Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

As he looked out the window the boy sighed. 

The sunset was nothing out of the ordinary, it was as it always was, unchanging and boring. It served only as a reminder that the next day of constant suffering was approaching. The differnet hues of hot colors mixed together to form a shade of orange and pink, slowy getting swallowed by the darkness of the night. The boy looked down at his slightly cracked phone screen. it had been craked by sung minwoo and his lackeys despite the effort made by kim dokja to atleast protect that one thing from being broken, but of course he failed like he always did. 

February 14th XXXX

kim dokja sighed, i wont even make it to 16 i guess, what a shame. he looked back outside, the window faced the backyard of the school, though there was cement below, practically garanteeding his sucess. he sat in a old school chair, probably, and most likely, the most ragged in the class room. His desk before him looked in a far worse condition than his chair, words where written in sharpie, not carved in to avoid a fine for damaging school property but it was nevertheless there, shaming him. the words would range from 'murder's son' to 'kill youself you worthless bag of shit'.

Though Kim dokja didnt write those things he still had to stay after school to wash it off (It was an easy but still anoying task, after all he needed to stay after school every day to wash it off, Kim dokja was seriously thinking for covering it with a plastic sheet so that it wouldnt get soiled). Today though would surely be the last day he'll have to do it ever again.

Was he nervous? no, he really wasnt. Was he ready? the most ready someone could be to die. 

he finished scrubbing away all the curses on his desk and chair. He opened the window, taking in a breath of cold air, the sun had set and the street lights started lighting up like little stars. Tough, the real ones wouldnt appear, they had long since cowerded away from the city lights, too scared to show themselves before the imposing display of light pollution. Kim dokja thought that he was quite like them, scared to show himself infront of harm's way. 

The boy removed his shoes, leaving them near his chair's legs. he pushed his small frame onto his clean desk, squatting to stabilize himself to not fall off the object, Kim Dokja let out a chuckle at the irony of his actions. he gripped the window still, he questioned the lack of safety mesures with these things.

He breathed in.

He leaped out the opening.

Air blew past his body. 

His doom signed by gravity.

★★★★★★★

Aproximatly a few days later.

When he woke up he inwardly sighed, of course what did the expect? He always failed at everything so why not fail at suicide too? His thoughts were quickly disrupted as he registered the shouts from (what was most likely) his aunt. She was shouting at a nurse, when she saw Kim Dokja had awakend. She quickly went up to his bedside giving him a hard slap. 

''What the hell is wrong with you? Were you itching to be like your mother? To murder someone but didnt have the guts so you decided to murder yourself ?! Do you know how money you being here cost?''

kim dokja didnt reply and simply looked down at his bandaged arms.

'' If you had died it would've just been way more simple and a useless burden would've been lifted from our shoulders.''

Kim dokja gritted his teeth, he too wished he'd didnt have to wake up.

''I just cant stand your selfishness anymore. I dont even care about the damn money anymore!''

At that Dokja looked up from his arms, confused. He tried to ask what she meant by it but his throat was incredibly sore from the days he spent without a drop of water so only a grunt escaped his lips.

''Yeah you heard me. Your useless mother has been providing us with funds to take care of you. That damned book she wrote wasnt just to put it up in your face that she killed your father. why else would i keep a dead weight around with me? but now i really couldnt care less. Im kicking you out. You can have the money from your mother for all i care.''

With that being said she left the hospital being escorted by the security, leaving Kim Dokja gaping at the revilation.

The very next day he was kicked out the hospital. It seems his aunt forgot (most likely not by accident) to pay his bill. Of course no one came to pick him up so he walked home, it wasnt so pleasant when all of his bones creacked as he walked. It hurt alot but there was nothing he could do, after all, miraculously (or not), he hadnt broken a single bone in his descent, he only got a major concussion wich made him go into a coma for a few days or so he had been told by the nurse. 

When he finally reached his 'house' not home, that place would never be his home. he saw what he figured were his things infront of the porch, a sticky note slaped on them 'dont you dare knock, if something is missing then that just means that it isnt yours.' there wasnt much on the pile, a backpack probably filled with clothes, another bag with some books and some other miscelanious items. other than that there was an eveloppe stuffed in the handle of the backpack.

Kim Dokja opened it to find some money. A piece of paper was mixed into the lot, it read as following  'go visit that criminal to tell her to change the address to where she sends the money once you find a place. you'll receive a sum close to this one. dont you dare call the CPS worker on us, this is al your fault, dont forget that.'

In total all he had was a backpack, a heavy bag,  money and his broken phone he retrieved from the hospital earlier that day. the night began to set and with no place to go to he setled with a nearby parc. He spotted one of those hollow tubes and decided to rest there, though he didnt get much sleep. He didnt want to be abducted by some weirdo. 

★★★★★★★

when the sun rose he just decided to stay in the parc for a few more moments, during the night he counted the money he had received it was around 1 000 000 won. luckly for him it was the weekend so he didnt have to go to school, it was good because he doubted that his aunt asked his school for any time off. With that he left the parc. he first headed to a refurbished electronics store to buy a used phone, his was completly destroyed (expect his SIM card miraculously) when it had hit the floor with him. he managed to snag a pretty good deal and left with his brand new (old) phone in hand.

His next step was to go buy a house. It sounded totally crazy coming from his mouth. 

And of course it was totally crazy, i mean who the hell would even let a barely 16 year high school student rent an appatement, no one apparently he thought after being laughed at for the 5th time today. Kim Dokja was slowly losing hope, it was obvious he could do nothing, he would probably end up living on the streets.

On his 6th try it seems the heavens finally smiled upon him, earlier he when he saw an advertisement for an appartement he noticed it wasnt too expensive so he could afford it, it was fairly near his school and was lightly furnished it was quite perfect. His last obstacle was the landlord, a man called Gong Pildu.

''so, why does a jobless youngster like you want my appartement?'' The older man questionned while eyeing Kim dokja. ''it doesnt seem its to throw parties with your friends.'' he said laughing

''no.. i, i really need a house.'' i have nowhere else to go was left unsaid. Gong Pildu squinted crossing his arms. 

''you got kicked out or something?'' KIm dokja flinched and looked away. The man sighed

''look, i'll make an exception but only for you, i'd be an idiot to say no to a paying customer after all. but dont go around telling other people that ok?'' when Kim dokjaheard that his eyes sparkled with hope.

''you're obviously new to this so i'll explain, you need to pay each month but you'll need to pay upfront to have access to the appartement the first time.''

he throws a pair of keys to Kim dokja

''dont lose this, its the only pair.''

''thank you so much sir!''

After handing over the money Dokja made his way to the appartement, it wasnt very big but atleast it was better than the streets and had electricity and hot water. He set his backpack down on the furnishing and made his way to the bedroom. There were no covers on the bed but once again it was better than the streets. He was insanely tired from staying up for two whole days but he ignored that. Well he tried to, after laying down on his bed his whole body gave out, he couldnt move an inch. He pushed his recovering body way too far by walking the whole day and it ached like crazy. So just like that he fell asleep. 

★★★★★★★

The next day he decided to set up his phone, he inserted his SIM card and just layed there. He stared at his phone screen, a wave of dread washing over him, his thoughts spiraled back to what he would even do going foreward. 

he opened the browser search, and slowly typed.

'how can i survive in this ruined world'.

huh?  a novel? what is this..

★★★

later that day, after reading a few dozen chapter in his bed because he was unable to get up due to his aching body. He heard his stomach grumble. He never ate much but not eating in 3 days was a bit of a stretch. So with great difficulty he got up and changed his attire.

He exited his new logging but he wasnt too familiar with the new place and his neiborhood (he only knew it was close to his school, 20 minutes of bus or somethig like that (he found his bus pass in one of his bags which he was immensly grateful for)). He walked around for a bit but couldnt find a convience store.

He was about to leave in defeat but then he spoted a small coffee shop, with an empty stomach and few funds, he prayed the prices wouldnt be too high. He limped his way to the shop, entering it with the sound of a bell.

Kim dokja didnt see any employes and thought it weird but he went and looked at their menu anyway, there werent any other customers than him either so that made him a bit happy no one needed to see his sorry state. He looked through the piece of paper. He saw that they not only sold pastries but also things like pizza and dumplings.

He decided to go with the chicken soup dumplings since it was on the cheaper side and didnt want to go near to tomato sauce on the pizzas. Even though he made his choice there was still no employes in sight which made him wonder if the store was open at all.

He spotted a small bell on the counter that said 'ring if no one is present'. He dinged the bell and waited.

After a few minutes he decided to just leave and spare himself the embarasment of waiting like an idiot on nothing.

''Wait a just moment dear, i'm sorry for the delay''

Just then he spotted a beautiful woman dressed in a fabulous black dress. She looked not a day over 25 though Kim Dokja could see some white strands in her blonde hair.

''What would you like to order?''

She asked with the warmest smile Kim dokja saw for the past years, making him flinch and fight the urge to start bawling on the spot.

''uh, yes hello, could i please have the chicken soup dumplings..''

Dokja said with a still hoarse voice.

''of course, will that be all darling?''

he nodded. 

''are you sure? thats not alot.'' 

she looked at him still smiling but she seemed saddened.

''im sure.. thank you, how much do i owe you?''

Kim dokja rummaged trough his pockets to find the money he had left after his purchases (which was noticably dangerously running low.). There was a moment of silence before he looked up to see the lady through his bangs. 

''miss--?

''wait a second dear i need to go check something''

The lady ran off before kim dokja could even reply. so he just stood there dumbfounded. His legs started hurting again from all the walking and standing so he decided to just go sit down while waiting on the employe. After a few minutes of reading on his phone and waiting for the lady she emerged from what he thinks is the kitchen with a fresh bowl of the dumplings he ordered and a box. She put both the box and bowl down infront of him.

''Here, im sorry for making you wait again, this is your order.''

''uh im sorry but.. i dont think i bought the other item..''

''oh yes, this is a litle gift for making you wait so much'' she said giving him a wink.

''oh.. are you sure? i,i--''

''dont worry about it. oh and also dont worry about the dumplings, its on the house too.''

kim dokja sat there confused at the act of kindness.

'' this cant possibly be a good business strategy...''

he muttered under his breath though it couldnt fly under the lady's radar as she let out a hearty laugh that made Dokja's slightly jump in surprise.

''it really isnt, but how could i ignore a little boy in such a sorry state.'' she kept a bright smile plastered on her face.

''im not that little, im 16..''

''oh wow, 16? you barely look 13. you should eat more'' only then did she drop her smile and furrow her brows.

''Thats another thing.. but are you sure i can have this? wont you have trouble with the owner..?'' 

''its fine, my husband owns this place, i asked if i should give you something more and he insisted on it.'' she regained her cheerfull demeanor.

she's way too bright and cheery... Dokja thought while squinting his eyes.

'' and your husband is...?''

''presently in the kitchen, he's a litle shy around kids, he doesnt want to scare you.''

''is that so.. alright then''

after all the confirmations he reluctantly ate the dumplings before grabbing the box and thanking the lady before leaving. He stole a glance at the name of the caffe, 

'Olympus's ecstasy'

what an odd name.

The day was ending wich also meant weekend was too. It meant that school would be starting soon again which made him want to hurl. He hopes that his attempt wouldnt be already widely known. Though he knew that he would still get in trouble with minwoo for skipping a whole week's worth of bullying.

Chapter Text

The chime of the bell was heard all throught the school. Signaling the students to head to their first class period. Usually Kim Dokja would've been sneaking his way to his seat, trying to go unnoticed by his classmates or more specifically sung minwoo and his lackeys. 

Today though, wasnt an usual day. He was intercepted by the principal in the hallway before he could make it to his classroom. The principal basically told him that after his attempt he had been found by the janitor and the whole ordeal was kept under wraps. Only his teachers and the nurse had been notified. His classmates were under pretense that he had caught a very bad flu and had to stay home to recuperate and not spread the disease in the class

He would be exempt from any type of physical activities for an unestablished period of time. He would also be granted the freeway to go to the nurse at any time in the day though he was expected to not abuse that previlege. After the principal finished talking the second period bell rang and he was sent away to go to class.

Damn, if i knew all these accomodations came with doing this i would've done it a long time ago.  With that thought Kim Dokja snickered at the absurdity of the matter, it was like he was being rewarded for jumping out a window.

It took some time to find his way to his class because of his damaged legs so he arrived a few minutes late. He took a deep breath before exhaling loudly.

 Im definiely less mentally ready to go in this damned room than i was to leap out that window. he chuckled at that thought, though it was less about laughing at his own joke and more out of self assurance.

He lifted his arm and lightly knocked on the door. He could hear the teacher stop talking.

''come in.''

Just the thought of interupting the class, making all the people in that class turn to him and look at him made him start sweating bullets and want to run and throw himself out a window once again. Sreeling his nerves he opened the door and came into the class.

''Oh, yes. hello Dokja. your place is still the same, please go sit down.'' The said boy quickly noded and shuffled to his seat, looking down at his feet to not look at any of his classmates in the eyes. he could hear the snickers of multiple of them and some whispers, no doubt mean comments about him.

when he reached his place he quickly sat down near the same window he.. well attempted out of. Though there was an unmistaken stuffy fealing next to him, stuffier than if someone was looking at him. he looked up in confusion. He saw a tall guy sitting next to him, he let out a squeal of surprise which didnt go unoticed by the man as he turned his gaze to kim dokja raising a brow as if to question his reaction.

Kim dokja was dumbfounded. 

since when had a man this attractive sat next to me??  why is he so tall? his face looks so sharp, it almost looks chiseled by the gods themselves, no, actually, fuck that he is a god himself! the more kim dokja looked at him the more he seemed to get prettier and the more the man sitting next to him brows furrowed.

when he realized he had been goggling at the other like he was an extraterrestrial being he quickly looked away in embarassment. The teacher seemed to realize why Kim Dokja was surprised.

''ah yes, Kim Dokja. While you were gone some students transfered from another school.'' when he said that three students stood up including the guy next to him.

the said guy, started speaking in a astonishingly deep voice ''Yoo joonghyuk, 16, i like playing games.'' then he just simply sat back down again. then past him in the same line he spotted two women standing next to each other.

''Han Sooyoung, im 16 years and i like writing'' she spoke with a sly grin on her face, she had black short hair and she too was short and then sat back down.

''hello, my name is yoo sangah, i am 16 and i love baking.'' the last of them had a bright smile, she looked like a very sweet person compared to the other two, she had blonde hair and was a bit taller than han sooyoung, maybe a bit shorter than Kim dokja then she sat down too.

Kim Dokja was a bit surprised that there were so many new things that happened while he left but didnt give it much tought and proceeded to lay down on his desk, laying his head on his arms and looked out the window. he could hear some girls giggling and whispering a few rows infront of him.

''oh my god isnt he so hot?''

''definetly! hes drop dead gorgeous..''

Dokja figured that the were talking about the guy called Yoo joongyhuk next to him. he couldnt disgree with them, he definetly was insanely hot.

i wonder if he's a model...

but that wasnt his business and just continued to stare out the window.

★★★

When the bell anouncing lunch rang Kim dokja didnt even bother standing up, he didnt have much money so he decided to just skip lunch. Even if he had brought his money to eat he wouldnt even be able to buy food it would be claimed by sung minwoo before he could do anything. He usually got some lunch money from his aunt but that was definetly not happening anymore. 

most of the people in class already had walked away chattering and grouping up with their friends from different classes to go eat. the only people left in the class were him, the three exchange students, sung minwoo and his lackeys. 

''Dokja! how have you been? do you have any idea how much i missed you?.'' Minwoo aproached Kim dokja with a fake smile plastered on his face and his hands stuffed in his pockets.

the small boy look up at sung minwoo when he heard his name.

''ah, hello..'' what a shit ass day. my body already hurts like hell but now i pretty much get a free early pass to the pearly gates, definetly not the way i was hoping to go.

Dokja heard sung minwoo's friend laughing behind the bully.

''how about we catch up? Oh.. though i seem to have forgotten my lunch money.. would you happen to have some in extra?''

Dokja slowly stood up shakily and Minwoo linked his arms around his neck.

''n,no.. not today..''

'' 's that so?'' while still smiling minwoo punched his stomach harshly and without warning, making Kim dokja's air get knocked out of his lungs.

''what a shame.'' Dokja then got dragged off by minwoo, being accompanied by two of his lackeys while two other staid behind in classroom, no doubt to write curses on his desk agai. Dokja held his stomach with his hands and looked down.

ugh.. i'll have to stay after scholl again.

the three exchange students gaped at the scene that just took place.

''holy shit what the hell was that'' asked Han Sooyoung while biting her lemon lollipop while the other woman covered her mouth with her hand in shock.

''what are they going to do to him?''

Yoo joonghyuk furrowed his brows. 

''...''

''wasnt he like super sick too? isnt that why he wasnt at school for the past week?'' 

''yeah, thats right'' confirmed the blonde girl.

the three of them then turned to see what the other two guys were doing on Kim Dokja' desk only to see them writing profanities on his deck while snickering. The three of them just stood there shocked at the scene, exanching glance as if to confirm that they were all seeing the same thing. After a few minutes of scriblling the two guys put the sharpies away and then ran off to join minwoo. When the left Han sooyoung approched the desk, followed by the two others, to see what they were writing.

'murder's son',

'go jump won't you?',

'rope exisists for more than one use.',

'filthy mutt' ,

'go rot in hell'

The three of them looked at the writing dumbfounded.

''murder's son? the hell is that about.'' asked Han sooyoung. 

''is all of this written in sharpie? it must be hard to wash off..''

''the desk is practically gray instead of being beige like the others. This musnt be the first time this happened.'' added Yoo joonghyuk. They exchanged a look again. 

''what are you guys huddled at over there??'' asked a woman standing in the door's frame. ''there won't be any more places to eat you know??.'' the three students turned around to see the girl and a buff man accompanying her.

''someone wrote a bunch of insults on a guy's desk..'' Han sooyoung started walking away to reach the two others next to the doors. Sangah followed suit not long after.

''Maybe they are friends and they are teasing each other?'' tried saying the buff man called Lee hyungsung. The three knew it was wishfull thinking, the words written on the desk were obviously no joking matters but they stayed quiet, the two girls exchanging doubtfull looks.

Yoo joonghyuk furrowed his brows even further reaching a scowl before he walked away passing the group. ''lets go.''

''is it just me or is he in an even more foul mood than usual?'' whispered Jung heewon to Han sooyoung

''yeah no kidding.. if eyes could kill the half the school's population would be desecrated in an instant''

★★★

Later during diner the 5 exchange students found their way to their usual eating place; a place outside, behind the school, on a big picnic table. The were joined by a white haired woman soon after they all settled down.

''hello,  everyone. how have you guys been?'' asked the new member

''hello Seolwha-ssi, we've been great.'' smiled Heewon.

'' i am famished!'' groaned Han sooyoung. Jung heewon, Lee hyunsung and Lee seolwa on one side and Yoo sangah, Han sooyoung and Yoo joonghyuk on the other.

''Is Uriel-ssi not here today?'' inquired heewon

''unfortunatly she had caught a fever though it is only mild and should return in a few days time.''

The whole table chattered happily while Yoo joongyhuk only spoke rarely to respond to some questions thrown at him. In the middle of a bite of rice from his lunchbox he looked up, looking past the others on the side of the table adjascent to him. He saw the guy he believed was named Sung minwoo walk while talking to 4 of his friends, seemingly complaining about something. Yoo Joongyhuk was a bit too far to hear what they were talking about but he didnt miss the red stain on the corner of the other man's sleeve. 

Images of the thin boy flashed in his mind making him stop eating. After contemplating for a few seconds he stood up making the table fall silent.  He simply said ''don't mind me.'' and left in the direction Sung minwoo left from. He walked for not long before reaching a small storage space on the side of the building, surely to store a range of objects for P.E lessons. 

He entered the place without knocking. When he entered he saw Kim Dokja laying down on his back perched on top a fairly high stack of blue gym matresses. The boy was scrolling through his phone. When he realized there was someone else in the room with him he quickly looked to Yoo Joongyhuk's way. 

''Oh, sorry. I didnt think someone would be taking things from here today.'' He climbed down his perch at a annoyingly slow pace making Yoo Joonghyuk want to snatch him off. ''im sorry, ill get going now...'' he walked pass Yoo joonghyuk, huging his phone close to his chest, walking with a limp. When he passed Yoo joonghyuk looked at him.

His name, i think its Kim dokja... his eyes, i cant see them his bangs are far too long. why is he so small and skinny? that cant be normal, his frame is too small. i noticed he limped while coming in class today but now he seems to be even slower than before.. is that blood on his colar?... Sickness my ass something else must have happened... Yoo joonghyuk scolwed while he watched the boy hurry away. 

After he left Yoo joonghyuk walked back to his table to finish his lunch under the questionning glances of Han sooyoung. 

★★★

After lunch the group split off into their respective classes. Before the period started, some students huddled near his and the other two exchange student's desk to try and start converstaion. Tough Nobody could breach Yoo joonghyuk's cold facade they still tried to start conversation which ultimatly resulted in utter failure. Yoo joongyhuk was staring out the window supporting face head with his arm. It gave him a nagging, feeling like if something happened there. Then in the window's reflexion he saw Kim dokja go up to the teacher asking him something before the adult nodded and the boy walk out the classroom. 

... Kim Dokja. what a... weird but interesting guy. 

Yoo joonghyuk closed his eyes. Thinking about the boy.

Kim dokja sneezed once then twice and scratched his itchy ear 

some people must be gossiping about me again...

he sighed and shuffled his way to the nurse's office.

Chapter Text

The bell was heard all throught the school once again. All the teenagers rushed out their classrooms to leave the learning ground they deemed a prison. Some staid behind for after school lesson or extra curriculars. For Kim dokja it was the time to go wash his desk. 

He had stayed in the infirmary for the rest of the day after lunch so he walked back to his class and let out a sigh.

Darn it, my body still feels like its being wheighed down by three whole elephants even after taking some pain killers.. he looks out the window to look at the sun, sadly it was covered by the clouds.

The good part about getting my own appartement is that i dont have to worry at what time i go back. I can take all the time i need to wash my desk without worrying about getting locked out. He smiled and walked slowly and leasurly to his classroom. 

He opened the door and he saw someone in the corner of his eye. his heart dropped. please dont be minwoo prayed Kim dokja. he looked to iddentify the person in the class that was now looking straight at him. Thank god, its just the new student after a small staring contest Dokja hurriedly looked down to break the akward eye contact. 

''ah, hello.. im sorry i didnt think there would be anyone else''

Yoo Joongyhuk definetly was surprised at the sudden intrusion to the classroom, he too hadnt expected anyone to come into the classroom. after Kim Dokja broke the eye contact that couldnt really be called eye contact because the shorter one's bangs were covering most of his eyes he looked away back to what he was doing beforehand. (It irked Yoo Joonghyuk, the way dokja's bangs were too long.)

Kim Dokja limped his way to the front of the class where Yoo Joonghyuk was to grab the cleaning supplies that were near the windows before going back to his desk. Yoo joonghyuk glanced at him, looking at the way he walked around. he stopped looking at dokja when the boy left his side of the class.

Kim Dokja put down the cleaning supplies on the desk beside his, he sat down and applied some product to the desk before staring to scrub whit a cloth. 

★★★

it took him far longer than before to remove the writing on his desk for two reason, one; he had more time to finish the task and two; his arms also was a place on his body, actually stratch that, his whole body was hurting and harder to move. He finished and hour after starting. He looked out the window, the sun was setting slowly. He looked at the scene before him with an unreadable look in his eyes, he stretched out his hand to open the window--

''what're you doing?'' 

Kim Dokja retracted his hand and looked quickly at the source of the sound, he had completly forgot Yoo Joonghyuk was still in class. When Joonghyuk had seen Kim dokja look out the window in such a daze he was confused. when Dokja streched his hand as if to open the window despite the cold weather he grew alarmed. He had a nagging feeling that Kim Dokja was up to trouble for a reason.

''im uh.. cleaning my desk.'' Kim dokja opted for a partial lie. he had been cleaning his desk to be more exact.

Yoo Joonghyuk glared at Kim dokja before looking away.

''get it over with then.''

Rude.. thought kim dokja before getting up he walked to the door ready to leave. All of a suden the door slid open catching Kim Dokja off guard. A black haired woman tried to enter the room in a hurry, without noticing Kim Dokja in her way. Yoo Joonghyuk's eyes widen as he opened his mouth to try and warn them.

''Yoo- Argh!'' 

''be careful-''

Before Dokja could say anything they both collided. the girl stumbled back a few steps whitout falling but on the contrary Kim Dokja fell over on his butt. The girl looked down at the guy confused. 

''sorry, i'll get going! sorry for bumping into you'' before the girl could apologize Kim Dokja had already stood up shakily and slithered away. 

''watch where you are going Han Sooyoung.'' glared Yoo Joonghyuk

''bro did you just see that?''

''the way you brutally rammed into another student, making them fall over? Yes, yes i did see that.'' Joonghyuk sighed 

''well yeah but.. i mean the way he fucking fell down? he practically got lunched away.''

Yoo Joonghyuk's brows furrowed at that remark.

''and?''

''dude i wasnt going that fast and i didnt tackle him either.''

''...?''

''do i need to spell it out for you?'' Han Sooyoung groaned out of annoyance ''he was as heavy as a feather.''

''he's an adolescent Han sooyoung, that cant be possible...'' he wanted to continue but his mind wandered off to the way the boy walked

''believe what you want to believe.'' she sighed and shurged at Joonghyuk's persistance

''..i believe you.''

''ha! told you. What made you believe me though?'' she smirked

''don't you see how he walks? he walks with a limp, he got punched today because he didnt give someone his lunch money and as i saw, didnt eat anything''

''dang sherlock, since when do you pay so much attention to people you barely know? But now that you mention it, it does make sense... Though that cant be good for him at long term. By the way minwoo aproached that guy it probably wasnt the first time things like that happen''

''mhm..''

''sould we tell someone'' questionned Han Sooyoung.

''i think its pretty obvious. I dont think anyone does anything about this.''

''damn maybe we should look into this??''

Yoo joonghyuk paused. maybe... just maybe

''yes.''

''alright lets talk about it to the group tomorrow how about it?''

''mn.''

''alright, anyway I was searching for Yoo Sangah to walk home, did you see her?''

''She's helping the librarian organize books at the library, she should be about finished.''

''thanks dude.''

With that, Han Sooyoung ran off to the library.

★★★

Kim Dokja stood, his face the most serious he had wore in all his years alive.

in his left hand was; a Kimbap, in his right; ramen.

AAAARGHHHHH what should i pick!?

Kim dokja glared at the two items. he then threw the ramen back on the shelf reluctantly. 

whatever.. ill just grab the kimbap... he let out a silent sob as he clenched his fist and closed his eyes.

 he silently walked up to the cashier and checked out.

the convience store he finally found was near his bus stop. Though not the one near his appartment but the one near his school. he decided to go buy food while waiting for the bus. A dozen minutes passed when the bus finally came. he hopped on and showed his pass to the driver.

he sat down near a window in the back and delightingly saw that there weren't alot of people on the bus because of the late time. he put his backpack on his legs before regretting that action immediatly putting it on the seat next to him. his legs ached because of all the walking and beatings of the day. he grabbed his phone and started reading his book again. 

come to think of it, wasnt that guy's name also Yoo Joonghyuk?  Kim Dokja scratched his head, crazy coincidence

twenty minutes later the bus finally arrived at his stop and he hopped off the bus, thanking the driver while leaving. he walked a few minutes to his appartment and unlocked the door with his key. a feeling of happiness crept onto him. It was calm in his abode, noo screaming or fighting. it was pure silence which made him really happy.

he put his bag down and took out his books. He went to sit down at the small table that was given with the appartment. after a while of gruesome work he decided to let it be as it was. His homework wasnt finished but he could use his condition as an excuse. 

It was arround midnight when he finished so he simply decided to take a shower and go to sleep. He stood up and rummaged through his still unpacked bag he had form the day he was kicked out. he took out a bar of soap, a toothbrush some tooth paste and pajamas before heading to the shower.

Something he loved about the place was that there was plenty of hot water. He stripped himself of his clothes layer by layer, he hadnt bothered to change himself when he arrived so he stil had his uniform. He turned the shower's knob and waited for it to warm up infront of his mirror. He looked at himself and his body.

He was very thin, his ribcage was partically showing. His silky white skin was covered in bruises, he had some cuts on his lips and a bit every where sprinkled on his body. some scars could be faintly seen on his forearms and writs. His hair had been last cut a while ago, his bangs covered the most of his eyes which Kim Dokja though was a grea thing.

'tsk, you have his eyes. how disguting.'  his aunt slapped him hard and kicked him down. 'you truly are your parent's child.' Kim Dokja's cheek stung and his head rang. Him? like his dad? he couldnt possibly accept that. his eyes watered 'stop whining, you're a man.'  Kim Dokja bit his bottom lip, breaking them and drawing blood. if my eyes are truly like his i'll never make anyone look at them again. from that day on, he let his hair grow to hide his eyes.

Kim dokja sighed and jumped into the shower when he saw some steam starting to cover the top of the mirror. 

★★★

Kim Dokja layed in his bed, his head resting on a towel placed on his pillow, a patch of water apparent on the piece of cloth probably seeping through to the other side. he was insanely tired, his exhaustion tuged at his eyelids, making them droop low. 

what a weird day today. new students, specifically that Joonghyuk guy. How in hell- no heaven does he look so pretty!? i wonder why he was at the supply room at lunch, i dont think he grabbed anything.. Whatever he's super weird. Kim dokja thought of the irony in his thoughts; who could be weirder than he after all? He kept staring at me though, it didnt feel like he was judging me but more like he was analizing every part of my being, not even leaving my soul unchecked. What a peculiar guy.

★★★

Kim Dokja had fallen asleep before he knew it. When he got woken up because of his allarm he slamed the button for 'off' and got up while yawning. He immediatly got dressed when he hopped off the bed. He started making his way to the bathroom to start brushing his teeth and hair before pausing in the kitchen.

His bedroom connected straight to his kitchen, his bathroom was situated right next to his room, the door on the right. He looked to the refrigerator. Usually he didn’t have breakfast but today he suddenly remembered the box he was given by the lady at the café. He walked and opened the doors to the fridge, letting the chilled hair blow past his face. There was nothing in there but the box of was he presumed was pastries. he grabbed it and opened it. There was a croissant and a custard filled donut. 

He smilled at the food, grabbing the croissant happy he didnt have to wait to the end of the day to eat again. he ate the pastrie in the bathroom while brushing his hair, prefering to double-task even though he still had plenty time to get ready before leaving for the bus. The croissant was still good even after two days of being kept in the refrigerator. it was as if it was still fresh of the day. It tasted heavenly compared to the food he usually ate. No ramen or kimbap could compare to it. Honestly though, the dumplings he had had that sunday were far better.

After getting ready he sat down on his small sofa, laying on his back and reading TWSA. He had to say that the webnovel was now his favourite. the story was really entertaining but the writing was a bit questionable. It was as if it had been written by a teen. 

Whatever, as long as the story is fun and cool i'll keep reading.

Chapter Text

Kim dokja was sat down on the bus. He was only a few minutes away from his school. He put down his phone and sighed.

Goddamnit. this morning i'll probably be spotted by minwoo.

He groaned quietly and rested his head on the bus window. Kim Dokja closed his eyes. he prayed he wouldnt be punched in the stomach so that he wouldnt throw up the breakfast he had ate.

The bus stop moving, he stood up and got off. He walked past the school gates and into the building, making his way to his classroom. Dokja was about to enter the class until he got pulled back by his collar sharply making him choke

''Dokja! fancy seeing you here. I was so sad i didnt see you yesterday morning.'' chanted minwoo, locking Kim Dokja in an arm lock.

''haha.. yeah.. I was busy..'' responded Dokja nervously.

''well as long as you weren't snitching on us, right?'' minwoo ruffled Kim Dokja's hair and laughed. Kim Dokja simply nodded.

from inside the classroom he could hear some students whispering.

'Damn this early?'

'Minwoo seriously doesnt let that guy breathe huh?'

'thats harsh..'

Kim dokja looked down at his old ragged shoes.

Minwoo dragged Dokja into the room and made him sit down at his usual seat. The bully intended to sit down in the seat next to dokja's where he usually did but a slightly buff man was already there. 

''hey, you mind moving for a bit, I really wanna talk to my friend Dokja here!'' Kim dokja bit his lip anxiously. turning his head to look outside not wanting to see Minwoo's ugly face.

''no.'' was the only word that left Joonghyuk's mouth. It made Dokja look at Yoo Jonghyuk's face in the window's reflection, his mouth left gapping slightly, surprised at the other's straighforewardness.

''ehhhh? why not???'' Minwoo pouted jokingly and crossed his arms and furrowed his brows.

''..'' Yoo Joonghyuk ignored the bully and looked ahead instead.

Growing irrited, Minwoo grit his teeth and squinted his eyes slightly. He opened his mouth to say something when someone beat him to it from behind. 

''excuse me, could you please move out the way? i need to talk to Joonghyuk-ssi.'' Minwoo turned around sligthly startled at the sweet voice. Yoo Sangah was standing there, Han sooyoung right behind her. 

''oh, uh, of course Sangah-ssi. go ahead.'' Minwoo blushed a bit before walking away to join his friends at another group of desks. Yoo Sangah smiled innocently looking at Minwoo walk away. Kim Dokja looked at the scene happen through the window's reflection, though Sangah sounded nice her eyes held a sharp menacing glint that made Dokja shudder. The other girl clicked her tongue.

''What a simp that guy.''

''hello Joonghyuk-ssi, how are you this morning?'' in response the questionned man simply grunted.

''You could atleast speak up you know?'' teased Han Sooyoung with a sly grin plastered on her face.

''Han Sooyoung.'' glared Joonghyuk menacingly. in response Sooyoun hid behind Sangah's back a bit more.

''don't fight this early in the morning guys.'' Yoo Sangah chuckled. 

The three of them spoke a bit more before the bell rang and everybody settled down in their assigned places.

After sometime (Kim Dokja honestly lost track.) everybody stood up making Dokja confused. He then sighed when he saw his classmates pick up their P.E uniforms. He stood up to go talk to the teacher. 

''uh, i can't do P.E so uh.. could i head to the library?''

''sure, just dont forget to come back once the period ends.''

''yes, thank you..'' Kim dokja nodded and walked hurried away before a certain bully realized he was leaving, unaware he had someone else's gaze following his back. 

★★★

Yoo Joonghyuk started stripping himself of his normal uniform. All the boys in the locker were chaotic, they talked and laughed loudly. Joonghyuk couldn't be bothered to engage in small talk with the others so he just tried to change fast. 

A certain conversation he overheard caught his intrest.

''Hey where's Dokja?'' asked someone he couldnt quite remember the name of, Woomin? Moonwin? wombat? he really didnt care.

''i think he's skipping again, I didnt see him enter the locker room''

''bro, i think he got special permission to not participate.''

''what a bummer.'' the unnamed guy groaned. ''i was looking forward to play with him.''

''you mean launch some balls right at his face during dodgeball?'' 

''yeah, obviously'' the group of guys snickered. 

Yoo joonghyuk already finished changing into his P.E clothes so he headed out to the gym to start his warm up. He was one of the few people allready there. After a few minutes he finished his warm-up and everybody that was in the lockers had made their way to the gym. 

Yoo Sangah and Han Sooyoung made their way to Joonghyuk's side after they completed their warm-ups. 

