[TLB7] The Last Bridge
Title: The Last Bridge - Chapter 7
Word Count: 4055
Rating: PG
Pairing: Junhyung/Hyunseung
Summary: Two boys meet, each with their own problems. What path has life laid out for them?
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters.
A/N: I did a longer chapter this time ^^ But the bad thing is because it's long, I'm too lazy to check it over as many times as I usually do >_< (And I feel like I forgot to italic some parts)
And so it was - Hyunseung was ill. At least that’s what Junhyung was about to see.
It must’ve been about 2 hours or so when Junhyung finally opened his eyes but met with darkness and fabric touching his nose. He removed the blanket which he had snuggled into and squinted his eyes for while to get accustomed to the light.
Junhyung looked around. It was quite dark outside as it was still raining, making it echo around the house, creating a peaceful mood. Quite like a lullaby, slowly playing itself into your thoughts. Giving off a hypnotizing effect as drowsiness takes over you. That’s one of the reasons Junhyung can’t help but love rain. It feels cleansing.
Junhyung sat up as he brought a hand through his messy hair to try and tame it a bit. It was always a wonder how even with slightest naps his hair ended up in the biggest mess possible. Even though his ex-girlfriends always kept going on about how sexy is was, he couldn’t see it. Even on girls. True, some were a bit more attractive but others… Let’s say they had always been so fixed up that he didn’t even recognize them without makeup and hair before all that hairspray and stuff.
Noticing his surroundings, Junhyung slightly raised his eyebrow before remembering where he was and instantly his eyes diverted to the other’s direction. The older was crawled up on another couch, breathing quite deeply. Junhyung stood up and did a fast stretching motion before walking over to Hyunseung, almost stumbling into the coffee table in the way.
Hyunseung’s breaths really were irregular. The younger leaned down and put his hand against the other’s forehead, which was also slightly damp and he noticed his whole face covered in sweat. Body-temperature seemed to be definitely over the norm.
“What are you doing, silly,” Junhyung muttered as he got the blanket and placed it around Hyunseung who didn’t react. Well, actually it seems he did as he started shivering noticeably. The older mumbled something which wasn’t caught.
“Let’s get you to your room,” Junhyung said more to himself as he tried to help Hyunseung up. But for some reason Hyunseung didn’t seem to be very co-operative as he held onto the couch with all fours. “I don’t want to,” another mumble came out as he started fidgeting, unable to stand still due to his body-temperature.
Junhyung stood there a bit, thinking what he should do, but his eyes suddenly widened and he lunged towards, but still was unable to avoid the situation as in a flash Hyunseung was on the ground with a thump, quiet groan escaping the back of his throat.
“Hyunseung! What are you doing?!” He crouched down. Hyunseung on the other hand only sprawled out on the floor while mumbling about how nice and cold it was, slight dreaminess heard from his voice. He didn’t even know himself what he was doing.
“Ok, that’s it!” Junhyung stated as he tried to get Hyunseung up which he succeeded after few tries and the resistance from the older.
“Aah! What are you-,“ Hyunseung cried out as he felt himself to be lifted into the air. He couldn’t feel surface below his feet which made panic arise. “Shut it!” Junhyung stated as he placed the older over his shoulder who immediately started to struggle, obviously not liking Junhyung’s idea.
“Put me down! Just listen to me! I can walk! Put me down!” Hyunseung shouted but the younger didn’t even seem to hear as he was already heading towards the stairs. Was he enjoying this torturing with a satisfied smile on his face - no one knows but himself.
At some point Junhyung stopped, making Hyunseung do the same for some seconds as he waited for what was about to come. “I can’t go up if you’re like this!” The younger said, looking up the stairs, fixating Hyunseung’s position on his shoulder.
Hyunseung didn’t reply with anything, only started to struggle even more, making it hard for the younger to keep him in place. “Let me go then!” But as soon as this sentence had escaped he froze in his place. While one of Junhyung’s hands had been holding him in place, his other hand had given quite a slap against his butt.
“Yah! Where do you think you’re touching?!” Hyunseung cried out loud but didn’t move anymore, almost as if fearing that it won’t be the last. Even though only a month ago he would’ve considered this as an abuse and hate every single contact with others, now he didn’t even mind that slap as much as he showed. It was quite amusing. Well, only if it wasn’t his ill self talking.
“See? At least now we can continue,” Junhyung said with a slight chuckle before proceeding. The older only snorted as he felt himself accepting this part of his fate. That didn’t mean he was going to let it go. But as he was slightly dizzy from the fever and didn’t feel any energy left, he just lightly hit the other’s back, trying to do at least something to show how unpleased he was with this situation. Not that Junhyung minded.
“Which way is your room?” The younger asked to which the other kept silent and puffed out his cheeks without noticing. It was clear that he had no intention of answering.
Junhyung slightly shook him, “You’re still alive?” A bit worry heard from his voice but the older still kept quiet.
