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Kang Dae-ho is the type of guy most people like (but still get made fun of), especially his female classmates. They all think he’s just a sweetheart, really, and he appreciates it. His male classmates? Well, not too much. But there are cool guys out there whom he gets along with.
He doesn’t expect to be friends with everyone, it’s real-life high school, not the musical ones that he watched on television with his sisters. Dae-ho is very pleased with his small friend group, the people who look out for him and care for him.
He thought they were all he needed for his high school years. But recently? A certain group had caught his eye. They weren’t good kids at all. Oh no, but they’re not the worst, just one of the worst! Doesn’t make it any better, but sure.
Gi-hun (a really cool senior) advised that he should stay away from him. So did Jung-bae and Young-il. They spoke of those students as if they were wanted criminals (they probably are wanted for theft). But that’s not the point!
Genuinely, he has no idea what made him so interested. Well, maybe he does know the moment it began, but why? Just a few weeks ago, Dae-ho was standing in line with Jun-hee. She always liked standing near him, a nice girl. Unfortunately, she’s a pregnant teenager. He looks out for her a lot, using his size to prevent others from pushing against her. Poor girl. Anyway, since he was standing behind Jun-hee, a guy bumped into him instead.
No apologies came afterwards, Dae-ho doesn’t care too much to be honest. “What the fuck?” the student mutters. That’s when he turns around and is met by him. Squinting his eyes judgmentally at Dae-ho, those cat-like eyes shot right through him. That guy with similar hair to Dae-ho. Long ebony hair with bangs cupping around his face perfectly. Even when he was just standing there, for a moment, time stopped (only for Dae-ho).
Wow, is this what falling in love feels like? Nam-gyu scowls at him. His delusions are quickly broken when a tattooed hand wraps around Nam-gyu’s shoulders. “What are you lookin’ at?” Thanos raised an eyebrow, sharing that exact gaze with Nam-gyu. They’re eyeing him up and down.
“Uh, nothing.” Dae-ho fumbles, “You’re imagining things.” Smoke practically steams from his head as he turns back. Even then, he can still feel the two pairs of eyes burning at his back. Embarrassing. This was horrendous.
Dae-ho wasn’t too interested in school gossip, but he is now. His name was Nam-gyu, and the other guy’s was Su-bong. But apparently, nobody could call him that except Nam-gyu. Su-bong is a rapper, stage name Thanos. He fits the image of one, not to mention how eye-catching his look is. “I mean… Purple hair with blue contacts? Even tattoos and painted nails – how does the school allow that?!” he indeed has been ranting about them for the past couple of minutes, or more. Surprisingly, he finds himself talking about Thanos more than Nam-gyu.
But they all look pretty fed up and confused at the same time at his sudden interest.
“Why are you so interested in them?” Jun-hee questions curiously. The other nods in with her. Dae-ho still doesn’t have an answer. “You know, you shouldn’t get too close to them.”
“Especially those two.” Jung-bae chimes in with a serious expression. “Thanos and Nam-gyu, they’re the biggest assholes ever,” Dae-ho admits, it’s weird hearing his senior curse. Were they that bad?
Gi-hun sighs, leaning in towards him. “They pulled a few pranks, and Jung-bae is still mad about it,” he explains. “But he’s still right. There’s no reason for you to approach those troublemakers, alright?” Gi-hun squeezes Dae-ho’s shoulder reassuringly. He’s right.
Everybody is right.
But. Dae-ho can’t help it when his gaze travels to Nam-gyu during class. Or how Thanos skips by him in the hallways. They always have these smug grins on their faces when staring back at him (yeah, he has been caught multiple times). Dae-ho also notices that they’re a group of five, which includes a totally badass chick with piercings (a bit intimidating, although), a timid guy who’s quite adorable, and another guy who also has that shit-eating grin on his face.
He assumes the shy one is the nicest. That’s exactly why he approaches him first. No hidden motives or anything he tells himself.
Dae-ho is standing right there when the guy shuts his locker. He inevitably jumps when he sees him. It’s rather amusing. Is this what bullies feel like? “So, what’s your name?” he plays it smooth despite that he’s been searching for the right moment the entire day. It’s not his fault they’re always together!
The guy lowers his head slightly, looking reluctant. “Park Min-su,” he eventually answers quietly. Dae-ho doesn’t wait for him to talk again; he just knows it would take forever to wait for Min-su. Don’t ask him how he knows, he just does.
