[CONTENTID1]"Everything about you and me."[/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]

Jeonghan is a simple person. He spends his time leisurely and gets through his days without lifting a finger. Even in class, he dozes off with earbuds plugged in and only wakes up when students have been long dismissed. Now that he’s in his second year, it seems his slacking off have finally caught up. Maybe he should have put in a little more effort, the thought crosses his mind as he stands before his counselor. As usual, the elder man is spurting nonsense that Jeonghan cannot comprehend. Every words drain his body strength to a point where his thick lids grow heavy.

“Yoon Jeonghan, are you even listening?”

Jeonghan flutters his lashes and quickly fixes his posture, crossing his arms behind his back.

“Y-Yes, Mr. Kwon.” The pretty student stammers, “You said something about not having enough credits…?”

Mr. Kwon adjusts his round glasses, pushing it above the bridge of his nose as he glares back.

“Yes, and you won’t be able to graduate in time at this rate.”

Wait. What? Jeonghan won’t be able to graduate? Well, that’s not what he had in plan for the following years. University is first priority, his mother had said so, but somewhere along the way, it seems Jeonghan had forgotten about it. His father would definitely not be pleased when he hears about this. Jeonghan had to fix everything before his parents return from their business trip. Now.

“No, no—that can’t happen, Mr. Kwon, I want to graduate, I’ll do anything.” Jeonghan pleads, bowing countless times until all he receives are odd looks from other staff in the office.

The elder man mumbles something inaudible before he spins around to grasp the computer mouse on his messy desk. “There may be some extracurricular activities you can do, let me see…” Mr. Kwon murmurs softly as he squints at the brightly lit screen.

Jeonghan waits impatiently, tapping fingers against his thighs and humming some song that’s been stuck in his head until Mr. Kwon hushes him with a ‘be quiet’ and he halts, slumping back in a chair instead. The beautiful male flips his long, brunette hair behind his shoulders, looking around while popping bubbles with the gum in his mouth. “Spit that out.” Mr. Kwon says, shoving a small trash can toward Jeonghan who eventually does as told. “Here,” Mr. Kwon turns over to take a chilled juice box out of his miniature refrigerator and passes it over. “Enjoy this instead.”

Jeonghan takes it, smiling mischievously as he stabs a straw through and indulges in the sweet drink. As if on cue, the principal walks through the door and when their gazes connect, Jeonghan swiftly tears away, facing an opposite direction while slurping a bit too loudly. It’s useless though, the insanely strict principal approaches as usual with a disapproving look.

“How many times a week must I see you in here, Jeonghan-sii?”

The long haired beauty grins cheekily, beckoning Mr. Kwon to speak in his stead. The elder man fixes his collar as he removes himself from his desk to explain privately with Mr. Kim, the principal whom Jeonghan was always running from. The rigorous man seem to often sought Jeonghan whether in class or hallways and find reasons as to put him in detention, so it’s safe to say he hated the beautiful male’s guts, therefore, he never went to detention so he could piss off the man even more. Mr. Kwon guides Mr. Kim a few distances away, raising up several pieces of thin paper that makes the ever so strict man’s face distorts and his earlier stern expression replaced with a frown. Then suddenly, Mr. Kim glances at Jeonghan and his mouth is moving non-stop, saying things at a voice too low but Mr. Kwon seems to nod at everything consentingly.

“Jeonghan,” Mr. Kwon clears his throat, “We’ve come up with something for you. Why don’t you follow Mr. Kim into his office and he’ll disclose it all with you?”

And that’s why Jeonghan is now walking around campus in search of the principal’s dear son, Kim Mingyu. Jeonghan has heard of him, of course he has, everyone knows Mingyu. And he has seen him a few times too, although they’ve never exchanged a word. After all, Jeonghan and Mingyu had different starting points, even now, it seems like they are in parallel worlds. Mingyu, the child prodigy who’s been a pianist genius from an age too young can’t be compared to Jeonghan who is mediocre at everything he does. They are like two people walking on a line of divergence. Mingyu has been surrounded by large crowds applauding him since he was a child, on the other hand, Jeonghan had no one from the start, not even the shadow of his busy parents.

