When Ryeowook got back to the apartment that night, he walked past the kitchen without saying a word, shutting the door to his bedroom quietly before falling on his bed and slowly pulling his blanket over his head.

Jongwoon, who was in the kitchen making them dinner, frowned slightly. Even on his off days, Ryeowook always at least said hi before going to hide away in his room. He peeked down the hallway, biting his lip gently when he saw Ryeowook’s closed door. Well, this wouldn’t do.

He dashed to the fridge, hoping he hadn’t eaten the last of the strawberries last night.

---

A little while later, there was a quiet knock on Ryeowook’s door. It was pushed open when there was no response and Jongwoon entered the room to find his dongsaeng’s head poking out from under a blanket. He was staring at the wall; his eyes flickered over to his hyung when he entered.

“Hey Wook,” Jongwoon said softly, holding up the plate in his hand. “I made you chocolate-covered strawberries. Your favorite.”

Ryeowook’s eyes just slid back to the wall, but he sat up carefully, pulling the blanket around his shoulders, when Jongwoon sat down on the edge of the bed and placed the plate between them.

“What’s bothering you, Wook?”

Ryeowook swallowed heavily before answering. “That English paper.”

“The one you were working on last week?” Ryeowook nodded. “What about that English paper?” Jongwoon asked slowly, watching the younger man.

Ryeowook didn’t answer; he just sort of fell over onto his pillows, pulling the blanket up to cover the bottom half of his face.

“I got an eighty-six,” he mumbled finally, and Jongwoon frowned.

“But that’s not a bad—”

“I know that, hyung! I know it’s a perfectly fine grade! There is nothing wrong with an eighty-six, I know that, and that makes me feel worse!” he cried, and Jongwoon swore those were tears gathering at the edges of his eyes. “I shouldn’t feel bad, but I do, and that makes me feel worse! I just…ever since sixth grade, all I’ve done is put pressure on myself to get perfect grades. At this point, that’s just a part of who I am. But I thought this was a good paper, considering what I had to work with and how little guidance we were given, and then I got an eighty-six on it and it just makes me feel…like I failed. Like I did something wrong. Like I’m not good enough,” he mumbled. He rubbed his eye with the heel of his palm and stared at the plate of chocolate-covered strawberries. “Which is stupid. But I can’t help it.”

Jongwoon sighed softly, reaching over and running his fingers through Ryeowook’s hair. “I know this won’t make it better, but I think you’re perfect,” he murmured as the younger’s head dropped further. “And I know me just saying this isn’t going to make it happen, but you should relax a little bit. Don’t put so much pressure on yourself, okay? You’re still going to graduate, even if you get one B. Don’t let that ruin your day. Come watch dramas with me. Or we could play games. Something to get your mind off it for a while.” His voice was soft, full of concern and care and a deep love that Ryeowook sometimes felt like he didn’t deserve.

Ryeowook didn’t say anything; instead, he reached over, taking one of the strawberries and nibbling on it slowly as Jongwoon continued to run his fingers through his hair.

“Or we could take a bubble bath.” A hint of a smile played around the corner of Jongwoon’s lips. “Baths and chocolate-covered strawberries are always good ways to relax. Ah! That’s the smile I like to see!”

Ryeowook just rolled his eyes, but the small smile on his lips didn’t fade. “Baths with hyung are nice…” he said slowly and he nearly laughed at the way Jongwoon eagerly jumped to his feet.

“I’ll go get the bath ready!” he chirped and dashed out of the room, leaving Ryeowook to nibble on the strawberries as he waited.

Ryeowook a bit of chocolate off his lip.

Grades weren’t everything, he reminded himself. He had something much more important.