Hyunseung doesn't understand the mixture of fear and shame in Junhyung's eyes when he looks at the other male. Junhyung's face is thinner in his hands, cheeks not as chubby as they look and the bags around his eyes are obviously caked under concealer. At this proximity, Hyunseung notices things he doesn't notice from an arms length away. He notices the trembling in Junhyung's eyes and the slowly pooling tears. He can notice that Junhyung's breath is uneven on his skin in a way he would never have noticed from an arms length away. He pulls his hands away from Junhyung's cheeks because Hyunseung knows that if he can see so much of the other male, Junhyung can probably do the same to Hyunseung.

He feels the gnawing sensation extend to every corner of his body now. It bothers him that he doesn't know what this gnawing sensation wants, but it eases when he grabs Junhyung's upper arm and helps the other male up. Hyunseung tries not to look up at Junhyung in alarm when his fingers can almost easily encircle Junhyung's entire upper arm. Hyunseung doesn't have really long fingers. Yoseob had once insisted all five of them compare hand sizes because Doojoon wouldn't believe that he had the longest fingers, even though why they wanted to know, Hyunseung didn't really think he needed to know. Hyunseung knows that Yoseob has the longest fingers out of them and Dongwoon probably has longer fingers than him, so he doesn't have very long fingers. Knowing this scares him all the more.

Junhyung hangs his head but Hyunseung wants to see his face again. He wants to understand why Junhyung has become this way. He wants to understand why Junhyung would call his name when he was in pain. He wants to understand why Junhyung out. He wants to understand why Junhyung didn't drink his Coke, because the sweet, fizzy soda that Junhyung has always loved is now spilled all over the floor, the can crushed. Hyunseung finds that maybe he doesn't know Junhyung so well anymore, that maybe middle school Junhyung and high school Junhyung are different people indeed. The idea doesn't seem so implausible now.

Nothing about Junhyung makes sense right now and that throws Hyunseung off because everything about Junhyung has always fallen perfectly into place. This sudden, or maybe not so sudden, lack of understanding toward Junhyung scares Hyunseung because he has always been able to understand the other male. Even his first time meeting Junhyung, he had seen the other in the ways no one else could and they had connected from the very first time Hyunseung tapped Junhyung on the shoulder.

For the first time in his entire life, Hyunseung is unsure. He is unsure of the connection that he was always certain he had with Junhyung.

---

"Are you alright? I think we should bring you to the infirmary you know, just to make sure nothing is wrong, because I don't think it's safe if you out from that, you know?" Doojoon says the things that Hyunseung knows all five of them feel, but Junhyung is shaking his head and assuring them that he is fine, he's just been under the weather lately. When Doojoon persists, supported by Yoseob and Kikwang who both look as though someone has kidnapped their firstborn, Hyunseung is genuinely surprised – he rarely ever is – when Junhyung snaps.

"I'm fine, really," it is not so much what Junhyung says but more of how he says it. There isn't a hint of neither irritation nor frustration in the tone of his voice, actually, he sounds more desperate than annoyed at their relentless concern. Hyunseung doesn't know if this is just him but he wonders if the silent please don't make me do this he hears is what Junhyung is really trying to say.

"If he feels okay, we shouldn't force him, hyung. If he feels worse later, then we can bring him there, right, Junhyung-sshi?" Dongwoon speaks up from amongst the rest of them trying to persuade Junhyung to go to the infirmary. Hyunseung wants to thank the younger male. Hyunseung knows that if he tried to say the same thing, Kikwang would probably launch into a tirade of how people should care for others and Hyunseung should care about the people around him too. It doesn't offend him; Kikwang just cares for people in a way that is different from Hyunseung. The same thing coming from Dongwoon isn't as bad because Kikwang can understand Dongwoon more than he understands Hyunseung.

Hyunseung sees the argument bubbling in Kikwang, but Dongwoon just takes the petite brunet's hand into his own and after a few shared glances, the argument dissipates. Hyunseung had asked Dongwoon once, about what happened in these few glances. Dongwoon had merely shrugged.

"It's hard to explain, hyung. Kikwang-hyung just understands me better that way, I guess. Words can be easily misconstrued, but it isn't as easy to misunderstand feelings. Or, that's just how it is between us."

Hyunseung thinks that the looks the two maknaes share might be akin to the sort of telepathy Doojoon and Yoseob always have. Doojoon can always tell what Yoseob wants to eat even without asking and Yoseob always knows exactly what Doojoon needs and when he needs it. Hyunseung has never been in a relationship like that before. Of the handful of girls that Hyunseung has dated since coming to the academy, most of them were dating him because he was the interesting guy no one could really understand. To them, he was a puzzle to solve or the pretty face everyone wanted to have, so those relationships never lasted.

Hyunseung doesn't really know about the kind of relationships Doojoon and Yoseob and Kikwang and Dongwoon have with each other.

Doojoon decides to agree with Dongwoon, because Kikwang agrees with Dongwoon and Doojoon always agrees with what Kikwang agrees with. And Yoseob also agrees with what Doojoon agrees with, so they all end up agreeing with Dongwoon that Junhyung will only see the nurse in the infirmary if he feels worse at any time from now. Hyunseung wonders if they realise that Dongwoon is actually the one that makes the final group decision most of the time.

Junhyung looks relieved when none of them pursue the matter of the infirmary but that only intensifies the gnawing sensation in Hyunseung. A part of him wants to blurt out his questions so that Junhyung can give him the answers, but then another part of him knows that it will only make Junhyung feel worse if he actually asks the things he wants to ask. Contrary to popular belief, Hyunseung doesn't go out of his way to make people uncomfortable. Sometimes it just doesn't occur to him that his questions rattle people until they point it out to him.

