hongjoong was currently in class, waiting for the announcement of scores for the project he did with soyeon.

he was a tad bit nervous because he didn't want to disappoint her. i mean, jeon fucking soyeon chose him to be her partner, so if anything goes wrong, it's immediately his fault.

he was usually a very confident person but, of course, sharing his unique ideas with her made him anxious. they had very different styles, you see, but they somehow made it work.

he was glad that soyeon gladly accepted the proposals and even complimented him. a lot.

the boy thought the entire project making was going to be awkward since they weren't even the same status, but it quickly vanished because (and he could tell) she tried hard to make him feel at ease. she even made him blush from time to time but he knows his limits.

he can't like her.

he appreciated her efforts very much, so he was thinking of a way to say thank you to her.

"alright, class. i got your scores." the teacher, mrs. jung, walked in holding a record sheet.

students stopped their actions and automatically listened.

"chanwoo and moonbin." the teacher audibly sighed. "why did you two pair up?"

"best friends stick together!" moonbin exclaimed, making the class giggle.

mrs. jung gave a disappointing look. "well, i hope you're happy with a D plus."

chanwoo gasped. "atleast we didn't fail."

there were other pairs called, some getting praised while others, not so much. hongjoong still didn't hear their names, though.

"seungkwan and hwanwoong. very good. i'll be expecting more from you."

they both thanked the teacher.

"finally, with the highest score, an A plus." mrs. jung proudly said. "hongjoong and soyeon."

the class gave out a lazy applause. they already expected it. with hongjoong's broad mind and soyeon's skills, of course they'd get the highest mark.

the blue haired boy widened his eyes, and directly faced soyeon who was smiling ear to ear, giving him a thumbs up.

°

the fashion majors' class was over and hongjoong needed to talk to soyeon.

she was already packing her bags when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

"hey. um, congratulations." hongjoong said, mentally face palming himself as he thought it was a terrible way to start a conversation.

the girl, however, thought otherwise, thinking it was cute. "thanks. you, too."

the boy had to say something to her, and he needed time to gather up courage. "so, where are you going after this?"

"to my next class, it's with mr. kwon." she informed. "you?"

"to the cafeteria. i haven't had lunch yet." soyeon nodded, acknowledging him but she was slightly concerned. it was already two thirty in the afternoon, yet he hadn't eaten.

"so, um, do you mind if we walk there together? it's the same direction anyways." the blue haired boy asked, hoping it didn't seem weird.

the girl halted everything she was doing. did she hear correctly? her heart was about to combust. "i'm sorry? i d-don't think i heard you."

"i asked if we could walk together. it's totally up to you to decide if you-" the awkwardness got cut off by soyeon agreeing.

"sure." she smiled warmly, which hongjoong returned.

he saw the girl struggling a bit with her belongings and offered to carry them.

they were walking towards her assigned classroom. it was silent at first, except for the whispers they heard from others, until the boy spoke up.

he cleared his throat. "do you maybe wanna grab coffee this weekend? you know, as a thank you."

soyeon rarely feels her heart flutter, but it did at the moment. "o-oh. of course."

"really? you aren't busy?" hongjoong made sure since he was as shocked when she said yes as soyeon when he asked.

"y-yeah. i'm free." she was cussing herself internally for stuttering so much.

"then, we're going this weekend?" the boy confirmed.

"yes, joong." the blonde short haired girl laughed. "we're here."

"oh. here are your things." he handed them over to her carefully.

just then, she saw her little sister waving at her, giving her teasing looks together with wooyoung.

"huh. woo's back." she said to herself as she waved back to them.

soyeon faced hongjoong again. "thank you, again. see you later."

"yeah. i'll text you when i can." he smiled as they parted ways.

when soyeon went into the classroom, he immediately felt someone wrap their arm around his shoulder.

"hyung! you and soyeon, huh?" the boy exclaimed.

"no, mingi." he pushed him slightly to make him let go. "now, where are the others?"

"mingi, wait the fuck up! i have shorter legs, you little shit." yeosang yelled which caught the attention of some schoolmates, including wooyoung and jihae. they snorted.

"man, i wish i was his friend." wooyoung said to his best friend, amused.

