He has never thought about himself as a special person. He was at an average high school, had a lot of average friends, with average grades so he didn’t really expect much. Though he really had a thing for sports, since little. Soccer especially. So it was no surprise that when he started his first year in high school, in a very short time, with him becoming captain of the soccer team and joining any other sports related events, he became rather popular and added to his lot of average friends a whole new bunch of more average friends. But Minho was quite happy with himself: he did what he loved doing and hoped to continue it through college and had a few friends of that whole bunch that weren’t average and were special to him. Like Jonghyun and Kibum.

       Being a man of a few words, he wasn’t all that experienced in the female department. But what he got from flustered girls almost every week was that he was really handsome and him sometimes not talking too much made him more mysterious and appealing in their eyes. So, everything worked in his favor. Too bad that being raised in a religious and strict family made him oblivious of the truth staring back at him almost three years of high school.

      He didn’t think of himself as really smart or eager to learn so when he found out that the student that won the international math contest the fourth year in a row was a student at his school, he was slightly curious as to who that person was. So obviously when he first saw him, all dorky sunshine smiles and eyes cutely formed in crescent moons shapes, he was quite surprised. He was expecting to see a rather serious guy with a grave expression engraved on his face and not this optimistic guy, that if he didn’t know was two years his senior, Minho would’ve been convinced that was younger than him. He didn’t find out his name ‘till the next semester and that happened coincidentally…

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“Minho, are you listening to a word of what I’m saying?” exclaimed Kibum as they were sitting in the cafeteria and he followed Minho’s gaze to a pile of hazel brown hair that was interrupting their conversation. “What are you staring at Jinki for?”

As brought up from a daze, Minho returned his gaze on Kibum “Huh?” was his smart response.

“You were practically drawing a hole through his head with your eyes. Do you two have a deal with each other that I don’t know about?”

 “His name is Jinki?”

 “You didn’t know even that till now?” Minho shook his head negatively “Then what were you doing staring so hard at him? Did he do something to you? No, that wouldn’t be possible; this is him I’m talking about. He’s a pretty decent person once you get to know him, you know?  I mean his jokes are sometimes pretty lame but no one’s perfect…”

 “Do you two know each other?”

“Yeah, we meet from time to time. Our families are pretty close.”

“Then why don’t I ever see you together in school?”

“Hey, we’re not that close. Besides, we have our own group of friends here. But that doesn’t answer my question. Why were you looking at him so intensely when you should be paying attention to me?” oh, the ever so curious and slightly arrogant Kibummie

“I wasn’t necessarily looking at him. I was just thinking…”

“Well, whatever. Stop dozing off when I have important matters to tell you, it annoys me!”

“Yes, Kibum”

“Ok. So, as I was saying…” in his defense, Minho really tried listening to Kibum but his traitorous eyes found again the spot that he gazed at earlier. He was just curious, that was all

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… because it was none of his business, but in all truthfulness he was really just afraid to ask. Of what? He didn’t really know himself.

       He got himself a girlfriend and all that good in the same year. I mean, why let that handsomeness go to waste, right? But in more occasions than one he was quite bored with her. So he decided to break up. The decision wasn’t received so well but that was that. After that girl came another and another and then another until he had made quite the playboy reputation. But he really wasn’t. He was just looking for a girl to like or even fall in love with but it just didn’t happen so he decided to stop having so many relationships and just go with the flow and see what happens then.

      His second year in high school was much more quiet, focusing on his sporting events and trying to increase his grades in order to be able to participate at those said sporting events. But even then hazel brown hair and crescent moon eyes were kept at the back of his mind just waiting to give him the revelation of his life…

     He finally got to have an interaction with him in his third year of high school and Jinki’s last. Minho was in the library when Jinki would be every Monday and Thursday after school-not that he was stalking or anything-. Minho, even though he wasn’t too much into books, enjoyed the peace and quiet that place gave him aside from his not so quiet life. And Jinki even though he was a math geek, Minho realized that he was also into literature, probably more so than math.

      It was a Thursday and the library was pretty empty, only a couple of people around aside from them.  They sat at two chairs distance from one-another, but it felt much more for Minho. Jinki suddenly stood up, and in his hurry to put the books back on their shelves, he stumbled into Minho’s chair and all the books fell down with a big thud. He would’ve fallen down too if Minho wouldn’t have caught him and put him upright again. Slightly surprised, Jinki looked at his savior, mumbled something incoherent, bowed and then hurried out of his hold into the books section, but with the books forgotten on the floor. Minho blinked once, twice, puzzled and then realizing what just happened, collected the books from the floor and followed him.

“Hey, umm, you forgot these!” Minho said stopping the older in his tracks. Jinki slowly turned around looking everywhere else but at Minho, making it quite hard for the other to read his expression. “I’m Minho, by the way” Jinki turned his gaze to him for a few seconds and said nothing. “And you’re Jinki…” the atmosphere was becoming quite awkward for the tall one’s liking and then Jinki finally started speaking

“How do you know my name?” he appeared extremely surprised at discovering that Minho knew his name
“How could I not? You’re our math champion. The whole school knows you” The older one seemed slightly disappointed at the answer

“Oh… Well, if it makes any difference I knew your name too. I mean, who wouldn’t? You’re this school’s every girl’s dream” Minho didn’t know if that was a compliment or a mentioning of his playboy ways, of how different they were

“Then I guess we’re both really popular” he said, trying to lift up the awkwardness by giving him the books “Here, you dropped them when you hurried here. I’ll, uh, see you around…” he waved realizing how much of an idiot he made himself as. And thinking that he really wanted to be friends with the guy…

“Hey, Minho!” he turned around to find the shorter one with a big smile on his face his eyes transformed again into two little adorable comas-not that he thought they were adorable, they were ok, I guess-

“Yeah?” he said as he tried not to smile too big

“Thank you! I realized I haven’t told you yet so thank you.”

“You-you’re welcome. I h-have to go. Yeah, I have to go” Minho started to fasten his pace because he suddenly felt really ill.

“Ok, see ya!” Jinki yelled after him, that smile not even once disappearing from his face

“Hey mom, I’ll be home in half an hour. Please prepare me some medication or something because my tummy hurts really bad” said Minho talking to his mother on the phone…