''heya. wanna know what we learned about that guy?'' 

''already?'' Joonghyuk  was skeptical about her statement.

''we just have a bit of information with the girls gossipping in the locker room'' said Sangah with a smile

''if you don't have alot then don't bother. Plus, i dont trust gossip.''

Han sooyoung grit her teeth in annoyance. ''so difficult.'' those actions granted her a glare from Yoo Joonghyuk.

''allright, allright. i get it. concreate evidence.'' she rolled her eyes. 

''okay class, since it isnt too cold outside we'll be practicing there.'' declared the gym teacher earning some groans or some pleased sounds from the students

★★★

It was allready halfway throught the period and Kim Dokja was reading his books in the library. He knew the librarian well and she liked him quite a bit aswell. They got along just fine since Dokja often went to the library so she let him read on his phone (only when he was alone in the library) because she trusted he wouldnt be going on weird sites.

he closed his phone's screen and sighed. he had just finished another chapter of TWSA. He looked out the window that, coincidentally, gave view to the soccer fields of the school. When he saw people playing he rubbed his eyes to better see who it was. when he spotted minwoo in the field with the other players he grimaced. 

of course its my group. we have P.E right now.

He continued to observe Minwoo in curiousity, he realized that the bully looked incredibly irritated (a bit constipated too).

unlucky me, today's lunch won't go so well.

Dokja followed Minwoo's glare and his eyes widdened. The boy that was angering Minwoo was... Shirtless?! Ah no, he was only lifting his shirt up to clean the swea off his forehead. The action showed off the culprit's well sculptured body. It honestly made him blush a bit. When the person lowered his shirt Kim Dokja pouted.

of course its him. his face is perfect so why not his whole body too? the guy that was making Minwoo furious was Yoo Joonghyuk, his seatmate. 

KIm Dokja could see that they both wore different colored mesh team bibs. He assumed that Minwoo was on the losing team and that Joonghyuk was the ace of Minwoo's enemy team. Kim Dkja snorted at Minwoo's childish actions before he continued to stare at Joonghyuk. 

is he just good at everything he does?

Just then while staring holes through Joonghyuk's face the man in question looked up to meet his gaze, as if he had sensed someone was looking at him (which was most probable). When Kim Dokja saw Yoo Joonghyuk turn to look at him he instantly shot up from his seat and grabbed his phone before distancing himself from the window, and out of Joonghyuk's sight.

Shit did he see me? .. What kind of question is that?! of course he saw me! we even met eyes!!! KIm Dokja internally cried while he hurried away to sit farther from the window.

Meanwhile a certain Joonghyuk was still looking at the window where Dokja (the only person he had actually taken the time to learn the name of) had been sat. Reminiscing the look Kim Dokja used to look at him. Perched from the second story Dokja had looked like a bird silently observing him and flocking away once it's peace was disturbed even slightly, which was unfortunatly caused by Yoo Joonghyuk meeting his gaze.

Like a litlle bird. He barely even chirps, as if he was trapped in a cage and had his beak glued shut. he only observes. Yoo Joonghyuk squinted at the window. clouded in mistery... how curious.

★★★

That same day at lunch the exact same thing happened once again. Kim Dokja was whisked away by Minwoo, though this time without even the question of the lunch money. Some goons remained in the class to write insults on Dokja's desk but this time there was a handfull more curses. 

While eating Yoo Joonghyuk decided to go check on the storage room again to see if the boy would be there again. He excused himself from his group and made his way to the small room. He walked slowly and nonchalantly, his hands stuffed in his pockets.

When he opened the storage room he frowned, he didnt spot the small man. He figured that would be the case, he hadnt seen the bully leave or enter the place. So he just decided to go back to finish his meal. 

After savouring his food he packed it away and went to the bathroom, accompanied by Lee Hyungsung. The slightly taller man kept talking to Joonghyuk, though the conversation was more one-sided. When the duo entered the restroom a small figure was infront of them, it seemed he was about to reach for the door but the other two beat him to it from the outside.

''ah.. sorry'' mumbled Dokja as he passed next to Joonghyuk and Hyungsung, giving them a small bow.

''ah, no excuse us!'' 

''...'' 

Kim Dokja walked away the fastest he could manage. Though the obvious bruise on his leg didnt help his escape. He kept his head lowered in fear that the two other students would see his face painted in various bruises. The duo looked at Dokja's retreating figure. One had a worried expression and the other's was indiscernible. 

''I, I'm not imagining it right?''

''mn.''

''what should--'' 

''leave it, for now.''

The taller man nodded and they both finally entered the bathroom.

★★★

''ouch!'' Dokja said while wincing. 

After he had made his way out of the restroom he had gone to the teacher and told him he would be abscent for the next periods, he gave the excuse he had fallen off the stairs by accident when his leg cramped up.  After justifying his later absence he had made his way to the nurses office in hopes of getting patched up. Though there was no one there the nurse had told him that he could always go in the room and grab whatever he wanted if he was hurt. 

At the moment he is applying a oitment on his stomach where a few bruises had been left by some especially vicious kicks from Minwoo. Contrary to Dokja's hopes he had been forced to thow up his whole breakfast so now his stomach was totally empty. He winced when he accidentally pressed too hard on on of his bruises.

''excuse me? What are you doing here?'' Dokja dropped his arms to his side, the oitment still in his hands when he heard someone speak. He turned around to see who it was. It was a white, long haired woman who was absolutly stunning even in the plain school unifrom. Her beauty couldn't be compared to Sangah's though it was like comparing two same ,different colored flowers. They each had a different air around them. Though the white haired woman was frowning seemimgly mad at Dokja.

Dokja remembered a conversation he had had with the nurse about a student that often helped her in her free time. Her name was Lee Seolwha. The nurse had told Dokja that she allerted Lee Seolwha about his access to the medical suplies, if she stumbled into him and questionned him he could just tell her his name.

''ah, hello, you must be Lee Seolwha... I,Im Kim Dokja, i think the nurse mentioned me..?'' When Kim Dokja told his name the girl's face brightenned up.

''oh yes! Sorry, i didnt know your face.'' Only after that she had seemed to notice his bruised face.

''what happened?'' she frowned and approached him, dragging a stool with her to examine his face.

''I tripped off the stairs.''
''...''

".." Dokja looked away from her questioning gaze.

"..'s that so..?'' She looked doubtfull but quickly scooled her expression. ''alright then, let me help with this then."

"it's fine, i can do it m,myself.."

"I insist Dokja-ssi.'' she smiled and grabbed the oitment from his hands. Dokja just sighed and let her do her thing. 

She obviously doesnt believe me..

After a few minutes she stood up and put the oitment on the side. 

"allright, im done. I'll have to get to class so you should too." with that said she just left. 

Dokja hadnt planned on receiving help and finishing to patch himself up so quickly so he still had time from the time he had asked the teacher for. Who would actually go back to class when they had a free pass? Well he sure wouldn't. He just layed on one of the infirmary beds and grabbed his phone to read while he waited.

Chapter Text

★★★

It was once again after school hours, Kim Dokja was scrubbing his desk while drinking a yogourt he had received from the librarian earlier that day. Though it wasn't cold anymore it was still good to Kim Dokja who hadn't eaten all day (excpect if you counted the breakfast he had threw up at lunch.)

''...''

''...'' Cold sweat rolled down Dokja’s face but he continued to ignore the obvious stare his classmate was giving him. Yoo Joonghyuk stared at him from the front of the class like he was some kind of criminal being interrogated.

Dokja doubled his efforts to wash the scriptures off to get away for the constant eyes following his every movement. he finished drinking his yogourt so he placed the little bottle on the vacant desk next to him. When he did, Yoo Joonghyuk furrowed his brows.

Dokja then seemed to have saw that joonghyuk had furrowed his brows and he finally reached a conclusion.

oh! he probably doesnt want me touching his desk.. i should remove the things from there then..

He quickly put all the things that were on the other desk to the floor. Though that only made Joonghyuk's brows furrow deeper. Dokja also saw that and it made him even more confused

what the.. what does he want then..? oh! i get it he probably finds me fillthy and didnt like that i put my stuff on his desk at all! Then i'll clean it.

Dokja switched his focus to the other's desk, spraying some cleaning product onto it and giving it a quick scrub before returning to his own objective. 

'what the..' Thought Yoo Joonghyuk, getting even more confused at Dokja's action so he furrowed his brows even more.

was that not it?? am i just dumb questionned Dokja even more confused at Joonghyuk's face. 

Yoo Joonghyuk opened his mouth to start speaking-

''Hey, you..'' At the sound of his classmate's voice Dokja flinched and stood up abruptly, he had finally finished cleaning his desk appropriately.

- then the door at the front of the class bursts open to reveal Han sooyoung.

''Hellooooo Joonghyuk-ssi!!!!!! I-'' she yelled in a sing-song voice. 

''Im sorry for touching your desk!'' she then, by her turn, was interupted, this time by a Dokja that rushed past her and through the door, dropping the cleaning products at the front.

The whole interaction lasted barely a few seconds, it didnt even let sooyoung the chance to close her mouth. When she finally did she scratched the back of her head and peaked into the hallway to see where Kim Dokja was. Though she had no luck, the hallway was vacant.

''damn, did you scold him for touching your desk? Thats harsh Joonghyuk, even for you.'' She let out a fake sigh of disproval, shaking heer head.

''Shut it.'' Joonghyuk glared at her, seemingly about to pounce at her and bash her scull in.

''okok, calm down.'' she furrowed her brows at him.

''What do you want.''

''nothing.'' 

Yoo Joonghyuk's gaze darkened and he snapped the pencil he was holding in two, making Han Soonyoung squeal in surprise and horror.

''it's a joke! it's a joke! i wanted to talk to you about that little rat that just slipped away.'' Yoo joonghyuk raised a brow in confusion. ''.. about that kid Kim Dokja i mean.'' 

''I allready said i dont care about rumors'' he looked away unintrested.

''nah its actual info, straight from the infirmery or in other words seolwa.'' With that Joonghyuk's attention was recaptured.

★★★★★★

The week passed quickly, the usual cycle of bullying not changing one bit. It was finaly the weekend, saturday to be more precise. Kids were playing at the park, Adults were grocery shoppping, adolescents were hanging out with their friends bref, everyone was happy for the two day break.. But, with exception of Kim Dokja. He was on his sofa in his bare appartement, sulking. 

arghhh... this is such a pain, i have to go see that woman today... He sighed i wouldnt go if i could.. but she is my only source of income at the moment.. he grabbed his phone he had put down on his chest and took a look at the time.

12:37am 

sunday february 29. 

shit! its the end of the month allready?! Dokja shot up from his seat and jumped to dig for a jacket in the bag his aunt packed for him (that he still didnt unpack) If i dont tell that woman, the money will get sent to aunt and i won't be able to pay for this place he groaned and grabbed his keys. He left his appartment in a hurry. 

He looked at the time again, only a few minutes had passed. He knew the bus that leads to the prison where his mom resided passed every hour. Back when he was at his aunt's place it only took him a few minutes to reach the station but now he was farther, he was worried he wouldnt be able to catch the bus. 

This is gonna hurt..

★★★

Dokja huffed and puffed, sighing loudly when he looked at the time

12:52

it turned out the station wasnt as far as he thought. Which he was immensively grateful for, he didnt want to wait a whole other hour for nothing. The bus arrived a few minutes later and dokja hopped into it.

Jung heewon turned around, looking up from her phone.

''huh? isnt that-''

''did you see something, Heewon-ssi?'' asked a blonde haired girl next to her.

''uh... yeah. i think. Well its fine either way.'' 

The two girls hopped into another bus that had just arrived. 

★★★

Kim Dokja was grateful that not alot of people were on the bus. There usualy wasnt alot anyway, not many people visited prisoners . The ride was only 30 minutes, a bit like going to his school it wasnt too long. The bus stilled infront of a building that gave off bad vibes. Dokja sighed and steeled himself for what was coming. He went up to the reception where his iddentity was verified and he was let through.

★

''Dokja.''  hearing her voice again gave Kim Dokja a chill. it wasnt so pleasant. Every time he visited her it was uncomfortable, he never had anything to talk to her about, though today was different.

''I'm not living with aunt anymore. I'm living at XXX on XXXXX street. she told me to tell you for the money.''

''wait, why?''

''.. we got into an argument.''

''... is it because of the..'' Dokja cut her off harshly before she could continue.

''it was an argument'' The woman only noded in understanding.

The uncomfortable silence had once more settled in. It was very suffocating, it even made the guards a bit akward and stuffy. 

''anything else?'' tried the woman.

''... I, I started reading a new book i guess…''
''is that so? Do you want to tell me about it?''

''mn..'' 

★★★

Dokja walked out the bus, exhausted both mentally and physically. He had stayed to talk to his mother for an hour. The whole time he had been talking about his new interest, the said book. With the other 30 minute bus ride he arrived at the station at 2:00 pm.

He was incredibly hungry because, one, he had ran to the bus station a few hours earlier and, two, he hadnt ate anything the whole day, not that it was out of the ordinary but it seemed like the run really took it out of him.

He sighed as he walked away from the station. 

I'll wait to eat later.. I know tommorow i'll get my 'allowance' but  i'd still rather keep some extra money for next month... should i make a saving book or something like that... He hummed and took out his phone to look at what he was thinking about. 

Where should i eat though.. the kimbap is good but like...  Then an idea struck him. I could maybe go to that place again..? i'm craving some dumplings.. Just at the thought of his favourite meal his mouth started salivating. Thats the plan then! he storred his phone into his jacket's pocket, totaly unintrested in what he was searching for before.

By walking, it took him almost double the time to reach his appartement, but it was better than pushing his beat up body to run again. He decided to go look at the cafe's schedule to see when they'll be open till. It turns out it was opened quite late, at 12 o' clock and also closed very late, around 11 pm. Though the times were quite unusual Dokja didnt complain, it was actually quite fortunate for him and his messed up schedule. 

After checking he simply went back to his appartement, completely spent because of his 'vigorous' exercise. he simply crumbled on his sofa the moment Dokja reached it. The rest was a blur, until he woke up. It had allready turned dark outside, all the street lamps were illuminated and all the kids playing had allready gone home, no doubt sleeping and waiting for the new school week.  When Dokja saw the moon out his windows he was stunned, he reached for his phone to verify the time.

9:48.

Ok thank god its not pass 11 I really wanted those dumplings. Whit that, he just walked out his appartement, when he had came back a few hours prior he hadnt even had the time to take his outside wear off before succumbing to exhaustion.

★

Kim Dokja stood in front of the front door of the cafe from the inside. He was flabbergasted at the marvellous sight he was witnessing.

The room was glowing. When he came in the cafe before he hadnt bothered to at the facades, he hadnt even thought there would be any use in doing that. What had captured his attention more back then was all the green flora all around the place. the room had been a lively green and combined with the sun from the few windows it looked like strolling through a warm forest.

But now that it was night, it seemed like the cafe had morphed to embrace the change of time. The black curtains were drawn so they covered the windows. The walls and ceiling seemed to had been painted with fluorescent paint, resembling the starry night. The paint which had seemed to appear once the moon had risen and the lights gone. The only well lit places were the tables and the counter to order. These places were all doned of a small lamps resembeling mushrooms of all kind of reds and whites. All of these things combined gave the feeling of being in a magical forest in search of fairies hidden in the deepest parts of the woods.

That was the moment Kim Dokja realized why the cafe was open until so late. 

He stayed infront of the door, his mouth opened slightly. 

''mesmerizing, isnt it?'' he heard a young voice of a girl from behind the counter. Startled, Kim Dokja closed his mouth in a hurry and looked at the owner of the voice. She was a beautifull youth with lustrous blonde hair and emerald green eye. THe light from the lamp on the counter really made her hair shine like gold. His reaction made the girl laugh.

''don't tease the boy, Uriel.'' The older woman from last time appeared from what he believed is the kitchen. When she looked at the costumer her eyes brightned. ''Oh dear me! It's the young boy from before.''

''i'm not young..'' replied Dokja a bit anoyed.

''yes,yes i know. 16, can you believe it'' She put her hand on the cheek almost pensively, her long slender fingers were adorned of small rings of all shapes. The question was directed to the girl next to her.

''i don't really see his face because of the light.. But only seeing his body i'd lean toward the thought that he is 13!''

''excatly what i said.'' The older woman chuckled. ''Anyway, what would you like to order dear?''

What the.. They're both so happy.. almost glowing.

''Some chicken soup dumplings please..''

''That was your choice the last time too, wasnt it?'' The woman noticed.

''i,it's my favourite dish..''

''allright, coming right up then.'' The woman went back to the kitchen but before she had snatched the girl's arm and dragged her along.

..alllright then..

Kim Dokja decided to just ignore the weird procession of actions and decided to go sit down in a corner of the room, grabbing his phone in his pocket to read. When he opened his phone the brightness was too much. In the dark room, the usually fine brightness had nearly blinded him, plus it also ruined the cafe's ambience a bit so he just decided to lower it.

★

The two girls came out the kitchen with a bag and the hot, fresh dumplings. Kim Dokja looked up from his phone to look at the food that was placed in front of him.

''Again..? you're gonna go bankrupt for sure miss...'' Dokja looked up at the duo staring at him

''haha i allready told you-..'' The older lady's smile froze when she saw the young man's bruised face that hadn't been visible earlier due to the dimmed light but now clear because of the lamp on the table. The bruises were from a few days ago, friday afternoon to be more precise. When Minwoo decided to go heavier on his face for a reason or another.

''oh god! what happened to your face?.'' Started the younger woman a bit anxious. 

''ah.. nothing, i tripped while walking..'' Kim Dokja said, lifting his hand to cover his bruises a bit.

''that won't do!'' Scolded the blonde

''exactly. I'll get the first aid kit.'' before Dokja could complain she left to go to the kitchen again

''w,wait no thats not necessary..-''

''yes it is'' scolded the other. before leaving a deep sigh.

''My name's Uriel.'' 

''...?''

''..''

''...''

''what's your name.'' 

''oh.. It's Kim Dokja..''

''well it's nice to meet you Dokja-ssi.'' Uriel smiled brightly.

The two (mostly uriel) chatted for a short while before two people came out the kitchen which surprised Dokja a bit. 

''Ok, hello again. This is my husband, he'll help you aply the medicine ok? im not too experienced and i dont want to hurt you more.''

''uhm.. i,im fine i swear..''

''oh shush Dokja-ssi! let us help a bit.''

You've helped plenty giving me food  was left unsaid.

The tall and muscular man approached him (almost timidly which kim dokja found a bit unbecoming of such a man), towering over his petite frame. On his right side the lady spoke up again.

''I've never introduced myself have I? My name is Persephone and this is my husband, Hades.''

''mn.'' 

''yep! and I'm Uriel as you know.'' she then looked to the two others. ''His name is Kim dokja!''

''mn...'' 

''could you please make your chair face this way?'' questionned Persephone

''uhh... a,allright..'' Dokja did as he was told and Hades sat down on the chair next to him, also shifting his chair to face Dokja while the other two others sat at the two other chairs on the other side of the four space table.

''I'll start aplying the medicine'' said the man in a gruff voice.

The sudden voice coming from infront of his surprised him, not because he wasnt expecting the voice (The man's totally matched his appearance.) but because THe man hadnt spoken since the sart and he was simply not expecting him to talk.

''allright then..''

Chapter Text

Getting patched up like this was… comforting to say the least. Everything the big man did was gentle and caring. As if a single wrong move would chatter Kim Dokja in millions of fragments like a dropped vase.

The two girls on the other side of the table were happily chatting about everything and anything, going from one subject to another. The atmosphere was peaceful. With the non-stop flowing conversation and the gentle looks it felt incredibly warm. Kim Dokja starred at the three people next to him, it felt like a nice little family, a feeling distant from him. He felt like he was intruding on their lives.

"All done…" a low voice declared softly infront of him.

"great!" Uriel chimmed in. "You can eat now, Dokja"

"yes, dont let it run cold now, it would be unfortunate." Persephone chuckled

"ah.. yes, thank you for this, i guess.." His words faded from clear to but a whisper  at the end.

"How did you even do that?" Questioned Uriel with a pout. "You can’t just possibly trip like that and fall on your face!"

A cold chill ran through Dokja’s back

"uhmm.. i, im just very.. very clumsy!" 
he chuckled nervously and took his spoon to start eating his food and not have to continue speaking to the others.

"Wow, what bad luck" chimed in Persephone. 

"mhm.." Dokja started eating his food rapidly, wanting to get out of the (much too friendly atmosphere to his taste ) uncomfortable situation he was in.

The tall man sat up and pushed his chair in.

"I’ll go put this away." he said, leaving with the first aid kit

"Alright, Uriel, Dear, will you please come with me for a second, i need to rearrange some things and i need help." Persephone stood up after and also pushed her chair in.

"Uh but I thought—…" she stood up confused but then she glanced at Kim Dokja and as if hit by a sudden realization her complaints die down in her throat.

"uhm, yeah sure!" She follows the older lady without pushing her chair in.

Kim Dokja was left alone again a bit confused at the weird unfolding of the situation in front of him. Though he was a bit happy, he didn’t feel like he was intruding in their peaceful relationship. But for some reason a feeling of emptiness took ahold and strained his heart. 

He looked back down to his food to continue eating, a slightly sadder expression on his face.

He quickly finished his food, this time he wasn’t forcing himself to eat fast because he was uncomfortable but because the food was incredibly good, exactly as he remembered it from the last time he ordered the same thing at the cafe. 

When he got up he grabbed his phone and shoved it into his pockets and pushed his chair when he stood up. 

Before he made it halfway through the cafe to go to the counter the two girls that had been presumably organizing things in the kitchen came out.

"oh, you’re leaving allready dear?" questioned Persephone while putting a hand to her cheek almost pensively.

"uhm, yes.. i have school tomorrow so.. uh yeah.." 

"allright then."

"Hey wait! You almost forgot this!" Uriel hurried over to the table he had been and retrieved the bag full of, most probably, food and/or pastries.  She walked up to him and handed him the bag.

In truth, Kim Dokja really hadn’t forgotten anything, he had felt guilty taking things from the cafe again. He had planned to just leave the bag there and hoped they wouldn’t realize he left it there, which was had he saw, a worthless effort.

"oh.. uhmm yeah." He turned back to face Persephone "How much—" before he could finish his sentence he was interrupted.

"no no! Please don’t worry dear."

"but—"

"tut tut! No buts. Be on your way now."

Kim Dokja furrowed his brows 

"i cant just—"

"yes you can!" Said Uriel that suddenly jumped into his arms, their tow bodies colliding and making Kim Dokja’s legs wobble. Surprised by the sudden action Kim Dokja stopped talking.

"All right then! Off you go!" Uriel turned him around and pushed him towards the door making Dokja almost trip on his feet. 

"i,i.. uh… but—…" Dokja stumbled on his words unable to continue his train of thoughts.

Before he knew it, he had been kicked out the place. Deciding to not dwell on it too much he just started walking to his appartement with a heavy sigh.

"So?" Asked Persephone worriedly.

"He’s like, super thin! Like, borderline not healthy! I could practically fell his bones through all his layers of clothes.. And! And and and! He was super light too! Just like a feather. Did you see how i pushed him? You know im not that strong!" Uriel pouted and poured all of her opinions on Persephone.

"Is that so?" She let out a sigh. 

Hades came out the kitchen and went behind persephone, wrapping his arms around her in a warm embrace. He let out a quiet huff.

"His bruises were… definitely not from a trip. They were too well placed. Plus, there were no bruises on his hands, I doubt he tripped and didnt try catching himself at all."

"mn.." the woman hummed quietly.

The three of the shared a look and a sigh, clearly sharing the same feeling. 

'how worry some.’

★★★★★★ 

Kim Dokja walked off his bus feeling down. Even more than usual in fact. The previous day was a true roller coaster of emotions, from going to see his mom to the visit of Olympus’ ecstasy. His emotions had been in a turmoil and completely lost all along the day.

He silently prayed that his mom had heard the address correctly or else he wouldn’t have a home, nor food or anything else actually. In fact, he hoped she had the time to change the address to were the money was sent, his aunt would be delighted to see the money but it wouldn’t be good for him at all.

He kept walking, deep in thought and he suddenly snapped out of his spiralling mind he realized he had almost reached his classroom. He let put a quiet groan.

Minwoo will surely be there.. and i want nothing to do with him.

Just as he predicted, when Minwoo spotted Dokja he pretty much pounced on him like his prey, two of his lackeys following behind. Ever since Minwoo realized he couldn’t seat himself next to Dokja in the morning due to Yoo Joonghyuk he quickly changed tactics and started cornering him in the back of the class. 

The three bullies loomed over Dokja, pretty much towering over his small body. Not a surprise to say this made Dokja very uncomfortable and nervous, this brought up some memories he wanted to forget but never could. 

"mr. Kim, is it true that your mom ■■■■■■ your dad?"

"How do you feel about being the son of a ■■■■■■■■?"

"do you ■o■e your mom"

the last question made Dokja’s blood boil. 
"I—

the bell rang signalling the start of class. Minwoo clicked his tongue before making his way to his seat followed once again by his two lackeys. The sound of the chime made Dokja snap out of his thoughts, a cold sweat dripped from his forehead and he let out a quiet sigh when he saw he wasn’t surrounded anymore. He walked to his seat and sat down, turning to look out the window as he always did. 

The first half of the day passed smoothly, after homeroom he had mathematics and science first which wasnt much a difficulty for him so it passed normally. Though he thinks he heard the science teacher talk about an upcoming group project but he quickly stopped paying attention after 'group'. 

After he had Korean and History classes. It wasnt his strongest subjects but he wasnt in danger of failing so he couldn’t care less. 

When lunchtime came he was ince again whisked away by Minwoo and his friends. Two of them staying in class to write insults that Dokja had long since grown immune to. They never really varied so they grew old fast. When the boys could think of a new one i didn’t hurt Dokja but impressed him more. 

Minwoo decided that this time they’d beat up Dokja in the gym storage room in the backyard of the school. It was one of Dokja’s favourite places to get beat up, he of course didn’t like the beating part but it was fun to just lay on the gym mattresses after the deed was done. 

Dokja hoped that Minwoo wouldn’t hit his stomach, that morning he had opened the bag from Olympus’ Ecstasy to see that there was a total of 5 meals. (More like pastries but its all the same to Dokja) and he has happily ate a breakfast that day.

Yoo joonghyuk sat on the picnic table with all of his friends, eating silently without talking. Lunch had started around 10 minutes ago. This time his group had gained a member, a blonde, green eyed girl. 

"im glad you are doing better Uriel, i was getting worried about that cold." Said seolwha happily.

"Yeah! I know. It was so bad." Groaned the girl in question.

"we’re glad you’re back with us though." Smiled Yoo sangah while looking at her left.

Uriel was sat in between Sangah and Sooyoung. She chatted with the others happily until Sooyoung tapped her shoulder. Uriel silenced herself and leaned closer to Han Sooyoung, letting her whisper something in her ear. 

"what." Uriel looked at Sooyoung in disbelief.

"its true." 

at the confirmation of whatever was in that whisper Uriel squealed and leaned forward to be able to look past Sooyoung and at Joonghyuk. That action made him raise a brow. But before he could ask what they were plotting he caught a figure of a certain someone in the distance, past Lee seolwha. 

The bully and his lackeys were making their way back to the main building. They walked from the direction of the storage room. Yoo Joonghyuk furrowed his brows before standing up.

"i need to go look something." 

As if realizing Joonghyuk was about to leave Uriel shot up from her seat. 

"Wait! Can i come with???" She said with a bright smile. Yoo Joonghyuk looked at her, a show of annoyance plastered across his face but didn’t speak up so Uriel took it as her confirmation. They both made their way to the storage room. 

"What’re you looking for??" Questioned Uriel but no answer came her way. Before she could press forward Yoo Joinghyuk opened the door of the storage room a bit ahead of her. Her view was blocked by his tall figure so she couldn’t see in the room but she heard someone squeal in surprise when they saw Joonghyuk. It was a bit too familiar…

"oh! Im sorry. I’ll leave—" When she heard the voice speak up the confused look on her face disappeared and she squeezed her way past the barricade that was Joonghyuk to stare at the person dumbfoundedly.

"oh. My. God. Is that you Dokja! I didn’t know you came to this school!" When Kim Dokja saw Uriel his eyes widened.

"Uriel..?" When he looked her way Uriel realized that he was even more bruised than before. 

"Did you fall again Dokja? You have more bruises! You should try and stop being so clumsy." She skipped her way to Dokja to give him a big hug before examining his face. 

Yoo Joonghyuk stood at the doorframe, his brows knitting in confusion. For some reason, seeing the two of them together made his heart clench.

So they know eachother..?

He let out a dry cough, making Uriel turn around to look at him again, suddenly reminded of his presence.

"Oh right! This is Dokja! He comes to Olympus’ Ecstasy." She said smiling brightly. Kim Dokja looked at Uriel, then at Joknghyuk nervously and uncomfortable. 

They know each other from.. outside. of school hm? 

"What.. What is happening" Kim Dokja looked absolutely stunned at the proceedings of actions that just happened. 
"Uriel, y,you cone here to school..? How come i never saw you.." 

"well its simple! I was sick the second week a arrived here, I have no explanation on how i missed you on the first week though…"

"oh, i was sick at that time."

"oh i see!" Uriel finally separated herself from Dokja to smile at him.

"Wanna come eat with us?" 

"uhm… i need to go to the nurse.." 

"that can wait! Come eat!" 

"I already ate.."

Kim Dokja thought that anything was better than shamefully admitting he doesn’t eat lunch. 

His response made Uriel groan. 

"fine!! Then you should probably be in your way to the nurse."

"yes.. goodbye." 

Yoo Joonghyuk stared at Kim Dokja leave. He glared at the back of his head. 

Why is he lying..

Yoo joonghyuk knew what Dokja said was a lie. He didn’t trip and hurt himself, he was getting bullied. In addition, he couldn’t have had time to eat, the past minutes between the start of lunch and now he had spent them getting beat up in this storage room. 

When Dokja was out of sight, Uriel’s smile dropped completely. 

"Can you tell me whats going on now." She demanded looking straight at Joonghyuk 

Seeing her completely change never could get old. That was something Yoo Joinghyuk really liked of the girl. 

"Atleast you realized"

"Realized when i first met him and tended to his bruises, those were definitely not caused by tripping on the ground"

"wow that was his excuse." Joonghyuk scoffed

"yeah." Uriel’s eyes then widened. "Is that a smile i see?!" Yoo joonghyuk’s face was immediately turned into his trademark scowl

"You’re seeing things."

Chapter Text

The duo headed out of the storage room silently. It was a cold time outside. The start of March wasnt at all hot. A cold breeze passed by them, making their hair and clothes rustle gently. They looked in front of themselves while walking. 

"so…" Uriel started 

"Kim Dokja is getting bullied." Yoo Joonghyuk quickly responded. A slight frown on his face.

"What." Uriel questioned dumbfoundedly. 

"Yeah, its a small group but honestly no one actually helps him stand up for himself. The bullying is constant, whenever the particular group wants."

"No one helps? Even the teachers?"

"Even the teachers. Either they are oblivious to all that is happening or they blatantly ignore it."

"despicable." Uriel grumbled. "But why would anyone even bully him? Dokja doesn’t seem like a bad or annoying guy at all."

"That’s what we’re trying to figure out."

★

Kim Dokja sneezed and rubbed his itchy nose a bit.

Is the cold getting to me or is someone talking about me behind my back again.. Dokja shrugged Probably both, honestly.

Dokja had went to the nurse’s office to patch his bruises up. Of course, there wasnt anyone in room. The nurse had went to her lunch break and Lee seolwha probably had done the same. 

That didn’t bother him slightly. Actually he thought it was for the best. Dokja had long gotten used to patching himself up and he wasnt half bad at it. (At the start it was completely castrophic, he used too much bandages and wasnt too great at applying the ointments.).

After putting the things he had grabbed back into their original place Dokja had left the room to walk in the hallway. 

I should probably get a head start at cleaning my desk, maybe i’ll have some chance and be able to go home early.

He concluded his idea was the best he had ever had. As it turned out, Minwoo had gotten bored of Dokja extremely quickly that day. He had barely ‘played’ with him for ten minutes before leaving him alone. In addition, the sudden appearance of Uriel and Yoo Joonghyuk had also forced him out of the storage room. If they hadn’t passed there, he would have happily stayed on those gym mats and read on his phone. 

Dokja entered his classroom from the front door for an easier access to the cleaning products that were situated near the front windows. He snatched the items from their place before making his way up to his desk. 

When he saw the usually dirtied, scribbled on surface completely clean other than a slight gray shade from the past writing he was simply shocked.

did they forget to…- no that can’t be. They’d never actually disobey Minwoo and how could they forget..? Maybe they got caught..

Yeah as if! Caught by who? The students dont do shit about this and the teachers even less. He sighed and shook his head to himself Whatever, im certainly not complaining. 

With a small smile he went back to the front of the class and put the products back in place. 

What he didn’t know was that it was students who had helped him.

Earlier when the bullies were about to write profanities on Dokja’s desk they had been surrounded by the three exchange students. The trio all had a cold glare in their eyes. All three had a different expression, Joonghyuk was just as calm faced as ever but the murderous gaze was unmistakably there. Yoo Sangah still held a smile but it was obviously not as soft and sweet as it usually was, it held a trace of anger. Sooyoung was just completely furious.

Behind the delinquent facade, the boys where actually just cowards that had been spoiled way too much by their parents and had turned into complete idiots and fools. They were also scaredy cats that would piss their pants at anything remotely scary. So when Joonghyuk told them to "Scram." They didn’t think twice before running away, their tails tucked between their legs.

Of course the boys still had a sense of honour and dignity (and didnt want to get beat up by minwoo for failing their duty.) so they didn’t tell their leader that they hadn’t completed their task.

Dokja hummed a sweet tune, walking slowly, heading to the library to read a book for the rest of the lunch break. 

★

The final bell rang and all the students started packing their things. Something Dokja had realized while at the library is that even though he could leave school early because he didn’t need to wash his desk, his bus still passed 30 minutes after the end of classes.

There was no way that Dokja would ever choose to stay out in the cold instead of in a warm building so he had just stayed inside. He also decided to not move from his desk and to just lay his arms and head on it while reading on his phone.

There was no way that Dokja would ever choose to stay out in the cold….

There was no way that Dokja would ever.…

a cold sweat dripped down his back. Yoo Joonghyuk kept his attentive gaze stuck onto Dokja like gum.

what the hell?! Why does he keep looking at me?!?? Dokja panicked but didn’t let it show on his face. His stoic expression was still perfectly in place Fuck staying in a warm place i’d rather stay wherever he’ll stop staring daggers at me! (Yoo Joonghyuk was infact not staring daggers at Kim Dokja, it was Dokja’s pure oblivious imagination.)

"Kim Dokja." Joonghyuk almost growled out. (Very much on accident) The sudden voice addressing Dokja made him flinch.

"Uhm.. c,can i help you..?" Dokja looked up from his phone, through his bangs to look at Joonghyuk who stood at the front of the class.

".."

"..?"

"Why—" before he could continue his sentence the door at the front slid open violently.

"Yoo~ Joon~ghyuk!" Exclaimed Uriel, emphasizing each syllable. 
Yoo Jooghyuk’s gaze darkened and sharpened into a glare directed at Uriel.

Uriel looked confused for a few seconds before noticing Kim Dokja. 