Well, at least until there was another pat against his butt which made him let out a shriek in surprise. “Stop it!!” He struggled for a quite a while. Junhyung on the other side still seemed to be waiting for an answer which Hyunseung finally gave by mumbling something out. The younger caught it with ease and started moving again. The older let out a sigh and made his last effort with a poke between the other’s ribs to which Junhyung didn’t really react.
Soon he felt himself being placed on the bed, blanket soon after covering him, leaving only face out and Junhyung made sure he was properly tucked in. Hyunseung had closed his eyes already but jolted slightly as he felt a cold hand against his forehead and heard a sigh soon after. And he was off to sleep.
When Hyunseung opened his eyes again Junhyung was gone. He sat up slowly, just in case his head thought it’d be fun time to ache but he only felt something fall from his forehead - a cold damp cloth. He could only wonder where the younger had found it but he guessed he didn’t even want to know.
Hyunseung let his eyes wander around - it seemed quite dim again, probably evening as the sun was setting and orange light reflected through the curtains. It should seem a warm scene but Hyunseung could only feel the gloominess his room was wrapped in. He was still tired even though he had slept for quite a while; his head was dizzy as he felt his temperature to be high, he couldn’t stand still even for a second as the heat was killing. He couldn’t even properly think.
But what he was able to do, was to feel - and he felt lonely. Some part of him had expected Junhyung still to be there, to divert his thoughts and just entertain - just like he had suddenly appeared in his living room. So he couldn’t hide his disappointment seeing an empty room around him. Hyunseung took a sip of water which the younger had left for him on the table.
The whole atmosphere was depressing. Was it the fault of his weak state or was he just in this mood randomly. But he wanted to talk. Over a long time of trying to avoid people, only feeling irritation, he now wanted to have a nice chat. Exchange thoughts, impressions, news…Whatever as long as it included words.
Hyunseung placed the water back on the table but this time he also noticed a piece of paper which had originally been stuck under the glass. The boy tilted his head in questioning manner as he reached for it. The handwriting was frankly quite awful, but still readable - that’s all what matters. Funny as Hyunseung had always been annoyed at other’s handwritings.
Sorry Hyunseung, it was getting quite late so I had to go.
But you better take medicine and rest!
And don’t whine so much!
Junhyung
Hyunseung stared at the note for a minute or so, not sure if he should feel glad or irritated. On the one hand, he felt little happiness as Junhyung hadn’t left without a word even though he had the total right to do so. But letting Hyunseung know seemed to give off a feeling that he was considerate, feeling that the older was supposed to be let known of that fact. That he wanted him to know.
But going back to the irritation side…
Hyunseung found all it all to be gone. He blinked for a couple of times as his mind was quite blank for some seconds. Hyunseung had always felt annoyed at something which made it especially weird as not that it was missing. It felt a lot lighter and he loved this feeling. Noticing this, he let his eyes wander around without a target. The paper piece ended up somewhere on his bed, probably going to be lost in the midst of the blankets and pillows he had there.
Hyunseung jolted as the door opened slightly, only to reveal familiar dark hair. As the younger had spotted Hyunseung awake, he pushed the door open with slight force before stepping in and announcing, hands opened wide: “I’m baaack!”
“But…You’re back already?” Hyunseung asked with slight confusion as he tried to find the slip of paper but failed. It was already gone. Junhyung on the other hand stared for some seconds before slowly asking: “You just woke up?”
Hyunseung nodded.
The younger let out a laugh. “That makes sense then. It’s been a day already.” He walked over the bed, ruffling with the other’s hair to which Hyunseung let out whine but didn’t resist. His hair was in a mess anyway so it didn’t have any point trying to save it.
“Why I had to get sick now…It’s the test-week…” Hyunseung groaned as he suddenly remembered it must’ve been Monday. But he didn’t get to ponder about it much as he furrowed his eyebrow in questioning manner when Junhyung climbed on the bed, careful of not to crush Hyunseung on the way.
He leaned against the wall and while getting into a comfortable position Hyunseung could’ve sworn he saw a light-bulb above the other’s head before the other came out with, in his mind, a brilliant idea: “Hey, it’s said a kiss carries the illness on. I’ll be nice and let you share it!” Junhyung said with his usual cheeriness which the other couldn’t identify if it was fake or real. But he was already moving closer and Hyunseung could feel getting nervous as the other wore a stupid grin.
Talk about an awkward situation… Hyunseung snorted while trying to keep his cool as he pushed the other away lightly.
“I’m serious, want to go to school or not?” Junhyung said as he looked the other.
“You should attend your biology classes so you wouldn’t talk nonsense,” Hyunseung replied as he rolled his eyes, Junhyung only let out a laugh while scratching his neck.
“I do attend but…I’m mostly asleep,” he mumbled and earned a slap against his leg which had been sprawled out. Junhyung immediately pulled it back and grabbed onto the place it the older had hit.
“Ouch! That hurt. What the hell!” Junhyung exclaimed. “Sick people should be weak!”
