Chapter 42: C-40

C-40

The weekend passed by like a blur where I spent the whole time crying over sad romance movies. I suddenly want to become a doctor because of those diseases that stopped their love stories, but when I think of how much studying I need to do, I just think it's their fate and I shouldn't intervene with it.

Jisung looks at me with shock plastered on his face when I pass by him. I sigh as I cover my face even more.

"Y/n..."

"I know I look ridiculous." I puff my cheeks in embarrassment.

His cheeks redden as he shakes his head. "N-No! You look... the opposite of ridiculous, but I'm not saying just to me! In general, of course, like for everyone."

"Huh?" I mutter a small thanks even when I didn't get it before scurrying away.

When I enter the classroom, my face immediately burns as I feel my classmates looking at me. Do I look that bad?

I made a mistake when I accidentally clicked on that random "how to cut your own bangs" video that magically appeared on my phone. I'm bored and the scissors suddenly showed itself to me.

"New hair, new me!" Felix comments and I just shake my head.

I freeze on my steps when I see Minho looking at me. Why do we have to be seatmates? I sigh before eventually going to my seat. Once I settle down I immediately open a book that happens to be Maths. How great.

A pen suddenly rolls to my side of the desk. I take it and look at Minho.

"Yours?" I ask quietly.

He didn't answer and he's just blinking at me with a dazed look and red ears. I get conscious and feel my face heating up for the umpteenth time so I return to my book and busy myself with some deadly Maths.

"Thanks," I hear him mutter.

That's it? He won't even try to talk to me? It seems like he's okay with me not trying to get his attention every time... I'm such a fool.

From now on, I won't go after him anymore.

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"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly. What is essential is invisible to the eye," I recite.

Seungmin looks at me weirdly before looking at Felix then back at me. The three of us are grouped again for an English activity where we need to relate a children's book into a real life situation. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry is assigned to us.

"Who are you and why are you suddenly studying?" Seungmin asks.

"Can't I read?"

"Why do you suddenly have a British accent? Are you sure you're Y/n?" Felix adds.

"I binged Harry Potter yesterday," I tell them and they both nod at the same time. "Is it that surprising that I know how to read? Aren't we here at school to study?" They nod again.

"It's just weird to see you so serious and immersed in reading, but it's not a bad thing," Seungmin explains.

"Yeah! You even cut your hair. Are you heartbroken or something?" Felix snickers whilst I pout.

It's funny how I'm reading an excerpt that's about friendship. Is being studious a side effect of a broken heart? My head hurts!

"It's your own fault," said the Little Prince. "I never wished you any sort of harm; but you wanted me to tame you..."

"Yes that is so," said the Fox.

"But now you're going to cry!" said the Little Prince.

"Yes that is so," said the Fox.

"Then, it has done you no good at all!"

"It has done me good," said the Fox. "...Go look again at the roses. You'll understand now that yours is unique in all the world."

The Little Prince went away, to look again at the roses.

"You're not at all like my rose," he said. "As yet you are nothing. No one has tamed you, and you have tamed no one. You're like my Fox when I first knew him. He was only a Fox like a hundred thousand other Foxes. But I have made a friend, and now he's unique in all the world."

"Men have forgotten this truth," said the Fox. "But you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed."

My chest tightens after reading that part. Why do we have to study this right now? Is someone playing a joke on me? And why am I getting so emotional over a children's book?

Someone has tamed me and I hope I did the same, but I guess not because he refuses to take responsibility whilst I'm left anticipating his return.

"Okay, let's stop. You look like you're about to cry from all the vocabulary in there." Seungmin snatches the book from my hand.

"But--"

"No buts!" Felix waves his fingers and opens a laptop instead.

"We might get a low score if we procrastinate again."

"It's fine, I'm on it. Just a few more..." Seungmin jots on the paper so fast. My eyes follow his hand until he slaps the pen down after the period. "There, done."

"Is it okay for us to not contribute anything?"

