Jongin felt a lot better today since the day the drama class teacher pointed at him and announced that he will play the damn prince in the effing play. Yeah, he knows he's handsome and he looks like a prince but he doesn't know a thing about Shakespeare. And he had to admit. He. Can't. Sing.

He knows how to dance-jazz, ballet, hiphop, popping- you name it. But singing? He said as much to the teacher but she was hell bent on making him the lead role. It's to fill the theater seats, she said. And besides, she can have the singing voice dubbed.

So here he was in this stupid costume, memorizing these stupid lines and the stupid blockings. The only good thing that made him feel better is he gets to spend it with Kyungsoo and he can harass the older boy as much as he wants to. Their non-friendship is actually a complicated subject neither one of them breaches. They just feel comfortable slinging insults at each other to bother.

"For the thousandth time, Jongin. You turn to the LEFT, lift your RIGHT hand and punch it to the tree." Kyungsoo said, exasperated.

"I turn left and punch the tree..."

"With your right hand, yes."

"Not too hard." The tree said.

"I'm sorry, Chanyeol."

"Now, come on. It's nearly midnight and the play's tomorrow. I've got homework to do."

"Come on, tree. Let's follow what the Princess says."

"Don't call me that." Kyungsoo said with a glare.

"Yes, your highness." Jongin bowed. He laughed as he saw Kyungsoo was ready to throw the marker he was holding at him.

Jongin decided to be serious for a while as he saw that both Chanyeol and Kyungsoo were getting tired. And when he was serious they actually get something done. Nearing the end of the practice, during the final scene, Jongin was actually torn between delivering the line perfectly or botching it up just to get Kyungsoo riled. But the former won and he was glad he did cause this is the first time he gets to see Kyungsoo hoot in glee and smile approvingly at him. The smile gives him strange feelings. He doesn't like strange so he snatched the marker from Kyungsoo's hand and writes VERY GOOD on Chanyeol's cheeks, one word on each side.

""Wha...t?" Chanyeol couldn't really move away from him wearing that tree costume.

"There, job well done!" Jongin told him. "Now as for you..." Jongin closed in on Kyungsoo but the older boy was a fast runner.

But it maybe was Jongin's night cause Kyungsoo stumbled over Chanyeol's roots. Jongin caught Kyungsoo's arm and wrote PERFECT in bold letters which was difficult since the other was struggling to get free.

"Ya, Kim Jongin!" Kyungsoo shrieked.

Jongin was on the floor rolling with laughter when he saw Kyungsoo's eyes flare with intent. On his hand was the marker. Jongin couldn't breathe with laughter so he wasn't able to defend himself when Kyungsoo pounced on him and wrote on his forehead. Chanyeol laughed at Jongin and Jongin laughed at himself as he saw in the mirror what Kyungsoo wrote: IDIOT.

Kyungsoo laughed, too. And the three of them collapsed on the floor of Chanyeol's room, laughing like there's no tomorrow.

 

It was 2:30am when Kyungsoo was able to go home after practicing with Jongin and Chanyeol for the last time. He smiled as he remembered how Chanyeol's mom found them on the floor and glared at Jongin when she found out who wrote Very Good on Chanyeol's face. It felt good to laugh.

It felt good to also be surrounded with friends. Well, with a friend and a non-friend.

Kyungsoo the bathroom lights. He wanted to wash away the marker ink from his arm before it gets too difficult to wipe off. He lathered soap in one hand and was about to wipe it on his left arm when he looked closely on the word Jongin wrote. PERFECT.

His heart thudded. The word looks so familiar. Of course he knows the word, but the way it's written...

He traced the letters with his index finger. PERFECT. He remembered the last time he traced such ugly handwriting. DO KYUNGSOO IS PERFECT.

"Kim Jongin..." Kyungsoo whispered. "You, idiot."

Jongin was walking with a limp. It's his waist again. Someday soon, he'll never be able to stand up let alone walk. He feels the world is against him. The world being his sisters, his friend Chanyeol and the little puppy of a boy in his math class yesterday who hit him with his duffel bag squarely at the waist. He never gets injured when he was dancing. It's the people around him. "I've got to meet new people."

He was wincing with every step when an arm shot out from a corner and dragged him. It was so fast that all he knew next was he was facing a wall and someone was holding him pressed to it.

"All I've got is a peanut butter and jelly sandwhich. It's yours if you want it." Jongin told his assailant.

"Stop being dramatic."

"Woah! Your Highness! Resorting to thievery now to feed your people?"

"Shut up." Kyungsoo said as he was pulling the back of Jongin's shirt up.

"Hey! What are you doing?! I know I'm irresistible and all, but we're in school..."

"Shut up or I'll gag you."

Jongin felt Kyungsoo's hand on his back. WOAH.

"Uh, really, what are you doing?" He tried to look at what the smaller boy was doing behind his back but Kyungsoo was pushing him quite hard against the wall.

"Stand still, stupid." Jongin heard a packet being ripped open and suddenly he felt a cool rectangular thing against his lower back.

"Huh, there." Kyungsoo eased on Jongin's back. Jongin felt for the cooling pad with his hands and laughed. But when he turned around Kyungsoo was already walking away.

"Thanks!" Jongin called out. "Does this mean we're friends now?"

"Whatever." Kyungsoo said without turning back.
 

A/N: So what you guys think? ㅋㅋㅋ This will be the last chapter for the flashback part and we're finally gonna move on to the present day Kyungsoo and Jongin.
Hope you'll stay with me until then. :)))
Will update soon!