Lost in Love [15/40]
Title: Lost in Love [15/40]
Author: ixjaydee
Rating: PG - 13
Pairing: Woogyu (Woohyun/Sunggyu);; Sungsoo (Sungyeol/Myungsoo);; Wooya (Dongwoo/Hoya)
Genre: drama, high school cliches, and the like.
Disclaimer: I need to put some money in the bank so I can buy their CDs. That’s the closest I’ll ever get to owning them.
Summary: Nam Woohyun: noun - [1] resident pretty boy and one of the most popular juniors in the entire school. [2] has a reputation of being a jerk, but only because most people don’t understand he doesn’t really mean his insults. It’s just how he shows his affection.
Kim Sunggyu: noun - [1] nobody. [2] a junior just trying to make his way through school and do bigger and better things with his life.
Woogyu: noun - [1] a name given to Woohyun and Sunggyu by his best friend Dongwoo, who happens to know that Woohyun has a crush on Sunggyu. [2] the reason Sunggyu gets crippled for life.
AN;; Ahhh. It feels good to be able to eat solid food again. I’m super tired, but hey, at least I can eat now. Slightly longer chapter to make up for not being able to update for a few days. I should be able to return to regular updates again. There might be a few more typos than normal, so feel free to point those out to me!
--
15
--
Coach was quite satisfied with Woohyun’s improved performance on the field, and it was all due to the boy half asleep in the bleachers. He didn’t even have to be awake for Woohyun to want to impress him.
The only thing he was worried about was the fact that Woohyun wanted to do everything himself to show off, and like in all team sports, it could spell disaster on the field.
“Woohyun, come here.” Coach waved him off of the field for a moment. Woohyun passed the ball to one of his teammates before jogging off of the field.
“Sir?”
“The only time you passed the ball was when you were getting off the field. Why is that, Woohyun?” Woohyun opened his mouth to answer but wilted under Coach’s hard stare.
“Soccer is a team sport. You can’t do everything by yourself against the other team. You’re not superman. That’s why there are positions, captains, and teams. Your little boyfriend up there doesn’t know anything about soccer. Don’t show him the wrong way to play it.”
“Yes, sir.” Coach sent him back to the field with another word, sighing at his retreating back. If he didn’t see an improvement in that department, then he was likely to have a talk with Sunggyu about disappearing during games.
--
School started again, and started for the first time for Sungyeol in the morning. Sunggyu wandered sleepily out of his bed to see his mom adjusting Sungyeol’s uniform tie for him as he pulled at the collar of his shirt.
“Why is it so stiff?” he mumbled under his breath.
“Just beat it up a few times when you get home, and it shouldn’t be so bad,” Sunggyu said sleepily, walking up behind Sungyeol and leaning his head onto his shoulder.
“There you go. Have a good first day! Make lots of friends!” Sunggyu’s mom patted Sungyeol’s other shoulder. Sunggyu took a deep breath in and stood up, walking with Sungyeol towards the door.
“Watch out for Woohyun’s fanclub! And try not to strip other people if you fall asleep in class,” Sunggyu called out to Sungyeol. Sungyeol turned around and scowled at him before smiling and waving goodbye.
Sunggyu waved back, a little bit sadly. He wanted to be there for Sungyeol’s first day at his school, show him around, introduce him to his other friends. Have a normal life, he thought for a moment.
A pain shot down his leg as his knee reminded him that his life was no longer normal. “Sunggyu! Did you take your medication yet?” His mom called from in the house.
“I’m coming,” he shouted back.
As he turned into the house, he saw Woohyun’s car pull up with Dongwoo and Hoya bouncing up and down in the back seat, making his car shake.
“... you two stop that before you mess up my car? Jesus... Sungyeol! Get in the car, let’s go!” Sunggyu stopped, leaning against the doorway for a moment to watch Sungyeol’s reaction.
“What? Why?”
“So we can pick up Myungsoo and get to school. Let’s go. We don’t have all day.” They heard the roar of the bus coming down the street.
“But the bus is almost here.”
“And I’m already here. Let’s go.”
“But the bus is almost here,” Sungyeol repeated. Woohyun rolled his eyes before opening up the door to his car and jogging past Sungyeol towards Sunggyu with a smile on his face.
“Good mor-” Sunggyu’s greeting was cut off as Woohyun wrapped his arms around his waist and kissed him. Dongwoo and Hoya whooped from the backseat while Sungyeol’s jaw dropped to the floor. The bus passed right by the house and kept going.
As soon as Woohyun couldn’t hear it anymore, he let go of Sunggyu and grinned at him. “I haven’t even brushed my teeth yet,” Sunggyu groaned, covering his mouth with the back of his hand.
“I don’t really care,” Woohyun said, moving Sunggyu’s hand out of the way and kissing both cheeks and his nose. “I’ll see you after practice.” He pressed a quick kiss to Sunggyu’s lips again before hurrying back to his car and closing the door.
“There. Now the bus is gone, and you need a ride. Hop in. Back seat with Dongwoo and Hoya.” Woohyun jerked his finger towards the back and rolled up his window at a dumbstruck Sungyeol. When the back door opened, Hoya stepped out and dragged Sungyeol into the car.
“You’re not going to try to cram all four of us into the back seat, are you?” Dongwoo asked.
“No, Myungsoo sits in front.” A flurry of protests started to rain on Woohyun before the door closed, and he drove off with a grin and a wave to Sunggyu.
