{ D - 150 }
"How about we read this one?" Junhui asked, showing Seohyeon the book.
She nodded with a smile, allowing Junhui to climb down from the step stool and sit next to her at the table. He placed the book down on the rough wooden surface, and Seohyeon read the title.
The Unexpected Project
"Why kind of book is this?" She asked, making the boy next to her smile.
"It's a novel," Junhui explained. "These types of books aren't necessarily made of real events and real people, but the concepts and themes are."
He tapped on the hard cover of the book.
"This is a romance novel."
"Romance?" Seohyeon repeated, "What's that?"
Junhui only chuckled as he opened up to the first page. "You'll see."
Although the entire story was completely fiction, Seohyeon found the novel very intriguing. The plot of the story was so captivating, and the characters were all so dynamic.
The story was about a young girl around Seohyeon and Junhui's age. The writer portrayed the girl as quiet and timid. She had lived in the same town her entire life, surrounded by the same people. She went to the same academy all the years of her schooling, but no one ever really noticed her when she was around. In a way, her life was kind of like Seohyeon, except with less rules.
The boy in the story however, was very outgoing. He was liked by everyone around him, and was considered "popular." Seohyeon didn't know what the word meant, so Junhui kindly explained to her the meaning.
"Oh! So Instructor Jisoo would be considered popular!" Seohyeon declared, making Junhui laugh.
"Yeah," he said, trying to suppress his chuckling, "I guess you could say that."
As they continued to read and as the story wore on, the girl and the boy eventually began to cross paths more often in the plot. Eventually in the fifth chapter, the two were assigned as partners on their science project (also something Junhui had to explain to her, though he wasn't really sure what that was either). Junhui checked the time, realizing that their break time was almost over and they would have to head back for third meal.
"We have to go," Junhui said, gently placing a hand on Seohyeon's shoulder to grab her attention. She looked up at him with a sad frown.
"But the story..." she said, almost in a pout.
"I know, I want to finish the story too," Junhui sighed, watching Seohyeon close the book and stand up to her feet, "but we can always finish it next time, okay?"
Seohyeon wasn't really satisfied with Junhui's suggestion, but she nodded in agreement anyway and gave the book to Junhui so he could put it back on the shelf. They quietly made their way out of the room and back down to the first floor. As they walked out of the building, Junhui couldn't help but stare at Seohyeon.
Ever since she'd been pill-free, she'd become more vibrant as a person. Her face was more rosy; her eyes sparkled with curiosity; she laughed joyfully almost every day. She was brighter, happier, healthier. Junhui loved seeing her this way.
Junhui loved her.
He wanted to tell her; tell her how much he cared about her. He had a whole plan and everything. They were going to read that book, and when the part came, he would tell her exactly how he felt. He would tell her he was head over heels for her and that she was the most important person in the world to him. Unfortunately for him, they ran out of time.
Next time, He thought. Next time for sure.
__________
"So wait," Jeonghan spoke up. "You're telling me, we have to eat after the students finish?"
He and Jisoo were standing in one of the far back corners of the district's Dining Hall, surrounded by a sea of tables filled with teenagers munching away at their food.
"You're an instructor now," Jisoo responded, "It's our responsibility to take care of the students first before ourselves."
"Sounds exhausting," Jeonghan mumbled, staring at the food longingly.
"You get used to it," Jisoo chuckled.
They scanned the room, watching all the young students bustle about while eating and chatting with their friends. There was no laughter, no gossip, no bickering. It was just simple conversations, like what they thought of the food or how their lessons were. Jeonghan yawned, not really fond of the responsibility of having to watch over all these kids.
"The foods always the same here," a familiar voice stated from behind, causing the two instructors to turn around.
Chan stood there with a blank expression, holding his food tray with both hands.
"We had the exact same thing two years ago," the younger grumbled. "You'd think they'd at least add some other food here. Maybe something sweet."
"This place is very... consistent," Jisoo pointed out, though the fact made him slightly irritated.
"I'm not really a big fan of this consistency going on," Chan sighed. "Also, who do I go sit with? I barely know most of the kids my age, and they all look at me funny. These people can be pretty judgmental for people who are brainwashed every day."
"Be careful what you say, Chan," Jisoo warned the younger, who simply shrugged. The instructor let out a sigh as he began to scan the room, "How about....those two over there?"
He pointed towards the very back of the Dining Hall, where two boys were sitting at a table. One boy had black hair, with a sharp prominent nose, a little mole on his cheek, and a bright smile as he talked. The other boy, however, sat there quietly, listening to the other talk, occasionally adding in some small comments. He had brown wavy hair, chiseled features, and somewhat thick eyebrows. It was just the two of them talking to each other, not really aware of the weird looks from those around them.
"They're like you, actually," Jisoo spoke up, making Chan's head turn to look up at him.
"What do you mean by that?"
"What else would he mean?" Jeonghan grinned. "They're former prisoners, just like us."
Chan looked back at the two boys who were isolated at the back table. He took a deep breath before he began to slowly walk over towards their table, anxiously staring at the two as he got closer. Once he reached their table he set down his plate next to the black-haired boy before sitting down in his seat. The two watched him eat, a little taken aback by his sudden presence. He looked up from his food, noticing the two were just staring in shock. He let out a chuckle before scooping some rice into his spoon.
