They snuck a second-hand mini-fridge into their motel room. It froze over too easily everywhere but in the small freezer section meant to hold ice and it failed to actually hold all that much – but it was theirs and it made the room feel a little more like a home. Besides, bologna unfroze easily enough and no one complained when Leo handed out sandwiches for breakfast, the lot of them eating the small meal on the way to school.

 

Hongbin and Ravi split off from their group first, the dimpled boy eagerly searching for his new friend while Ravi looked apprehensive. He claimed that the newcomer did not bother him, but Ken could spot a lie on Ravi’s lips from a mile away. The younger man’s indifference had quickly morphed into resentment as Hongbin became more and more attached to the girl, seemingly threatening Ravi’s place in the hierarchy.

 

It was worrisome, but Hongbin and Ravi had always worked out their problems before without a lot of issues getting in the way. If push came to shove, the other four boys could always step in and help to set things right again.

 

Hyuk was clinging to Leo and N, unwilling to let go of his oldest lovers until he absolutely had to. Their maknae had been having a difficult time adjusting to high school life and being alone in his year did not help anything. Hyuk was more lively at home with the company of the other boys to keep him content as they always had, but it made the oldest three sad that he could not seem to enjoy the better life that they had wanted him to have. Hopefully, he would be able to settle into the rhythm of things as time went on and not be upset about the others leaving him alone more often, giving him the chance to try to walk on his own.

 

Ken offered him a smile and kissed the sharp rise of Hyuk’s cheek, undaunted by the fact that they were in the full view of their classmates, and ran away before the maknae could retaliate – or demand a proper kiss.

 

(Things always got out of hand when they indulged in Hyuk and the maknae could be a little aggressive in his affections. Ken normally went along without a protest, but he did have to sit down for most of the school day. Besides, he was a little too loud for a public tryst.)

 

Ken’s first class of the day was his art elective, one of the few classes that he had differently from N and Leo, and he headed for the stairs to the third floor on his own. A song he had heard the night before came to mind and he hummed along as he walked.

 

He nearly bowled over a shorter and slightly familiar student as he entered the stairwell, his smile growing as he recognized the girl before him.

 

She was a head shorter than him, with chubby cheeks and wide liquidity dark eyes filled with surprise at nearly being run over.

 

Jeon Chae looked a little like a bunny just waking from a nap and Ken could understand the reasons why Hongbin had trouble shutting up about her when he talked about their first day of high school. (Even Ravi had agreed, though begrudgingly.)

 

“Seems like we’re making a habit of running into each other in the mornings!” Ken said cheerfully, catching her by the arm before she could fall.

 

The younger teen blinked at him rapidly for a moment, her face blank, before recognition flickered in her eyes. “You’re Hongbin’s friend! From the cafe.”

 

Ken perked up even further at the confirmation that she recognized him after only one brief encounter. “Lee Jaehwan, at your service~” He gave her a mock salute and stepped back to put a more appropriate distance between them. “And you’re Jeon Chae, our Hongbinnie’s cute new friend.”

 

The compliment caused her to blush brilliantly, red spreading all the way down her neck and past the collar of her shirt. Chae tried to drop her head into her hands to hide, but Ken managed to stop her with a delighted laugh.

 

“Jaehwan-ssi –”

 

“Jaehwan-oppa,” Ken insisted, trying to distract her from her embarrassment and failing.

 

She looked even more mortified at the idea of calling him so familiarly and tried to stutter a protest. “Jaehwan-ssi, this is the first time I’ve even spoken to you,” she tried to point out, only to be interrupted once more by Ken.

 

“Then we’ll fix that!” he released her hands, but held her gaze persistently when she tried to look away from him. “Come and have lunch with me today! Bring Hongbin and R-Wonshik too, of course, and you can meet the others too. We’ve been wanting to meet you for a while because Hongbin talks about you all the time – he ought to learn to share.”

 

“I –”

 

“Sorry, Chae-ah. I’m going to be late to class if I stick around here any longer. I’ll see you at lunch!” Ken said hurriedly, patting her shoulders with both hands and spinning them around so that she was by the stairwell exit instead. He offered her a blinding grin and ran away.

 

Bewildered, Chae could only stare after him.

 

Ken smiled to himself. This was his chance to help Ravi grow more accustomed to Jeon Chae. If they gave her more friends, then all of Hongbin’s time would no longer be taken up by the girl, giving Ravi more chances to be with him while the rest of the boys distracted Chae. Hongbin would not even have a chance to complain once they intergrated her into their circle because he would have the time to spend with his new friend while being with his lovers as well.

 

It would work out for everyone.

 

 

 

Even after the first two classes of the morning had passed, Chae was still reeling over her encounter with Lee Jaehwan.

 

Hongbin kept giving her concerned looks whenever he could spare the attention, worried by the blank look on her face, which was the only visible indication that she was acting strangely. Even Wonshik took a break from completely ignoring her – which he had taken to doing ever since that morning in the cafe – to stare at her in confusion.