--
Daytime television was a terrible way of trying to keep from sleeping all day, Sunggyu decided after the soap opera he was watching took a turn for the worst. He turned off the TV and looked around the quiet house.
His mother was gone for work, Sungyeol was at school, along with the rest of the group that had been keeping him company for the past few months. It felt strange being alone like this after so long, but Sunggyu welcomed it, limping to his room to grab a guitar.
He groaned as he sat down on his bed to tune it, thinking back to his first guitar. His dad taught him how to play when he was a kid. Sungyeol tried to learn with him, but he could never keep his attention on something for too long.
Sunggyu and his father would sit on the front porch after dinner and play songs together under the stars. His fingers automatically moved to the starting notes of his father’s favorite song. He sang the song softly under his breath, thinking about the way he always teased his dad for being a sappy romantic.
That’s how I won your mother over, he would always tell Sunggyu. It’s the only reason you’re even here in the first place. Sunggyu smiled softly, plucking at the strings. After a few minutes, his hands fell from the guitar, and he sighed. He missed his father.
--
After playing around on his guitar for an hour or so, Sunggyu noticed a box of unpacked things in the corner of his room. “What? Did...” He vaguely remembered saying something to himself about unpacking it later.
Sunggyu rolled off of his bed and limped over to the box, leaning over to open up the flaps. He saw a few things here and there, mostly from when he was a kid. He came across an old tin with a Pikachu jumping across.
“Oh, hey. Haven’t seen this since I was eight or something,” he said to himself as he picked it up. His eyebrows furrowed when he realized it was a little bit heavier than he remembered. He walked over to his bed and sat down before opening it up.
It was filled with money. Actual bills tied with a rubber band, and a small white note on top in his old handwriting.
“For a rainy day,” Sunggyu read outloud. He whistled as he thumbed through the stack, looking at the numbers on the bills. They were all out of order, but a majority of them were tens and fives.
“Good lord. I don’t remember saving this much as a kid!” Sunggyu reached for the white note again, flipping it over. There was more writing on the back.
“Your stack looked a little bit small, kid. So I helped a little. Love, Dad...” Sunggyu looked back at the money fanned on his bed and sighed.
“Thanks, Dad...”
--
Sungyeol and Myungsoo had a few of their classes together, and lunch with Woohyun and his friends. Myungsoo seemed to be popular among the students, but he mostly ignored them, sitting in his seat and staring off into the distance.
“You know, people are starting to think you’re stuck up,” Sungyeol said, sitting backwards in the desk in front of Myungsoo. Myungsoo just raised an eyebrow.
“Let them think what they want. I’m not a social person by nature.”
“I’ll say. You’re more like an awkward turtle.” Sungyeol made the hand motion in front of him and laughed when Myungsoo smiled and slapped his hands away from his face.
A pair of giggling girls made their way over to him, one of them clearing her throat nervously as he looked over in their direction.
“H-hi.”
“Hello.”
“You’re new, right?” she asked, her friend hiding behind her.
“Yes.”
“What’s your name?”
“Myungsoo.” The girls burst out into laughter before hurrying away and telling another groups of girls that promptly burst into laughter. Sungyeol stared off after them with a weird look on his face while Myungsoo rolled his eyes.
“I’m not surprised now, about what happened to Sunggyu. It’s been like this all day. I want to rip my hair out, I swear.” Myungsoo sighed and let his head fall onto his arms on the desk.
“That’s what you get for having a pretty face,” Sungyeol said, leaning back on the desk. Myungsoo peeped out over his arm and grinned.
“So you think I have a pretty face?” Sungyeol blinked rapidly at Myungsoo for a moment before shrugging and looking away.
“You do,” Myungsoo said, reaching out with his hand and pointing at Sungyeol’s face. He chuckled to himself before jabbing him in the chest.
“Stop that.” Sungyeol batted his arm away and rolled his eyes.
“I’m not touching you.” Myungsoo kept his finger a fourth of an inch away from Sungyeol’s chest.
“I’m not touching you... I’m not touching you... I’m not touching you... I’m not touching you...” Sungyeol growled and knocked Myungsoo’s finger away from him again.
“What are you? Five?!”
“Maybe,” Myungsoo said, smirking as he sat back up, stretching his arms over his head.
“Alright class, settle down...” Sungyeol glared at him before turning around in his seat. Myungsoo laughed.
--
“Woohyun, what’s with you today?” The lunch routine didn’t change with the exception that Myungsoo and Sungyeol joined them for lunch. Dongwoo and Hoya still stole food from his tray, and even Sungyeol snuck a few things here and there.
Woohyun was jittery. He stared at the clocks all day and sighed in relief as another class period ended.
“Nothing’s wrong. I just. I have a lot of energy, and I just. Nothing’s wrong.” His legs bounced up and down while he was sitting.
“He’s suffering from Sunggyu withdrawal,” Myungsoo said with a smile on his face as he took a bite out of his lunch.
“I believe that,” Sungyeol said, reaching for a fry on Myungsoo’s tray. Myungsoo knocked his hand away as Sungyeol gave him an indignant look.
“Woohyun may not like to eat his food, but I like to eat.” Myungsoo picked a fry off of his tray and popped it into his mouth to chew loudly. Sungyeol snorted when he choked on it slightly.
“My food? What?” He looked down at his tray, picked nearly clean of food.
“Man! I was actually going to eat today,” he said, staring at the empty plate. Dongwoo glanced down at the watch on his arm.
