Zelo

* * *

    “Yah! Have you even been listening to what I said?” my lab partner – Ye-jun snapped his fingers right in front of my face.

    “Huh? What? Come again?” I blinked and tried to shake off the dazed feeling.

    “Did you hear what I said about the reaction of sodium chloride when silver nitrate is added?” his eyebrows rose questioningly, positive that I had no idea what the answer was.

    I scratched my head and thought hard. Truthfully, he was right – I didn’t know what the answer was. But my pride kept me from admitting that I wasn’t listening. And so, I faked it. “Umm, no reaction will take place?” I replied, my answer sounded more like a question than I was a statement.

    He smirked victoriously. “Wrong!” he triumphantly said with a beam. “That is what happens when sodium chloride and calcium hydroxide are mixed. The correct answer, was that a precipitate of silver chloride would be formed, paboya,” he flicked my forehead childishly.

    “I get it, I get it, geez. You’re very smart. All hail the mighty chemistry nerd,” I grumbled sarcastically.

    He clapped his hands gleefully and then started to work on the experiment report the teacher wanted all of us to write. “Why are you so off today anyways?” he asked, his eyes still fixed onto the A4 –sized, line paper.

    “I don’t know,” I shrugged, trying to keep my cool.

    Pfft.

    What cool?

    “Lying,” he simply said. “Now answer me honestly, what’s on your mind?

    My shoulders deflated in defeat; I was caught. Just as my lips parted to reply him, though, there was a soft knock onto the laboratory’s door.

    “Come in,” Ms Ahn, my teacher peered at the door and said.

    “S-sorry to interrupt your class, miss, but Mr Yang wanted me to give you your textbook you left in my class by accident,” a petite girl walked in and bowed.

    That voice. It’s so familiar.

    I was tempted to look up and see who it was but as a kingka, I didn’t want to draw up too much attention towards both me and the mysterious girl.

    My teacher flushed in embarrassment and then took her book back. “Thank you,” she nodded and then returned to her desk as though nothing had happened.

    “You’re welcome, sonseangnim,” I heard and then a few light footsteps heading towards the door. All of a sudden, the sound a slipping was heard. The entire class shot up and looked at her.

    Even me.

    My eyes widened in reorganization as my eyes met with a familiar pair of brown orbs but they quickly darted away. It was her! The short girl with the magenta hair. The one I ran into earlier today in the hallways and also, the girl I was suppose to date in order to win the bet.

    “Are you okay?” my class monitor asked, her voice full of concern.

    The girl let out a shaky, nervous giggle and then nodded. “I’m fine, I’m fine. Don’t worry. I didn’t fall so I’m perfectly alright.  It was just a misstep, that’s all,” she rambled on. She bowed then said, “Sorry to interrupt your class with my clumsiness,” and walked off.

    “She’s so adorable.”

    “Yeah, she’s actually really cute.”

    “But she’s in the 1^st grade.”

    “She’s so pretty!”

    The class – especially the boys – shamelessly shared their comments about her among each other as soon as she was gone and the door was shut tight. Most of the boys even let out a few hoots and wolf-whistles while the girl’s expressed their envy or distaste.

    Ye-jun poked my side playfully and I quickly put on a poker face and faced him. “Yeah?” I asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as I could.

    “What’s with the sour look on you face?” he teased.

    “Wh-what? Don’t be ridiculous,” I rolled my eyes and tried to concentrate on the report I was supposedly working on. “Now let’s continue working on this before the bell rings,” I jabbed my pen onto the paper and snapped.

    “That can wait,” he shrugged and then pointed out that Ms Ahn told us we could pass it up during the next lesson. “Are you thinking about the girl who just walked in?” he pressed on.

    “N-no,” I denied and then received a skeptical look from him. I sighed in defeat and eventually gave in, “Yes.”

    My partner let out an amused smile and then chuckled. “Who knew a cool kingka like you would actually turn out to be nothing but a shy lovesick puppy,” he smirked teasingly.

    “Yah!” I pouted and then looked away.

    “Library,” he simply said, his smile spreading across his face by the second. “She’s going to the library after school.”

    “How do you know?”

     “She just moved into the house two blocks away from mine,” he explained. “So because she doesn’t know her way around, I’m supposed to walk to school and home for the first month of school,” he went on.

