‘Chubby social outcast and also a foreigner who is deemed mute.’

Probably this was the reason that both of them are connected in the first place without any doubts or sorts. 'This is why they knew each other' others had reasoned among themselves. Somehow they were the odd pair that everyone around them had seen.

11031999

The little chubby boy was under the tree, petting his cute little white ferret with such interest that neither of the kids of his peers could fathom completely but this little who was wearing round spectacles gave no absolute care about the chatters that were just few feet away from him.

The only thing that could make his heart leaped in joy was his one and only, his ferret.

“He is a freak, duh.” The boy rolled his eyes in the most dramatic way while his mates just laughed their selves off, obviously agreeing with what the boy had just said.

“Fat and holding a ferret—who actually owns a ferret!” This time the boy who was dressed in white shorts and blue navy shirt bellowed as they eyed the chubby kid from head to toe.

While the chubby was petting the ferret’s fur, he muttered some incoherent words to himself. Telling himself it was just another day of his peers not wanting to be friends with him, just another day that he should brace with a smile like his mother always told him.

Truth to be told, this is everyday scenario for him in this elementary school.

But today was added up to a little degree of the ‘worst’ meter because today is pet’s presentation day which, of course, the chubby kid had brought his ferret to show it off.

The chubby kid thought that his so call and claimed ‘friends’ will be impressed of him, but it did not. It wound the kid in the inside, not the outside.

“Ravo, you won’t leave me right?” The boy who is nicknamed ‘chubby cheeks’, ChanYeol whispered to his ferret, fingers not leaving to tend the mammal’s fur lightly.

“Hey hey! He is mute!” A big laughter erupted not so far away from where ChanYeol rested under a tree.

From the ChanYeol saw a boy cowering back to wall that covered the kindergarten’s compound with few boys standing tall and proud before him—it was those boys-- those boys who made fun of him and his beautiful cute ferret.

“Ah, or he is too scared and small to even talk?” The boys chorused another laughter again which made the small boy looked down to the ground, shoulder slumping and little did they knew that the smaller boy’s fists were fisted but it was only known to ChanYeol who intently stared from the far.

The small boy lifted his head back and mouth wide apart to say something but he felt something stuck in his throat, his vocal box wont just worked like how he hoped and the boys before him who he noted as DaeShin and his friends raised their eyebrows in expectation and glee to hear the words because he looked like he was about to say something but to only laugh loudly again as no words came out.

Not a single word, none.

“Told you Jongdae he was mute!”

The small boy dropped his head again, looking down to the arid ground. Tears already glistened down his cheeks. He did not know what he did to receive such treatments from the boys. ‘I am not mute!’ He wanted to shout out loud with all his might but lack of confidence and also fear of his broken language probably what had caused his vocal box to shut away and became shy.

“That’s enough!” Was that the teacher?

LuHan raised his head quickly, with big expectation and hope that the teacher will tell these mean boys off and stop bothering him but his eyes became widened as he saw another boy—the ferret boy interrupted the boys from making another tease on him. He looked at the ferret boy with askance.

“Ah the freak.” Jongdae groaned with his eyes rolled to the side.

“Oh oh wait! Freak saving mute!”

The boys joined Daeshin’s laughter almost making ChanYeol dropped his head like how the small boy did but he stayed strong, looking straight into Daeshin’s eyes.

“Do you know it was mean of you to pick on that boy?” It was a little obvious that his voice was slightly shaking as he tried to pronounce the words clearly each by each, trying to show he had the courage. He actually had the courage.

“We were just stating the obvious! It is not a fault,” Jongdae said with a little pout then his shoulders shrugging. Acting all innocent on this.

“But still! It is wrong!”

“Psh, whatever. Let us go, the recess is gonna be over any time.” Daeshin announced as he walked off first from his friends and heading straight to the classroom to only leave ChanYeol, his ferret and the small boy.

There was a thick silence hanging between them but for ChanYeol though the silence was thick but it gave him enough time to look at the boy. Obviously this boy is the same age as he is, just a bit small and thinner than he is. He is not wearing glasses like him.

“Th-T-Thanks..” The smaller boy voiced out with a coarse voice. ChanYeol noticed that he was sniffing too.

“You cried?!” ChanYeol’s voice almost echoed the almost emptied school’s playground.

“….. N-no.” His stuttering words came in reply, shaking his head profusely.

Another silence came in and waltzed before them but this time both of them looked at each other’s eyes, as if trying to spread message across each other using their eyes.

“Lu—Lu Han.” The boy seemed to whisper out, ChanYeol blinked and tilted his head.

“My….” He hesitated for awhile. “My.. Name...is Lu… Han.” ChanYeol noticed a thick accent in his words. He thought that LuHan was someone not from here, this very place.

“A-Ah!” ChanYeol laughed and nodded his head, making sure he noted down Lu Han’s name in his mind.

“Park ChanYeol!” He reached out his hand to meet LuHan’s.

His heart flipped in happiness when LuHan grabbed his hand without any hesitation.

Since that day, ChanYeol was sure that he was going to spend his life with LuHan at any possible ways.

