to get hit by a car!
She looked up at the person that had grabbed her arm and widened her eyes.
"Are you crazy?" Amber yelled, frowning at her as she let go of her arm, "You could have been killed!"
Victoria just kept staring at her blankly, unable to believe the sight in front of her.
"Amber?"
"Hey... why are you crying?" her tone softened as she wiped the single tear that left Victoria's eye before she could even realize it. Victoria seemed to finally snap out of her stupor as she shook her head.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
Amber scratched the back of her neck, tentatively speaking. "You look like a hot mess, woman. Why don't we find somewhere a little quieter?"
Victoria didn't know what to say so she simply nodded. The whole walk to the park, Victoria remained a step behind Amber, staring at the back of her head in awe. Amber was actually there, she was talking to her, and she had just saved her ass. She couldn't even believe what was happening.
Eventually they got to the park and sat down together on a bench in awkward silence.
"Are you going to tell me why you were walking into traffic like a madwoman?" Amber finally asked. Victoria let out a deep exhale, her eyes downcast.
"I-I was just... distracted. I didn't see the car coming," she mumbled, looking down at her lap.
"Idiot," Amber grumbled, "What were you thinking about?"
Victoria looked up at her, and even though Amber tried to play it off like she didn't care much, it still meant a lot that she cared enough to ask.
"Just... stuff."
"Be more vague please."
Victoria chuckled, "I just feel so stupid. Desperate. I feel like I'm... Losing Kai." There was always something about Amber that made her open up so easily. And it seemed like even though they hadn't talked in over two years, that never changed.
Amber cocked a brow, "Why do you say that?" She asked, although she had a feeling it had something to do with Sehun
"I don't know. Maybe I'm just overreacting, but I feel like
he's slowly falling out of love with me and I thought that it's because... because we... didn't... do it... yet," she muttered the last part, a blush covering her cheeks. God, that sounded absolutely ridiculous out loud.
Amber remained quiet, not sure how to reply to that. That was cue for Victoria to continue.
"And I thought that if we did it... maybe we'd go back to how we used to be. So I invited him over to my place and he said he already had plans. And I don't know why I just... got really mad and stormed out."
Amber nodded slowly, "Are you sure you even want to sleep with him?"
Victoria clenched her fists, "I love him. I trust him too... but... I'm terrified, Amber."
She nodded, immediately understanding why. It was something Victoria had told her back when they were friends.
"You're still the only one who knows," Victoria muttered, "About my uncle. And because of that, I'm scared of sleeping with Kai. There was this one time he tried to touch me and... I completely freaked out."
The thought of Kai touching Victoria made a spike of anger go through Amber. Back in middle school, Victoria shared with her the secret she never told anyone else. Her uncle was a dirty pervert and every time he visited her parent's house, he always looked at her like she was a piece of meet. His eyes were always scanning her up and down. And whenever she was alone with him, he got far to close. He sexually harassed her, he groped her in inappropriate places and whispered filthy, filthy words in her ears. And she was too weak, too shocked to fight back. And she couldn't even tell her parents because her uncle had helped them out so much when they were having financial problems. She knew how fond they were of him and she just couldn't bring herself tell them and continued to endure the harassment. Unfortunately, her uncle took advantage of that fact.
Every time he touched her, she'd lock herself in her room for hours, crying, washing herself over and over again and feeling so dirty, so used, so violated and ashamed. Eventually he left town and traveled to another country, but the trauma remained. And now, every time any guy got too close, or touched her, it just brought everything back.
"How dare he touch you? He's so gonna get it from me, that best friend-stealing pervert!"
Victoria looked at the girl, surprised at how protective she sounded. She couldn't help but laugh.
"H-Hey! I already hate the guy because he's been hogging Sehun away from me. We even got into a fight because of him," Amber sighed, feeling guilty about the things she said to Sehun. She had to apologize to him eventually. "If you want my opinion though... Any guy who isn't going to stay with you unless you put out, doesn't deserve you in the first place. If you don't want to do it, you don't have to force yourself. No, you shouldn't force yourself. You're so much better than that, so don't demean yourself."
Victoria bit her lip, knowing that Amber was right. She was always the voice of reason, and she hadn't changed one bit.
"I'm sorry."
"Don't apologize to me," Amber scoffed.
"Well... I have a lot to apologize to you for anyway."
"Don't bother."
"Look, I know it's long overdue but-"
"If you know that then why didn't you apologize earlier?"
Victoria winced at the biting tone in her voice. She knew she deserved it though.
"I thought I didn't have the right... To say sorry.... or to be forgiven."
"That was for me to decide," she responded, giving her an icy gaze. Victoria bit her lip nervously. "Anyway. Let's not talk about this now."
"Amber-"
"We should get you home. Don't want you almost getting hit by a car again."
Victoria opened her mouth to argue but sighed and gave in, standing up with Amber. She had so much she wanted to talk to Amber about but maybe it would have to wait.
____________________________________
A/N This chapter was kinda serious, sorry about that. But we get to know a little more about Victoria and why she acts the way she does. I also think there's a lot of girls that have been through sexual harassment in some form or another, including myself, along with the shame and fear that goes along with it. And I wanted to shed some light on that and make a character that suffers psychologically from it.
Anyway, I hope you guys like this chapter even though there was no SeKai :( Sorry about that, the chapter was already too long and I couldn't add any more Sekai scenes. But I want y'all to know that their relationship is not the only important thing in this story. It's not just the main characters that have personality and problems. I wanted to make a story where every character has some form of depth and personality and are not all just stereotypical, one-dimensional drones. No one in real life is like that anyway.
So yeah! See you all in the next chapter!