 

Chae often helped carry on the conversation with Hongbin, but today she was observing a period of silence and stilted answers.

 

To be honest, the idea of going to lunch with Jaehwan and the rest of Hongbin and Wonshik’s different year friends made her anxious and uneasy.

 

As it was, she could barely stand the coldness that radiated off of Wonshik every time Hongbin turned his head towards her. How much more of his ire would she bring upon herself if she accepted the invitation to spend even more time with him and the other boys?

 

Just thinking about it made her feel queasy.

 

Pointedly keeping her eyes away from the boys, Chae offered an excuse about needing the restroom as soon as the bell for their break rang and she all but ran from the classroom to escape her one-sided tension.

 

The boys watched her in bewilderment and Hongbin only hesitated a moment, tossing a glance at Wonshik before following after him, concerned by the strange behavior. Torn between his persistent desire to not care for Chaeyeong and the urge to stay near Hongbin, the other boy remained in his seat. His fingers twitched from where they were wrapped around the sides of his desk.

 

Wonshik stayed in the classroom.

 

Outside in the hallway, Chae noticed Hongbin heading for her and had to bite down a squawk of surprise. Feeling a bit hysterical in her panic, she ducked into the nearest restroom, skidding across the tiled floor in her haste to escape.

 

Again, she felt as if she were overreacting, just as she had the first day she met the boys and saw her own awkwardness as more than it was. Honestly, she felt more out of her element than she had in a long time.

 

Trying to merge into an already established circle of friends, or even thinking about the difficulties that would come with such a situation, made her more anxious than she could express in words. Losing Hongbin’s friendship, her first solid relationship she had been in after a year of near complete solitude, would be devastating for her. Wonshik was obviously very important to Hongbin and if the disgruntled boy’s relationship with Chae did not improve, Hongbin might decide that a newcomer was not worth the trouble and leave her alone.

 

Like her old friends had.

 

Chae slumped against the tiled wall beside the sinks, feeling very weary from the weight of the situation.

 

She knew she had a penchant to blow things out of proportion, but she felt as if the future of her friendship with Hongbin was riding on what happened at lunch that day.

 

Chaeyeong could go to lunch and make new friends if they found as much interest in her as Hongbin had, Wonshik’s odd dislike of her aside. Or she may walk into lunch to find that Hongbin was the odd one out and that they did not like her at all, seeing the same things that caused Wonshik to dislike her for themselves, leaving Hongbin to follow along with the others since they had more history and importance to him than Chae did.

 

She could just hide away during lunch and not meet up with the other boys at all… which Hongbin could take as her not liking or caring about his friends enough to want to meet them, which could offend him and cause him to abandon her without any other influence than Chae’s own inability to get over herself and accept a simple invitation to lunch.

 

So things could either go well or absolutely terrible.

 

How reassuring.

 

Chae forced herself to take a deep breath, attempting to ground herself for a moment.

 

Hongbin was kind. He would not just outright abandon her – he stayed when Wonshik made his dislike of her apparent. If the rest of his friends did not like her, it was unlikely that he would just turn away from her without at least trying to sway the other boys to his side.

 

(But what if he did?)

 

Chae shoved off of the wall, fumbling for the sink’s tap, and splashed her face with the cold water as a distraction from her overactive mind and worries.

 

It would be fine.

 

She would be fine.

 

The door to the restroom swung open and Chae forced her expression to change from panicked to indifferent as Somi entered, flanked by her cronies from the other day along with Moon Aera and her band of second years.

 

Not a single word had been spoken, yet Chae could already see where this encounter was headed.

 

Pulling a few paper towels from the dispenser, Chae dried her face with an air of indifference, letting the group of girls know that their presence failed to have her on edge at all.

 

Moon Aera looked agitated by the dismissal of their arrival, but stayed a step behind Somi, who was watching Chae observe them with an odd look in her eye. The older girl seemed to be looking for something in Chae, contemplative of her rather than annoyed.

 

Like a cat with eyes fixated on a bird.

 

“Excuse me,” Chae said flatly, trying to move past the crowd of girls and out of the restroom.

 

They did not budge.

 

“So eager to get to class now?” Somi hummed, that same fake smile from the other day in place yet again. “But you had time to stop and talk to Lee Jaehwan this morning. Let’s have a talk of our own, Chaeyeong-ah.”

 

“Are you making a habit of listening in on other people’s conversations?” Chae said, with an easy going grin. “Oh my, that can’t possibly end well for you – you never know what people are going to say. It’s better to stop now before you hear something you don’t want to.”

 

“Lee Jaehwan is a little loud,” Somi laughed lightly. “It’s hard not to hear him when he speaks. But I find that listening is a useful skill. One you don’t seem to have. Was my warning not enough for you, Chaeyeong-ah?”

 

“Like I said before: Hongbin is my friend. I won’t ignore him just because some stranger tells me to stay away.”

