CHAPTER THREE

RYEOWOOK’S POV

             A few days pass since I arrived at my new school, and I must say that I’m pleasantly surprised. I’m actually doing quite well. I’ve made lots of new friends quickly thanks to Sungmin-hyung and people have been very nice to me. Also, I and Siwon-hyung have gotten quite close as well, thanks to the English and history classes that we have together.

“Morning Wookie!” Siwon-hyung greeted, making his way towards his seat beside me in our English class.

“Good morning hyung!”  I smiled widely while he sat down.

      Moments later, Kyuhyun arrived. He looks in our direction and he suddenly looked angry. What’s wrong with him? Why is he angry?

  He was looked at something on his left, giving me a great view of his perfect jaw line. My heart was doing flips inside my chest. Oh my. I felt my face burn up and this alarmed Siwon-hyung. I told him I was fine but he glanced at me a couple of times to check if I was okay. After the bell rang, we made our way to history with Kyuhyun trailing behind us once again. Siwon-hyung and I made small talk, but I was once again engulfed with fascination in history class. Soon, the bell rang and it was lunch time.

“Hey Wookie, have you thought about what club you’d like to join?” Siwon-hyung asked.

“I was thinking of maybe joining choir,” I said. I was in choir in Canada, and I love music. I was praised by a lot of people for my voice when I was there, but when I lived here in Korea when I was a kid, I was bullied for it. I stopped singing because of that but I started singing again when my new friends in Canada brought back my confidence in my voice.

“Oh cool! You know they’ve got auditions next week, if you go I’ll come to support you,” he said cheerily.

“That’d be great hyung! Thanks-“I started to say, but I was interrupted.

“Are you serious? You? Choir? AHAHAHAHAHAHA! They wouldn’t need you. There are enough girls in choir that your high, girly voice won’t be necessary, freak!” Kyuhyun chuckled bitterly with an angry glint in his eyes.

             My stomach felt like it’s been hit by a baseball bat. I was shocked. I was hurt. His sudden jab immediately brought back the bitter memories of my early childhood when I used to be called a girl because of my feminine voice and features. I was called a girl. I was called a freak. I guess the past would always repeat itself.

            I gathered my things and ran out of the classroom, ignoring Siwon-hyung calling me back. I just wanted to run away, far away. I know it may not seem like a big deal, but Kyuhyun’s statement struck a painful chord in my heart. One that I was hoping I’d never have to hear again.

           I reached my locker, holding back the tears that were threatening to flow. I grabbed my lunch out of my locker and pondered where I’d be eating it. I could eat with my friends, but I don’t want Sungmin-hyung to know of today’s incident. I can’t risk him seeing me. His sharp eyes would easily see through me, and I don’t want him to worry.

          Remembering Kyuhyun’s words in my head, a tear escaped from my eye and I sniffed. Oh no. Now my eyes would be all red and puffy. This’ll be hard to hide.

“Hey Wookie!” Leeteuk-hyung and Heechul-hyung greeted.

“Are you ready for lunch Wook?” Sungmin-hyung asked. Crap! He put an arm around my shoulder. I quickly wiped my tears away and fought the urge to sniff, knowing it would only give me away. While wiping my tears, I looked away from them.

“Yeah, just give me a minute,” my voice cracked. Oh god, please don’t notice.

“Are you okay?” Leetuek-hyung asked, concerned.

“Yeah, I’m great!” I put on my best fake smile, still facing away from them and rushed to our table in the cafeteria.

         I began eating my lunch in a rush once I sat down on our table. I was rushing because I just wanted to go somewhere isolated and cry. My hyungs reached our table, including Eunhyuk-hyung and Donghae-hyung, and sat down. Another tear escaped my eye and I wiped it hastily away.

“Wookie, is everything alright?” Sungmin-hyung asked, worry colouring his tone. I nodded in response, and swallowed the lump and food in my throat.

“Wookie, look at me,” he commanded. I faced him slowly and warily. As soon as he saw my eyes, his eyes widened and he gasped.

“Who did this to you!?!” he shouted, angry.

“H-hyung,” I said.

“What’s wrong?” Leetuek-hyung asked, alarmed by Sungmin-hyung’s sudden outburst. Heechul, Eunhyuk and Donghae asked the same thing, but I couldn’t answer them.

“Wookie, answer me,” he said calmly, but still stern nonetheless. I can’t do this. I can’t trouble him like this again. Without warning, the tears I’ve been holding back started to flow once again.

“My baby! Why is my baby crying?!” Leetuek-hyung nearly shouted. He rushed to my side and attacked me with a tight hug. “Tell umma what happened.”

             The others gathered around me while I cried in Leeteuk-hyung’s chest, staining his shirt with my tears. They patted my back and head soothingly, shooting worried glances at me and each other.

“I’m f-fine. N-nothing h-happ-, “I sobbed.

“Don’t even try to say that nothing happened. We can all see that something did. Tell me who did this to you and I’ll kick his !” Sungmin-hyung said jokingly, trying to make me laugh but obviously meaning what he said. Despite my cousin’s adorable exterior and personality, he can kick someone’s without breaking a sweat. He’s really good at martial arts. He used to protect me like that when we were younger.

“Wookie, are you alright?! I’m so sorry that he was mean to you!” Siwon-hyung suddenly picked me up in hugged me to his chest. Everyone was shocked by his action and was gaping at the scene.

“H-hyung, I-I’m-“I stuttered, but was interrupted by Heechul-hyung.

“He? HE was mean to you? Who was this ‘HE’ who was mean to you?! Nobody makes my baby cry and gets away with it!” Heechul-hyung exploded.

“It’s okay Heechul-ssi, I can handle-“Siwon hyung said, but was interrupted by a deep, rich but menacing voice.

