Hyunjung never did find out why Jungkook was upset, but she pressed no further questions on him. Nowadays, he was always quiet and didn’t include himself so much in conversations. He would smile occasionally, greet her in the morning, but she knew that it would be a long time before Jungkook returned back to his usual persona. He would still disappear sometimes at lunch, but none of his friends questioned it, they understood that he needed time to himself; time to heal.

Jimin never really did properly apologize, but Hyunjung began to notice that he wasn’t avoiding her anymore. Although she was suspicious of him at first for suddenly being nice, she willingly talked to him whenever he approached her.

She was on her way to class when Taehyung caught up with her. He nudged her on the shoulder as they were walking. “Hyunjung, when do you want to revise thermodynamics?” he asked.

She looked at him with wide eyes and covered with her hand. There was so much going on that it had completely slipped her mind. She had a couple of days left to revise, but she doubted it was enough. Well there’s her chemistry grade thrown out of the window.

“I don’t have anything to do after school, so maybe later at your house?”

“Uh, I guess that should be fine? My dad and my younger brother will be at home so it might be a little noisy.”

She waved her hand out in reassurance. “That’s fine.”

They entered the classroom and went to sit down at their seats. A few minutes later, their teacher came in and clapped his hands to catch the attention of the class. “Just so you know, I have assigned you all to a partner who you will work with on a project for the next couple of weeks.”

The class groaned in unison and Teacher Kim rolled his eyes. “This will contribute to your grades for this subject at the end of the year so contribute as much effort as you can in this. I wrote down your names alongside your partners on this piece of paper.”

Some of the class began to stand up but Teacher Kim put up a hand to stop them. “You may look at them after class.”

They all slowly slinked back down onto their seats. Teacher Kim slapped on a grin of satisfaction, shaking his head as he watched his class in amusement. “Okay, let’s commence the lesson.”

*  *  *

Hyunjung slightly jumped when the bell rang and everyone in her class practically leaped up and crowded around Teacher Kim’s desk, curious to who they were paired up with. She stood up and went over to the mob of students.

She went up on her tip-toes, looking over someone’s shoulder hoping to catch a glimpse of her own name. She never did like working on projects with an assigned partner, mainly because she didn’t really know the other person. But since she had now created new friendships with some people, that feeling of uneasiness she had before wasn’t as intimidating. She hoped that one day she’d be able to overcome it almost completely.

A tap was felt on her shoulder and she turned around. Shinae waved at her. “Looks like you and I will be working together for the next couple of week,” she told her.

“Oh, we’re paired up?”

“Yep. Are you free Wednesday?”

“Uh, yeah. I am,” Hyunjung replied.

“Cool, we can start planning our project then. See you!” Shinae rushed the last bit of her sentence as her friends were dragging her away with them, probably to the cafeteria. Hyunjung checked the piece of paper and indeed, her name was written next to hers: Park Shinae – Yoon Hyunjung

Jimin peered over at the list and his face twisted to a look of distaste. “You’re with Shinae? Unlucky.”

She scrunched her brows together and frowned. “Why don’t you like her anyway? And who’s your partner?”

He ignored her first question, pointing back at the paper and she glided her eyes down the list of names and found his written near the bottom: Park Jimin – Kim Taehyung.

Hyunjung felt slightly unsettled since she knew about his adverse opinion towards Taehyung.

“Well… you said he wasn’t that bad right?” Jimin eventually said, trying to show he was being affirmative.

“I did say that.”

“Then everything will be fine. Who knows, maybe me and Taehyung will be on good terms by the end of this project.”

She grinned. “Yeah.”

*  *  *

Jin waved Hyunjung and Jimin over when they entered through the doors of the cafeteria; all of the guys were already sat at a table that was beside the window. Except one person that they would usually expect, wasn’t there.

“Did Jungkook go somewhere again?” Jimin asked when they approached them. Yoongi budged over so that there was more room. “Yeah.”

“Do you know where he is?”

“Nope.” Yoongi then looked at Hyunjung, grabbing her attention. He began flicking his eyes to the window then back at her repetitively. At first she was confused but soon understood what he was trying to tell her.

“Uh, I’m going to go eat outside if that’s alright,” she said.

Jimin stood up from his seat. “I’ll come with you.”

Yoongi grabbed onto his arm and pulled him back. “Why don’t you stay here and not be annoying.”

Jimin shot him an unamused face but sat back down anyway.

“See ya later,” Yoongi said, giving Hyunjung a knowing look.

“Bye!” she said to them, slinging her bag on her shoulder.