They learned about each other day by day.

ChanYeol learned that Lu Han was actually a boy who was born in Beijing, China. But he moved to Seoul after learning that his mother was already divorced to his biological father and wed a Korean man who turned out to welcome of his presence, to his luck. ChanYeol learned that Lu Han had this obsession? Not really obsession but some kind of own-age that ChanYeol would never fathom which is that Lu Han could not have anyone on his bed. The way ChanYeol surprisingly found out was when he climbed up to Lu Han’s bed (he had nightmare and the only person he could hug at that moment was LuHan, obviously) during his sleepover on the latter’s house because his parents were away and by a split second ChanYeol was kicked in the gut when Lu Han sensed a foreign presence on his bed.

ChanYeol moaned in pain and Lu Han scolded him in return instead of asking him if he was fine.

Lu Han learned how sensitive ChanYeol was about his ears and also he learned that ChanYeol learned guitar by just listening to his father playing it from time to time. Sometimes LuHan would request the latter to play for him some of the hit songs from that time. Also LuHan noticed how well ChanYeol put up his strong façade until his ferret died when both of them were thirteen years old.

03052006.

“Lu Han! I did—I didn’t know! But Ravo didn’t wake up! Last!” LuHan placed his hand on ChanYeol as he moved to caress it, and rubbing it to comfort ChanYeol. Hoping that ChanYeol would stop his ugly sobbing because it was too loud and LuHan swore that the neighbors could hear his sobbing.

“I! I read at the net—That! Ferrets!—Should live about seven years b-but!”

“Shuush..ChanYeol… it is okay? Hmm? At least he is at a better place now is h-”

“He is buried in the ground now, LuHan!” LuHan resist the urge to punch ChanYeol in the face at this moment for his sudden stupidity to come out now.

Instead he leaned in and kissed ChanYeol on the cheek. ChanYeol stunned.

“It’s okay ChanYeol, we can ask your father to buy you another ferret but I know, it wont be the same as your Ravo is but still, he could be your companion too, right?” LuHan said lightly and his hand resumed to rub ChanYeol’s slightly trembling back.

“No…” ChanYeol wiped his face that was wet with tears with his hands that was dirtied by the dirt from the ground but he did not dare to face Lu Han, “You are enough.” His heart smiled.

He turned and grinned at LuHan with the biggest grin he could ever show from the bottom of his heart.

He was sure enough that he wont let Lu Han drift away from his life.

03032008

Time flew, and by the first semester on the first year of high school---

Both of them grew and were reborn to be beautiful men. ChanYeol somehow grew taller beyond anyone’s believe by months and his voice transformed to sound almost like a bass singer—no doubt too he became thinner as time flew and instead of ‘chubby cheek’ he was called ‘giant’ instead. Whereas LuHan, he grew taller like ChanYeol did but slightly shorter than the latter and his face blossomed like a flower and was beautiful as a flower is, girls fawned over his beauty and some were jealous of how ‘flower boy’ is he.

They were one of the school’s heartthrobs.

In other words, everyone wanted a piece of them.

Oh, another thing that was similar between them is their grades were average but neither of them actually cared with all their hearts.

But being on different class somehow drifted them apart together and it bothered ChanYeol so bad. They have been together forever and literally forever. From elementary school to middle school—just together.

13042008

ChanYeol gazed at the class beside his which happened to be LuHan’s. He noticed that his bestfriend was talking and laughing at the dude beside him with full of glee, and how beautiful LuHan’s face is whenever he smiled. ChanYeol heaved a sigh, that sit beside LuHan was supposed to be his—not some guy with tanned skin and a defined jawline and looked… a bit… handsome than he is. That is when he liked to be in denial that he was slightly feeling down.

LuHan could like that guy, could like.

And how that made ChanYeol felt small again after so long of not feeling such inferiority from the moment when LuHan held his hand for the first time in elementary school.

ChanYeol was noting. He had been counting the days where he and LuHan barely talked because LuHan had football training with his team whereas ChanYeol had training for the Basketball Club; both of them only talked on the phone or simple texts and if worst come to worst they only can talk face to face whenever LuHan’s mother decided to send some dessert over to ChanYeol’s for the whole family to enjoy.

He could not deny that he missed hanging out around LuHan.

He missed LuHan so bad that the feeling ache his heart.

25042008

ChanYeol’s stomach dropped to the ground when he was standing at the field, watching LuHan being so friendly—over the top friendly with the same boy who sat beside LuHan in the latter’s class. ChanYeol wanted to run away when LuHan kissed the boy’s cheek like… how he always did to ChanYeol’s cheek.

He crushed the carton of the strawberry milk with his hand. He was crushed by the view of the tanned skin boy left a small peck on LuHan’s lips. LuHan’s lips.

Probably this is the moment when ChanYeol that thought this is the end of everything. LuHan shall never be his. LuHan is owned by that tanned skin boy who sat beside him in the class. ChanYeol will be left...forgotten… again.

He wanted hide again.

He wanted to hate himself.

He was sure of a fact.

He is attached to LuHan beyond words.