Hyunseung didn’t answer as he had noticed how Junhyung had again been careful of his one leg. It was easy to see what it was about.
“You’re hurt again,” he said without even thinking about it, earning some seconds of silence before Junhyung answered with a glance and a reply: “Nothing bad.” Hyunseung looked at him suspiciously, only to meet with indifference in the younger’s eyes. His cheerful expression was gone and he didn’t even seem to try to get it back. He should’ve kept quiet.
“Anyway,” Junhyung continued after a while, “I brought you something to eat.” He reached for his bag which he had dragged on to the bed with him and took out an orange.
“Just grabbed it from downstairs, hope you don’t mind. No one was home so I couldn’t ask.”
Hyunseung only shook his head which could only mean that it was fine.
He looked over at Junhyung who was busy with peeling the orange, which wasn’t too co-operative as the orange’s juice started to come out even at the slightest touch, making Junhyung panic slightly as he tried not to let any drip on the covers.
“This is impossible!” Junhyung voiced with irritation as he got up with some struggle and left the room, probably to the kitchen or something before getting all places sticky. Hyunseung couldn’t help but let out a laugh but as soon as he noticed, the smile disappeared but there was still that soft glint.
This felt quite nice. To have somebody who would come to visit you when you’re ill and make a mess out of everything because in the end Hyunseung still ends up laughing. For a moment he even forgot his dizziness and his overall worries that always went hand-in-hand with thoughts. Once in a long time he just felt like every other high-school boy who just has fun living his carefree life.
It really was a nice feeling apart from being pressured all the time. He had always been quite alone in his childhood his family didn’t approve any of his friends. Not that it would’ve been a problem as he could have gone behind their backs but it came down to the point that they suddenly had to move. Easy to see what was the cause.
That’s why Hyunseung had come to terms with the fact that he should keep to his own.
Junhyung had been gone for 15 minutes already, making the older wonder if he got lost (probably not…) so he intended to stand up and go have a look. But as soon as he had stood up his head felt heavy and dizzy, but he didn’t turn much attention to it as with each step it seemed to fade slightly - probably a result from lying down for too long.
He stumbles out of the door, standing a second on the stairway to hear only water going on. Hyunseung doesn’t think much as he proceeds down the stairs, leaning slightly onto the wall while doing so. But just as his mind told him it was the last step and he had prepared to meet with floor, he suddenly found that there was nothing below his foot. Hyunseung didn’t manage to hold onto the handrail and his thoughts were already informing his mind of the upcoming pain that was about to come.
But there was no such thing.
Instead he met with something solid but still soft and felt an arm around him in support. Hyunseung got a slight scare as he regained balance fast and stepped backwards before looking up to meet with Junhyung’s worried gaze.
“Hey, you’re ok?” He asked, still looking at Hyunseung who had his gaze already fixated somewhere else. It was obvious he was feeling uncomfortable. The older still had a habit that no one should see his weaknesses and this boy right in front of him had seen more than needed already.
“Yeah,” He replied as in a habit started to fix the shirt he had on.
“What the-?!” Hyunseung said in confusion as he felt his shirt to be slightly damp. He looked at Junhyung to see his shirt in the same state and he looked at the older with puzzlement in his eyes.
“Oh,” the other finally got it, “I got that orange juice all over my shirt so…after trying to get some out it ended up like this.” Junhyung’s face held another stupid grin as he scratched the back of his neck. Hyunseung only stared at him in disbelief.
“Anyway, shouldn’t you be under the covers?” Junhyung asked as he pushed slightly at the other’s back, motioning him to go back up. The older didn’t oppose much as he took a step by step, still feeling lightheaded. But up he got with the support of Junhyung who kept supporting him and even though the older mumbled something that there was no need, the hand stayed. “You’re really stubborn at times,” he only got In reply.
“I am not,” Hyunseung strongly denied and the younger only smiled as if dealing with a little child.
Hyunseung went back to school the next week. It was still the same, apart from some girls who were throwing him glances he didn’t quite decipher. This made shivers go along his back as he didn’t know what to think of the matter. He only tried to shrug it off, if it was that easy with so many pairs of eyes stuck on your back like glue.
“Hey! Nice to see you again but who knows for how long, you have loads of tests to take,” Yoseob greeted as he sat down next to him at lunch. He still wore his cheery smile and was like his own self. Yoseob had texted him couple of times so he knew his situation.
But then the younger went suddenly quiet, making Hyunseung look over to see Yoseob thinking, gaze fixated on the other’s clothes.
“Hmm?” The older asked.
Yoseob brought his hand up to his chin, seemingly still in thought before he continued, “I’m quite interested where the hell you took those clothes from… Are you still feeling ill?”
Hyunseung looked down at himself, not really remembering what he was wearing. He looked back at Yoseob with another glance as if not understanding what the other had meant.
“I mean, your outfit picks have been quite awful but now…I never knew how much clothes can change a person,” Yoseob kept going on while Hyunseung was sorting his own thoughts. Was the change really that big? He had just felt like wearing something different today.
