Haircut
It (does)n’t happen - intermediate -
Minho finally listened to his teacher and comments from classmates over the months. He got his hair cheaply cut again, and just to somehow show everyone up – prove he was somehow okay, it was nearly buzzed short. No one would be pulling his hair in any fights now at least, he almost felt smugly proud on that point.
But Minho quickly regretted it once he was out in public again. It was too big of a change even if people complimented the new look with warm smiles.
He felt too bare in such a haircut now - exposed. It certainly didn’t encourage him. Who he was before would have embraced such a style but not anymore. Now Minho would use his caps or even steal his brother’s to hide behind - use hoods of baggy clothes to cover himself, as if everyone was watching and judging him. They knew. Any laughter he heard on the streets, around him, all of it was about the secret. Eye contact was anyone looking right through him, finding dark, disturbing, shameful truths.
He cut too much off.
Exposed too much.
He missed… Jinki’s warm fingers combing through his long hair.
He really wasn’t ready for this.
Minho wished everyone would stop looking at him. He couldn’t realize in reality no one was looking at him out of the ordinary, but everyday it felt like they were. He couldn’t hide far or deep enough.
He snapped more often at strangers and classmates alike, just because he thought they were looking at him wrong, getting into his head to find his real thoughts. His strong front was weaker without something as silly as hair to hide under. Since when had hair even mattered to him?
It shouldn’t matter.
It’s just a matter of months before Minho’s hair grew out again and this time he refused to cut it so short after. He needed it, and realized that now. It was protecting him from… something.
Everything.
It made Jinki smile and touch him gently.
It was safe.
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