“You were going to eat? Blasphemy. We only have five minutes anyway. You wouldn’t be able to finish your food in five minutes.” Dongwoo patted him on the back and went back to finishing his dessert.
Sungyeol’s eyes scanned the cafeteria. There were a lot of eyes on them, and some of them didn’t look happy. Whenever he met with unhappy eyes, Sungyeol glared back until they looked away.
“What’re you looking at?” Myungsoo asked, turning around.
“The angry eyes. All part of your fanclub, Woohyun?” Sungyeol asked. Woohyun looked up and looked around.
“Probably. After what happened to Sunggyu, I got some of them expelled, but not all of them. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were still some crazies out there.” Woohyun got nervous again as his eyes swept over the cafeteria crowd.
“Actually, some of them are in Myungsoo’s fanclub,” Hoya said, stealing the last bite of dessert from Dongwoo, making him punch Hoya in the arm.
“I heard some of the girls talking on the way to lunch. Despite today being his first day, he’s already really popular.”
“Did they say anything else about me?” Myungsoo asked, resting his head on laced fingers.
“Uh... You were an ulzzang at your old school or something? That’s why some of them recognized you or already knew your name.” Sungyeol watched as Myungsoo frowned.
“Ulzzang, huh? I’m not surprised,” Woohyun said, eyes still watching the crowd. “You’ll have to be careful. Don’t be like me and not notice things until it’s too late.”
Sungyeol almost missed the fleeting glance Myungsoo cast towards him. “And I thought I wouldn’t have to worry about stuff like this here...” The bell rang, and Myungsoo got up and left faster than the rest of them, leaving Sungyeol worried.
“Did he tell you why he had to move schools?” Dongwoo asked Sungyeol as they left the cafeteria.
“No... Did he tell you?”
“No. He hasn’t mentioned it or anything. You two seemed close so I was just wondering if he told you.” They said their goodbyes and separated to different parts of the school.
Sungyeol glanced into the classroom to see Myungsoo with his head down on the desk.
“Myungsoo. Is something wrong?” Sungyeol asked as he sat down beside him.
“No. Nothing’s wrong.” The teacher walked in, making him sit up and pull out his books quietly.
“Are you sure?” Myungsoo gave him a look that clearly said something was wrong.
“Yeah, I’m sure.”
--
Sunggyu was already tired of being alone in the house. He ate lunch by himself and found his wallet and keys. Taking his cane, he decided he was going to head down town for a bit and take a walk around the shopping district.
“Oh, Sunggyu! Haven’t seen you in a while. Shouldn’t you be in school?” Sunggyu laughed as he flashed his bus pass and sat down behind the driver.
“I’m excused until the next school year.” He told the story casually, occasionally glancing back at the bus occupants. The lady behind him that was knitting was still holding her needles, but she wasn’t knitting anymore.
The man behind her was still on his phone, yapping away about a business meeting. Others were asleep, listening to music, and he could tell, some of them were listening to him.
“That’s some heavy stuff... You’re brave for going back to that school. I think it’d be better for you to transfer.”
“Transfer where?” Sunggyu laughed. “It’s the closest school to my house. It’s better for this gimpy leg. I went from teenager to old man in less than a few minutes.”
“Your stop.” Sunggyu groaned as he got up.
“You’re a brave soul.”
“No point in being afraid of the world just because things change.” Sunggyu waved to him as the bus doors closed.
He glanced around at the busy sidewalk. People were walking up and down, getting to their destinations without a second thought about the other people around them. Sunggyu turned and took a leisurely pace towards his favorite store.
--
“Sunggyu! What’s up? You disappeared off the face of the planet, man. I was getting worried.” Jinwoon was an employee at the music store he frequented for guitar picks and strings. The two had gotten to know each other, especially when they discovered each other’s passion for the guitar.
“Yeah. I was just off saving the world and getting crippled for life. No biggie.” Jinwoon’s eyes traveled down to the cane before they flicked back up to Sunggyu’s face.
“Do I want to know?”
“Make up whatever story sounds the coolest.”
“I’ll do that,” Jinwoon said with a smile.
“So. Please tell me you’re out of everything, and you’re here to buy some of everything.” Sunggyu laughed before shaking his head.
“No, just looking for something new to try. I’ve been excused from school until next year, so being cooped up in the house doing nothing is a little boring. There’s only so much I can do with the guitar too.”
“Why don’t you make videos and become an internet star? I’m pretty sure you could do it,” Jinwoon said, sliding out from behind the front counter.
“Not interested,” Sunggyu said, holding up his hand. “At least, not right now.”
He and Jinwoon wandered around the aisles, discussing tabs, techniques, and other things until they came across ukuleles.
“Oh yeah! We just got these in. You should learn how to play one of these with me.” Sunggyu glanced at the price tags and winced slightly.
“These are like, a fourth of the size of my guitars. Why are they so expensive?”
“Who cares? Give me an excuse to practice.”
“Uh, I care."
--
Myungsoo was distracted during practice. Sungyeol could see it, and if Sungyeol could see it, then the coach definitely saw it. He barked at Myungsoo and punished him with a few laps at the end of practice when his performance didn’t improve.
Woohyun, Dongwoo, and Hoya glanced at each other, slightly worried. Sungyeol packed up his homework into his book bag and headed down the bleachers past giggling girls as practice let out. He could’ve taken the bus home, but he didn’t want to leave Myungsoo like that, as strange as it felt to him.
“Myungsoo, what’s with you, man? It’s only the first day of school.” Myungsoo was quiet as he changed.