As he turns a corner, a soft melody lures him toward the music room where he is met with a ball of pink, fluffy hair. The petite male looks up, his fingers stopping at the monochrome keys he’d hovered over just seconds ago. Jeonghan fidgets before Jihoon, the music club president whom also happened to excel at both studies and sports, thus despite being a bit blunt at times, he was adored by many for his great leadership. It’s ironic, because his boyfriend, Choi Seungcheol is the honorable school president and somehow, they were just perfect for each other, just like a power couple. Jeonghan admired that about the two lovers. He’s sure everyone else felt the same way.

A tiny smile tugs at Jihoon’s rose tinted lips and his cat-like eyes turn to crescent moon as he takes notice of the long haired beauty.

“Are you looking for someone?” Jihoon asks softly.

“Oh—”Jeonghan his hair away from his face nervously. “Kim Mingyu…”

“Ahh, Mingyu is at the soccer field with Jun and Jisoo.” Jihoon replies, “He doesn’t really like being in here these days.”

Jeonghan stares back blankly, nonetheless, he doesn’t probe any further.

“Thank you.”

Jeonghan twirls around delicately, walking at a leisure pace down the hall and passing by a few students who are headed home. He wished he could leave too, but now that he has to do supplementary activities afterschool, he might as well kiss goodbye to free time after the bell rings. Mr. Kim had given him three options, cram school on the weekends, retake each test he failed and score at least a B-, or assist Mingyu while his hand is injured. Of course, Jeonghan picked the easy way out. All he had to do was ‘support’ Mingyu with school work afterschool, so it’s like a tutoring session, except Jeonghan isn’t really tutoring. Rather, he is only doing small things, like writing or drawing (Mr. Kim didn’t divulge any more than that) for Mingyu since his dominant hand is in the process of healing. In a way, Jeonghan thinks he’s lucky, because no normal student would have this kind of privilege. But he had no idea of what awaits him beyond this point.

Jeonghan swings open the heavy, metal portal and a radiating beam of light bursts through, causing the long haired beauty to immediately shut his eyes from the glittering luminescence. A gust of wind brushes his cheeks and he perceives several students kicking around a soccer ball at the grassy field. Amidst familiar faces, Jeonghan spots Jisoo, laughing as he clings on to his boyfriend, Jun as usual. Those two were always stuck together like glue no matter where they went. Even during Jun’s big games, Jisoo sat at the sidelines, as close as possible to the team.

Jeonghan approaches the unbothered lovers carefully, merely standing there as if he doesn’t exist until Jisoo finally turns around and notices his presence. “Jeonghan!” Jisoo shouts a little too high-spiritedly, crushing the beautiful male in a tight hug. As usual, he’s as friendly as ever.

“Ugh—I can’t breathe.” Jeonghan reaches out for Jun who chuckles lightly in return but does nothing to separate Jisoo from the long haired beauty.

Jisoo giggles as he releases the beautiful male, ruffling his long hair right after.

“Don’t you always go home right after the bell rings?” Jisoo asks jokingly, patting the top of his head like a child.

Jeonghan sighs, “It’s a long story,” He says, “By the way, I’m looking for Mingyu.”

Jisoo pauses momentarily, scrunching his thick brows. “Mingyu? He’s over there.”

Jeonghan follows Jisoo’s pointing finger, taking hesitant steps toward the wooden bench where Mingyu seem to be lying down on. When he reaches the long and tall figure resting on that bench, he leans over, just mere inches away from Mingyu and all he does is stare. Jeonghan extends an arm, reaching for the book that covered the sleeping male’s face. Mingyu’s usual neat uniform is worn in a disheveled way today, his necktie hanging loose and buttons not properly done all the way, therefore his glowing, tan skin and bare chest is exposed in the specks of shimmering light. Jeonghan takes notice of his right hand that falls to the ground; it’s bandaged in white cloth. Slowly, the long haired beauty removes the book and Mingyu’s face is revealed. It’s the first time he is seeing Mingyu up so close that for some reason, his pulse races uncontrollably. Jeonghan doesn’t remember Mingyu being that handsome. Somehow, he finds himself mesmerised by those long curled lashes, high nose, and cherry red lips. Though several minutes have gone by, Jeonghan can’t stop staring at Mingyu’s sharp features, his chiseled cheekbones and keen jawline. Seriously, his face has been sculpted by the gods. Despite being a genius, Mingyu was also a hunk? Graced with handsomeness and a built body? Jeonghan couldn’t believe the absurdity that God would bless an individual with the full package of being this perfect.

