Detention
Your Secret Is Safe With Me
Aron's POV
This is officially the longest day of my life. Besides my chat with Minhyun this morning I haven't had any positive social interactions. Baekho seems like he's avoiding me, I haven't seen Ren anywhere and to top it off it seems like everyone in the school knows about the fight that happened. They all keep whispering under their breaths about it. I came here to avoid trouble but I ended up finding some anyway. I'm still trying to think of a way to make it up to Baekho for yelling at him. Picturing how he looked yesterday with that sad, heartbroken look in his eyes makes be feel sick.
'Maybe I could get him a gift? Something to show him that I'm really sorry and don't want to lose him as a friend? But what kind of gift would be like?'
My thoughts were cut short by Mr. Jung announcing what our homework is. This is my last class of the day which means that right afterwards I get to spend another 90 minutes in detention. Great. The bell rang dismissing everyone to go home for the day but I stayed in my seat for another minute. I haven't told my parents about the fight or having detention. I could just lie and tell them I have some afterschool club or that I was at a friend's house but I know that being caught in that lie would just bring more trouble so I might as well just be truthful. Taking out my phone I sent a quick text to my dad.
To Dad:
Hey so I'm going to be coming home late from school for a little while. Please don't be too mad with me but I have detention.
From Aron
To Aron:
Ok. Thanks for letting me know
From Dad
'"Ok"?? This morning he sees me with bruises all over my face and I tell him I have detention and he just says "ok"?!' I sighed. At least I'm not in immediate trouble. Had I texted my mom she'd probably be calling me immediately and rushing to the school to flip out on me. I stand up and nod to Mr. Jung as I walk out into the hallway. I asked the secretary earlier and she mentioned that detention is held in room 308 so I made my way to the stairwell. By now most of the students have left the building except for those with afterschool activities. It was so quiet it gave the school a creepy, somber vibe.
'This is going to be a rough next two weeks...' As I made it to the stairwell I noticed that JR was also arriving . Perfect. We made eye contact but looked away as we began climbing the stairs. Once we reached the third floor JR took off ahead of me and just followed behind him since I didn't know exactly where room 308 was. As we were nearing the room he stopped walking, causing me to almost bump into him.
"Hey what was that--" I started but he cut me off.
"Listen freak, I want you to know that I'm not going to get over this stunt you and your friends pulled yesterday. Especially because you turned my own best friend against me!" That made me mad.
"I won't apologize to you because I did nothing wrong but I agree that what Ren did was stupid and childish. That doesn't excuse the fact that you had your own grudge against us too so do you really think that you're better than us?" I paused to let my words sink in. "And as for Baekho you should know better than anyone else that he's a kind guy. He protected us because he knew you were going too far so don't degrade him like that!" That second part was more for me than him after the awful things I said to Baekho yesterday. I didn't wait for JR to say anything else and walked into the room. Mr. Kwon was there and he frowned when he saw me but shook it off and offered his usual smile.
"Ah Aron, I didn't expect to see you here but welcome. Just sign your name on this sheet and pick a seat. I won't tolerate any talking so please occupy yourself with something else until it's over." Mr. Kwon explained. JR walked into the room and made his way over to the desk. I quickly scribbled my name on the sheet and went to pick a seat. There were only a few other kids there, all of which congregating in the back of the room and giving each other harsh stares. 'Must be an edgy bad boy thing I guess.' I picked a seat towards the front and by a window so I could stare outside. JR took a side in the same row but on the opposite end.
'I wonder when Baekho and Ren will get here...'
I was in for a shock when Ren finally came in. He looked awful! I haven't known him for that long but I know he prides himself in his appearance so seeing him look so disheveled was quite jarring. His usually neatly style hair was messy and definitely still had knots in it, his face was bare showing off his dark circles, and his uniform was wrinkled in some spots. I could see he was taking in my appearance as well, my concealer barely covering my bruises. I was surprised again when he took the seat next to mine. We weren't allowed to talk but I could tell he had a lot on him mind he wanted to discuss. He took out a piece of paper and a pencil and started writing a message. I glanced over at Mr. Kwon and saw he seemed pretty distracted by the book he was reading so he shouldn't notice us passing notes as long as we're quiet enough. Ren slid the note over to be right as Baekho finally walked in. I felt my heart skip a beat when we locked eyes but dropped when he looked over at JR with a terribly sad expression. JR's words from before came back to me.
'"you turned my own best friend against me!" Even if JR was stupid and a self-centered he's Baekho's best friend and I'm grateful Baekho helped us but now he's on bad terms with JR...'
I sighed and turned my attention over to Ren's note.
"Are you okay?" it read.