“I just have a lot on my mind, that’s all.”
“What happened at your old school?” Dongwoo punched Hoya in the side, making him rub his ribs and give Dongwoo a ‘what?!’ look.
“It’s not something I really want to talk about. Let’s just say I can relate to Woohyun a little bit better than you guys think.” Woohyun closed the locker and looked over at Myungsoo.
“Well, if you ever want to talk about it, Sungyeol is right there, waiting in front of the locker room,” he said pointing over to the entrance. Woohyun laughed when Myungsoo gave him a strange look.
“You didn’t think I wanted to talk about it with you, right?” Myungsoo rolled his eyes and grinned as Woohyun grabbed his stuff and threw an arm over Myungsoo’s shoulder, Dongwoo and Hoya following them out of the locker room.
“Either way. We’re here for you, so whatever is bothering you.” Woohyun pointed two fingers between himself and Myungsoo.
When they exited the locker room, Woohyun threw his other arm over Sungyeol’s shoulder, despite how much taller the other boy was.
“Woohyun, what are you doing?”
“I’m being friendly. Is that so hard to believe?”
“Considering that we’ve both beaten the crap out of each other before? Yes.”
“Pfft. That’s in the past. I’m just thinking we all need to stick together. Just in case something happens.”
“Quit being a cockblock, Woohyun.” Dongwoo grabbed the back of Woohyun’s shirt, pulling him back and making him fall onto his butt.
“What. Don’t talk to me about cockblocking!” Woohyun scrambled to his feet and tackled Dongwoo from behind, making them both fall to the floor.
“And everything is normal again,” Hoya said, peeling them apart.
--
Sungyeol opened up the door to the house and stuck his head inside before calling for Sunggyu and taking off his shoes. Woohyun and the others followed soon after, looking around the eerily quiet house.
“Sunggyu?” Sungyeol stuck his head into Sunggyu’s room. His guitar was still on his bed.
“Sunggyu?” Woohyun called, looking around the house.
“He’s not here.”
“He must’ve gone out then. I don’t see his keys or his wallet.”
“But it’s late. Does he usually stay out this late?” Woohyun asked.
“Not really... He’s usually back before now,” Sungyeol said slowly.
“Well, where is he? Call him!” Woohyun was starting to panic slightly.
“He doesn’t have a phone.”
“He doesn’t- Oh my god.” Woohyun ran his hand through his hair, panicking a little bit more.
“Calm down, Woohyun. He probably went out and lost track of time or something,” Hoya said from the couch as he turned on the TV.
“What if something happened to him? What if he got mugged, and he’s lying in a ditch somewhere, near death or something?! He didn’t even leave a note! What if he got lost? What if he forgot how to get home?!”
“Woohyun! Calm. Down. You’re acting like he’s an old man or something. He just has a messed up leg.” Myungsoo heard the door unlocking as Woohyun started to go on a rampage.
“Who’s an old man?” Sunggyu called as he opened the door, pulling his key out and closing it behind him. His new ukulele was on his shoulder in the case as he took off his shoes and made his way to his room.
“Hey guys,” he said as he passed by Woohyun, whose jaw dropped.
“Where have you been?! I’ve been freaking out for the past ten minutes-”
“More like thirty seconds,” Sungyeol said from the kitchen table.
“-about where you were! What if something happened to you?! Where did you go?! Why didn’t you leave a note?! And most importantly, why do you not have a phone?” Sunggyu emerged from his room to give Woohyun a weird look.
“What? I’m sorry if I get bored at home and like to go out. I’m crippled, not elderly. I lost track of time. I went downtown to the music store and got sidetracked learning to play the ukulele. Then I caught up with a friend and came home.” Woohyun still looked anxious.
“Woohyun? Are you okay?” Sunggyu reached out to poke him in the arm.
“I just... Oh god. I didn’t think it would be this hard.” He sank down to the floor and clung to Sunggyu’s good leg.
“What would be hard? Jeeze, Woohyun.” Woohyun rubbed his face into Sunggyu’s thigh.
“You going places without me. Where I can’t protect you from bad things that could happen. How am I going to survive school?” Sunggyu laughed.
“I lived pretty well before I met you. I’m sure I can take care of myself.” Woohyun ignored him and frowned.
“I brought your homework,” he said, pointing over to a folder on the table. Sunggyu rolled his eyes and stepped out of Woohyun’s grip.
“I didn’t realize you were so clingy.”
“I’m not clingy, I’m just worried.” Woohyun scooted over next to Sunggyu as he flipped through the pages.
“How exciting. New concepts. Let’s whip out those notes so we can get this done and eat when my mom gets home.”
“Does your mom mind feeding this many people all the time?” Myungsoo asked as he and Sungyeol claimed a corner of the coffee table for themselves.
“No. She enjoys it actually, even though our grocery bill goes through the roof. She wanted more kids but...” Woohyun immediately felt guilty. Even though Sunggyu’s mom said that he was always welcome, he never thought about the strain on them financially since he never had to worry about money.
“Hey, I’ll pay you guys back for grocery stuff, okay?” Woohyun said quietly to Sunggyu.
“You don’t have to,” Sunggyu said back.
“No. I will. It used to be just you and your mom, and then suddenly there’s Sungyeol, then the rest of us. I know money was tight, even when it was just the two of you. Just, let me help out a little.” Sunggyu frowned, but Woohyun leaned over and pressed a kiss to his temple.
“No PDA at the homework table!”
“God, shut up, Sungyeol! I swear I hate you!”