“Anyway, good job!” Yoseob finally expressed with a pat against Hyunseung’s shoulder before unpacking his lunch. Hyunseung still eyed him with the same confused expression.
“Too bad the others aren’t here. Dongwoon said something in the morning…” Yoseob trailed off as his thoughts finally went on food. And even though Hyunseung felt slightly curious he didn’t ask. It was better not to know than to worry.
The whole lunch went quite nice, apart from all the attention that was turned on Hyunseung.
“Seriously, what the hell,” Yoseob muttered sometime between their conversation.
“What?” Hyunseung asked as he saw the younger look around. He followed and saw almost eyes on him, mostly girls but there were some boys too. And even though they turned their gaze away when meeting with Hyunseung’s, the latter was sure he had been their target.
“What…Is going on?” Hyunseung asked, keeping his voice low. But he jumped in his seat as he saw a flash from his side - a girl who had taken a picture of them was already running away. Hyunseung started feeling uncomfortable as he didn’t know what this was all about.
“I tell you, it’s about your clothes,” Yoseob explained without needing to ask. “You had always been hidden under your dorky clothing so no one really paid attention to you. And it seems now that your outfit is so-called ‘normal’ they suddenly…’discovered’ you? What hypocrites… It’s not like you had changed,” Yoseob let out a sigh.
Hyunseung took another look around, the situation was still same. Was it true? He didn’t really remember what he was thinking when he picked out his clothes but it seemed it was out of the ordinary. Was it bad to try something new when feeling like so? But these thoughts were pushed aside soon as another one took their place.
Why the sudden need for a change? Hyunseung started wondering. He had never thought about trying to dress better. There had been no need for that.
Well, it wasn’t bad - for girls. It seemed as throughout the day he saw flashes and heard whispers, some even thinking he was a transfer student. Only the girls in his own class seemed to recognize him. They even tried to strike up a chat but Hyunseung let it pass - he didn’t feel like it. True, every boy would find that flattering but that didn’t mean he wanted to talk to them.
And he felt the familiar annoyance rise deep in his chest again, something he hadn’t felt for whole 4 days.
Yes, he had counted.
“Hyunseung?” He heard someone call out his name and unconsciously turned towards the source.
“Wow, it really is you,” Junhyung seemed impressed as he eyed Hyunseung up and down, making the older immediately shift in his place, uncomfortable.
“I don’t get what’s up. These are just clothes and people have been reacting like crazy,” Hyunseung muttered as he kept walking, Junhyung following a second after.
“I didn’t get it at start either but now after seeing you…I understand…” He glanced at the older for a brief moment before letting out a laugh, “people were all going on about this dorky hottie who had suddenly appeared from nowhere. Girls love this type you know?”
“Like I care,” Hyunseung mumbled under his breath once again.
“You should! Isn’t it usually dorks dream to become kind of famous suddenly?” Junhyung joked as he pushed the other’s arm playfully, earning a snort.
“This is too much - just having a bit of a different mood and this is what happens-,” Hyunseung trailed off, earning another laugh from the younger who immediately shut up after meeting with a glare.
“Naah, but you look really good, I hope you’re going to keep this up,” Hyunseung felt sincerity from Junhyung’s compliment, making him self-conscious as he felt his cheeks slightly hot. He already knew Junhyung had noticed the blush so he didn’t try to hide it, shrugging it off was a better idea.
“Whatever.”
Hyunseung thought back to the morning - he really couldn’t remember what he was thinking as his usual self would have never combined these clothes together. Just no way. But what he did remember was unusual times of checking the mirror if everything was fine. And even his hair which he usually had just let be how it wanted.
“…and they kept on how I must’ve influenced you. Psh…Now they try to blame…” Hyunseung heard a section of the sentence but zoned out again.
He didn’t regret it - he had to admit that the response was quite good. But why he cared about it? Was he slowly wanting to make his way into the ‘society’ again and gain acknowledgement?
Or was it just a teenager-ish wish to look more decent in a way others would accept. But even now he couldn’t really agree as he found himself thinking he didn’t care about what other people thought.
But what did stay on his mind was Junhyung’s comment. It was something that made him much happier than the whole day of compliments. Quite weird as such simple words have such effect on him.
“You’re lost in your thoughts again?” Junhyung’s voice sounded as the older felt a slight punch against his arm, snapping out of his thoughts.
“Hmm, not really,” Hyunseung replied.
Junhyung’s laugh was heard, “Then you should know you should start walking.”
Hyunseung looked around, noticing it was true and he felt slightly embarrassed even though he knew Junhyung was aware of his random spacing out moments.
“I guess see you tomorrow,” Hyunseung said and heard the other say his bye too.
“You better wear something cool tomorrow too! I’ll be waiting!” Junhyung shouted from meters away, making Hyunseung kind of nervous. But only because he was thinking if he should do as Junhyung had said or just go back to his old self.