"too bad, i'm already friends with them." she bragged.

he raised an eyebrow at her. "oh, really? then, you wouldn't mind if i invite them over for lunch?"

"of course not." the silver haired boy grinned wide, as he approached the group, practically sprinting.

"san!" he called which instantly made the boy turn and freeze.

"y-you're back." he muttered.

jihae followed behind the culinary major. "hey, guys."

almost all of them waved back, except for hongjoong who wasn't so sure how to react around her yet.

"jihae!" the redhead screamed. "i missed you! is yunho not with you today?"

the girl giggled and replied, "i missed you, too. and, no. he's got classes."

"seonghwa's not here, though." yeosang teased which jihae snort.

"oh, c'mon. can't i just miss you guys peacefully?" she jokingly complained.

"how have you been, jihae?" san asked politely, but before she could answer, wooyoung cut her off.

"wow, i'm the one who just came back from a trip and you're not even asking me." he said in an over reacting manner as he clutched his chest. "i'm hurt, san."

this made san tense up. he didn't really know what to do. "i, uh-"

"and the best actor award goes to..." the girl sensed that san was getting nervous so she did her best to distract wooyoung from it.

"i thought nobody would say it." yeosang phewed. "thank, god."

the silver haired boy laughed. "hey! i'm not that dramatic."

the group laughed. "so, anyways, do you guys wanna join us for lunch? the rest all have classes and eating alone with her is kinda scary." wooyoung pointed at the girl which made her glare his way. "see what i mean."

the boys chuckled. "i'd love to!" the redhead said.

"yeah, i'm in." yeosang agreed.

"i guess i'll join, too." hongjoong thought he had nothing better to do.

wooyoung could see the hesitation in his classmate's face. "san?"

the mentioned boy looked up. "yeah, i'll c-come."

all of them walked to the cafeteria, and ordered their food.

they picked their seats as they settled down. the table was a rectangle that could fit eight people in total. four on each side.

san was the first to sit down. he was then followed by wooyoung who sat beside him. jihae, out of habit, sat beside her best friend. mingi saw the space beside her quickly sat on it which leaves yeosang and hongjoong on the other side.

"jongho's coming in ten minutes, by the way. thought i'd let you guys know." the chestnut haired boy informed jihae and wooyoung.

"oh, yey! my fellow MAYHEM lover." the girl excitedly said.

they were all having a fun talk, telling wooyoung about the hangout they did. jongho arrived as well. at first, he was surprised with the new faces but enjoyed their company nonetheless.

soon, everyone was laughing out loud because of mingi's exaggerated stories while yeosang told them what actually happened.

"trust me! the bug was the size of my hand." the redhead tried convincing the others, opening his hand wide.

"it was the size of hongjoong hyung's pinky, mingi. you ruined san's cake because of something you can barely see." the education major bluntly said.

"hey! what's so wrong with my pinky?" hongjoong stuck out his pinky.

"hyung, please. i couldn't even tell you had one." jongho joked.

wooyoung let out his infamous hyena laugh. he turned to the black haired boy beside. "was that really why you didn't pass an output last quarter?"

san could only nod. he was really, really, getting flustered. they were sitting really close and he could properly see the silver haired boy's beautiful face. he thought it was something he could only dream of. well, it's happening now.

wooyoung slightly frowned at his response. san always quiets down when he's around. he thought he was making the boy uncomfortable. maybe i shouldn't have sat beside him and make things worse.

while the rest of the group continued with their talk, the culinary majors were quiet. until one spoke up.

"s-so, how are you?"

wooyoung instantly turned his head to san who was slightly fidgeting. "what?"

"y-you told me a while ago that i should be asking you. how was the trip?" the boy with purple highlights asked, somewhat trying to be as natural as possible.

the guy being asked instantly lights up as he gave out an eye smile which san found so endearing.

wooyoung happily told him about it, and san listened to him intently. sometimes making eye contact or staring at his lips.

"hey, jihae. can we meet up after school? i kinda need to ask you something." mingi whispered to her.

she nodded in agreement. "of course. it sounds serious." she chuckled.

a hand suddenly grabbed her shoulders which startled the others.

"hey, babe."

she knew that voice. that fucking voice.

wooyoung turned to it as he heard it, getting alarmed. he glared at the person. "hands off, jaehyun."