Chasing You

Chapter Eight

The Opposite of Happiness

His mind was in disarray for days since he blurted out something that he should not have said in front of his classmates and especially in front of Suho. He could not think clearly about what to do with Ah Reum and Da Eun anymore. He hated being confused by such matters.

Girls. He had always been eye-candy to girls, and he had always been irritated by their actions toward him. They did not know a thing about him, yet they were saying that they loved him. Superficial was the word he used to describe them. They were superficial until he became best friends with Ah Reum. She made him realize that there were more to girls than their loud voices and fashion. Well, not all girls were loud because certainly, Da Eun was not, but that was not the point. The point was that he used to detest them. He was such a kid for thinking such things. It was a good thing that Ah Reum showed him and proved to him that girls were alright.

However, fate surely was ironic.

Out of all the girls that could have fallen hard for him, it just had to be his best friend. Unknown to others, their friendship was very important to him. It was something that, if built on honesty and trust, then it would last forever; undoubtedly, would last longer than any romantic relationship he knew of. Since he valued his friendship with Ah Reum so much, he made a choice. He saw how hard it was for Seo Ah to cope after she broke up with her longtime friend that became her boyfriend. They used to be so close, almost the best of friends. When one needed help, they rescued one another. So they started dating, and everyone thought that their love for one another would last forever; that they were made for each other, but it turned out that the fact that they knew each other too well made them drift apart. They hated each other eventually, using everything that they knew about one another to hurt each other.

He witnessed how everything changed and how Seo Ah changed after the breakup.

He admitted it. He was scared to lose a good friend. He was making the right decision to continue ignoring her feelings for him because ex-lovers could never be friends.

Sehun was aware that what happened to Seo Ah and her friend would never happen to him and Ah Reum, but that was not the point. He was afraid that the quality of their friendship would not remain. Because of that fear, he blocked everything that could lead him to like Ah Reum, but so far, he didn't know if he was successful or not.

He did not know why he was thinking about it at this time.

Kyungsoo asked him to be in his office today with Da Eun. He had no idea why he was being called there and why his Math teacher would call for him. He was informed about it weeks ago, and Da Eun was excited about this competition even though it didn't have anything to do with paintings and colors. Da Eun was excited to win this contest for her college scholarship. With her two brothers in college right now, their family couldn't support the three of them. Thus, winning this contest and getting a scholarship would help a lot.

"Hi," Da Eun greeted with a wave and a smile. "Were you waiting for long?" she asked.

"Just about right," Sehun answered.

She glanced at the door hesitatingly. "Let's go?"

Sehun just nodded.

Kyungsoo welcomed them with his stiff features and thick glasses. He asked them to sit on the two chairs at his table. The faculty room was not crowded as it was still in the middle of the morning classes. The room was spacious, painted in glossy white, and with ample windows. It seemed relaxing and inviting. Funny since this was where most students got lectured whenever they did something inappropriate or said something so offending to another individual. May it be to a student or worse, to a faculty member. Their academy might be filled with students oozing with academic qualities, but it also had students who had an attitude and needed slight assistance.

Kyungsoo was a Math teacher, and Sehun would always remember him, not because he was a Math teacher but as the teacher who Ah Reum never had a good relationship with. Bringing back the memory, he remembered how hard Ah Reum studied for those exams and how much she had improved. He helped her, of course, but the effort was mostly from her. When Ah Reum told him that she sneaked into Kyungsoo's compilations of her exams and homework, he knew she would get in trouble, and she did. Because of that sneaky act, she was tasked to help in the library. It was light work, yes, but he somehow disapproved of it because Ah Reum had her doubts. Sadly, she never found out if she was really that low in Math or not.

The teacher coughed and adjusted his glasses. "We chose you and Da Eun for the inter-school competition that will be held in Busan this month. You and Da Eun are the two best students of your batch."

Sehun's expressionless face did not change. "Why me? You should have chosen Jongdae."

Kyungsoo gave Sehun a menacing look but decided to calm himself because he should stretch his patience for students who were clearly hard to deal with like Oh Sehun. He was a tough kid; he could remember clearly. He was lazy, uninterested, and rude in his class, yet he was the best student he had in years. It had been long since their school got first place in this annual Math camp slash competition. For many years, they were either second or third and Kyungsoo was not satisfied with that. He was a longtime coach and somehow, he wanted his name to be remembered in the field of this contest. This year, he was determined to win the championship. The match needed two delegates: a girl and a boy. Sehun and Da Eun were the best among his classes. He was sure that their school would triumph this year.