"I don't mind. You already read it to us out loud so that's your part. For Felix, hmm, maybe he can buy us snacks?"

"I came prepared!" Seungmin and I chuckle when Felix reveals a whole pack of soft snacks from his bag.

"Thank you, guys..."

"It's nothing." Seungmin shakes his head with a little smile.

"We don't know what's making you look so sad, but I just know what would make you smile." Felix opens a file and a few videos come on screen. "Tada! Let's laugh at all these cringe-ass films."

"Why do you have a copy of the Philosophy projects?" I look at him in awe. "I didn't know Ms. Meen trusts you with these."

"It's not me." The freckled boy points to the spectacled one with his lips. "He's the teacher's pet. Anyway, it's already graded so we can watch it without getting in trouble."

"So that's where my missing flash drive went!" Seungmin sighs. "I am so close to disowning you."

"Yes, okay, genius." Felix just laughs. "Let's begin!"

We started with their group since they got the highest score. Seungmin is really so smart for discussing the seven different forms of love in their project. He uses good examples with Felix and Donghyuck doing whatever in the background.

Next is Renjun's group and they're rather... chaotic. I don't know why but Jaemin seems to be flirting with the camera, and then the next moment there'd be this weird tension between him and Jeno as they fight for Renjun's attention. I guess that counts as love?

"Why don't we look at Jisung's attempt at confess-- ow!" Seungmin glares at Felix when he slaps his hand.

"I thought there was a mosquito. Heh." Felix turns to me. "Don't mind him, but yes, let's watch yours!"

"I'm actually so curious how the project with the second highest grade looks like." Seungmin says once he recovers from Felix's tiny slap.

"Me too. I've never actually seen it."

"Eh?"

"I did most of the planning but the guys put it together. I don't know why they wouldn't let me see." I pout.

"Hmm." Seungmin squints at the screen. "Curiouser and curiouser."

I hold my breath as Felix hits play.

Oh.

The video ends and I don't know what to feel.

"Is this why you got a 96? That's so aesthetic~ Oh my!" Felix giggles. "It looks like a music video, right, Seung?"

"I must say that it's pleasing to look at." Seungmin nods.

I can't help but blush at their feedback. I don't know how to react... because the whole video is just me.

The video starts with the lovelocks, and then all the mini clips I took of my groupmates. After just a minute of them, it's all me. I thought they'd just put my explanation on our topic as a voiceover but the videos are included too. There's me talking with cats on my lap. There's me memorising from my notebook by the rooftop railings. There's me rambling about the project as we ate lunch. They did use my voiceover, but it's on top of footage of me doing other stuff. There's me tearing up over a spicy chicken. There's me getting a ball to my face in the arcade... and I can even hear his laughter. The video ends with a picture of a history book and all the butterflies just explode in my tummy.

"T-This..." I swallow. "This can't be right. Maybe they're just making fun of me?"

"Minho-hyung would never!"

"Huh?"

"Didn't you know? Lee Minho edited this by himself. Jisung told us he only made the instrumental for the background," Seungmin explains.

"But..." I bite my lower lip. "But that can't be. It's just me."

"Yeah, we've seen the video." Felix nods. "Why would you think he'd be teasing you?"

"Our topic was about the love we have for beauty."

"And?" He tilts his head.

"And it's me in the video."

"And what's the problem with that?"

I shake my head and purse my lips, not knowing what to say.

Seungmin smirks. "Don't you get it, Y/n?"

"What? What doesn't she get?" Felix prods.

"When he thinks of beauty, that's what he sees."

My heart skips a beat, then it starts racing.

"Oh!" Felix claps. "That's so smooth of him! He's a little weird though. Everyone already agrees that Y/n is pretty, but I don't get what the history book is for? That's so random."

Seungmin chuckles. "I agree with that one."

I want to tell them that it's not random, but I refuse to open my lips now because I might start crying.

History. Barely passing grade. Shouting at the rooftop. Disturbing his nap. Telling me how to curse properly.

A history book for the first time we met each other.