"You guys look like you've never seen a human before," he teased, stuffing the spoonful of rice into his mouth.
The black-haired one chuckled, "You'd be surprised."
Chan simply nodded, continuing to eat his food quietly.
He could tell that he was making the boy across from him uncomfortable with his presence. The boy was simply poking away at his food frivolously, avoiding his gaze from the younger. Chan swallowed his food and slowly began to scoop up some soup, thinking of something to say.
"I'm from Cell No. 3," he spoke up, "Jisoo released me a few weeks ago."
The two looked at him again in shock, but he simply slurped up his soup, like his statement was just a casual fact.
"The name's Chan by the way," he said, slightly smiling at the two of them. "I'm sixteen."
"I'm Seokmin," the black-haired one said, smiling back at him. "I'm seventeen."
Chan nodded, his smile growing wider. He looked over at the boy across the table, who was still poking at his food.
"What's your name?" Chan asked, causing the boy the glance at him nervously before quickly averting his gaze.
"Hansol" the boy began quietly, "I'm also... sixteen."
Chan grinned, satisfied with the answer. He watched as Seokmin have Hansol a subtle thumbs up, making the quiet boy smile.
"So what were you guys confined for?" Chan asked, trying to keep the conversation going, "And for how long?"
"Ah," Seokmin chuckled, "Funny story actually. So I sang in public, and I guess the District wasn't too fond of that. They beat me up and then threw me in the same cell as Hansol. I was in there for about a year, but Hansol was there for longer period of time."
"You guys were cellmates?" Chan said, a baffled. "Lucky, I was all alone in my cell."
"Seungcheol put us in the same cell for Hansol's sake," Seokmin explained.
"Really? Why?" Chan asked, looking up at Hansol.
"I uhm, I had trouble talking to other people," Hansol replied. "Seungcheol thought that... if I communicated with others more in the prison it would help me get better at talking to others."
Hansol smiled sadly down at his food.
"It didn't really help though," he mumbled to himself.
"What do you mean it didn't help?" Seokmin frowned, "You've gotten a lot better! You used to only nod when I would say hi or when I'd ask you a question you would go 'mmm yes' or 'mmmm no—'"
"Hey are you making fun of me right now?" Hansol chuckled, earning a grin from Seokmin.
"No," Seokmin teased, "I'm simply demonstrating how much you've improved."
"Didn't sound like it," Hansol said, pretending to look offended.
Seokmin's gaze immediately softened, and he leaned in closer to make sure the latter was okay. Of course, Hansol immediately broke out of character with a smirk, making Seokmin whine with embarrassment. Chan simply watched the two bicker back and forth with an amused expression.
The conversation was soon interrupted when another student sat down next to the Hansol, causing the three of them to look up at who was sitting down with them. Hansol's eyes widened with fear when he saw a very familiar blonde-haired, sparkly eyed boy sit down in the empty seat next to him.
"I hope you all don't mind me sitting with you guys," the stranger said with a friendly smile.
"It's fine," Seokmin said, smiling back.
"I'm Seungkwan," he introduced himself. "I heard you guys are all part of them, uhm, team."
"You are too?" Chan asked, earning a small nod from Seungkwan.
"And you guys are..."
"Oh!" Seokmin smiled once again, "I'm Seokmin; this is Chan, and that's Hansol." He motioned a hands towards the younger two, in which Chan simply nodded as a greeting while he continued stuffing his face with food.
However, instead of saying hello or nodding towards him like Chan did, Hansol simply kept his eyes on his food, afraid to look the blonde haired boy in the eye. It made Seungkwan curious, a little intrigued.
"Don't mind him," Seokmin said nervously, grabbing Seungkwan's attention from Hansol, "He can be a little shy at times."
"I see," Seungkwan nodded, glancing over the boy next to him once again.
Seungkwan's stare made Hansol uncomfortable, frightened even. He quickly stood up from his seat and picked up his tray. Seokmin looked up at him confused, but Hansol simply gave him a small smile.
"I'm gonna go ahead," He said, "See you later..."
His voice trailed off as he turned around and began to scurry away with his food tray, leaving the three other boys alone at the table. Seungkwan turned around to watch Hansol leave, a little disappointed that he took off in such a rush. Chan tapped Seokmin's shoulder to grab his attention before leaning towards him to whisper something in his ear.
"What's his deal?" Chan whispered, eyeing Seungkwan, who was still watching Hansol leave.
"I don't really know," Seokmin whispered back.
"Do you think it has something to do with that guy?" Chan asked quietly, pointing towards the blonde haired boy.
They two looked at each other for a few seconds, then shrugged off any curiosity towards the situation. There were a million reasons why Hansol could've taken off like that, and they weren't too in the moment to think about it.
Maybe it was just a Hansol thing.
___________
A/N: I forgot to post a chapter on Wednesday! So here's Wednesday's chapter... on Thursday... hahah🙃 also this chapter kinda of like a filler but not rlly? idk anyways hope you're enjoying the book so far!