--
Prev | Next
Author: ixjaydee
Rating: PG - 13
Pairing: Woogyu (Woohyun/Sunggyu);; Sungsoo (Sungyeol/Myungsoo);; Wooya (Dongwoo/Hoya)
Genre: drama, high school cliches, and the like.
Disclaimer: I need to put some money in the bank so I can buy their CDs. That’s the closest I’ll ever get to owning them.
Summary: Nam Woohyun: noun - [1] resident pretty boy and one of the most popular juniors in the entire school. [2] has a reputation of being a jerk, but only because most people don’t understand he doesn’t really mean his insults. It’s just how he shows his affection.
Kim Sunggyu: noun - [1] nobody. [2] a junior just trying to make his way through school and do bigger and better things with his life.
Woogyu: noun - [1] a name given to Woohyun and Sunggyu by his best friend Dongwoo, who happens to know that Woohyun has a crush on Sunggyu. [2] the reason Sunggyu gets crippled for life.
AN;; Ahhh. It feels good to be able to eat solid food again. I’m super tired, but hey, at least I can eat now. Slightly longer chapter to make up for not being able to update for a few days. I should be able to return to regular updates again. There might be a few more typos than normal, so feel free to point those out to me!
--
15
--
Coach was quite satisfied with Woohyun’s improved performance on the field, and it was all due to the boy half asleep in the bleachers. He didn’t even have to be awake for Woohyun to want to impress him.
The only thing he was worried about was the fact that Woohyun wanted to do everything himself to show off, and like in all team sports, it could spell disaster on the field.
“Woohyun, come here.” Coach waved him off of the field for a moment. Woohyun passed the ball to one of his teammates before jogging off of the field.
“Sir?”
“The only time you passed the ball was when you were getting off the field. Why is that, Woohyun?” Woohyun opened his mouth to answer but wilted under Coach’s hard stare.
“Soccer is a team sport. You can’t do everything by yourself against the other team. You’re not superman. That’s why there are positions, captains, and teams. Your little boyfriend up there doesn’t know anything about soccer. Don’t show him the wrong way to play it.”
“Yes, sir.” Coach sent him back to the field with another word, sighing at his retreating back. If he didn’t see an improvement in that department, then he was likely to have a talk with Sunggyu about disappearing during games.
--
School started again, and started for the first time for Sungyeol in the morning. Sunggyu wandered sleepily out of his bed to see his mom adjusting Sungyeol’s uniform tie for him as he pulled at the collar of his shirt.
“Why is it so stiff?” he mumbled under his breath.
“Just beat it up a few times when you get home, and it shouldn’t be so bad,” Sunggyu said sleepily, walking up behind Sungyeol and leaning his head onto his shoulder.
“There you go. Have a good first day! Make lots of friends!” Sunggyu’s mom patted Sungyeol’s other shoulder. Sunggyu took a deep breath in and stood up, walking with Sungyeol towards the door.
“Watch out for Woohyun’s fanclub! And try not to strip other people if you fall asleep in class,” Sunggyu called out to Sungyeol. Sungyeol turned around and scowled at him before smiling and waving goodbye.
Sunggyu waved back, a little bit sadly. He wanted to be there for Sungyeol’s first day at his school, show him around, introduce him to his other friends. Have a normal life, he thought for a moment.
A pain shot down his leg as his knee reminded him that his life was no longer normal. “Sunggyu! Did you take your medication yet?” His mom called from in the house.
“I’m coming,” he shouted back.
As he turned into the house, he saw Woohyun’s car pull up with Dongwoo and Hoya bouncing up and down in the back seat, making his car shake.
“... you two stop that before you mess up my car? Jesus... Sungyeol! Get in the car, let’s go!” Sunggyu stopped, leaning against the doorway for a moment to watch Sungyeol’s reaction.
“What? Why?”
“So we can pick up Myungsoo and get to school. Let’s go. We don’t have all day.” They heard the roar of the bus coming down the street.
“But the bus is almost here.”
“And I’m already here. Let’s go.”
“But the bus is almost here,” Sungyeol repeated. Woohyun rolled his eyes before opening up the door to his car and jogging past Sungyeol towards Sunggyu with a smile on his face.
“Good mor-” Sunggyu’s greeting was cut off as Woohyun wrapped his arms around his waist and kissed him. Dongwoo and Hoya whooped from the backseat while Sungyeol’s jaw dropped to the floor. The bus passed right by the house and kept going.
As soon as Woohyun couldn’t hear it anymore, he let go of Sunggyu and grinned at him. “I haven’t even brushed my teeth yet,” Sunggyu groaned, covering his mouth with the back of his hand.
“I don’t really care,” Woohyun said, moving Sunggyu’s hand out of the way and kissing both cheeks and his nose. “I’ll see you after practice.” He pressed a quick kiss to Sunggyu’s lips again before hurrying back to his car and closing the door.
“There. Now the bus is gone, and you need a ride. Hop in. Back seat with Dongwoo and Hoya.” Woohyun jerked his finger towards the back and rolled up his window at a dumbstruck Sungyeol. When the back door opened, Hoya stepped out and dragged Sungyeol into the car.
“You’re not going to try to cram all four of us into the back seat, are you?” Dongwoo asked.
“No, Myungsoo sits in front.” A flurry of protests started to rain on Woohyun before the door closed, and he drove off with a grin and a wave to Sunggyu.
