Running Man All Boys High School was deathly still after a night of celebration and dancing. The toll of weeklong competitions and celebration has finally caught on the students and teacher alike. At eight in the morning, the second year dormitory mess hall is empty of the usual ravenous teens. While in a corner, Kyung soo napped after preparing breakfast.

It was as if the school was cursed into a deep sleep -- well, except two souls who couldn’t wait to start the day. Or technically, they were two creatures who just can’t wait to see each other.

“Hey Kyung soo! Good morning!” Jong kook greets the napping cook who jerks awake -- almost falling from his stool. Kyung soo glares at the PE teacher and mourns the abrupt pull from his beautiful dream but he’s still too sleepy to manage a proper retort.

“Good morning Kyungie!” Another voice jumps in, making Kyung soo squeak girlishly. And this time he manages to really fall on the floor which was enough for him to wake up fully. “Oh gods! What is wrong with the two of you? You do realize that it’s a weekend and people are trying to rest!” the cook complains, shooting murderous looks at the duo who sat beside each other opposite him. They were wearing matching grins, as if today was the most beautiful day ever created. They momentarily gazed at each other, exchanged a look and a raised brow then snickered at the same time. It was sickeningly adorable, like watching a practiced choreography of expressions that translated into its own language.

A realization suddenly hits Kyung soo. His face shifts, grinning madly like the offensive wakeup call didn’t happen at all. “Oh… oh! Oh my gosh! That’s why then!” he exclaimed excitedly, running to the kitchen to get his special cookie jar, hidden and kept under lock and key -- for extra special occasions. He returned to the new couple and offered cookies which they gratefully ate, even health nut guru Kim Jong kook.

“That’s why the two of you vanished last night! The two of you…” Kyung soo said excitedly, pointing at the teachers knowingly before bringing his two pointer fingers together in the universal sign of two people entering a relationship. “So, noona, hyung? You’re dating right?”

Jong kook blushed and Ji hyo grinned. “Courting…” the PE teacher said shyly while Ji hyo answered, “dating.” Both of them even talked at the same time. And Kyung soo briefly thinks of wedding recipes and caterings. It’s wistful thinking, he knows, but the way the love birds are acting in front of him, it’s not impossible.

“Oh finally! I would offer to cook a special lunch but one look at you and the kids would know right away. So go eat breakfast then go out have lunch and dinner too. I can’t have the two of staring sweetly at each other while the kids go nuts with jealousy.” The youngest teased, but after the outburst and the fanboying he did, Kyung soo’s expression softened into a fond smile. “I’m happy for the two of you.” he said sincerely.

Jong kook nodded and Ji hyo returned Kyung soo’s smile. And the cook is truly happy for his friends… even if a very small part of him was a little bitter… because Ji hyo is truly one of a kind. It was just a little regret he could easily crush seeing the reassuring picture Ji hyo presents -- she’s happy and that’s enough for Kyung soo. He’d get over his little crush even if a part of him will always wish for someone like her in his life.

The three had a silent breakfast. Ji hyo and Jong kook has mastered their language of silence and unique expressions, while Kyung soo fondly watched them, complaining occasionally of too much sweetness and fluff in his kitchen. He just didn’t want ants gathering around them and the food supply.

---/:::::/---

“Good morning!” Ji hyo greeted the class enthusiastically who were all staring at her with serious and confused faces. They were also unusually quiet, even the talkative ones. In fact, she could swear that you can hear a pin drop in the unusual silence.

“Okay class, how was the sports week for you?” she was answered with more silence which was kind of unnerving knowing how rowdy and wild her students could be even in normal days. “Anyone?” she tries again with determination.

“Tiring, but fun.” In guk answered in a strangely small voice. A low murmur of agreement echoes in the room but dies down as soon as it started. It was really strange but there is a lesson to teach so Ji hyo just shrugged it off. She’s already missing her noisy kids, even if it was a headache trying to quiet them before.

She asked the class to take out their books and launched into a trivia story about the first wife of King Jumong. It was one of her favorite topics so she was a little bit carried away. Ji hyo was enthusiastically recalling the most important role of Lady Ye Soya with grand gestures when she noticed the startled, amused expression of her students. A few were sporting a constipated look from holding in their smiles and snickers.

“Questions class?” she asks, suddenly a little embarrassed at realizing that getting carried away is such an understatement.

“You look so beautiful teacher! You’re glowing like the sun my last love!” Haha blurted and just like that, it was as if a dam has burst and the students were back into their noisy, rowdy selves. Ji hyo soaks the familiar atmosphere with a grin. Then asks again, “so, how are my champions?”

“Bagged the gold for dancing,” the boys at the back bragged. “Also got the 3 gold medals in the duet, solo singing and the master rapper is in the house!” the group in the middle roared.

“Beat the Junior year in volleyball and basketball.”

“Soccer and baseball, too. Don’t forget how we defeated those seniors!”

“Because we have the best cheerleader in the whole world!” All the kids cheered, chanting their teacher’s name, making Ji hyo blush furiously at the memory of her cheerleading days.

In Guk, as always, stood up and hushed his classmates who were being too loud. “Thank you for your hard work Ms. Song.” the president said with a big smile after he glared to silence his classmates.

