When Woohyun entered Junior year of his highschool career (yeah going by American system because screw looking up Korean society and getting confused im a stupid American and ima keep it like this), he was devastatingly unsure about the world. First and foremost, moving from his little town was quite something. Losing his most trusted friends and a place where he knew by heart (although some streets did get him a little confused). And second, what college can he actually get into? A true country boy, Nam Woohyun.

So he says good bye to Key and those guys with jokes and treats; setting off to a rocky start in the high concrete jungle hills of the city. At first, he was scared to even move out the door, let alone look at people. He thought of ridiculous situations of getting robbed and such forth, which then he experiences the bitterness of dropping his wallet and losing about forty bucks.

Mother, yes the all loving mother we all undermine in our teenage years. She chose his courses for this year and Woohyun wasn’t all too rainbow and sweet about that. Now stuck in advanced history and language, he was ready to sleep three, maybe lucky four, hours per night, walk miles up and down hills, running to catch buses and long arduous halfhearted scribbles through notes and the soul crushing tons of homework.

Ah, life of a highschooler. Excellent.

Walking up and down these hills in school, carrying pound after pound in his backpack to slowly ruin his back and nearly slipping into that dreaded misinforming sleep; his new highschool is pretty alright. Sure there’s more druggies and weed in the said mysterious hangout the bathroom has reverted into but it’s okay. The girls here are wearing them crop tops and skin sticking leggings (or something so short how even are you in school) that Woohyun finds himself wandering curious eyes and nodding slowly in appreciation.

Although now an upper classman, he knows no one. Just when he thought he can look coolio to the younger ones, he now looks like a lost puppy wandering alleyways in search of a nice spot to look on from. Where to sit? Where can he not be a bother?

In hence, he was maybe a bit frightened in this new environment because hey, he’s Nam Woohyun.

Not everything was dark and gloomy, for a new light shed in his choir class. Last time of day, it’s just so bewildering and blatheringly hot that he fans himself in the neck to cool down. Walking that hill in five minutes is no joke. The class is rowdy just like any bunch of students in this rebelling teenage society. And in walks in a fellow student, his hair quite long (past his shoulders!) and unshaven face bright as he waves to the teacher and says “Hey, Mr. G! Third year, am I right?”

The teacher smiles back to him, nodding and telling the experienced student to have a seat in the front. Fairly near Woohyun. He sits like he practically is the second teacher of the class, slouched and happily greeting anyone who matched eyes to him. Woohyun dared not to do so.

Now, since this is advanced choir he has so way to gauge this student. Is he a senior or a junior?  Three years is misleading, and you never know what sort of route students take. Woohyun ended with the thoughts that this person, seemingly close to the teacher, is a senior because of his unshaven face. Woohyun himself didn’t look all beautiful and snazzy but he at least made an effort to shave.

The male was good at singing, rough and raw; and even Woohyun started to think he was better than this senior. Although he never upfront said so or challenged the other, he’d have this inner competition he makes up. Eagerly sprinting to the finishing line first and better.

The senior with the unshaven face and long hair was all smiles with other students who seemed to have known him.

Woohyun was deathly jealous of that, no matter how well he thinks he can beat him in singing.

*

His physical education class is something different. Something he never encountered before and it wasn’t all that bad. It’s called JROTC: Junior Reserve Officer’s Training Corps. The class itself is compiled of jump roping to the fifty yard line and back on the field, a short amount of abdominal and upper body workouts, and walking some laps. Then inside for a lesson on how to become a leader. Easy class, easy A. Also full of cobble lining twats. Woohyun thought nothing of it. The teacher, called ‘Coronel’ had a group afterschool in which they actually do some stuff the program is designed to do.

Seeing Woohyun, the young lad who actually tries in some of the games, he asked if he can stop by after school. See what it’s like, and if maybe he wanted to join the real club/program thingy that Woohyun really didn’t know what to call (team?).

That day he forgot to go.

The next however, he remembered.

Now remember that unshaven, long haired male in his advanced choir class? Well that day, as Woohyun walked into the dreadfully humid and broiling prison, the said male cut his hair.

He got his name by now. Hello to you too, Sunggyu. I swear to god I’m not a stalker.

With his hair short and cropped, he looked much younger. His face was rid of that hideous face pubic hair and now smooth. Woohyun liked that. And he was also in the afterschool ROTC club/team/brigade. In fact, he was going for the position of Major and man, did he nail it.

“Platoon, fall in!”

The two Brigade Commanders stood in front of the whole platoon as the Major, said male named Sunggyu, turned to face them. Four other leaders, Woohyun does not know their ranks just yet, stand behind the Major in sections. And behind each of these four are the cadets. Either in color guard, with rifles, no rifles and these other guys Woohyun doesn’t know what they do.