Hyunjung exited the cafeteria and walked along the hallway to the door that led to outside of the school building. Once she was outside a warm breeze brushed past her and she patted down her hair to stop the wind from mussing it up. With a hand over her brow, she searched for the place that Yoongi had signalled her to go to when she was in the cafeteria. Her eyes landed on someone who had his bag, along with his school blazer beside his feet and was sat on a scratched wooden bench under a tree. His back was facing her but she recognized his slim build and rather dishevelled black hair.

As she approached him closer, she could hear him singing softly to himself; his voice flowed over the words and it was mellifluous to her ears. The leaves that were scattered over the grass rustled crisply as she stepped closer and Jungkook stopped singing.

“Uh, do you mind if I sit with you?” she asked. He nodded, scooting over so there was more room. She dropped her bag by the side of the bench and sat down beside him.

“You have a beautiful voice,” she said, not expecting much of a reply.

He lifted his head and swept his fringe over, revealing his eyes. “Thank you,” he replied almost soundlessly. The wind picked up the leaves littered on the grass and swirled them around as they both sat next to each other, not exchanging any words. Jungkook repeatedly tapped his foot against the ground and leaned against the backrest of the bench.

Hyunjung ped her bag and took out her lunch. Jungkook glanced over at her but swiftly looked away when she caught him staring. She held up her lunchbox to him. “You can have some of mine if you want.”

“It’s okay,” he said with haste, refusing her offer.

“It’s fine, take some. You don’t seem to have brought any food with you.”

It was a while before he eventually took the sandwich that she was holding out to him. “Thanks Hyunjung.”

Out of the blue, he asked her something that she wasn’t expecting to suddenly come out of him. “Hyunjung… do you have any other siblings?”

“I have an older brother, but he’s studying at a University in Japan at the moment, so I haven’t seen him since last Christmas. What about you?”

She observed him carefully and noticed him tense; he seemed hesitant to answer and Hyunjung wondered if she had said something wrong. Jungkook stared down at his shoes. “I’m an only child,” he said without altering the direction of his gaze.

A silence came upon the both of them. The silence lasted.

As if like a puzzle, Hyunjung began to fit together any more pieces of knowledge she knew about Jungkook; maybe she would be able to figure out the reason behind his recent grief. She never really was someone observant, so how was she supposed to figure him out? Jumping to sudden conclusions was the last thing that she wanted to do.

Taking in an extended breath, she glanced at him from the side; she never paid much attention to his physical features, but she had only just begun to notice the subtle edges of his face, the refined curve of his nose and the length of his lashes. No wonder he was so popular among the girls in their class, he was pretty much the epitome of the ideal guy. His features weren’t striking, but he had delicate characteristics that were just as conspicuous to the eye; once you looked at him, it was difficult to tear your gaze away.

“What if you wished for something for so long but you know that you will never be able to have it?” he asked.

Hyunjung thought for a few seconds before giving him her answer. “In all honesty, if I already have an affectionate mom and dad, friends and a loving family, what else more could make you happy? Even so, you should just be grateful with what you do have in your life instead of wishing for more.” She smiled at him and began eating her kimbap. “That’s what I think.”

Jungkook was quiet. The flash of his eyes had been taken over by a dreamy yet melancholy softness; they no longer gave the impression of looking at the things around him; they seemed to gaze beyond the trees, the students and the school building, far beyond all that.

“Yeah,” he said after a moment.

He then shifted his eyes over to Hyunjung; her back was slouched leisurely on the backrest of the bench while chewing on a kimbap and it was probably the most relaxed he had ever seen her. Now that he thought about it, she only looked that peaceful while she was eating.

Although the corners of his lips only barely just curved up, it was the closest he had to a smile for the first time in a while.

“Yeah,” he said again. “I guess you’re right.”

“Hey Jungkook, what was that song you were singing earlier?” Hyunjung asked with interest.

“It was a lullaby my mom used to sing to me when I was younger.”

“Do you mind singing it again?” She got flustered when she saw him tense up once more and she quickly mumbled, “I’m not forcing you, I just really like your voice.”

Jungkook thought for a while. A few seconds later, he gave her a discreet nod.

He cleared his throat and sang the first few words.

To begin with, his voice was quiet and she couldn’t hear the words, but she could recognize the sentiment behind them as she observed him; his eyes were shut and his hands were clutching his knees, his body swaying subtly from side to side. Her eyelids fluttered closed.

The only sounds she could hear at that moment was Jungkook’s voice, the faint chatter of the students from the open window in the cafeteria, and the rustling of the leaves across the grass.