Jeonghan is brought back to his senses when Mingyu starts moving around, turning and tossing in that cramped position, until all of a sudden, the entire bench, including Mingyu himself flips over.

“Ahh!—” The pressure of Mingyu’s larger physique pushes Jeonghan backwards and he tumbles with force. A loud thud resounds as his back hits the soil beneath and he groans in pain while Mingyu collapses atop his thin frame. This is definitely awkward. Jeonghan decides he should remain still even though he’s being squashed underneath Mingyu because this is surely the strangest way to meet someone for the first time. Mingyu lifts up his head from Jeonghan’s beating chest, peering his eyes as he tries to register what in the world just happened, and who exactly he’s lying on top of. Jeonghan laughs uneasily when Mingyu gazes at him in confusion, their faces just centimeters apart. They’re both so close that even the bridge of their noses skim.

Mingyu seems to look at him oddly, as if he were depicting dreams and realities.

“Jeonghan?”

The beautiful male has never heard that voice nor his name from those lips before. He stares back puzzledly into Mingyu’s glistening, dark brown orbs.

“You know me?” Jeonghan inquires. He thinks he probably caught Mingyu off guard. Mingyu seems to panic, blinking swiftly as he looks around until his eyes land on the bijou, metal plate clipped to Jeonghan’s chest pocket.

“Your name tag.” Mingyu quickly answers.

“O-Oh...okay.”

Jeonghan looks away, still feeling awkward that Mingyu hasn’t gotten off him yet. Upon realizing the position they were both in, Mingyu slides off almost reluctantly. Jeonghan springs up from his bottom and is quick to get on his feet, patting his clothes from chunks of dirt and dead grass. The long haired beauty glances back at Mingyu who stands a few meters above, towering the smaller Jeonghan with his height. The beautiful male bites his bottom lip anxiously while fumbling around.

“You need something from me?” Mingyu clicks his tongue, “It better be good, cause you just disturbed me from a good nap.” The taller male blabbers, slanting in posture and sighing deeply while brushing fingers through his strands of hair. His whole expression twists 360 degree.

Jeonghan frowns. He takes back all that ‘perfect’ talk about Mingyu. It seems while God was busy creating the all but too perfect Mingyu, he forgot to give Mingyu a personality.

“Umm, well, no.” Jeonghan retorts, “Your dad, you know, the principal, gave me an assignment of tending to you while your hand is injured. I’m supposed to stick with you afterschool. He didn’t really get too deep into it but he said I’m supposed to assist you with school work? Like writing for you, recording notes, and other stuff you can’t do for now, until you are fully healed.”

Mingyu scoffs as if to ridicule the beautiful male, and he tosses his school bag toward Jeonghan who loses a hitch of breath, nonetheless, manages to catch it just in time. The long haired beauty looks up infuriatingly, his mouth drops from being too surprised at the sudden treatment.

“Carry that then.” Mingyu says simply, smirking annoyingly.

Jeonghan can feel himself fuming from rage. He slings both bags, Mingyu’s and his own, over his shoulder and threatens Mingyu with a twitching, lopsided grin.

“O-Of course.” Jeonghan falters angrily.

He could not believe this ungrateful brat. Was it too late to turn down the offer? He’d rather go to cram school or retake those damn tests than stick with this for who knows how long. But he knows better than to go crawling back to the mess he created. It’s his own fault he was failing, his own decision to not study hard enough, so this is probably his punishment. That’s right, he should think on the bright side. Mingyu is nothing more than a punishment that he has to put up with until he fulfills his wrongdoings. Until then, he has to bear it while gritting through his teeth.

