Ungjae stared at the menu in the cafeteria, but he wasn't really looking at it.

"Bro." Sang waved a hand in front of his face.

"Oh," Ungjae looked at his hyung surprised and laughed. "I don't know which to eat, I'm not really hungry."

Sang nodded. "We could share the curry then."

"Okay," Ungjae smiled. Sang went to order it and Ungjae sat at the table with his friends.

"Dude," Jeup half laughed. "What's with you today? You're so out of it, and you're extra rude."

Ungjae opened a his water bottle and said, "Nothing," before sipping a bit.

"He's on his period," Jian remarks, and they all burst into laughter.

"Dude, I choked." Taeho coughed.

Jian, who was sitting next to Taeho, scooted away. "Don't spit food on me, boy."

"Don't make me," Taeho teased, shaking his head.

"Y'all are weird," Sang came over and sat between Jeup and Ungjae, curry in hand. "I heard y'all laughing all the way over there, dude."

Ungjae took a small spoonful of plain rice and chewed on it slowly.

Everyone quietly decided it was a bad idea to keep asking the boy what was bothering him. Instead, Jeup decided to ask, "Have you guys ever traveled? Outside of Korea?" He knew the answer, but didn't know what else to say.

Everyone shook their heads. Taeho spoke, "I haven't traveled anywhere, but I want to go to Italy. The food is delicious, isn't it? And it's such a beautiful country, I want to see it first hand."

"Mm..." Sang agreed. "Italy sounds nice."

Ungjae chuckled. "There's probably just some girl he wants to see."

They all laughed, but Taeho just giggled and shook his head and continued to eat.

"Oh, it is a girl," Jian poked his friend. "Yoooo, who is she?"

Taeho blushed, since all eyes were on him. "It's no one..." Silence. "Well, okay!" he laughed. "I met her on the internet. It's nothing though, we're just friends, but yes, she does live in Italy."

"Yah," Jeup softly punched Taeho's arm. "She must like you, right?"

Taeho shook his head. "It's nothing, I already said. We're only friends. Besides, how can someone like me think of girls? It's not like they'll look at me. I don't have a future or anything..."

Again, silence.

"I can't help it... Think of girls, ya know." Sang said with a smile, looking into his imagination. "They're so pretty, but it's not like they'll pay attention to me."

Jeup looked at the group quietly. "How can you guys think so negatively?"

Ungjae raised an eyebrow. "Are you seriously asking that? Have you forgotten who we are?" He began tapping his spoon on the table. "We're the kids who are constantly causing trouble, never do our work, think of only what we want to do now. No one wants to date a guy like that."

"It's not just about girls either..." Sang looked ahead of him, passed Jian and Taeho, but he wasn't looking at anything in particular. "No one wants anything to do with someone like that..."

"How can you have such low self-esteem?"

The five of them looked in the direction of the voice. It was MJ, who was on his way to put his tray away.

"What?" Jian finally spoke.

"Sorry, I couldn't help but overhear what you guys were saying." He carefully stepped toward the table. "I know that you guys hate me, I don't know why... I just want to say, you don't have to feel that way." He flashed a smile. "No one should feel rejected... I'm sure you all can do whatever you like, and that there are many people who will support you and love you for who you are."

"Do you know who we are?" Ungjae cahllenged him. "Do you know the kind of person I am? Of course I do what I want, but I don't get any love and support for it, and I don't need it." He glared at him. "You don't even know what you're saying. You're so optimistic and full of ."

MJ flinched, as if he had been hit.

"We didn't ask for your input, anyways," Jian waved his hand, as if shooing a fly. MJ sighed heavily, then quickly walked away.

"Who does he think he is..." Ungjae laid the spoon on the tray. He had hardly eaten the curry, but he was ready to leave. "I'll be in my dorm sleeping, see ya."

---

 

After a couple more classes was study hall. Everyone gathered in the lecture room at this time. Of course, there were students who did their work, and others who chose to do nothing. Ungjae was the latter, choosing instead to play on his phone.

Another volunteering college student by the name of Youjin spotted Ungjae. He walked over to him. "Yah, Na Ungjae."

The boy looked up from his phone. "Who are you?"

Youjin chuckled. Maybe Ungjae didn't know him, but he's heard a lot about Ungjae. "I'm one of the RA's here, you'd know that if you would pay attention."

Ungjae just rolled his eyes and looked at his phone again.

"Ungjae, do your work please, or I'll have to take your phone." But the boy ignored him. "Ungjae. Na Ungjae! Look at me."

He looked up, irritated. "What the hell do you want?"

Youjin shook his head then took Ungjae's phone. "This? You won't get it back until you finish your homework."

Ungjae looked at him in surprise. He was very upset, but he was determined to get his phone back, so he decided he would act like he was doing something... but Youjin wouldn't walk away.

"I can't concentrate with you staring me down."

Youjin glanced at the worksheet, then at Ungjae. "I think you missed this class today, right? Trig?" He sat down next to him. "I can help you a bit, you know."

"It's fine, I'll figure it out..."

"No, you'll just fall behind. Let me help, that's what I'm here for. Let me show you..."

Youjin essentially gave Ungjae a 30 minute run down of all the things he missed in class. It took a while for Ungjae to understand it, but he slowly began to. After trying a few problems on his own, he improved, even though it took him a long time.

"See? If you work like this often, you will understand better, and you'll finish faster. You don't have to fall behind in your classes. If you need any help, I'm always here, just ask for Youjin." He flashed a warming smile to Ungjae.

"Thanks..." Ungjae didn't want it to show, but he genuinely meant it. "Thanks for the help."

"I'll keep your phone until you're done, but I'll leave you alone." Youjin nodded, stood, and walked back to his original place in the room.

Just a few minutes after he walked away, as Ungjae attempted another problem, Jian almost pounced on him.

"Yah? Are you doing homework?" He laughed. "When was the last time you did that?"

"Youjin, or whatever his name is... he took my phone." He looks behind him to see his four friends, who came and sat all around him.

"So your doing homework?" Sang laughed.

"I can't get it back otherwise."

Taeho looked at Ungjae in disbelief. "Well, if you need help, I'm actually understand this unit, and I finished the homework."

"Then just do it for me!" Ungjae laughed. "I don't feel like doing this , anyways." He dropped his pencil and rubbed his eyes. "This is all a waste of time, I just wanna leave already."

"We're not allowed to go off campus anymore," Jeup reminded him.

"That's not what I mean," Ungjae moaned. "I mean, I want to leave this school, this place! I want to get out of here and be done! It's too stressful."

"Dude, if we pass these classes this summer, we'll be able to graduate with the rest of our grade. Just finish your homework," Sang said.

Ungjae stared at him. "You know damn well I am not going to pass these classes, or graduate, or any of that." He sighed. "I should just drop out now, except my parents will get upset if I do that."

"Hmm..." Sang looked at the ground. "That's true."

"If I leave, I think I'll be able to work for my dad." Jian looked at the ceiling, as if in thought. "He even told me, even though he was upset... If I don't go to college, I can work in the restaurant with him."

"What kind of restaurant is it?" Taeho asked.

"Ramen," Jian frowned. "I used to eat that all the time, since there was always so much... that's why I don't really want to work for him."

Jeup laughed. "You mean that's the only thing keeping you from dropping out?"

"Hmm... yeah." Jian said cooly.

"Whatever works, right?" Taeho shrugged. "It's better to graduate, even if we don't go to college, right?"

Ungjae looked over at Youjin, who was talking to another student. "Hmm, I guess." He turned around to face his homework again. "Right now, I just want my phone back, so I'll finish this now."