"Oh yeah I'm totally great" I wrote back.
"Hyung I'm really really really sorry for what happened"
"Why did you do it Ren?" He seemed troubled when he read my question. After a good 50 seconds he finally began writing his response.
"I don't know. I was mad at him and didn't want him to think he could get away with being a so easily. I didn't mean for you to get hurt! If you never want to talk to me again I understand."
Now I'm the one who needs a minute to gather my thoughts. As pissed as I was that whatever the hell happened yesterday happened and how confusing it made my friendship with Baekho and my image among my peers, I couldn't bring it in myself to be too mad at Ren. He did something stupid and while JR definitely deserves to be knocked down a peg, Ren was childish and it ended up backfiring for everyone. But as immature as Ren is, he and Minhyun were the first friends I've made at this school, the only ones who understand what I'm going through. I glanced at him with a blank expression and cracked my knuckles to show him I was about to write a lot.
"If you think for a second that I'm going to abandon your dumb then you're nuts! Am I mad you dragged me into a cartoonish scheme that ended up with my gorgeous face being hurt? HELL YEAH I AM. But I know you have a good heart Ren and I would be a terrible friend if I abandoned you. Plus I think I really need to step into my role as hyung and serve as your impulse control from now on!"
I tried my best to keep it both serious and lighthearted to show him I was upset but still cared about our friendship. I watched his face as he read my response. After he finished reading he covered his face with his hands and he started sniffling. Concerned, I tapped him on the shoulder to get his attention. He looked at me with tears starting to stream down his face as he tried his best not to bawl in the middle of detention. After some failed attempts at deep breathing he looked at me and said "Ah screw it! I'm stuck here for 2+ weeks anyway what's a little extra time?!" With that he gave me the tightest hug and started crying into my shoulder. As much as I love rekindling with my friends, the detention room is not the best place to do it. I could hear sniggers from the kids in the back which made me blush feeling kind of embarrassed. Pushing that aside I gave big a few pats on the back trying to comfort him to the best of my ability. Someone cleared their throat beside us. We both looked up and saw Mr. Kwon standing there with his hands on his hips.
"Boys I'm sorry to disrupt your moment but there's this thing called detention that we're in the middle of. I'll let you both off with a warning since you two are first time offenders and since that dramatic scene was better than what you can find on TV, but you two will have to sit apart from each other from now on. Clear?" He explained. We both nodded and Ren grabbed his stuff and moved a few rows away from me. We smiled at each other.
'Mr. Kwon really is a great guy. Well, that's one relationship fixed....now I just need to repair another one...'
I looked over at Baekho who was already looking over at me. There was an unclear emotion present in his eyes that I couldn't decipher. We maintained eye contact for a little while before I finally looked away. I sighed for the umpteenth time and rested my head on my desk.
'Why is the hardest part of high school not even related to school?'
JR's POV
When Ren walked into the room I was just about ready to get up and walk out but I knew that would only make things worse for me. I have to admit that he looks like , not that I cared about how that freak was doing. I saw him take a seat next to his friend Arnold or whatever his name was. My blood boiled thinking about what he said to me earlier. He was right that I had also planned something to do to them but that's totally different!
'I'm a tough guy who doesn't let anyone push me around. They're just....wimpy gay boys.... And Baekho he...he chose to defend them over me. I just can't believe it! I know he said he likes that Arnold kid but would he really just throw away years of friendship for a guy he hasn't even known for a month?'
Baekho walked in the room and I felt myself getting angry again. He looked over to where I was sitting and the look on his face had me feeling conflicted. I've known him since we were five and we've gone through a lot together, we've had countless stupid fights over stupid things but this one felt different. This sense of betrayal ran deep. I shot him a nasty glare and looked away, not caring where he sat or what he did. I thought back on what my sister told me yesterday.
'"Even though right now might seem like a serious issue, once you've had some space to breathe and readjust, you'll see the picture for what it really is. And you'll see that this is only a minor hurdle you too are going through." I hope she's right about this...'
"Ah screw it! I'm stuck here for 2+ weeks anyway what's a little extra time?!" I heard Ren yell from the other side of the room. Seeing him embrace his friend made me furious for some reason.
'It's been one day and they're already chummy again? They ruined my image and caused me and Baekho to fight and now they're suddenly trying to in detention or something?! these guys! I'm definitely not letting this go...'
Glancing back over at Baekho I saw him preoccupied with watching the two freaks. I know the other guys in our gang will hate me for it but I'm going to keep ignoring him until I get my thoughts sorted out. I'm angry but I don't want to lose him as a friend. Glancing at the clock I saw that only 25 minutes had passed.