“It was awesome Ms. Song! I love the school ball and you have some seriously cool moves!” Kwang soo chirped in, undeterred by In guk’s glare. “So did Mr. Kim.” Joongki, the class genius added, throwing Song Ji hyo a knowing smile. Ji hyo gets even redder. She consciously scans the room and breaths easier at the fact that no one else seems to have caught on with her new love life.

Ji hyo spent the rest of the time listening to her kids recount the events last week. Until Ji hyo had to bribe them with a ‘no quiz for this week’ present just to make them behave. Ji hyo still wonders why they were so quiet earlier, but it doesn’t seem very important now.

At the end of the class, Ji hyo was left alone in the classroom while her students went for their gym class. Kim Myung Soo was the last to go out. Ji hyo noticed him deliberately being slow. “Hey Myung soo? Is there any problem?” The boy shakes his head but smiles at her.

“Congratulations, I guess… you look glowing and my idiotic classmates can see that,” the kid pauses, and the protective smile he gives Ji hyo was very warm and brotherly. “Don’t break hearts teacher and don’t get broken. And if ever, your kids will always back you up.” he said instead, and then walked away.

She was taken aback for a second, but quickly recovers and calls after her student. “Thank you!” she shouts after him, hoping the kid knows it meant a lot to her and especially to Jong kook. And maybe Myung soo does. He’s a very smart kid.

---/:::::/---

Ji hyo sneakily entered the Chairman’s office, bearing his favorite cup of tea and a platter of Kyung soo’s freshly baked butter cookies. According to his schedule, her Pa should be making rounds in the Administration offices so she still has a few minutes to set up his office a little to soften the blow of her news. But before Ji hyo could put the tray in his father’s huge executive table, the man entered the room with a teasing smile.

He knows… and that made everything easier.

“I’m busted?” Ji hyo said with a mock exaggerated sigh. Her Papa was like a seer who could not only predict the future but read her perfectly as well. He probably knew as soon as they disappeared from the gym that night.

“I tried to tell you first Pa, but you weren’t here during the weekends and I didn’t want to say it over the phone! And some people figured it out even if I didn’t tell them. I’m sorry?” the history teacher pouts, curling against her father affectionately while the old man stood there helplessly. She really wanted to tell her Papa first, but then Kyung soo, Joongki and Myung soo happened. A lot of her students were also beginning to look at her weirdly and by the end of the week, she reckons that the whole world will probably know. Even Principal Dongwan was looking at her knowingly during the flag ceremony this morning.

“It’s all right Ji hyo-yah. I knew right away when you told me you like someone. So I am still the first. Come here, my dearest, you have a lot to tell me.” the older Cheon, sat on his oversized chair, taking a sip of tea and approving heartily. Ji hyo settled on a smaller but no less comfortable chair opposite the chairman, taking a cookie and nibbling on it.

“You look radiant dear. So, how’s the boyfriend?”

Ji hyo blushes but her smile became bigger and she couldn’t help but talk with too much energy and affection. “Not my boyfriend Pa!” she laughs at the kids-this-day expression of her father, “we’re still in the courting stage. He’s really… nice. But I still couldn’t believe it. I mean… we’re practically childhood friends… and now…” Ji hyo launches into telling his Pa about Jong kook, never saying, even once, the PE teacher’s name. Her Pa is great like that. The Chairman knows everything and Ji hyo could always tell him anything even with so little explanations. Her Papa just knows, as always.

“I’m happy for you Ji hyo-yah, but remember, if that man ever dares do something I don’t approve of or god forbid, he makes you cry… just tell me and I’ll take care of him.” Ji hyo giggles despite knowing her Pa is deathly serious. She leans closer into the older man’s arms to give him a hug, muttering a thank you in his coat and just lays there feeling like the luckiest human in the world.

Ji hyo got the best Papa anyone could ask for and now she was reunited in more ways than one with a man that has always been important to her. Her once best and only friend and now her lover.

If Ji hyo was a little bit excited to return to the dorms and left much earlier than usual, her father didn’t comment on it but Sanggu did watch his only child leave with an affectionate, albeit a little sad smile. A parent will always be happy for their child, will fully support and watch over them until the end but it will also be always hard to let them go. Especially for Sanggu who’s greatest treasure and only family is Ji hyo.

But if they give him a dozen grandchildren, maybe he’d be happier for them.

---/:::::/-----

Kim Jong kook is a serious teacher who rarely smiles. He is strict, always barking orders though his students know that the PE teacher cared through his tough love. To see said teacher smile several times when everyone is preoccupied was a sight to see. Those who noticed thought they were hallucinating. Chang min and Xiumin thought that maybe they ate too much steamed buns. Gwangsoo felt scared -- the tallest kid wanted to see the PE teacher defeated, but he didn’t really wish the teacher to be ill and die.

The smart ones smirked, remembering a certain history teacher who was also all smiles the whole day, but they kept quiet because they are very smart and wanted to live.