On the other hand, whenever he saw Oh Sehun, he couldn't help but remember his best friend also.

Park Ah Reum.

If there were a student who had given him an insurmountable number of headaches, it would be Ah Reum. What Kyungsoo valued the most in his life was privacy. As a teacher, he knew how students would talk about him behind his back or would be interested in his dull life. And with that, he ached for privacy. Privacy for his private life, likes and dislikes, and especially files. So when Park Ah Reum tried to look over his files, he made sure that she would get the right punishment. Suspension should've been the punishment but since it was the first time she had done something like that, the principal let it slip.

She was never a good student to begin with, but that was not the real reason. It was about privacy.

"The headmaster entrusted this Math competition to you. You should be honored," Kyungsoo said and gave the brochures to the two.

Sehun scanned it quickly. "It says here that it's a five-day camp."

Kyungsoo nodded, hating the tone of disinterest in Sehun. "Precisely. It's indeed a Math camp."

"We'll miss our lessons," Da Eun added.

Kyungsoo turned to her. "You'll be given notes and special exams if you ever miss one of those."

Da Eun placed the paper filled with details on the table beside her, "Oh, good then."

"Why will it take long?" Sehun asked.

Kyungsoo was sure now. Sehun didn't want to be in the competition. "Day one, registration, program, review. Day two would be your individual matches. Three is semi-finals. On that day, you two would finally have the chance to help each other as it is a competition for pairs after all. The scores from the previous day would serve as a significant support for the semi-finals. Day four would be the finals. We could go back on that day, but the winners would have to meet up with the sponsors of the contest on the fifth day."

"What for?" Sehun snarled again.

"College recommendations— scholarships. Whatever you will need after you graduate this academy," Kyungsoo explained.

Sehun nodded his head and looked up like he just understood everything Kyungsoo had just said. "What you're saying is that these five days won't be consumed if we won't get in day two."

"Correct."

"You sound like you don't want to stay there," Da Eun commented, also noticing Sehun’s disinterest.

"Don't get me wrong."

Before anything could be spoken, Kyungsoo cut into the conversation. "It's settled then. You two will represent Seoul Academy."

After that short and concluding meeting, Sehun and Da Eun continued their conversation on one of the benches in the garden. There was an awkward silence, at first, and Da Eun couldn't find a way to ask her question. She was glad that she was chosen to represent the school and she felt happier when she knew that Sehun was her partner but at the same time she felt that Sehun was not giving much concern to one of the most important competitions in her life. Da Eun was sure that Sehun was aware of her need to find a college scholarship, and she had no doubts about Sehun's abilities; she was just worried about his determination.

"We need to win," Da Eun started.

Sehun turned his head to her direction. "I know."

Da Eun bit her lip, "You seem uninterested."

"I told you not to get me wrong," he answered.

She stretched her legs with her hands resting on her lap as she readied herself to confront the boy who seemed like he wasn't interested. "We're not wealthy, and the scholarship would certainly help a lot," she reminded.

Sehun nodded. "I know."

"Really?" Da Eun asked him, trying to see if he was serious.

Sehun smiled shortly at her. She must've been thinking that he was not serious, and she was correct, but he did not want to tell her that. He was not feeling any happiness or excitement about this competition because it would just be futile. He might be the best student when it came to Math, but it was simply not his passion. Instead of painting the most important piece for his exhibit, he would spend his time reviewing and answering Math problems. It was a complete waste of time for him, but he could not reject the offer because of Da Eun. The girl wanted a sure win, and he would give her that, for her future depended on it. He had no doubts when it came to his abilities and capabilities, but why was he feeling so unsure now? He was trying to convince himself, but it did not seem to be working.

"We will win," he assured Da Eun but not himself.

The girl just nodded; her lips formed a thin line. "I know. I trust you."

...

Ah Reum was approached by an out of breath Yixing, who was also looking disheveled at the same time. She wanted to laugh at his pitiful expression. Half of the day had passed, and when she got a message from Yixing, she felt it had something to do with a favor, and she seemed to be correct based on the look he was giving her. Again, she was feeling fine all day with the resolved issue with her Mom and more. So far, school was not getting in the way, and these were the days when she was usually bored with academics, so anything that would take up all her time would be acceptable now.

