Mei was more excited about Luhan’s reply than she’d anticipated. She realized this at the crushing feeling of disappointment at his lack of responses. Pouting dejectedly, she went about getting ready and headed to school in low spirits.

They lowered further at Sehun’s noticeable absence and the rumor that the school delinquent was getting expelled. It annoyed her when people who’d never even bothered to say hi to Sehun huddled together to discuss him.

She and Minyoung were a sad pair in class. Suho ran into them at recess and immediately picked their low mood. ‘Why the long faces?’ he asked, not unkindly.

Mei pouted and Minyoung sighed. He laughed at that, patting Mei’s back encouragingly and ruffling Minyoung’s hair. ‘Don’t worry so much about those two. I managed to convince the Principal to talk to Luhan and Sehun about the matter and take some other disciplinary action instead of suspending them. It was hard work but it paid off.’

Mei cheered up. ‘Really?’

‘They’re with the principal right now. I also found a few witnesses who vouched for Sehun, that he was fighting in self-defense – they had video of the whole scene; so, Sehun should be alright. Luhan, because he started the fight, might still get suspended…’

Mei’s face fell again.

‘…but he’s an excellent student and this is the first time he’s caused trouble, so I’m hoping they will go easy on him as well.’

Feeling considerably lighter, Mei and Minyoung thanked Suho extensively before skipping towards the principal’s office. Mei wanted to catch Luhan to demand some answers and it would be the perfect opportunity for Minyoung to show how much she cared about Sehun.

Of course, plans often don’t work out as they’re envisioned.

And so, Mei found herself to be on the receiving end of a second confettision in as many days, from the most unlikely person of all – Oh Sehun.

……………………………………………

Crushing on someone big time.

Luhan moped as he waited for the Principal to call him in, valiantly trying to ignore the quiet presence next to him.

It was kind of hard because… well, Oh Sehun was hardly tiny. Also, because he’d done a number on Oh’s face and it showed. Luhan was a little shocked at himself, really, because he honestly had not intended to attack the kid like that. And usually when, if ever, Luhan got into fights, he played fair and did not hit below the belt or above the neck.

He’d targeted Oh’s face. It was terribly bruised, one eye swollen and sporting an impressive shiner.

He tried hard not to feel guilty about it but it was difficult because Oh Sehun had done nothing to warrant such treatment. Besides, the kid might not even know that Mei was crushing on him, right? He’d become the victim of Luhan’s irrational anger and worse, he had to pay a heavy price for it.

Suspension.

It would be Luhan’s first but apparently, Oh had had two strikes already and with the third, he’d be expelled. Suho had called him last night, after he’d cooled down, and intimated him about the situation. Luhan had agreed to come clean with the principal to clear Oh’s name – he’d already fulfilled his quota of pettiness and he wouldn’t be the reason a reformed delinquent got kicked out.

Suho was inside right now, along with their teachers. A few other kids had also gone in, presumably with evidence. They’d apparently recorded the entire thing, so Oh Sehun’s name would be cleared.

At least Mei would be happy.

The thought was bittersweet but he didn’t have a chance to dwell on it as the door opened and Suho stepped out. He flashed them a thumbs-up and patted Oh Sehun’s shoulder before heading away. A minute later, Luhan and Oh Sehun were called inside.  

The two chairs placed in the center of the room while the others sat in a panel made it feel quite intimidating which, he supposed, was what they were going for.

From the outset, it was clear that the teachers weren’t particularly concerned about Oh Sehun’s predicament. Their faces were disbelieving and their tones harsh when addressing the boy, which Luhan found odd since he was the culprit here.

And yet, they were so obviously biased towards him that it felt uncomfortable. They even had the audacity to try and convince him to retract his statement… or at least tell them that Oh Sehun had provoked him somehow. Even after Suho and the witnesses had provided contrary evidence.

He knew they favored him because his father was among the biggest patrons of this school. Even so, he hadn’t expected them to be so blatant about it. Just because Oh came from the wrong side of city didn’t mean he was a bad kid.

Frowning, he looked at Oh Sehun. The kid looked like he’d swallowed something bitter, lips pressed tightly, eyes suspiciously glossy. To his credit, he looked more angry than upset but Luhan could see the slight tremble in his frame that gave it away.

Deciding that enough was enough, Luhan grabbed the paper with an official statement, accepting all responsibility for initiating the fight and any punishment doled out in consequence.

It was kind of funny to see his teachers fall over themselves in panic at his actions because what would they tell his father? He frankly didn’t care. Luhan was done with this foolishness and so was Oh, by the looks of it.

Of course, they couldn’t let him completely off the hook. By now, it seemed like they had some personal grudge against him because they still insisted on putting Oh Sehun in detention for the entire week with Luhan… for a fight Luhan had initi