Screw-ups and Dinner (i)

Himchan didn't tell me anything yesterday, no matter how much I tried to get him to confide in me. I don't want him to bottle up everything on the inside. Honestly, I want to bug him about it till he gives me an answer, but I don't want to seem nosy either. Himchan has tons of friends so maybe he's just not comfortable talking to me about his relationships. I can't help but be worried, though. The more I think about it, the more I regret not asking him yesterday. I hadn't been thinking clearly, being groggy and all.

Is Himchan avoiding me? I asked him if he wanted to come shopping with Jongup and me, but he said he had something on and rushed off after a few words. He usually abandons everything to be with Jongup because he's so fond of him. Like the little brother I never had, end quote. So it was just Jongup and me at the mall yesterday, me searching for a gift for a boy I've never even met. Jongup tells me Junhong's an extremely tall and lanky freshman who loves skateboarding, rapping and dancing. That's quite vague but we managed to get a pennyboard for the boy anyway.

"Class dismissed."

Jihoon, my classmate, instantly sprints towards me, hands pressed together expectantly with a bar of chocolate. I scoff in amusement, clicking my tongue and digging through my bag for my Math homework. This boy isn't called the copying machine for no reason; he rarely ever does his homewrk. No one's really that concerned for Jihoon since he manages to get good grades at the end of the year. He has told us that this is just the way he works, and I get what he means. Some people just have different learning styles.

That doesn't stop me from giving him an earful, though. "Ask me if you have any questions."

I get up from my seat, slinging my bag over one shoulder.

"You're the best, Youngjae," he shouts, doing a fist pump and hurriedly pulling out a fresh sheet of paper. "Hey, don't you want the chocolate?"

"It's alright."

I sidestep Jihoon but he hauls me back. "No, you have to accept my offering, my saviour."

I muffle back a laugh, relenting and taking the bar of chocolate. Jihoon grins and pushes me to the door.

Right, I'm supposed to meet Daehyun for the Literature project today. Just as the thought crosses my mind, my phone vibrates in my pants.

"Hello?"

"Hey," I hum, rummaging through my bag for any assignments I've forgotten to submit.

"...Are you done with your classes?"

"Yeah, I am. Where do you want to meet?" I zip up my bag, awaiting his reply.

"The benches by the school garden?"

"Okay; I'll be right there."

I inhale a deep breath once I cut the call, mentally prepping myself to meet Daehyun. I hope it won't be another sea of awkwardness like the last time we talked. I really don't want him to run off halfway in revolt.

Daehyun is already at the garden by the time I get there, headphones hung around his neck and fingers tapping against the wooden table. I'm about to wave to him but he quickly looks away before I can.

...I can totally sense that this is going to be a fun time. I bet he didn't want to be paired with a loser like me but asked me out of kindness.

"Hey," he murmurs, tracing the edges of his open notebook.

"Hi," I echo his greeting and perch myself on the bench. "When were you released?"

"One," he states, eyes fixed on his book. 

"I'm sorry I kept you waiting," I bleat.

Under the sunlight, Daehyun's hair is a shade of dark hazelnut brown, his eyes sultry and dark. I can imagine how many girls must like him.

He waves me off instantly and we slip into quietness, the sound of birds chirping and the distant buzz of students the only source of comfort. Wait- I just realised I have no idea what this project is about. Oh great, now Daehyun's seriously going to think I have a shrunken brain capacity.

I think he noticed my change in expression for he shifts his book towards me. "We have to do an analysis on a famous Greek myth."

"Thanks," I mumble sheepishly, opening up my laptop. "Do you have anything in mind?"

He rests his arms on the table, crossing them. "Yeah. Hyacinth and Apollo."

I look up at him, parting my lips in intrigue. If I'm not wrong, that's one of the prominent love stories in Greek mythology because Hyancinth and Apollo were both men.

"...We can do something else," Daehyun hastily adds. "I thought... it'd be more original." 

Daehyun keeps glancing away whenever I look at him. I want to put him at ease but I guess I just emanate of awkwardness of the highest degree.

"No," I assure, searching online for the story. "It's a good idea. I don't think anyone else would do this."

I move my laptop so that Daehyun's able to see it, scrolling through a website filled with pictures of Hyacinth and Apollo. They're all of Hyacinth's death scene, him being held in Apollo's arms.

"Hyacinth died trying to catch the discus Apollo threw. It was sabotaged by Zephyr, one of Hyacinth's admirers," Daehyun explains briefly, me squinting to read the details on the site. 

"What Zephyr did reminds me a little of what happened to Ordeus," I comment. Daehyun looks to me, gaze prompting me to elaborate.

"Ordeus died by the hands of his female admirers who could not attain his affections."

"Unrequited love," Daehyun states, voice coarse and deep.

I nod in acknowledgement, going back to the search page and opening up a few more tabs. "Maybe we can add a bit of Ordeus' story into our report."

We skim through a bunch of analyses, taking down a few useful points. "Apollo was enamoured by Hyacinth's beauty..." I accidentally read aloud, too immersed in the story. It's tragic that Hyaci