'It feels like I've been here for hours!! Time is broken in this stupid place!!! I'm going to lose my mind the longer I stay here.....this is going to be a rough 2 weeks JR...'
/////TIME SKIP/////
'Finally I'm out of that hell hole' I thought as I was exiting the school's gates. It was finally Friday again which meant no school and more importantly no detention...until Monday. I thought about texting Onew or Key to hangout but I didn't feel like going out anywhere so I just ended up heading home. Walking in the front door I called out to see if my sister was home but luckily she wasn't. Throwing down my bookbag I threw myself next onto the couch and began reflecting on the week.
I haven't spoken to Baekho since we fought on Monday and it's started to really drag me down. I thought avoiding him would have been the best thing to do but all it's done is make me miserable.
'Screw this betrayal bull I want my best friend back!!' As ready as I was to bolt out and find Baekho, I was honestly pretty terrified of actually facing him. After telling our gang to shun him I saw that he was getting pretty depressed. Who wouldn't be though if your friends all turned their backs on you? He stopped showing up to homeroom and kept coming to class late after Tuesday which as nice as it was to not deal with the awkwardness before class, worried me. I was skipping our second period class together at first but when I came in today I noticed he wasn't there. Our teacher even asked me where he'd been the last few days.
'He's always on my case about skipping class and turns out he's been skipping too? Geez...' I threw my arms up in exasperation. 'That's it. I'm going over to talk to him!' As I stood up to leave my sister Jaehwa came in looking super excited.
"Oh my dearest baby brother I'm so happy to see you!!" She exclaimed, running over to embrace me. This was weird even for her.
"What is up with you?" I asked pushing her off me. She smiled even wider which was honestly a little creepy.
"Jonghyun get ready to go out because we're going out to celebrate!!"
"Celebrate what?" I tried to think if it was a special occasion or something. Our birthdays were months away and it wasn't a holiday or anything like that.
"Your favorite sister in the world just got a promotion!!!" She screamed jumping up and down like a little kid.
"A promotion at the arcade? What did they make you chief token grabber or something?"
"No silly!" She giggled. "My manager was fired and they didn't have anyone else to fill the spot so they chose me! I always knew I was meant for greatness" I gave her an incredulous look.
"Why did he get fired?"
"Oh don't worry about that and hurry and freshen up! I got a raise today too so we're going out tonight!" She pushed me into my room and giggled as she ran to her own room to get ready.
'I don't...I don't even wanna know what's wrong with her head....' I really wasn't in the mood to go out to dinner but my sister is an unstoppable force that doesn't take no for an answer. 'Hopefully she picks somewhere good at least...'
Ren's POV:
"CHOI MINKI IF YOU DON'T GET YOUR DOWN HERE THIS INSTANT I'M SELLING ALL OF YOUR HAIR APPLIANCES AND BURNING YOUR MAKEUP!"
"Mommmmmm give me a minute!!!" I yelled back as I finished changing into some casual clothes. I finally came downstairs and did a couple of spins for her showing her my outfit. Just a simple button up and jeans with some jewelry to make it pop. She rolled her eyes.
"Finally you make it downstairs...If we're late to our dinner reservation you're going to be in huge trouble!"
"Oh come on we've got plenty of time." I said as we made our way outside in the car. One of the plus sides of detention is that I have lot of time to get my homework done. After Tuesday I'm not allowed to sit near Aron hyung so I figured I might as well do something productive. One of the downsides is now that I don't have to do my homework at home my mom keeps dragging me out to run errands with her. I think she felt a little bad about taking up my free time so she said she reserved a table at a nice restaurant to cheer me up. She still has no clue about the detention thing... I told her I'm just in some study group which she surprisingly believed. "It's about time you put some more effort into your grades young man." I remember her telling me. I grimaced. If she knew the truth she'd kill me. But hey I've got it handled. I'm just happy that Aron hyung and I are on good terms. I was so worried he'd hate me after what I did. After thinking on it for these last couple days, I do think what I did was wrong. That being said, JR also planned to pelt us with trash so I don't regret what I did to him...just to Aron. But we're okay now! Speaking of JR I haven't seen him do anything devious since Monday. I have another week of seeing his stupid face in detention and then another week of the two of us alone together on cleaning duty. I gulped not wanting to think about that. We finally arrived at the restaurant she's been talking about. It was a little Italian family owned place.
"Oh Minki you'll love it! My coworkers have been saying that this place is so good! They mentioned the spaghetti carbonara is to die for!" My mom gushed as we parked and made our way into the restaurant. We were immediately greeted by the server and lead to a table. My mom continued to gush about the place as I surveyed the room. It was a pretty small restaurant but it had a cozy feel. And I've never been to Italy but all the olive vines and Italian looking decorations looked pretty legit. Something else was catching my eye though...or rather, someone else. The last person on Earth I would have wanted to see-- JR.