"Oh- Kim Dokja!" Uriel brightened and ran to sit next to Kim Dokja, completely forgetting Yoo Joonghyuk.

"Uhh.. h,hello Uriel.." 

Yoo Joonghyuk furrowed his brows together further when he saw Uriel sit down at his place next to dokja. 

"Why’re you still here?" 
"Im w,waiting for my bus.."

"You take the bus to come here, Dokja?" 
"yeah.." 

Yoo Joonghyuk, still mad about being interrupted again. made his way to Uriel and gave her a good smack at the back of the head, the action greatly shocked Kim Dokja.

"ARGH- seriously Joonghyuk?!" Uriel massaged the back of her head "what was that for?"

"for interrupting me."

Uriel furrowed her brows in confusion "when did I—… ohhhh… sorry Joonghyuk!" Uriel smiled nervously at the realization of her mistake 

"That’s what i thought." Joonghyuk returned at the front of the class without speaking another word.

"aren’t going to talk?" 
"you already asked the question, there is no need anymore."

"then why did you hit me for no reason?!"

Uriel was left angered and confused without even an explanation.

suddenly, next to her, Uriel heard a small stifled laugh. She turned her head to Dokja in disbelief. Yoo Joonghyuk, having also heard it looked Dokja’s way with his brows arched.

The sudden attention made Dokja’s once small smile completely vanish off his face and be replaced with an expression of panic.

"I,I sorry for laughing. I need to go now." He in fact did not need to go for atleast another ten minutes. 

"wait—" tried stopping Uriel

He skilfully ran away from the two people in the room. 

So slippery. Thought Yoo Joonghyuk

★

Dokja shivered as he entered his appartement’s building. The difference in between the out and inside temperature was harsh. He felt as if his whole body was unfreezing. He continued walking straight past the mail boxes. 

Then suddenly he remembered the money he was supposed to receive today. He backed up until he was infront of the mailboxes. So for the first time since he moved there he opened his mailbox. He took hold of the mail he amassed in the past week or so. He skimmed through the documents while making his way up the stairs. There was a handful of fliers for food coupons, an advertisement for rat infestations and finally, a simple, white letter. The piece of paper was addressed to him. Deciding against opening it in the middle of the hallway he tried to reach his door quicker but failed miserably as his legs started throbbing again. 

He unlocked his door and quickly threw his bag to the ground. He quickly took off his shoes (and didnt put on house slippers because he had yet to buy some.) and quickly made his way to his small diner table. He threw the stack of useless ads and coupons aside and carefully opened the letter. 

Inside was a stack of bills, no cheque, he was grateful for that, he had yet to have a bank account. He quickly counted the sum of the money he had been sent. It amounted to a total of 1 500 000 won. It seemed that last time, his aunt had used 500 000 won on things, probably the hospital and some miscellaneous items for herself.

Today was also the day he needed to pay his phone bill and rent. He silently cried at the realization that atleast 2/3 of the money would go to those two things.

★

Unfortunately, Kim Dokja was right, a little bit over 500 000 won remained in his savings. Dokja sat in his sofa cringing at the amount he had left. 

If i use 15000 won per day for my meal.. I should have extra money for some other things… 

After a bit more seconds of thinking, Dokja took out his phone and went onto a notes application. He carefully planed out the amount of money he’d have left. 

With a meager amount of 50 000 won totally left he sighed. 

Let’s think positively for a moment. I have 50 000 won left for my personal use… I think the best way to go from here is… the daisco* down the street! 

with a new goal in mind, dokja stuffed the money he planed to use on food in the envelope before going back to the entrance to dress up again. 

what should i buy.. was the only thought remaining in Dokja’s head

★

It was a five minute walk to reach the daisco. Thankfully it was short, Dokja really didn’t have the energy to walk for than 10 minutes. 

a ding announced his arrival in the store and the cashier greeted him. Dokja replied the favour by bowing his head a bit, giving a nod of apprehension. 

He skimmed through the sections, firstly; Dokja had decided to finally buy some house slippers and some more soap and shampoo. 

He entered the hygiene aisle and looked through his different choices. Two in one shampoo and conditioner were added to a small basket the store provided at the front with a single pair of black house slippers. 

He then decided it was time to get some bedsheets to cover his uncomfortable and bare bed. So that’s exactly what he did. Once again he picked black and white. Looking at the price made him flinch a bit but with a quick addition of all the things he had for now and the money he had with him he concluded it would be fine. 

Next to the bedsheet he saw a pillow and concluded it would also be a great investment so he added it to the basket with a pillow casing.  

Looking at the items he had in his basket. He thought he had gotten everything he needed but a hunch told him he missed something.

Then it hit him.

I should buy a wallet! I dont want to lose the money after all..

After purchasing all his items only 20 000 won remained from the extra 50 000 he had had at the start. Except now he had a range of new items he had been desperately in need of.

Chapter Text

After buying all the stuff from daisco, Kim Dokja made his way to his small apartment. He walked along the road with an extremely slow pace but carrying a smile on his face. He was incredibly excited to unpack all the things he had just bought for himself.

He entered his apartment, unlocking the door and making his way up the stairs. He finally arrived st the front of his door and fumbled with his key to open it. 

After a few seconds, Dokja unlocked his door and entered his house, closing the door behind himself.

He wanted to put his bag of new items on his small table but there was still the money envelope so he decided against it, instead deciding to go to his sofa.

He sat down and placed the bag next to himself on the couch. Quickly rummaging in it to bring the things out. He grabbed the bed sheets ,the pillow and the pillow head and tossed them aside, a bit more near his bedroom door. 

Then he grabbed his new wallet and removed the tag from it. He stood up and went to the table. Dokja grabbed the 15000 won he planed on using for his diner the next day and stuffed it in there. He preferred not to put 500 000 won in there at once, in case he lost the wallet or if it got stolen. 

Dokja let the wallet lay there on the table while he grabbed the shampoo bottle and put it in his bathroom shower. 

He looked in the bag to check if he forgot something. When he saw the slippers that he had forgot he had bought, he quickly removed his shoes and placed them in the entrance. He put on his new slippers with a soft smile.

its not a home but its a house.. He lost his smile while remembering that fact. Actually, when was the last time i had a home..? 

Dokja’s face darkened. 

He hastily picked up the bed sheets and the other thing from the floor and made his way to the bedroom.

He made his bed with practiced ease. He always made it since he moved out from that house. His aunt wouldn’t ever help him. 

He slipped into his bed letting his slippers fall off his feet. 

After a while of tossing and turning in his bed (a while being a whole hour) he finally found the perfect position, one of his arms was under the pillow, the other was hugged close to his chest. It latched onto the flimsy bedsheet he had bought. His small body was curled into a ball. 

Its not too cold.. its better than before, laying on a bed with nothing on it at all wasnt so fun. 

Dokja held his body tightly. 

next month i’ll buy a blanket…

with that thought he dozed off.

★

Kim Dokja woke up with the sound of his phone alarm blaring in his ear. The sound was really loud so Dokja woke up panicked.

He grabbed his phone and disabled the alarm. With a yawn, he rubbed his tired eyes. Then he froze. He opened his phone again in hurry only to be met with the realization that he forgot to charge it last night. The remaining battery, being 20% wouldn’t last him the whole day for sure. For Dokja, who most probably had a phone addiction, it was the end of the world. So he jumped out of bed, slipped and fell on the floor.

He groaned and rubbed his knees before crawling to the side of his bed, near the wall where the outlet he used was. He plugged his phone in hurriedly. With a sigh, he finally got up from the floor and slipped his feet in his new slippers.

He slowly made his way to the kitchen, still pretty sleepy from the night before. He shivered as he walked. 

i really should invest in a blanket next month…

Dokja grumbled and yawned

maybe in instant coffee too..

He went up to his fridge and opened it only to be greeted with a cold breeze that made Dokja shiver even more. There was a single item, a bag with a large logo on it, it read 'Olympus’ ecstasy’. He blindly reached into the bag and grabbed the first thing his hand touched.

He happened to have fished out a croissant. He opened the wrapper that was holding the pasties and took a bite out of it. 

Im grateful to be eating breakfast everyday but… Those guys really need to stop giving me free stuff.

★

With a grumble Dokja got off his bus. He still had a few minutes walk left to get to school but he didn’t hurry. He really didn’t want to go. He grabbed his phone and looked at his schedule. After homeroom, he had science. Dokja let out an annoyed sigh and put his phone away. He didn’t hate science but it wasn’t his favourite subject. 

Dokja finally crossed his school gates and made his way to his classroom on the second floor. After two weeks of rest, his body had been hurting him less. He was grateful for it but didn’t want to do P.E so he didn’t bother telling the teachers. 

He entered his classroom from the back door with a heavy sigh. He really didn’t want to see Minwoo that day. Nor any other day aswell. Dokja preferred to not see Sung Minwoo at all.

He walked up to his desk, pulled his chair back and sat down.

.

.

.

and.. sat. down..?

And sat down?! Dokja sat there, completely dumbfounded. 
what? How?! Where’s Minwoo? And his lackeys?? Dokja looked around the class. After a few seconds of scanning the people, he realized he didn’t see the bully. 

Dokja mouth gaped

is he.. absent?!  A soft smile made its way to Dokja’s face. Dokja turned his head to the window to hide his smile from his classmates to avoid creeping them out. He closed his eyes and basked in the fact Minwoo wouldn’t approached him in the morning.

Unbeknownst to him, the whole scene had been witnessed by his seatmate. Yoo Joonghyuk stared at Dokja’s reflection in the window. Joonghyuk smirked. Then returned to his usual scowl when some random classmates tried to talk to him. 

★

homeroom always passed quickly. Dokja zoned out while looking out the window. Then came the tine for science class. With his awful luck, Minwoo hadn’t been absent but just late and had only skipped homeroom. When Dokja saw Minwoo enter the class, his previous small smile completely vanished. 

Dokja started zoning out while looking out the window again until he heard the teacher say something shocking.

"Today, we’ll be starting a writing project in teams of four. This task consists of the group making a report on a topic that they chose. The topic must be in relevance to science and must be approved by me."

Dokja was completely shocked. Sure he had heard of an upcoming project but to think it was a group project? That just signed his death sentence. Every time there was a group project he’d get fished up by Minwoo and forced to do all the work. In addition, even if he didn’t want to do it with Minwoo, it wasnt like anyone else wanted him in their team. 

With a defeated sigh, Dokja layed his head on his desk. 

"Allright, get to grouping up, kids!" Declared the teacher, letting the class run wild. Immediately, people started speaking loudly and grouping up. A large portion of the students grouped near Han Sooyoung, Yoo Sangah and Yoo Joonghyuk. Dokja just stayed at his desk, reluctant to be grouped with Minwoo. 

The students that were encircling the exchange students all wanted them to join their teams but the three of them remained silent. 

Yoo Joonghyuk suddenly stood up, making the students startle, Dokja included. Dokja turned to look at Joonghyuk. 

"Han Sooyoung, Yoo Sangah." With the call of their names, the two girls stood up. Sangah smiled while Sooyoung clicked her tongue.

"you could ask nicely you know?" Questioned Han Sooyoung, earning her a sharp glare from Joonghyuk. 
"Haha, i’ll be glad to work with you Joonghyuk. Though we do need another teammate." 
"I know." Yoo Joonghyuk responded calmly.

The crowd grew restless and eager. They all wanted to join the group. They all whispered between themselves. Dokja just closed his eyes again. 

"Kim Dokja." 
With the sudden call of his name, the boy startled and sat up from his laying position on his desk.

"Huh?— uhm.. i mean. Yes..?"

"Would you like to join our team." Asked Sangah softly. Dokja turned his head to the girl.

"uhhh…" Dokja hesitated, turning his head back to see Minwoo glaring at him. "I—"

Sangah grabbed Dokja’s shoulder firmly, making him flinch and earning herself a glare by Joonghyuk. Dokja’s attention was once again redirected to Sangah, with her holding him in place, he couldn’t look back at Minwoo. 

"you will? Great then!" 

The students that wanted to team up with the three exchange students sighed, grumbled and dispersed to find their own teams. 

Han Sooyoung flipped the chair that was paired with the desk infront of Dokja’s place and sat down facing him. Sangah took the place right next to her and Joonghyuk sat back down.

Still in a daze, Dokja looked confused. 

"I say we make it on how alimentation is important for the body and what we need to eat to have a perfect energy level for a day." Declared Joonghyuk.

"sure sure" responded Sooyoung

"Great idea!" Exclaimed Sangah. "What do you think, Dokja?" 

With the call of his name, Dokja snapped out of his daze.

"uh, y,yeah! Thats great."  Not a place where im expertised in … but yeah..!

"Allright! I’ll get it approved from the teacher." Sangah got up and went off to talk to the teacher. 

Dokja looked out out window at his left. He was incredibly nervous and his heart was beating fast.

With Yoo Sangah gone, Yoo Joonghyuk’s view was no longer obstructed and he could now see Minwoo very obviously glaring furiously at Dokja from the front of the class. Seeing that, Yoo Joonghyuk’s expression darkened.

What does that guy think he’s looking at. Thought Joonghyuk

Yoo Sangah came back with a wide smile plastered on her face

"we got the green light! Our idea got approved." She sat back down and blocked Yoo Joonghyuk’s sight of Minwoo once again. Joonghyuk’s expression lightened.

"Great." 

"oh and, also, the teacher said that the project will be needed to be completed outside of school. Where should we meet to do it? Anyone’s house good?"

"Not mine" grumbled Han Sooyoung "my parents dont want this many people over."

"mine is a no." Responded firmly Yoo Joonghyuk.

"mine too… what about you Dokja?" Everyone’s attention turned to him, making Dokja’s nervousness spike

"m,mine..? Uh, i recently moved so its still pretty messy.." 

"oh, what a pity." Sighed Sangah 

The bell signalling the end of class rang.

"We can talk about it later." Yoo Joonghyuk said. 

★

The rest of the day before lunch passed in a flash. Kim Dokja was still dazed.

why am I in a group with the popular kids?! Im so dead.. Minwoo’s gonna kill me! 

Dokja passed his time freaking out and thinking of all the ways he’d get beat up that diner time. 

The bell signalling the arrival of lunch startled Dokja. He looked calm on the outside but he was internally screaming. He didn’t even realize that a certain group had already approached him.

"Join us for lunch."

Dokja looked up very slowly in shock.

what.

The three exchange students stood there, infront of him. Minwoo who was still at the front of class looked even more furious. 

"We’ll have a great time!" Sangah practically dragged him out his seat. Han Sooyoung clicked her tongue.

"He can walk you know..? No need to do.. all that." 

Sangah let out a laugh. "Of course i know!" 

With that, Dokja was dragged to the lockers where the trio grabbed their lunches. 

"You don’t have a lunchbox, Dokja?" Asked Sangah

"Ah, no i dont.. i dont eat lunch.."

Yoo Joonghyuk furrowed his brows and let out a huff.

"is that so.." Sangah just simply continued dragging him out the classroom where two other people were supposedly waiting for them.

Chapter Text

Dokja had been dragged continuously by Sangah until they arrived at a picnic table in the school’s courtyard. Dokja, feeling a bit dizzy from the dragging, let out a relieved sigh when Sangah finally let go of him.

At the table, there was already a white-haired woman sitting there, waiting with her lunchbox closed. When she saw the group that had brought Kim Dokja arrive a smile formed on her face. 

"Hello, everyone! Oh, I see we have a special guest today." Her eyes landed on Kim Dokja.

"Kim Dokja! How have you been?" Continued the girl

"Lee Seolwha..? Oh, I,I’ve been great." Dokja said.

Yoo Sangah made her way to sit down and Sooyoung followed suit. The two other people that had been waiting also sat down, the two of them being Hyungsung and Heewon. Hyunsung sat next to Lee Seolwha and Heewon next to the man. 

Then, Yoo Joonghyuk went to sit next to Han Sooyoung. Dokja didn’t know where he should sit just stayed standing awkwardly, stuck in place by confusion. 

"You should sit next to Joonghyuk, Dokja!" Said Sangah. 
"Uhm. Actually—" tried Dokja

"C’mon, he doesn’t bite!" Laughed Han Sooyoung, giving a big grin to Dokja. 
Yoo Joonghyuk glared at her.

Kim Dokja reluctantly sat down next to Joonghyuk. Dokja was tense and nervous. It was an incredibly awkward situation for him. The whole group opened their lunchboxes and started eating all the while talking to each other (except Joonghyuk who refrained from speaking). 

"Hello guys!!!" A new voice chimed in from a distance, making Dokja turn his head. Uriel ran up to the table.

"Oh my god! Dokja?! What are you doing here?" Practically shouted Uriel

"uhm, I-"

"We invited him to eat with us" spoke up Han Sooyoung, her speech a bit slurred due to her mouth being stuffed with food. 
"That’s the best idea you’ve ever had!!" Responded Uriel, making Han Sooyoung choke in surprise at the free insult. 

"well, i’ll be sitting here today then!" Uriel declared and sat down next to Seolwha, infront of Kim Dokja. Jung Heewon let out a joking huff.

"You’re replacing me? How mean!" Uriel laughed and ignored Heewon’s question before turning to Dokja. 

"Dokja!! How have you been?" 
"Ive been.. great.." Dokja hesitated for a few seconds before continuing "you..?" 
"Ive been great!" Uriel smiled radiantly, almost blinding Dokja.

"When are you going to come back to visit the cafe?" Questioned Uriel while opening her lunchbox. 

"I.. uhm.. don’t know.." 

"Alright but come back soon! Persephone and Hades miss you!" 

"..Sure.." 

Uriel started eating her food and continued talking until she noticed something.

"Where’s your lunch?" The girl furrowed her brows in confusion. 
"I.. I don’t eat lunch.." 

"What?! Aren’t you hungry?! Why don’t you have a lunch?" 

Dokja stammered a bit in search of a better answer to the question than ‘i dont have enough money for lunch’

"uhm.. I,I don’t have time to make food.." 

"then why not go to the cafeteria?" Pushed Uriel
"I.. I,I dont like the food over there.." 

Uriel let out a huff. 

"Here then! There is no way im letting you go hungry!" Uriel fished a little muffin from her lunchbox. "Persephone made this! Eat up." 
"I really shouldn’t… she made it for you…" 

"She’ll be happier if you’ll eat it!" Uriel quickly countered 

"but..—"

"im giving it to you!" Uriel practically shoved the pastry in Dokja’s arms, with a sigh, Dokja took hold of it.

"thank you then.." He said while taking a bite out of the muffin. 

"Wow, you get Uriel’s snacks?" Asked Han Sooyoung, peeking over Yoo Joonghyuk "She doesn’t give it to anyone. Lucky you!" Cackled Han Sooyoung

Dokja grew nervous. "I..-" 

"let the man be!" scolded Uriel. 

"I really am getting replaced!" Pouted Heewon, making everyone at the table laugh except Dokja and Joonghyuk.

"of course not! You’ll still be my best friend!" Retorted Uriel.

★

With around twenty minutes remaining to the lunch, Dokja left the table to go to the bathroom. The picnic table outside school was incredibly loud. All the people sitting there talked loudly and talked alot. They always had things to say. 

Dokja sighed as he walked to the bathroom.

They talk alot.. im not used to it. Why did i get dragged with them… its so.. annoying..? No.. more like its.. nic—

before he could finish his thought, someone latched onto his shoulder, making Kim Dokja’s blood grow cold. 

"Dokja.. you found new friends? Are you replacing me?" Teased Minwoo while leaning on Dokja, making his weak legs shake.

of course.. how could i forget him..? 

"t-thats not—"

"tut tut! You’re a big liar Dokja!" Minwoo says while starting to drag Kim Dokja down the hallway and past the restroom.

"how about we go somewhere together to catch up the wasted time?" 
 Two of Sung Minwoo’s lackeys followed behind him while chuckling.

Dokja’s body was trembling as he walked with Minwoo to god knows where. 

Unbeknownst to Kim Dokja, the whole scene had been witnessed by Lee Hyunsung who had been following Dokja to also go to the restroom. When Dokja left with Minwoo, Hyunsung ran off towards the schoolyard.

Hyunsung, who had great stamina could run quite fast. He arrived at the backyard quickly while panicking. He appeared so suddenly that he startled the whole group. 

"What the?!- Hyunsung what are you doing?" Questioned Han Sooyoung

"Hyunsung? Are you okay?" Asked Seolwha worriedly.

"D,Dokja! He, He! Uhhh.. A guy with short black hair and dark skin just dragged him away!" 

Yoo Joonghyuk stood up in alarm, his brows furrowed. 

"What did you just say." 
Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sangah stood up aswell. 

"Shit what do we do..?" Mumbled the short black-haired woman

Yoo Joonghyuk silently walked away towards the school. 

"What’s going on?" Questioned Heewon.

"yeah! Whats wrong?" Pushed further Uriel.

Yoo Joonghyuk continued walking without looking back or giving an explanation. 

"You guys stay here, we’ll be back." Said Sangah. 

Han Sooyoung clicked her tongue and ran to Yoo Joonghyuk to catch up to him and Sangah followed suit. 

"What do we do?" Interrogated Han Sooyoung. 
"Find him." Replied Joonghyuk through gritted teeth.

"The school is gigantic! We cant search everywhere." Retorted Sooyoung

"lets split up." Proposed Yoo Sangah.

With that, the three students split up to look for Kim Dokja.

★

Dokja’s back crashed into the wall with a loud noise. He gets pushed to the wall violently by one of Minwoo’s lackeys. His eyes shake as all his air gets knocked out of his lungs.

"you know.. i was so sad to see that you didn’t want to be with us for the project, Dokja." Sighed Minwoo as he gave a shrug. "It truly broke my heart." 

The second lackey kicks Dokja’s head into the wall, making Kim Dokja’s head ring. 

fuck…

"you should really stop hanging around those guys, do you know how embarrassing it is to be with you?" 

The first lackey stomped down on Dokja’s knee, making Kim Dokja groan in pain. 

"Must we really remind you?" Minwoo gave Dokja a frown. 
"Here, i’ll help you keep it in mind."

Minwoo’s friends back off of Dokja with a snicker as the main bully squatted down to Dokja’s level. Sung Minwoo took hold of Dokja’s hair and starts banging the boy’s head into the wall behind him. 

"you’re a nuisance, Kim Dokja."

★

Han Sooyoung heard the bell signalling the end of lunch ring. She grabbed her hair and pulled. 

what the fuck?! Where is he! I’ve been searching for 15 minutes!!! 

Han Sooyoung groaned loudly in the middle of the hallway, making people look her way, whispering. 

"Han Sooyoung!" Shouted Sangah as she made her way to the other girl.

"Did you find him?" Demanded the blonde girl nervously 

"No! Its like he’s hiding from us or something!" Han Sooyoung groaned once again. Sangah bit her bottom lip. 

"What about Joonghyuk? Did you see him?" 
"No! He’s also disappeared." 
Yoo Sangah sighed softly. 
"let’s go back to class, maybe they’re there.."

"maybe." 

Yoo Joonghyuk was sat behind his desk, his arms crossed. His expression was dark and his gaze held a hint of murderous intensity. 

Shit.. Where is that guy. 

Joonghyuk looked straight ahead, ignoring anyone there and just spacing out. Some students tried approaching him but each and every one of them got scared away by his glare. 

"Yoo Joonghyuk, there you are!" Shouted Han Sooyoung as she entered the classroom.

"stop yelling, Sooyoung." Scolded Sangah

Yoo Joonghyuk turned his head their way and uncrossed his arms. 
"Did you find him?" 
"No luck.." Sighed Yoo Sangah. 

Joonghyuk clicked his tongue. Then, from the door at the front of the class, Minwoo entered with his two lackeys. Minwoo let out a loud groan which attracted Sooyoung, Sangah and Joonghyuk’s eyes.

"Dude! I can’t believe how much he bled. So annoying! That shit stains." Groaned Minwoo in annoyance.

"Right? My shoes are dirty now too!" Said the first lackey

"Same." Sighed the last of the three

The three exchange students stayed in place, shocked, for a few seconds. 

"Those bastards..." Mumbled Han Sooyoung through gritted teeth.

".." Yoo Sangah stayed quiet but her previous nervousness was replaced by a stiff smile plastered across her face. 

Yoo Joonghyuk pushed his chair back to stand up.

"Ok ok— wait!— Joonghyuk wait. We’re all angry but what can we do?-" Tried speaking Han Sooyoung. 
Yoo Sangah sighed harshly. 

"She’s right. Dont get carried away, Yoo Joonghyuk." Confirmed Yoo Sangah. 

Yoo Joonghyuk’s glare didn’t soften at all but he sat back down and clicked his tongue. 

★

Fuck.. it hurts.. 

Kim Dokja slowly opened his eyes. He was still where Minwoo had beaten and abandoned him. Dokja winced when he moved his head away from the wall. He brought his trembling hand up to the back of his head which was throbbing with a sharp pain. 

When he touched the back of his head he let out a sharp gasp and winced again. He slowly pulled his hand infront of his eyes. What he saw made his body tremble more than it already was. The fingers he had used to touch his head were stained with red. 

Fuck.. my head is bleeding.

Kim Dokja patted his pockets to see if he had his phone with him. He then remembered that he had forgotten to grab it when Yoo Sangah had dragged him away from the classroom at lunch time. 

Dokja tried to get up only to fall back down with a loud groan. 

They got my leg too..? Shit.

Kim Dokja once again tried getting up, this time using the wall to help balance himself on his one (half) good leg. He shakily pushed himself to his foot. 

My face hurts.. 

Kim Dokja limped forward until he grabbed the railing of the stairs. He made his way up the steps slowly. When he made his way to the opening that lead from the stairs to the hallway he subtly looked down the corridor. 

empty.. it must be class time. 

Kim Dokja silently thanked the gods that no student would see his pathetic self limping to the infirmary. His only obstacle now was avoiding the hall monitors. 

★

Thankfully for Dokja, he hadn’t encountered any teacher or wandering students. He also managed to make his way to the infirmary without the bell for the break to ring. 

Dokja knocked on the door to the infirmary.

"Come in!" Said a voice from inside.

Dokja silently braces himself for the shock he will surely incur to the nurse when she’ll see him. Dokja opened the door and stepped inside. 

"Pardon my intrusion.." muttered the boy

"Oh, Dokja— oh dear god!" Shrieked the Nurse when she saw the small boy. She stood up in a hurry to go to Dokja’s side.

"What happened, dear?" She asked nervously 
"… I tripped down the stairs.." Lied Dokja "You know, Clumsy old me..! haha"

"..alright then.. lets get you treated." Said the woman with a sigh. The nurse then proceeded to support Dokja and guide him to the infirmary bed. 

Chapter Text

A knock sounded on the door at the front of the class, interrupting the teacher’s speech. 

"come in." Answered the teacher while looking towards the door.
The person quickly excused themselves while entering. 

"Hello, I need to collect some things for a student.." asked the person that was now obviously the school nurse.

"He had an accident and needs to go home but he isnt able to collect them himself.. He told we that this was his class for the period." 

"And that student is…?" Asked the teacher

"Oh! Kim Dokja." Responded the nurse quickly. 

From the front of the class, Minwoo clicked his tongue, rolled his eyes and looked at his friends who were snickering quietly.

That made Yoo Joonghyuk’s blood boil. 

"Is there any homework given for him?" Questioned the nurse

"ah… " the teacher leaned forward to the nurse to whisper in her ear "he doesn’t get homework, he got a special clearance."

"I see, thank you." The nurse leaned away from the teacher and walked out the door., leaving as quickly as she entered. 

The teacher quickly continued her lecture on whatever subject she was teaching, Yoo Joonghyuk couldn’t care less about it.

The man, since lunch when Dokja had disappeared, couldn’t concentrate on anything. He was simply too furious to do that. 

No matter how Dokja had been beaten in the past by Minwoo and his lackeys, he had still showed up to class or had told the teacher that he would be absent. No matter what, Joonghyuk still saw him, even for a brief second. This time, though, he was nowhere to be found and he was even leaving school.

That could just let Joonghyuk’s mind wander to how much he had been harmed by the bullies.

Yoo Joonghyuk, too mad to continue looking (glaring) at Minwoo whitout the urge to jump on him and beat him down, looked to his left. There, Dokja’s desk laid bare, the boy’s seat was empty. More importantly, he looked out the window that Dokja oh so loved to look out of. 

There really wasn’t anything special with it though, its the same window everywhere at school. It never changed. But why had Kim Dokja looked so dazed while looking out of it? There wasn’t really any logical explanation or reason. It was only a window. 

What could you do interesting with a window? 

Yoo Joonghyuk was sure Kim Dokja wouldn’t ask himself that question while looking at a window. When though he hadn’t talked with Kim Dokja often, he knew that the boy certainly wasn’t a philosopher of any kind that would ask himself such trivial questions. 

What was it then? Why did Kim Dokja look so interested in that window… did he want to open it? To have fresh air..? Probably not.. ugh. So annoying. 

Yoo Joonghyuk sighed in defeat and looked down at Dokja’s desk. Though faded, he could still see some insults on the surface. 

As he read through them, his previous mood that had calmed a bit down quickly became sour again. There were a multitude of insults of all kinds. Some repetitive.

These bullies are so uncreative.. 

Then, a certain insult caught his eye. 

'go jump won't you?'

Yoo Joonghyuk froze.

The man looked up at the window once again. 

★

Kim Dokja groaned in frustration. When the nurse had returned from grabbing his school supplies, Dokja explained information that had previously slipped his mind. 

Though he was in no condition to remain at school, he couldn’t go home either. He quickly made up and excuse of how his uncle was working away and his aunt was incredibly sick. So much that she kept vomiting over and over for thirty minutes. Kim Dokja, being a master liar, described his aunt’s ’illness’ to the nurse graphically. 

With a sigh, the nurse held her forehead. She rubbed it for a few seconds as if contemplating what to do with the boy. 

"Alright then.. But, you still cannot go back to class." Dokja sighed in relief. "You can stay here.. If you’ll be staying here doing nothing you’ll need this" She grabbed Dokja’s phone and handed it to him. "Special permission for a special patient." 

Kim Dokja smiled brightly and accepted the phone happily. He got to skip class to read on his phone? It was almost worth being half beaten to death!

The nurse sat down at her desk where a computer was.

"I’ll write you a note excusing you for the next few days." 
"thanks a lot ms." 

The woman typed on the computer silently and Dokja opened his phone. He quickly opened his browser to start reading his book. Then, a notice appeared on Dokja’s screen. The boy, thinking it was just a pop-up add of an illegal website instinctively tried clicking it away. When it didn’t work, Dokja realized it was really his phone’s doing. 

20% remaining

cancel     Low power mode

Dokja cried silent tears when he saw the announcement. He still needed his phone to know when his bus would come so he groaned and put it under the pillow of the bed. 

Damn… i think the infirmary beds are better than mine… 

Dokja, reaching the conclusion he couldn’t read on his phone or go to the library, simply decided to get some well deserved rest. He snuggled himself under the covers and drifted to sleep with a single last thought.

There are even blankets here…

★

When Dokja woke up, it was with the sound of a bell. 

"you’re up?" Questioned the nurse. 
With a yawn and a rub of his eyes Dokja responded. "What time is it?" 

"Don’t worry, theres still time until the end of class. You only slept through two periods." 

"Mh…" 

"you can go back to sleep if you want, i’ll wake you up at the end of the school day."

"No, its fine. I’ll stay awake, i don’t want to spoil my sleep tonight…" 

"oh and, Dokja I wanted to ask you this. It may come of as weird but don’t feel pressured." Dokja looked at the nurse confused and suspicious.

"Would you want me to drive you home? I know it sounds suspicious , but, i don’t want you walking too much or being seen like.. like that in public.." 

Dokja, not used to such kindness (since Persephone) stumbled on his words while trying to respond. "I, I thank you for the offer but.. i don’t want to impose on you…" 

"You wouldn’t, really, Im proposing! I really just want you to get home safely." The nurse quickly responded.

"I…" with a sigh Dokja agreed for the help. 
"then i’ll be relying on you, ms…" 

★

When the last bell rang, Yoo Joonghyuk headed straight to the infirmary, ignoring his two friends that were trying to get his attention. 

"Hey- wait you bastard!" Yelled Han Sooyoung while catching up to him.

"Yoo Joonghyuk, are you going to the infirmary?" Asked Yoo Sangah that followed them closely. 

"yes." Was their only response. 

The trio pushed their ways through the waves of exiting students and arrived at their destination quickly. Yoo Joonghyuk knocked on door of the infirmary hastily. After a few seconds, he tried again. 

"what the?! Where is the nurse?" Asked Han Sooyoung. 

A teacher that was in the corridor came up to the trio. 
"if you’re looking for the nurse, she left a bit before the bell. She had someone with her, she must’ve been busy. Are any one you hurt or sick?" 

"no, were not, we were looking for something… its fine now." Yoo Sangah replied leisurely with a smile making the teacher leave. 

"…" 

"…"

"…" 

"What do you mean he left with the nurse?!" Shouted Han Sooyoung

"Calm down, Sooyoung, they’re probably related or something" Reasured Sangah

".." Yoo Joonghyuk clicked his tongue and grabbed his phone that was in his back pocket. 

"What’re you doing?" Questioned Sangah

Yoo Joonghyuk didn’t bother answering the girl and just called someone. After a few rings the person answered.

"You live close to Kim Dokja, right?" 

"Do you know where he lives?"

"No?" Yoo Joonghyuk paused and furrowed his brows.

"Do you have his phone number?" 

".." Yoo Joonghyuk frowned and hung up the phone without saying goodbye. 

"Was that Uriel?" Asked the blonde girl.

"mhm." 
"Damn, she doesn’t have his contact?" Han Sooyoung scoffed."Thought they were close."

★

Kim Dokja thanked the nurse as she dropped him off in front of his apartment. He stayed in place and waved her car away. When he confirmed she was gone he sighed and walked to his apartment’s main door.

Thankfully she didn’t pry more into why i was all beat up. It was obvious she didn’t believe in the ‘falling down the stairs’ story.

As Kim Dokja fumbled with his keys due to his trembling hands he suddenly heard his name.

"Kim Dokja!" The said boy heard a sound of a car door slam shut and some hurried steps coming his way. He turned slightly around only to be met with Uriel’s face. 

When Dokja realized that Uriel was there, he also realized his face had been completely beaten and even though he had been patched up by the nurse, the bandages obviously showed what had happened. He quickly turned his head around so that Uriel wouldn’t see his face.

"Ah.. U,Uriel!" 
"Kim Dokja! Why did you suddenly disappear at lunch?! Where did you go!" 
"after going to the bathroom.. I,I.. I got called over by my teacher.." 

"What— Is that really it?" Asked Uriel incredulously 

"Y,Yep..!" 
"… Alright then.." Kim Dokja thought she would leave the subject alone sighed in relief and relaxed his shoulder that he had accidentally tensed. 

Then suddenly, Uriel firmly grabbed his shoulders and twisted him around. When the girl saw his face, She let out a gasp. 

"What happened to your face then?!" 

"I-.. I tripped down the stairs while going to see the teacher.." Lied Dokja, deciding to stick with the stair story.

"You’re a liar, Kim Dokja!" Yelled Uriel, looking as if she would start crying at any moment. 
"No— I-." Before Kim Dokja could continue his sentence he heard the sound of two other of the the car’s doors slam shut. 

Kim Dokja nervously looked up and at the distance only to see a Hades and Persephone making their way to them hurriedly. Right before the couple arrived, Kim Dokja panicked and looked at his feet, fidgeting with the edge of his shirt. He hid his face so that they wouldn’t see him. Kim Dokja didn’t know why he did that. He had never been embarrassed of his bruises in the past but for some reason he didn’t want them to see him like that.