The first day he spends with Mingyu is the most terrible experience he’d ever had in his life. Jeonghan is dragged into some cafe a few blocks down and he’s even prevailed into buying a list of sweet drinks and desserts (with Mingyu’s money, of course) then coerced into feeding the damned brat. “What are you waiting for? I can’t do this myself.” Mingyu had stated, full of ego. Jeonghan gave him a good glare as he scooped up big spoonfuls of strawberry shaved ice cream and shoved it into his opened mouth, all while stuffing assorted pieces of fruits right after and following with forcing a chocolate shake down his throat, not giving him much time in between to swallow. When Mingyu chokes from a brain freeze, Jeonghan laughs in a loud voice, clapping his hands in the air until he is snorting through hot tears dripping from the corner of his eyes.

Time flies as they continue to fool around, mostly in which consists of Mingyu kicking his foot underneath the table or better yet, Mingyu playing with his strands of hair. Jeonghan doesn’t understand the entertainment Mingyu finds in stealing his utensils either. Mingyu is like a big puppy, always begging for attention. “Are you going to do homework or not?” Jeonghan asks when he realizes they’ve accomplished nothing for the past four hours. All Mingyu’s been doing is ordering more and more sweets while teasing every action Jeonghan takes. Really, what was the fun in that? Jeonghan doesn’t think he is that amusing. By the way, how does Mingyu even maintain that, technically ‘hot’ body (not that Jeonghan would ever admit it) when he indulges that much sugar? Jeonghan wishes God would at least give him half of what he gave Mingyu. But anyways, on a serious note, they’ve got to at least do one thing today. He wants to make up for his credits and graduate after all. It’s the only reason he is hanging out with Mingyu like this.

“I don’t feel like doing anything.”

Jeonghan sighs, “Do you wanna go home then?”

“No.” Mingyu cuts in quickly.

Jeonghan stares at him bafflingly, “Okay, then. What do you want me to do for you?” The long haired beauty inquires, pulling out several pieces of paper from his binder. “Take notes for you, write down your homework, something, I have to do something to help you. It’s my promise with your dad.”

Mingyu glowers, “What did he promise you?”

Jeonghan hesitates to answer. He remembers Mr. Kim telling him to keep it a secret from other students because it will appear as if he were being favored...but he guesses it’s okay if it’s Mingyu.

“He said I can make up for missing credits if I do this.”

It’s completely silent between them for several minutes. All that echoed were music playing from the overhead and small chattering from all around their area. Suddenly, all Jeonghan could hear was the heartbreaking sound of Mingyu’s cold chuckle, stabbing through his chest. For some reason, he sounded so hoarse—so pitiful...so sorrowful and unbelievably disappointed.

“That’s the only reason you’re here with me now?”

Mingyu droops his head, eyes downcast, merely keeping his gaze on the surface of a table. Jeonghan doesn’t fathom the reason for his change of attitude. It’s hard to portray to words.

“What do you mean?” The beautiful male ends up asking.

Mingyu chuckles again, his voice cracks slightly. “Nothing. I’m going home.”

That evening, Jeonghan watches Mingyu leave quietly. His back drifts into a distance too far from reach and within an overflowing crowd, he disappears without a second glance or doubt. Jeonghan realizes Mingyu left empty handed, he didn’t even take his school bag or wallet with him. Everything is as before, papers and pencils splattered messily. Jeonghan respires deeply and eventually cleans it all up, dumping all of Mingyu’s belongings back to where it should be.

The following morning, Jeonghan leaves his house with the intent of returning Mingyu’s things before class starts but he ends up sleeping in for way too long, thus he forgets about it as he’s rushing to blow dry his hair while stumbling to put on his uniform. This time, it takes too long to tie a proper bow around his collars, so he just gives in. As he’s out the door, Jeonghan runs with both school bags in one hand and a milk carton in the other, while a piece of burnt toast rests between his lips. His long, sun kissed hair reflects in the warm light, swaying as he dashes beneath cherry blossom trees. The fleeting petals fall and land on his delicate shoulders, then are brushed away by the cool breeze and under his feet. Just as he enters through the entrance gate, Jeonghan chews his food quickly, wiping away the tiny crumbs from his mouth, and hurrying as the bell rings.

