A/N: YASSS Another Double Update!

The intro scene is a continuation of chapter 3.

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“Hi.”

Kyungsoo was busy adding up the money that the auction booth had collected thus far but stopped immediately when he heard a familiar voice. Staring wide-eyed, he blinked several times to make sure the image in front of him wasn’t a dream.

“H-hi Jongin.” The petite brunette managed to get out after a few brief moments, voice cracking at the end, of all the times for something like that to happen. It was like he couldn’t stop embarrassing himself in front of the other kid. Get it together. He cleared his throat before continuing.

“How can I help you?”

“Oh, umm.” The dancer set his backpack on the table and opened it up. Several awkward moments passed as he desperately dug through every pocket of the bag. Long fingers danced along with the folders and binders he kept in there, searching for some unknown item. Kyungsoo could hear him grunt and mumble something to himself of where it was. It wasn’t until he got to the small front zipper when he finally came to a halt.

“Ah-ha!” Jongin pulled out a small envelope and passed it to Kyungsoo, “I’d like to make a bid…”

He continued to blink up at Jongin. It took a couple of seconds before realizing he was being handed something. Kyungsoo grabbed it quickly and opened the packet to find a few hundred dollars.

“This is my thanks for the other day.”

“Oh! I uhh it’s no problem! Well, I mean, that coach was out of line to say those kinds of things.”

“Yeah, but still. It gets a bit tiring, ya know? Nice to have someone on my side for once.” Kyungsoo nodded in agreement.

“Well, I think this money will do somebody good. So thank you for your donation.” Jongin continued to linger around for a moment, something clearly on his mind.

“So I was thinking… There’s this party next weekend… At Taeyong’s house. I was wondering if you wanted to go? Maybe we could hang out there, get some drinks, play some games? I mean, if you want to. I hear he’s getting a DJ. It’s supposed to be pretty lit.”

Kyungsoo sat there in shock. His crush just asked him to a party. For a moment, Kyungsoo wondered if he had entered the Twilight Zone. He had never been to a high school party before and wasn’t quite sure what to expect other than all the wild stories coming from Baekhyun. The idea made him a bit nervous. He wondered if he’d even be okay in that type of environment. On the other hand, he didn’t want to miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Who knows if he’d ever get another chance like this.

“Oh, he’ll definitely be there. I’ll make sure of it.” Kyungsoo whipped around to see his cheeky friend, Baekhyun, wink down at him.

“Cool! I’ll see you there then!”

Kyungsoo waited for Jongin to walk away out of earshot before scolding his friend.

“How could you just speak for me? I’m not… I mean, I don’t...”

“Fit into the party scene?” He eyed the boy up and down, taking in his khaki slacks, white collared shirt, and argyle vest, “I know. But KIM JONGIN just invited you to one of the hottest parties, and I will be damned if you don’t go. You just bring yourself, and I’ll take care of the rest. Don’t worry. I’ll make you look like a hot piece of that everyone will want.”

Kyungsoo inhaled sharply, eyes wide as he looked mortified at the thought. “Haha, I’m just joking, Kyungie. I won’t let anything happen to you. And who knows. Maybe you’ll run into your crush and get a chance to talk to her.”

The small boy couldn’t help but let out a laugh and rolled his eyes at that statement. He so desperately wanted to tell his good friend that Jongin was the crush, but his throat tightened up. He just couldn’t bring himself to say it out loud.

“So where did Junnie boy run off to?”

“I don’t know. Lay took him to the bathroom a while ago. It seems like he had an idea to make us more money.”

“No kidding. Well, that’s nice of him. I don’t get why Junnie hates him so much.” Baekhyun took a seat next to Kyungsoo at the booth and started to pick at the food items on his lunch tray.

“That’s because he helps you out. He enjoys mentally torturing Junmyeon.”

“It’s probably good for him. He needs to learn to lighten up. Someday he’s going to explode from being so uptight.”

“If anything, you’ll be the death of him. Especially since you show no sign of growing up anytime soon.”

“Such sass. You’re not as sweet as everyone thinks you are, you know.”

“And you’re not as cool as you think you are.”

“Touché! You’re getting better at your talk. I’m impressed.”

“I have my moments.” Kyungsoo shrugged. “Ah, speaking of the devils...”

Their jaw nearly dropped as both said boys made their way back to the booth, Junmyeon trailing behind Lay’s faster strides. Kyungsoo and Baekhyun were taken aback by Junmyeon’s transformation. It wasn’t a whole lot, but the leather jacket and pushed-back hair went a long way from his typical studious look. However, his demeanor didn’t radiate his usual confidence; Kyungsoo picked up on the tinge of pink that had spread across his cheeks as he slumped forward. His brows were scrunched as he looked down at his feet and made no attempt to meet anyone’s gaze. It made the singer wonder what had happened to his friend in the bathroom to cause this inner meltdown.

