Chapter 18: “Make of thy gentleness thy might - George William Russell”

Back in the dormitory were nine of the boys, stuck with their own business, no talking to anyone as they hid themselves in their notes, a few locking themselves inside their rooms while the other half stayed downstairs.

“Keep that stereo down, Kyuhyun-sshi,” asked a concentrated Donghae by the living room, writing industriously his interpretation of the lesson to another sheet of paper. His glasses were quite big, and they often when he wore them. The whole circulatory system would not be easily memorized, his brain grabbing in all the information about the blood and its passageways.

Kyuhyun frowned, seizing the remote and lowering the volume. It was his Heechul-hyung this time who had commented about his slacking off. The hyung was at the dining table, peeking at the boys in the living room in case they attempted murder against each other again.

“Kyuhyun-sshi, don’t you have tests to worry about?” Heechul wondered loudly, disturbing the poor Siwon that sat in front of him and Kibum who was sitting next to his Donghae-hyung.

Bored, Kyuhyun frowned. “No, hyung. I’ve aced them all. Can I get back to my TV now?”

“What are you talking about? Go get your book and start reading,” Chul ordered. “It isn’t right for the maknae to be failing.”

“I said I’m going to ace them all without studying,” Kyuhyun argued. “Don’t you trust me, hyung? This brain is a real charmer.”

“How could I, you nearly burned all of my homework just the other day,” he said. “Are you sure you’re not going to study?”

He nodded, rolling his eyes. “Yes, hyung. I’m done studying.”

“Then get the out of here because you’re disturbing the rest of us,” he demanded, hearing Hyukjae and Siwon laughing.

“All right, fine,” Kyuhyun had the same opinion. “I’m getting some fresh air. Like Wookie and Hangeng-hyung are doing right now. You guys kill your time by studying that crap, okay? I’ll be back. Make sure not to have too much fun without me.”

He took his coat, as he turned off the television. He smiled at Heechul, as he asked Siwon for the keys of his car. Siwon, being kind that morning, handed them easily to the maknae.

“Be careful,” Siwon told him.

“I don’t make much mess, hyung,” Kyu answered. “I’ll have it car washed at once when I’m done...freshening up.”

The man smiled at him kindly. “No, Kyuhyun-sshi. I mean you be careful with your driving. You’re worse that hyung-nim.”

“Hyung-nim’s a bad driver,” he replied. “Yes, I’m worse than him.” He gave everyone a lazy salute, heading quickly for the door, banging it as he got out that made Donghae’s panicky hand drop his pen to the floor.

“God, I’m going to kill that kid!” he said, infuriated.

“Don’t use God’s name in vain,” Siwon reprimanded.

He nodded at once, keeping quiet. His handwriting went from bad to dreadful; the way the letter ‘e’ looked like a huge G with its tail going to the farthest end of the paper.

“Don’t worry, Donghae-sshi,” Heechul assured, giggling. “I will kill him first.”

“Ah, no,” Kibum interrupted, also feeling silly. “Hyungs don’t do it. The closest rebelling maknae gets to do the honors of slicing his last breath. I get to kill Kyuhyun.”

“Unfair,” Siwon added. “I wanted to do it myself.”

“Ah, did God tell you to do it this time, Siwon-sshi?” teased Heenim.

Siwon frowned. “Hyung, chill.”

“Kyuhyun maybe an ,” Kibum concluded finally. “But he has a great heart. And people...just don’t see through it.”

“We’re considered to be brilliant because we figured that one fast,” Heechul agreed. “Kyuhyun-sshi...he’s a good kid. I wonder how he’ll be doing in years to come. I hope he’ll grow up pretty like me.”

“Yeah, about your looks. What happened to your hair suddenly?” wondered Siwon. “It makes you look different.”

Heenim chuckled maniacally, combing the sides of his new hairstyle. It was different to his usual style though, because it was brown now, like how he wore his hair a couple of years before.

“I mean, I know right? I look even more gorgeous than before,” he said, laughing. “You guys have to agree, right? I mean, last time I checked, being blonde was awesome...but....things started to get a little silly so I thought it would be good to look better and cleaner.”