Well, at least one school-day was over again…
Word Count: 4055
Rating: PG
Pairing: Junhyung/Hyunseung
Summary: Two boys meet, each with their own problems. What path has life laid out for them?
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters.
A/N: I did a longer chapter this time ^^ But the bad thing is because it's long, I'm too lazy to check it over as many times as I usually do >_< (And I feel like I forgot to italic some parts)
And so it was - Hyunseung was ill. At least that’s what Junhyung was about to see.
It must’ve been about 2 hours or so when Junhyung finally opened his eyes but met with darkness and fabric touching his nose. He removed the blanket which he had snuggled into and squinted his eyes for while to get accustomed to the light.
Junhyung looked around. It was quite dark outside as it was still raining, making it echo around the house, creating a peaceful mood. Quite like a lullaby, slowly playing itself into your thoughts. Giving off a hypnotizing effect as drowsiness takes over you. That’s one of the reasons Junhyung can’t help but love rain. It feels cleansing.
Junhyung sat up as he brought a hand through his messy hair to try and tame it a bit. It was always a wonder how even with slightest naps his hair ended up in the biggest mess possible. Even though his ex-girlfriends always kept going on about how sexy is was, he couldn’t see it. Even on girls. True, some were a bit more attractive but others… Let’s say they had always been so fixed up that he didn’t even recognize them without makeup and hair before all that hairspray and stuff.
Noticing his surroundings, Junhyung slightly raised his eyebrow before remembering where he was and instantly his eyes diverted to the other’s direction. The older was crawled up on another couch, breathing quite deeply. Junhyung stood up and did a fast stretching motion before walking over to Hyunseung, almost stumbling into the coffee table in the way.
Hyunseung’s breaths really were irregular. The younger leaned down and put his hand against the other’s forehead, which was also slightly damp and he noticed his whole face covered in sweat. Body-temperature seemed to be definitely over the norm.
“What are you doing, silly,” Junhyung muttered as he got the blanket and placed it around Hyunseung who didn’t react. Well, actually it seems he did as he started shivering noticeably. The older mumbled something which wasn’t caught.
“Let’s get you to your room,” Junhyung said more to himself as he tried to help Hyunseung up. But for some reason Hyunseung didn’t seem to be very co-operative as he held onto the couch with all fours. “I don’t want to,” another mumble came out as he started fidgeting, unable to stand still due to his body-temperature.
Junhyung stood there a bit, thinking what he should do, but his eyes suddenly widened and he lunged towards, but still was unable to avoid the situation as in a flash Hyunseung was on the ground with a thump, quiet groan escaping the back of his throat.
“Hyunseung! What are you doing?!” He crouched down. Hyunseung on the other hand only sprawled out on the floor while mumbling about how nice and cold it was, slight dreaminess heard from his voice. He didn’t even know himself what he was doing.
“Ok, that’s it!” Junhyung stated as he tried to get Hyunseung up which he succeeded after few tries and the resistance from the older.
“Aah! What are you-,“ Hyunseung cried out as he felt himself to be lifted into the air. He couldn’t feel surface below his feet which made panic arise. “Shut it!” Junhyung stated as he placed the older over his shoulder who immediately started to struggle, obviously not liking Junhyung’s idea.
“Put me down! Just listen to me! I can walk! Put me down!” Hyunseung shouted but the younger didn’t even seem to hear as he was already heading towards the stairs. Was he enjoying this torturing with a satisfied smile on his face - no one knows but himself.
At some point Junhyung stopped, making Hyunseung do the same for some seconds as he waited for what was about to come. “I can’t go up if you’re like this!” The younger said, looking up the stairs, fixating Hyunseung’s position on his shoulder.
Hyunseung didn’t reply with anything, only started to struggle even more, making it hard for the younger to keep him in place. “Let me go then!” But as soon as this sentence had escaped he froze in his place. While one of Junhyung’s hands had been holding him in place, his other hand had given quite a slap against his butt.
“Yah! Where do you think you’re touching?!” Hyunseung cried out loud but didn’t move anymore, almost as if fearing that it won’t be the last. Even though only a month ago he would’ve considered this as an abuse and hate every single contact with others, now he didn’t even mind that slap as much as he showed. It was quite amusing. Well, only if it wasn’t his ill self talking.
“See? At least now we can continue,” Junhyung said with a slight chuckle before proceeding. The older only snorted as he felt himself accepting this part of his fate. That didn’t mean he was going to let it go. But as he was slightly dizzy from the fever and didn’t feel any energy left, he just lightly hit the other’s back, trying to do at least something to show how unpleased he was with this situation. Not that Junhyung minded.
“Which way is your room?” The younger asked to which the other kept silent and puffed out his cheeks without noticing. It was clear that he had no intention of answering.
Junhyung slightly shook him, “You’re still alive?” A bit worry heard from his voice but the older still kept quiet.