--
Daytime television was a terrible way of trying to keep from sleeping all day, Sunggyu decided after the soap opera he was watching took a turn for the worst. He turned off the TV and looked around the quiet house.
His mother was gone for work, Sungyeol was at school, along with the rest of the group that had been keeping him company for the past few months. It felt strange being alone like this after so long, but Sunggyu welcomed it, limping to his room to grab a guitar.
He groaned as he sat down on his bed to tune it, thinking back to his first guitar. His dad taught him how to play when he was a kid. Sungyeol tried to learn with him, but he could never keep his attention on something for too long.
Sunggyu and his father would sit on the front porch after dinner and play songs together under the stars. His fingers automatically moved to the starting notes of his father’s favorite song. He sang the song softly under his breath, thinking about the way he always teased his dad for being a sappy romantic.
That’s how I won your mother over, he would always tell Sunggyu. It’s the only reason you’re even here in the first place. Sunggyu smiled softly, plucking at the strings. After a few minutes, his hands fell from the guitar, and he sighed. He missed his father.
--
After playing around on his guitar for an hour or so, Sunggyu noticed a box of unpacked things in the corner of his room. “What? Did...” He vaguely remembered saying something to himself about unpacking it later.
Sunggyu rolled off of his bed and limped over to the box, leaning over to open up the flaps. He saw a few things here and there, mostly from when he was a kid. He came across an old tin with a Pikachu jumping across.
“Oh, hey. Haven’t seen this since I was eight or something,” he said to himself as he picked it up. His eyebrows furrowed when he realized it was a little bit heavier than he remembered. He walked over to his bed and sat down before opening it up.
It was filled with money. Actual bills tied with a rubber band, and a small white note on top in his old handwriting.
“For a rainy day,” Sunggyu read outloud. He whistled as he thumbed through the stack, looking at the numbers on the bills. They were all out of order, but a majority of them were tens and fives.
“Good lord. I don’t remember saving this much as a kid!” Sunggyu reached for the white note again, flipping it over. There was more writing on the back.
“Your stack looked a little bit small, kid. So I helped a little. Love, Dad...” Sunggyu looked back at the money fanned on his bed and sighed.
“Thanks, Dad...”
--
Sungyeol and Myungsoo had a few of their classes together, and lunch with Woohyun and his friends. Myungsoo seemed to be popular among the students, but he mostly ignored them, sitting in his seat and staring off into the distance.
“You know, people are starting to think you’re stuck up,” Sungyeol said, sitting backwards in the desk in front of Myungsoo. Myungsoo just raised an eyebrow.
“Let them think what they want. I’m not a social person by nature.”
“I’ll say. You’re more like an awkward turtle.” Sungyeol made the hand motion in front of him and laughed when Myungsoo smiled and slapped his hands away from his face.
A pair of giggling girls made their way over to him, one of them clearing her throat nervously as he looked over in their direction.
“H-hi.”
“Hello.”
“You’re new, right?” she asked, her friend hiding behind her.
“Yes.”
“What’s your name?”
“Myungsoo.” The girls burst out into laughter before hurrying away and telling another groups of girls that promptly burst into laughter. Sungyeol stared off after them with a weird look on his face while Myungsoo rolled his eyes.
“I’m not surprised now, about what happened to Sunggyu. It’s been like this all day. I want to rip my hair out, I swear.” Myungsoo sighed and let his head fall onto his arms on the desk.
“That’s what you get for having a pretty face,” Sungyeol said, leaning back on the desk. Myungsoo peeped out over his arm and grinned.
“So you think I have a pretty face?” Sungyeol blinked rapidly at Myungsoo for a moment before shrugging and looking away.
“You do,” Myungsoo said, reaching out with his hand and pointing at Sungyeol’s face. He chuckled to himself before jabbing him in the chest.
“Stop that.” Sungyeol batted his arm away and rolled his eyes.
“I’m not touching you.” Myungsoo kept his finger a fourth of an inch away from Sungyeol’s chest.
“I’m not touching you... I’m not touching you... I’m not touching you... I’m not touching you...” Sungyeol growled and knocked Myungsoo’s finger away from him again.
“What are you? Five?!”
“Maybe,” Myungsoo said, smirking as he sat back up, stretching his arms over his head.
“Alright class, settle down...” Sungyeol glared at him before turning around in his seat. Myungsoo laughed.
--
“Woohyun, what’s with you today?” The lunch routine didn’t change with the exception that Myungsoo and Sungyeol joined them for lunch. Dongwoo and Hoya still stole food from his tray, and even Sungyeol snuck a few things here and there.
Woohyun was jittery. He stared at the clocks all day and sighed in relief as another class period ended.
“Nothing’s wrong. I just. I have a lot of energy, and I just. Nothing’s wrong.” His legs bounced up and down while he was sitting.
“He’s suffering from Sunggyu withdrawal,” Myungsoo said with a smile on his face as he took a bite out of his lunch.
“I believe that,” Sungyeol said, reaching for a fry on Myungsoo’s tray. Myungsoo knocked his hand away as Sungyeol gave him an indignant look.
“Woohyun may not like to eat his food, but I like to eat.” Myungsoo picked a fry off of his tray and popped it into his mouth to chew loudly. Sungyeol snorted when he choked on it slightly.
“My food? What?” He looked down at his tray, picked nearly clean of food.
“Man! I was actually going to eat today,” he said, staring at the empty plate. Dongwoo glanced down at the watch on his arm.
“You were going to eat? Blasphemy. We only have five minutes anyway. You wouldn’t be able to finish your food in five minutes.” Dongwoo patted him on the back and went back to finishing his dessert.
