Characters

Leo

Ken

N

Ravi

Hyuk

Bin

“Leo, why don’t you join us?  C’mon, everyone’s having fun.”

N called out to his friend, who seems to be in a daze again.  Leo has always been quiet and seems to have a world of his own.  Well, at least ever since N met him.  N met Leo five years ago, during their last year in high school.  Leo was a transfer student and they were in the same class.  N, being the noisy-everybody’s friend that he is, was somehow able to creep his way in to Leo’s life.

FLASHBACK

“Hey, bud.  What’s up?  I see you’re a new face here.”  N brightly greeted the unfamiliar face who was sitting alone in the cafeteria.  The person looked at him for a while, then looked away without saying a word, without showing any expression.  He put his earphones on and blasted the volume loud enough that even N can hear the music.  N was about to sit beside him when the school bell rang.  The students started moving out of the cafeteria and in to their respective classrooms, and so did N.  He looked back to see if that guy has stood up and also, he was curious as to which class he was in.  That person did not even budge from his position.  Perhaps he did not hear the bell because of his loud music, so N went back to prompt him.  He tapped the guy’s shoulder and took his left earphone out and said “it’s time to go”.

This time, the guy did not even bother to look at who it was and just stood up and walked on without looking back at N.  N did not really mind. He was always cool and easy.  He thought at that moment that that will be the first and last favour he would do for that guy.  In fact, he thought, that might even be the first and last time he would see him, so he couldn’t care less.

While N was making his way to his classroom he saw that guy again, coming out from the gents’ room, but this time he didn’t do anything and just walked in to his classroom, which was chaotic.  He sat beside Hyuk, the youngest in the class, two years younger than everyone else, to be exact, but top in their class and one of the top students in the whole school, and N’s favourite among the bunch.  As usual he greeted Hyuk with a hook on the neck and pinch on the cheek, and as usual, Hyuk attempted to push him away but ended up getting a mild karate chop on the neck.  Finally, the teacher came in and settled the chaotic classroom filled with a bunch of hyper teenage boys.

“You guys better shut up and listen to me before I throw this dusty eraser at you.  And who was supposed to dust these erasers today?  You’re being a slacker.” The teacher calmly said and the class just broke into laughter as they pointed at N, Hyuk being the most enthusiastic.  N scratched his head to act cute but their teacher, who was also a male, did not buy it and the rest of the class jokingly booed him.  Hyuk laughed at his fail and when he saw this, without a warning, he gave him another karate chop to the neck and stomach.  The teacher made out a fatherly laugh as he tapped his clipboard on his desk to silence the class again, and made his announcement.

“I have an announcement to make.  I know you guys have already built a strong brotherhood amongst yourselves despite your differences, and I am proud of you for that.”  The boys cheered and even high-fived each other. “But right now, I want you to welcome your new brother who will be joining your class starting today.”  The teacher signalled the person outside the door to come in.

“Go to the front and introduce yourself.”

N recognized the person from earlier.  He whispered to Hyuk that he had met the person in front earlier in the cafeteria, but Hyuk did not care to listen.

“Hi, I’m Taekwoon.  Jung Taekwoon.  Nice to meet you.” The person in front introduced himself in a very soft voice and the most expressionless face.

“Now, I want you kids to treat Taekwoon as you would treat your other brothers in this room.  And I mean the good way.”

“of course!” the students cheered in unison.

“Right, Taekwoon.  You can sit on that empty chair in front of Hyuk, that kid…with blond hair – yah!  Why did you dye your hair?!  And Cha Hakyeon! What is up with your red hair?!”

The whole class broke into laughter again, except for Taekwoon who walked past everyone and settled on his newly assigned seat.

“It’s all N’s idea!” Hyuk cried out.

“It’s washable.  It’s all good!” N defended.

“Then be sure to wash it off during the break later or else I’ll use your heads to erase the writings on the board.”

The class once again broke into chaotic teasing and laughter before the class officially started.

PRESENT

“What’s up with Leo again?”  Ravi asked N, tossing a can of ice cold beer from the cooler.  They were resting on the grass while enjoying their beer and the scenery.  Hyuk and Hongbin, on the other hand were busy messing around and taking photos of each other.

“What do you mean ‘what’s up with Leo again’?  He’s always been like that, thought you’d be used to it by now.”

“I know, but he always keeps me wondering every time, especially in this time of year.”

“I know, right?  We’ve known him for five years but I still can’t work out what goes on in his head.”  N agreed to Ravi’s statement.

“Do you think he still feels guilty?”  Ravi asked again.  There was silence as N and Ravi looked at Leo’s back from a distance.

“To be honest, I don’t know.  I hope not.  Ken wouldn’t want him to feel that way.” N finally spoke.

“That’s true.  Ken would HATE it.”  Ravi affirmed.

FLASHBACK

“Cha Hakyeon!  Oy! Cha Hakyeon!”  Hongbin called out while running towards N and Hyuk in the corridor.  It was lunch time and the students were busy going about with their own business.  When Hongbin finally caught N and Hyuk’s attention, he approached them a bit slower while trying to catch his breath.

