Make New Friends (for hidden_onigiri)
Title: Make New Friends
Recipient: hidden_onigiri
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 2K
Warning(s): none
Summary: There's that kid in the back of the class...
Junior took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as he absorbed his surroundings. “Do you smell that, Jackson?”
“Smell what, your farts?”
“The fresh smell of… Something new. Something fresh,” Jinyoung continued, ignoring his friend’s immature comments for the time being.
“The fresh smell of something fresh, wow, you could totally be a poet,” Jackson answered, still looking down at his phone.
“Shut your mouth and pay attention to me. Today is going to be a great day; this is going to be a great year. It’s a new start, a new me!” Jinyoung said, throwing his hands in the air as if he were some anime protagonist.
“You do realize you said this exact same thing last year, Jinyoung? And then you did the exact same thing you always do, suck up to teachers and have no friends. Way to be original. Natalia Kills would be ashamed,” answered Jackson, unrelenting in his fun game of “mock Jinyoung for being a nerd.”
“Shut up. I go by Junior now. And being smart is better than ‘being cool’ or whatever. Being smart will get me places, being sassy will get you detention. As the head of the Student Council, I can do that to you,” Jinyoung, or rather, Junior, countered.
“See. A nerd. Or should I say, hipster nerd. Those are the worst, you know, you should be glad I’m still friends with you.”
“Whatever, get to class before the bell rings, or we really will get in trouble.”
-
Junior stepped into his new class and made his way to the front desks, only to be greeted with a seating chart. “Uhg, it’s one of those classes,” he heard somebody say behind him. Upon seeing his own seat, he completely agreed. He had been placed in the very back, where all the delinquent children were. What was the meaning of this? How would he make a good impression if he was seated in the back of the classroom? Junior could only hope that his seatmate would be a nice, neat student. And so he went on with his life, hoping for better luck next year.
-
It had been a month or so, and Junior had learned that his seat mate… Well, he was neat. And he wasn’t mean, so it could be assumed they were nice. But Junior couldn’t really tell, all his seatmate had done throughout the days had been sleep, or listen to music. In class. Oh, the horrors. Although, it did make Junior wonder what he could be listening to. A few times he had seen the boy sketching something in his notebooks (instead of taking notes like a normal person), but it had been quickly covered up by the boy’s head as he planted his face back into his desk and his mind into the land of dreams.
Junior didn’t even know the boy’s name, and he couldn’t be sure whether or not the boy knew his, as he hadn’t been able to introduce himself the first day, and was far too shy to for the rest. They had never spoken a word to each other, not even to ask for a pencil. Junior desperately wanted to make conversation with the boy, but he couldn’t bring himself to as he felt he had missed the right time.
And so the days passed, until one day at the end of the class the teacher asked for Junior and an “Im Jaebum” to stay after class. Junior had gone up to the teacher’s desk, looking around for who the other boy could be, wondering why in the world he had been called up. It was at that moment that Junior noticed his seatmate still in his seat. For a moment, Junior thought that perhaps his seatmate was this mysterious “Jaebum,” but then again, it might have just been the kid sleeping after class again.
So Junior was surprised when he saw the student get up and come to the front. He still hadn’t said a word, merely raising his eyebrows when the teacher looked up at him.
“Hello, you two! I’m sure you are wondering why I’ve called the two of you to stay after
class,” the teacher said, and paused as if waiting for some sort of response. Junior nodded vigorously, and Jaebum lowered his eyebrows. “Well, I’ve decided you two could make really great study buddies!”
“I’m sorry?” Junior asked, slightly confused.
“Well, Jinyoung, as the class president, don’t you think it would be nice of you to interact with some of your peers? And, perhaps, nudge them along the right path,” the teacher said, smile darkening her face. “Not that, Jaebum, you are in any way on a wrong path, I just think it would be good for you to try to open yourself up to some more academic choices?”
“What?” Junior said, still not having completely grasped the situation.
He jumped a little when the person next to him sighed loudly. “She’s saying that I’m failing and you should tutor me,” Jaebum put out bluntly.
“No, no, no. Not at all, I don’t want you to misunderstand. It’s a new program that some teachers have going with their students! Pair a couple of them together to help each other. That kind of great thing,” the teacher assured. “But yes, be sure to get together twice a week, an hour at a time. Since you are class president, Jinyoung, I expect some high results. My next class will be in soon, so why don’t you two go ahead and head out now,” she concluded, pushing the two out of the classroom.
“But… It’s her planning period…” Junior stuttered.
“That’s what you’re most concerned about? Whatever, I’ve got to go,” Jaebum shrugged, pulling up his headphones and getting ready to go.
“Wait!” Junior called, coming back to his senses. “We have to plan out when to meet and all that.”