“Cool, I’m Kang Dae-ho.” he’s like playing the nonchalance very well, right? “Your friends,” he begins, and then his brain short-circuits.
Right, Min-su’s friends, who include Thanos and Nam-gyu. What else does he say? Was this all entirely an impulsive move? Truth be told, Dae-ho hadn’t planned any further than this. Sure, he’s been thinking the whole day - but he didn’t expect it to go this well. So he just.. “My friends? What about them?” Min-su furrows his eyebrows defensively.
“Yeah, what about us?” a female voice cuts right through his thoughts. Dae-ho is the one jumping now; he flinches like an idiot and immediately whips his head around. “Go on, don’t let me interrupt you,” she probes with clear suspicion in her tone.
Min-su brightens up at her presence, gaining more confidence in the process. “Se-mi,” he says with relief. Did Dae-ho look that mean? Did it look like he was bullying him, because he has a feeling that something is going to happen very soon?
He’s gonna get ganged up on - and he does unfortunately.
Dae-ho barely has time to register what’s happening, but his back is pressed against a locker. Min-su is on his right with a small frown, Se-mi standing right beside him with something close to annoyance on her face. Gyeong-su (Dae-ho just learnt his name) is on his left with a puzzled but offended look. Hey, what did Dae-ho even do? He just asked a question!
And right in the middle is the pair that’s stuck together by the hips, Thanos and Nam-gyu. They have this satisfied expression of amusement. “What do you want?” Nam-gyu folds his arms in front of his chest, leaning closer once Thanos pulls him in by the shoulder. Dae-ho feels as if his heart just twisted a bit. Knots begin forming in his stomach. Though he isn’t quite sure what he is feeling.
Gyeong-su joins in with a scoff, “What did you say to Min-su?” his tone is cocky as he shoves Dae-ho’s shoulder. They’re all demanding an answer.
Instinctively, his eyes shoot to Min-su. He tries to gain pity points from him with his wide puppy eyes. It works like a charm, “Dae-ho didn’t say anything…” he continues after a pause, “—yet. But he was going to ask something about us.”
“Ohh my boy, you must’ve been so confused!” Thanos calls out with a pout, “Don’t worry, Thanos here will take care of it for you.” his blue eyes immediately shoot to Dae-ho. Se-mi groans. Soon enough, she’s dragging Min-su out of here. Gyeong-su is also told off by Nam-gyu. He looks like a kicked puppy but reluctantly agrees to leave after Thanos states that this is ‘personal business.’
Now this leaves Dae-ho with the pair. “Now you, boy.” Thanos snickers, “I know me and Nam-gyu are great. But you really can’t keep your eyes off us, can you?” he makes a motion with his finger, forming a peace sign and tapping it at his eyes and then pointing them straight at Dae-ho. He stiffens with discomfort. Yet excitement courses through his veins.
Nam-gyu smirks smugly, cocking his head to the side. “What’s with the change you ass?” it hurts a little being called that, but there’s no intention to offend based on his tone. The way Thanos makes Dae-ho feel is completely different from Nam–gyu; yet, they’re both so strikingly familiar too. It’s strange…
“I have no idea what you’re–” “Don’t try giving us that bullshit again.” Nam-gyu grabs his collar, leaning in dangerously with that glare. “I’ll ask you one last time . What’s your deal?” is an indirect threat; Dae-ho swallows the lump in his throat.
Thanos clicks his tongue disapprovingly, propping himself against the locker. “Kang Dae-ho..” he tuts. How does he even know his name? “You share many classes with Nam-su here, I’m jealous.”
“Nam-gyu,” the cat-eyed guy corrects.
“Right, so you see Nam-gyu every day basically. Don’t you?” Thanos is talking as if he doesn’t see Nam-gyu every day. And of course, Dae-ho does too. It’s completely unintentional, he doesn’t control how many lessons he shares with Nam-gyu. Wasn’t that obvious? Apparently not, because Thanos does a 180. He completely flips, looming over Dae-ho intimidatingly (he’s not even taller, they’re the same height, literally).
“I… do?” It’s so stupid how he answers with a questioning tone. It’s like he’s unsure himself.
Thanos continues with wide eyes, “Do you?” Was this some intimidation tactic? Because it’s working. Dae-ho feels trapped between the guys.