“What?  Why are you after us like crazy?”  N joked while giving Hongbin a fist bump.

“Jaehwan… Jaehwan is back.” Hongbin panted while resting his arm on Hyuk’s shoulder.

“Jaehwan?  That ‘Lee Jaehwan’?”  Hyuk repeated and Hongbin nodded to confirm.

“Ken” N said to himself.

The three of them ran to the main corridor to see if it was really Ken.  The other students were already there, some of them whispering to each other at the sight of Ken.  The atmosphere felt heavy.

“Oy, Lee Jaehwan!” N yelled out.  The other students looked at N and then Ken.  They backed off as N slowly walked towards the latter.  Ken turned around to see N and walked towards him so that they met in the centre of the circle that was now formed by the students, who are watching them intently.  There was an unusual but familiar tension in the atmosphere.  Leo walked by the crowd and was curious enough to work his way in to the circle to get the best view of what was happening.  There they were, N and Ken, staring intensely in to each other’s eyes as if each other’s soul.

“Cha. Hak. Yeon.  It’s been a while.”  Ken spoke, his expression unchanged.

“So I see you’re still alive.” N raised his voice as he aggressively walked closer to Ken, and then suddenly hooked his arm around Ken’s neck, so that he is now bent over and struggling to set free.

“Let go of me, you little bastard!”  Ken laughed while giving N soft jabs to the stomach.  And so N did as he was told to.  They gave each other a hug and all the tension was lifted.  Hyuk, Hongbin and Ravi approached the two and gave each other a hug.

“Oy Lee Jaehwan, when did you get out from rehab?” N inquired.

“Last week”

“We tried to visit you a couple of times, but they said we were banned.  What the hell was up with that?”  Hyuk complained.

“You tried to visit?  With N?  N was the only one banned, but since you came with him, it can’t be helped.”

“What the hell?” N protested while the rest of them laughed.

After their first short and intense reunion, they parted again to attend their classes, but at lunch time, the five were inseparable again.

They were gathered in one table, chatting away while having their lunch, when Leo walked by.  Hyuk called out to him, but as usual, Leo acted as if he didn’t hear.  Ken was surprised by the way that Leo acted so he called him, himself.  Instead of looking back or showing any reaction, Leo put his earphones on and walked on.

“Man, that kid is rude.” Ken complained.

“He’s the new kid in our class.  He might still be adjusting so just leave him be.” N explained.

“I doubt he’d be able to adjust soon with the way he’s acting.” Ravi objected.

“Hyuk and I are working on it.” N and Hyuk exchanged smiles of mischief. They finally stopped talking about Leo and talked about Ken’s 6-month anger management rehab.

 N was, in fact, banned by Ken’s mother from visiting him in rehab because of their history.  Ken’s mom thinks that N is no good company and definitely a bad influence to Ken.  Ken’s mom believes that N has made a beast out of his used-to-be sweet son.  In their second year of high school, they started getting in to fights with groups from other schools, and sometimes they were caught and their parents had to be called in to their school over and over again.  It only became worse in their third year.  The police station was not a new place to them and the police officers in their district were no longer strangers.  While N, Ravi, Hongbin and Hyuk fought only when they needed to and sometimes for mere fun and adrenaline rush, Ken started fighting upon impulse.  He became very temperamental, and that almost got N and him killed.  Ken went to attack four seniors from another school, all by himself.  It was all good since Ken fights really well, until five more came and attacked him altogether.  Ken would have been left for dead if it wasn’t for a student who told N that he saw him heading to the deserted factory.  N ran as fast as he could to get there and called Ravi on his way.  Both N and Ken were badly beaten up and were only saved by the police sirens.  N woke up the next day in the hospital while Ken gained complete consciousness after a week.  Thankfully, their limbs were still intact.  N was banned to see Ken since then.  Ken was only able to convince his mom to attend the same school because he threatened that he would make sure he would only end up being expelled if he attended a different school, and he also promised that he would do better this time if he attended the same school.

While Ken was in rehab, N, Ravi, Hongbin and Hyuk kept themselves busy with extracurricular activities and stayed out of trouble for as much as they could.  N got back to dance classes, Ravi focused on music-making when he was encouraged by one of his teachers who saw his potential, Hongbin joined basketball varsity and, Hyuk volunteered as peer tutor to first year students.  Because of the positive changes, the school’s board of directors withdrew the decision of expelling them.

AT THE ROOFTOP

“How the hell did you get here?  You’re not supposed to be here.” Ken asked the person in front of him.  His voice was calm, but his fist shows otherwise, and that person must have caught it because he smirked.

“How was rehab, Ken?  Oops, I mean Jaehwan.”   The person teased.

“It would be better for both of us if you went back to where you came from.”