*  *  *

The students in the cafeteria were conversing animatedly and you could barely hear anything but different conversations floating about. Jimin was watching his friends argue pathetically over the last piece of cake that Jin had baked the previous night.

Hoseok pulled the cake towards himself. “I think I should have the last piece.”

“You already ate four slices.”

“So? And Jin loves me more, don’t you hyun -”

Jin‘s impatience was rising and he quickly interposed between their bickering. “Did you know Jungkook could sing? I was walking behind him this morning and I could hear him.”

They all hushed and gave him a look that seemed to be a mixture of confusion and disbelief; they all evidently knew that Jungkook hated to sing.

“It’s true! He’s been singing to himself a lot lately,” Jin said.

Jimin glanced over their incredulous expressions one by one and decided to say something that supported what Jin had said. “He did have vocal lessons back in elementary, but he stopped.”          

Hoseok shifted in his seat to lean closer to him. “Why?”

“I remember he used to sing all the time, but then one day he came to me and he was so upset, it was because his vocal teacher had said his voice was still weak and underdeveloped etcetera, etcetera.”

“That’s kind of harsh. But he was still young, so naturally his voice would’ve been like that anyway,” Namjoon said.

Jimin thought for a moment. “I guess so, but he was still upset about it for a while so he asked his parents to cancel his lessons and he hasn’t sang in front of anyone since.” He continued, “But I know that he’s really insecure with his voice so that’s why he only sings around people he’s comfortable with. I’ve heard him a few times, but only on very few occasions.”

Hoseok moped and slumped down further into his seat. “I really want to hear him now that you’re talking about it.”

They chuckled at his remark. Namjoon looked back down at the cake, but all that was left of its remains were specks of crumbs. “Hey, where did the cake go?”

“None of you were taking it anyway.” They all turned back to Hoseok who was scrolling casually through the contents of his cell phone.

Namjoon sighed exasperatedly. “Seriously? I only had two slices.”

“Well Yoongi didn’t have any and he’s not complaining is he?”

Yoongi took no notice of them and placed one of his elbows on the table, resting his chin on his hand. Hearing a distinctive voice from outside, he looked out of the open window beside him and smiled down at the two sat side by side on a wooden bench.  

*  *  *

At the end of school, Hyunjung and Taehyung had walked to his house to revise for chemistry. It was blatantly obvious that if Hyunjung didn’t start revising soon, she’d kiss that good grade goodbye.

Taehyung opened the door and scoffed when he saw his younger brother with his eyes staring at the television. “Taewon, seriously, turn off the TV and do your homework.”

Hyunjung inwardly gasped when she laid eyes on Taewon; the similarities between the two had struck her hard. They both had the same tall nose and default expression. Mini Taehyung?

“But I’m not failing in any of my classes anyway.” Taewon looked up from the TV screen and next to his older brother was a girl he hadn't seen with him before. The corners of his lips curled up. “Hyuuuuuung who’s that?”

Hyunjung waved to him and grinned. “I'm Hyunjung, your brother’s friend.”

“HYUNG BROUGHT A GIRL IN THE HOU-”

Taehyung marched over and covered a hand over Taewon’s mouth. “Shut up. And don’t even think about my hand.”

Taewon squirmed under his grip and simply put his hands up in defence. Taehyung let go of him and sent him a warning stare. His younger brother looked up at him innocuously and shifted his eyes to Hyunjung. “Are you by chance Hyunjung noona?”

“Uh yes? How’d you know?”

“Hm… Okay!” Taewon gave Taehyung a cheeky nudge as he walked past him. “Dad told me to tell you that he’s buying something at the grocery store.”

Before Taehyung could reply, his younger brother had already sauntered into the kitchen. He sighed deeply and turned to Hyunjung. “You can sit down if you want,” he said, gesturing to the sofa. She nodded and awkwardly sat down. The furniture here didn't look anywhere near cheap and she was seriously hoping she wouldn't end up breaking something valuable. Taehyung sat on the other sofa opposite her.

He squinted his eyes at her for a moment. “You have too many facial expressions.”

She stopped fidgeting in her seat. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“I know how much you hate chemistry but you’re making it too obvious that you aren’t showing any interest. If you keep doing that in the future people might get the wrong idea.”

Hyunjung looked at him blankly. “But what about you? You always look like you don’t show any interest.”

“That’s probably because most of the time I don’t.” 

“People would usually call me expressionless, you know.” Her phone vibrated in her pocket and she took it out to check her messages.  

“Who’s that?” Taehyung asked.

“Jungkook.”

“Oh.” He stared back down at the page of his textbook.

Hyunjung couldn't help but smile when she read the message.