"What happened why are you screaming?" Asked the woman worriedly while approaching Uriel. 
"Kim Dokja is a big liar!" Repeated the girl

"Yes, Yes, I heard that. Why is he a liar though?" 
"he said he fell down the stairs!" 
"And why is that lying?" Asked Hades
"What— do you not see—" Uriel who was previously looking at Persephone and Hades turned back to look at Dokja, only now realizing he was hiding his face. 
"His face! Look at his face!"

Persephone looked towards Kim Dokja, a troubled look on her face. 

"Dokja, could you raise your head for me?" Kim Dokja shook his head in disapproval. 
"Please Dokja?" Persisted the woman. With the plea, Kim Dokja folded and slowly lifted his head. He looked away from them, not wanting to see their expressions.

Silence quickly replaced the barrage of questions, the only sound now was the sniffles Uriel slipped out once in a while.

"…"

"..Dokja.. would you.. like to eat supper with us?" Proposed Persephone

"Wait what..?" The boy wasn’t sure what he had expected but it definitely wasn’t that.

Chapter Text

If anything had to be said about this situation, its that it is incredibly awkward . 

Kim Dokja yawned as he proceeded to the next chapter of the webnovel he was reading. The boy decided that he’d follow the nurse’s wishes and stay home for the rest of the week. He wasnt one to pass out on a free vacation under the guise of missing the subject.

Kim Dokja, the day before, completely forgot to disable his phone alarm that woke him up every day. So, as a consequence, he had been forced awake and hadn’t been able to get back to sleep so he decided to just roll with it and stay awake. 

Up till then to now he had only been reading and drinking water (with the exception of eating the cold chocolatine that was in his refrigerator from Olympus’ Ecstasy.) It really wasnt the best or most efficient thing to do while being off from school but it was what Dokja wanted to do. 

Ughhh my body hurts again…. It was getting better but now it hurts even more… I hate this damned body.

The boy groaned in pain while stretching his arms.

Maybe I should go see mom tomorrow.. that’ll save me the trouble to go during the weekdays. Plus probably less people will be visiting during the week. 

The more Kim Dokja thought it over the more it sounded like a great idea. 

He finally decided to do exactly that, he’ll visit his mom tomorrow afternoon. 

But, tomorrow is tomorrow and today is today. Thus, the next day’s worries aren’t to be fixed early. 

The boy quickly resumed his reading.

But before he could read even a line of the text, he suddenly remembered another worry that couldn’t be postponed or ignored. 

The science project. They needed to work on it outside of school. The problem was that Dokja had no way to communicate with his team outside of school. 

Kim Dokja groaned.

what the hell was i thinking?! Im so done for … Im going to fail science!

While Dokja was having a mental breakdown, he got reminded of something, something that could save him from potentially failure. 

Uriel, she was friends with Yoo Joonghyuk and his group so maybe, just maybe, she’d have their phone numbers.

He wanted to rush to Olympus’ Ecstasy right this moment but he got hit with a realization. It was only 12 o’clock and the students were still at school, probably eating their lunches right at this moment. 

Dokja sighed in disappointment. He’ll have to postpone his trip to the cafe to a bit later. 

★

After lunch break ended, Yoo Joonghyuk’s class had P.E. And as always, the boy’s locker room was bustling with loudness. The boys were laughing screaming and talking loudly. Yoo Joonghyuk, as usual abstained himself from talking to the others. 

Minwoo and his group were particularly loud and obnoxious. They kept talking about inappropriate things and used crude language. To Yoo Joonghyuk, it was deepky aggravating. 

Yoo Joonghyuk was the first one out if the changing room so he decided to just get a head start on the warm up. It was a pretty basic routine. It contained a few jumping jacks, squats and pushups. For someone as physically strong as Joonghyuk it was a breeze. 

Joonghyuk was used to working out to keep his body fit. He didn’t like how he felt sluggish if he wasn’t in good physical health. So, he had started training a while ago. It had became an habit and he had never stopped since.

The man finished his routine quickly. When he ended, there were already a majority of the students already in the gym. 

'Kim Dokja.. What I find most peculiar is that the bullying isn’t being stopped in any way.. Does no teacher know? Thats weird.. Then what about his parents?' Yoo Joonghuk pondered for a few more seconds before abandoning it.

 'Why would he get bullied though? He isn’t particularly ugly or anything. Dokja isnt annoying either, he keeps to himself more than anything…' Then Yoo Joonghyuk thought of something he had also read on Dokja’s desk.

'murder's son'

'..No. That’s highly improbable.'  Concluded the boy. 

"Daydreaming about Kim Dokja?" Asked a teasing voice belonging to Han Sooyoung. 
"Shut up." 
"Right, how could i forget? You’re such a party pooper Yoo Joonghyuk." Groaned Sooyoung which rewarded herself with a chuckle from Yoo Sangah

"If you’re that worried" started Sangah. "You can maybe ask the nurse" 

".. "

The teacher suddenly spoke up, explaining what they’ll be doing this period. It was a straightforward and easy game; dodge ball. 

The teacher quickly devided the class into two groups. 

Yoo Joonghuk and Yoo Sangah ended up on the same team and Han Sooyoung was stranded alone in the second side with Minwoo in her team. The girl silently cried when she walked towards her section. 

Sung Minwoo was still talking and laughing with his friends. The bully was talking very loudly and the whole group could hear his voice. 

"I can’t believe Kim Dokja is missing dodge ball." 
"Yeah its so fun to play with him." Added one of Minwoo’s friends 

"I like throwing the ball straight to his face really hard so that he doesn’t get eliminated."

"What??? I prefer using him as meat shield when im on the same team as him" Continued another guy from their group. 

Han Sooyoung, who was looking at the group of boys in disbelief and anger slowly turned to look at her two friends from the other side of the gym. 

Yoo Joonghyuk’s expression was hidden by his back that was facing Han Sooyoung but even then, you could feel the tension in the air surrounding him. 

He was angry and so were Sangah and Sooyoung. 

Chapter Text

Joonghyuk slowly started turning around to look towards the other team. More specifically, towards that bastard Sung Minwoo. 

The teacher whistled his whistle announcing the start of the game. He threw some balls in equal amounts to each team. 

Yoo Sangah patted Yoo Joonghyuk’s arm. 

"Joonghyuk…"

"Its only a game…" mumbled the man. 

Despite being 'only a game', Yoo Joonghyuk swiftly caught a ball that had been thrown right his way and threw it straight at one of Minwoo’s lackeys. 

The ball hit the boy in the stomach. When the ball reached the boy, a loud thud was heard and Minwoo’s lackey stumbled back slightly while groaning. 

The sound had came unexpectedly had surprised everyone in the gym so much that the game had been momentarily paused due to all the players looking shocked at the aftermath of the throw. 

When the shock subdued, the players quickly started throwing the balls towards the enemy team once again. Now, though, many more were being sent Joonghyuk’s way. 

Of course, that didn’t bother the man at all. He dodged a few and caught a few leasurely as he pleased. 

'D..did he really need to throw it that hard..?" Questioned Han Sooyoung. Unfortunately for the girl, she had been right next to the boy who had just gotten eliminated when he was hit. She swore she felt a breeze that had been produced by the ball. 

The girl silently prayed that she wouldn’t accidentally be hit by one of Yoo Joonghyuk’s throws. She was sure it would result in her getting permanent internal organ damage.

When Yoo Joonghyuk finally obtained another ball. The other team suddenly hesitated to approach the line in the middle. For the man, it really didn’t matter what they did. 

He threw the sphere towards another of Minwoo’s friends. It was the boy that had commented on how fun it was to throw at Dokja’s face during dodge ball. 

He had what was coming for him and got hit squarely in the face. The force of the ball made his whole head recoil. When it hit, the ball’s momentum was completely stopped and it dropped to the ground. 

The boy’s face flushed red in an instant. The ball had left a red bruise covering the boy’s whole face. Of course, because it was a face hit, Minwoo’s lackey wasn’t eliminated. 

"Sorry." Half-heartedly said Joonghyuk before turning around to walk back to the back of the court. 

Sangah’s face was adorned with an amused smile. It truly was funny to see the usually stoic Yoo Joonghyuk act so childishly. 

The game continued once again. When Yoo Joonghyuk gained a ball once again, he made sure to throw it at the same boy’s face once again. 

By the third time he had done it, the boy with a bright red face decided to stay hidden within the crowd of students to (possibly) avoid getting hit once again. 

Yoo Joonghyuk knew of how strong his throws were, it was pretty obvious. And for that he didn’t want to hit any other students than the ones he was hunting down. 

Thankfully, Yoo Joonghyuk wasnt only good at throwing strongly. He was good at throwing all kinds of throws. He quickly threw the ball straight at.. Han Sooyoung! Minwoo’s lackey sighed in relief but before he could celebrate any more the ball that had been going straight towards Han Sooyoung’s distressed face suddenly curved and hit the boy’s face once more.

This time, the sound was clearer than before, it resonated with a bang. The ball dropped to the floor, only to reveal the boy’s bloodied nose. 

With the repetitive hits to his face, the boy’s nose had started bleeding. 

The people who were on the same team as the boy gaped in silence at what had just happened. 

"’scuse me.." said Yoo Joonghyuk for the 4th time after hitting the boy.

The teacher quickly whisked the bloodied boy away, sat his on a bench and handed him some tissues. 

'What. The. Hell. Is. Wrong. With. Him.’ Questioned Han Sooyoung in her mind. She glared at Joonghyuk and gave him a sarcastic smile. The boy had aimed for her on purpose to make her scared. It had worked marvellously, Han Sooyoung had been writing her will down in her head.

Yoo Sangah saw the whole scene and broke out in a quick laugh. She stopped and waved towards Han Sooyoung, giving her a thumbs up. 

The game once again resumed. On the field, there was one more person Yoo Joonghyuk wanted to get before stopping to not raise the teacher’s suspicions too much. Minwoo. 

When he finally got another ball, he looked straight at Minwoo who had been staring at him, clearly frightened. 

Yoo Joonghyuk took a step towards the line and raised his arm to throw. 

But before he could finally eliminate Minwoo. A ball came out of nowhere and hit Minwoo slowly and softly. Some random person on Yoo Joonghyuk’s side had just eliminated Minwoo before Joonghyuk could. 

Minwoo, who was usually a great dodgeball player, hadn’t seen the ball coming towards him. He had been too concentrated on Yoo Joonghyuk. 

The bully grumbled and left the court, walking towards his friends who where both injured ans sitting on the bench. 

Yoo Joonghyuk’s expression soured quickly. He threw his ball straight at Han Sooyoung who was laughing about his failed attempt at eliminating Minwoo. This time, it didn’t fail and it landed on her stomach, making her groan in pain but mostly disbelief at what that damned Yoo Joonghyuk had just done. 

★

The end of the school day had come quicker than Dokja had thought. When he had looked at the time he jumped up from his position on the small couch and quickly scrambled over to his room.

Even though it was the afternoon, Dokja had completely forgotten to dress up. He couldn’t possibly go to Olympus’ Ecstasy dressed in his pajama. 

Dokja didn’t particularly care for his appearance, he knew he wasn’t handsome nor pretty but he atleast didn’t think he was ugly. 

The boy dressed up in a simple white button up shirt with a sweater and some black pants. It wasn’t anything fancy nor expensive. 

When he checked the time again, he compared it to the time that Uriel had ambushed him yesterday, he concluded it was close enough. He grabbed a coat and headed out the door.

The walk to Olympus’ Ecstasy was fairly short, a small five minutes at most. He reached the cafe quickly and sure enough, the open sign was on. 

He took a deep breath and exhaled, trying to prepare himself to what will happen when the trio spotted him. 

He entered the building trying to seem calm and relaxed. As always, the cafe was quiet and deserted. It truly surprised Dokja as to how they could continue the business without any customers. 

He make his way to the counter and as he was about to ring the small bell he suddenly feels someone crash inti his back and wrap their arms around him from behind. 

He looks down to look at the hands that were wrapped around his chest and sighs.

"Hey Uriel, how are you?" Asked Kim Dokja while turning around with a warm smile. 

"I’ve been great!!" 

"Well that’s good. Actually, Uriel, I need to ask you for a favour."

"Sure sure but wait a second. I’ll tell Persephone and Hades that you’re here!" Said Uriel, slipping away from Dokja and leaving towards the kitchen before the boy could stop her.

She returned a few minutes later with the two adults in tow and a small plate of pastries in her hands. 

Dokja had sat down at a table near the counter while waiting for Uriel. So when he saw her with a plate of food he sighed and slightly smiled fondly. 

He stayed seated and waited for the three others to join him. After the show of care towards him, Dokja had begun to think more fondly of Olympus’ Ecstasy’s trio. 

Persephone, Uriel and Hades all sat down promptly at the same table as Dokja. The food placed in the middle of the said surface. 

They all started chatting leisurely before Dokja asked Uriel what he had come there for.

"Hey, Uriel. Do you have Yoo Joonghyuk’s number?" Asked Dokja

Uriel’s expression turned to one of surprise before turning into a more mischievous and teasing smile.

"I do… may I ask why you need it?" Asked Uriel, the smirk on her face growing bigger. 

"Thank god! I need his, Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sangah’s numbers for the science project. I promised i wouldn’t be back to school to the nurse so i can’t really ask for them myself you know?" Sighed the boy. 

"mhm… Alright then.. Can you give me your number? I’ll pass it onto Yoo Joonghyuk and the rest." 

"Why won’t you just give me his—"

"Tut Tut! I also want your number you know? I still don’t have it even after you come to see me so often."

"I came here for the food—"

"shhhhh… let me be delusional…" Interrupted Uriel. 

"ok.."

The two adults that were listening to them bicker chuckled at their interactions. It was truly a heart warming scene. 

"Dokja, this is for a project, correct?" Questioned Persephone.

"Uhm yea..?"

"Since we know the other three why not come here to work on it?" 

"actually… thats a great idea.. we had no place to work on it so it really helps! Thanks alot!" 

★

Dokja layed on his bed, once again changed in his pajama. 

He had just showered and it felt heavenly. Even if the water had stung his injuries, after a whole day of doing nothing it felt great to be clean. 

As he finished another of the chapters of his webnovel he received a text message.

there were three possibilities,

1. Uriel had messaged him.

2. A scam.

3. One of the three people Uriel gave his number to texted him.

He quickly opened the notification. 

XXX XXX XXXX
- Kim Dokja.

Hello?-

Who is this?-

XXX XXX XXXX

-Yoo Joonghyuk. 

Great, Uriel gave you my number.-

So, about the science project.-

XXX XXX XXXX
-..

wow he texts dry… thought Dokja. 
and whats up with the two dots? So weird..

The Dokja received another notification he quickly pressed on.

Kim Dokja was added to the group

XXX XXX XXXX

-oh wow. Look who finally shows up.

XXX XXX XXXX

-hello Kim Dokja-ssi! How are you.

Dokja quickly guessed who the two were.

The first one was teasing and rude. 
Clearly Han Sooyoung.

The second one was kind and greeted him nicely, 
Obviously Yoo Sangah. 

Hello.-

Is this for the science project?-

XXX XXX XXXX

-you guessed right! 

XXX XXX XXXX

-yeppp

To aleviate the mental burden of remembering their numbers or manners of speech Dokja quickly renamed the two girls.

One was named 'the devil' and the other 'the angel' 

Dokja found the two nicknames perfectly befitting of the two of them. 

Just saying but, i found a place where we could work on the project.- 

The angel

-oh is that right? Where would that be?

We all know about Olympus’ Ecstasy, right?-

The devil

-well obviously. 

XXX XXX XXXX

-mhm.

Persephone told me we could work there.-

The angel

-wow what a life saver! Persephone is so kind.

XXX XXX XXXX 

-good. 

Dokja sighed at the dry text, deciding to rename the boy too.

Naturally, Jooghyuk’s nickname was ‘Scary.'

The devil

-great then! Will you be coming back to school soon Dokja??

Kim Dokja hesitated on an excuse.

Ah… no im sorry, a family emergency popped up.-

It wasnt a total lie, after all, he’d go visit his mom the next day. But in no way was it an emergency.

Scary

- come back soon. Dont miss too much material or else you’ll fail. 

right..-

The angel

-haha! 

The devil

-??? wtf ??? Yoo Joonghyuk U ok??

Dokja closed his phone and thought about how weird the interaction had just been.

Chapter Text

Dokja woke up late the next day, it was already 12 o’clock when he checked his phone for the first time. 

Thankfully, he had remembered to remove his alarm clock this time so he felt extra rested.  

There was no rush, after all. The only thing he needed to do was visit his mom, which would take 4 hours maximum. 

Kim Dokja got ready slowly and carefree. He dressed himself up, he ate a pastry from Olympus’ Ecstasy and brushed his teeth.

He slip his coat and his shoes on and quickly exited his apartment. Even though Dokja took his time getting ready, he was still quick by default so it only took him about twenty minutes to leave his place. 

Kim Dokja let out a huff when he stepped outside. He really didn’t want to go but he still felt some sort of obligation to visit his mom. 

As he was about to start walking towards the bus station when a car slowed infront of him. It startled the boy and he took a step back cautiously.

The car’s tinted window rolled down to reveal a smiling Persephone.

"why hello there, Dokja! What a coincidence." 

"P,Persephone.??" Asked Dokja incredulously. 

"Haha! Yes its me. May i ask were you’re heading? Maybe i can give you a ride?"

"Oh uh…" Something Dokja definitely didn’t want to tell Persephone was that he was going to visit his mom. His mom that was in jail. 

That would of course reveal that one, his mom was a criminal. And that two, he possibly only lived with his dad. Which, down the road, could lead to more trouble. 

So, Dokja decided to do what he often did, lie.

"Im just going for some fresh air, i need to stretch my body a bit so… yeah"

"hmmm.. alright then! I’ll be going now! I beed to drop by the supermarket for some ingredients."

"ah.. ok. Well goodbye."

"goodbye!" 

With that, Persephone rolled away. 
Kim Dokja let out a sigh of relief and finally started walking. 

when he was about halfway through, he received a text message.

Science Project. 

Scary.
-Dokja.

uhhhmm… yes..?-

Scary. 
- We want to work on the project today. 

..?-

The angel

- he asks if you’re okay with that schedule!

oh… uh yes!-

i think so..-

what time?-

Scary. 
- 5:30. 

thats perfect.-

see you guys then-

Dokja closed his phone and put it away to continue his walk. 

Fifteen minutes later, he finally arrived. The boy only had to wait for a few minutes before the bus arrived. 

On the bus, he opened his phone again, some notifications from the science group chat could be seen on his lock screen. There was only  'thats great! See you then' and a 'good'

He opened his browser and started reading. But he couldn’t even finish the first sentence when his mind drifted back to Persephone in her car. 

Something felt wrong.. It wasn’t Persephone herself or her reason for going out. But it was more the car. 

Dokja didn’t know much about cars, only a few luxury brands but something didn’t suit right with him. 

When he had stared at the car’s figure slowly rolling away, his eyes had passed over the company logo he was sure he had seen a circle split in four. 

He opened a new tab on his browser and typed the description of the logo in the search bar.

’blue and white circle split in four car’

he clicked on the image section and skimmed through a few options before finally finding the one he had seen. 

Persephone’s car was a BMW. 

Now, once again, Dokja certainly wasnt a car genius, but he knew a BMW wasnt cheap. 

Wait what… that not possible though. Isnt she just a baker? They barely even get customers. The more Dokja thought about it, the less it made sense.  That actually makes absolutely no sense. 

Who are they actually…. 

Dokja grew nervous but decided to not use a simple car as a hint they could be secret millionaires or something. It was really just ridiculous. 

So Dokja simply started reading his webnovel again.

★

"Hello, Dokja, how have you been?"

"i’ve been great." Dokja’s head hung low. The boy hoped his mother wouldn’t see or mention the obvious bruises on his face. He really didn’t want to tell her that he was getting bullied, nothing great would come out of it anyway. 

"anything new at school?"

"Science project.. New friends too.. i guess.."

"thats nice. Im glad to see you get along well with your classmates."

Yes… i get along very well with them.. 

an awkward silence settled between the pair.

"any interesting books?"

".. yes, actually, the one from last time…"

The rest of the visit time was filled with the reader rambling about his webnovel. Complaining about the characters, praising the plot, criticizing the grammar, anything that came to his mind.

★

It was already 2:30 when Dokja finally got off the bus and arrived at the bus station. Time had slipped through his fingers and had ran away faster than he could blink. 

The boy sighed as he stuffed his hands in his pockets. 

there’s still time to kill before i need to go to Olympus’ Ecstasy… I’ll just have a walk around the neighborhood…

Ans so, he did. 

Dokja made his way to his apartment. At 3 o’clock, he started walking all around his neighborhood, kicking rocks along the way, until he settled in a small park.

When he arrived, Dokja went straight for the swing set and sat down on it. He was alone in the park, the other children were all still at school. It was incredibly quiet, the usual cheerful mood of a park replaced with lonely and gloomy atmosphere.

The boy swung his legs, slowly gaining momentum on the swing. The sound of the chains clicking when Dokja swayed back and forth was the only sound present except for the soft woosh of the wind and noise the rare cars made while passing by. He’d always loved the swing. It had always been his favourite thing to do at the park. That habit dated back to even when he was a child.

✧✧✧

"Mom! Mom!" Yelled a small Dokja, running towards the swings with a bright smile on his face. The boy pushed himself up the swing’s seat with great difficulty and held the chains tightly so that he wouldn’t fall over. 
"Come push me!" 

"alright, Dokja. Settle down!" Laughed his mom as she made her way behind her son and started pushing him.

"thanks mom! When i’ll get bigger, i’ll learn to swing by myself! So then, you’ll be able to rest and watch me from a bench!"

"There’s still quite a bit some time before that, Dokja. Your legs are far too small for now." Dokja groaned at his mom’s comment.

An hour passed before Dokja’s mom, Lee Sooyoung, stopped her son’s swinging. 

"its time to go, Dokja."

"aww what? Why now!"

"its getting late, dear, the sun is setting."

Even though Dokja loved the swings, he loved his mom much more.

"alright… but! Can you read me a bedtime story later?"

"alright, fine. Tell me which one you want me to read when we get home."

The two, hand in hand, walked away from the swing set and out of the park, giggling as they joked and spoke.

✧✧✧

Dokja had stayed on that swing for two hours straight. Time passed quickly when reminiscing. It was already 5 and he needed to go to Olympus’ Ecstasy to meet with his science teammates. 

Dokja swung himself one last time, jumping off the swing’s seat mid air. Something he quickly regretted when his legs shook, threatening to let the boy fall on the cold sand. 

After recovering, the boy walked towards the cafe’s direction. He was about ten minutes away from the place so he’d atleast be 20 minutes early. 

As predicted, Dokja arrived swiftly. He entered the cafe. 

When he stepped through the door, five people turned their heads towards him in unison. 

Dokja hadn’t expected that the other three students would already be there. Sooyoung, Sangah and Yoo Joonghyuk were all sitting at a table along with Uriel. 

When Uriel saw Dokja, she quickly stood up and ran to hug him. 

"Dokja!!!!" Yelled Uriel. 

Sangah smiled and waved towards Kim Dokja and Yoo Joonghyuk crossed his arms with a scowl

Why’s this guy so mad suddenly… Thought Kim Dokja

Dokja’s legs were still a bit sore from his earlier jump so he stumbled backwards when the girl collided into him. 

"Careful, Uriel, or you might just knock him down." Said Han Sooyoung, a teasing air to her voice. 

"She’s right" Chuckled Persephone from behind the counter.

"H,hello.." Said Kim Dokja while patting Uriel’s head awkwardly. 

"Hello!!!!"

"hello, Dokja" said Yoo Sangah.

"hi." Added Joonghyuk 

"you’re late." Joked Sooyoung

"… I,I think you guys are just early…"

 
The three people still sitting exchange a look. Han Sooyoung burst put laughing, Sangah chuckled and Joonghyuk huffed. 

"of course we are!" Choked out Sooyoung in between a laugh.

"Persephone drove us here with Uriel after school." Explained Yoo Sangah

"Ohh…" makes sense…

Uriel dragged Kim Dokja to the table and sat him down on the chair next to Yoo Joonghyuk, where she had been sitting just before. 

"since we have 30 minutes before we need to start working, let’s talk about our day." Started Yoo Sangah. "Go ahead Kim Dokja, I think you probably had the more interesting day today."

"uhh… not really… i just woke up late, read books and took a walk…" 

"Wow. How uninteresting is your life?" Questionned Han Sooyoung. "You have a few days off, try enjoying life a bit would you?"

’enjoy life.’ How ironic. Thought Dokja

Yoo Joonghyuk turned towards Dokja at the mention of enjoying life. He caught a small glint of sadness on the smaller boy’s face before it returned to normal. 

"was anybody home taking care of you?" Continued Sangah. 

"uhhmm…" Dokja hesitated and looked away from the group. "No.. my parents are pretty busy working right now.."

"Is that so?" Said Persephone, making Dokja mad the rest of the group turn towards the lady. "I’ll tell Hades to pack you some lunches then." 

"oh— no… i,its fine!" Quickly tried Dokja. 

"I insist." Smiled Persephone as she disappeared into the kitchen, earning a sigh from Dokja.

"You should remove your jacket before you start sweating." Suddenly said Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"oh.. yeah.." Dokja slowly took off his jacket, leaving it hanging on his chair’s backseat. 

Seeing Dokja’s outfit, Yoo Sangah spoke 

"oh, thats right, you didn’t go to school today so you’re not in uniform!" 

"well yeah…" 

"Oh! Right!" Exclaimed Han Sooyoung, whipping her head towards Dokja. She quickly started looking him up and down, as if appraising him.

The boy was wearing black pants with a white button up and a simple beige cardigan. 

"Bland.." huffed Sooyoung while crossing her arms.

"Well, I think you look nice." Complimented Yoo Sangah

"I think so too!" Chimed in Uriel. 

Yoo Joonghyuk just let out a simple huff once again.

"How’s your family going? I hope nothing too serious happened." Questioned Yoo Sangah worriedly. 

Hearing that, Uriel clicked her tongue her looked away from the group. 

'Stupid excuse.' Thought the girl

Dokja sat there confused for a few seconds before remembering his excuse for leaving school. 

"A,Ah— uh everything is pretty fine… b,but enough about me! What did i miss at school yesterday and today..? Anything important..?"

Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sangah both looked at each other before exchanging a sly smile. 

"well…" started Sangah

"We had P.E yesterday!" Continued Han Sooyoung. "And, in fact, we played dodgeb—" 

before the black-haired girl could continue her sentence, Yoo Joonghyuk slammed his fists unto the table, causing a big bang. 

"Im going to see if they need help in the kitchen." Said the boy, leaving with a glare towards the two girls that are in his class.

"ok…" Said Dokja, watching Joonghyuk leave. "Anything else..?"

"Meh, not much." Answered Han Sooyoung, rolling her eyes. "Party pooper…" mumbled the girl under her breath. 

Chapter Text

It wasnt long before Yoo Joonghyuk came out of the kitchen again.

"The food will be out in 10 minutes." Said the boy as he sat back down next to Dokja.

"Alright!!" Celebrated Han Sooyoung. "What are we eating?"

"Dumplings."

Hearing the meal choice, Dokja lowered his head hiding a small smile. Unfortunately for him, his efforts to hide his expression were in vain.

"Are you smiling, Dokja?" Asked Yoo Sangah. "Do you like dumplings?"

When the girl said that all the attention came right back to Dokja, something the boy definitely didn’t appreciate.

Dokja looked up to meet Yoo Sangah’s gaze, trying to ignore the others’ eyes. His smile had been wiped off his face when the had questioned him.

"Ah… u-uhmm… I.. Yes…" mumbled Dokja nervously.

"I knew it!!" Practically shouted Uriel, startling Kim Dokja. "You always get the dumplings when you come here! And, when you ate with us you went straight for the dumpling plate!"

Dokja once again lowered his head, this time to hide his increasingly flushed face.

"A,Anyway…. Have you guys started researching the subject..?" Started Kim Dokja in hopes of changing the subject to something less connected to him.

"Yes, actually." Replied Yoo Sangah, taking out a notebook from her backpack that was hanging from her chair’s back.

Kim Dokja quickly skimmed through the notebook, reading the information quickly before closing it.

"Wow.. this is actually really good..! I can’t imagine how much research this took.."  Dokja looked up  from the book he had in his hands, putting it down on the table.

His teammates all looked at him with eyes full of questions and surprise. Dokja looked between the three people nervously.

What the… did i say something wrong..?

".. Did.. uhh. Did you already finish reading?" Asked Han Sooyoung incredulously.

"Y,yes..?" Nervously responded Dokja

"The four pages?" Continued the black-haired woman

"Yes..?"

Han Sooyoung’s mouth was left open in disbelief, making Dokja confused.

"Is something wrong…?"

"You’re an incredibly fast reader, Dokja!" Laughed Yoo Sangah. "I guess it goes with the name."

"Am I…?"

Dokja knew he was a somehow fast reader, he always finished reading before his folks during a reading exam. His mother had also told him the same thing when he was younger but he hadn’t thought much of it until now.

"Yeah, you are." Said Yoo Joonghyuk all of a sudden, surprising Dokja.

"oh… well thanks for the compliment .." Sheepishly thanked Dokja while rubbing the back of his neck.

"Even though its good, its not enough info to make an essay! So let’s get a move on and start looking for more information on the subject!" Declared Yoo Sangah "let’s split the tasks…"

"We’re eating soon!" Whined Han Sooyoung "can’t we start after supper?"

Yoo Sangah hesitated befote letting out a defeated sigh.

"Fine.."

"Alright!" Celebrated the girl happily before suddenly turning to Dokja again. "So… You moved here not long ago right?"

"Uhmm.. yeah..?"

"Where did you move from?" Started Han Sooyoung.

"Oh! No i didn’t move from another city.. i  just moved… a bit closer to school! My house was quite a bit far away before.." Made up Dokja on the spot.

"Do you have any siblings or does your name also aply here?" Joked the girl

"That’s right, im an only child.."

More like a lonely child . Thought Dokja which made him smile in a bittersweet manner.

Wow my humour is turning to shit really quickly..

"Wow! Your name is absolutely perfect for you then." Declared Han Sooyoung with a cackle "Your parents chose a real good one."

"……..Yeah…!"

"You live in an apartment now?" Asked Sangah curiously.

"Yes… we’re only three so.."

"That’s nice! When did you move?"

"Like.. around a week ago."

"Wow so it really was not long ago huh?" Joked Yoo Sangah.

With each question he received, the more it became easy to lie. Dokja only had to base himself off his previous responses and develop it into ‘reality’ as he went. Dokja needed to make it seem like his home conditions were at the best they could be.

Then, came a question he has been loathing to answer.

"What’s your parents’ work?"

Dokja mind blanked.

My mom’s job is being a murderer and my dad’s is being dead.

… I can’t say that! It would just destroy all my lying up till now… let’s just go with that man’s previous job and mom’s… uhhh secondary work… i guess..?

"My dad is an engineer and my mom… a writer.."

"Writer? What does she write??" Asked Sangah enthusiastically.

"Its not that popular so…" False, its immensely popular. "Like horror i guess" the horror of my childhood.

"Ooo! Thats cool!" Exclaimed Han Sooyoung. "I wanna be a writer too! Does your mom have any tips for that?"

"Uhm… i don’t really know… She doesn’t talk about it often so.."

"Bummer.. could i meet her someday?"

"Uhhhh…"

"Give the boy some space, Sooyoung." Interrupted Yoo Joonghyuk.

Then, Hades and Persephone came out the kitchen, steaming dishes stacked intricately on their arms and hands, it was a wonder the plates hadn’t fallen yet.

"Food’s ready, kids!" Enthusiastically said Persephone, placing some dishes in front of the kids.

Hades soon came next, placing some more food on the table. The man placed a plate of dumplings right infront of Dokja.

The smell of the countless meals flooded the room. The two adults quickly sat down at the big table where the all kids were. The atmosphere was lively and homely.

It made Dokja feel out of place.

Since his dad suddenly turned abusive, his home had lost all liveliness and had been somber since then. It even when he was with his aunt and uncle. Atleast when he was back home, he had his mom with him. She had always comforted him when times were tough.

In recent years, he hadn’t ate with anyone else until he had ate with Uriel and her family not too long ago so he definitely hadn’t had the chance to get used to ‘family' or 'friend' dinners.

Dokja slowly reached for his chopsticks and raised them to the bowl of dumplings infront of him.

★

After finishing to eat and clearing away the table, the four kids started working on their science project. It took them quite some time and they hadn’t even finished. Mostly due to Han Sooyoung’s joking around but after getting scolded by Sangah she started actually working. 

At 8:30pm the teens decided that they had done enough and called it a day. Kim Dokja was very thankful for that, his brain at started overheating. To his defence, keeping up with two genuises (Yoo Sangah and Yoo Joonghyuk) while a buffoon (Han Sooyoung) was annoying him was incredibly hard. 

And as it seems, it had been showing on his face. 

"Haha! You look absolutely dead, Dokja!" Cackled Han Sooyoung loudly. 

"stop teasing him!" Scolded Uriel who had decided to stay next to them while they worked.

"ughhh whatever!"

"yeah.. I think i’ll go back to my house now.. " said Kim Dokja with a yawn. He wasn’t usually that tired so early in the night but the project sure took a toll on him. 

"I’ll walk you home." Declared Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"what" gaped Kim Dokja.

Han Sooyoung, Yoo Sangah and Uriel looked at the man surprised. 

"I said, I’ll walk you home." Resaid Yoo Joonghyuk, slowly getting irritated. 

"why though.?? I’ll be fine alone" Questioned Dokja. 

"its dark, you’re tired and you’re small."

small?! What’s his problem?!

"its not like I’ll get kidnapped, I live super close!"

★

Saying no to Yoo Joonghyuk had been a totale failure. The man had completely ignored Dokja’s complaints and had accompanied him nonetheless so now they were both walking along the sidewalk awkwardly. 

"what’s your apartment number?" Asked Yoo Joonghyuk while looking around.

"… it’s number 415.."

"mhn."

The uncomfortable silence once again settled between the two. 

When the two arrived at the entrance door to the apartment complex Dokja turned towards the other man. 

"so uh… this is it… You can go now." 

"no."

"Wha—"

"I’ll accompany you to your door"

seriously?! What is his problem?!?!

"You really don’t have too I—"

"well i insist." 

Kim Dokja eventually surrendered against Yoo Joonghyuk’s insistence and let him follow. 

"Why do you want to come up anyway..?"

"To greet your parents."

"…..What." Said Dokja when he suddenly stops walking to turn around to face the other man. 

"Is that a problem?" Questioned Yoo Joonghyuk while tilting his head to the side.

"T,They’re probably not home yet… They work night shifts." Responded Dokja, turning back around to continue walking and hide his nervous demeanour.

"Even your mom? The writer?" 

"…S,She… likes working at cafes.."

It was once again quiet in the stair way, the silence prevailed for a long time. Until the duo arrived at Dokja’s door. 

"its here… you can leave now." Said Dokja while unlocking his door. Dokja pushed his door wide open absentmindedly without looking back at Yoo Joonghyuk and took a step inside. "Goodnight.."

"You live alone, don’t you?” 