Sungyeol’s eyes scanned the cafeteria. There were a lot of eyes on them, and some of them didn’t look happy. Whenever he met with unhappy eyes, Sungyeol glared back until they looked away.
“What’re you looking at?” Myungsoo asked, turning around.
“The angry eyes. All part of your fanclub, Woohyun?” Sungyeol asked. Woohyun looked up and looked around.
“Probably. After what happened to Sunggyu, I got some of them expelled, but not all of them. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were still some crazies out there.” Woohyun got nervous again as his eyes swept over the cafeteria crowd.
“Actually, some of them are in Myungsoo’s fanclub,” Hoya said, stealing the last bite of dessert from Dongwoo, making him punch Hoya in the arm.
“I heard some of the girls talking on the way to lunch. Despite today being his first day, he’s already really popular.”
“Did they say anything else about me?” Myungsoo asked, resting his head on laced fingers.
“Uh... You were an ulzzang at your old school or something? That’s why some of them recognized you or already knew your name.” Sungyeol watched as Myungsoo frowned.
“Ulzzang, huh? I’m not surprised,” Woohyun said, eyes still watching the crowd. “You’ll have to be careful. Don’t be like me and not notice things until it’s too late.”
Sungyeol almost missed the fleeting glance Myungsoo cast towards him. “And I thought I wouldn’t have to worry about stuff like this here...” The bell rang, and Myungsoo got up and left faster than the rest of them, leaving Sungyeol worried.
“Did he tell you why he had to move schools?” Dongwoo asked Sungyeol as they left the cafeteria.
“No... Did he tell you?”
“No. He hasn’t mentioned it or anything. You two seemed close so I was just wondering if he told you.” They said their goodbyes and separated to different parts of the school.
Sungyeol glanced into the classroom to see Myungsoo with his head down on the desk.
“Myungsoo. Is something wrong?” Sungyeol asked as he sat down beside him.
“No. Nothing’s wrong.” The teacher walked in, making him sit up and pull out his books quietly.
“Are you sure?” Myungsoo gave him a look that clearly said something was wrong.
“Yeah, I’m sure.”
--
Sunggyu was already tired of being alone in the house. He ate lunch by himself and found his wallet and keys. Taking his cane, he decided he was going to head down town for a bit and take a walk around the shopping district.
“Oh, Sunggyu! Haven’t seen you in a while. Shouldn’t you be in school?” Sunggyu laughed as he flashed his bus pass and sat down behind the driver.
“I’m excused until the next school year.” He told the story casually, occasionally glancing back at the bus occupants. The lady behind him that was knitting was still holding her needles, but she wasn’t knitting anymore.
The man behind her was still on his phone, yapping away about a business meeting. Others were asleep, listening to music, and he could tell, some of them were listening to him.
“That’s some heavy stuff... You’re brave for going back to that school. I think it’d be better for you to transfer.”
“Transfer where?” Sunggyu laughed. “It’s the closest school to my house. It’s better for this gimpy leg. I went from teenager to old man in less than a few minutes.”
“Your stop.” Sunggyu groaned as he got up.
“You’re a brave soul.”
“No point in being afraid of the world just because things change.” Sunggyu waved to him as the bus doors closed.
He glanced around at the busy sidewalk. People were walking up and down, getting to their destinations without a second thought about the other people around them. Sunggyu turned and took a leisurely pace towards his favorite store.
--
“Sunggyu! What’s up? You disappeared off the face of the planet, man. I was getting worried.” Jinwoon was an employee at the music store he frequented for guitar picks and strings. The two had gotten to know each other, especially when they discovered each other’s passion for the guitar.
“Yeah. I was just off saving the world and getting crippled for life. No biggie.” Jinwoon’s eyes traveled down to the cane before they flicked back up to Sunggyu’s face.
“Do I want to know?”
“Make up whatever story sounds the coolest.”
“I’ll do that,” Jinwoon said with a smile.
“So. Please tell me you’re out of everything, and you’re here to buy some of everything.” Sunggyu laughed before shaking his head.
“No, just looking for something new to try. I’ve been excused from school until next year, so being cooped up in the house doing nothing is a little boring. There’s only so much I can do with the guitar too.”
“Why don’t you make videos and become an internet star? I’m pretty sure you could do it,” Jinwoon said, sliding out from behind the front counter.
“Not interested,” Sunggyu said, holding up his hand. “At least, not right now.”
He and Jinwoon wandered around the aisles, discussing tabs, techniques, and other things until they came across ukuleles.
“Oh yeah! We just got these in. You should learn how to play one of these with me.” Sunggyu glanced at the price tags and winced slightly.
“These are like, a fourth of the size of my guitars. Why are they so expensive?”
“Who cares? Give me an excuse to practice.”
“Uh, I care."
--
Myungsoo was distracted during practice. Sungyeol could see it, and if Sungyeol could see it, then the coach definitely saw it. He barked at Myungsoo and punished him with a few laps at the end of practice when his performance didn’t improve.
Woohyun, Dongwoo, and Hoya glanced at each other, slightly worried. Sungyeol packed up his homework into his book bag and headed down the bleachers past giggling girls as practice let out. He could’ve taken the bus home, but he didn’t want to leave Myungsoo like that, as strange as it felt to him.
“Myungsoo, what’s with you, man? It’s only the first day of school.” Myungsoo was quiet as he changed.
“I just have a lot on my mind, that’s all.”