'Stay calm and ignore him Ren! You don't need to cause a scene here especially not in front of mom. He doesn't even know you're here so I'm sure the evening will go by smoothly as long as you don't let your anger get the best of you.'
That being said I kept glancing over at JR's table. He was sitting with some girl who looked really excited. She smiled brightly as she spoke about God know's what. JR looked pretty disinterested, he was looking around the restaurant as well. When his head turned towards my direction I turn around so my back was facing him. I did not want to have to deal with him.
"Minki what are you doing?" My mom inquired, a hint of annoyance in her voice at my odd behavior.
"Oh nothing mom hahaha just taking a good look at this...wall. Looks pretty sturdy do you think it's a load bearing wall?" She furrowed her brows and looked towards JR's direction. . After a second she turned back to me with a knowing look. Double !
"Oh honey I'm sorry. I didn't realize that you were still hung up on that guy who rejected you. Had I known he'd be here tonight I would have cancelled our reservation."
"hahahaha mom what are you talking about?! What guy? I'm not hung up on some guy!" I could not believe she thought I was interested in that dirtbag.
"Ohhhh right. I getcha you just wanna pretend it didn't happen. Alright then there is no handsome boy on the other side of the room." She winked.
'WHY WHY WHY WHYYYYYY!!!! She is never going to let this go!' We were interrupted by the waiter taking our order. I picked something random off the menu and excused myself to the restroom. Once there I stood in front of the mirror and splashed some water on my face.
"Why does he have to be here and piss me off all the time!" I half yelled.
"I was thinking the same thing." I paled at that voice. I looked into the mirror and saw that JR was standing behind me. I spun around and starting gaping like a fish trying to think of something to say. He glared at me.
"Look, I'm not here tonight to cause any trouble." I let out a breath of relief. Then he continued, "That being said I'm not going to just forget about what you did to me." WHAT?
"EXCUSE ME WHAT DID YOU SAY?? You can't be playing the victim here!! You were the one who--" I thought about what Aron hyung told me. What I did was wrong and as much as he deserved it, it doesn't mean I was in the right. I grit my teeth thinking about what I was going to do next.
"I'm sorry JR." I said with a strained voice. He seemed shocked.
"You're sorry? You're apologizing right now?"
"I'M NOT GOING TO REPEAT MYSELF. Listen what I did was cruel. HOWEVER what you did was also cruel so I expect an apology as well so we can both move forward and forget this ever happened." He laughed, hard. He was doubled over clutching his stomach with how hard he was laughing. As much as I wanted to kick him in the face he had a pleasant laugh. He straightened up and wiped a tear from his eye.
"I have nothing to apologize for but I am impressed that you've taken some sort of high road." My jaw dropped.
"I'm sorry did you just say you have 'nothing to apologize for'?! You threw trash at us and beat up my friend!" I yelled. He paused for a moment but glared at me, stepping closer and jutting his finger at my chest.
"And you, more specifically your friend, strained my relationship with my best friend"
"Have you even asked him why he did it?! I guarantee if you did he'd tell you it'd because you're a grade A who takes things too far!" Now he was mad, like really really mad. Before I ended up being rushed to the emergency room I sprinted past him and out of the bathroom. When I sat down at the table my mom gave me a concerned look.
"Are you alright Minki? You were in there a long time....and you're shaking like a leaf! Don't tell me you ran into your crush-- I mean that guy who doesn't exist!" Luckily our food arrived and I quickly began scarfing done my plate to avoid talking to her.
'Wow the food is really good here! I'd definitely go again if I knew JR wouldn't be here...speaking of him' I glanced over at his table just as he was sitting down. He wasn't looking at me but front his body language I could tell he's pissed. The girl he's with didn't seem to notice and continued talking animatedly to him. I shuddered imagining what he might be thinking about right now. Probably murdering me. I just really hope I can survive these next few weeks. I promised Aron hyung I would cause anymore stunts but if he's preparing something I'm sure as hell not going to take it lying down!
Baekho's POV
I stepped into my house carrying in dozens of shopping bags. Tomorrow was Saturday which means Aron and I can work on our project together, not that I was looking forward to the actual project. I bought a bunch of snacks since I have no idea what Aron likes best. I still have those action movies queued up too. Tomorrow was definitely the day I was going to right my wrongs. It's been a tough week. All of my friends have abandoned me including my best friend JR. I've known him since forever so I know he just needs some time to cool off and think but this is the longest amount of time we've gone without speaking to each other. Even the other guys blowing me off didn't bother me as much. Tomorrow I already I would spend with Aron so maybe on Sunday I'll head over to his house and try to talk to him. He's avoided me all week and if he isn't ready to talk it out then there's no sense in rushing him. It'll probably only make things worse and that's the last thing either of us need right now!