Kim Dokja froze in place 

"…." He knew that he couldn’t just lie his way out of this one. Dokja knew his lies had been uncovered, he groaned. "Yeah.. how’d you know..?"

"It was pretty obvious. The inconsistency of the story you told to us about your parents and the awkward pauses you took in your sentence. No car in your designated parking spot, only one pair of slippers at the front and poor furnishing." 

"wow.. that obvious..?"

"not really, i’m just good at these type of things." 

"…." Dokja hesitated.

what next..? Ugh.. this is so bad.. I can’t believe he figured that out… 

"I’m not gonna ask how or why you ended up leaving alone. I won’t even tell anybody else. However, I can see you have some financial…difficulties."

"How’d you figure that out too..?" Hesitantly asked Kim Dokja

"Once again the poor furnishing, since I had already deducted that you lived alone, i could guess that you maybe have a part time job or something like that but I doubt that gives lots of money. "

damn. Maybe he should become a detective in the future.. he got the skills for it. 

"I can’t stand people eating premade shit."

ok damn! Its not that bad…

"so i’ll make your lunches."

Before Kim Dokja could stop himself he suddenly blurted out. "What the fuck? Why?"

"…” Yoo Joonghyuk frowned.

”uhh… i mean… why would you do that…?"

"I already explained myself. Goodnight." And with that, Yoo Joonghyuk walked away.

After the boy left, Kim Dokja was left speechless at his doorstep, it took him a few more seconds to somehow recover from the weird exchange and finally get in his appartement 

what.

in.

the.

hell.

was.

that?!

I mean.. its a free meal i didn’t have before…. But still!! What the hell goes through his head?! "I’ll make you lunch." Fuck you meannnn?! Ughhhh… so confusing.

after his mental breakdown, Kim Dokja ran up to his miniature sofa and flung himself onto it. 

i should search for a part time job.. it would give me some extra money for the month. 

Kim Dokja sighed and quickly pushed the idea aside.

meh i’ll think about it later…

Dokja grabbed his phone from his pocket and started reading once again. He needed to unwind after such a tormenting and complicated day. 

That night, Dokja managed to finish a total of 23 chapters before passing out on his couch.

That night he had a very weird dream.

In his dream, Dokja was reading a book, he wasnt sure which one it was, the words had all been jumbled up and incoherent. He had been surrounded by the same kinds of books, it had looked like some sort of book cavern. 

After a while of reading, the Dream Dokja sighed and put the book down in what seemed to be disappointment. 

"how boring, another 'and they lived happily ever after'. I hate that phrase, its so unrealistic…" 

The Dokja picked up a book from the cavern’s wall and took a look at the title. 

"Huh? This looks interesting.." 

The rest of a dream was spent in a flash, the boy showed surprise, anger, grief, happiness, sadness and numerous more expressions. It was truly a difference from the previous book where he had looked so bored. 

When the dream Dokja closed the book, he sighed with a wide smile on his face. 

"now thats a good ending."

Kim Dokja woke up with a ray of sunshine to his face. He rubbed his numb eyes awake and yawned.

I swear that book felt familiar…

Chapter Text

Sadly my mother decided to invite my whole bloodline family over to celebrate Christmas. So, I had no  time to write and no creativity. So im deeply sorry I won’t be able to upload! (This hiatus may continue to two weeks if the worse comes to worse.)

Chapter Text

Yoo Joonghyuk took in a deep breath of cold air as he exited Dokja’s apartment complex. Then, he let out an exasperated sigh and slapped his forehead using his palm.

'what the hell was I thinking. Make his food? I mean… its not that much of a bother but still… why am I so impulsive these days..?.’ 

Defeated by his own mental quarrel, Yoo Joonghyuk stuffed his hands in his pockets and walked back to Olympus’ Ecstasy. 

When he entered the cafe he sat back to the table he had been at, once again surrounded by his friends and the adults.  

"sooooo… wanna tell us about your little dat—" before Han Sooyoung could finish her sentence Uriel slapped her mouth shut. 

"about your little excursion?" Finished Uriel on behalf of the other girl.

Feeling oddly indulgent after his walk, perhaps because of the fresh air that circled to his brain, Yoo Joonghyuk decided to tell the little group about the planned lunches he’ll now be delivering to Dokja. 

"what the hell??? Why would you do that??" Exclaimed Han Sooyoung, earning herself a glare from Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"NOOOOOOOOOOO" Suddenly cried out Uriel, making the others wince from the loudness of the shout. "You planned this from the staaaart! You stole my trophy of feeding the Dokjaaa!" 

"Calm down Uriel…" reassured Persephone. "And don’t adress Dokja with a 'the' infront of his name, he isnt a pet."

While the group was bickering, Yoo Joonghyuk was plunged into his own world. He was suddenly overcome with a sense of… smugness..? Pride..? and something a bit more..

… why am i so proud..? For being able to feed Kim Dokja? That’s hilarious. Its juts a service.. its meaningless…

Before he could concentrate on his current train of thought, he heard an over exaggerated gasp of shock coming from Uriel once again. 

"Yoo Joonghyuk. You dare have the gall to smirk at me that way?! You treacherous bastard.. You don’t deserve the honour of feeding the child!"

Yoo Joonghyuk only then realized that a smirk had made its way to his lips. Why? He didn’t know.

"You do know he’s older than you, right?" Said Yoo Joonghyuk, keeping the grin of triumph on his face.

"ACK— is he?!" Shouted Uriel. 

"yes now quiet down." Scolded Han Sooyoung. "You’re causing a headache here."

Yoo Sangah took a hold of her phone and looked at the time. "Its getting late, we should get going." Declared the girl as she looked up at her fellow classmates and then at Hades.

"bummer…." Whined Sooyoung while picking her things up. 

"mhn." 

"alright." Said Hades while getting up from his chair. He looked towards the two women still sitting at the table "I’ll drive them home. You two can stay here" 

"aww man!! Already??" Complained Uriel. 

"time flies by when you have fun."told Persephone while waving the others off. 

★

It took around an hour for Hades to finally drop Yoo Joonghyuk off at his house. (Mostly due to the two other stops they had to take to drop off the others) Like Kim Dokja, Joonghyuk didn’t live in a house. Except, unlike Dokja, the other lived in something far more luxurious. 

Yoo Joonghyuk lived in a penthouse. 

The boy entered the building and took the elevator up till the top floor where he promptly got off. There was only one door on that floor, it was Yoo Joonghyuk’s house. 

The boy took out his keys and unlocked his door. A surprising and rare sight met his eyes. 

When he entered, his mother and father were both sitting oppositely to one another in the living room. They weren’t speaking not doing anything at all, they were just staring at each other. 

“Joonghyuk come here." Suddenly spoke up his mom. 

Yoo Joonghyuk dropped his bag to the floor next to two big suitcases before heading to sit on a couch that was situated between of the other two couches.

"Your school grades are adequate. Keep it up." Said yoo Joonghyuk’s dad. 

it was worded like praise but it sure didn’t sound like it. It felt more like the man had said. "Good enough. No variables are permitted do not let it drop."

then, his mom spoke. 

"Remember, son, don’t soil your reputation, keep yourself safe from any troublesome people. "

"Mhn." Was the simple response Yoo Joonghyuk gave his parents before they both got up.

"i have a business trip to busan. My plane is leaving this evening i need to go." Said Joonghyuk’s mom. 

"I have a business trip to America. My plane is leaving this evening too. Im leaving." Then said his dad aswell. 

It took barely a few minutes and both his parents were out the door. 

Yoo Joonghyuk groaned in annoyance.

"So bothersome." 

Yoo Joonghyuk knew the moment he saw his parents he’d probably go without seeing them for a few more weeks. It didn’t really bother him, he didn’t see them often anyway. They were too busy managing their business to stay still for more than thirty minutes. 

Actually, this brief talk was their first 'family' conversation in about two months. Sure some times one of the two would drop by to make sure their child hadn’t perished or something. (Yoo Joonghyuk was sure that they only did that to make sure they couldn’t be sued or worse, arrested, for child neglect.) 

Each time these talks happened, Yoo Joonghyuk was once again reminded of how much his parents are cold and unfeeling. He knew it wasn’t all that true, they still cared for his grades some what and they still showed emotions but… they felt more like robots than humans.

Yoo Joonghyuk had long gotten used to it. After many years of the same charade the boy had learned to stop depending on his parents so much and to start doing things himself. He learned how to cook, clean and study without help. 

Yoo Joonghyuk stood up from his seat and went to the kitchen. It was already quite late and he still hadn’t made his lunch for the next day. He opened his refrigerator and took a look at all the ingredients he had. Then, he went for the pantry and did the same. 

Swiftly deciding on his next meal he quickly picked the ingredients out. Yoo Joonghyuk had long crossed the cooking book threshold. Of course, he also once needed the help of a cooking book and the detailed steps but over the years he became a master at cooking and baking all sorts of things . He has long became familiar with the process and the recipes. 

After taking all the ingredients out, Yoo Joonghyuk took out a simple black apron and slipped it on himself, tying it at the back. 

He had started chopping up some vegetables when his mind drifted back to Kim Dokja.

even if i promised i wouldn’t ask how he ended up alone, I just can’t stop my curiosity.

He lives alone but he’s only 16.

Little furnishing in his apartment and its obviously a one room. He’s not 'my' kind of living alone, Dokja truly lives alone full time. 

If that’s the case then he’s probably not related to that nurse. She’s a kind woman, she wouldn’t let him live alone. 

Then… where are his parents? 

…

dead..? 

no.. that can’t be.. even if Dokja has a part time job, he couldn’t possibly afford the school fees… 

…

Orphan? 

no. Then why would he be living alone? He would be in an orphanage or adopted by an adequate family.

…

Absent parents..?

No. then why would he be so nervous talking about their work? He wouldn’t need to lie about that. 

maybe his parents are popular like mine? 

no… he wouldn’t be living like that if that was the case! 

….

then…. 

could they be.. 

infamous…?

Yoo Joonghyuk swiftly oiled the pan he would be using to cook his food absent-mindedly. 

The boy’s mind drifted back to Kim Dokja’s desk. 

'murder’s son.'

..

surely not right…?

then again… the window….

Yoo Joonghyuk took a step back in surprise when some oil particles flew onto his arm, stinging him lightly. He had completely forgotten to add his ingredients to the pan and the oil had heated quickly. 

With a groan of annoyance, Yoo Joonghyuk added the vegetables into the pan, while skillfully flipping them over. 

i shouldn’t snoop around too much. I wouldn’t like it if he did the same to me. 

but then again… a simple web search couldn’t possibly hurt. 

Yoo Joonghyuk retrieved his phone from one of his apron’s pockets. He opened his web browser and searched a simple name: Kim Dokja. 

As soon as he hit enter, his page flooded with websites, all had one thing in common, they all looked like shopping websites, books stores to be more precise. 

the hell? Yoo Joonghyuk sighed and stored his phone away. I should stop. It won’t bring any good anyway. 

by the time he looked back to his food, it was already ready and perfectly cooked. Yoo Joonghyuk stopped the heat and moved the pan to the counted island that was situated right behind him. Thankfully, that counter was pure white granite and couldn’t be burnt easily. 

The moment he put the pan containing the food on the counter, the boy also realized something else. 

isnt this too much? 

Yoo Joonghyuk, while absent-mindedly cooking, accidentally made too much food. There was atleast enough food for two people. 

..how does one end up making too much food while cooking for himself? Whatever. I cant just throw it away… 

making up his mind, Yoo Joonghyuk decided that the left overs would made a wonderful lunch he could eat at a later time. So, he grabbed a plastic container and put the food into it. 

The second portion was placed neatly into a bento box, each of the three layers containing different ingredients. 

The bottom layer was full of vegetables and  small fruits, the middle one had rice in it, only rice. And the top one had the food Yoo Joonghyuk had just prepared. 

After storing the food in the containers, Yoo Joonghyuk placed the meals into the refrigerator to keep it preserved until it was time to eat. 

I wonder what dokja wants to eat for lunch…. 

..Talking about the lunch i promised him… I’ll need to buy more ingredients at the supermarket for this..

what bother… but then again, i did bring this on myself..

Yoo Joonghyuk sighed and took off his apron, putting it back in a drawer. 

He raised his sleeve and looked at his watch that had been hidden away under his shirt. 

its getting late. I should go sleep decided the boy.

Yoo Joonghyuk had always cared for a healthy life. He ate well balanced and nutritious meals. He also rested himself so that he’d have atleast 8 hours of sleep. 

They said rest was the best medicine, Yoo Joonghyuk made sure he got plenty of it. 

Rarely had Yoo Joonghyuk ever eaten fast food. He always found it disgusting and the taste lacking. From the stupidly salty fries, to the overly flat hamburger buns. He never liked any of those. 

God forbid frozen and pre-prepared meals from convenience stores or supermarkets. He found those even more repulsive than fast food. Hell, he didn’t even consider it actual food. 

He preferred warm, home made food. It was safer. Easier to know how the food was made and who touched it. 

After a long shower of icy water, Yoo Joonghyuk dressed himself in pyjamas and climbed into his bed. 

He had a big bed, too big if you asked him. Yoo Joonghyuk always said he never needed the space, it wasnt like he slept like a starfish. If anything, the only took a fourth of the surface of the bed. 

Taking that much space made it hard for the heat to accumulate so Yoo Joonghyuk often wore big and warm pyjamas so that he wouldn’t freeze while asleep. It’d be bad if his sleep was interrupted by the cold of the night. 

Yoo Joonghyuk was grateful he could control the temperature of the house. It was practically in especially chilly weather. It might not seem like it but, Yoo Joonghyuk was described as cold blooded for both senses. 

He was, of course, cold, unfeeling and imposing towards others but, he was also very susceptible to being cold. 

Yoo Joonghyuk hated being cold so he hated his bed. 

He also hated this house. 

Yoo Joonghyuk’s house had always been empty. The emptiness made it cold and unpleasant. That’s something a remote and some heating couldn’t fix. 

Chapter Text

Scary.

-what food do you dislike.

??-

Scary.

-i need to know what you don’t eat so that i can make your lunches. 

oh! Uh.. id say tomatoes.- 

Scary.

-a vegetable? 

..yeah…-

Dokja’s peaceful days had gone by in a flash and Monday had come too quickly. 

Kim Dokja loathed mondays but even more sundays. Why? Well because after sunday there was Monday. A new hellish week to survive. On Sundays Kim Dokja always felt down in the dumps. (Actually he always felt down in the dumps but Sundays were just worst.) 

And now, Yoo Joonghyuk is asking him about school lunches. It had been a while since he had eaten lunch at school, before it had always gotten stollen or just dumped in the dumpster or a bush. 

Thinking back on it, last time I had a proper lunch at school was back when mom still made it for me… 

Dokja sighed at the old memory that just resurfaced. 

What a bad way to go to sleep…. Thought Dokja, setting his phone on the ground next to his bed.

★★★

Kim Dokja’s head thunked against the bus’ window when said vehicle stopped. 

"Ouch…" mumbled out the boy while rubbing his head where it had been hit before getting up and off the bus to head to his school. 

Kim Dokja’s unlocked his phone and checked his class schedule. The boy froze when he saw P.E on the screen. 

ughhh… well thank god I don’t need to participate!

Is what he had thought. 

But why was he now standing infront of the P.E teacher in the teacher’s office after being called over and being 'asked' if he could participate in the class. 

"I think you’ve had plenty of rest, you should be able to participate in class with all the others right?" Asked the P.E teacher.

Truthfully, Kim Dokja’s body was still a bit sore but he had no real excuse or visible injuries anymore so he couldn’t tell the teacher that he couldn’t play.

"Its just dodgeball anyway, you’ll be fine. You can go now" finished the teacher, shooing Dokja away. 

d,d,d, dodgeball?! Internally screamed Dokja as he walked through the hallways of his school. You can’t be serious!  that’s the worst! Kim Dokja mentally mourned his own death at the thought of all the balls he’d get thrown to his face. 

Wait.

I don’t have my P.E clothes. Finally remembered Kim Dokja. 

What am I supposed to do?! 

★

"So will you finally join us for phys ed or will you just leave like the other times. You’re so luckyyy you don’t even have to do P.E…" Asked Han Sooyoung that had made her way to Yoo Joonghyuk and Kim Dokja’s desk during the break between classes.

"I… I’m supposed to be joining but uhmm…" started Dokja awkwardly. 

"but what, Dokja? Anything wrong?" Questioned Yoo Sangah 

"I just don’t have my P.E clothes…" 

"ohhhhh…." Let out the two girls in unison.

"Anyone you know could lend you some clothes?" Asked Sangah.

"I dont uh… I dont know…" mumbled the boy.

"You can’t really ask hyunsung, he’s way off your height." Said Han Sooyoung. 

"What about Uriel? You’re both around the same height." Proposed Sangah.

Kim Dokja felt a bit offended by the realization that he had the same measurements as Uriel. 

"but… she’s a girl…—" 

"I’m sure she won’t mind, Dokja. If anything she’d be delighted to help." Reassured the brunette.

For the rest of the periods until lunch, Kim Dokja debated on asking for Uriel’s clothes. If anything, he was more thinking up a way to ask for her P.E outfit without it being awkward. 

Before he knew it, the bell for lunch break had rang. Still mulling over the way to ask the girl, Dokja hadn’t heard the bell.

"Dude get up or we’re leaving without you!" Said by Han Sooyoung finally snapped him out of his thoughts. 

"S,Sorry!" Excused Dokja while quickly standing up. 

"Its fine Dokja, Han Sooyoung is just impatient." Chuckled Sangah

★

"So that’s why you want my P.E clothes? Asked Uriel when Dokja explained the situation to her right when he saw her at the table, too nervous to postpone the question.

"Yeah…"

"Alright! That’s fine, I’m glad I’ll be able to help you Dokja!" Declared Uriel with a big smile and a big hug to the boy’s body.

A bit surprised by the positive reaction, Kim Dokja just stood there frozen while the girl hugged him. 

"That’s enough, he needs to eat." Suddenly spoke up Yoo Joonghyuk, pulling Uriel off of Kim Dokja so that the boy could sit down. 

When he sat down, Dokja was presented with a three layered bento box. 

"ah..- right..! Thanks a bunch…" mumbled out Dokja awkwardly. 

"mn." Replied the other boy from next to him.

Kim Dokja carefully opened the lunch box placed infront of him. An impressive sight met his eyes.

isnt this… a bit too much..?Wondered the boy when he saw the full meal. 

there’s no way I can finish this….

Kim Dokja snuck a glance at Yoo Joonghyuk from the corner of his eyes. He then looked at the other’s meal only to see it was identical to his. 

does he usually eat this much..? Wow… 

Kim Dokja grabbed chopsticks that had been placed on the table next to his food.

"luckyyyy…." Said Uriel, peering at Dokja’s lunch. "Yoo Joonghyuk never gives his food to anyone… it always looks so good but no one’s allowed to touch." Grumbled the girl, making Dokja chuckly quietly, leaving a small smile on his face. 

Dokja started by eating the rice in the middle layer, it was soft and perfectly cooked. The boy’s mind wandered back to how he cooks. It had always been a disaster. He had never been adept at cooking and had been scolded multiple times by his mother in the kitchen. 

The thought of his mother wiped his smile off his lips, replaced by a look of melancholy glistening in his eyes.

he ate a forth of the rice before moving to the bottom layer where the meat was. Before he could grab a piece of food between his chopsticks, Yoo Joonghyuk spoke up again.

"Its pork."

"ah… okay thank you"

Kim Dokja grabbed the pork and ate it in one bite, his eyes lit up with wonder at the savoury taste of the meat. The reaction not going unseen by a certain white haired woman.

"Haha, is it good, Dokja? You look like you’re quite enjoying the food." Commented Lee Seolwha. 

The comment made Dokja’s cheek’s slightly flare up in pink. The colour very visible due to his pale skin.

"Yea.. its.. its very tasty…" mumbled the boy, embarrassed.

"But still not better than Hades’s cooking right?!" Interrupted Uriel, making the table collectively sigh. 

★

"my locker’s over here!" Enthusiastically announced Uriel while dragging Kim Dokja along. 

Right as the girl said that, they both promptly arrived to her locker. She quickly unlocked it and flung the door open. Uriel started digging past her school bag and fished out her P.E bag. 

Thankfully, it was an emerald green and not pink or purple bag. If it had been, Dokja would’ve been embarrassed just bringing it around. 

"this is it!—" 

"Wow! That’s a rare sight!" Suddenly spoke someone from behind Dokja making the boy shiver in fright, it was a voice all too familiar to him. "Kim Dokja, how have you been! I was so worried about you after you disappeared for so long." Said Sung Minwoo.

Uriel, noticing Dokja’s alarmed reaction when hearing the newcomer’s voice grew anxious aswell. 

"And who might you be..?" Tried asking Uriel. 

"oh me? I’m Dokja’s dear friend, Sung Minwoo! Right, Dokja?" Asked the boy. 

"y..yeah.." Said Dokja hesitantly. 

"you know.. you’ve been skipping P.E for a while now… I sure hope you’ll join us today!" Said Minwoo while approaching Dokja and patting the boy on his shoulder. "I heard today’s dodgeball again! You know how much I love playing with you!" Snickered Minwoo while waking away from the two. 

Uriel certainly disliked that boy. Just how uneasy he made Dokja was already a red flag but how he had just worded his phrase… he didn’t say it like he loved playing dodgeball with Dokja, but like he loved playing dodgeball against Dokja. 

"l,lets grab this and head back to the others..!" Stuttered Uriel while locking her locker and handing the bag over to the other. 

"yeah…" muttered Dokja. 

Once again, Kim Dokja was being dragged around the school until the two of them reached their group. 

Jung heewon, seeing Uriel’s nervousness, jabbed Yoo Joonghyuk’s side who was talking to Hyunsung at that moment. Furrowing his brows at the jab, Joonghyuk looked to Heewon who then nodded her head in Uriel and Dokja’s direction. 

Now also seeing Uriel’s state, Yoo Joonghyuk marched up to the two who had just arrived. 

"what happened." Demanded the boy.

"nothing.." tried Dokja before being interrupted by Uriel’s question to Joonghyuk

"do you know of someone named Minwoo..?"

FUCKKK whats is wrong with her?!!?! Panicked Dokja in his mind, none of it showing on his face. Why did she tell Mr. Scary over hereee???

Frowning, Yoo Joonghyuk suddenly remembered the bully that had dodged his ball throw the week prior. 

"Why?" 

"Well we just saw him in the hallway… and…" As Uriel explained the situation to Yoo Joonghyuk, Dokja slowly shuffled away from the other two who were completely engrossed in their conversation, going unnoticed by them.

As Dokja neared the two meter mark away from Uriel, he suddenly felt a hand press down on his shoulder and someone whisper  a 'boo.' right next to his ear. The boy, not expecting the sudden contact, shrieked loudly, making the group of friends around him all turn to his direction. 

"damn dude!" Said Han Sooyoung from behind him, most probably the one who had just grabbed his shoulder. "You scream more like a girl than me!" Snickered Han Sooyoung.

Dokja, feeling humiliated for the nth time that same lunchtime, flushed red and hid his face into his hands, too embarrassed to retort against the girl. 

★

Kim Dokja nervously walked besides Yoo Joonghyuk, Yoo Sangah and Han Sooyoung down the hallway in the direction of the gym. Dokja hugged the bag close to his chest, fidgeting with one of the drawstring strap of the bag. 

right… i’ll need to change. 

Dokja opened the bag a bit, digging through the contents. Only when he grabbed what he recognized as a sweater did he sigh in relief.

Kim Dokja didn’t like wearing short sleeves or shorts. Even during summer he stayed stubborn and wore long clothes that covered most of his body. If asked, he’d say some silly excuse like he was cold but in truth it was just easier to explain the long clothes rather than the scars. 

Over the years, the boy amassed a great number of scars all over his body. Be it from the abuse his father put him through or from the intensive and harsh bullying from his classmates. Wearing long clothing also proved quite effective to softening the blows sometimes. 

Still, the scars were there and they weren’t quite pleasant. 

Arriving at the gym, Kim Dokja and Yoo Joonghyuk waved the two girls goodbye and made their way to their gender specific locker rooms. 

Dokja quickly made his way to one of the corners of the room, followed closely by Yoo Joonghyuk, opening one of the locker doors. The locker room slowly started filling itself up with more students. 

Dokja squatted down and removed his shoes. Keeping the same position, he removed his pants and quickly slipped the other pair on, avoiding anyone seeing his bruised legs. 

A snicker was heard from behind Dokja, Minwoo and his friends obviously judging and mocking Dokja’s way to change. 

That didn’t bother Dokja though, they always did it and honestly it had gotten repetitive and easily ignorable for him. 

The same couldn’t be said for Yoo Joonghyuk. The boy turned around to glare at the group that was too busy mocking the other to notice his murderous gaze. 

Joonghyuk sharply took a breath in and turned around incredulously, trying to not let his emotions get the best of him. 

The next step to Dokja’s changing was his shirt. The boy hated this part the most. To avoid getting his chest and back seen (where most of his scars were)  he needed to keep them covered. 

Dokja took out the sweater from the bag and drapped it over his shoulders, turning do that his chest faced the junction between the wall and lockers. 

Yoo Joonghyuk peeled off his normal uniform shirt as he looked at Dokja’s covered back with a raised brow. 

what is he doing..?

Dokja uncomfortably shuffled to remove his shirt, miraculously succeeding at removing it without the sweater slipping off. 

Sighing contentedly, Dokja silently celebrated his victory. 

As if jinxing himself, his cover slipped off one of his shoulders. Panicked, Kim Dokja swiftly pulled the thing over his shoulder again, hoping no one saw him. 

Hearing no reaction from anyone in the locker room, Dokja thanked god no one had seen him and quickly finished changing himself, leaving the locker room promptly. 

Unluckily for the boy, someone had seen him. 

Yoo Joonghyuk stood there, dazed and shocked, thinking about the piece of skin he had just seen. 

He knew that Dokja’s skin was pale, but wow. It was absolutely paper white. So much it almost resembled snow.

Joonghyuk also would’ve wanted to say it had been smooth and without blemishes but that wasn’t the case. 
A myriad of darkened spots were littered across the boy’s shoulder. Yoo Joonghyuk could guess it was the same with the rest of his back. 
The spots were like rocks ruining the perfect surface of freshly fallen snow. 

It was clear what they were. 

scars.

….

Yoo Joonghyuk’s eyes darkened as he slipped his shoes on, leaving the locker room in a hurry but not without shooting a dirty glare full of hatred towards Minwoo and his group. 

Chapter Text

When Yoo Joonghyuk entered the gym, he immediately spotted Kim Dokja starting his warm up and walked straight to the other’s side.

Kim Dokja’s warm up was sloppy and obviously done without putting much effort into it. All of his movements were slow and he barely lifted his limbs while doing jumping jacks.

Yoo Joonghyuk frowned. Is this why he’s so frail..?

"You should do your warm up properly." Scolded Yoo Joonghyuk as the other boy just layed on the ground instead of doing push ups. 

"Its too hard… im too weak for this!" Whined Dokja. 

"Get up, the ground is filthy." Continued Joonghyuk.

"what’re you? My mom—" quickly retorted Kim Dokja while pushing himself up with his twig arms only to stop talking when the subject of a parent came up. "You know what, never mind" sighed the boy. 

"Damn, boy. Since when are you so feisty?" Snickered Han Sooyoung while walking up to the duo with Yoo Sangah.

"I’m not—" tried defending Dokja only to realize how he had just spoken to a certain someone he had nicknamed "Scary." in his contacts. 

Slowly turning back towards Yoo Joonghyuk, Kim Dokja let out a weak sorry faced by the other’s stern face. 

A loud whistle echoed in the gym signaling the arrival of all the students. Kim Dokja stiffened at the sound of this whistle. To him, it sounded more like his call straight to the after life. 

The small group walked up to the teacher, grouping with the others. 

"alright, today’s dodge ball again." Announced the gym teacher. "Same teams as last time!" 

The class quickly split into two groups on either side of the gym. Kim Dokja, who wasn’t there last time, just stood still awkwardly until he worked up the courage to talk to the teacher about the issue. 

"um.. I… wasnt present last class.. where should should I go..?" Mumbled out the boy. 

"Hmm… go to that side." Pointed the man.

When Dokja looked to the side he was pointing at, he was met with a wide grin and a wave directed to him. He had been placed in the same team as Han Sooyoung. 

Kim Dokja gave her a looked full of annoyance as he walked to her. 

"Hey what’s with the long face?!" Asked Han Sooyoung, offended. 

"Nothing." 

"are you still mad at me for making you scream like a wuss during lunch?" Jokingly questioned the girl. "Didn’t know you were one to hold grudges that much!" Snickered the girl. 

"You wouldn’t know." Laughed Dokja while flicking his imaginary hair. 

"Woah what happened to Kim Dokja and who are you?! You’ve been acting so… so cool! Thats not the you I know." Laughed Han Sooyoung loudly while looking the boy up and down. 

"actually, I don’t know." Said Dokja, standing still awkwardly. 

"well you better keep it this way because I’m liking this part of you quite a bit."

Dokja chuckled at that statement. 

maybe I’m becoming snappy because of my nerves… 

Kim Dokja looked around the room to see on which team Minwoo was on to determine whether or not he would be a meat shield or a target. 

He soon saw that he would be a meat shield. Sung Minwoo was standing in the middle of Dokja’s side of the gym, talking and laughing with his friends. 

"wait here I got do something…" said Han Sooyoung while she approached the line separating the two teams.

"Ok…"

Han Sooyoung skipped her way to Yoo Joonghyuk who was standing at the line menacingly. 

"sooo..?" Started the girl. 

"keep Dokja away from those bastards." Suddenly snapped Yoo Joonghyuk.

"damn ok! What’re you, his protective boyf—" before the girl could finish her thought she was interrupted by Yoo Sangah giving her a smile full of threats. "Uhh… never mind… " decided the girl while walking away from the other side and making her way to Dokja. "Count on me chief!"  

While they three were having that conversation, Dokja had the misfortune of being noticed by Minwoo and his friends. Right as Sooyoung came back he was being surrounded by the bullies.

"hey Dokja! You’ve been talking to quite a bit of girls lately. Mind introducing me?" Said Minwoo, earning himself a snicker from his friends.

”uhh.. I…" stuttered Dokja as he tried backing away from the others.

Coming in swiftly, Han Sooyoung grabbed Dokja’s arm and pulled him aside. 

"Dokja, c’mon! Don’t stay huddled up next to other people, that’s the best way to get yourself eliminated first!” Said the girl as an excuse to get the boy away from the bullies.

"yeah…" mumbled Kim Dokja. 

Right when the two arrived by the outside line, the gym teacher whistled, signalling the beginning of the game. 

the two sides ran to the middle line to fight for the balls. There were a few exceptions to that. Yoo Sangah, Yoo Joonghyuk and some other kids from Dokja’s opposing team stayed at the back, perhaps too slow to go get ammunition, maybe too scared or too lazy. 

Dokja, him, stayed at the back of the court, he’d rather not get eliminated first. 

A few minutes passed by with nothing much happening, some throws hitting opponents, eliminating them. Some catches were caught, bringing back the eliminated. 

Then, Yoo Joonghyuk caught a ball. It seemed like time had stopped on the court, the people from Dokja’s side stepped back, away from the middle line.

What the fuck is happening?— thought Dokja, confused at the sudden loss of projectiles being thrown one side to another. He almost looks like Moses pushing back the sea! Joked Dokja to himself.

Then, the boy threw. 

Kim Dokja could barely see the ball before it had hit with a loud ‘bang’ and a groan from the hit person. 

The boy slowly turned his head towards the person who had just been eliminated with a slack jaw. Someone next to Minwoo was currently laying on his ass, plopped on the floor.

WHAT THE HELL?! WHAT KIND OF GUN IS THAT?????. THAT’S NOT NORMAL!1!1!!1

"next." Suddenly spoke Yoo Joonghyuk, extending his hand to Yoo Sangah, who ‘coincidentally’ held a ball.

"mhm!" Cheerfully replied the girl while handing the ball to him. 

The next shot dead was another of Minwoo’s friends who stood next to the man himself.

The person was hit right in the chest, making him stumble backwards like his predecessor. The eliminated guy got up with an embarrassed huff, walking to the sidelines next to his friend.

Once Yoo Joonghyuk ran out of amunition the game hesitantly regained its normal pace. 

"ehe. You look absolutely stunned, dude." Joked Han Sooyoung as she jabbed Dokja’s side.

"what the hell was that..?" Mumbled Dokja

"Honestly even I don’t know." Sighed the girl, crossing her arms and shaking her head. 

"Crazy— Keugh!—" Kim Dokja suddenly choked when he got pulled backward harshly. 

"Dokja! How about you give me a hand!" Said Minwoo while dragging the boy away from Han Sooyoung. 

Only when he reached the middle of the court did he finally stop dragging the boy by the back of his shirt. He spun themselves around so that Dokja was hiden behind Minwoo’s back from the other team’s sight. 

"So. The thing is I think I pissed off Mr gun shot over there. And i really don’t wanna get eliminated you know?" Laughed the boy awkwardly. "You’ll help me with that, right?" 

Dokja’s faced paled immediately when he met Minwoo’s gaze and when the bully told him exactly what he wanted, Dokja froze up in fear. 

HELL NO! Im going to throw up if im hit by that! I just can’t!!- was something he could only ever think as it never made it past his lips before Minwoo spun themselves around back around so that Dokja could be his shield. 

When Han Sooyoung saw what Minwoo had planned, she tried to get Yoo Joonghyuk to notice too. She started frantically waving to him but people from her team kept getting in her way. 

When she saw Yoo Joonghyuk finally get hold of a ball, she cursed under her breath as she tried to push herself towards Sung Minwoo and Dokja who were still talking. 

Yoo Joonghyuk aimed just as Minwoo turned around, showing his meat shield. 

Before Yoo Joonghyuk could register who was infront of Minwoo he had already let go of the ball. 

The ball quickly travelled right in front of Kim Dokja as Yoo Joonghyuk’s eyes widen in realization of what the bully had just did. 


that fucking bastard!— inward cursed Joonghyuk

Just right as the ball was about to hit. Dokja’s arm was suddenly yanked to the side by a nervously smiling Han Sooyoung. The yank caused Dokja’s body to follow with the movement, saving him from the throw. 

The ball met Minwoo in the stomach loudly, causing the boy to retch while moving his hands to his stomach. 

Kim Dokja crumbled onto Han Sooyoung who supported him by giving him a hug.

"holy shit. You were so close to dying just now" stated the girl.

"I think I saw the light." Replied the boy, still traumatized by the sight of the ball coming for him.

Han Sooyoung burst out laughing at Dokja’s joke, roping the boy in the laughter. 

The gym teacher, finally getting out of his dazed state, whistled loudly while running up to Sung Minwoo. 

"you okay there?" 

"ugh fuck…" groaned Minwoo, finally moving towards the benches to rest using the gym teacher as support. 

After the teacher came back to his original placing the game finally continued normally till the end. Surprisingly, Dokja’s team won by eliminating the rest of the enemies, even Yoo Joonghyuk who no longer seemed too interested in the game now that the trio he had shot down were eliminated.

★

"We should probably work on the science project today." Said Yoo Sangah earning herself a sigh from Han Sooyoung.

"Fine…" huffed the black haired girl

"Good call." Said Dokja. 

"Mhn."

"alright that’s set then!" Rejoiced Sangah. 

The bell signalling the start of the last class rang making the two girls return to their seats. 

