Jooheon stands out at the front of the school, leaning against a cement pillar. He watches apathetically as his peers flood towards the building from the street, his gaze blank and unreadable. A few of his soccer buddies from last term greet him, and he can only hum a reply. 

It's been a week since he'd last seen Kihyun and Hyungwon together, and he definitely isn't prepared for it now... Not that he really thinks he'll ever be prepared for such a glaring reminder of his heartbreak. 

Speaking of whom... 

Here they come now, Jooheon silently muses at seeing the couple round the corner into the parking lot. In all their newly-reunited glory... Whoop-dee-frikkin'-doo. 

"Ya gotta let it go, Heonney," a familiar voice murmurs in his ear. He feels Minhyuk wraps a consoling arm around his shoulders, and it's all he has in him to keep from shaking off the hold. "They're happy, and you owe it to yourself to find happiness, too." 

"What sage advice, hyung," Jooheon mutters back under his breath, his voice dripping with bitterness. "Really, you should put that in a book and sell it. You'd make millions." 

"You know," Minhyuk sighs out exasperatedly, "this attitude of yours is getting really tiresome. I don't care if you're sarcastic with me, but you even wailed on Kkungie the other day... Deal with your pain already and stop making the rest of us suffer." He drops his arm and walks off, grumbling under his breath something about moody teenagers. Jooheon sighs heavily, willingly ignoring the guilty bite in his heart at the memory. 

The poor maknae had come over, as none of the group had heard from him since that day in the diner, and he'd wanted to check on the older. He'd tried to be a comfort to Jooheon, to hang out with him and let him vent, but Jooheon had only snapped at him and told him to leave. He just couldn't help it, he's been so angry that he's been letting loose on everyone lately... 

Of course, he'd called Changkyun and apologized profusely when he'd realized what he'd done. Changkyun had accepted the apology without the slightest bit of hesitation, but the damage had already been done. He hasn't seen the younger yet, but he's pretty sure his guard-dog of a boyfriend will be glaring at him all throughout lunch. And, man, if that isn't Jooheon's idea of fun, then he just doesn't know what fun is anymore. 

Jooheon refocuses on the situation at hand, shoving thoughts of that mess aside for later. For now, he's waiting for a transfer kid to show up. He'd agreed to helping Kihyun with welcoming committee duties last term, as the older had just had too much on his plate to be able to give it the proper amount of time, so it's now his job to show this Song Gunhee around campus. 

He wonders what this new kid is like, if he's one of the preppy types or if he's just genuinely into doing extracurriculars... Or, what if he isn't into anything at all? What if he's a loner? What if they won't have anything in common? Jooheon's supposed to play the part of his first friend at this new school, but he isn't really in the best place mentally to be playing such a role... 

The best this kid can hope for at this point is that Jooheon not go off on him just for asking where the nearest bathroom is. 

Jooheon frowns, looking around for someone matching Song's description. Of course, there was a photo with his transcripts, but the stupid file wouldn't load on Jooheon's computer no matter how hard he tried. God, he really ought to get a new one, at this point. That annoying hunk of metal has become obsolete throughout the years. 

"Um, excuse me?" a lighthearted sort-of voice asks. Jooheon turns only to see a boy of similar height staring at him, his small eyes upturned into a sort of eye-smile and a wide grin spread across his face. He's wearing a snapback that Jooheon recognizes, it's actually one he'd just seen on one of his favorite designer's websites not too long ago, and his school uniform seems a bit askew. 

"Are you Lee Jooheon, by chance?"  

Jooheon nods once, and the boy before him sighs in relief. 

"Thank God," he comments, reaching out and taking Jooheon's hand in for a vigorous shake that practically tears Jooheon's arm out of his socket. "I'm Song Gunhee... I didn't even realize when I walked passed you, man! I just went straight to the office, and then they told me to come find you." He barks out a fit of laughter at himself, shaking his head.  

"O-Oh," Jooheon stammers out, quite taken aback by this kid's energy. He struggles to remember the script he'd had to memorize when he took this job. "Welcome to Starship High, Gunhee-nim... We can—" 

"Ahhhh, just call me Gunhee," the boy tells him. "Or, better yet, call me hyung! I heard that you're a few months younger than me." 

"O-Okay, hyung," Jooheon says dryly, trying for a light chuckle as he just goes with the flow. He figures it's better to just go along with it for now. They're supposed to be friends, after all. "Um, let's go ahead and get started with the tour, then!" He tries to put as much feeling into his voice as possible, which is quite the feat considering he hasn't felt much emotion ever since that breakdown in Minhyuk's car...  

Memories of that day flood his mind, and it takes much more effort than he has in him to shove the residual hurt away to deal with for a later time. 

"I don't know why I bother doing anything nice for you, dongsaeng," Kihyun declares teasingly as he steps out of the car. "Yet again you've made me late for the speech set-up..." Hyungwon chuckles warmly as he gets out of the car, as well, and steps over to place a sweet kiss against Kihyun's cheek. 

"Because you love me~" he says with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. Kihyun hums, smirking bemusedly as he takes Hyungwon's hand in his. 

"Do I, now?" he asks, a playful lilt to his voice. Hyungwon pouts cutely, a hand snaking out to pinch Kihyun's sides in retaliation. Kihyun yelps out a hyena-like laugh, shaking his head at his boyfriend. He takes in their surroundings, eyes skipping over all the people milling about on their way to school. The fourth-year takes in a deep breath, reveling in the fact that this is his last first day of high school. 

It's a wonderfully liberating feeling, if he does say so himself. 

He spots Jooheon on the front steps shaking hands with someone, and his good mood falters ever so slightly. His brilliant smile trembles a bit, and his gaze hardens. Hyungwon recognizes the look of distress trying to overtake his boyfriend's joyous expression, and he immediately looks around to try and find the source of hurt... 

Upon seeing their mutual friend, he sighs knowingly. The taller steps closer, pressing a consoling kiss against the older's hair. Kihyun pushes out a low chuckle, tearing his eyes away as Jooheon turns towards the school.  

"Have you heard from him?" Hyungwon asks, though he knows the answer. Kihyun wordlessly shakes his head, a bitter taste rising in his mouth. He releases a shaky breath, throwing his shoulders back and shoving thoughts of his childhood friend aside for now. 

"C'mon, Wonnie," Kihyun says, a false bravado to his voice. "Let's get to the auditorium. If Principal Hyolyn notices I'm late, I won't hesitate to blame you, Chae Hyungwon." 

Hyungwon chuckles amusedly, allowing Kihyun to tug him along... thoughts of their friend remaining in the back of his mind.