Major Sunggyu salutes to the BCs (brigade commanders) and they return it, turning around on his heel and toe, speaking to the four leaders, “Bring your squads to attention and present arms!”

The four instantly turn around after the command, talking to the cadets (Woohyun) and repeating the same thing. “Attention!”

Woohyun clicked his heels together and feet fourty-five degrees apart. Hands curled into fists and his middle finger rested on his jean seam to the side of his leg and looking forward, not the leader but directly forward. (Marching band did some good for him).

“Present arms!”

At this order, Woohyun and the other several cadets rose their right arm and hand flat pointing near his eyebrow into a salute. After they had done this, the leaders turned back around smoothly on their heels and did the same to the Major. The BC said something to major Sunggyu and the ‘senior’ nodded.

“Bring your squads to order arms and Parade Rest!”

Leaders turn, it’s like a back and forth but Woohyun likes it, and tells them to do the same as told to them. The cadets drop their right hands at “Order Arms!” and then take their left foot out to shoulder width, their left hand to the small of their backs with the palms out and the right hand on top for, “Parade Rest!”

One of the BCs, a girl by the name of Tao, smiled at the group as she stepped forward. “All new recruits please follow Dongwoo to the back to be dressed. The rest, carry on with regular practice.” Then turning the Major, she said, “Attention and fallout.”

Sunggyu turns around again, “Please bring your squads to attention and fall out!”

They again go to a stiff ut-ten solid position before taking three small steps back and turning around (or which Woohyun thought they just turn around).

The nooblets gather around the boy the BC pointed out as the others go on with spinning rifles and this clapping thing. Dongwoo smiles at the two newbies, “Alright follow me.” And off they go into the backroom of the small building.

*

“And you are?”

Here they were in some enclosed space. Woohyun’s back from one day of practice and boy, did he like actually doing the stuff. Sure, he was a little ticked that he was in the without rifles squad but it seemed to curiously have fewer people. Slowly, in that one and a half hour practice he started to be rather happy in the without rifles. Filling up and being useful in the squad was much better than trying to fit in an already full one.

Yesterday, at the end, he was fitted into a uniform (spanking new and crisp. Thank you fundraisers). He just needed to have the pants edited and then reformed. Maybe a new pair of shoes too. He was in the backroom, himself and Major Sunggyu, the other one who knew how to fit the nooblets.

“Nam Woohyun, junior,” he finally responds, slipping on the coat over his gray collared shirt. Looking spiffy and stiff in the uniform. “And you?”

“Kim Sunggyu,” the Major smiles, dropping down to help fold up the pants. He tells Woohyun to stand at Attention as he fixes and staples the pants in place so they can be correctly modified later, “A junior as well.”

“No,” Woohyun crinkles his face at the sweaty and humid room. Although the sleeves were too long so his clutched them with his fingers over his palm and started wiggling here and there, waving his hands a little. “I thought you were a senior.”

“Really?” Sunggyu laughs airily with the small talk. “But I’m in your choir class.”

“Yeah, you cut your hair… two days ago?” Woohyun moved his lips to the side as he continued to do a cute little dance where he shifted both his hands to one side and ‘tossed the rice’.

“So you noticed?” Sunggyu rolls his eyes and goes through a belt in one of the draws. Mind you this is a very enclosed area and the small space was barely enough for two people to stand in the long closet thing.

“Hard not to. A guy doesn’t have that long of hair often.”

“True,” Sunggyu shrugs, pulling out a collar and a belt. “Alright, stop wiggling and lemme finish.”

“But isn’t it funny? I mean, look at the sleeves!” Woohyun laughs to himself as he shows the long sleeves to Sunggyu, who larks and says he doesn’t understand his mindset. “Isn’t it?”

“No, and I don’t think I wanna know,” Major chuckled back merrily, his eyes saying he was amused though his tone was trying to be teasing.

Woohyun stopped his little random dance and stayed still, ready to get out of this asylum. They were quiet again for that matter, which is what he was afraid of because he feared he just made it awkward for the other person.

“I cut my hair for ROTC,” Sunggyu says to calm down, maybe aware of Woohyun’s internal worries and brilliantly calmed the ridges, “Over the summer, I couldn’t bring myself to care what I really looked like. I mean, I’m just a highschooler,” he laughs at this. “But ROTC is something I love and so I try my best. Did you join for any specific reason?”

To think back, Woohyun really didn’t. He was good at singing, alright in his advanced classes and stellar in actively participating (ha); but ROTC was something he never thought of joining. Marching band back in middle school wasn’t something he thought of doing either. He just joined cause his brother was in it, and he enjoyed playing to a certain point. With all these commands and learning how to clap in beats and stomp in time; without rifle, marching and saluting like a mini army, he never stopped to think why he was here (like the he is). He liked the people, he was new (nooblet) and being in uniform again made him feel so nostalgic.

He liked it.

“What was that?”