 “If Kyuhyun were here,” Donghae said, amused, “he’d tell you to shut the up.”

-o0o-

Kyuhyun felt hungry and decided to treat himself to some lunch at the nearest restaurant. It was an Italian restaurant; surely, they had some chicken in here. He could really use some food now. He parked the car at near the entrance, as the waiter at front greeted him. He asked for a table that noontime, and lucky for him, there still was one, near the glass window.

He took that seat, ordered the most expensive thing on the menu, and waited for it to be served at his front. As the waiter handed him his bill, he pigged out on the mouth-watering roasted chicken, getting full at once. In front of him was an old couple, feeding each other with their chopsticks. He found it rather cute, but disgusting at the same time. He looked outside the window, hoping something better was going on.

Behind him, he could hear the very familiar voice, the one who screamed for her life one night in a cold alley. That voice he heard, enchanting him when she sang that song together with her unnies. He felt his nerves tingling inside, wanting immediately to turn his back and approach her, sit with her, and...Like what he had initially planned for the day to turn out. It was like going out with her on a real date.

Unable to control, he stood up, and turned around, seeing that she already had company. She was laughing as she sipped her wine glass. Was he that deaf all of a sudden to their conversation?

“Oppa, I wouldn’t do that,” Seohyun told the boy thoughtfully.

He seemed to have been smiling, Kyuhyun reckoned as he got back to his table, sitting at the opposite direction so he could watch smoothly what they were doing.

“Yes, you would,” he said.

She was shaking her head. “No. I wouldn’t. But I bet you would.”

“Me? Like other girls?” he asked. “You just can’t learn to trust me, right?”

“Then, you don’t trust me either,” Seohyun said, drawing closer to the boy. He had his head on the table as well, leaning nearer to the girl. As their lips touched, the observer felt like the whole universe defeated his starship, the galactic force squeezing his heart tighter and tighter until he could no longer feel the oxygen within him. Kyuhyun, merely a spectator of this, stabbed his fist on the table harshly, doing his best to look away. He bit his lip in hatred...no, it wasn’t hatred. Surely, it was much more than hatred. Anger...Distrust...Jealousy?

him. him. him.

His hands were all over her, as their heads bobbed each other, somewhat more passionately. Letting go, the boy smiled at her and kissed her forehead, the waiter arriving at their table just in time to serve them their lunch.

“Okay...so maybe, I trust you,” he admitted, blushing.

Seohyun shrugged. “I suppose that means something. I love you too, oppa.”

He drew his cell phone out, the only key to his disastrous end. Quickly pressing 4 on speed dial, he heard the other line ringing. Instantly on the other table he saw her picking up the humming ringtone. She saw the caller first before getting herself to answer it.

“May I please be excused?” Seohyun looked at him, hurriedly going to the rest room.

Kyuhyun got from his seat, his phone still by his ear, carefully not making it too obvious that he was heading to the restrooms as well. Seohyun ventured into the female room, cautiously answering the phone.

“Hello, Kyuhyun-oppa,” she responded. “What made you call me?”

Kyuhyun merely smirked from the outside of her door, leaning against the mirror, rubbing his nose. It made him recall the first time they officially met. He didn’t want to go through winding roads again, so in a very straightforward manner, he quietly spoke.

“What made you lie?”  It was the same exact question he had asked her when she claimed to be Hwang Tiffany.

“What?” she asked, absolutely bewildered. “What are you talking---?”

“You know what,” Kyuhyun gulped. “Just get out of the restroom first.”

She was wondering why he knew of this, so hastily she exited that room. Seohyun saw Kyu, standing there, hurt and outraged and baffled----she herself at lost. So...he was aware that she was in the restaurant.

“Oppa, what are you doing----” He grabbed her hand and pulled her back to the restroom, making her feel queasy.

“That’s not the point now!” he nearly yelled at her, drawing closer. “Why... you played me?”

“Oppa, we didn’t even---“

“I know, I know,” Kyuhyun said, more agitatedly now than the last one. “I mean, how could you that? You declined the date because you were booked for...? That guy who I clearly assume to be your boyfriend now that I’ve seen everything... How could you lie to me? Again, I might add?  How c