Chapter 16
The Blue of the Sky on Rainy Days
Two floors down, outside, Heechul was prowling near the hospital. His cheek was still painful and he was furiously pacing in front of the entrance, not daring to enter. He had followed Eunhyuk and Donghae, fully expecting not to stay in the dark and finally have a complete and plausible explanation for the situation he could totally not understand, but the austerity of the hospital intimidated him. After an hour, he got seized by a burning desire to shoot in a can, but there was none on the parking lot. His excitement slightly having subsided, he decided to go and hang out in more disreputable streets, to change his mind and perhaps find a few punches to give; still vowing not to abandon this case just yet. He was rapidly crossing the sports field when his cell phone rang.
- "Hello?" He said in a tone that could make the person on the line hang up directly.
- "Hello, Heechul? It’s Yoo Ra", he managed to hear among the girl’s sniffs. "Can we meet somewhere please? I really need to talk..."
He managed to get to her only twenty minutes later in their usual hideout, the Nights and Days, barely out of breath, hair styled back. Yoo Ra was waiting for him, sitting on a seat in the back, wiping her mascara that had smeared from her long eyelashes with a handkerchief, hair pulled on her right shoulder, looking distraught.
- "Oh, Heechul, thank you for coming, you're so sweet", she said, slightly waving at him.
- "Yeah, no problem. I bet it's because of Eunhyuk that you're in this state."
The girl lowered her eyelids in assent while barely dipping her lips in her coffee.
- "I seriously can’t recognize him", Heechul continued, raising two fingers to order the same thing. "I can’t believe it; I even got punched by my best friend. What for? Some kind of big autistic retard slightly good in math ..."
- "You're not as humiliated as I am, Heechul. You at least, he hit you. He didn’t even look at me. He only had eyes for his Donghae", Yoo Ra said, wiping another tear from the corner of her eye.
- "It's okay, it isn’t the same, you're his girl. Me however, he completely drew a line under me, I mustn’t be intelligent enough for him", the young man went on with a strongly angry air, "I was just good to find him plans at night when he needed it..."
- "Heechul ... Some details haven’t hit you today? I mean, it seems completely inconceivable for me too, but well..."
- "What do you mean?" Heechul asked, drawing his chair closer while raising an eyebrow.
- "The shoes for example. Eunhyuk’s the one who offered them to him isn’t it? And he even wanted to hide it."
- "Yeah, this bastard never gave me something so expensive!"
- "Exactly, that's what I meant... The nature of their relationship may be different from the one he has with you ..."
- "That he had you mean; because I won’t talk to this anymore."
- "And that cloud... Eun and Hae... frankly, that’s the clear evidence... Why hasn’t he done something like this with me?" She wistfully sighed while stirring the contents of her cup.
- "Huh? What are you talking about? You saw how this clown was clotted anyway? And I thought 'Nhyuk was a stylish guy, damn..."
- "And how he stood in front of him to protect him ..." The young woman started to sob all over again.
- "Yoo ... what are you gibbering since the beginning girl, I don’t understand what you’re raving about", he said while starting to nervously play with his lighter."
- "But Heechul, I think Donghae isn’t just a friend for Eunhyuk."
- "Well yeah, thank you for the scoop."
His lighter was rattling increasingly nervously, alternately releasing a blue flame.
- "I mean, I think I'm just a cover for Eunhyuk."
Heechul opened his eyes as big as question marks, thinking that girls always exaggerated and tended to dramatize everything. Yoo Ra grabbed her nose bridge with two of her fingers, thinking that boys were as lucid as beans, and rubbed if for a moment, as to relax, before announcing:
Heechul opened his eyes as big as question marks, thinking that girls always exaggerated and tended to dramatize everything. Yoo Ra grabbed her nose bridge with two of her fingers, thinking that boys were as lucid as beans, and rubbed if for a moment, as to relax, before announcing:
- "Take a deep breath. Are you ready? Okay, I think there's something going on between Eunhyuk and Donghae; that they’re dating in short", she explained more in detail in front of the high school student’s blank stare.
- "Ouch!" Heechul, who had just burned his thumb with his lighter, screamed. "Huuuh?"
He intently stared at the young woman, but the latter did not seem to be joking, as the black channel of mascara had progressed further under her eyes and as she looked at him seriously.
- "Huuuh?" He repeated, finding no other way to express his thoughts. "What?"
- "Eunhyuk doesn’t love me. He’s on Donghae; he’s the one he always runs to instead of hanging out with us."
- "Huuuh?" Heechul repeated for the third time, still enable to assimilate the news. "What?"
