F O U R

A new day had begins, it was getting even closer to the graduating examination week. The teacher entered the class and had the look of one who had woken up one spring morning to find that their youth had passed by before they had had any fun. She gazed at the class as if their faces had become a sea, a moving mass of nothing she could focus on or care about. The lesson poured out from her in the same dull pattern it had for the past 3 years, she even breathed in the same places.

The smart suits she had diligently worn as a new graduate and given way to elastic waist-banded pants and long flowing tops. Her face knew how to perform all the right gestures, but the passion behind them had long since abandoned her. Most days her still brown hair was swept up into a plastic clasp, not to look professional, but to hide the fact that she was overdue for a shower. She still handed out homework, but didn't care if the kids did it or not. More coming back to her meant more marking, that meant less soap operas, never a good thing as far as she was concerned.

“Are you seriously letting him eat in our table everyday?” Sehun looked at Irene.

“Why not?” Irene was smiling as she drew something on her notebook.

“Why not!?” Sehun slightly raised his voice. He looked up to the front and as he saw the teacher wasn’t listening to them, he looked back to Irene.

“What if he was just playing with you?”

“Do you think so?”

“Huh?” Sehun stopped talking for a while, “What is this mood?”

“It seems that I’m everyone’s target when they’re bored, right?”

“Hey,” Sehun was surprised at Irene’s reaction, he didn’t mean it that way.

“You’re not a joke, okay?”

“At least I have you who didn’t think of me as a joke.” Irene raised her face and looked to the side, looking back at Sehun and smiled.

“Why are you so emo today?” Sehun asked, confused.

“I don’t know.” Irene continued to sketch on her notebook.

“Are you on your period?” Sehun joked around,

Irene who heard about his joke got her eyes widened up and looked at him with a furious gaze and ended up slapping Sehun’s back so hard that the sound echoed all across the classroom. That sound attracted the teacher’s attention.

“You two!” The teacher pointed at Irene and Sehun, who was trying to bear the pain on his burning back.

“Go out to the field and run 10 laps! Now!”

Sehun looked back at Irene with pain was drawn on his face, and Irene was looking at him with her mischievous laugh.

***

Sehun’s POV

Irene made the turn for her tenth lane. In the field, she had no worries, no homework, no boyfriend, no nagging Mom or irritating brother - it was just her and the quiet field.

 “Are you seriously smiling?” I exclaimed between my pants.

“We’re skipping class!” Irene spread my arms wide as she adds up more speed to her steps, running our last lap on the field.

“Ya!” I screamed desperately, “Wait for me!”

Salty droplets flow down my face like soft summer rain, dripping onto the concrete as I sat to regain his breath. My down my back is a dark stripe amid the clean white color of my top, a spreading map of perspiration.

The heat was so devastating I thought I was going to shrivel up on the spot, dehydrated. I didn’t usually feel this drained, this parched. The sun seemed to bite into me, to eat into my skin and eyes despite a straw hat and dark glasses. But everything seemed so fun and fine when I’m with Irene, she’s like a personal energy booster for me.

“I feel like dying.” I murmured as I acted as if I would throw up.

“It’s your fault.” I caught a glimpse of smile on her lips.

I suddenly doubled myself up and burst into a loud harsh cackle of laughter.

Whoop! I went and doubled myself up with laughter.

Whoop! Whoop! I went, and fell on the ground and writhed with laughter.

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