“What happened at your old school?” Dongwoo punched Hoya in the side, making him rub his ribs and give Dongwoo a ‘what?!’ look.
“It’s not something I really want to talk about. Let’s just say I can relate to Woohyun a little bit better than you guys think.” Woohyun closed the locker and looked over at Myungsoo.
“Well, if you ever want to talk about it, Sungyeol is right there, waiting in front of the locker room,” he said pointing over to the entrance. Woohyun laughed when Myungsoo gave him a strange look.
“You didn’t think I wanted to talk about it with you, right?” Myungsoo rolled his eyes and grinned as Woohyun grabbed his stuff and threw an arm over Myungsoo’s shoulder, Dongwoo and Hoya following them out of the locker room.
“Either way. We’re here for you, so whatever is bothering you.” Woohyun pointed two fingers between himself and Myungsoo.
When they exited the locker room, Woohyun threw his other arm over Sungyeol’s shoulder, despite how much taller the other boy was.
“Woohyun, what are you doing?”
“I’m being friendly. Is that so hard to believe?”
“Considering that we’ve both beaten the crap out of each other before? Yes.”
“Pfft. That’s in the past. I’m just thinking we all need to stick together. Just in case something happens.”
“Quit being a cockblock, Woohyun.” Dongwoo grabbed the back of Woohyun’s shirt, pulling him back and making him fall onto his butt.
“What. Don’t talk to me about cockblocking!” Woohyun scrambled to his feet and tackled Dongwoo from behind, making them both fall to the floor.
“And everything is normal again,” Hoya said, peeling them apart.
--
Sungyeol opened up the door to the house and stuck his head inside before calling for Sunggyu and taking off his shoes. Woohyun and the others followed soon after, looking around the eerily quiet house.
“Sunggyu?” Sungyeol stuck his head into Sunggyu’s room. His guitar was still on his bed.
“Sunggyu?” Woohyun called, looking around the house.
“He’s not here.”
“He must’ve gone out then. I don’t see his keys or his wallet.”
“But it’s late. Does he usually stay out this late?” Woohyun asked.
“Not really... He’s usually back before now,” Sungyeol said slowly.
“Well, where is he? Call him!” Woohyun was starting to panic slightly.
“He doesn’t have a phone.”
“He doesn’t- Oh my god.” Woohyun ran his hand through his hair, panicking a little bit more.
“Calm down, Woohyun. He probably went out and lost track of time or something,” Hoya said from the couch as he turned on the TV.
“What if something happened to him? What if he got mugged, and he’s lying in a ditch somewhere, near death or something?! He didn’t even leave a note! What if he got lost? What if he forgot how to get home?!”
“Woohyun! Calm. Down. You’re acting like he’s an old man or something. He just has a messed up leg.” Myungsoo heard the door unlocking as Woohyun started to go on a rampage.
“Who’s an old man?” Sunggyu called as he opened the door, pulling his key out and closing it behind him. His new ukulele was on his shoulder in the case as he took off his shoes and made his way to his room.
“Hey guys,” he said as he passed by Woohyun, whose jaw dropped.
“Where have you been?! I’ve been freaking out for the past ten minutes-”
“More like thirty seconds,” Sungyeol said from the kitchen table.
“-about where you were! What if something happened to you?! Where did you go?! Why didn’t you leave a note?! And most importantly, why do you not have a phone?” Sunggyu emerged from his room to give Woohyun a weird look.
“What? I’m sorry if I get bored at home and like to go out. I’m crippled, not elderly. I lost track of time. I went downtown to the music store and got sidetracked learning to play the ukulele. Then I caught up with a friend and came home.” Woohyun still looked anxious.
“Woohyun? Are you okay?” Sunggyu reached out to poke him in the arm.
“I just... Oh god. I didn’t think it would be this hard.” He sank down to the floor and clung to Sunggyu’s good leg.
“What would be hard? Jeeze, Woohyun.” Woohyun rubbed his face into Sunggyu’s thigh.
“You going places without me. Where I can’t protect you from bad things that could happen. How am I going to survive school?” Sunggyu laughed.
“I lived pretty well before I met you. I’m sure I can take care of myself.” Woohyun ignored him and frowned.
“I brought your homework,” he said, pointing over to a folder on the table. Sunggyu rolled his eyes and stepped out of Woohyun’s grip.
“I didn’t realize you were so clingy.”
“I’m not clingy, I’m just worried.” Woohyun scooted over next to Sunggyu as he flipped through the pages.
“How exciting. New concepts. Let’s whip out those notes so we can get this done and eat when my mom gets home.”
“Does your mom mind feeding this many people all the time?” Myungsoo asked as he and Sungyeol claimed a corner of the coffee table for themselves.
“No. She enjoys it actually, even though our grocery bill goes through the roof. She wanted more kids but...” Woohyun immediately felt guilty. Even though Sunggyu’s mom said that he was always welcome, he never thought about the strain on them financially since he never had to worry about money.
“Hey, I’ll pay you guys back for grocery stuff, okay?” Woohyun said quietly to Sunggyu.
“You don’t have to,” Sunggyu said back.
“No. I will. It used to be just you and your mom, and then suddenly there’s Sungyeol, then the rest of us. I know money was tight, even when it was just the two of you. Just, let me help out a little.” Sunggyu frowned, but Woohyun leaned over and pressed a kiss to his temple.
“No PDA at the homework table!”
“God, shut up, Sungyeol! I swear I hate you!”
--
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