*Record Scratch*

*Freeze Frame*

Yep, that's me.

No, not the vague figure you're imagining now from the zero amount of information I've given you, and no, I'm not the heroic yet relatable main-character you'd expect either.

I'm the one that's currently, and quite poetically, hiding in the corner of Hansol Vernon Chwe's room.

Yep, that's the one.

Now, I bet you're all wondering how I got myself into this mess.

Well, it all began with a proclamation from our English teacher.

---

It was the first class of the day. English. It was what some thought of as a free period.

My friend, Yein, sat at my side and lazily flipped through a fashion magazine.

I held back a yawn and quietly observed the classroom.

There were a couple of students chatting in the corner of the room while others scrolled through their phones.

Vernon, however, was speaking to Mrs. Park, our English teacher. Though their conversation was not audible, his facial expressions signaled his growing frustration.

I glanced away and within that second, Vernon screamed suddenly and, quick as a flash, threw his chair at the wall.

The class became startled and all eyes immediately fell upon Vernon. In the silence, his heavy breathing filled the room, anger and regret churning in his stomach.

With a huff, he stormed out of the door followed by Mrs. Park who shut it behind them.

Vernon's sudden outbursts were not unusual. In fact, they occurred periodically. However, I never understood what it was that triggered such rash emotion.

The class began to talk amongst each other once again. (The topic of discussion being Vernon, of course.)

Mrs. Park then entered the classroom, clearly exasperated.

"You all are dismissed," She said, cueing everyone to leave.

I began gathering my belongings and headed for the door, that is until Mrs. Park suddenly stopped me.

"Min, I'd like to speak to you privately," She said.

I hesitantly nodded.

"As you know, Vernon has been disruptive in class, rude to his teachers, and considered a bully among his peers," She began, "If this attitude continues, he could risk expulsion."

I furrowed my brows, "And?"

"And, I need your help. There must be some way to get through to him," She replied.

I shook my head in disapproval, "You're the teacher; I'm sure you've dealt with problem kids before. You probably know how to deal with him better than I do."

"Nothing has worked," She sighed, "But, I do think you may be able to help".

"What?" I said, "You seriously need to go ask someone who has any semblance of control over their lives and I'll give you a hint: that's not me."

"Min, I have allowed Vernon to become a member of the study group you hold here after-school," Mrs. Park responded.

I released a sudden gasp and began stuttering, "B-but I -"

"Min," She began, placing a hand on my shoulder, "If you're able to help Vernon, in any way possible, I promise to write you a strong letter of recommendation for the university of your choice."

I was suddenly taken aback.

"R-really?" I asked.

Mrs. Park nodded, "So, what will it be?"

I paused. At that moment, I began to foresee the inevitable doom that was soon to come, as a result.

And yet, I said: "Okay, I'll do it."

Mrs. Park smiled, "Thank you, Min. I will transfer this information to Vernon. He will be in attendance this afternoon."

And, with that, she left the classroom.

Once alone, I placed a hand against my heating forehead and began attempting to process what had just occurred.

Frustrated, I let out a muffled scream into my hands.

This has been the worst life of my life.

---

As 5:00 P.M approached, students began trickling into the classroom. (The first being Jisoo).

Jisoo has the appetite of a beast and is constantly eating.

After, taking a seat, she began placing various snacks and beverages onto her desk.

(I am being attacked by airborne diabetes).

Soon after, Seung Cheol entered the classroom. He burst through the door, tracking mud along the previously cleaned floor, surprising both Jisoo and I. In his arms were several cans of Red Bull.

(Seung Cheol is one of the thirteen heartthrob's of the school.) - (And yes, Vernon is also included in that list).

"I'm not late, am I?" He asked, attempting to catch his breath.

"No, you're not," I replied.

"Oh - Thank God." He laughed, taking a seat beside Jisoo, "I cannot afford another tardy."

Jisoo rolled her eyes in response.

Seung Cheol paused, "Did you just roll your eyes at me?"

"I'm sorry did I roll my eyes out loud?" Jisoo sarcastically asked.

