Some RANDOM Haechan

Morning!

Hey

Oh no

What’s wrong, Caster Meow?

Do I need to beat anyone up?

I’m just worried for Mark Lee

The bullying seemed pretty bad yesterday

Yeah same here

Anyway, daily exchange?

I know Mark Lee

EVERYONE knows Mark Lee

No like

Personally

OH

Well what an interesting development

Because I know him personally too

Really?

Yeah!

OMG WHAT IF WE KNOW EACH OTHER

BUT WE DONT KNOW

Well, you’d be very disappointed

I don’t think you could ever disappoint me, Caster Meow

Anyway, that was NOT my exchange

So was that for free?

I guess

I work for the news team!!

OML

WHICH ONE

Not Jeno

Not Jaemin either

Wait

Are you the Chinese one who isn’t Renjun?

Can’t answer that

~

“You look very dead.” Koeun stated once he arrived at their lunch table during their lunch break. Jeno and Jaemin were arguing with Hina about something regarding the news team with Yukhei and Yeri nowhere to be found.

“I feel very dead,” He replied, suddenly remembering the brief conversation he had with Haechan that morning when he had woken up. “Just Haechan being confusing.”

“Mark, you know this whole stranger thing is not healthy,” Koeun stated, a slight frown on her face as he sat down, glancing around the cafeteria and seeing the news team laughing over some small cake. “Everything is going to come back around.”

“It’s the whole ‘not being judged’ thing that happens, you know?” He responded, laughing shyly as he stared at Donghyuck from across the room - the younger was laughing brightly with his friends as one of his taller friends shoved a large portion of the cake into his face. “With everything that’s happened, I just want someone who won’t give me for who I am.”

“Mark, look around at this table,” Koeun whispered, voice soft and slightly offended as she gestured to Hina, Jaemin and Jeno who were playfully shoving each other around. “They won’t give you , I won’t give you and Yeri and Yukhei definitely won’t give you . We’ll give everyone else instead.”

“But there are some things that I just can’t voice,” He insisted, looking down at the table and sighing. “Well…I guess its voiced now.”

“Mark, if this is about you being gay-“

“It has everything to do with me being gay,” He interrupted, his throat drying up as he swallowed thickly. “Koeun, you don’t understand-“

“I think I do, Mark,” Koeun whispered, her eyes holding so much hurt as she sighed and stood up, gesturing for him to follow her.

And with Mark Lee being curious, he followed.

They walked through the hallways, twisting and turning before stepping into an unused classroom that seemed to be used for mathematics.

“Do you know why I always deal with Yeri’s teasing?” She asked him, sitting herself on top of a classroom desk and swinging her legs as her eyes still held that blanket of hurt. “Why I betted and hoped that she wasn’t dating Jaemin?”

“Uh…no?” He replied, furrowing his eyebrows as Koeun took a very deep breath and sighed.

“For someone with such high grades, you are an A class idiot,” She commented before looking at Mark dead in the eye. “I’m biual, Mark. Closeted and the only one who knows is you. Not Yeri, not Hina, not Yukhei - just you…and I like Kim Yerim but she’s dating Jaemin and they’re really really in deep for each other.”

“Koeun, I…” Mark trailed off, clearly at a loss for words before stepping closer to her and giving her a comforting hug that he wished someone had given him the moment the announcement had been broadcasted. “You’re going to be fine. I’ll make sure you’re fine,” He whispered as she nuzzled her face in his shoulder and he felt something wet - tears - fall on his uniform. He felt guilt at not having noticed his friend’s suffering earlier because if he had, maybe Koeun wouldn’t be in so much pain now.

“I was so scared.” He heard her whisper, sniffles coming through as she took her time to say what she wanted. “I thought that someone would find out…I…Mark, it hurt so much.”

“I can only imagine, Koeun,” He replied helplessly, holding her closer and realising why Koeun had been so adamant with defending him from the bullies - the others hadn’t screamed at the bullies and preferred to take his mind off them by starting or continuing their conversation. “I’m so sorry that you had to deal with this alone.”

“Don’t be, it’s not your fault,” Koeun replied, pulling back and wiping the remaining tears that lingered in her eyes. “That’s why you have to make sure you give yourself and Donghyuck a chance! Before it’s too late! Don’t end up like me, Mark…”

“I can’t even have a stable conversation with Donghyuck now that the whole school knows about my crush on him,” He mumbled, feeling like a child who was coming up with excuses to tell his parents. “No way in hell he likes me back.”

“You never know, Mark,” Koeun forced out from her lessening sniffles and drying eyes. “Sometimes, you only need one thing to make you realise your feelings for another.” Vaguely, in the back of his mind, Mark remembered the words that Haechan had sent him: Well…I usually didn’t care about him but now