An audible sigh as Nam-gyu brushes his hair behind his ears. Nam-gyu has freckled skin. He wears rings like Thanos, too. He also has tattoos on his arms. They both have really dry lips. What? What the hell was that? He snaps out of it when Thanos wraps a hand around his nape and pulls him in. Wow, his hand is really warm. “Listen, boy, you want something, you say it directly to the great Thanos.”
Nam-gyu tugs on Dae-ho’s ear. “It’s so annoying, you hear me?” His hand is unbelievably cold. That must be why he always pulls his sleeves over his hands, forming those sweater paws. It must also be why Nam-gyu constantly clings onto Thanos, hands all over each other. Thanos was warm, he must’ve just been seeking body heat. Or were they just naturally touchy people? Dae-ho wants to find out for himself, is that so wrong?
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know - I was just… um…” he manages to get out the first few words at least. Dae-ho shifts his gaze to the ground, shifting his weight to his other foot uncomfortably. This is so stupid. He’s so stupid. What’s even going on? Is Dae-ho getting bullied right now? He genuinely can’t tell.
Another smile plays on Thanos’ pink lips. “I have a concert this Friday, you know.” he raises an eyebrow, as if trying to provoke a reaction. But Dae-ho remains dumbfounded, unfortunately.
“I’ve got tickets, it’s going to be fire, bro.” Nam-gyu brags, nudging the other with his elbow.
Thanos nods his head, “You know it is. You are going to the legend Thanos’ concert, it’s going to be everything you’ve ever needed.” his tone drips with arrogance, but there’s this teasing look in his eye whenever they make eye contact.
Dae-ho frankly has no idea what to make of this. The topic switch was too sudden. They were all just ganging up on him earlier. Now they’re talking like they’re his friends. “Dae-ho! What are you doing?” Jung-bae calls out from afar. Their heads all turned towards the senior. Nam-gyu looks particularly bored with it.
“Are they bothering you?” Young-il knits his eyebrows together with concern. Dae-ho relaxes upon seeing the familiar faces. It’s good to have people look out for you. He wouldn’t know what to do without his seniors and Jun-hee!
For a moment, he considers excusing himself and leaving as quickly as possible. But something stops him. It just feels wrong , leaving them like this. He doesn’t want to either; he’ll admit it. A quick shake of his head, and he immediately yells back. “No, I’m fine over here! I’ll come soon!” Nam-gyu and Thanos react positively to his words. Jung-bae only looks further worried, as if he’s about to come over here himself. Thankfully, Gi-hun pulls him away. Young-il follows the man and does the same, patting Jung-bae’s back comfortingly. Jun-hee follows behind after waving at him.
“Interesting choice of friends,” Nam-gyu purses his lips together. For some reason, it sounds like he’s sugarcoating whatever he wanted to say. It’s out of character, but Dae-ho appreciates the effort. “Back to what I was saying, I’ve got free tickets,” he huffs pridefully.
“Uh, yeah. That’s great for you. ” He still fails to see how any of this concerns him. “That's totally cool. I hope you guys have fun.” This is how it should’ve ended, with Dae-ho returning to his group and this interaction being forgotten forever (not really, he’s never going to forget this). But instead, Thanos grabs his arm and pulls him back.
They’re both closer to him now, shoving his back onto the locker again. It’s surprisingly gentle handling, although. “You’re coming,” Nam-gyu states blankly, running his hand through his hair nonchalantly.
“What?”
“What, you’ve got something better to do? Something greater than my concert?”
“... No, I don’t…”
A crumbled piece of paper is shoved in his hands slyly. Nam-gyu gives him that smirk, his gaze lingers longer than usual. “Good, I’ll text you.”
And… they’re already leaving. Dae-ho watches them disappear down the hallway, moving like two idiots who think they own the place. Thanos is half-rapping under his breath. Nam-gyu’s hands are stuffed in his sleeves again, but only so he can tug at Thanos’ hoodie. They’re not even looking back at him, like they already know he’s going to show up.
Dae-ho unfolds the paper delicately, afraid it might rip. Although, wouldn’t that be for the best? Because he knows trouble is stirring up gradually. But he still sloppily grabs his phone from his pocket, almost dropping it too. And then he enters the two contact numbers into it. Two new contacts on his phone, Nam-gyu and Thanos.
Next thing he knows, it’s after school on Friday. His phone is spammed with text messages before it rings. He answers the phone, “Where the fuck are you? I’m outside.” the caller scolds him. Dae-ho checks his appearance in the mirror one last time before heading out.