It hadn’t even been a month into middle school and I already wanted to drop out. It wasn’t that the classes were hard or that there was too much work. It was the people.

I still had all my classes with my friends since we were in the same group. However, I hated the fact that we were forced to have physical education with the middle schoolers. It was fine for the most part, or at least for the parts when they weren’t close to me.

Most people in the school already knew that I was very reserved and only every hung out with my friend group. They knew that I by myself was vulnerable. When we changed in the locker rooms I’d get pushed around. When we played dodgeball I was the first one to be hit out. When I was drinking water my face would get shoved and the water would get in my nose.

Baekhyun had witnessed it once and almost got into a fight with a group of middle schoolers because of it. Chanyeol was ready to back him up but Sehun and I insisted that it would only bring trouble and so they stopped.

It was always like this. People saw me as an easy target, my friends would notice, and I got them in trouble.  

*Time Skip to First Year of High School*

I felt so bad, it’s been five years since I arrived in this sector. One would think that by now I’d at least be able to stand up for myself and not back down at just everything. Jimin and Jiwon had been sorted out last year but I couldn’t go receive Jiwon because I was scared that’d he be ashamed to be seen with me.

I visited his dorm after they had settled in and he had hugged me, talked to me. He told me the things that went on while I was away and he seemed excited to see me. But I still didn’t want to make it so that he ended up like me.

We were on break and in that gave me an opportunity, and opportunity to change and come back to school anew. I didn’t want to drag the guys into fights that I should be fighting on my own. Yes, it was nice to know that they would support me no matter what and that they had my back. But that shouldn’t apply to every single minute that I spent in school. Maybe if I acted tougher, wore different clothes or began to fight back, maybe then I wouldn’t be seen as a weak link.

The guys and I had gone to the mall one day, decided that it would be nice to hang out. While we were there we had separated to look at different things. Kyungsoo and I went to look at clothes and things of the like.

“Do you know any stores that sell stylish clothes…?”

Kyungsoo turned to me with a confused expression. “You? Stylish? You’re looking for stylish clothes?” he said with disbelief.