- "I won’t spell it out for you", Yoo Ra replied, looking up to the ceiling. "That would explain everything, no?"
- "Nooooo, no, no", Heechul said with a very strange laugh while pushing his chair back, shaking his head in deny. "No, no, what have you smoked? Eunhyuk? With that ... that guy? Noooo."
- "If I tell you, I'm pretty sure. He must have met him during his punishment, and that’s why he became good at math, and then they grew attached to each other..."
- "Nooo, no, no", Heechul repeated while rolling his eyes so much that the bartender was afraid they would fall to the ground and start rolling across the room like marbles.
- "... Damn, I hope they weren’t yet together when Eunhyuk and I kissed at least, that would ..."
- "But stop your raving girl, it's just impossible!" Heechul cut her off.
- "Oh really? Wanna bet? I tell you that it’s all too apparent. I even wonder how I managed not to realize it sooner."
- "Eunhyuk gay? With this disgusting ugly guy? I bet my arm!"
- "The future will eventually tell us, and you’ll see who was right", Yoo Ra said, taking her purse out of her bag to pay. "Think about all this, you'll find out if what I say is as absurd as it seems to you."
Noooo, Heechul repeated, vigorously shaking his head as the girl pushed the door of Nights and Days, under the dumbfounded look of the bartender who had never seen him in such a state during his many visits, even after several beers.
* * *
A few days later, Eunhyuk also held a pretty important conversation, but with the high school guidance counselor this time. Since the Math Olympiads, he was quite isolated, Heechul not approaching him anymore and merely throwing him weird looks from afar, occasionally shaking his head convulsively from right to left while wildly rolling his eyes. Yesung and Shindong still responded to his greetings, but coldly, and avoided talking to him. In the canteen, he ate alone with Onew, and breaks time were deadly boring. In the hallways, everyone whispered behind his back; the entire school had heard about his fight with Heechul and the punch he had gave him. Eunhyuk really wondered how he had gotten into this, but it did not improve the situation. Sometimes, on the tables, you could see some graffiti that pictured him resolving an equation with some kind of pimpled and slobbery potato from where an old-fashioned strand of hair was hanging. He tried not to pay attention to it, thinking that things could have been worse and that anyway, it was not really important since Donghae was unaware of the existence of these drawings.
An afternoon, having nothing to do for an hour and to make time pass more quickly, as to escape from the mocking fingers pointed at him wherever he went, he randomly decided to pay a visit to the school’s guidance counselor psychologist, something that every student was supposed to do before the end of the year. He knocked three times on the door with a vague feeling of being out of himself, as if his body moved on its own. After having received the invitation, he entered the small office cluttered with papers and various and inefficient warning placards, and sat on a chair with red fabrics.
An afternoon, having nothing to do for an hour and to make time pass more quickly, as to escape from the mocking fingers pointed at him wherever he went, he randomly decided to pay a visit to the school’s guidance counselor psychologist, something that every student was supposed to do before the end of the year. He knocked three times on the door with a vague feeling of being out of himself, as if his body moved on its own. After having received the invitation, he entered the small office cluttered with papers and various and inefficient warning placards, and sat on a chair with red fabrics.
- "So", a tall and manly young man asked him while making his office chair roll in all directions to rummage into his drawers, "it’s the first time you come isn’t it? I still don’t know all the trombinoscopes by heart of course ..."
- "Uh... Ms. Gu quit? Isn’t she the advisor?"
- "You don’t really keep up to date, I yet held this position for a month already", replied the well sculpted young man while swelling his chest. "I was in seminary before, but in the... Anyway, I'm not here to tell you my life. Don’t hesitate to stop me if I start later on, it’s a tendency of mine that I try to correct. Oh, my name’s Siwon by the way. You'd be nice to give me your name and class now."
- "Uh ... I’m Lee Eunhyuk, third year, class D."
- "Um ... um", Siwon hummed, propelling himself with his foot to roll towards the drawer where the card with his name was in. "Oh, oh, there are a lot of things written as I can see. The nurse noted that Class B Kibum had a broken tooth because of you ... And your English teacher that you always make your homework in Korean... Hum um. Otherwise, your volunteering in hospital went well?"
- "Yes", Eunhyuk replied without really wanting to dwell on it.
- "Hmm, it says here that your grades greatly increased recently, that’s good", Siwon continued without trying to insist. "Your chances of entering college are much higher now; have you already thought of entry exams you'd like to take?"
- "Uh ... no", Eunhyuk replied.