“How long did you have to be in there?  Was it 6 months?  Were they really able to ‘fix’ you?” The person teased Ken.  Ken clutched his fists even tighter that they were already shaking, but he just smiled.  The person saw his fists shaking and so he again.

“And how long have you been out? One month now isn’t it?  Only a month and you might need to go back again.”  He laughed evilly.  The smile on Ken’s face disappeared entirely and was replaced with a blank expression.

The rooftop used to be N, Ken, Ravi, Hongbin and Hyuk’s meeting place every time they decided to cut class or plan some mischief, but now it has become Leo’s asylum.  It was around about that time when Leo usually goes up to rest and be in his own world, but at that same time, he had unexpected, and definitely unwanted, guests.  He heard the two talking, one being oppressive while the other was struggling to keep calm.  He recognized the oppressor and he felt enraged that he couldn’t help but intervene.

“ off, Shin.” Leo barged in calmly, his voice soft as ever and almost emotionless.

Ken relaxed his fist in surprise.

“Jung. Taek. Woon.  So the rumours were all true.  The lion did escape to another place.  Who’s the prey going to be this time?  Is it Jaehwan?”

“I said off, .”  Leo’s voice raised a little bit but his tone was still very calm.

“Alright, alright.  I’ll off this time for you, Jung LE-O, as a sign of respect.  But you, Lee Jaehwan, we will talk again some other time.”  Shin arrogantly walked out, purposely bumping Leo’s shoulder with his.

The mood changed in a snap.  Ken’s face started to lighten up again and he tried to be friendly with Leo.

“So you do know how to talk! Wow, for a moment in the cafeteria that day I thought you were deaf and mute…or do you choose not to talk because you cuss more than you talk?”  Ken playfully teased as he tried to create a friendly atmosphere, only to be glared at.

“How do you know Shin?” Leo asked straight to the point as he always does.

“What about you?  How do you know him?”  Ken returned the question.

“That guy is bad news.  It’s best to stay away from him.” Leo’s expression became more serious than it already was.

“I already know that.” Ken flashed a reassuring smile as if pretending that what happened earlier was not at all serious.  Leo remained straight-faced.  He took out a bottle of banana milk from his bag and handed it to Ken.

“Banana milk?”

“You were shaking so bad earlier, it must have been a struggle for you to hold your anger in.”

“What does a banana milk do?”

“I don’t know.”  Leo coolly walked out but deep inside he was already feeling an unusual feeling of responsibility towards Ken.

“How about ramyun?  Let’s eat ramyun! I can’t find my friends and they’re not answering my calls, not even Hakyeon.  Oy, Jung Taekwoon, wait up!” Ken, being persistent as usual, ran after Leo.

PRESENT

“Jung Taekwoon! The barbecue’s set up, if you don’t mind to start cooking.”  N called out to a still dazed Leo.

Leo finally turned around and slowly walked towards N.  He took his time with every step, as if being careful not to trip.  He had something on his mind, a precious memory, and he was trying to savour the sensation while feeling the cool soft breeze brush through his skin.

FLASHBACK

“Amazing! I’ve been trying to be close to him ever since the first time we met but he kept ignoring me.  How did you manage to get him to join us for barbecue?  You’re not even in the same class.  You’re really something, Jaehwan.”. N said in excitement as he bossed Hyuk and Hongbin around to set up the barbecue.  Ken smiled proudly, feeling a sense of great accomplishment bringing Leo to their barbecue night.  He thought about what N said, and it was true.  N tried and tried, but couldn’t even get a response or a single reaction from Leo.  Leo, on the other hand, was still quiet, looking annoyed, thinking why the hell he was even there in the first place.  After everything was set up, Ravi arrived with a box of beer and everyone was ecstatic, except for Leo.  While Leo volunteered to do the grilling-- by holding on to the tongs and walking to the griller without a word – the rest of them decided to play a game.

Ken went up to Leo, who was still grilling the meat, and handed him a bottle of beer.

“Here.  Are you alright there?”  Ken asked, and Leo nodded in response.

“Do you want me to relieve you so you can join them?  It’s fun.”  Ken asked again and Leo shook his head in reponse.

“You really don’t talk, do you?  You haven’t spoken a word ever since we got here.”

“I never said a word even before coming here.”  Leo said in his normal, calm voice.

“Oh!  The first sentence you’ve ever made out today.  That’s a good start.”  Ken smiled brightly upon hearing his new friend talk.  He patted his shoulder and gave him a thumb up.  Ken stayed with Leo until he finished grilling all of the meat, and so both them were able to get a taste of the meat before the others did.  The other four, who were just chatting on the table saw, Leo personally feeding Ken a piece of meat, and so they started to playfully tease them.

“Are you two filming a cf there?  Or is it a drama?” N teased.

“From not talking to feeding each other.  That escalated fast.” Hyuk added.

Ken playfully responded “I know, right?” while he laid his head on Leo’s shoulder.  They all burst out laughing, even Leo couldn’t deny that it was funny, even though he tried to hide his smile by bowing his head.

PRESENT

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