The math class passed smoothly, the subject was easy to follow so Dokja had plenty of time to daydream when he finished a number in advance. 

seriously.. his throws were over the top… thought the boy while looking at Yoo Joonghyuk’s reflection on the window. 
wouldn’t suprise me that he broke some bones…  but honestly it was deserved. Smirked the boy That stupid Minwoo finally got what he had coming. 

Kim Dokja happily snickered as he thought back to how his bully had retched while holding his stomach. 

The little laugh attracted Yoo Joonghyuk’s attention to Kim Dokja. Seeing the other’s pleased expression, Joonghyuk smiled and turned his head back towards the teacher to pay attention to the lecture.

★

"What do you mean 'see you later'?" Questioned Uriel faced by Dokja’s sentence. 

"well… there’s only place for 5 in a car. So, the driver, You, Yoo Joonghyuk, Yoo Sangah and Han Sooyoung..?" Explained Kim Dokja. 

Uriel froze, only now realizing the mistake in the plan she had proposed to the science project team. 

"B,but..!" Tried Uriel. 

"aw shit right.." cursed Han Sooyoung. 

"that won’t do." Said Yoo Sangah while crossing her arms. 

"I know!" Suddenly spoke up Uriel. "We can just put you in the trunk!" 

"uhm… I don’t think that’s legal or safe.." Mumbled Kim Dokja. 

"Were not doing that." Scolded Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"URGHHHH" groaned Uriel. 

"your bus leaves way too late for you to meet with us for the project" Stated Han Sooyoung. 

"yeahh.. wait. How do you know that..?—" Glared Kim Dokja towards Sooyoung who looked away nonchalantly. 

"You could sit down on someone!" Tried proposing Uriel 

Kim Dokja turned towards her slowly with a distraught facial expression. 

Yoo Sangah and Han Sooyoung chuckled together at the absurdity of the idea.

"oh yeah? And who would he sit on? Yoo Joonghyuk?" Cackled Han Sooyoung. 

"yeah!" Said Uriel, taking the other’s joke seriously. 

"no." Spoke up Dokja. "There’s no way im doing that! That’s still illegal and unsafe!" 

Is what he said. 

but why was he now actually on the man’s lap inside Persephone’s car while all the girls laughed heartily at the situation, making Kim Dokja flush red.

Chapter Text

Kim Dokja’s body was tensed sitting on the other’s lap. Yoo Joonghyuk was strapped with the seat’s belt while he hugged Kim Dokja’s waist to hold him down. 

"pfft— c,comfortable Dokja..?" Difficulty teased Han Sooyoung between her laughing. 

"Shut up Han Sooyoung..!" Embarrassingly retorted the boy, his face bright red "If you wanna switch places then go right ahead!"  When Kim Dokja said this, Yoo Joonghyuk’s arms squeezed Kim Dokja’s waist as in reluctance to let go, the movement going unnoticed by the other. 

"oh no! I’m just fine with my ample space!" 

All the backpacks had previously been packed in the car’s trunk to make more space for the teens. Though that didn’t help Kim Dokja’s case as he was currently stuck on a certain someone’s lap.

"Its ok, Dokja, we’re only 20 minutes away from the cafe!" Reassured Persephone from the front of the vehicle.

twenty hellish minutes.. inwardly grumbled Dokja. 

The first ten minutes were spent calmly and peacefully, the car was lively as all the passengers spoke about diverse subjects. 

Then, Persephone spoke up. 

"Oh… there’s a hole in the road.." warned the lady, making Kim Dokja nervously smile trying to think to what he could hold on to. "Hold on tight!" 

As the car passed over the hole, it bounced up, making the boy’s body move up with gravity. But before Dokja could panic any further, the hold at his waist tightened considerably, unabling the other’s body to lift off of Yoo Joonghyuk.

ouch!— what the?! Fuck that’s gonna bruise. flinched the boy when he felt the touch. 

when the car landed back down, Yoo Joonghyuk mumbled out a small apology while loosening his grip.

"Its fine..! It’ll probably bruise but whatever." Reassured the other

His waist is so thin… thought Yoo Joonghyuk while slowly moving his hands up Kim Dokja’s side to feel his rib cage. While feeling the other’s bones up, Joonghyuk carefully mentally planned out the next lunches he’d bring to school.

…. is he… feeling me up…? 

… surely not. That’s absurd. Concluded Kim Dokja.

when the treacherous 10 remaining minutes finally passed, Kim Dokja hoped off Yoo joonghyuk (who let him go reluctantly)  with a pleased huff. 

"thank god im out.. my ass is so sore now.." groaned the boy. 

"never too sore for more" suddenly spoke up Han Sooyoung absentmindedly. 

Kim Dokja slowly turned towards the black haired girl menacingly. "excuse me?" Asked the boy, shocked of the other’s comment. 

"You didn’t hear anything." Nervously said the girl, trying to gloss over the comment she had just let slip out of her mouth. 

"That one was definitely not well worded." Whispered Uriel to Sooyoung’s ear. 

"don’t remind me! It just slipped!" Whispered back the other. 

"I had warned Hades that you would be coming over after school so he should have made you guys some snacks!" Said Persephone while getting out the vehicle. 

"alright!!  Then what’re we waiting for? Lets go!" Shouted Han Sooyoung while dragging Yoo Sangah by the hand. 

As soon as the small crowd came into the restaurant, the smell of warm pastries filled the air. Hades had finished making the snacks and was now placing multiple plates of food on a big table. 

"Welcome." Greeted the man, approaching the group. 

"wow.. don’t you think you went a bit overboard?" Teased the man’s wife, earning herself a pout and a kiss from hades. 

"it was for the kids so no biggie.." muttered the man as he petted Kim Dokja’s hair, leaving the boy confused. 

im not a kid… Dokja mentally reassured himself. 

The teens made their way to the table to happily stuff their mouths with food. 

"Though all the food is great and we’re thankful, it’s time to start working on the project. Thankfully for us, we’ve been efficient and worked well so we only have to write the essay." Said Yoo Sangah

"alright! We can do this team!" Cheered Han Sooyoung while taking out a pen and paper "I can write the thing while you give me what I should write." 

"ok so—"

The group finished the first version of the essay surprisingly quickly. Now, they needed to correct the grammatical errors. 

"urgh… I’m not that great at correcting… can someone else do it??" Groaned the girl.

"pass it over." Spoke up Yoo Joonghyuk. As the man corrected, he loudly pointed out all the mistakes one by one. 

"in the word 'nutrition' there isn’t two Ts one after another."

"There was no need for a comma here." 

"here you wrote 'your' instead of 'you’re'."

isnt this.. a bit humiliating..? Thought Dokja while he listened to the other correct the text. 

The boy absentmindedly picked a pastry out of a plate infront of him while looking at Yoo Joonghyuk’s stern face. He took a big bite out of it and froze Mid chew. 

t..tomato…? realized the boy as he looked at the pastry he had just picked; a small pizza like bread. 

Kim Dokja shot up from his seat, leaving the bitten pastry on the table and surprising the other people sat at his table. He covered his mouth and swiftly spotted the restroom where he dashed to immediately. 

"Dokja?" Shouted Uriel, worry filling her voice.

Yoo Joonghyuk frowned as he took the pastry dokja had just bitten in his hands to better inspect it. The man quickly spotted the bits of tomato in the thing and put it back down with a deepened frown. 

"I’ll go check on him.." said Joonghyuk. 

When he entered the bathroom, a sound of retching was heard from one of the closed stalls. 

"You good Dokja?" Questioned the man, leaning next to the stall’s door. 

"y,yeah!" Spoke up the other while flushing the toilet and unlocking the stall door. He walked to the sink’s under Joonghyuk’s studying gaze. 

Yoo Joonghyuk wanted to ask further on the reason why Kim Dokja had reacted like that to eating the pastry. But debated whether if it was a good idea to pry further and whether or not he’d learn something he’d rather not.

"Look, I can practically feel the questions in your eyes so I’ll just explain right now… I just ate a bad tomato back when i was a kid and well… you know.?" 

"mhn." 

Kim Dokja leaned down to take water in his mouth from the sink, swishing it all over inside his mouth, cleaning the taste of tomato and vomit out of it. 

"Sorry.. we can go now…" muttered the man as he walked out the restroom.

When he came back to the table both Hades and Persephone had come back and were now talking with the girls, a worried look on their faces. When they spotted Kim Dokja the two adults immediately made their way to him. 

"Are you okay now, dear?" Asked Persephone. 

"im fine.."

"Are you sure you aren’t sick?" Continued Hades, lifting his hand to press on Dokja’s forehead. 

The sudden action made Kim Dokja flinch back, tightly closing his eyes. Hades, seeing Dokja’s reaction quickly put his hand down with a small frown. 

Yoo Joonghyuk furrowed his brows at the weird exchange that had just happened infront of him. With a sigh, he pressed his own hand to the boy’s forehead. 

"He’s fine." Reassured Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"that’s good.." said Persephone, relieved of the outcome. 

"Dokja!!!!!" Shouted Uriel as she tried leaping onto the boy only to be stopped by Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"don’t push him around or he’ll barf on you." Scolded Joonghyuk.

"Right…" 

"Are you okay Dokja?" Worriedly asked Yoo Sangah. 

"Im good.."

"don’t you dare vomit on me." Warned Han Sooyoung.

"Yeah…" 

The rest of the time reserved for the project passed smoothly without any more hiccups. The group skillfully and rapidly corrected the text and read it over multiple times to make sure there weren’t any mistakes they hadn’t seen. 

Due to their good time management, they had spare time to chat before they needed to go back home. 

"Man I hate my curfew…" complained Han Sooyoung to the other teens at the table while the adults were washing dishes in the kitchen. "I’m 16 already! Its so bad having to go to sleep at 10." Groaned the girl. 

"I can stay awake till 11" said Yoo Sangah with a smile. 

"lucky…." Spoke Uriel "I also need to go to sleep at 10." 

Uriel and Han Sooyoung sighed in sync, giving eachother a look full of understanding. 

"How about you two?" Asked Yoo Sangah, turning to Kim Dokja and Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"I don’t." Said Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"Yeah but you give yourself a curfew." Perked up Sooyoung. "What kind of teenager does that?" 

"the responsible kind." Replied Yoo Joonghyuk making the black-haired girl groan again. 

"what about you?" Asked Uriel to Kim Dokja.

"I.. uhhh not I don’t.." hesitantly said Kim Dokja.

"what." Gaped Han Sooyoung. "So unfair!!" Shouted the girl as she grabbed handfuls of her hair in jealousy. 

I’d rather have a curfew though.. Thought Kim Dokja. 

✧✧✧

Kim Dokja’s light suddenly flipped open following after his door, surprising him and making him close the book he was holding in a hurry. 

"Dokja!" Scolded his mother. "You shouldn’t be awake. Close that book immediately."

Kim Dokja pouted. "But mom! Other kids of my class can go sleep so much later!" 

"well  this isnt how it works here." Continued the woman as she planted her hands on her hips. 

Kim Dokja groanned as he dropped the book he was hiding to the ground next to his bed. "Such a party pooper…" 

"don’t call me that." Scolded his mom again.

"okay.." whined the boy. 

"now go to sleep and don’t let me see you grab that book again!" 

"fine." Muttered Kim Dokja as he snuggled himself under the covers. "Love you." Mumbled the boy. 

"love you too" said the woman as she pressed a kiss to her child’s forehead. "Goodnight." 

The woman left the room, closing the lights and the door behind herself.

✧✧✧

"What do you want to eat tomorrow." Asked Yoo Joonghyuk, snapping Dokja out of his thoughts. 

"huh..?" 

"for lunch, what would you like." 

"anything is fine…" muttered Kim Dokja making the other sigh in defeat. 

Ahh…. I want to leave.. thinking about mom made me feel bad. Thought Dokja, quickly making a plan to get himself out of the cafe. 

Kim Dokja checked his phone, feigning receiving a notification. "Ahh… seems like my mom just came back home, I should probably go see her." Said the boy, standing up from his seat. 

"..I’ll accompany you." Said Yoo Joonghyuk, standing up aswell. 

Dokja, knowing that the other would insist even if he himself told him off, resigned to his fate. "Fine.. I’ll go thank Hades and Persephone before leaving though." 

After making his way to the kitchen and exchanging goodbyes with the two adults, Kim Dokja and Yoo Joonghyuk both walked out the cafe. 

"Why’d you want to leave?" Asked Joonghyuk.

Feeling still mentally exhausted from his memory, Dokja decided to not try to find an excuse and to just, for once, tell the whole truth. 

"Bad memory popped up, made me tired." Briefly statted Kim Dokja while shoving his hands in his pockets. 

"i see…" 

"mnh." 

The rest of the walk passed in comfortable silence, unlike the one from the previous week. It wasn’t awkward and uncomfortable. It felt just right. The two teens walked side by side, not one saying a word until they reached Kim Dokja’s apartment door.

"see you." Suddenly said Yoo Joonghyuk, surprising Kim Dokja who hadn’t heard those words in a while. 

"yeah… see you" mumbled the boy with a small smile on his face as he waved his… friend.. goodnight. 

He entered his apartment, closing the door behind him, the smile still lingering on his lips.

Kim Dokja took off his shoes putting them on the side while he slipped his slippers on. Then, he removed his coat, walked to his small table where he then dropped his coat on the surface. He made his way to his sofa, sitting down and grabbing his phone out to start reading.

Without unlocking the device, Kim Dokja suddenly looked up and around his apartment in a daze, as if searching for something, someone. It was only then that the smile he gained from earlier faded. 

has it always been this empty and cold here…? 

Chapter Text

“I say we celebrate our success in finishing the project by going shopping!" Declared Han Sooyoung to the other three in her class making Kim Dokja freeze in the middle of a of bite his food. 

"what???? I want to go too!" Whined Uriel, slamming her utensils on the table.

"… this is supposed to be a science project exclusive… but! I’ll make an exception for you and appoint you to honorary member due to you lending us the cafe! Though, if you want to come.. you’ll have to drive us there." Said the black-haired girl making the other squeal in joy

"Uhmm…" spoke up Dokja, attracting everyone’s attention from where he sat. "I can’t go.." 

"What?? Why not?" Asked Han Sooyoung, seemingly offended. 

"I don’t have any money to spend so…" muttered the man. 

"Whatever its fine! You can still come with us." Pushed Sooyoung. 

"no really I—" 

"Its fine, Dokja” Reassured Yoo Sangah "It’ll still be fun to hangout." 

Her gentle tone calmed Kim Dokja’s nerves as he let out a defeat sigh. "Fine…"

"alright!! Then let’s do this later tonight! One hour after we school ends, that seems like plenty time to get ready right??"

Yoo Joonghyuk gave the other a long sideways glance, watching as he ate the food he had prepared for him the day before. Thinking back to the accident of the day before, Yoo Joonghyuk felt internally grateful to himself for asking for the other’s food preferences. 

If that had happened while he ate my food, I would’ve felt indescribably guilty…

The thought of Kim Dokja vomiting after eating his food made Yoo Joonghyuk furrow  his brows and glare at Kim Dokja’s increasingly nervous face at the feeling of the other’s staring.

★

I should’ve expected this when I heard Uriel would give the ride. Cursed Kim Dokja with an increasingly flushed face when he felt Yoo Joonghyuk’s arms slip to his waist. 

Yoo Sangah and Han Sooyoung quickly entered the car when the two boys finally settled down, one chuckling and the other hysterically laughing. 

"I never thought I’d have the opportunity see this again." Said Yoo Sangah as she strapped her belt. 

"me neither!" Difficulty spoke Han Sooyoung through her choked laughter. 

"well, Dokja, you’ll be glad to know that the shopping district isn’t too far from here." Reassured Persephone while she turned the key and started the car. 

"is that so..?" Muttered the man, tensed from his current position. 

Yoo Joonghyuk suddenly leaned into the other’s back, chasing the warmth he felt Kim Dokja radiate. The action, noticed by the other boy, wasn’t pushed away nor scolded but reciprocated as Kim Dokja leaned backwards into Yoo Joonghyuk’s arms.

when was the last time I had someone to hug?  Was a somber thought the two men shared simultaneously at that moment. 

The rest of the ride, for Kim Dokja and Yoo Joonghyuk, was passed in silence as the other passengers talked cheerfully. The two boys never moved from their position, both relishing the opportunity to have a long deserved hug. 

It was only when the car stopped and Persephone telling them they had arrived that they finally (begrudgingly) separated and exited the car. 

Persephone rolled down her window and started speaking to the group. "Well, I’ll leave you guys here. Text me when you need me to pick you up!" 

The group waved the woman goodbye as she rolled away in her car. 

"alright guys!!!" Loudly started Uriel. "Where shall we start?" 

"how about we start by going in the mall?" Chuckled Yoo Sangah

"right…" pouted Uriel, embarrassed of her own foolish outburst. 

Kim Dokja awkwardly laughed while patting the blonde’s shoulder in reassurance all the while pushing her inside the mall, following the other two girls who were ahead of them. The boy continued walking, unaware of the frown he had created on Yoo Joonghyuk’s face. 

When Kim entered the building, his face lit up with wonder. To him, the sight of a mall this big wasn’t something he was accustomed to. In his infancy, he had rarely been to other places other than his home and school. Infact, Kim Dokja only remembered of one instance where he had been to a shopping mall a long long time ago..

Nope! Let’s not think of that right now… I can’t ruin the other’s fun with my own problems like back at the cafe… 

Kim Dokja, feeling resolute to keep a good mood running all throughout the trip pushed his feelings back aside and down with the rest of his memories that lay dormant, some forever locked away… 

No more bad memories. Let’s make good new memories today.

Yoo Joonghyuk watched the other boy’s dazed state until it suddenly disappeared, replaced with a determined expression. The change in the other’s demeanour changed the his own previous scowl to a small content smile. 

"alright! Now, where do we go?" Suddenly spoke up Uriel again. 

"Clothes!!!" Enthusiastically replied Han Sooyoung.

"alright girls, settle down." Scolded Yoo Sangah, immediately shutting the other two up. "We don’t want to disturb the other shoppers." 

"okayy…" muttered Han Sooyoung and Uriel. 

"Would it bother you two to accompany us or do you two want to go elsewhere?" asked Sangah, turning to the two boys

Yoo Joonghyuk leaned down and whispered into the other’s ear "if you go with them they’ll make you hold their bags." 

Scared of the idea to hold any kind of purse or shopping bag with the logo of a female fashion brand, Kim Dokja quickly told the girls that he’d go browsing elsewhere with Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"alright, suit yourselves." Said Han Sooyoung while rolling her eyes. "Bye then!" 

Kim Dokja waved the girls away as they left. When there was just him and Yoo Joonghyuk left, he turned towards the other awkwardly. 

"so uh…" started the boy "Where do you want to go..?" 

"food?" 

"sure.." 

The two boys walked side by side in silence until they reached the food court.

"What do you want to eat?" Asked Yoo Joonghyuk, turning towards the other.

"Anything you want?" Replied the boy. 

"I’m fine with anything."

"…Okay… How about some dumplings?" Enthusiastically proposed Kim Dokja, pointing to a small restaurant. 

"that’s good."

"Great!" Kim Dokja beamed, grabbing Yoo Joonghyuk’s hand and dragging him along to the waiting line. The action shocking the other who yet didn’t pull away from the sudden touch. Yoo Joonghyuk simply just let himself be dragged by the smiling teen, a small smile creeping unto his face aswell.

"Are dumplings your favourite food?" Asked Yoo Joonghyuk when both of them settled in the line.

"Ah— how’d you know?" Sheepishly asked Kim Dokja. 

"wild guess." Sarcastically replied the other. 

"Well yeah.. they are my favourite.." 

"Good to know. I’ll make you some someday." 

"Wait but can you really but dumplings in a lunch box?" Questioned Kim Dokja making the other sigh in disappointment.

"what I meant is that you could come over and I’d make some for you." 

"ohhhhhh…… Wait what?!" Suddenly spoke up the boy, shocked at the sudden invite. 

"yeah, someday." 

"Alright then.. I’ll wait for that day impatiently!" Laughed Dokja. 

seeing him laugh so openly is refreshing. Thought Yoo Joonghyuk, his thoughts not showing on his face at all. 

While they had spoken, the line had quickly shortened and it was now their turn to order. Before Kim Dokja could get a chance to speak to the cashier, Yoo Joonghyuk interrupted him. 

"8 Chicken soup dumplings please." Said the man, taking out his phone. "Oh and also water and…" Yoo Joonghyuk turned to the other. "What drink do you want?" 

On instinct, Kim Dokja quickly answered the question. "Sprite." 

"Alright." Joonghyuk turned back to the cashier. "And a Sprite, please."

"That’ll be 18121.72 won!" Replied the lady behind the counter. "Cash of card?"

"Card." 

"please go ahead!" 

"mhn." said Yoo Joonghyuk, pressing his phone to the card reader, A credit card shown on the upper of his phone. 

Kim Dokja, finally getting out of his shocked daze quickly berated the other with questions. "Hey wait— why’d you pay? You really didn’t have to I—" 

"Its fine. I felt like it." 

felt like it..? Thats it?! Kim Dokja inwardly sighed must be great to be financially comfortable.

"Go find a place to sit while I wait for the food." Said Yoo Joonghyuk, shooing away his friend.

"ok ok I’ll go!— stop pushing me—" Kim Dokja said, walking away from the other. 

With the mall being quite full the boy had some difficulty finding a seat. When he finally did, it was a two seat table. Dokja quickly sat in one of the two chairs, taking off his coat with a sigh of relief. He dug through his pockets until he found his phone.

Scary.

I found a seat infront of a  

sandwich restaurant.-

Scary.

- Alright.

After texting the Yoo Joonghyuk, Kim Dokja stared at the nickname he had given the man. After much (little) consideration, Kim Dokja quickly changed it to something more befitting; 'private chef' 

Dokja, proud with his choice if a new nickname snickered and put away his phone to wait for the other. It didn’t take long for Yoo Joonghyuk to arrive with a tray filled with the food and drinks he ordered. 

"that was quick." Said Kim Dokja, surprise filling his voice.

"yeah they were quite efficient." Stated Joonghyuk. 

The man put the tray down and handed the plate where the dumplings were to Dokja along with his drink and grabbed his own cup of water. 

"I didn’t have the time to properly thank you for the food.." Started Kim Dokja. "I owe you one.."

"Don’t worry about it." Said Yoo Joonghyuk.

Kim Dokja promptly started eating his food, a curious look on his face. When the curiosity became hard to resist, he decided to speak his mind. "You’re not eating?" 

"I don’t like eating food cooked by other people." Answered truthfully the other. 

"why not?" 

"Why settle for less quality when I could make it better and healthier?" Boldly declared Yoo Joonghyuk, no shame showing on his face. 

"Is that so." Deadpanned Kim Dokja, resuming his eating. 

★

"so… where’d you want to go now?" Asked Kim Dokja

"If you don’t have any shop ideas either we can just walk around the mall."

"sure, why not."

Yoo Joonghyuk and Kim Dokja stacked the plate and the drinks on the tray so that  Joonghyuk could grab it and carry it to the trash station, Kim Dokja following closely behind him. They quickly sort their trash into their respective bins and start walking around the mall as they had planned they would.

While walking the duo looks from shop to shop, looking at the different items on display. 

When Kim Dokja found a daiso he enthusiastically dragged Yoo Joonghyuk with him into the shop. 

Kim Dokja scrolled through the alleys, a carefree smile on his face and a certain teenager following him around. He was walking in a trinket aisle when something caught his eye. 

"hey, Yoo Joonghyuk! Look over here." Said Kim Dokja, pointing to a keychain displayed on a rack. And look exactly what Yoo Joonghyuk did. He turned his head and saw what Dokja was pointing at; a fish keychain. 

"what is it?" Asked Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"Its a sunfish!" Started Kim Dokja. "But doesn’t it look like you?" 

Yoo Joonghyuk furrowed his brows in disbelief. There’s no way I look like that. 

"I can’t seem to see the resemblance." 

"haha!" Laughed the other. "Can’t you see, you both have the exact same face right now." 

Upon examining the details of the keychain further, a frown could be seen on its little face. 

"Then if I look like that one you look like this." Said Yoo Joonghyuk, pointing to a squid shaped Keychain. 

"what?! Where the hell do you see a resemblance?" Huffed Dokja. 

"that’s exactly what im saying." Smirked Yoo Joonghyuk, crossing his arms. 

"No but I swear you both have the same face!—" Insisted the boy.

Chapter Text

The two spent some more time bickering about what keychain looked like the other only for the scuffle to end with a grumbling Kim Dokja to stomp away to another aisle, Yoo Joonghyuk left in his dust. 

Taking another look towards the squid keychain, Yoo Joonghyuk swiftly grabbed it off it’s rack and made his way to the checkout. The boy quickly bought the trinket and stuffed it in his pockets with a pleased huff before walking across the shop to try and find Kim Dokja hidden in between the different aisles.

When Yoo Joonghyuk found the boy, he was squatting down in another trinket aisle, looking at the different things on display. Joonghyuk leisurely made his way next to Kim Dokja, standing behind him. 

"where were you??" Questioned the Dokja 

"looking for you." 

"Well im done here. let’s go?" Said Kim Dokja, standing up with a huff. 

"Im done." Replied Yoo Joonghyuk, fidgeting with the squid shaped keychain in his pockets.

The two boys walked out of the shop silently. They continued walking around the mall without goal until Kim Dokja spoke up again.

"You… You’re not mad at me right..?" Asked Kim Dokja quietly. 

"Why would I be?" Frowned Joonghyuk.

"because I compared you to a fish.." mumbled the boy

"you were obviously just teasing. Don’t worry, I didn’t take it personally." Smiled Yoo Joonghyuk. 

Hearing the other’s answer, Kim Dokja’s face immediately lit up with relief. 

thank god… I thought… he looked mad… but then again, that’s his normal face…  thought Kim Dokja, looking at the other’s face now completely wiped of a smile. 

While he continued to examine Yoo Joonghyuk’s face, something suddenly caught Kim Dokja’s attention from the corner of his eye. He stopped in his tracks and turned towards the object of his attention; a white trench coat. 

… that looks like mom’s beige coat…

Seeing his friend’s dazed face staring at the jacket, Joonghyuk furrowed his brows in confusion. 

why is he…. Does he want the thing?  
Pondered the man. 

Deciding to voice his thoughts, Yoo Joonghyuk spoke up, snapping Dokja out of his dazed state. "Do you want it?"

"W,What?— no! No of course not! Why would I ?" Quickly retorted Kim Dokja. 

"Well you keep staring at it like its the most beautiful piece of clothing to exist. 

"No… its just.. my mom used to wear something like this…" mumbled Dokja.

"hm."

"besides, I couldn’t afford it even if I wanted to!" Laughed Kim Dokja awkwardly. 

"I could purchase it for you—"

"No! Ok nope! Let’s continue walking." Scolded Kim Dokja as he pushed Yoo Joonghyuk away from the shop’s window in hopes of making him stop talking about the coat.

he said that his mom used to wear…. Does she not wear it anymore or… is she not in a situation where she can wear it anymore…?

While being playfully pushed by Dokja away from the shop, Yoo Joonghyuk looked back at the boy, curiosity filling his mind. 

such a mysterious fellow… always a weird dazed look on him…. Makes me want to know more about him. Yoo Joonghyuk looked Kim Dokja up and down, just now realizing new information. These clothes…

"hey Dokja." Started Yoo Joonghyuk when the boy stopped pushing him a distance away from the shop. "You seem to really like this outfit… I’ve seen you wear it quite a bit lately."

Kim Dokja almost tripped in his legs when he heard the other’s question. "Haha… well you know.."

"Ah.— Money?" 

Kim Dokja awkwardly coughed and scratched the back of his head. "Yeah." Mumbled the boy.

"I see…. Well then. Would you mind if I bought you some clothes?" Suddenly asked Yoo Joonghyuk, shocking the other

"Yes I would mind actually!" Scolded Kim Dokja. "I don’t need new clothes, im just fine like I am. "

"…. If you let me buy you clothes I’ll… buy you something else you want."

Kim Dokja frozed in his walk. Anything? A book… wait no! He’s bribing! me with more money?

"anything? If I ask you to buy me a house would you do it?" 

"sure why not." deadpanned Yoo Joonghyuk, opening his phone. "How many stories?

"WHAT. Ok no no! Stop right there!" 

"No house?"

"Definitely no house!" 

Yoo Joonghyuk sighed disappointedly.

WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU SIGHING FOR?! Internally yelled Kim Dokja

"anything else you want?" Asked Yoo Joonghyuk.

"I..—" feeling trapped and unable to find a way out of the situation, Kim Dokja stuttered on his words. "…Book…?" Mumbled the boy, almost imperceptibly. 

"What’s that? You want a book?" 

"…yeah…" 

"thats… very lame."

"no its not!"

★

And this is how Kim Dokja is now standing  still in a clothing store while Yoo Joonghyuk scrolls through the different clothing racks. 

"Does this look good?" Asked Joonghyuk, lifting a cardigan off the its rack. 

"I—"

"alright." Concluded the man as he threw the piece of clothing into Kim Dokja’s arms where a pile of clothes was already placed before continuing his search. 

"That’s enough, Yoo Joonghyuk! I don’t need this many outfits!" 

Yoo Joonghyuk turned around with a huff (of disappointment). "Fine. Let’s go to the changing rooms." 

Kim Dokja sighed and thanked the gods for stopping Yoo Joonghyuk of rampaging the shop. 

Dokja was swept away by Yoo Joonghyuk towards the changing rooms that were thankfully mostly empty and stuffed in a stall with the clothes still in his arms. Before closing the curtain to the small room, Yoo Joonghyuk grabbed all the clothing he had handed to Kim Dokja and separated them on the different hooks on the wall. 

Yoo Joonghyuk stepped away from the clothes on the hooks and nodded in self satisfaction. 

"these are three outfits. Try them on accordingly." Said the boy to the other before shutting the curtain behind himself. 

… what the hell… cursed Kim Dokja.

 Dokja took a good look at the three outfits Yoo Joonghyuk had just came up with confused. In the three options there was a beige turtle neck and brown jeans, the other was a white button up with a navy blue cardigan and black slacks the last outfit was a black long sleeve shirt with dark red pants. 

Why did I agree to this. … 

..

not going to lie, his choices aren’t bad. 

Kim Dokja decided to start with the first outfit, the one with the beige turtle neck. He quickly removed his clothes and shoes, discarding them to a corner of the room. He then slipped the new outfit on. Surprisingly, the outfit didn’t look too bad on him, contrary to what Dokja thought would happen. 

"did you try one on?" Asked Yoo Joonghyuk from outside the stall. "If you did, show me." 

"uh yeah! I just tried the first one on just.. just give me a minute.." 

Kim Dokja took a deep breath to try to calm his nerves, he was rather embarrassed to have to leave the stall, this still was infact his second time ever going to the mall to buy clothes. 

He pushed the curtain aside and stepped out of the stall. 

"Is this.. good?" Muttered Kim Dokja

"well you tell me, are you comfortable? Is it the right size." 

"yeah! Yeah its comfy.. but.." stuttered Dokja "does it look good..?"

Yoo Joonghyuk paused as he thought over the question. Does he look good? Hm… I wouldn’t be able to tell.. his hair keeps getting in the way of his face— 

"Yoo Joonghyuk?" Asked Kim Dokja, snapping the other out of his thoughts. “Does the outfit look good?" 

ah. He was talking about the outfit.

"it does. Go try on the other ones now."

"alright alright…" grumbled Kim Dokja, going back into his changing room. 

Yoo Joonghyuk leaned against the wall behind him and infront of Kim Dokja’s door. 

what the hell was I thinking. Of course he was talking about the clothes. Joonghyuk internally groaned. 

why am I thinking this way? Unbelievable. 

…

but then again, why is his hair so long? He should get a trim on his bangs or something. Can he even see anything past his hair? 

After around twenty minutes, the two were out the shop with a big bag filled with new clothes. 

"… did you really need to buy the three outfits…?

"a deal is a deal." Huffed Yoo Joonghyuk in victory. "so. About that book you wanted." 

"ah right…" 

★

By the time the two men had finished buying the book Kim Dokja oh so wanted, it had already begun to get quite late. So after a quick consensus, Yoo Joonghyuk and Kim Dokja unanimously agreed to go back and meet up with the girls.

"I’ll text Yoo Sangah," started Kim Dokja "she seems like the most responsible out of the group." 

"mhn. Good idea." 

Hey, where are you guys? We’d be ready to leave-

It only took a few minutes before Yoo Sangah answered to his text

The angel

-We’re currently at XXX, please come join us soon! I’ll tell the girls to wrap it up.

thanks alot, Sangah- 

Kim Dokja swiftly closed his phone before turning to face the Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"they’re at XXX, they say they’ll hurry so we should too."

"alright then. "

The shop the girls were at was thankfully not that far from the two boys. Yoo Joonghyuk and Kim Dokja managed to arrive at the place rather quickly. Kim Dokja texted Yoo Sangah to tell her they had arrived. Soon after, the girl herself came to see the two boys. 

"Hey Dokja, Joonghyuk!" Greeted Sangah. "Sadly we’re still not finished over here.. the girls are trying some clothes on, follow me." 

"oh it fine! We’re not in a hurry anyway!" Replied Kim Dokja.

The two boys followed Yoo Sangah as they were asked to do, they were brought to the changing rooms where multiple benches were layed out infront of the stalls. The three sat down next to each other and started talking to pass the time. 

"Sangah!!!" Suddenly said Uriel, jumping out of her stall wearing a flowy black and gold dress. "How do I look???" 

As soon as she finished talking, Han Sooyoung stepped out of her stall aswell, wearing a white shirt with a beige cardigan. "Im done changing too! What do we think?"

"ah!— Dokja?! Yoo Joonghyuk?!  You’re here too?!" Gaped Uriel

"We just arrived." Said Joonghyuk.

"oh hey." Said Sooyoung before turning back to Sangah. "I honestly really like the fit.. its super comfortable! I think i’ll get it!" 

"that’s great but let’s be quick alright? Its getting late." Replied Yoo Sangah

Uriel quickly made her way infront of Kim Dokja with a wide, enthusiastic smile. "Do you like my dress, Dokja?" 

"Y.. You look great, Uriel, it suits you well!" Complimented the boy, smiling. 

"really?! Then I’ll get it for sure!" squealed The blonde. 

All the while the conversation was rolling, Kim Dokja was sure he could feel a certain boy’s stare pierce a hole through the side of his face. 

"well this was my last piece!" Said Uriel, walking back to her stall. "i’ll take it off and go pay!" 

"same for me!" Spoke Han Sooyoung, also slipping in her stall. 

Yoo Sangah sighed before turning back to the two boys. "Those girls… they take so long to move out a shop. Can you believe that this is only our fourth one since the beginning? Of course ill admit to also take my time shopping but these two are the epitome of slowness…"

"you know we can still hear you?" Said Uriel from inside her stall. 

"yeah so stop dissing us!" Added Han Sooyoung with a huff.

wow.. they are all so close… im so envious.. thought Kim Dokja. they’re just joking around and yet it sounds so nice… 

"I see you bought some things for yourself Joonghyuk!" Said Yoo Sangah, noticing the bag next to him. 

"hmm? Oh. No. This is Kim Dokja’s, I only bought it for him." Said  Yoo Joonghyuk right as Uriel and Han Sooyoung stepped out their changing rooms.

When the news reached the two new girls they exchanged a look of shock and one of knowing.

Chapter Text

"I..I see." Stumbled Yoo Sangah, surprise still written on her face.