Well, at least until there was another pat against his butt which made him let out a shriek in surprise. “Stop it!!” He struggled for a quite a while. Junhyung on the other side still seemed to be waiting for an answer which Hyunseung finally gave by mumbling something out. The younger caught it with ease and started moving again. The older let out a sigh and made his last effort with a poke between the other’s ribs to which Junhyung didn’t really react.
Soon he felt himself being placed on the bed, blanket soon after covering him, leaving only face out and Junhyung made sure he was properly tucked in. Hyunseung had closed his eyes already but jolted slightly as he felt a cold hand against his forehead and heard a sigh soon after. And he was off to sleep.
When Hyunseung opened his eyes again Junhyung was gone. He sat up slowly, just in case his head thought it’d be fun time to ache but he only felt something fall from his forehead - a cold damp cloth. He could only wonder where the younger had found it but he guessed he didn’t even want to know.
Hyunseung let his eyes wander around - it seemed quite dim again, probably evening as the sun was setting and orange light reflected through the curtains. It should seem a warm scene but Hyunseung could only feel the gloominess his room was wrapped in. He was still tired even though he had slept for quite a while; his head was dizzy as he felt his temperature to be high, he couldn’t stand still even for a second as the heat was killing. He couldn’t even properly think.
But what he was able to do, was to feel - and he felt lonely. Some part of him had expected Junhyung still to be there, to divert his thoughts and just entertain - just like he had suddenly appeared in his living room. So he couldn’t hide his disappointment seeing an empty room around him. Hyunseung took a sip of water which the younger had left for him on the table.
The whole atmosphere was depressing. Was it the fault of his weak state or was he just in this mood randomly. But he wanted to talk. Over a long time of trying to avoid people, only feeling irritation, he now wanted to have a nice chat. Exchange thoughts, impressions, news…Whatever as long as it included words.
Hyunseung placed the water back on the table but this time he also noticed a piece of paper which had originally been stuck under the glass. The boy tilted his head in questioning manner as he reached for it. The handwriting was frankly quite awful, but still readable - that’s all what matters. Funny as Hyunseung had always been annoyed at other’s handwritings.
Sorry Hyunseung, it was getting quite late so I had to go.
But you better take medicine and rest!
And don’t whine so much!
Junhyung
Hyunseung stared at the note for a minute or so, not sure if he should feel glad or irritated. On the one hand, he felt little happiness as Junhyung hadn’t left without a word even though he had the total right to do so. But letting Hyunseung know seemed to give off a feeling that he was considerate, feeling that the older was supposed to be let known of that fact. That he wanted him to know.
But going back to the irritation side…
Hyunseung found all it all to be gone. He blinked for a couple of times as his mind was quite blank for some seconds. Hyunseung had always felt annoyed at something which made it especially weird as not that it was missing. It felt a lot lighter and he loved this feeling. Noticing this, he let his eyes wander around without a target. The paper piece ended up somewhere on his bed, probably going to be lost in the midst of the blankets and pillows he had there.
Hyunseung jolted as the door opened slightly, only to reveal familiar dark hair. As the younger had spotted Hyunseung awake, he pushed the door open with slight force before stepping in and announcing, hands opened wide: “I’m baaack!”
“But…You’re back already?” Hyunseung asked with slight confusion as he tried to find the slip of paper but failed. It was already gone. Junhyung on the other hand stared for some seconds before slowly asking: “You just woke up?”
Hyunseung nodded.
The younger let out a laugh. “That makes sense then. It’s been a day already.” He walked over the bed, ruffling with the other’s hair to which Hyunseung let out whine but didn’t resist. His hair was in a mess anyway so it didn’t have any point trying to save it.
“Why I had to get sick now…It’s the test-week…” Hyunseung groaned as he suddenly remembered it must’ve been Monday. But he didn’t get to ponder about it much as he furrowed his eyebrow in questioning manner when Junhyung climbed on the bed, careful of not to crush Hyunseung on the way.
He leaned against the wall and while getting into a comfortable position Hyunseung could’ve sworn he saw a light-bulb above the other’s head before the other came out with, in his mind, a brilliant idea: “Hey, it’s said a kiss carries the illness on. I’ll be nice and let you share it!” Junhyung said with his usual cheeriness which the other couldn’t identify if it was fake or real. But he was already moving closer and Hyunseung could feel getting nervous as the other wore a stupid grin.
Talk about an awkward situation… Hyunseung snorted while trying to keep his cool as he pushed the other away lightly.
“I’m serious, want to go to school or not?” Junhyung said as he looked the other.
“You should attend your biology classes so you wouldn’t talk nonsense,” Hyunseung replied as he rolled his eyes, Junhyung only let out a laugh while scratching his neck.
“I do attend but…I’m mostly asleep,” he mumbled and earned a slap against his leg which had been sprawled out. Junhyung immediately pulled it back and grabbed onto the place it the older had hit.
“Ouch! That hurt. What the hell!” Junhyung exclaimed. “Sick people should be weak!”
