« day eight »

Myungsoo approached the entrance of the school auditorium with his bag slung across his body to see Naeun leaning against the closed door. She had her backpack on as well and was carrying her drawing pad in her arms. When Naeun heard his footsteps, she turned to look in his direction.

“Did you wait long?” called Myungsoo when he was within earshot.

She shook her head. “Nope,” she replied.

Myungsoo apologized anyway. “Sorry, it took longer to get here than I thought it would.”

Naeun shook her head again. “It’s fine, really.” She pointed to the auditorium behind her. “Ready?”

He nodded and followed her when she pushed open the doors and stepped inside.

Myungsoo wasn’t sure what he had been expecting. He had been inside the auditorium exactly one time, and that had been two years ago because Sunggyu forced him to watch the school play with him.

Somehow he had failed to remember just how large it was. Though dimly lit, the auditorium really was a sight to behold – it was modeled after the theatres of old, with ornate balconies and all to match. Rows upon endless rows of red velvet seats stretched before Myungsoo’s eyes. There were two entrances, one on either side of each of the three floors.

“Wait here,” whispered Naeun.

Myungsoo did as he was told and, a minute or two later, the enormous stage was bathed in a soft green light. His eyes traced the seamless architecture now visible with the added illumination.

“It’s beautiful.”

She walked down the aisle and beckoned for him to follow. “Isn’t it?” she asked, choosing a seat near the middle of the vast room. “I like to draw here, to be honest. I usually match the color of the lights to how I’m feeling.”

“What does green mean?”

“Tranquility, calm, peace – that sort of stuff,” answered Naeun. She smiled lightly. “There’s a darker shade of green for when I’m jealous.”

Myungsoo settled down into the seat next to hers. “Has anyone ever caught you in here?”

“Nope.” Naeun reached into her bag and pulled out the familiar black drawing pad. Then she reached into a smaller compartment in the front of her backpack and withdrew a pencil and a well-used, slightly ragged eraser. “No one else even knows about this place.”

He cocked his head to one side. “Not even your friends?”

“Not even my friends. Wouldn’t that defeat the purpose of coming here at all? I like to draw without any distractions.”

“Oh.” Myungsoo suddenly felt like an intruder. He’d all but forced her to invite him along yesterday.

As if knowing exactly what he was thinking, Naeun nudged him with her elbow. “You’re different, Myungsoo.”

And somehow, those three simple words warmed his heart.

-----

“What are you doing?” muttered Hoya.

Myungsoo blinked and glanced at his friend. “What do you mean?”

Hoya raised his eyebrows. “You’re staring a hole into the back of Jongin’s head.”

“No, I’m not,” denied Myungsoo. But even as the words left his mouth, his eyes went back to the lab table where Jongin was measuring something from a beaker.

“Did something happen?”

Myungsoo shook his head.

“Are you sure about that?”

Myungsoo nodded.

“You’re impossible,” said Hoya with a laugh and a shake of his head.

“I’m curious,” said Myungsoo. He had a certain dark-haired girl on his mind. “That’s all.”

-----

“No tutoring today?” asked Sungyeol the moment Myungsoo appeared at the entrance of the basketball court.

Myungsoo walked over to the bleachers and set down his backpack. “Jiyeon texted me during sixth hour and said she was busy with something.”

Dongwoo darted forward and snatched the ball from Sungyeol’s hands. He turned, lightning fast, and sank the ball into the basket.

“Hey!” complained Woohyun.

Dongwoo shrugged and high-fived Hoya. “You snooze, you lose!”

Woohyun smacked Sungyeol’s shoulder. “Stop asking about Myungsoo’s canceled date and focus on the game, will you?”

Myungsoo sighed at those words.

Sungyeol smirked. “Pass me the ball,” he replied.

 “Myungsoo’s moving on from Jiyeon,” said Hoya as he dribbled the ball down the court. “I caught him checking out Jongin today in chemistry.”

The three other guys burst into laughter. “What happened?” asked Sungyeol once he’d caught his breath.

“So I walk into class and at first everything seems normal. But then I lean over to talk to Myungsoo and he’s just completely zoning out and staring at Jongin. And he didn’t stop. He stared at Jongin for the entire hour, no joke.”

Sungyeol quirked an eyebrow. “That’s more interest than he’s ever shown in Jiyeon.”

“Oh man, he’s got it bad,” joked Woohyun.

Myungsoo stood up from his spot and rolled up the sleeves of his crisp white button-up. “Don’t make me come down there and teach you guys a lesson,” he warned, but he was grinning too.

“Try us,” challenged Sungyeol, tossing the ball up to him.

« day nine »

“I see,” said Naeun after she had asked him about why he’d been hungover and he had explained. “Do you miss her?”

“No.” Myungsoo continued to flip through his English vocabulary flashcards. “There isn’t anything to miss in the first place. She was never around long enough for us to care about each other.”

He could feel her eyes on him and looked up only to see her glance away quickly.

“What?” he asked, suddenly rather self-conscious.

Naeun shook her head and started to work diligently on her math assignment again. When she finally spoke, three or four minutes had passed and her voice sounded very small. “I’m sorry, Myungsoo.”

“Don’t be,” he told her. “I never get sad about it, only angry.”

She looked at him. “Maybe that’s worse.”

« day ten »

Myungsoo faced Sungjong tentatively. “Can I ask you something?”

Sungjong raised his eyebrows. “Is there anything wrong?” he asked curiously.

“No, no, of course not.”

“Then what is it?”

“Do – “ The words were on the tip of his tongue. Do you know Son Naeun? The girl in your oil painting class? But something in his chest seemed to constrict and he couldn’t force the question out. Myungsoo coughed and tried again. “Do you – “

At that moment, the bell rang and their physics teacher strode to the front of the classroom to begin the lesson.

Sungjong gave him a sideways glance. “Tell me later,” he whispered.

Myungsoo nodded. He flipped open his notebook to take notes. For some strange reason, he could hear his heartbeat in his ears and his palms were suddenly slick with sweat.