    “But why the library?” my eyebrows pinched together, if anything, this was making me even more confused than I already was.

    “Because I’ve got things to do after school,” he rolled his eyes and face-palmed dramatically.

    “Geez. How would I know?” I muttered under my breath.

    “Her name is Jin Hee, by the way,”

    “Jin Hee,” I repeated. “Got it.”

* * *

    I raced through the hallways in top speed, my shoes skidding against the polished marble floor with every turn I made. I was in a hurry to go to the library and make a move on Jin Hee before she left. I was so desperate; I was actually in the verge of using my skateboard that sat comfortably in my backpack. I was supposed to be in the library about an hour and a half ago.

    But instead, I was stuck in detention because apparently, no skateboarding in the school’s courtyard was a new rule everyone decided not to let me know about. So I spent an excruciatingly long hour and a half with the school’s dean when I could’ve been in the library getting to know Jin Hee.

    Dang it. I could’ve easily won the bet because I’m such an easy-to-talk-to person but no, I got into trouble instead.

    Wow, Zelo. Wow.

    Just as my hand reached for the glass door’s handle and walk into the library, someone from the other end had opened it. My heart skipped a beat as soon as I came face to face with Jin Hee. She looked even prettier up close with her over-grown bangs swept to one side, giving emphasis on her pretty eyes.

    “Ah, I’m so sorry,” she winced. “I’m so clumsy,” she mumbled under her breath, assuming that I didn’t hear her so I decided to let her believe that I didn’t.

    “Oh, it’s you!” I faked a tone of shock as I pretended that I didn’t run into her intentionally. She blinked a couple of times and then a shy smile began to play on her lips as she recalled who I was. “I’m Junhong, by the way. But I go by Zelo,” I extended an arm out politely and she shook it awkwardly. “I’m Jin Hee.”

    “That’s a really pretty name,” I complimented, causing her cheeks to tint red.

    She’s really cute.

    “Thank yo-”

    “Oh! Jin Hee-yah, I see you’ve met Zelo,” someone emerged out of the library from the other door and cut her off.

    The smile on Jin Hee’s face immediately grew at least three times wider as she turned to face the owner of that oddly recognizable voice. “Hello Youngjae oppa!” she beamed. “Yes, I did. Do you two know each other?”

    Wait.

    Youngjae oppa?

    Oppa?

    “Zelo and I are good friends!” Youngjae hyung smiled as he patted my shoulder lightly.

    “Well, it was nice talking to you two but I think I see Ye-jun-sii waiting for me at the school gates, so I guess I’ll see the both of you tomorrow,” she tiptoed and peered towards the school’s main entrance.

     “Bye, Jin Hee,” I waved, forcing myself to smile so that she wouldn’t see how annoyed at Youngjae hyung (and also at myself because I was late).

    Whereas hyung on the other hand, engulfed her into a tight hug and then ruffled her hair playfully. “Bye Jin Hee,” he cooed. “Give me a call if you need any tutoring with your schoolwork okay? After all, you have my number.”  She nodded cutely in response, turned her heel and walked off.

    As soon as I was sure she was out of earshot, my smile cracked into a frown and my gaze on Youngjae hyung turned into a glare. “Youngjae oppa?” my glare hardened.

    “I met her in the library and she looked like she needed some help. It wasn’t my fault we gotten so close in such a short time,” he shrugged.

    I rolled my eyes. “Oh please, hyung, you were full on flirting with that poor girl!” I exclaimed. “And you took advantage of her naivety. You even hugged her!”

    “You would’ve done the same thing,” he commented.

    “Yeah, but at least mine was because I wanted to win that bet.”

    “In which I already had a head start in and also stand a better chance with your girl than you,” he smirked.

    “Hyung,” I whined and pouted.

    “Sorry kiddo. I really want to win this bet,” he patted my shoulder again, this time out of sympathy. But before I could reply him, there was a loud crash followed by a loud shriek and then Daehyun hyung’s laugh.

    “Jung Dae Hyun!” someone yelled in anger.

    Oh boy what did Daehyun hyung do now? 

A/N : I'm sorry but, ohohoho Youngjae the troll.