"Can I ask for a favor?" Yixing started.

Ah Reum gave him a stern look. "What kind?"

Yixing tried to catch his breath as he spoke. "President asked me to make a calendar of the events that our school will have for the rest of the year."

"That's easy. What's the problem with that?" Ah Reum asked, trying to sound clueless.

Yixing scratched his chin, attempting to look helpless. "Well, you're right, but the Vice President also asked me to summarize all the expenses our committee had for the past years and our future expenses for this school year. He needs it for the proposition to increase our budget."

Ah Reum crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. " to be an officer, huh? When are those due?"

Yixing looked sheepishly at her and replied with enough embarrassment. "Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? And when did they give you those assignments?" Ah Reum asked in disbelief.

"This morning."

Ah Reum groaned and shook her head. "Fine. I'll help."

Yixing's face immediately lit up. "Great. You're the best, Ah Reum."

She just waved her hand dismissively. "No probs. I had nothing to do either."

Yixing was starting to walk when he reminded her of the meeting place. "Good. We'll just meet at our office."

Ah Reum nodded and laughed. "Yeah, beside the Arts Committee's open area."

"See you later!"

"See you, too."

...

Ah Reum was standing freely in the hallway. Everyone was inside their respective rooms except their class whose teacher was called by a sudden emergency. Well, she was outside to have a quiet environment. Her classmates were unusually noisy today, and she could not review for her History quiz. She was cramming, yeah, but who cares? She could see flying wrinkled papers by the small glass window of their door. Ah Reum just shook her head and chuckled slightly. Since the hallway was empty, she was able to sit in her most comfortable position. After a few minutes of just sitting there, she stood up and almost yelled when a girl was already beside her. Ah Reum was eyeing the girl, trying to come up with an answer as to why the little girl was smirking at her.

She was a freshman as proven by her identification card. "Hello," she said.

Ah Reum smiled awkwardly, and she could not believe that she was getting intimidated by a freshman. "Hello? Do I know you?" she asked kindly.

The girl snorted. "Obviously not."

Ah Reum was surprised at her retort. She was rude. Ah Reum did not want to meddle with this kind of situation, so she chose to ignore the girl. She pretended that she was scanning her notes and memorizing what needed to be remembered when the freshman talked again.

"I'm a fan, by the way."

The brunette could not help but glance at her. "What?"

"Of your stupidity?" said the freshman as she chuckled.

"Excuse me?" Ah Reum said, feeling insulted.

The girl laughed again and expressed in a very mature tone, "I can write hundreds of articles from it."

No idea.

Ah Reum didn't know what this girl was talking about. She was a fan, could write hundreds of article about her stupidity, and she was, again, a fan. Ah Reum could not connect the dots, and not because she was slow to comprehend things, but she didn't have an idea of what the freshman was trying to say. Apart from all the confusing things she was saying, she was discourteous to her. Ah Reum was a junior for heaven's sake, and a freshman could make her blood boil this much. Ah Reum was trying to convince herself that she was just a little girl, and she should lengthen her patience since she was older, but the girl continued to give her a weird look.

"You're aware that I'm older than you, right?" Ah Reum fought back.

The freshman nodded and stepped backward. "Yes and hey, chill. I intend no harm. As I told you, I'm a fan."

"I have no idea of what you're saying," Ah Reum said between her gritted teeth.

"Don't worry. You will soon."

Ah Reum looked at her, having no idea at all.

"Goodbye," the girl said, and before Ah Reum could have lectured the girl about being disrespectful, she already walked away.

"Who's that?" Yerim, who was suddenly at the door asked. "It's crazy inside. They are acting like it's the first time our class got canceled," she said.

Ah Reum was still towards the direction of where the girl walked off to. "Dunno," she answered.

Sooyoung sat down across from them as she immediately joined the conversation. "She's a freshman. Why would a freshman talk to you?"

"No idea," Ah Reum answered.

Seulgi, who was being quiet, the moment they stepped out of the room suddenly crept up from behind them. "I know her. The school paper wants her."