Seung Cheol crossed his arms, "Keep rolling your eyes, maybe you'll find a brain back there." He then glanced at the large amount of food covering her desk, "How can you eat all that, anyway?!" He asked.

"I treat my body like a trashcan," Jisoo blatantly replied.

Seung Cheol laughed, "Well, the trash gets picked up tomorrow, so be ready."

As Jisoo and Seung Cheol continued to bicker, Joshua quietly entered the room, shortly followed by Jun & Minghao.

I was taken aback. I internally screamed and attempted to contain my rapidly beating heart. (In case you didn't know, I have a crush on Joshua.)

"Hi, Min." He smiled, his perfectly aligned teeth slightly revealed beneath his tender lips.

These were the words that chocked me, leaving me a floundering mess in front of his presence. I shifted my eyes from his bottom lip up to his speckled eyes, blinking nonstop as I tried grasping for words.

"H-Hi, J-Joshua. I-I'm great, thanks for a-asking." I nervously replied.

He raised an eyebrow, "Oh. Uh - okay then."

I released a sigh of relief after he turned away and took a seat behind Jisoo.

It was at that moment that the others began entering the classroom. Woozi and Hoshi were chatting as they entered, their smiles seemingly brightening the dully-colored room.

Mingyu, Jeonghan, and Wonwoo later entered at the same time. They were in a heated discussion and approached my desk.

"Hey Min, do you think I can miss school if my hands get chopped off?" Wonwoo asked.

"Probably not, knowing this school system," I replied.

Jeonghan smiled, "See! I told you that it wouldn't work!"

Wonwoo rolled his eyes and they began taking their seats.

DK, Dino, and Seungkwan then arrived. However, Dino and Seungkwan were both in an intense argument.

"What are you upset about?" I asked Dino.

Dino huffed, "BREAD."

Seungkwan sighed, "He's upset because I ate the last melon bread. But can you blame me? They're delicious!"

"It's okay. I have plenty here," Jisoo chimed in. Dino smiled, "Thanks Jisoo, I can always count on you to feed me."

It was at that moment that Vernon then entered the classroom.

I sunk in my seat, a grimace appearing on my face as I watched him sit down on the chair in front of me.

I felt the resentment radiating off of him.

I sighed. (There is no escaping this time.)

"Thank you for coming, everyone," I began, "Today we'll be talking a little bit about Philosophy. Is anyone familiar with Plato?"

"Maybe." Seung Cheol replied.

I raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean maybe? It's a yes or no question."

"What? Who's Play-Dough?" Jisoo asked, taking a bite out of an apple.

Seung Cheol released an exasperated sigh, "Jisoo, you're too cute to be this stupid. Try again."

"If you call me cute again, I'll have no choice but to break your nose," She replied.

"Woah, Woah, Woah. Let's all calm down for a second." Joshua interjected.

I nodded in agreement, "Listen, everyone. It's been about five minutes and none of you have given the slightest consideration to a word I've said."

Seungkwan cleared his throat, "Well Min, you have my undivided attention. Except for what I'm giving to this coffee right in front of me. I get more coherent as this goes on though, so really it's good for both of us. You get a smaller piece of a larger pie."

Seung Cheol scoffed, "Look, it's probably because you're super boring!"

"Can you not be a for one second?" I asked, clearly irritated.

"Sweetie, one does not simply stop being a . It takes a lot of time, energy, and practice. And unfortunately for you, I am quite a lazy person," Seung Cheol replied.

"Seung Cheol, I swear I am going to yeet into the nearest trash can if you ever say that again," I yelled.

(I am going to die surrounded by the biggest idiots in the universe.)

I sighed and turned to face Vernon who did not seem to care about the commotion occurring around him. His legs were propped up onto the desk and he lazily scrolled through his phone.

"Vernon do you have anything to say?" I asked.

"There's a lot of things I want to say, but none of them are nice," He muttered. His voice was dull, expressionless.

(It was then that the room became filled with an awkward silence.)

Though the study group session continued on for the next hour, Vernon refused to participate.

After I had allowed everyone to leave, Joshua unexpectedly approached me.

I attempted to compose myself but failed miserably.