---/:::/---

During free time, Jong kook wandered inside the faculty room, which is a rare occurrence since he has his own office at the back of the gym. His colleagues found it weird, but were happy to see the wayward teacher. But Jaesuk was mentally freaking out while sitting on Sukjin’s creaky chair (the poor big-nosed teacher fell asleep on the sofa) because a bulky PE teacher took his seat beside the History teacher.

They were discussing schedules for their dormitory and charges which is normal, but not normally discussed in the faculty. Jaesuk and Sukjin usually just play rock, paper and scissors or make bets and the loser does the chores. The other teachers have stuck on one schedule per year and don’t bother with changing it.

The strangest thing in the scenario was that they were so quiet. Jaesuk didn’t realize it at first but he felt like something really strange is happening. Then he realized, for an hour the two teachers ‘discussed’ but not one word was uttered during said discussion. But it was impossible… Jaesuk doesn’t know how he could tell that Ji hyo and Jong kook is talking to each other because they aren’t.

How Jaesuk wished they have a CCTV camera trained on Ji hyo’s spot because he’s really curious. A discussion without words? It was truly absurd, impossible… but he isn’t really sure.

The poor teacher could only watch and wonder, straining his ears, and thinking that maybe they were just whispering so low that he couldn’t catch anything. The bell rings and he curses silently as he reluctantly leaves for his class.

---/:::::/---

In the afternoon, all the students who were given detentions during the day report to Kim Jong kook at the gym for their collective punishment. The usual troublemakers knew the routine by heart. Fall in line, wait, behave and maintain the silence. They will either be ordered to clean the smelly gym equipment, run lapses around the gym depending on their offense, play a sport with the PE teacher -- which was the worst because it is usually wrestling and no one can beat Mr. Kim at that -- but today, it seems that there will be a new form of detention. And it was the hardest psychological battle the detentionees will ever encounter.

Three senior students, eight junior students, ten sophomores and two freshmen gathered nervously in front of the infamous detention master Kim Jong kook. They stood there in perfectly straight lines, clammy and cold sweat running down their spines, hands shaking behind their back and knees buckling from the fifteen minutes of just standing there quietly.

No one dared to breathe loudly or meet the PE teacher’s gaze. Though there were low suspicious whimpers that quickly stopped as soon as it started.

The PE teacher sat on a wooden stool with a very pleased smile. It just went on and on -- the silence -- felt like hours when it was actually just fifteen minutes. The freshmen wanted to cry, silently swearing in their heads never to get in trouble ever again. The older ones were trying to be brave, but every sound made them twitch as if hit by an invisible stick.

After twenty minutes of very painful silence, Jong kook spoke and all the students jumped visibly. “What are your offenses?” he asked in a serious tone of voice that held promises of severe disciplinary actions that made the students numb with fear. One of the freshmen sniffed, the other uttered a muffled cry of mom. One of the sophomores was turning blue. The senior student paled an impossible shade of white and the third years all huddled closer as if awaiting their execution.

“I was caught cutting classes…” the first boy mumbled and the rest applauded his bravery. Then one by one the students followed the brave boy’s example, regretful and pleading at the same time. After the last one was done, there was another tense silence in the room.

“Are you guys planning to repeat those acts?” Jong kook asks, the students jumping visibly once again. The rule was to behave, to be quiet but hearing the chance in the teacher’s voice gave the terrified teens some semblance of hope. They puttered on, pleading and promising until one of the youngest was openly crying. The juniors fell on their knees followed by the seniors and then everyone else. Jong kook scowls and the kids wail louder.

And then Jong kook laughed, and then laughed some more until he’s wiping moisture in his eyes. The students halted, silence reigning once again as they looked at the teacher in confusion, sniffing and teary-eyed. Jong kook continued to laugh.

“Seriously kids! Now, make good on your promises and study hard. Don’t ever come back here again unless you have classes or you’re volunteering to do maintenance for the equipment. Dismissed.” Jong kook walked away but looked back after a few steps. No one has moved. “I will forgive today but I remember everything. Next time, everyone will remember too and you will all call your mommies louder to tell her what you did.” He says in a low, calm voice that was even more terrifying than when Principal Dongwan yelled and preached every flag ceremony.

With a victorious smirk, Jong kook disappeared, happy at the effective and quickest detention he discovered. It took about five minutes before the kids had the strength to close their gaping mouths and ten more minutes for the numbness to fade before they could run for their lives.

That day, Jong kook laughed a lot and forgave those in detentions -- terrifying the kids even more.

That day, Ji hyo smiled more and gave out rewards to her kids -- gaining even more positive attention from students and colleague alike.

Ji hyo and Jong kook didn’t care though, nor did they notice.  But they could admit that they are happier, like the world could fall and it wouldn’t matter. That now the world has simultaneously became bigger (things to do, places to explore) and smaller at the same time (together, always closer… they’re their own world).

I couldn’t think of what to do… I’m bad at dates and relationships so I was struggling to write Ji hyo and Jong kook together lol… it is easier for me to write pining and angst but I hope I did okay... so here’s how the school sees the new couple. Thanks for reading! ^^

BTW Sorry for posting so late. I finished this last Sunday but it didn't feel right so I had to edit it portion by portion during work when no one is around... I wasn't caught though my officemate knows I write stuff.