"What did you buy him…?" Asked Uriel, half contained excitement on her face. 

"some clothes… and a book." Said Yoo Joonghyuk, no emotion particularly showing on his face.

Smelling something suspicious in the air, Kim Dokja looked at the two girls who kept exchanging looks filled with interest and… something more. Their interaction sent a chill down the boy’s spine and, instinctively, he spoke up. 

"Yes… it was a very kind and friendly gesture by Yoo Joonghyuk." The  emphasis on the word 'friendly' resulted in a pout by Uriel and a scoff from Sooyoung.

Kim Dokja relaxed after seeing the two other’s reaction to his words. For whatever reason he had felt the need to specify the reason for the purchase without mentioning the actual reason why Joonghyuk had bought the items for him. 

When Yoo Joonghyuk heard the other’s words and the girls’ reaction, he frowned in confusion. 

I mean. Sure. Its true. But why did he feel the need to say it? How weird. 

"alright, girls. Stop fooling around and go buy your stuff. Its getting late and I already told you we needed to hurry." Suddenly spoke Yoo Sangah. 

"Ok mom." Joked Uriel.

"yes ma’am!" Shouted Han Sooyoung, snickering as she left the changing room’s reserved space, Uriel following suit.

"We should accompany them before they cause wreckage in the shop."Said Sangah turning to the two boys.

"Good idea…"muttered Kim Dokja, standing up from the bench.

"Mhn." Agreed Yoo Joonghyuk. 

Thankfully, when the three caught up with Uriel and Han Sooyoung, nothing had been destroyed or killed. There wasn’t a single wait line at the checkout so the teens quickly bought their clothes and left the store talking loudly about trivial matters. 

Uriel had already called and told Persephone that they would be ready to leave when Yoo Sangah had received the text from Kim Dokja. So they wouldn’t have to wait too long before the woman would arrive though they would still need to wait. 

The five teens sat on one of the public cushioned benches that were near one of the exits, they enthusiastically talked about whatever crossed their minds. 

"So I heard you bought a book!" Said Han Sooyoung, talking to Kim Dokja. 

"uh… yeah." 

"can I see it? I want to know if you have good reading tastes. If not, I’ll punch you." Joked Han Sooyoung. 

"uhh.. ok..?" Stuttered Kim Dokja while grabbing a small bag and taking a book out of it. He handed it to Han Sooyoung who scrutinized it carefully. 

"uhmmm… never heard of this one before…" grumbled the girl, pouting as she flipped the book to the 4th cover, reading the words written on it. 

"Well there is thousands upon millions of books in the world. If you knew them all, I’d be flabbergasted." Said Kim Dokja, a hint of mockery floating in his voice. 

"you!—" embarrassment flared in Han Sooyoung’s voice as she suddenly stood up  wanting to body slam Kim Dokja into the floor. 

"Woah ok!— calm down— it was just a joke!" Tried defending Kim Dokja while laughing. 

Seeing Sooyoung’s sudden reaction, Yoo Joonghyuk glared at her, ready to intervene if she actually tried anything. 

Han Sooyoung huffed in annoyance when she saw Joonghyuk’s threatening gaze. "Don’t get cocky with me boy!" Joked Han Sooyoung as she handed the book back to Dokja. 

what breed of guard dog is that…? Joked Han Sooyoung as she looked over to Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"anyway by the description, it looks like a pretty good book… Count yourself lucky, you won’t get punched today!" Grinned the girl, handing the book back to Kim Dokja. 

"hooray..?" Celebrated the other halfheartedly. 

★

"So, have you kids bought anything nice?" Asked Persephone as she put the teens’ shopping bags into the trunk of the car, the five kids standing behind her as they waited for her to complete her task. 

"I bought a nice dress and some cool pants!" Started Uriel enthusiastically. 

"a bought like two shirts and a cardigan." Said Han Sooyoung. 

"I bought new shoes and a hair clip." Spoke Yoo Sangah. 

"I bought clothes and a book for Dokja." Plainly said Yoo Joonghyuk, managing a laugh out of the woman packing the bags.

"how grand. I hope you all had fun!" Smiled Persephone as she closed the trunk and walked to the driver’s seat. 

… ahhh fuck. Im going to have to do it again won’t I…? Internally groaned Kim Dokja. 

And do it again he did. 

Kim Dokja sat stiffly in Yoo Joonghyuk’s lap, once again making the car’s occupant giggle about his circumstances. 

"Don’t you guys think the joke has passed?" Suddenly Said Dokja. "I mean. C’mon man! This is like the 4th time we play the same charade." 

Between her laughs, Han Sooyoung managed to squeeze out some words. "I can assure you that— pftt… as long as I see this spectacle… hah— I will never stop mocking you two… keke…"

"How reassuring." Deadpanned Kim Dokja.

Ignoring the cacophony of words happening around him, Yoo Joonghyuk once again leaned into Dokja’s back, hugging him from behind. The action, once again, appreciated by Kim Dokja.

The drive to the different teens’ houses was a simple plan, Han Sooyoung first, Sangah second then Yoo Joonghyuk and after they had all been sent home, Uriel, Persephone and Dokja would go back to their street.  

When Yoo Joonghyuk heard he wouldn’t be able to walk Kim Dokja home he frowned but didn’t speak his unappreciative point of view. 

Sangah and Sooyoung not being far from eachother made their drops easy, almost knocking two birds with one stone. The drive to Yoo Joonghyuk’s home was though a bit longer. 

Now that the two girls were gone, Kim Dokja could breathe and have his own seat, an empty space between him and Yoo Joonghyuk (finally). Now that chatterbox one (Han Sooyoung) was gone with chatterbox two (Yoo Sangah) the last chatterbox (Uriel) was talking a bit less. But, nonetheless, still talking a great amount. 

"Hey Dokja!! What’re you doing this weekend???" Asked Uriel

"already talking about weekend on a Tuesday? Alright…" sighed Kim Dokja. 

other than visiting my mom, Nothing else really…. 

"I’ll go visit some family…. Don’t know when though…" skillfully lied the boy. 

"aww so you’re busy…" frowned Uriel "what about you Joonghyuk!" Quickly recovered the girl.

"Cooking." 

and making a detailed meal plan for this stupid, under eating, boy over there. Thought Joonghyuk, gazing over to Kim Dokja.

"that’s it???" Groaned Uriel, "you are soooo boring sometimes…" 

"yeah well I need food. Plus it isnt like I don’t do other things in a day." Retorted Yoo Joonghyuk, crossing his arms.

"Do you cook your own thing too, Dokja? Or do your parents make you food?" Questioned Uriel. 

UHHHHH….  Neither. 

"I can’t particularly cook so well so…" Awkwardly laughed Kim Dokja, earning himself a nasty look from Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"Neither can I!" Laughed Uriel aswell. 

"Incompetent." Scolded Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"okay damn.." grumbled Kim Dokja. 

"You two need to learn how to cook yourselves. Uriel, Hades and Persephone won’t be around your whole life."

"well you’ll be! I can ask you to cook for me like you cook for Dokja!" Joked Uriel. 

"No way." Said Yoo Joonghyuk, immediately shooting down Uriel’s idea, making her pout.

Their car was starting to near, Yoo Joonghyuk’s house. It being clear due to the growing height of the buildings passing in the vehicle’s windows. It only took a few more minutes of the youths’ bickering for them to arrive at their destination. 

"Yoo Joonghyuk, we’ve arrived at your house. You’re free to go now." Spoke Persephone from behind the wheel.

"aww man…" groaned Uriel. 

"Goodbye." Huffed Joonghyuk to the two woman at the front of the car before turning to Kim Dokja. "See you later." 

With that, Yoo Joonghyuk closed the car’s door and entered the entrance of the high rise his house was situated in. 

When Joonghyuk left, a silence filled the car until Uriel shouted in indignation; "why did you get a special ‘goodbye’?!" 

"C’mon, Uriel, it wasn’t to me, it was to all of us." Tried Dokja.

"no, it was definitely directed straight towards you!" Complained Uriel. "He looked at you before saying it! He turned to look at you to say it!" 

"That’s not true!" Retorted the boy, making Persephone chuckle and Uriel huff in complaint. 

★

Yoo Joonghyuk sighed as he flopped onto his sofa, his social battery completely exhausted for the day. Sure, he went to school with the others and sometimes saw them for the science project but shopping is completely different. The difference? Well school work is easier than socializing. 

Yoo Joonghyuk, despite his popularity everywhere and well in everything, was actually pretty socially awkward. He knew how to read the mood so that wasn’t a problem. For Yoo Joonghyuk, though, it was talking that was harder. He knew he didn’t exactly have the sweetest face and he often scared people and worse; children away but that wasn’t (always) his intentions.

So, when he did manage to make friends who didn’t judge his mean mug, he deeply cherished them. Nonetheless how he looked bored or mad at them, in truth, he really just appreciated their kindness and friendship. 

Yoo Joonghyuk dug into his pocket, grabbing the squid shaped keychain that he had impulsively bought in the daiso. He scrutinized the little trinket, bringing it close to his face. 

It really does look like him…. Smirked the man. …I wonder what colour are his eyes… thinking back to it, I’ve pretty much never seen the upper half of his face. Its so difficult to make a mental image of him  because of that… 

Repeatedly, Yoo Joonghyuk tried to think back to the way Kim Dokja looked, but everytime his imagination was blocked by his hair, like an insurmountable wall blocking the full view of Dokja’s face.

An annoying wall at that… Thought Joonghyuk, clicking his tongue on the roof of his mouth, a clear sound ringing in the boy’s empty appartement. 

The noise slapped him out of his thoughts as he groaned and got up from his couch. He went to his kitchen and took out a piece of paper and pen. He opened the doors to his fridge and pantry, jotting down things on the paper. After a while he closed the doors and put his shoes and coat on, exiting his apartment.

might as well go buy some ingredients. 

★

Yoo Joonghyuk pushed his cart through the fruit aisle, stopping infront of apples. He inspected each apple as he put them in a plastic bag to group the fruit together so one doesn’t roll off.

Behind him, where he couldn’t hear, two women; employees whispered between each other.

"Wow its that boy again!" Said one

"He’s so diligent, he buys groceries atleast every week, if only my children were so mature..." sighed the other. 

"His parents must be so proud and lucky to have such a good son, buying groceries for them!" 

"that’s right! He’s so trustworthy, even his parents think so! Did you see, he actually buys the groceries with a credit card? His parents give him their credit card so easily, I would never give my little boy my card, he’d buy whatever!" Sighed the second woman

"I hear you, my girl would go buy so much snacks!" Frowned the first. "And look at him! He doesn’t even buy any candy or unhealthy food! He strictly buys what’s on that list he is holding!" 

"Aiyah… such a good kid! He listens so well to his parents.." 

"thinking of how he is now, as an adult, I bet he will make a wonderful and responsible father! I can already see how good and nice his children will be! And with that face of his, I bet they’ll look just as good as him!"

The two woman sighed, thinking back to their own unruly children and to the future children of that boy who comes to their supermarket weekly. 

Chapter Text

"I… I went shopping with my.. friends.. on Tuesday." Said Kim Dokja to his mother on the other side of the glass pane. 

Lee Sookyung smiled softly at the mention of her son’s new friends though the action remained unseen due to the other’s lowered head. "that’s great Dokja." The woman hesitated a moment before deciding to not ask what she wanted to ask. 

Sadly, I won’t ever be able to meet his dear friends who bring such a calm air to my son. Thought the woman, the somber thought stealing her smile away from her face. 

"any new books you want to tell me about?" Asked Sookyung. 

"well one of my friends bought me a book when we went shopping… He also bought me the outfit im wearing… he’s really nice.. anyway, it was really good though I finished it quite quickly." Replied Kim Dokja. 

"I see…. " in a last ditch attempt to make their conversation more interesting, the woman asked about her son’s webnovels.

Kim Dokja lifted his head up though he still didn’t look towards his mother, perhaps a hit embarrassed. He had a bitter smile adorning his face, a truly rare sight that shocked Sookyung.

Is his webnovel that great…?

"Sadly I haven’t had time to read my webnovels lately… " started Dokja, shocking his mother even more. "With my new book and some pests pestering me everyday, I haven’t had the chance nor free time." 

he… hasn’t been reading the novels…? But.. aren’t those his life line..?The woman pondered for a moment, the answer coming to her in a flash. oh. Oh. Its those friends of his. They replaced the novels. 

once again, a smile made its way to her face, lighting it in a wonderful manner. 

For once, the guards standing near the family were at ease, the tension of the past weeks nowhere to be seen. 

The two leisurely continued talking about Kim Dokja’s friends, the glass pane between them and their environment fading away past them. Their surroundings replaced by good times of young innocent days where Sookyung and Dokja had time alone. When his father was working and after his own school and his mother’s work hours. That was where they were, in a peaceful place, a safe one. 

Though these times didn’t last, the guards interrupted their conversation, snapping the two of them out of their space. A small mumbled ‘Goodbye’ being the only word she heard when she saw Kim Dokja’s leave, the words 'see you next time' never leaving past her lips.

★

Sookyung was quickly brought back to her cell where her cellmates were waiting for her. Despite being in prison, rumors of why she had came to the place had been widely spread. Naturally she was respected among her peers. Due to that, she has amassed a great amount of friends.  

As she got into her cell, a woman came up to her, a smile on her face. 

"You look happy today, Sookyung. I believe the conversation with your son was fruitful?" 

"indeed it was… he looked very happy. He even talked about his friends to me. They went shopping this week." Replied Sookyung, a smile on her face. 

"Damn thats nice! So different from your previous talks."

"yeah.." sighed Sookyung. "what about you and your daughter? Anything nice?"

"same old same old… she’s been taking dance lessons more often nowadays! She really likes it."

"that’s amazing, Cho Youngran, I hope your daughter follows her dreams." 

the two women settled down in a corner of their room, where they sat waiting for their roommates to come back from their visits.

The next person to arrive was a smiling (but slow), grandmother. When she was spotted by the two women, they waved her way to get her to come their way. 

"Hey Lee Boksoon! How are your grandchildren?" Asked Youngran. 

"They’ve been doing just great! The two of them are passing their exams with flying colours." Enthusiastically replied the old woman. 

"that’s nice." Complimented Sookyung. 

★

For once, Kim Dokja left his mother’s prison with a smile on his face. He got on the bus and took out his phone only to be met with a notification old of a few minutes. 

Private chef. : are you free sometime this….

surprised by the notification from Yoo Joonghyuk, Kim Dokja opened it and read the full message. 

Private chef. 

Private chef.
-are you free sometime this weekend?

I would be free from in and hour to Sunday, so yeah, I have nothing planned… why?-

the answer from Joonghyuk’s side was immediate, as if the man had been waiting for a response. 

Private chef. 

- you’re stupid. I’ll teach you how to cook. 

woah there buckaroo! Don’t you think that’s a bit mean?-

Completely ignoring the other’s comment, Yoo Joonghyuk immediately continued typing. 

Private chef. 
-I can call you a cab if you want. 

wait wait.-

You actually mean this? Im going to your house? -

Private Chef

-yes? I doubt you have the space or ingredients to cook a meal.

Its fine, I don’t really need to learn how to cook.- 

Private chef.
-… 

with only the three dots, Kim Dokja could practically feel Yoo Joonghyuk’s all too familiar glare and judgmental stare. Just by imagining it, Kim Dokja felt a drip of cold sweat run down his back. 

I’ll be ready in 1h..-

Private chef.
-that’s what I thought.
-I’ll send you a cab.

its fine I’ll take the bus or subway.-

Private chef.

-… I’m sending you a cab. 

Alright fine! Damn…- 

Kim Dokja huffed in annoyance at the other’s persistence and determination on getting him shipped to his house in a cab. 

now all he needed to do was get home and wait for that damned taxi to arrive…

★

Kim Dokja opened his phone to look at the adress Yoo Joonghyuk had sent him, after getting on the elevator, he pushed the button to the mentioned floor and waited for the engine to go up. 

As he waited, Kim Dokja looked around the elevator, a nervous expression plastered on his face. 

god… this place looks so expensive… I feel so out of place… what if I mess up something? Or worse… break something! Oh god.. I can’t possibly do that! How am I supposed to act around Joonghyuk? I’ve never been to someone else’s home! Wait.. what about his parents?!

As Kim Dokja continued overthinking his situation, he heard the ding of the elevator signaling their arrival to Yoo Joonghyuk’s floor. He got off the elevator only to be met with a single door which, obviously, was Yoo Joonghyuk’s.

He nervously brought his hand to the door and knocked soundly to be sure the other heard his arrival. It only took a few moments before the door was opened, the two teens coming face to face. 

"hello, Dokja. Come in." Greeted Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"ah.. thank you for inviting me!" Sheepishly replied the boy. 

Stepping out of the entrance, Yoo Joonghyuk stood next to Kim Dokja as he stepped in and took off his shoes (seeing Yoo Joonghyuk’s slippers.)

"here," said Joonghyuk, passing a pair of slippers to Dokja. "Use these."

"thank you…" looking at the shoes in the entrance, Kim Dokja asked; "your parents aren’t home?" 

Feeling like Yoo Joonghyuk owed a secret to Dokja due to uncovering that he lived alone, he decided to also share that he did aswell. "No, hardly ever here, actually. "

Suddenly hit either the other’s shocking comment, Kim Dokja stilled in his walk out of the entrance. With no idea what to say Kim Dokja dumbly fumbled on his words. "Ah… okay.." 

Seeing the other’s reaction, Yoo Joonghyuk grinned and chuckled. "Don’t worry about it. You can put your bag and coat on the sofa over there." Pointed the man to the sofa at the left of the entrance. 

After dropping his things, Kim Dokja walked over to the kitchen where he saw Yoo Joonghyuk putting on an apron. The scene making Dokja stiffle a laugh. 

"laugh as you want, you’ll also need to wear an apron. Actually, bought one just for you." Said Yoo Joonghyuk while tossing a white apron to Kim Dokja.

"great…" Dokja clumsily put on his apron, the action foreign to him. 

"alright, before anything else, you should always wash your hands before cooking. Then, you clean your work surface. We want a germ-free environment." Started Joonghyuk. 

"uhhh.. alright.." 

The boy wearing the black apron started washing his hands first, thoroughly cleaning and scrubbing them to rid them of all germs. 

Then came the other’s turn while Joonghyuk dried his hands using a towel and observed him. Contrary to Yoo Joonghyuk, Kim Dokja quickly rinced his hands and used barely any soap. When he turned the water off and turned to Joonghyuk to grab the towel he was instead met with a look of disappointment. 

"no. Do it again." 

"wait what?— but why! I washed my hands!" 

"no you didn’t. Do it again, do it the right way."

"How though!" Complained Dokja.

Frowning, Yoo Joonghyuk walked beside the boy and grabbed his hands, bringing them to the running water he had just turned on. 

"Here, put soap.. yeah like that. Now scrub. Under your nails too! Don’t you know how dirty it is there?"

"ok ok!— stop..— step away I can do it!" Whined Kim Dokja, his ears flushed by the close contact with the other. (The redness not missed by Yoo Joonghyuk has he backed away from the boy.)  

"Scrub well." repeated Joonghyuk. 

"yeah yeah.. I get it…" huffed Kim Dokja while he washed his hands. 

After only a few more minutes of incessant scrubbing did Yoo Joonghyuk finally give his approval for Kim Dokja to stop. The black aproned man gave the hand towel to the other so he could wipe his hands. 

"alright… what next?" Asked Dokja.

"I already said we needed to clean the space or did you not hear me?" Questioned Joonghyuk.

"I— I just forgot…" embarrassingly said Dokja. 

"mhm.." Sarcastically replied Yoo Joonghyuk as he grabbed cleaning supplies from the cabinet beneath his sink. He handed a bottle of cleaning spray to Dokja. "Spray the island with it, I’ll wipe it clean." 

"okay.." replied Kim Dokja as he did what was instructed. 

After Yoo Joonghyuk cleaned the counter top, he started getting ingredients from the different places in his kitchen not asking for the other’s help (concluding Kim Dokja would be ignorant as to where the ingredients were.) 

Kim Dokja stood next to the island as he looked Yoo Joonghyuk pick the ingredients, trying to figure out what dish they would be making. Sighing in defeat, Kim Dokja decided to simply ask the cook. 

"so… uhh.. what’re we making today..?" 

"Dumplings."

Hearing the word ‘dumplings’ made Kim Dokja immediately interested. "Dumplings?" 

"Dumplings." Flatly repeated Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"I love dumplings…"

"I know." Smirked Yoo Joonghyuk. 

★

It took them multiple hours of work to make the dumplings (mostly because of Kim Dokja’s inability to properly prepare the food.). But, the two of them succeeded nonetheless. 

The two boys stood, watching their completed work. 3/4ths of the dumplings were expertly folded, looking appetizing. The other 1/4 were clumsily wrapped, clearly made by a beginner. 

"I think I did a pretty good job for my first time!" Concluded Kim Dokja, a smile on his face. 

"… I did better my first time." Said Yoo Joonghyuk, shooting the other’s proudness down immediately. 

Kim Dokja frowned as he glared at the other. 

There’s no way he did any better than me his first time— but when Kim Dokja’s eyes landed on the other’s face, his thoughts quickly turned. Of course he did. He’s mr. Perfect. Grumbled the boy. 

"well. Whatever! Are we going to eat these or are they only for decoration?" Huffed Dokja.

"well, let’s go to the table." 

"right…"

The two boys made their way to Yoo Joonghyuk’s giant table (the dumplings in Joonghyuk’s hand and the utensils in Dokja’s) where they sat nexts to one another, only a corner separating them. 

Chapter Text

"Its okay." 

"No it isnt!" Whined Dokja while looking at his own badly folded dumplings. "They’re ugly!" 

"Its good enough for your first time." huffed Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"I bet you did way better than me your first time!" 

"of course I did. I have natural talent, you don’t." Smirked Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"woah okay?? Rude much??" Frowned Kim Dokja only for Yoo Joonghyuk to shrug. "Whatever…. Let’s just eat…"

"Mhn." 

The two boys each respectively reached for the dumplings the other folded. When Kim Dokja saw Yoo Joonghyuk reach for his dumplings he raised his eyebrows in surprise. 

ah.. I see. He wants to judge the taste of my dumplings! Wait no. That doesn’t make sense, he made the filling alone….

….Okay now im lost.  Thought Kim Dokja 

His dumplings truly do look deformed. Am i not a good teacher or something? Internally frowned Yoo Joonghyuk while scrutinizing the other’s ugly dumplings. 

They two boys took a bite out of their dumplings, two different reactions making their way to their faces; 

One of pure delight on Kim Dokja’s face.

And one of… blankness onto Yoo Joonghyuk. 

Seeing the other’s reaction, Kim Dokja frowned, chewed, sallowed and finally asked. "Is it not good?" 

"… I don’t know, tastes like nothing special" huffed Yoo Joonghyuk after having swallowed. 

"what?— that’s not possible… you made the filling! How can the way you wrap a dumpling change it’s taste?!" Cried Dokja while picking up one of the dumplings he had made and stuffing it into his mouth. 

His reaction was one of shock. 

WHAT THE HELL???? How is this even possible? I just folded the damn things! There’s no way the flavour changed this much. Am I just doomed to make bland tasted food my whole life?!

"y,you’re right." Deadpanned Dokja 

"I know im right." Responded Yoo Joonghyuk 

"ok wow— what is up with you today?" Laughed Dokja "you’ve been awfully cocky."

hmm… I guess he’s right… what’s up with me today? Thought Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"I see you’re wearing one of the outfits I bought for you." Said Joonghyuk, grabbing another of Kim Dokja’s dumplings with his chopsticks. 

"ah— yeah.. I am.." Embarrassingly admitted Dokja, a slight blush forcing its way onto his pale face. 

"Its nice to know you actually wear them after telling me you didn’t need them all this time." 

"of course I do! I mean, since you already bought it, I couldn’t just let it go to waste" Said Dokja in indignity. 

"That’s good, I didn’t want to have wasted money."smiled Yoo Joonghyuk while picking a dumpling off the plate. 

"hey you keep eating the bland dumplings I made even though you said they tasted bad." 

"I never said they tasted bad, I said they tasted bland. Plus, it’s not like you’ll be eating it, its obvious by how you keep hogging the ones I made." Smirked Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"Well!— I—" stuttered Kim Dokja, stumbling to find a good excuse. "Im not hogging!— And, it isn’t like im forcing you to eat mine!" Dokja took a deep breath to continue talking. "Also, didn’t you say you don’t eat food made by others?!"

Once again, the only reaction he got from Yoo Joonghyuk was a simple smirk and shrug. 

When the two boys finished eating their fill, a few dumplings were still on the plate (those made by Kim Dokja long gone).

"I’ll put them in the refrigerator, when you leave, I’ll give them to you in a container." Said Yoo Joonghyuk, carrying the leftovers to said place. 

"oh— no its fine. These are yours anyways. You can keep them" tried Kim Dokja.

"I don’t eat leftovers." Effectively countered Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"ugh… fine…"

★★★

"Excuse me?" Said Sung Minwoo while looking at the school’s principal. 

"You’re getting expelled." Repeated the woman. 

"I heard you the first time. Why." snapped Minwoo. 

"Calm down Minwoo." Barked the boy’s father before turning back to the principal. "I need an explanation as to why my son is getting expelled even after all my substantial donations to this school." 

"well.." started the woman, nervousness growing. "Alot of pressure has been put on us by the parent school board aswell as by the growing number of complaints by the student body…" 

"That has never been a problem before, hasn’t it? So why only now." Questioned Minwoo’s father, his anger only rising with each sentence spout out of the principal’s mouth. 

"Truthfully, a massive amount of money has been graciously deposited into the school’s finances by a donator." 

"and may I know the amount donated and the profile of this donator?" Frowned the man.

Hesitantly, the principal pulled out a transaction receipt and read the number on it before putting it back to where it was. 

"It was.. roughly— 50 million Won, by Olympus’ agglomeration.."  

Hearing the name of the donator, Minwoo’s father suddenly turned to his son, yelling angrily at him; "since when did you start bullying Olympus’ people?! What is wrong with you!" 

"I didn’t!" Tried Minwoo to defend himself. "I never changed the stupid kid! It’s been the same one since the start!" 

"Don’t lie to me, boy!" Barked the man.

The fight continued back and forth until the principal interrupted them. 

"im sorry, gentlemen… but you’ll need to leave to continue your conversation…" said the woman before turning to Minwoo. "You’ll be dismissed this week.. you can come pick your things next Saturday." 

Kim Dokja sat in his usual seat near the window. The mathematics teacher straying off subject to talk about how important mathematics will be all their lives boring Kim Dokja out of his mind. Absentmindedly, the boy turned his head to look outside the window, the front of the school in perfect view from the second floor classroom.

Dokja’s mind was straying into the void until out of the corner of his eye he spotted something. No, someone. 

Someone he knew exceptionally well, Sung Minwoo. 

Kim Dokja saw his bully aswell as another person he presumed was the boy’s father. 

by the looks of it.. they don’t look like they get along… thought Dokja before turning back to the teacher who finally got back on the subject, not without a dreadful feeling growing in his gut.

★

It was only at lunch that Kim Dokja discovered the truth. 

As Kim Dokja got up to leave to follow his friends out of their classroom for lunch, he heard whispers that made him stop in his track. 

"dude, earlier this morning when I went to the restroom, I passed by the principal’s office and I overheard some deep shit…" 

"What??" 

"Yeah Yeah! I think I heard that Minwoo’s getting expelled bro!" 

Kim Dokja’s head slowly turned towards the two gossiping boys. His three friends, seeing his weird stop, also stopping to wait for him. 

"Aint no way, wasn’t his dad backing him with his cash??" 

"I swear! I heard some guys paid a shit load to get him out of here. I heard it was Olympus’ agglomeration. You know that one giant company?" 

"What the hell??" 

Sure, the two boys continued talking about the topic but Kim Dokja heard none of it.

His ears rang loudly with an inexplicable buzz.
Sweat quickly started dripping down his skin. 

His legs went weak, shaking as if bearing thousands of tons.
His chest tightened with an unbearable ache.

Im done for. 

Was the only thought that managed to form in his mess of a brain at that moment. 

✧✧✧

Kim Dokja’s head met the desk with a loud thud for the nth time in a row, making the object shake with the force of the contact. 

"I dare you, repeat what you just had the temerity to utter." Barked Sung Minwoo near Dokja’s bloody head. 

"I— Y,You can’t do this.. It’ll get you expelled." Even before he could finish the last word of his sentence, Minwo lifted and banged his head against the desk once again. 

"Do you really think someone as lowly as you can get me expelled? You can’t even fathom to put a dent in my reputation here or anywhere for that fact. You are dirt beneath my feet, Dokja. You don’t deserve to attend this school next to me." Cursed Sung Minwoo "This, is a private school and I have no idea how someone like you managed to attend this institute with parents like yours. You are a danger to this school’s reputation."

Minwoo banged Kim Dokja’s head on the desk a few more times, the buzzing inside of the boy’s head only growing with every hit. 

"And. Even if you somehow, someway manage to get me expelled you won’t get to see the light of another day. I will find you and I will make your life a living hell. Im not lying, Dokja. I have everything I need to make this happen. You won’t be able hide or to run. I’ll fucking kill you. "

That day was the only time Dokja would admit he was truly scared of death. 

✧✧✧

"Dokja?" Hesitantly asked Yoo Sangah, snapping the boy out of his memory that was etched so deeply into every bone of his body. 

fuck. I can’t let them see me like this. Thought Kim Dokja while scrambling to pick the remaining scattered pieces of his sanity that had decided to wander off. 

"yes?" Replied Kim Dokja, his voice cracking by how dry his throat had unknowingly gotten. 

"You good to go?" Questioned Han Sooyoung, hesitance also filling her voice. 

"yeah, sorry! I just remembered I forgot my history homework at home." Chuckled the boy. 

The three of his friends all shared the same thought at that moment though none of them decided to speak it; We don’t have history today. 

As the four teens walked in the hallway Kim Dokja’s thoughts kept spiraling back to the conversation he overheard. 

Olympus’ Agglomeration….. 

Olympus… 

Olympus’ Ecstasy.

fuck. I knew there was something wrong. How could a little couple who owned an empty cafe ever have so many goddamn expensive cars?! Fuck Fuck Fuck! I should’ve never gotten myself involved with them. 

What was I thinking?! Friends? As if! It was really too good to be true. 

Kim Dokja lowered his head as he continued walking behind the three others to their table. 

As soon as they arrived, Kim Dokja automatically sprung towards Uriel, ignoring Yoo Joonghyuk who tried to hand over the lunch he had made for Dokja. An obvious anger curling inside of Dokja showed on his face, making Uriel hesitate in her usual bear hug. 

Being ignored irked Yoo Joonghyuk who frowned at the other’s manners, when Uriel and Dokja were out of sight going to god knows where, he turned towards Yoo Sangah and Han Sooyoung. 

"He’s being weird." 

"oh you think?" Frowned Sooyoung. 

"I think there’s something deeply troubling him. He doesn’t look in his best state of mind." Said Yoo Sangah. 

★

Uriel and Kim Dokja were inside the gym’s storage room not too far of their usual table. The atmosphere inside the small space quickly turned tense as the two teens stood face to face. 

"Why would that…?" Kim Dokja’s voice cracked as he spoke to the blonde. 

"Do what?" Nervously responded Uriel. 

"Get involved too deep." Said Dokja, now glaring at the girl. 

Suddenly realizing the topic of conversation, Uriel wanted to smile and boast about getting Minwoo expelled but the look Kim Dokja gave her made all her proudness disappear in an instant. 

"I.. I thought that uhmm.. that you would be.. h.. happy..?" Hesitantly said Uriel. 

"You thought wrong. I never asked for your help, Uriel. I never wanted you to do that." Said Dokja, moisture starting yo build in his eyes. Though the tears never left his eyes as he roughly blinked them away like he always did.

No time for tears. 

"I.. uh. I thought it would.. help you…" muttered Uriel. 

"You didn’t help me, Uriel. I didn’t need that. Honestly, you just made it worst. You don’t know that man like I do. You don’t get it." 

"I—" tears rolled down the girl’s cheeks as the other’s words hit her right to her heart. 

"Go to the others, Uriel. Its okay, I forgive you that’s what friends do right?" Bitterly smiled Dokja. "Friends forgive and forget. So, you should forget about this situation and not talk about this to the others. You’d do that for me, right?" 

"I.. Yes o,ok… I will.." mumbled Uriel. 

"great. Now I need to go to the bathroom, okay? I’ll come back. later." Said Dokja as he ran out the small storage space

forgive..

And forget this. 

all of this.

Chapter Text

Kim Dokja ran all the way back to his classroom without stopping. By the time he reached the class, he was out of breath and panting. The sight shocked his homeroom teacher who was filling through paperwork. 

"Dokja? Are you okay?" Asked the teacher, standing up from his seat.

"I.. Im fine—" before finishing his words, Kim Dokja quickly shut himself up, correcting his words. "No, actually. In fact, I feel horrible and I am about to throw up. I need to go home. Now." 

"You’re going to vomit?! Okay okay!— don’t do it here! Let’s get you to the bathroom!" Panicked the teacher, heading to Dokja. 

The teacher supported Kim Dokja through the hallway up till a bathroom stall. 

"Okay— I’ll let you do what you need to do!" Said the teacher, panic still floating in his voice. 

Fuck…. I don’t actually have to vomit… but like. If I don’t do it… he won’t let me go home! Shit……… ok. I have a plan but I can’t let him see me vomit. 

"oh god…" mumbled dokja, faking a retch. "This is going to be disgusting, sir. You can’t see this… I ate a hearty breakfast!" Exaggerated Dokja, closing the stall door using his feet. 

"uh!—- okay!—" replied the teacher, disgust in his voice. 

When Dokja was sure the teacher had no any intentions of opening the door, he gulped and shut his eyes tightly to brace himself for what he would do. He opened his mouth and violently stuck two of his fingers down his throat, quickly pulling them out after feeling the vomit coming out of throat. 

Dokja gripped the toilet’s seat as he coughed from his fingers and the remaining taste of the vomit. He stumbled onto his shaking legs as he pushed the flush to get rid of the vomit present in the toilet. 

He pushed the door open as he walked to the sinks under the supervision of his teacher. 

"you should probably call a janitor or something…" groaned Dokja.

"Ah— right!— you go straight to the nurse after this, okay?" Said the man, leaving the bathroom in a hurry. 

"Alright, thank you!" Spoke Dokja, a bit too cheerful for someone who just threw up. 

Kim Dokja continued washing his hands under the water, a small sting coming from his knuckles bothering him. He took his right hand out of under the running water and stared at it for a few seconds before he noticed some blood forming from new bruises on his knuckles in the form of his teeth. 

"ughhh…" groaned the boy, annoyed by the bruise before he simply continued to wash his hands.

went a bit too hard… I hope it goes away soon. Don’t want Yoo Joonghyuk and the others thinking I do this often—-

 Dokja stopped himself in his thought. 

fuck…. Im way too attached… This won’t do. I need to leave anyway. I can’t stay here it’ll only bring harm to them. Minwoo’s going to go for them after he gets me… I just know it. He particularly doesn’t seem very fond of Joonghyuk. I can’t let this happen..

forgive and forget…

forgive your friends.

and forget them aswell, Dokja.

its not like we’ve been together for long. Barely two months. They won’t even remember me in a few years, hell in a few months.

Dokja closed the tap and wiped his hands on his shirt to get rid of the humidity.