That whirlwind of emotion became greater as Lay kept changing up the game. On top of that, the chairman, of all people, encouraged Lay to ‘keep up the good work.’ The look of utter fury in Junmyeon’s eyes had Baekhyun and Kyungsoo fearing for Lay’s life. If Lay hadn’t left when he did, they might have had to hold him back.

“There’s no possible way I could get away with murder, right?” Junmyeon threw mental daggers at Lay’s back while watching him leave the cafeteria.

“Probably not,” The singer said while busily counting the money bids from all the students who were desperate to win the coveted prizes before the lunch period came to an end.

“I need to put an end to this.” Junmyeon ripped the jacket off and tossed it to the ground. Desperate times called for desperate measures. If Lay was going to steal his spotlight, then he was going to steal something precious to him.

He threw his backpack on the table and rummaged through it. “Kyungsoo, how much money did the highest bidder put in?”

“I can’t tell you. That’s cheating.”

“There are some things that are more important than the rules. And winning this auction is one of them.” Junmyeon pulled out a pocket checkbook and started writing.

“You can donate as much as you want, but since you and I are running it, we can’t win prizes.”

“I can if I donate in Baekhyun’s name.”

“First of all, I don’t want to be pulled in between you and Lay’s little lover’s tiff. Second, am I the only one who finds it strange that Junnie has a checkbook? Seriously, what high schooler carries that on them?” Baekhyun eyeballed him with much judgment.

Kyungsoo just rolled his eyes and proceeded to ignore him, “Why do you want to win so badly anyway?”

“So, I can take his car and drive it right into the Han River.”

“Sorry, but I’m not aiding you in doing something reckless.”

“Haha, I might pay to see that.” Baekhyun butted in, “I bet he couldn’t get away with it.”

“Okay, fine. I’ll barter with Yixing. I’ll give him his car back if he steps down from running for student council president.”

“For someone who is supposed to be smart, your ideas get progressively more stupid.”

“Baekhyun, obviously, you don’t know a thing about business.” The other boy snapped, “If you want to have the upper hand, you need to have something the other party wants.”

“And you know that because Lay always has the upper hand?”

“I swear Baekhyun-”

“OKAYYY, we have some winners. Sorry, Junmyeon. I kinda agree with Baekhyun. Stealing Yixing’s car is a stupid idea. I’m sure you can win the election without extortion.”

His words stung. Junmyeon knew right from wrong. It’s not that he wanted to do something so wrong. Naturally, he didn’t feel good about acting so deceitfully. But at the same time, he didn’t want to feel bad about bringing Lay down. Part of him wanted to tear him apart, wanting to pay him back for making him feel everything he was feeling.

But what was he feeling exactly?

Anger? Lay definitely induced anger into him. But somehow, that wasn’t the pinpoint of his feelings.

Jealousy? Maybe something of the sort. After all, he outdid the shorter boy in almost every way. He’d be lying if he said this challenge didn’t make him feel insecure.

He watched the black-haired male walk coolly back into the cafeteria and talk to their current student council president, Jung Taekwoon. He was usually unwavering in his stern nature. But seeing him light up and smile at his enemy struck a chord with him.

He had known Taekwoon since their first year of high school. He was never the one to willingly smile at someone if he didn’t have to. Usually, that was reserved for the school’s faculty he had to work with and very close friends.

This just wasn’t fair. Junmyeon hated the way he smiled for Lay. And the way Lay smiled back at him, making some sort of joke, acting like they were long-time friends.

‘That bastard shouldn’t go around smiling at just everyone. Who does he even think he is? Why does he have to be so annoyingly friendly to everyone else?’

Everyone else but him.

He glowered at the other male a little too long and didn’t notice Taekwoon making his way to the booth.

“I think we are ready to call the names of the winners now, Junmyeon. Kyungsoo?” The current student president was back to his usual coldness. He reached out an open palm to take the money and list of names in his safekeeping and gave them a polite nod.

“Ladies and gentlemen, may I please have everyone’s attention?” Taekwoon proceeded as people gathered around to listen closely, “I’d like to thank everyone who participated in making this year’s auction. We collected more money than the years preceding. The children’s hospital will benefit from your contributions. I’d also like to thank both Junmyeon and Lay for their involvement in making this event interesting. Without them, it wouldn’t have been possible to have this much success. So, without further delay, I will now read the names of our winners. Our top male donor is Kim Jongin. Our top female donor, Kim Minhee.”

‘Minhee?!’

“Congratulations, you two. Please make your way up to the front to collect your prizes.”

The crowd started to dissipate, leaving just the two rivals with the two winners of the auction.

“Congratulations! And thank you so much for your generosity!” Lay started.

“Actually… umm, if it’s okay, instead of your car, can I get the tickets for Lotte World? There was someone I was thinking of taking with me.”

“Of course, Kim Jongin!” Junmyeon spoke up before Lay got a chance to respond. “I wasn