Woohyun looked to his side, which had Sunggyu getting out some masking tape and writing his name down, “You like it?”

“Uh, yeah,” awesome reply. Props. Ten out of ten.

“That’s good,” Sunggyu smiles with his eyes, just so pleasantly pleased with that respond. “I like it too.”

“I was in marching band before,” Woohyun tries not to sound like he’s boasting. He’s been in a little of everything now that he thinks about it, “So I know basic marching skills. But this clapping thing is beyond me.”

“Oh we’re cooler than those willy-nillies,” Sunggyu scoffs, adjusting his collar and stepping back. Doing a once over and then nodding, “Good. You can change out now.”

“Thank god,” Woohyun sighed, shuffling out of the stuffy closet to the other part so he can take the cursed thing off. Although he loves how it fits onto him just as much.

“You look good,” Sunggyu says as he leaves to give Woohyun space. And that’s all he needs to have this smile work his lips into a curve and a jolly hum escaping from his lovely voice.

*

“Dress right dress!”

Tao, the girl BC and also leader of the Without Rifle squad piercingly told the commands as the five cadets behind her followed. Woohyun had been coming daily, being at home was heavily boring and he just nearly slept the day away and homework loaded in the night; and now he’s been getting this clapping and stomping thing down.(the bus smells funny right after school too) In fact, the experienced members actually praised him for learning so quickly. He felt really pleased by that.

At the command, the line of cadets (all in uniform, it was dress day) promptly picked their right foot up and stomped once, then clapped their hands together. Sliding the right hand to their right thigh and slapping that as well, then their left onto the left thigh and stomped down with their left foot. Once again onto the thigh and left repeating clap then stomping the right foot and raising their left hand behind the left cadet, spacing themselves out as told.

In other words, they made a whole bunch of claps and sounds with the stomping that sounded in beat and pretty cool before spacing out in an equal amount.

Tao smiled at them from the front, “Good! That was pretty in sync.”

“The newbies this year are fast learners,” the assistant sniffled jokingly. His name was Daehyun, “Ah, my life is so nice!”

Tao and the other laughed since it was practice. If they were in front of the main and actual performance (or Coronel for that matter) not a peep would come from them. 

The Brigade Commander had all sorts of medals, chords and bands on her uniform. Also a name plate and a hat. The older officers were in uniform today for Club Rush, trying to recruit more nooblets. (Although Woohyun joined cause he was in the physical education class of ROTC so he didn’t need to wait for Club Rush. Coronel himself asked him to join) Daehyun had his own set of medals and such on his own uniform, looking well and as a cadent sergeant. Woohyun pushed his lips to the side, looking at the shining medals clank and shuffle between each other and the ringing of medal made him jittery. Oh how he wanted his own!

“If you work hard, you’ll get your own set.”

Jumping, and nearly smacking the other male, Sunggyu snickered as he came up from behind Woohyun. They’ve been talking more in choir and so forth, Woohyun liked his company. Also with his other friends, Dongwoo (who was in charge of color guard and dressing S4), Myungsoo (JROTC as a rifle), Hoya (Leader of rifle handling and juggles between this and Dance), Sungyeol (theatre club but comes along to support and buy/sell beef jerky), and Sungjong (Key club and brother of Sungyeol).

Woohyun’s got friends now, accomplishment!

They called him, the new kid, crazy for joining JROTC.

“Hyung!” Woohyun held his chest in mock bafflement. “Sh sh!”

“I know what that little nooblet mind is gearing up in there,” Sunggyu, in his own uniform with chords, medals, name plate and so on, snickers with his finger dabbing Woohyun’s head and curious eyes.

“And you’ve got your eyes set on that Battalion Commander title since forever!” Daehyun goes over to smack Kihong, another nonrifle member, in the back as the both of them laughed.

“I’m not that far,” Sunggyu smirked, eyeing Tao’s battalion medal with a wiggly brow and sharp eye.

“In your dreams kid!” Tao pushed him away; standing proud in her short but powerful stature (those glasses make her look cute).

*

Woohyun was snuggling up against his cat, Muffles. It was a big fluffy white tom whose tail dragged on the floor as it pranced around. In his bed, clearly not doing homework after a long day of practice and school. He was tired, eye drooping low as his cat meowed on his tummy and purred.

“What?” Woohyun gruffed out, the pencil in his hand nowhere near the notebook or worksheet he was doing (whatever he was doing, the penmanship is horribly warped). The bed was cluttered with various textbooks, notes, lined paper he thought he would need and a random pair of scissors that definitely needs to be put away before anything. “What do you want, Mr. Muffy?” he talks to the cat.

But the cat continues on purring. And together they doze into a semi-sleep of sweet wonders and pastures.

That is until Woohyun’s phone chimes.