The organization that was composed of the brightest students of Seoul Academy was the Writer's Nook. They were only choosing the best, the talented, and the responsible. They were the student's voice, the representative of every Seoul Academy student to express what they were aching to say. Of all the committees in school, the Writer's Nook had the most freedom and, not to mention, budget. Even Seoul Academy itself had put their complete trust on the committee to let the students know about their defense, answers, and plans. This organization never let false information be published. Everything they do should be perfect or near to perfection. They set the highest standards to be able to win in competitions involving the school paper and journalism.

Hearing something from Kang Seulgi herself that the school paper wanted to recruit the freshman who was treating Ah Reum like she knew the brunette her whole life was indeed a big shocker. Writer's Nook never hired a member. They all took the exam and were tasked to write a close to perfect two feature articles and two editorials in a span of one and a half hours. After that was the Psychological Exam and Dialogue, or in simpler terms, the interview. It was a meticulous process.

Yerim looked surprised by the news, "That's odd. Your club wants to recruit someone? And a first year, moreover."

Seulgi understood the confusion. "She's good. I've read her feature article once. She had written it back in junior high school, and her writing is useful considering her age, but the rule that one must pass four articles after taking the exam to be in the paper applies to everyone."

"I don't understand," Ah Reum said.

Seulgi turned to her. "She didn't want to pass an article. Saying that, she is waiting to write a very important story. Until she completes it, she won't pass one."

Nodding, Sooyoung spoke, "Well, your club has many talents. You don't exactly need her."

This time, Seulgi glanced at Sooyoung and started explaining. "They are seniors, Sooyoung. Soon, they will leave the academy, and we have to find new writers."

"Right," Sooyoung muttered.

The topic almost drained because they focused on scanning their History notes again, except for Seulgi, who seemed to be ready for the exam and just got out because she hated the noise that was echoing inside their homeroom. A few minutes had already passed when Yerim closed her notebook and smiled. She was looking at Ah Reum, who was still reviewing. She just had the greatest news, and she was about to say it to her first thing in the morning but had somehow forgotten about it.

"So, rumors are spreading in our year," Yerim started.

Ah Reum turned to her, assuming that Yerim was talking to her. "What rumors?" she asked.

At first, Yerim gave Ah Reum an excited expression before blurting it out. "Sehun made a short speech about love."

Ah Reum's head glanced at the side slightly, seeing that Sooyoung was also listening. "So?" she said, waiting for her friend's continuation of the story.

"It is hinted that it's about you," Yerim finally said.

The girls squealed, except for Seulgi, like it was their typical reaction to a statement like that. Ah Reum broke out her biggest smile. It was indeed good news for her, and because of that, she almost forgot that it was just a rumor. A speech about love by Oh Sehun that was hinted to be about Park Ah Reum. The brunette did not know how accurate or how valid this rumor was, but she didn't have the time to care about it at this moment. Ah Reum was already blinded by how the rumor had been sugarcoated. This was the first time Sehun talked about love, and that alone could get anyone excited.

"Really? Really? What did he say?" Ah Reum asked excitedly.

"I don't know the exact words, but his classmates might know," Yerim said.

"Where did you get that piece of information from?" Sooyoung asked, feeling giddy with the information that had just been shared.

Yerim quickly answered. "From Jongdae, of course."

Sooyoung was baffled for a while. "Jongdae? I never thought that he'd be the type of guy who would spread rumors."

Yerim let out a nervous laugh. "Technically, he didn't spread it. He sort of just asked about it."

"What do you mean, Yerim?" asked Ah Reum.

Yerim moved closer to Ah Reum's seat. Her gossip mode was starting again as she started telling the whole story. "We're seatmates in Math, okay? Then he said to me, "You're friends with Ah Reum, right? I thought Sehun didn't like her but when he made a little speech in class, it seemed like he was talking about Ah Reum, and he appeared to notice it too." So after he said that, I asked him what the topic was, and he said that Suho asked Sehun if he knew the difference between love and attraction," Yerim explained.

Sooyoung clapped her hands. "That's great news, Yerim. It seems like Jongdae belongs to the crowd of wanting Sehun and Ah Reum to be together."

"Don't tell me you would believe Yerim," Seulgi's voice overpowered their laughter.

Ah Reum was still having the greatest time of her day when Seulgi interrupted. She turned back to her with a grave look. She