"So," He began, "I was wondering since we're having a study group tomorrow around lunchtime if you'd like to-"

"I love you," I suddenly blurted.

"Huh-"

"I mean I'd love to!" I replied.

"Great, I'll see you tomorrow then," He smiled, exiting the classroom.

"Vernon, will you be here tomorrow, too?" I asked as he gathered his belongings.

"No. I don't want to be apart of your stupid study group or whatever the hell this is," He replied, pushing past me as he headed for the door.

(What did I do to deserve this?)

---

I desperately needed to talk to Vernon. My only option now was to visit him at his home. So, I enlisted the help of Seungkwan and DK.

(They were the only two willing to take me to his house.).

I knocked on Vernon's front door. (Several Times). And, as I had imagined, there was no answer.

"He's always home. So, maybe he's just ignoring us." DK said.

"Just try breaking in, I'm sure he wouldn't mind." Seungkwan jokingly replied.

I laughed. (It wasn't the best idea but I really did need to speak to Vernon.)

"Alright," I began," DK, try to lockpick the door with that bobby pin. Seungkwan, you begin scoping the perimeter of the house for an underground entry. If all else fails, we'll break down the door."

DK and Seungkwan raised an eyebrow, "Or you could just climb through that open window."

I nervously chuckled, "Oh. Right. Okay. Thanks again, guys."

Upon entering, I began wandering around in search of Vernon. I headed upstairs and noticed that the shower was running.

(I would definitely prefer not to see Vernon right now.)

Once, the shower had turned off, I quickly hid in the corner of his room.

The door opened and Vernon exited the bathroom with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. I let out an involuntary squeal and cupped a hand over my mouth.

(God, I hope he did not hear that.)

(Oh, but he did.)

He raised an eyebrow and attempted to find the source of the sound.

I began hyperventilating.

And, that was when Vernon discovered me.

---

"You've got thirty seconds to explain to me what you're doing here," Vernon asked, arms crossed and jaw clenched tight as I quietly unraveled before him.

I bit my lip and glanced up at him, stalling.

"I was waiting to speak to you," I responded, timidly.

"In my room?!" He shouted.

I nodded in response.

"You could just knock like a normal person instead of breaking and entering while I'm in the shower!" He yelled.

"I didn't know you were in the shower," I quickly rebuked.

"What, are we just going to ignore the 'breaking and entering' part?" Vernon angrily asked.

"No, I -"

"How long were you hiding there anyway?" He rudely interjected.

I chuckled nervously, "More than you'd like."

He released an exasperated sigh and ruffled his hair in irritability.

I lowered my head, "Look, I just want you to stop being such an and attend the study group sessions."

"And I want you to stop being such a meddlesome brat. But guess what? We can't always get what we want," He replied.

I dragged my eyes away from the floor to look at his face, "I suppose I'll have to give you detention then."

"For what?" He asked, fear pulling his brows together.

"Talking back," I responded, matter-of-factly.

"That hardly seems fit. You know I didn't do anything wrong," Vernon replied.

"All I know is that your attitude is getting old," I said.

"Ah, so I get detention for being myself? I always thought people were kidding when they said high school tries to kill your individuality," He scoffed.

I rolled my eyes, "Now, it's two weeks of detention."

"What the actual hell, Min!"

"Three weeks," I blatantly replied.

"Okay - Okay. Stop!" He yelled, "If you keep talking, I have no idea what I'll do to you."

There was a moment of silence shortly followed by a sigh of defeat.

"I'll attend your stupid study group sessions just as long as you get the hell out of my room," He huffed.

I smiled excitedly, "That's great! Thank you, Vernon! You will not regret this!"

Vernon rubbed his temples, "God, are you clinically insane or just incredibly annoying?"

I shrugged, "I don't know, probably both?"

"Sometimes you say things and I have to restrain myself from hurling you out the nearest window," He muttered, "Now, leave me the alone. I'm too tired for your bull. I have my own."

Vernon then showed me to the door, clearly annoyed.

And, without another word, he slammed the door shut.

I couldn't help but smile, anyway.

---

That night, I had a sudden realization.

The study group that I had created was no longer a typical study group.

That night they became my band of misfits.