Muffles, the first to react, jumps off Woohyun with his hind paws digging into the poor boy’s tummy and making him bend in recoil. “Stupid cat,” he mumbles after the perpetrator who struts away with his tail high and heavy.

Reaching for the bloody phone, he swipes and taps for a new message. From Myungsoo?

[Have you seen Sunggyu-hyung’s cord?? He can’t find it]

[How the hell should I know]

[idk]

[Hoya?]

[At dance today]

 [Dongwoo?]

[We checked the entire backroom. Nada]

[ :| ]

[ o _o]

Woohyun, being the numskull he is, stopped the conversation at that. How could the Major lose his chord? Jesus, doesn’t he need to keep an example for the newbies (like himself)?

He falls asleep doing homework and wakes at 4am to hurry and blast through it like nothing. Guessing galore.

*

“Nam Woo~”

With the pre-calc and physics, top it off with history textbooks in his hands, he tries to turn with difficulty to greet the other, “Hey Dongwoo.”

“Oh, man! Lemme help!” the other graciously stacked away two textbooks from Woohyun’s arms and carried them with an almost empty backpack. “Dude, why not just put these in your locker?”

“I don’t have one,” Woohyun frowned. “Everyone seemed to have one before school started so…”

“You don’t have one? But Sunggyu-hyung…” Dongwoo tilted his head, nearly dropping the books as a realization wafted his brain. “He put it in your locker!”

“But—“

Spun around and Woohyun was scared he’d fall off the path, “That’s why!” Dongwoo shoved back Woohyun’s books to the owner and chafed him away, “Go to the counselors’ office and ask for your code! Meet ya in five!”

And so the little pup was left alone in the hallway with the late bell ringing managed to breath a late, “Huh?”

*

“Oh thank god!”

Woohyun, walking down Building B with his boulder heavy books and rock filled pack, hears Sunggyu’s usual voice, more relieved than greet-worthy, jog up to meet him. “Hey, Sunggyu. What’s happening without the rocks?”

“Here I’ll help,” Sunggyu made a move and Woohyun was just ready to thank him when the Major pulled back his hands with a light grin and wiggled his fingers, “Psyche.”

“,” Woohyun snorts, continuing to walk down and look at the little purple slip in his hands down below the stack of textbooks he was carrying (rocks really). “So you’re here for…?”

“Yeah, right about that,” Sunggyu scratched his head, still not helping out as his reasoning was to ‘keep his pristine arms in check’. “So I thought you already received your locker number so I asked your core teach where it was. Dropped it in there since… well let’s just say I don’t think things through.”

“I can see that,” Woohyun rolled his eyes, thankfully reaching his locker. The thing looked dinky and rusted. “Why would you even—“

“Don’t ask. Just open it.”

Open he did, and inside was just one little piece of cardboard, with a black rectangle on it. Not a chord.

“Huh?”

“W-well,” suddenly Sunggyu was very red and kept looking around at every poster on the wall about clubs in fascination. “Every member has to have one, so I wanted to personally surprise you but I guess you hadn’t received your number yet so I tried playing it off as I lost my chord—“

“Thanks,” Woohyun smiled, picking up the name plate with bold white lettering ‘NAM’ on the top in plain white cap text. His eyes sparkled and he was most definitely pleased.

That was enough to get Sunggyu saying, “No problem,” with a smile too.

*

“Left! Left! Left, right, left!”

Week 28. The entire platoon marched in sync. Woohyun was in the front, just after color guard and before rifles. He and the other seven non rifles (Tao’s squad) clapped and set the beat for the march, while the rifles (Sunggyu’s squad) held their guns on their shoulders and arm.

“Right Flank!”

The small competition a week before was a disaster for Woohyun. After the team scrambled to find Sunggyu’s cord, they got together and went off to Black Curtain, a small little thing where nothing too awesome happens but Woohyun was still disappointed, at himself.

Not only was he the one who moved before another section, but he messed up twice.  Although Without Rifles team won the fundamentals part, the sections were unstable. The other school smoked them out and they returned empty handed from the small marching meet.

This time he was going to be perfect.

“Squad Halt!”

Woohyun took a step with his right and counted in his head one, two just the same like in marching band before bringing his left heel to the right heel and 45 degrees apart. Looking straight ahead without a waver.

He’s going to get one of those chords himself. Even in his first year, Woohyun is ready to show these guys up in his prime. And win the position of BCX by the end of this year.

His intentions, well they’re pretty clear. To beat Sunggyu in choir (they are already good enough that the class ignores their little competitions)

The name plate on his uniform was never out of place. 

if you can't infer, I'm in JROTC! I didn't really know i would like it as much as i do but it happened. (i switched art with choir so these little main vocals make sense)
I know more than this now, with ranks and routines but i wrote this just two weeks back or so and now I know so much more. Ridiculous. 
I have a parade tomorrow~ woop
_the cloudio