- "You have no idea of a job you’d like, what you’d like to do later?"
- "Hmm... I’ve never really thought about it... Maybe nurse if it isn’t too hard."
- "Oh yeah, what a wonderful job", said the Apollo like adviser with a knowing smile, "me too, a few years ago, as I was trying to find peace in the Christ’s arms..."
- "Uh ... Sir, you’re starting to tell your life, I think."
- "Ah, yes, excuse me. No seriously, with your recent grades, if you keep up the good work, this path is quite affordable for you."
- "Yeah, well, it was just an idea like that", Eunhyuk reminded him.
- "Forgive me, I also tend to get carried away", Siwon replied with an irresistible smile. "I'm glad the director has such a good idea for your future in any case. I mean the hospital", he explained, waving the small card summarizing Eunhyuk’s doings. "He noted, according to his phone calls with the floor nurse, that you continue to go regularly."
- "I’m spied then?" The schoolboy immediately asked, suspicious.
- "Of course not. It’s just natural that the principal continues to inquire on what initially was his project..."
- "Uh... Ms. Gu quit? Isn’t she the advisor?"
- "You don’t really keep up to date, I yet held this position for a month already", replied the well sculpted young man while swelling his chest. "I was in seminary before, but in the... Anyway, I'm not here to tell you my life. Don’t hesitate to stop me if I start later on, it’s a tendency of mine that I try to correct. Oh, my name’s Siwon by the way. You'd be nice to give me your name and class now."
- "Uh ... I’m Lee Eunhyuk, third year, class D."
- "Um ... um", Siwon hummed, propelling himself with his foot to roll towards the drawer where the card with his name was in. "Oh, oh, there are a lot of things written as I can see. The nurse noted that Class B Kibum had a broken tooth because of you ... And your English teacher that you always make your homework in Korean... Hum um. Otherwise, your volunteering in hospital went well?"
- "Yes", Eunhyuk replied without really wanting to dwell on it.
- "Hmm, it says here that your grades greatly increased recently, that’s good", Siwon continued without trying to insist. "Your chances of entering college are much higher now; have you already thought of entry exams you'd like to take?"
- "Uh ... no", Eunhyuk replied.
- "You have no idea of a job you’d like, what you’d like to do later?"
- "Hmm... I’ve never really thought about it... Maybe nurse if it isn’t too hard."
- "Oh yeah, what a wonderful job", said the Apollo like adviser with a knowing smile, "me too, a few years ago, as I was trying to find peace in the Christ’s arms..."
- "Uh ... Sir, you’re starting to tell your life, I think."
- "Ah, yes, excuse me. No seriously, with your recent grades, if you keep up the good work, this path is quite affordable for you."
- "Yeah, well, it was just an idea like that", Eunhyuk reminded him.
- "Forgive me, I also tend to get carried away", Siwon replied with an irresistible smile. "I'm glad the director has such a good idea for your future in any case. I mean the hospital", he explained, waving the small card summarizing Eunhyuk’s doings. "He noted, according to his phone calls with the floor nurse, that you continue to go regularly."
- "I’m spied then?" The schoolboy immediately asked, suspicious.
- "Of course not. It’s just natural that the principal continues to inquire on what initially was his project..."
When he left the office, Eunhyuk was greeted by a few small discrete sneers. A few girls were gossiping near a window, surrounding a boy who was sitting up and begging, and who had probably made a remark towards him to show off and make them laugh. He approached them hands in his pockets with confident steps.
- "Damn, no one will ing leave me alone? Is my life so interesting? Bunch of losers, go together in a corner and freaking leave me alone! You", he said to a girl who seemed particularly shocked by some foul language, "put your mouth to better use than gossiping, he’ll be grateful, you'll see." With an air of pity, he tapped the shoulder of said boy who did not quite show off anymore, not wanting to compete against him.
Down the hallway, Heechul, who had heard everything, nodded, pleased with the fact that his friend had not changed much and that Yoo Ra had gotten carried away by implausible assumptions, just as he had thought.
- "Damn, no one will ing leave me alone? Is my life so interesting? Bunch of losers, go together in a corner and freaking leave me alone! You", he said to a girl who seemed particularly shocked by some foul language, "put your mouth to better use than gossiping, he’ll be grateful, you'll see." With an air of pity, he tapped the shoulder of said boy who did not quite show off anymore, not wanting to compete against him.
Down the hallway, Heechul, who had heard everything, nodded, pleased with the fact that his friend had not changed much and that Yoo Ra had gotten carried away by implausible assumptions, just as he had thought.
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