During rest periods, Jeonghan attempts to find Mingyu, scurrying down the crowded hallways and inquiring other classmates about his whereabouts, but in the end, his five minutes are up and he’s stuck in class again. Mingyu is always surrounded by friends, so why didn’t any of them know where he was, not even the class he’s in? Jeonghan can’t seem to fit the puzzles in its accurate place. So, he waits until lunchtime rolls around. Jeonghan bumps into Jisoo and Jun but those two were too absorbed in each other that they didn’t remember where Mingyu headed even after just seeing him seconds ago. Jeonghan scampers around for awhile longer, until he discerns Jihoon and Seungcheol walking hand in hand towards the canteen. He catches up to the petite male right away. Jeonghan places his hand on Jihoon’s shoulder and the pink haired male turns around with widened eyes, staring blankly at Jeonghan who tries to convey his words through short breaths.

“Min...gyu...where is...he?”

Jeonghan respires slowly, inhaling and exhaling while Seungcheol laughs softly beside his boyfriend who blinks a couple of times to register what the long haired beauty was trying to say.

Jihoon giggles cutely, “Mingyu is usually at the rooftop during lunch.”

Jeonghan finally laughs at ease, “Thanks! See you guys later—”

“Jeonghan!”

The beautiful male spins around to Jihoon’s soft voice.

“Take care of him, okay? He really needs someone by his side right now.”

Jeonghan scrunches his brows, confused at what Jihoon was getting at, but he doesn’t get a chance to ask because Seungcheol is pulling him away all too suddenly.

As Jeonghan accesses through the door of his destination, a blast of wind blows his hair away from his face and cherry blossoms swirl from the asphalt, brushing across his cheeks. The person he sought enters his line of vision. At the rim of the rooftop, Mingyu sits alone with his back facing Jeonghan. He’s alone, with earbuds plugged in and his two feet dangle from the edge of surface. Steadily, Jeonghan sneaks up behind Mingyu, leaning over his broad shoulder and he snatches one side of Mingyu’s earphone, causing the taller male to turn around all too quickly. When their gazes connect, a weak smile tugs at Mingyu’s lips. Jeonghan thinks that for an instance, for just a short moment, Mingyu’s earlier dull expression softens, almost like he were glad to see Jeonghan.

Jeonghan raises up Mingyu’s school bag, “I’ve been trying to return this to you all day.”

Mingyu seizes it without a word and he retrieves his earphone from Jeonghan, looking away while plugging it back in. How inconsiderate. Why does Mingyu keep ruining his day? Jeonghan frowns, he wonders how long he could tolerate this brat. Out of irritation, he snatches both earbuds out this time and closes their distance. Mingyu sighs to himself and gives in when Jeonghan draws near and suddenly, they’re in each other’s faces again. Jeonghan seems to notice and pulls away.

“Why do you have to be so annoying?” Jeonghan remarks, throwing the earphones in Mingyu’s lap. “A thank you would have been nice, you know?”

Mingyu laughs, at last, it isn’t a mocking laughter. At least, for Jeonghan, it sounded genuine.

“If I’m annoying, then what are you?” The taller male interjects, which only further pisses off the long haired beauty who pouts in return.

“Why are you up here by yourself anyways?” Jeonghan switches the subject, if not, they’d just continue arguing. “I’m sure your friends would want to eat with you.”

It’s silent after that. Jeonghan doesn’t hear any response from Mingyu, so all he does is slouch back, kicking his feet below as he takes out his plastic boxed lunch, and grips to chopsticks made out of bamboo. Jeonghan munches to his well assorted meal, jabbing through colorful side dishes, while looking up at the sky and watching as the fluffy, white clouds drift away. When he takes a glimpse at Mingyu, the taller male is simply staring down from where they both were, too high up. Something about Mingyu pains him. “He really needs someone by his side right now.” Jeonghan suddenly reca