“Aww, look! The little girl’s crying like a baby,” Kyuhyun said sarcastically with an angry tone. He had a menacing smirk and seething glint in his eyes.

              I’d actually calmed down a little bit before he appeared. But his presence brought back the memories of earlier today and then the memories of my bitter childhood. Hearing his hurtful words made me want to cry, and I felt fresh tears about to burst.

“SO IT WAS YOU!!!” Sungmin-hyung yelled, outraged. He hugged me protectively and faced Kyuhyun so my back was facing him. “YOU”RE GONNA PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO MY-“he started to yell again, but I couldn’t take it anymore. I can’t have him protecting me like that again. I can’t let him waste his time on me.

             I ran away from them. I needed a place where I can wallow in my misery alone, so I dashed to the rooftop of the school. I crumpled down into a heap in a corner, hugging my knees to my chest. There, I silently cried, sobs wracking through my body, hoping that the tears would wash away the agonizing memories. I know they wouldn’t but still, I was foolish enough to hope.

             Am I crying because he brought back my childhood misery? Or is it because HE brought it back? Am I crying because I was bullied? Or is it because it was HIM who bullied me?

               The bell rang, but I stayed where I was. I guess right now would be the best time to skip class. I don’t think I can handle sitting beside Kyuhyun for a whole hour without breaking down.

                                                                     Past Misery

            A little boy slept peacefully on his bed, no worries, no trouble, and no pain.

“Wake up, honey. Today’s a special day,” his mother shook him gently to wake him up.

“Good morning umma,” he said quietly, rubbing his eyes and yawning cutely.

“C’mon, let’s get you cleaned up for school,” she picked up the boy in her arms and took him to the bathroom to bathe.

                  The little boy fidgeted with his shirt. He was really nervous. So much so that he was shaking. It’s his turn to perform any minute now.

“Ryeowook-ssi, it’s your turn,” his teacher said, giving him an encouraging smile. He followed her onto the stage of the auditorium and held her hand tightly. Soon after, he was sitting in front of a piano. The audience welcomed him with applause, making him feel more nervous. He looked into the crowd and spotted his parents on the first row, smiling proudly at him. He took a deep breath and thought about what his mother told him while silence filled the room. Ignore everything that’s around you. It’s just you and the piano. Just you and the piano.

             The little boy started to play, his small and slender fingers flitting gracefully through the keys, face set in concentration. A few moments later, he began to sing with his high-pitched and angelic voice. The song continued, his singing and piano playing fitting together perfectly, creating a beautiful, harmonized melody. The performance ended in a few minutes, and silence hovered in the auditorium. Then, a deafeningly loud applause erupted from the audience. The little boy looked down and saw tears streaming down the faces of his parents. He bowed quickly and ran off the stage into his parents’ arms.

He hugged his parents tightly, tears forming in his eyes from seeing his parents cry and from relief that he’s finished his nerve wracking performance.

“Wookie, umma and appa are very proud of you. You were amazing. You made us very happy.” His mother said. The little boy nuzzled his face in his mother’s neck, hiding his blush. Later his parents started to socialize with other parents. He asked if he could play with the other kids and his parents agreed.

“Hello, can I play with you guys?” the little boy asked the group of boys shyly.

“No,” they all said.

“Why not?” he asked, wondering why they refused him.

“Because you’re a girl. We don’t play with girls,” one of them said.

“But I’m not a girl, I’m a boy,” the little boy protested.

“Oh yeah? Well how come you sound like a girl?” one of them challenged.

“And look like one too,” another boy added.

“I’m not a girl!” the little boy shouted and stomped his foot in frustration.

“Yes you are! You look like and sound like a girl, so you’re a girl,” one of them jeered.

“Yeah, and you’re the girl who sang and played terribly on the piano today. You’re that ugly girl that sang badly today,” one of them said, and they all laughed at the shocked and hurt little boy.

              The little boy was in tears soon after. This only egged on the group of boys, so they kept taunting him until the little boy ran away. He ran to his parents, sobbing.

“OMO! Baby, what happened?” his dad asked, alarmed, but the little boy just shook his head, refusing to speak. His parents tried and tried again but to no avail. He won’t say anything.

         The next day, he went to school in low spirits and was teased by the same group of boys. This continued day after day. As a few years pass by, it still continued. The little boy grew depressed and quiet. He barely spoke and quit singing. He still continued piano lessons, but never performed in front of anyone besides his instructor and his parents. The teasing and taunting escalated into something more over the years. The group of boys did not only call him names but also shoved him into things, pushed him around, and threw things at him. Every day, he would go home crying, not uttering a single word of his torments. His parents and his cousin that often visited grew very worried. So, his parents decided that they should move to another location, far away from their child’s tormentors. His cousin has also taken it upon himself to protect him, moving to his school and making sure that he wasn’t harmed ever again. As his parents wanted to move, they were lucky to receive offers for jobs in Canada. When they spoke to their son about moving there, they thought he’d be upset. However, he wasn’t. In fact, he even smiled a little, something they haven’t seen in such a long time. But before they could move, he still had to endure the bullying of the dreadful group of boys for just a little bit longer.

             A little boy slept peacefully on his bed, worried, troubled, pained, but hopeful.

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im very sorry for being late again. it was hard to make up wookie's "Past Misery". i promise i'll update sooner next time. this update is very long i know, please dont hate me for it >_< i hope you enjoy this u guys! and BTW i wanna thank the people who subscribed and commented! it really means a lot to me! COMMENT PLEASE! AND DON'T HESITATE TO GIVE CRITISM. IWANNA KNOW WHAT I SHOULD DO TO IMPROVE. :D