Hyunseung didn’t answer as he had noticed how Junhyung had again been careful of his one leg. It was easy to see what it was about.
“You’re hurt again,” he said without even thinking about it, earning some seconds of silence before Junhyung answered with a glance and a reply: “Nothing bad.” Hyunseung looked at him suspiciously, only to meet with indifference in the younger’s eyes. His cheerful expression was gone and he didn’t even seem to try to get it back. He should’ve kept quiet.
“Anyway,” Junhyung continued after a while, “I brought you something to eat.” He reached for his bag which he had dragged on to the bed with him and took out an orange.
“Just grabbed it from downstairs, hope you don’t mind. No one was home so I couldn’t ask.”
Hyunseung only shook his head which could only mean that it was fine.
He looked over at Junhyung who was busy with peeling the orange, which wasn’t too co-operative as the orange’s juice started to come out even at the slightest touch, making Junhyung panic slightly as he tried not to let any drip on the covers.
“This is impossible!” Junhyung voiced with irritation as he got up with some struggle and left the room, probably to the kitchen or something before getting all places sticky. Hyunseung couldn’t help but let out a laugh but as soon as he noticed, the smile disappeared but there was still that soft glint.
This felt quite nice. To have somebody who would come to visit you when you’re ill and make a mess out of everything because in the end Hyunseung still ends up laughing. For a moment he even forgot his dizziness and his overall worries that always went hand-in-hand with thoughts. Once in a long time he just felt like every other high-school boy who just has fun living his carefree life.
It really was a nice feeling apart from being pressured all the time. He had always been quite alone in his childhood his family didn’t approve any of his friends. Not that it would’ve been a problem as he could have gone behind their backs but it came down to the point that they suddenly had to move. Easy to see what was the cause.
That’s why Hyunseung had come to terms with the fact that he should keep to his own.
Junhyung had been gone for 15 minutes already, making the older wonder if he got lost (probably not…) so he intended to stand up and go have a look. But as soon as he had stood up his head felt heavy and dizzy, but he didn’t turn much attention to it as with each step it seemed to fade slightly - probably a result from lying down for too long.
He stumbles out of the door, standing a second on the stairway to hear only water going on. Hyunseung doesn’t think much as he proceeds down the stairs, leaning slightly onto the wall while doing so. But just as his mind told him it was the last step and he had prepared to meet with floor, he suddenly found that there was nothing below his foot. Hyunseung didn’t manage to hold onto the handrail and his thoughts were already informing his mind of the upcoming pain that was about to come.
But there was no such thing.
Instead he met with something solid but still soft and felt an arm around him in support. Hyunseung got a slight scare as he regained balance fast and stepped backwards before looking up to meet with Junhyung’s worried gaze.
“Hey, you’re ok?” He asked, still looking at Hyunseung who had his gaze already fixated somewhere else. It was obvious he was feeling uncomfortable. The older still had a habit that no one should see his weaknesses and this boy right in front of him had seen more than needed already.
“Yeah,” He replied as in a habit started to fix the shirt he had on.
“What the-?!” Hyunseung said in confusion as he felt his shirt to be slightly damp. He looked at Junhyung to see his shirt in the same state and he looked at the older with puzzlement in his eyes.
“Oh,” the other finally got it, “I got that orange juice all over my shirt so…after trying to get some out it ended up like this.” Junhyung’s face held another stupid grin as he scratched the back of his neck. Hyunseung only stared at him in disbelief.
“Anyway, shouldn’t you be under the covers?” Junhyung asked as he pushed slightly at the other’s back, motioning him to go back up. The older didn’t oppose much as he took a step by step, still feeling lightheaded. But up he got with the support of Junhyung who kept supporting him and even though the older mumbled something that there was no need, the hand stayed. “You’re really stubborn at times,” he only got In reply.
“I am not,” Hyunseung strongly denied and the younger only smiled as if dealing with a little child.
Hyunseung went back to school the next week. It was still the same, apart from some girls who were throwing him glances he didn’t quite decipher. This made shivers go along his back as he didn’t know what to think of the matter. He only tried to shrug it off, if it was that easy with so many pairs of eyes stuck on your back like glue.
“Hey! Nice to see you again but who knows for how long, you have loads of tests to take,” Yoseob greeted as he sat down next to him at lunch. He still wore his cheery smile and was like his own self. Yoseob had texted him couple of times so he knew his situation.
But then the younger went suddenly quiet, making Hyunseung look over to see Yoseob thinking, gaze fixated on the other’s clothes.
“Hmm?” The older asked.
Yoseob brought his hand up to his chin, seemingly still in thought before he continued, “I’m quite interested where the hell you took those clothes from… Are you still feeling ill?”
Hyunseung looked down at himself, not really remembering what he was wearing. He looked back at Yoseob with another glance as if not understanding what the other had meant.
“I mean, your outfit picks have been quite awful but now…I never knew how much clothes can change a person,” Yoseob kept going on while Hyunseung was sorting his own thoughts. Was the change really that big? He had just felt like wearing something different today.