 

“That doesn’t change the face of the matter though.” Somi’s smile faded to a sneer. “Hongbin is going to be mine eventually. You should be grateful I’m giving you another chance. I won’t do it again. Stay away from him or you’ll regret it.”

 

“As if,” Chae snorted, undeterred still.

 

Now Somi looked irritated, but forced her expression back into a pleasant one. “Trust me on this, Chaeyeong-ah. You don’t want me as your enemy. Do as I say and I’ll even give you a reward – that boy Hongbin is always with. You can keep him. He’s good looking and just as stubborn as you. You’ll make a good match when Hongbin comes to his senses and starts hanging out with us instead.”

 

“That boy is Kim Wonshik.” Chae said flatly, all traces of her once mocking grin replaced with cold anger. “And both he and Hongbin deserve better than someone like you.”

 

“I’m the best that they could ever get.” Somi snapped. “I’m warning you for the last time. Don’t go to lunch with the new boys and stay away from Hongbin. I won’t be nice anymore, Chaeyeong-ah.”

 

“Nice?” Chae snorted as the girls trailed out of the restroom after Somi, the stubborn second-year still unimpressed with the display of supposed ‘dominance’. “Someone ought to give her a dictionary if she’s that delusional.”

 

She waited a moment longer before leaving the restroom as well, braced for a confrontation with Hongbin should he be outside the door where she left him while running away earlier. When she found no one in the hallway but other students taking advantage of their break, Chae felt her shoulders slump in relief at his absence, though she was also a bit disappointed as well.

 

Chae took a deep breath and the chance to compose herself a moment before heading back to her classroom.

 

 

When the snotty girl from the other day left the classroom after Hongbin and Jeon Chae, Ravi was only mildly concerned for the pair.

 

He trusted Hongbin to be able to take care of himself and, though he did not know her well, Ravi knew that Jeon Chae possessed a cutting sense of cheek when faced with someone was less than polite to her and her friends – enough so that she could probably rival Hongbin if they ever came to a head against each other.

 

Ravi would not want to be around if that ever happened.

 

Yet he could not help but worry about her, even with his jealousy of her and the dislike he felt for her as she continued to impose on his relationship with Hongbin.

 

Jeon Chae could be sassy yes, but she also seemed to be an unsteady sort of person.

 

If someone pushed her too hard, it might be enough to knock her down – to hurt her.

 

And even Ravi, with all of his conflicted feelings, could not even dream of wishing something like that on her.

 

Ravi watched the door to the classroom with growing anticipation, regretting that he did not chase after the girl with Hongbin because now he did not know where to go. He no clue about where to run if they needed his help.

 

Jeon Chae walked in, her face no longer stuck in its blank state, and Ravi perked up like a dog whose owner just came home after leaving the house for more than ten minutes.

 

Hyejeong, who had happened to see the response, giggled and began whispering to the Song twins. Beomseok looked between Ravi and Chaeyeong, who was returning to her seat, with a curious expression. Bomi looked amused and a little mischevious.

 

“Hongbin isn’t with you?” Ravi blurted out as soon as the girl sat down.

 

Jeon Chae froze like a startled rabbit, motion seeming to leave her limbs all at once.

 

It was the first time Ravi had acknowledged her, let alone spoken to her, in days.

 

“No.” She said nervously, dragging out the word. “We – he wasn’t there when I came out of the restroom. I don’t know where he went.”

 

“Oh,” Ravi looked away from her again, only to find himself unable to ignore her and his curiosity. “Are you sick or something?”

 

“…. what?”

 

“It’s just… you were acting weird today. It didn’t seem like you.” The awkwardness of the interaction was too much for Ravi and he turned to scowl at his desk. “Whatever. I don’t – Hongbin was worried about you.”

 

“I see.” Chae murmured. “I’m not sick. Something… odd happened this morning. That’s what was bothering me.”

 

“Odd?” Ravi’s head snapped towards her, a frown on his face. “Like… a bad odd? Are you alright?”

 

“No, no.” Chae waved her hands emphatically. “No, nothing bad. Just… unusual. I’m fine.”

 

Ravi deflated. “Oh. That’s good. That nothing bad happened, I mean.”

 

“Yeah...” Chae coughed, finding that she was having trouble looking at Ravi when she spoke. For some reason, she felt flustered.

 

They were silent a moment.

 

“If something bad did happen… you could tell Hongbin. And me I guess.” Ravi mumbled suddenly. “We would make sure it didn’t happen again. If something ever does happen. We could help.”

 

Chae stared at him, an odd look in her eyes. “I – Wonshik. Thank you.” She offered him a shy smile.

 

Ravi just shrugged, eyes fixated on his desk.

 

The air between them had not cleared at all, but the tension had lifted slightly, leaving Chae and Ravi in the quiet company of each other as they waited for Hongbin to return.

 

It was not much, but perhaps it was a start.