What am I going to do. Sighed Dokja.

★

Cold sweat rolled down Dokja’s back as he felt Lee seolwha’s sharp gaze scrutinizing him. 

"So. Will you tell me why you are here alone at lunch? Shouldn’t you be eating with the rest of the group or be accompanied by one of your classmates?" Asked Seolwha questioningly. 

"I threw up in the bathroom…" started Dokja, trying to come up with a lie. "And.. Uhm." 

fuckkkkk… what’s the big guy’s name again.. ah! Right.

"I was with hyunsung! When I threw up, he went to get a teacher and he told me to go here…?" Tried the boy.

"mhn." Hummed Seolwha, looking at the other’s bruised knuckles. 

"yeah..! So uh.. do you know where the nurse is..?" Hesitantly asked Dokja. 

"She’s currently  on her lunch break. Do you want me to go get her?"

"yep! Thats it." 

"alright then… don’t move, I’ll be back." Said Seolwha, walking out the room and closing the door behind herself. 

As soon as Dokja counted to ten to be sure Seolwha would be far enough, he ran out the room. 

She’s 100% not going to get the nurse! She’s gonna go grab Joonghyuk or someone like that! I know the nurse aint on lunch break!!!  cried Dokja as he ran straight for the principal’s office. 

As Dokja ran, he thought of other schools he’d have to attend instead of this one. He’d have to go far either way.

When Dokja arrived, he knocked on the principal’s door. The knocks were quickly answered by a voice telling him to come in. 

The principal invited Dokja to sit in one of the chairs infront of her desk, an offer immediately taken by the boy. 

"Is there anything you need, Dokja?" Asked the principal.

"I.. uhm.. I need to transfer schools…" 

"im sorry, but without the action being commissioned by your guardian I cannot change your school…" Said the woman. 

"I,I..!—" Dokja frowned and bit his lip. Determined to leave the school, he had to take some sacrifices. "I.. no longer have a guardian. I have been disowned by my aunt…" Said the boy making the Principal’s eyes widen in shock. 

"Dokja.. I.." the woman took a deep breath to steel herself. "Since you are under eighteen, as your principal, I will need to send you to an orphanage. Look, Dokja, your aunt and uncle were the only ones in your direct family that stayed next to you. With them gone, you need to go to an orphanage…" sighed the woman. 

Kim Dokja frowned bitterly. 

"But look. I really don’t want to do that. It’s my last resort. I.. I can try to get you into a good home for a while.. I have some connections so I’ll try to see if anyone knows someone that would welcome you… I can’t promise you anything, though." 

"I.. I’d appreciate it.." mumbled Dokja. 

"alright, kid. I’ll try figuring things out for you.. how about… how about you go rest in the nurse’s office. Even better, if you can figure out a way to get back to your house.. or wherever you’re staying at, I’ll let you go until I figure out a solution…" 

"Im eternally grateful, miss" Said Dokja, standing up and bowing. 

"It the least I can do… I have kids of my own and… I wouldn’t be able to bare it if this happened.." Said the woman, a small smile showing on her face.

yet she let me be bullied for money..? What a greedy person.. thought Dokja

★

Kim Dokja quickly stopped his stride and pushed himself up to a wall, hiding behind the surface. He had almost arrived to the nurse’s office when he heard some voices. Voices that were surely not the nurse’s. 

"Didn’t you say he was here?" Asked Yoo Joonghyuk, frowning and crossing his arms. 

"He was just here…" grumbled Seolwha. "He must’ve realized I wasn’t going to get the nurse.” 

"intuitive idiot." Groaned Han Sooyoung. 

" Aren’t you contradicting your own words?" Retorted Yoo Joonghyuk. 

"Whatever, you know im right!" 

"…"

"He must’ve went somewhere else. Anyone have any ideas?" Asked Lee Seolwha

"he likes reading, maybe the library?" Spoke Han Sooyoung. 

"alright, lets go… oh and, why isnt Sangah here?" Asked the white haired woman. 

"she’s comforting Uriel, the girl was crying rain clouds.” Groaned Han Sooyoung. 

"Oh I see." Said Seolwha as the trio walked away from the nurse’s office. 

Kim Dokja let out a sigh of relief when he heard the teens walk away. The boy, deciding that the nurse’s offica was still a bit too risky while the nurse wasn’t there, slipped away to his classroom where he quickly made his bag. He shoved all the books and things he needed to grab in his backpack. By the end, Dokja’s bag was stretched to his fullest. It looked bent out of shape and filled to the brim. 

Kim Dokja grunted as he pulled the bag onto his back, the weight hurting his shoulders. 

Dokja shuffled back to the nurse’s office, praying that the woman would be there. 

Luckly for him, the woman was infact there, sitting on a stool. When she saw the boy her face lit up only for her to frown again when she spotted the backpack on the boy’s back. 

"Dokja..? What’s happening?" Hesitantly asked the woman. 

"I—" tried to tell Dokja only for his words to be lost. "Im.. I need to leave.." 

"…" without asking any questions, the nurse got up and grabbed her coat, keys heard jingling in the pockets. "Let’s talk in the car.."

Dokja’s face lit up in gratitude with a soft smile gracing his face as he heard the other’s words. He quickly followed behind the woman, a bitter ache twisting his heart. 

★

"I see…" muttered the nurse as she parked her car infront of Dokja’s apartment. "So you’re really leaving?"

"Yeah— well… probably.." mumbled the boy. 

"Alright then…" smiled the nurse, turning to Kim Dokja. "I guess this is goodbye.."

"yeah… thank you.. for.. well you know..? All the times you took care of me?" Said Dokja, a regretful smile appearing on his face.

"It’s alright, Dokja." Comforted the nurse. "I enjoyed spending time with you even if you weren’t always in your best shape. You’re a great person, Dokja. Don’t forget that…. I should get going though. I still have work to do." 

"ah— right…" Realized the boy, quickly removing the belt and stepping out the car. "I guess this is goodbye…" Sheepishly waved the boy. 

"mhn. I hope you’ll go somewhere better." Said the nurse softly before rolling away. 

Kim Dokja watched the woman’s car roll down the street, sorrow drowning his heart. He sighed as he entered his building, climbing up to his floor and stepping into his apartment. 

While putting his things down, he realized something else; he’d have to move out. 

There was no way that Dokja would be safe if he stayed there. Sung Minwoo would definitely find him and make his life a living hell. 

He could only hope that the principal would find a foster home or an ophanage that would accept him. 

Fuck… I’ll need to pay the lease…. Frowned Dokja just thinking of how much money it’ll cost him. 

★

"there is no lease." Said Gong Pildu. 

"Wait what?" Dumbfoundedly asked Kim Dokja. "Why?" 

"well, I wasn’t exactly lending you the apartment legally. You’re 16 so you shouldn’t have been able to rent at all. Truthfully speaking, there is no contract for the apartment." Deadpanned the older man. 

"Wait, seriously? There wasn’t a contract?" 

"nope, none at all." 

"So.."

"no lease."

”So I don’t have to pay..?" 

"exactly." 

"… Then… why did you even rent me the apartment..?" 

"You had the money and .. well.. I felt pity you know..? Its not everyday a kid shows up begging for a place to stay.." grumbled Gong Pildu, fixing the hat on his head. 

"I— I don’t know what to say…" muttered Dokja. 

"How about starting with a thank you?" Said Pildu. 

"Ah— right!— Thank you so much, mister!" Said Dokja, suddenly standing up from his chair and bowing to the other. 

"Just asking but.. would you tell me why you need to move out?" Suspiciously asked the man. “Did you get in.. legal trouble..?" 

"What?— no no! Of course not..!— I just… I… Uhm. I did get into trouble.. b,but not the legal kind! 

".. Won’t tell me anything else?" 

"Im sorry… I just.. Don’t know how to say it without making it sound like im being hunted down by the country.."

"Hmph!" Huffed the man. "Well whatever. So in short, you can leave when you want. Just make sure to tell me." Frowned Gong Pildu. 

"Yes of course!" Gratefully declared Kim Dokja. 

"Alright, now! Get out of here." Sighed Pildu, shooing the boy away. 

"thanks again, sir!" Finally said Dokja before leaving and going back to his apartment. 

Chapter Text

When Dokja entered his house he immediately started packing his things. There wasn’t much really; few pieces of clothing and a bunch of books. 

The boy just wanted to make sure that when he had the opportunity to leave he’d do so immediately. Kim Dokja didn’t want to stay a second more than he had to in his apartment. He understood the possibility of Minwoo hunting him down any moment. He just hoped the bully wouldn’t find him until then. 

After the whole ordeal, Dokja hoped the principal would find him somewhere to stay. Even if it was a horrible household once again, he was ready to go back for his… old friends. 

Kim Dokja knew there were multiple loose ends where he was at the moment. For one, multiple people already knew where he was living. Like for example; the nurse, the guys at Olympus’ Ecstasy, Yoo Joonghyuk and the rest of the science group project… It was really too many. Hopefully, when the principal found him somewhere to stay she would find one the next town over or farther and she’d be the only one who’d know with the person who’d take him in. 

Like that, he’d be able to hide for a while. Dokja knew he wouldn’t be able to hide all his life but he did what he could for now. 

Kim Dokja sighed as he let himself fall into the sofa. He covered his eyes with his palms.

This.. its— I… Its painful. Dokja’s heart squeezed in remose though he could do naught. 

He sighed once more as he thought back to the others still at school. He checked his phone for the time. They should be at break right now… their last period is soon.. Kim Dokja stood up from his sofa, determination in his eyes. I’ll close all my lights incase they come visit to make them think I left…. Also, I should block all their numbers for now… maybe change my number later too…

★

Yoo Joonghyuk walked down the hall, a glare scaring away all the teens in his path. Behind him there was Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sangah that followed quickly. 

Where is he… what the hell happened this time. Thought Yoo Joonghyuk, his mind swirling with anxious thoughts. Uriel said he ran to the bathroom after confronting her about Minwoo.. where could he have been? 

Yoo Joonghyuk kept walking with one goal in mind: the nurse’s office. He knew Dokja was very close with the lady, I mean, he even let her drive him home. But, something was amiss. Why wasn’t the nurse there earlier? 

The trio quickly arrived at the nurse’s office due to their speed. As Joonghyuk opened the door to the office he was met with the stunned face of a nurse. 

"Yoo Joonghyuk?" Surprisingly asked the nurse. 

"Miss, where’s Kim Dokja." Immediately questioned Yoo Joonghyuk. 

The woman frowned as she looked at Yoo Joonghyuk and the two other girls. "Why do you all need to know that?" 

Yoo Sangah stepped in when she saw that Yoo Joonghyuk was going to reply when he was clearly too agitated. "We’re his friends and we’re worried about his wellbeing."

The nurse hesitated before deciding to tell them where he was but not that he’d be leaving the school. "He.. he threw up in the bathroom and he didn’t feel well… so, I sent him home."

Han Sooyoung cursed as Yoo Joonghyuk glared at the floor. Yoo Sangah though also angry, stayed composed. "I see… thank you for informing us." She thanked before pushing her classmates out of the woman’s office and closing the door behind herself. 

They three made their way to their next class while continuing to converse. 

"God I can’t believe he left just because of that little deal." Grumbled Han Sooyoung. 

"Maybe it isn’t a ‘little deal’ for him." Pitched in Yoo Sangah. 

"It seems he doesn’t do well with people pitying him." Spoke Yoo Joonghyuk anger still present in his voice. 

"God he’s a pathetic runner…" frowned Han Sooyoung. 

"tell us something new." Deadpanned Yoo Joonghyuk. "Everytime there’s something he doesn’t like he just runs.."

"Maybe its a defense mechanism for him, don’t be so hard on the boy.." reprimanded Yoo Sangah. "When we see him tomorrow let’s not mention the matter to him..— or cruse him out! You guys understand?" 

"yeah yeah…" Han Sooyoung said, rolling her eyes. 

"mhn.." hummed Yoo Joonghyuk, a strange feeling growing in his gut

Little did they know, the day they waited for him to arrive at school would never come. 

★★★

The next day when Dokja didn’t come to school in the morning, Han Sooyoung, Yoo Joonghyuk and Yoo Sangah exchanged looks full of suspicion and words of concern during breaks. 

The three teens continued talking about Kim Dokja all the way till they reached the table where they ate lunch. When they arrived an alarming scene was on display; Uriel was a sobbing mess while Heewon and Hyunsung comforted her, trying to get her to speak .

The three all hurriedly ran over to check on Uriel and the situation. When Heewon saw the trio, she pulled away from Uriel to let Yoo Sangah take her place (deeming her more suited to comfort the girl). The black haired woman then approached the other two to explain the situation. 

"ok so… the thing is.." tried starting Heewon, sighing. "Uriel, feeling guilty yesterday decided to go to Dokja’s apartment to apologize again." 

so that’s why Uriel asked me for Dokja’s address yesterday… thought Yoo Joonghyuk, recalling the text Uriel had sent him. 

"When she went there, she knocked on his door but he didn’t respond… she continued to knock but there was still no answer. She apparently started making too much noise and the landlord appeared." Continued Jung Heewon. "When she asked if Dokja was home the man told her that… that.. that there no longer was a resident in that apartment." 

At the revelation of the truth, Han Sooyoung shouted in shock while Yoo Joonghyuk paled.

there wasn’t one second that Yoo Joonghyuk thought that Kim Dokja would just disappear. Sure, he was a runner but that much? Jooghyuk didn’t think it a possibility. Perhaps he had grown too accustomed to Kim Dokja coming back every time. But now there was a possibility that he wouldn’t come back?

Yoo Joonghyuk’s mind raced as he thought of all the reasons why he would actually do that. Why would he leave just like that? Something didn’t make sense, if Joonghyuk took even a single moment to calm down he would realize that usually if someone needed to move out of somewhere they’d usually need atleast one month to cancel their lease. But, in the boy’s panicked frenzy he didn’t think of that. His mind only circled around one subject; 

Minwoo.  

Minwoo’s always been a problem with Dokja. The bully relentlessly assaulted Kim Dokja, he even left him bruises. He has to have done something. 

Joonghyuk’s anger flared but what could he do? Nothing, really.

Fuck… I can’t even do shit about it… my parents they’d… Yoo Joonghyuk clicked his tongue in frustration. 

"Uriel even went and asked the principal to make sure he had just moved to another place and hadn’t left the school but… the principal admitted that he had transferred schools…" finished Heewon.

"fuck…" mumbled Yoo Joonghyuk 

★

Unbeknownst to the fussing teens, the very boy they were talking about was seated in a cafe with two other people. 

"What a surprise, Dokja." Smiled Persephone as she sat down infront of Kim Dokja at his table. "It’s always great to see you, but aren’t you supposed to be in class? "

"ah… well actually.." started Dokja, his nerves catching up to himself. "Uhmm I…"

"take your time dear, we won’t punish you for playing hooky." Joked the woman while glancing at her husband

"Okay… so. It’s complicated but, I, I… I owe you an explanation for all that you’ve done for me…" sighed the boy. "I’ll be leaving.. and.. transferring schools.."

"… Is that so." Quietly said Persephone. 

"yes I— look, Im not blaming you both— or Uriel!— but. The things that you did.. the things that you did thinking it was for me were…" Kim Dokja stuttered while trying to find the best word to describe it. "T..troublesome…"

Suddenly realizing what this was about, Persephone and Hades shared a shocked look. 

"I… I see." Replied Persephone. 

"please don’t feel guilty, you— you both have helped me enough. With all the little things you did for me like driving me around, giving me food for free— it was all truly helpful." Bittersweet sentiments slowly filled Dokja’s heart as he spoke to the couple. "And honestly, it was bound to happen one day or another. So, once again, do not feel guilty for me leaving." 

Hades hummed as Persephone stayed silent. 

"it surprises me that Uriel hasn’t told you two yet, she came banging on my door yesterday and I thought it was only a matter of time before you knew." Chuckled Kim Dokja. 

"yes, well, she was so sad that she couldn’t speak yesterday, she locked herself in her room and wouldn’t explain anything to us." Spoke Persephone. 

"I see…" mumbled Dokja. 

"well, since you’re leaving soon, why don’t you eat here one last time. With us. For memories’ sake." Spoke Hades.

"I— you know what? Why not. " smiled Dokja. "Oh and— don’t tell Uriel I came by. She already thinks I left…" 

"you can count on us." Spoke the two adults at the same time.

★★★★★★

True to her word, the principal truly did have connections. Efficient ones too. It took the lady only about two weeks (finishing right when the new month started) to find a suitable home for Kim Dokja aswell as a new school that wasn’t too expensive. It impressed Kim Dokja a great much. 

While the principal was searching for the new school and home all that Dokja could do was stay home and read novels on his phone. He didn’t go out often unless it was school days, too scared to be seen by Uriel or someone that went to his school. 

During those two weeks he painfully had to listen to different people come banging on his doors, each with a hope to find him there. First, there was Uriel but then it was Yoo Joonghyuk and the two girls. Even Lee Seolwha came. It was ridiculous in Dokja’s eyes, really. It wasn’t like they’d remember him soon enough. 

The boy also went to visit his mother. To tell her about him transferring schools and him moving to another city. He told her that he’d come back when he got more information. His mother didn’t respond nor ask further about the subject, instead she asked about novels again.

At the end of the two weeks, when he finally got the information from the principal he was rather surprised. She told him (over the phone) that she’d found a suitable house and school. The school was in the next town over. It wasn’t that far but it was good enough to hide temporarily while he finished his high-school studies. 

She also told him that the other school’s very own principal would welcome him to his house while he studied there. Apparently, the man’s name was Kyrgios Rodgraim. A sympathetic but righteous man. 

After obtaining the information he needed he went to tell his mother. The woman took the news well, she hummed along to the her son’s words. Telling him she’d be sending the money to the new adress the very next month. While there, Dokja also broke another news; he wouldn’t be able to come visit her anymore. Not for a while that was. 

Kim Dokja wanted to lay low and visiting the city where he knew Minwoo lived every week wasn’t the greatest idea. And, with a simple goodbye, he left his mom at the prison. 

When he got home, he called his landlord to tell him he’d leave the next morning. Gong Pildu confirmed his departure and grunted a goodbye himself. 

True to his words, at 9 o’clock sharp, Kim Dokja walked out his apartment building with his bags, heading towards a car where a man was waiting for him while leaning on the vehicle.

"Kim Dokja, I presume?" Greeted the man. 

"yes, Mr. Rodgraim?" Replied the boy. 

"mhn." Confirmed Kyrgios. "Let’s get your bags in the trunk." Spoke the man while moved towards the back of the car. 

Kim Dokja sighed as he looked at his apartment one last time. Melancholy filled his heart as he followed his new guardian. 

Goodbye, then.. 

perhaps fate will bring us together another day.

Chapter Text

✶✶✶✶✶✶

Kim Dokja yawned as his body swayed with the subway’s rhythm. He was currently on his way to work. He didn’t do anything too grand or fun during his days. It was almost always the same schedule and things to do. 

Some things just never change huh? internally grumbled the man. 

It had been twelve long years since he’d graduated Highschool and twelve since he’d left his old town… It was a long time ago but Dokja still hadn’t forgotten about all the people he had met during the two measly months he had passed with them.

Kim Dokja had long came back to his hometown. Minwoo’s father, the man that financially supported Minwoo in everything he did (even bullying) had been found guilty of tax evasion and money laundering only a month after Kim Dokja left the school. Back then, the boy hadn’t immediately returned. He had waited to finish his studies in the town he stayed in with his guardian (that he was still in contact with).

Back then, Dokja could almost predict how successful his ‘friends’ would be in the future. Joonghyuk and Uriel were (probably) heirs to big companies, Han Sooyoung was a talented writer, Seolwha an aspiring doctor and Yoo Sangah had the looks to become an actress or even a model. Coincidentally, he had almost guessed everything right. 

The only exception to his prediction was Yoo Joonghyuk, the man had (against all odds) became a streamer. Due to his good looks and spectacular performance he had risen to fame fairly quickly and was now one of the most famous streamers in Korea. His influence even started to grow to overseas. He got rich with all the sponsorships and events he attended and accepted. Lately, the Joonghyuk (by 'Joonghyuk' he actually meant more his manager…) had even started a merch shop. He sold jackets, keychains, hats alot of things really. Shamefully enough, Dokja was guilty of purchasing some stuff.

The streams he made were entertaining to watch. Though the man didn’t speak the whole time it was still fun and cool to watch all the different games he played. How did Kim Dokja know this? Well, he watched the man play of course! Call him a weird stalker who dwells on the past all you want he’d agree with you. 

Kim Dokja knew that what he was doing was absolutely wrong. It had been a decade since he last met the guy. Dokja himself knew it was weird. But honestly, he just couldn’t bear to truly say goodbye. So he oftentimes found himself looking through the news to find anything related to his old friends. That’s exactly how he knew most of their jobs.

Compared to them, Dokja never did anything impressive (predictably). He just worked for a video game company called Minosoft. He worked in the QA (quality assurance) department and it was utterly boring in Dokja’s eyes. He didn’t particularly gain lots of money but it was enough for him to get by in a small apartment. Talk about apartment, he had actually moved back to his old building where he lived only a floor more away from his old ‘house’. Funnily enough, it was still the same landlord who was there and he even remembered Kim Dokja. 

Dokja also checked to see if Olympus’ Ecstasy was still there and it was. Fearing to see people he knew near there he promised himself to steer clear of the area around the little cafe. 

Kim Dokja sighed once again, opening his emails to look at what he needed to complete that day. Recently he had started working on a new video game that his company was producing. It was a RPG type game. While filing through his emails, a new email he hadn’t seen yet appeared. He curiously clicked on it only to be met with loathing; A company dinner?!

Kim Dokja almost cried at the sight of the announcement. The company dinners were endless chatter and drinking hell. In addition, it always took so much time for everyone to finish eating. So much that he couldn’t watch Yoo Joonghyuk’s stream those days. It was always a dreadful night. Worst of all was the alcohol that was drank throughout the night. For some reason, Soju was a favourite in Dokja’s department. Everytime he smelled— god forbid saw the soju Kim Dokja was always filled with dread. 

The man groaned as he opened another app to start reading a webnovel he had started that week.

★★★

Loud chatter filled the bar as all of Dokja’s colleagues talked loudly about anything and everything. For some reason, Kim Dokja’s company decided to rent the entire place so it was packed full of his coworkers. Luckily, Dokja was seated at the edge of the table, ignored by the crowd. Spotting a waiter coming up to the table with multiple bottles of soju made Dokja frown.

As soon as the bottles were put down and stole the attention of the people at his table, Kim Dokja slipped out of his seat walking towards the bar where there was less of a crowd. He sighed as he sat down on a stool. 

"Hello! What can I get you tonight?" Asked a woman from behind the counter; the bartender. 

"just a glass of water please…" groaned Dokja, massaging his head while looking down at the counter because of all the noise. 

"had too much to drink?" Joked the woman. 

"Just thirsty.." mumbled the man as he finally looked up from the bar’s surface to look at the bartender. Shocked filled Dokja’s mind as he stared at the woman. 

is that… there’s no way. Dokja looked down to see the woman’s name tag that all employees from the bar wore. 

'Jung Heewon' 

Dread filled Dokja. What the hell… He subtly reached down to stuff his own company card in his shirt pocket in fear the woman would read it. Surely she doesn’t remember me right..? Its been 12 years..!

Dokja quickly wiped his shocked expression off his face to try to act normal and unconcerned just as the woman handed him the glass of water he had requested. 

As Kim Dokja nervously sipped his water he could feel the woman’s gaze scrutinizing him. 

"hey uhm… you kind of look familiar. Do i know you?" Questioned the woman as she scratched her head. 

"uhmm.. I— I don’t think so..! You don’t look very familiar to me." Nervously chuckled the man in response. 

"huh… alright then, sorry—" just as the bartender was about to leave to go to another client someone spoke up from behind Kim Dokja. 

"Hey, Kim Dokja, why’d you leave the table?" Asked the questioned man’s boss; Han Myungoh. 

FUCKKKKKKK WHY DOES HE ALWAYS ARRIVE AT THE WORST TIMESSSS?!?! Internally died Dokja. 

"haha—… um. I was thirsty.." 

"well why don’t you parch that thirst with alcohol?" Loudly declared the man as he dragged Kim Dokja away from the bar. 

"hey— wait—" tried to say the bartender only for her voice to be drowned out by the ambient noise of the party.

I really don’t think that’s safe. Thought Dokja as he got dragged away from the bar. The man closed his eyes to avoid looking at his ex-classmate. Talking about that classmate, he could feel the shocked woman staring holes into him. Atleast I got away from her. She can’t possibly remember me. Right…?

Jung Heewon couldn’t leave from behind the bar during the night, she could only stare at Kim Dokja (wich didn’t go unnoticed by the man who was still trying to convince himself she didn’t remember him.) 

★★★

After the party ended and all of the gaming company’s employees left, Heewon quickly clocked out and packed her stuff still shocked from her chance encounter. She hurried home soon after, needing to tell someone what had happened. 

She climbed the stairs to her apartment swiftly, rushing to her door. She opened it quickly, making it bang against the door stopper. 

Hyunsung, who was sitting on the couch, shot up from his seat when he heard the door open only to see Heewon running into the living room. She panted hard as she had just ran from the subway station to their apartment. Panicked, Hyunsung came to her side to try and help her regain her calm. 

"Heewon, are you okay?" Nervously questioned the man. "Did something happen?" 

"I— wheeze You— wheeze you’ll—" tried talking Heewon only to be silenced by her short breaths. 

"okay okay—! Calm down first! Let’s go drink some water!" Said Hyunsung while guiding the woman to their kitchen so she could sit on the stools. He grabbed a glass and filled it with water to after pass it to Jung Heewon. 

After having drank and calmed down a bit, Heewon’s breathing settled back to normal. 

"you will never guess who I just saw at the bar." 

"uhmm… Joonghyuk…?" Tried the man. 

"no. Though that would also be interesting…. I saw Kim Dokja." 

"what." 

"Kim Dokja. From high school!" 

"no, I got that part. But, didn’t he like move towns and stuff?" 

"He probably moved back or something!" Excitedly spoke Heewon. 

"You have to tell the others!" 

"Yeah— i know! They’re going to go crazy." Said the woman as she pulled her phone out of the pocket only to open a messaging app. 

Where’s that stupid guy.

I found him. -

I saw him.-

He was at my bar.-

immediately after sending the message multiple people immediately started typing.

Joonghyuk

- what. 
- are you serious? 

Uriel

-WHAT. 
-IF YOU’RE LYING THIS ISNT FUNNY. 

Sooyoung

- no way dude. 
-after 12 years seriously?

Sangah

- are you sure it was him? 
- it’s been a long time, maybe you mistook him for someone else. 

Alright then, do you know of anyone else who’s name is Kim Dokja, is abnormally short for his age, is pale white? -

I’m 100% sure it was him. He looked totally nervous when he saw my face and my name tag-

he even pretended no not know me!-

Sooyoung

-that sounds a shit load like what the runner would do. 

Uriel

- why was he there?

- Did he move back? 

Before Heewon could even try to type and answer, a caller Id suddenly appeared on her phone screen. 

'Joonghyuk'

We she saw the notification, Sung Heewon immediately answered the phone call. 

'Are you being serious.' Asked Yoo Joonghyuk from the other side of the phone. 

''I wouldn’t joke about this, Joonghyuk. I know what this means to you guys'' Sincerely spoke the woman. 

'… alright then, tomorrow let’s meet up. You better tell why he was there and with who he was at the bar with. If you can get me a picture its even better.' 

"umh.. isnt this a bit much..?" Hesitated Heewon.

'… it’d be appreciated.’

Heewon sighed and scratched her head. "Fine fine! See you tomorrow, man." 

Jung Heewon quickly hung up.

★★★

the next day, when Heewon got to work she asked around for answers to Yoo Joonghyuk’s questions. 

"so.. have any idea who reserved the bar yesterday? It was quite the party!" chuckled the bartender as she wiped her counter while talking to her colleague. 

"some gaming company, I think… Mini.. Mono.. Minisoft or something like that. Yeah, the party was crazy the cleanup took awhile." Sighed one of the waitresses.

"Were they here for some kind of company dinners?" 

"Probably, there were so many people…" 

"Yeah, it was so loud!" Grumbled Heewon, excusing herself to the restroom. 

When she got to the restroom she open her phone to check 'Minosoft'’s  company website. When she went to check their employee list only the department leaders and higher ups could be seen. A revelation that made her grumble. She then clicked on the 'picture' of the man she recognized as the man that Dokja had called 'boss' last night. As it turns out, Dokja was in the QA department. 

Looking for more information, even perhaps a picture of the man, she went on their socials. After digging for a few minutes, she hit jackpot. There were group photos of each departments outside the Minosoft building. She found the QA’s picture easily and Dokja even easier. The man was standing to the side of the group, an awkward smile adorning his face. 

He really barely changed. 

Chapter Text

"Heewon, c’mon! Can’t you tell us right now?" Whined Uriel as she crossed her arms. 

"We should wait for Yoo Joonghyuk and the others too." Said Persephone 

"Mhn." Hummed Hades. 

"Yeah, they’ve been waiting for this too, you know?" Frowned Heewon 

Right as she said that, the front door of Olympus’ Ecstasy was swung open revealing the three other people that were missing from the meeting; Yoo Joonghyuk, Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sangah. 

"all right! Where’s that stupid rat!" Shouted Sooyoung. 

"don’t call him stupid, Sooyoung, he did manage to stay hidden for twelve years." Spoke Seolwha. 

"And yet you don’t deny the rat part!" Huffed the woman as she sat down at the big table where the others were. 

"he’s not a rat. More like a slippery squid." Frowned Yoo Joonghyuk. "Enough about the insults, we want the information."

"alright alright!" Groaned Heewon as she took out a computer from her bag. " For someone we missed for twelve years he was pretty easy to find." Said the woman while she unlocked her computer. 

When she opened it, she clicked on the picture she found on Minosoft’s social media page and turned the computer towards the others. All of the friends and family observed the picture. 

"Wow. He did not change at all." Deadpanned Han Sooyoung. 

"Huh. That’s true." Confirmed Sangah. 

"so, why was he at your bar?" Asked Persephone. 

"Some work dinner." Said Sung Heewon. "He works at Minosoft in the QA department." 

"How’d you figure that out?"asked Uriel.

"His boss was on their website and it said where he works. I knew his boss because he had dragged Dokja away at the party and Dokja called him as such." casually stated Heewon

"hm.." Frowned Yoo Joonghyuk. "Is that all you have?" 

"Well, yeah! He was just a customer! I don’t know too much about him!" Huffed Heewon. 

"Hey, its a good start." Stated Sangah. 

"Okay, but, how do we approach him without being creepy or weird??" Asked Sooyoung. 

"… I’ll contact Minosoft and ask if they want to collab." Spoke Yoo Joonghyuk as he took out his phone.

"woah there! Shouldn’t you ask your manager first?" Interrupted Uriel. 

"That’s what im doing." Grumbled Joonghyuk as he got up and left outside to call his manager. 

When he got outside he started talking to his manager. 

"Im interested in collaborating with Minosoft." 

'Wait what? Why now?' Asked a woman from the other side of the call. 

Yoo Joonghyuk was a blunt man, he had always been like that. So, he didn’t lie. "Im trying to find someone who works there ."

'That Dokja guy?'  Asked the woman 

"mhn." Hummed Yoo Joonghyuk as he saw a bus pass by. He looked at its figure stopping at a crosswalk while people crossed infront of it only to catch someone near the end looking at him with his eyes blown wide. 

Thinking the man was just a fan, Yoo Joonghyuk groaned and looked away. But then, when he finally registered the face that was looking at him he looked up immediately. The man— Dokja— was still looking at him in deep shock.  

There wasn’t anything Yoo Joonghyuk could do, the bus wasn’t stopping to pick up or drop off passengers. It had just stopped enough time for the people to cross the road before it simply rolled away with no idea someone was hitching to strangle someone in the bus. 

As the vehicle rolled away, Yoo Joonghyuk quickly took mental note of it’s number before hanging up his call with a simple "never mind." 

Yoo Joonghyuk quickly entered the cafe again, interrupting the people who were still conversing.

"guess who I just saw." 

"… there’s no way." Deadpanned Han Sooyoung 

"there is a way, actually. I saw him in a bus." Smirked Joonghyuk. 

"Well I’ll be damned." Cursed Persephone. 

"Hasn’t this been a bit too many coincidences?" Joked Uriel. 

★

What the group didn’t know was Kim Dokja’s internal crisis he was going through while he leaned on the back of the seat infront of him. 

Why…. Whyyyyyyyy whyyyyyyy. Why is this life so miserable?! Why the hell am I seeing all these people I know? Should I just move back with Kyrgios?

Kim Dokja was almost sure he felt a small tear of despair roll down his cheek.

Why the hell was he even there?! 

….

Hah. He was at Olympus’ Ecstasy wasn’t he? Was he meeting with Uriel and her parents? Wait. Wasnt there like a bunch of cars infront of the cafe? That doesn’t make sense. No one ever goes there—

Then, it finally clicked in Dokja’s stupid little brain of his. 

Heewon.  Of course she had to recognize me! Goddamnit! Why is my luck going sour  now?! The whole fucking group was there! 

…

wait. Doesn’t that mean that they all remember me…? What the hell. Couldn’t they forget about me or something??? 

The man sighed as he stoped leaning on the seat infront of him. With a sigh, he opened his phone to watch the stream of Yoo Joonghyuk he had missed the other night. 

★

It was only at noon that Yoo Joonghyuk went back to his home. At Olympus’ Ecstasy he had told all of his friends the number that was on the bus. Using their trusty internet, they figured out all its different stops. Now, they only had to pin point which one Dokja used. 

The man took his coat off and hanged it in the closet next to his front door. He took off his shoes and slipped his slippers on, walking to the sofa that was to the left of his entrance. 

It had been a while since he had moved out of his parents’ house. He now stayed in a two floor apartment. Also, he was no longer alone. Yoo Joonghyuk turned his head and looked at a picture frame next to the Tv that featured a young girl. He now lived with his little sister; Yoo Mia. 

Honestly, Yoo Joonghyuk couldn’t wish for more. He lived comfortably, had enough money to assure Yoo Mia had all the best things. But, he needed to see Kim Dokja again. Joonghyuk didn’t know exactly why, but he had this nagging feeling. 

Sure, he could’ve just forgotten about him, he was… insignificant. They knew each other barely two months. It was nothing. But…

I just need to find him again. I need to know… I— know what…? … I need to know why he left me. Wasnt I good? A good friend? Just.. Why. Why did he leave me..

Sighing, Yoo Joonghyuk went to his room. After entering the place he closed his door, sat down at his gaming chair and booted up his Pc.

Joonghyuk really liked playing video games, though not enough to be a professional gamer but he still did it. His reason is pretty simple really; he didn’t want to rely on his parents at all. 

He always knew his mother and father were bastards. But, the crossing point was when his father came back home with a child. Hoping he would take care of her at 19.

✧✧✧

"This is your little sister." Said Joonghyuk’s father as he pushed a young child in the boy’s arms. 

"…what." Gaped Joonghyuk. 

"This is your little sister." Repeated the man. 

"I… I still don’t understand." Frowned Joonghyuk.

The man sighed in annoyance as he once again repeated. "This is your sister. She’s two. I.. I accidentally had sex with a woman during one of my business trips and she kept it secret well.. until now. " 

"Why are you telling me this?"