Hyunseung settles for pointing the time out to Doojoon, which immediately sends the soccer captain into a frenzy of panic.

"What? Why didn't anyone keep track of the time? Revision is in 2 minutes we need to get to the science theory classes on the other side of the block on the 3rd floor! Heechul-saem is going to slaughter me, I already have three late records!" Doojoon babbles as Yoseob pushes him in the direction of their science theory classes. Hyunseung gestures at Junhyung to follow him, who is standing awkwardly away from the five of them and the lockers, and he trails after the one lump that is Yoseob and a flailing Doojoon.

Hyunseung doesn't mind being late to Heechul-saem's classes because despite Doojoon's constant fear that Heechul-saem will finally give him a late record some day, their form teacher never does. Hyunseung slows his pace so that Junhyung walks alongside him, the two maknaes talking and laughing behind them. He looks to Junhyung, whose head is still hung, eyes probably staring at the boring pattern of the school flooring. It reminds him of their first day of middle school.

Hyunseung chose a random seat in the middle of the class, next to a quiet looking brunet boy who had shoulders so badly hunched that he looked like he was trying to fold in on himself. Hyunseung watched him for a while first as their form teacher got them to stand up one by one to introduce themselves. Hyunseung wasn't really interested in the other students of his class, they seemed rather usual, but this particular brunet caught his attention.

He wasn't a very outstanding student at all. He had plain features, a kind of face that grew familiar easily because a lot of other people looked like him too. He was the complete opposite of Hyunseung in terms of his looks. Hyunseung had a face that made men ask him if he was a little girl or a little boy. Hyunseung had a face that all his relatives and family friends called pretty, even if it irritated Hyunseung to no end. Hyunseung had a face that people remembered because it was unique. The brunet boy didn't have any defining masculine features, but it would be very hard to mistake him for a girl.

He wasn't fiddling with anything on his table. He sat in his seat, still, which was a hard feat for most 12-year-old boys. It was interesting that the boy was not fidgeting and was actually obediently sitting with his hands folded neatly on his lap. Hyunseung wondered if he knew that hunching would make people have hunched backs though.

So he tapped the brunet on the shoulder.

"People who hunch get hunched backs, did you know that?" And it turned out that Junhyung, the little quiet brunet, did know that people who hunched got hunched backs, but he hunched wherever he went anyway. Whether he was walking, sitting, leaning against something or just standing still, he would hunch. Hyunseung figured that he probably wanted to become a hunchback or he didn't mind whether or not he did.

"I don't really care if I become a hunchback or not," the quiet brunet added as he finished telling Hyunseung about his hunch, right as Hyunseung concluded the exact same thing.

Hyunseung could guess and spot a lot of things right when it came to random things about the science of the world. However, Hyunseung never hit the nail on the head when he guessed what people thought. In the moment that Junhyung finished his sentence, Hyunseung realised that with the quiet brunet, it was the first time that he had thought the same way someone else did.

They make it to Heechul-saem's class 5 minutes late, even though they actually reach the class only 2 minutes after the class starts. Doojoon was panicking too much and it took them another 3 minutes to calm him down before he would go into the class and Heechul-saem just waved them to the back of the class. Hyunseung thinks Doojoon probably wouldn't be able to function without his netballer boyfriend.

Hyunseung doesn't have to think when he slips to the seat on Junhyung's right after Doojoon takes the seat on his left; it is the most natural thing to do.

Hyunseung rests his chin on his hand, propped up on the table by his elbow. He thinks of Junhyung. He thinks of Junhyung as just Junhyung, without comparing the differences between middle school Junhyung and high school Junhyung. He thinks of Junhyung without discriminating between who he was and who he might have become.

Junhyung is skinny, almost to the point of emaciation. Junhyung uses concealer to hide how gaunt he looks and somehow manages to make his cheeks look chubby to delude people into thinking he isn't as skinny as he really is. Hyunseung turns to look at Junhyung in his uniform. The standard uniform is a plain white button-up long sleeved shirt, a thick green vest, a plain black blazer with the school crest and tan brown pants. Hyunseung's uniform fits snugly on his body even though he didn't get them tailored to fit. Junhyung's uniform, however, hangs on his thin frame and it looks more like his uniform is wearing him than vice versa.

Hyunseung looks at Junhyung, matching the image of him in Hyunseung's head with the real thing. It is then that he notices the rubbing motion that Junhyung does with his left hand to his right wrist. In the five periods and one-hour lunch period they spent together, Hyunseung doesn't remember seeing Junhyung doing this.

Hyunseung watches Junhyung rubbing the skin, not too roughly, just quick but gentle brushes over the skin. Hyunseung watches as Junhyung traces the path of his veins, back and forth in a rhythmic motion. The gnawing sensation possesses Hyunseung and he reaches out and taps Junhyung on the shoulder, a feeling of déjà vu.

"People who hunch get hunched backs, did you know that?" Hyunseung watches the movement of Junhyung's left hand slow and then stop completely. He lifts his gaze to look into Junhyung's eyes, searching for signs of the fear or shame he had seen before.

"I don't really care if I become a hunchback or not," Junhyung quietly replies, a small smile spreading across his face with no trace of fear or shame in his eyes. Hyunseung feels the knot of the gnawing sensation loosen and he thinks, he's pretty sure that the gnawing is happiness.

He is happy to see Junhyung again.

A/N: I'm personally not as pleased with this as I was with the previous four chapters, but I hope you guys enjoyed it anyway. Please comment if you have the time! I really enjoy reading what you guys think of the story :)