*triple update from chap 70 (´・ω・`)

Strange
(triple update, 70, 71, & 72)

Present Day.

Things are strange.

Aaron steals a glance at Youngjae, watching the boy smile stupidly to himself. It's early in the morning, another one of their recess breaks arranged oddly that you would be too full from breakfast to eat, but skipping this recess would mean you go hungry for the rest of the day.

Youngjae has his arms propped up on the canteen table, his fingers interlocked and his chin resting on his hands. Aaron had watched him skip all the way to canteen with their resident overly optimistic ball of sunshine, Sungjong. He almost couldn't recognise his friend of three years. 

Jihoon shouts another one of his jokes across the row.

"Hey, do you know why the bicycle couldn't stand on its own?" Jihoon glances over at the other table where the girls are sitting, Bomi groaning loudly.

"Stop it already," Soyul threatens. "You're ruining my appetite."

Jihoon ignores her and announces gleefully, "Because it was two-tired!"

Chanshik grabs Jihoon by the collar and shakes him roughly. "Shut up. How do you not run out of this crap?"

The only one who doesn't react negatively is the boy opposite Aaron. Youngjae giggles—giggles—like a six-year-old girl around her crush, giggling away as if someone filled the room with laughing gas. Aaron squints at Youngjae and meets Donggeun's unsettled gaze.

"Youngjae, I saw you brought a lunchbox to school," Sungjong pipes up curiously. "Why aren't you eating it now?"

"Ah, I'm saving it for later," Youngjae bubbles, grinning even brighter.

"He always brings food from home for lunch," Donggeun fills in.

"Yeah," Youngjae laughs mirthfully like Jihoon had told another one of his horrible jokes. "Yeah, I do."

Aaron nudges Youngjae with a frown. "What's gotten into you? You sound like you're high."

"He must have gotten a girlfriend," Hongbin jokes.

Youngjae's eyes fly wide open and he blurts, "No, what makes you think that?"

Hongbin blinks at Youngjae before pinching his chin in deep thought. "Huh, suspicious... Do you really have a girlfriend?"

"Of course not," Youngjae quickly dismisses, lowering his gaze. He awkwardly chuckles, "I barely even talk to any girls."

"That's true. The girls he can talk to without being awkward with is, like, pretty much only Luna," Jihoon agrees readily.

Sungjong sends him a look and slaps his shoulder. "Don't be mean."

"Please, Hongbin. He's always attached by the hip to Jung Daehyun," Aaron drawls, rolling his eyes. "Don't know how he'd ever manage to find a girlfriend in that state."

Youngjae chokes all of a sudden, Sungjong hurriedly patting his back. "Are you okay?"

"A-Ah, yeah, I'm fine," Youngjae wheezes. He churns out a smile. "Mm. I don't have time to date." He laughs and swings his fist across his chest heartily, "You know what they say: pals before gals."

"Wow. That's the saddest thing I've heard today," Jihoon bursts out into a hyena-like laughter. "What are you, in kindergarten? It's bros before hoes, Jae."

"Keep that up and you're gonna be single for the rest of your life!" Donggeun grins, playfully elbowing Youngjae.

"It's great that you put your bros first, Youngjae. Especially when a lot of us are desperate for girlfriends," Sungjong chimes. "Daehyun's lucky he's got a bro like you."

"Don't encourage him, Sungjong. At this rate, he'll never get a girlfriend," Aaron snorts.

Youngjae merely giggles again, shrugging as he plays with his fingers. "Heehee. I guess not."

Aaron stares at Youngjae for a good, long while before getting out of his seat. 

"What the hell, did you just say 'heehee'?" He blurts as he slaps Youngjae across his head, the boy whining in pain. "Are you possessed? Donggeun, help me slap this spirit out of him!"

The two boys manhandle Youngjae, the poor boy squeaking for help. Thankfully, Soyul comes over and slaps her hands into Donggeun and Aaron's faces, the pair stumbling back and spluttering. Poor Youngjae lies slumped over the table, having been shaken out of his wits.

--

Things are strange.

Jaebum steals a glance at Daehyun, watching the boy smile at the wall with the basketball. He clears his throat awkwardly.

"Daehyun. You're facing the wrong way."

Daehyun perks up and spins on his heel, b with the most unsettling grin Jaebum had ever seen in his life. Daehyun is known well for being an unemotional guy who d