A Monday, 9 days later. 

“Is this seat taken?” 

Jaejoong, despite his efforts, flinches visibly at the words. He hasn’t even looked up, too bent over his sketch book, eyes occasionally flicking upwards to the figure model before dropping back to the page. He doesn’t want to look over, or answer and he hopes the rude lack of response will send the female storming away, that is how it goes about 80% of the time anyway. 

“Perfect,” she chimes instead and the sound of a chair barely scraping at the floor makes him shiver. 

There are plenty of open spaces, Jaejoong notes bitterly as his eyes sweep over the room, pointedly ignoring the seat beside him. There is no reason for someone to be seated next to him, he sits off to the side practically in a corner for a reason and now he feels horribly boxed in. Would it be too dramatic if he stood up and moved? He thinks it would be too dramatic, right now nobody is looking at him and he prefers it that way. 

It’s been 5 days, following a lapse in judgment in a bout of panic, since he has swallowed a heavy dose of suppressants. He still takes some light ones in the morning and he has a bottle of in case of emergency pills in his bag, but he has been doing... well. Sort of. He’s fine almost, if he ignores how tense he paranoid he feels. Fine, if he ignores the random bouts of cold sweats, the times his joints and bones seem to ache out of nowhere for no reason. If he pretends he never feels faint or feverish he might even be alright. 

9 days since he trashed his apartment, 10 since he had seen Yunho. 5 days ago he hadn’t shown up for... cooking lessons or dinner making or whatever they had tentatively decided on Wednesdays, and in 2 more days he would miss it again. Yunho probably disregarded those plans like he had, though. 

Jaejoong hasn’t heard from the alpha- sort of. After disaster struck and Yunho had called his phone too many times, the blonde had broken the device. He couldn’t exactly remember if it had been on purpose or not, but he never had gotten to hear the messages left behind, he didn’t know if there were text messages. With his new phone, he had requested a new number because he was pathetic and a coward. 

It was possible the man had tried to get in contact with him otherwise, he wouldn’t know if Yunho showed up on his campus- he doubted it, but just in case he had been making sure to slip out of his last classes at least 15 minutes early. 

Changmin, as Yunho’s best friend, was public enemy number 2 and he ignored his doctor just as fiercely.  He had an appointment Friday, he would face the music then and not a second before. 

Assuming he didn’t spontaneously keel over or find himself knifed in the back by a very cross Junsu before then. It wasn’t that he was avoiding his best friend too, it was just...  

He was busy, avoiding Yunho and Changmin- who in hind sight probably hadn’t cared to contact him in the case of the former, and wouldn’t noticed in the case of the latter, and Junsu had only slightly gone neglected in his efforts. 

He had broken down and given Junsu his new phone number, and they still did arrive on campus together, his lunch was still shared with Junsu it was just... different, nothing... extra. Junsu wasn’t pushing him, he knew, he had asked the other for space, for some time to clear his head and swore he would call if he needed something- anything.  

If only his classmates would give him the same amount of space. Being too close to other’s made him nervous, he didn’t know what would happen- if anything would. How would he know if someone could tell he was an omega? Would he know they knew? 

This dilemma was the reason he was rather certain he would never get beyond a week before he heavily dosed himself again. It was all well and good while he was in his apartment, there was nobody that found him repulsive there save for himself. Out in public though... 

“You’re awfully quiet, huh?” 

His hand jerks, leaving a dark ugly streak on the page. Jaejoong draws in a deep breath and quietly mourns his efforts that have been wasted. He knows already, the mark will not be coming out, not without taking most of his work with it, and even then it will linger behind like a faint scar, visible despite the damage being gone. 

“,” he breathes into a sigh, rubbing a hand over his face in distress as he flips to a new page. 

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.” 

She didn’t mean to startle him, but her hand is on his elbow. It takes everything in him not to jerk away, not to jump to his feet and flee the room. Instead he turns his head to look at her so quickly he can nearly feel his spine pop in protest of the moment.  

He regrets looking immediately. Who had he pissed off to deserve this, really? 

Jung Jihye is the last person he expects to find seated beside him. Sure, he knows they share a couple of classes, but really? He’s pretty sure she’s never even noticed him before- but he also knows he wouldn’t really know anyway because he puts a great deal of effort in keeping to himself. 

“My arm, please let go,” it comes out a stage whisper instead of a proper voice which is mildly mortifying. 

“I’m not going to eat you, Jaejoong.” 

It’s definitely the wrong thing to say, but not because she promises not to eat him. The blonde startles when he hears his name out of , he flinches backwards visibly, eyes slightly wide before he jerks and faces forward properly again. 

He sinks down slightly, nearly pressing his chin to the table as he draws his arm upwards by his head, hoping that if he half blocks his face and cannot see Jihye it means she can’t really see him either. Mostly, he wishes he was 5 again, back when he truly thought that was the way vision worked.  

“Really? I can see you,” Jihye murmurs, she doesn’t even bother to hide her amusement, “Come on Jaejoong, we share 3 classes. You know who I am! Why wouldn’t I know your name?” 

“Oh,” he breathes, oh thank god, is what the simple sound really says, “I... sorry. Yes, I guess I...hm. I keep to myself.” 

And he babbles like an idiot, too. 

“And I need to gossip, so I’m going to steal you after class. Really, like I didn’t notice that my brother’s boyfriend is prettier than mine?” the alpha beams, tilting her head, she somehow looks stunning and terrifying all at once, “Yunho didn’t even introduce me himself, the .” 

Jaejoong balks, he chokes a little because he breathes wrong, and quickly curls his arm around his mouth as he coughs and wheezes. He’s going to die; he’s going to die because he cannot figure out how to breathe, he is so startled. 

“Oh?” it comes out awfully quiet, and something in Jihye’s face softens, just in time with a weird ache in his chest, “Well, I... if you want, okay.” 

It isn’t actually a surprise, not really, but it is so, so awkward. There are boundaries, really, and well, Yunho had claimed to be single. It makes sense though, he was a stranger after all, who was to say he wouldn’t turn around and run his mouth at the press? Not that it mattered- because the news of his family hiding him in plain sight because they were so embarrassed by him would be a much bigger headline... 

Unwillingly, he can hear his own voice in his head, chased by the sound of rain and thunder and awkward silence as he curses omegas. Oh god, was Yunho’s boyfriend an omega? Oh , no wonder the man had been calling him, he hadn’t apologized properly for his outburst.  

Jaejoong did not, he absolutely did not want to fight with Yunho, he was pretty sure the man would kill him without even meaning to. Although, he doubted they would actually fight, Yunho was after all sending his sister in his stead. 

He just wasn’t sure if she was there to collect an apology or if she was there to tell him to off and stay, far, far away from her family. He could do bother, if it would curb their temper. He didn’t want the alpha to be mad at him- either of them though Yunho was surely still mad. 

A soft whine escapes the back of his throat, and Jaejoong sinks downwards again into his desk, he didn’t know what was wrong with him or why he was ing whining like he had just be wounded, but Jihye had no doubt heard the noise too. He could feel the girl staring at him, and though she was only a couple of years older he felt like a naughty toddler who was able to be told off for not sneaking into a seat at the adult’s table. 

“Great, it’ll be so fun.” 

Jaejoong doesn’t think it’s going to be fun at all, actually, but his fate is practically sealed already. 

He stays quiet for the rest of their class, sitting up straighter as he focusses on sketching.  

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