I finished putting the snack away and went up to my bedroom. Plopping down on my bed I put out my phone and began a message to Aron. We agreed to meet on weekends but I wanted to be 100% he would still be cool with hanging out. Hopefully he is. I know I kind of avoided him during the week but I just wanted to give him space in case he was still mad at me! It when the one you like is upset with you. I sprung up at that thought.
'Wait wait wait did I just say that I liked Aron....no no no I can't get a crush now! Not now of all times!!' I pulled at my hair and kicked my feet in frustration. 'Aron is a friend right? Just a friend and nothing more...'
Now the task of messaging him was much more daunting. Taking some deep breaths I began to type.
To Aron:
Hey I know we haven't spoken in a while and I'm sorry. Are we still on for tomorrow to work on the project?
From Baekho
I waited for five minutes just staring at my phone until it finally buzzed with a notification.
To Baekho:
Of course! I've been wanting to talk to you as well. Are we meeting up at my house again or yours?
From Aron
He's been wanting to talk to me? I gulped. Those words could mean anything. He could also wake to make up or maybe he wants to tell me he hates my guts. I typed back nervously.
To Aron:
My house is fine. How about noon? I can text you the address.
From Baekho
To Baekho:
Sounds good. ^_^
From Aron
I stared at that emoticon for like 20 minutes trying to figure out what it means. Because he wouldn't put an emoticon if he was angry right? Tomorrow I would make things right no matter what. After texting Aron my address I put my phone down on my night stand and laid down again. As nervous as I was for tomorrow I was also really excited. Without even realizing it my eyelids starting getting heavier as I started drifting away.
'Tomorrow is going to be a good day I just know it!' Was my last thought before sleep took me and I dreamed.
It was a gorgeous sunny day and I saw Aron sitting in a meadow of flowers. They were the most beautiful wild flowers imaginable but they couldn't compare to how good he looked. His eyes twinkled when he looked over at me. I stepped cautiously over to him, almost afraid if I moved too quickly I'd startle him and he'd run off like a deer. Once I arrived and sat down next to him he took my hand. I felt my cheeks heat up.
"Aron I--" He interrupted me.
"Don't worry so much. You know I don't hate you right?"
"But I could have done more!"
"You did what you could and I'm grateful."
"I could have done more!" I repeated, feeling tears start to form in my eyes.
"But you're here now and that's all that matters." He smiled and it was beautiful. His smile challenged the sun above us with how bright it was.
"Aron I need to tell you something I think I like--" He interrupted me again.
"You don't have to tell me now. It's going to be rough for you before it gets better."
"What... what are you talking about?" Oh no. The meadow of flowers was wilting, the sun setting to an ominous purple.
"Is he loyal? Is he really your friend?"
"Who's 'he'? Who are you talking about?!" It was night now, the sky was an inky black and the beautiful meadow completely barren and dead.
"I'm sorry" Aron said before he wilted right before my eyes just like those flowers did.
I woke up with a start. My room was almost pitch black like how it was in my dream. I reached blindly for my phone and checked the time. 3:00 AM.
'It was just a dream but it felt real. What did Aron mean? Who was he talking about?' I realized that I also almost told dream Aron that I liked him. My face flushed.
What was going to happen tomorrow...or rather today since it's technically Saturday already.
Guess who's back back back back again-gain-gain, Chloe's back back back tell a friend friend friend.
Yo it's your girl. How have you been? Has your day been well? How about the last FOUR YEARS? Damn if any of you were starting high school when I started writing this you'd be done by now that's how friggen long I was gone. Super duper sorry about that by the way. If you're here you've probably already heard BET BET. How can NU'EST keep amazing me with their music? I am never not in love with their music. I love that the boys can pull off such a deep, mystical, aesthetic concept. 10/10. Hopefully you enjoyed this update I put a lot of thought into how I should move forward. I definitely had a vision for this story but looking back at the few notes I still have from when I started, I have no clue what I was going for. OOF. I'm hoping to improve the style and plot moving forward since ya girl had 14 solid chapters that kind of went nowhere. Thanks for everyone who have patiently waited for me to return and thank you to anyone new that is reading and thinking "thank goodness I didn't have to wait four years just for an update." RIP. I love you all and hopefully the rest of your day is as lovely as you are.
-Chloe <3
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