“Anyway, good job!” Yoseob finally expressed with a pat against Hyunseung’s shoulder before unpacking his lunch. Hyunseung still eyed him with the same confused expression.
“Too bad the others aren’t here. Dongwoon said something in the morning…” Yoseob trailed off as his thoughts finally went on food. And even though Hyunseung felt slightly curious he didn’t ask. It was better not to know than to worry.
The whole lunch went quite nice, apart from all the attention that was turned on Hyunseung.
“Seriously, what the hell,” Yoseob muttered sometime between their conversation.
“What?” Hyunseung asked as he saw the younger look around. He followed and saw almost eyes on him, mostly girls but there were some boys too. And even though they turned their gaze away when meeting with Hyunseung’s, the latter was sure he had been their target.
“What…Is going on?” Hyunseung asked, keeping his voice low. But he jumped in his seat as he saw a flash from his side - a girl who had taken a picture of them was already running away. Hyunseung started feeling uncomfortable as he didn’t know what this was all about.
“I tell you, it’s about your clothes,” Yoseob explained without needing to ask. “You had always been hidden under your dorky clothing so no one really paid attention to you. And it seems now that your outfit is so-called ‘normal’ they suddenly…’discovered’ you? What hypocrites… It’s not like you had changed,” Yoseob let out a sigh.
Hyunseung took another look around, the situation was still same. Was it true? He didn’t really remember what he was thinking when he picked out his clothes but it seemed it was out of the ordinary. Was it bad to try something new when feeling like so? But these thoughts were pushed aside soon as another one took their place.
Why the sudden need for a change? Hyunseung started wondering. He had never thought about trying to dress better. There had been no need for that.
Well, it wasn’t bad - for girls. It seemed as throughout the day he saw flashes and heard whispers, some even thinking he was a transfer student. Only the girls in his own class seemed to recognize him. They even tried to strike up a chat but Hyunseung let it pass - he didn’t feel like it. True, every boy would find that flattering but that didn’t mean he wanted to talk to them.
And he felt the familiar annoyance rise deep in his chest again, something he hadn’t felt for whole 4 days.
Yes, he had counted.
“Hyunseung?” He heard someone call out his name and unconsciously turned towards the source.
“Wow, it really is you,” Junhyung seemed impressed as he eyed Hyunseung up and down, making the older immediately shift in his place, uncomfortable.
“I don’t get what’s up. These are just clothes and people have been reacting like crazy,” Hyunseung muttered as he kept walking, Junhyung following a second after.
“I didn’t get it at start either but now after seeing you…I understand…” He glanced at the older for a brief moment before letting out a laugh, “people were all going on about this dorky hottie who had suddenly appeared from nowhere. Girls love this type you know?”
“Like I care,” Hyunseung mumbled under his breath once again.
“You should! Isn’t it usually dorks dream to become kind of famous suddenly?” Junhyung joked as he pushed the other’s arm playfully, earning a snort.
“This is too much - just having a bit of a different mood and this is what happens-,” Hyunseung trailed off, earning another laugh from the younger who immediately shut up after meeting with a glare.
“Naah, but you look really good, I hope you’re going to keep this up,” Hyunseung felt sincerity from Junhyung’s compliment, making him self-conscious as he felt his cheeks slightly hot. He already knew Junhyung had noticed the blush so he didn’t try to hide it, shrugging it off was a better idea.
“Whatever.”
Hyunseung thought back to the morning - he really couldn’t remember what he was thinking as his usual self would have never combined these clothes together. Just no way. But what he did remember was unusual times of checking the mirror if everything was fine. And even his hair which he usually had just let be how it wanted.
“…and they kept on how I must’ve influenced you. Psh…Now they try to blame…” Hyunseung heard a section of the sentence but zoned out again.
He didn’t regret it - he had to admit that the response was quite good. But why he cared about it? Was he slowly wanting to make his way into the ‘society’ again and gain acknowledgement?
Or was it just a teenager-ish wish to look more decent in a way others would accept. But even now he couldn’t really agree as he found himself thinking he didn’t care about what other people thought.
But what did stay on his mind was Junhyung’s comment. It was something that made him much happier than the whole day of compliments. Quite weird as such simple words have such effect on him.
“You’re lost in your thoughts again?” Junhyung’s voice sounded as the older felt a slight punch against his arm, snapping out of his thoughts.
“Hmm, not really,” Hyunseung replied.
Junhyung’s laugh was heard, “Then you should know you should start walking.”
Hyunseung looked around, noticing it was true and he felt slightly embarrassed even though he knew Junhyung was aware of his random spacing out moments.
“I guess see you tomorrow,” Hyunseung said and heard the other say his bye too.
“You better wear something cool tomorrow too! I’ll be waiting!” Junhyung shouted from meters away, making Hyunseung kind of nervous. But only because he was thinking if he should do as Junhyung had said or just go back to his old self.
Well, at least one school-day was over again…