“You’re serious? That’s complete bullshit, you know. I’ve got better things to do.”
Junior sputtered, “But of course I’m serious! The teacher expects me to help you, and I will!”
“Yes sir, class president Jinyoung. You do that. I however, have a life and things to do.
I’ll be on my way then,” Jaebum said, sashaying away from Junior, down the hall.
“Well!” Junior called after the retreating figure, “We can decide on that next time, I guess! And my name is actually Junior!”
“Yeah, ok, and you can call me ‘JB.’”
-
“HEY there, Jaebum!” Junior said, jogging up to the boy. The same boy who ignored Junior and continued to walk straight forward and out of school. “Wait, stop! You can’t leave yet, it’s both of our free periods and I have to tutor you! Plus, school isn’t out yet. Skipping is truancy, and that is illegal,” he tried to reason.
There was no response, as Jaebum kept moving forward. Can he not hear me?Junior thought as he drew closer to him. “Boo!” he said, tapping Jaebum on the shoulders.
“What the hell?” Jaebum finally said, pulling out both ear buds.
“Oh.”
“What do you want? Go away,” he growled, continuing forward.
“So you weren’t ignoring me!” Junior shouted, still following behind. “Must mean that you don’t hate me that much. What are you listening to anyway?” he asked, legs working faster to keep up.
Jaebum continued walking forward, and it may have been Junior’s mind playing tricks, but he was pretty sure he sped up, too.
“Can you… Can you slow down a bit?” he gasped out. “Wow. You must be really busy, right?” he said, reaching out to grab onto Jaebum’s shoulder.
This finally made the other boy stop. Or rather, jerk to a halt and turn around. “What the hell. Don’t touch me,” he said, huffing as he shook off his shoulder.
“I just, I just want to tutor you, or whatever, and have you get some good grades, okay? And I’m trying to be a nice good citizen, or whatever. Gosh, there’s no need to curse at me,” Junior defended, taking a small step back. A very, very small step. He wasn’t scared. At least, not that much.
Jaebum sighed, turning back around and continuing on his path. “Just shut up. Can’t you see I’m busy right now?”
“Wait, but I really do need to tutor you, she said it could reflect badly if I, the class president, wasn’t able to help the whole class achieve a higher average.” Junior was about to continue his tirade, but decided it was a good idea to shut up after seeing Jaebum’s glare. “Or, I’ll just let you go on, and I can go back to school. See you later, Jay Bee.”
Jaebum just sighed, shaking his head before finally continuing on his way. That is, until a voice called out to him. “Hey, I’m super sorry but… I don’t really know where we are and… You know what can I just follow you? Not in a creepy way, just, until we reach somewhere I recognize… That would be great, thanks.”
Jaebum didn’t seem particularly interested in babysitting Junior, but it seemed he preferred it much more than walking Junior back to school (and likely deal with the hassle of having to sneak him back in). “Fine. Keep your mouth shut, and leave when you know your bearings,” he said gruffly, looking ahead. Junior scuttled after him, wondering where they were going. He was tempted to ask, but he really was lost, so it didn’t seem like such a good idea to rile up his guide… For the moment.
They continued walking in silence for a few minutes, and just as Junior opened his mouth to pester Jaebum some more when he quickly shut it again. And then opened it again. “Where are we?”
“No questions. No noise,” Jaebum said as they headed toward the large crowd in the middle of the lot. “If you still need me to show you how to get back, you’re going to have to wait. Go sit and read one of your books or something,” Jaebum ordered, slipping into the middle of the crowd before Junior could say anything.
Left behind with nothing to do, Junior figured that he might as well do as he was told, until he heard the music coming from the middle. Curiosity peaked, he waded through the crowd to the front. So this is Jaebum’s style? I like it. Although he didn’t see the other boy among the crowd, it slipped from his mind as he watched the crew in the middle perform. Getting into the groove, he began to sway along with the crowd, laughing as he let the music run over.
“Hi!” he heard a voice say to him.
“I noticed you dancing and if you’re interested in joining… Oh, it’s you,” Jaebum said, surprised.
“Oh, yeah, it’s me. I didn’t know you liked dancing?” Junior asked. “Are you on a crew?
What’s this?” he asked, grabbing the flyer Jaebum had been holding out. “You’re leading a dance team? Impressive. Who’s in it?”
“Nobody,” he answered shortly.
“No need to be so rude, I was just asking a question. Really though, who is in it?” Junior persisted, examining the flyer.
“There’s actually nobody in it, why do you think I was recruiting?” Jaebum responded tersely.
Junior paused his talking. “Oh. And how’s that been going?”
Jaebum sighed, shaking his head. “Not particularly well. Most people here know me by my temper. You’re the first person to actually take a flyer,” he said pessimistically.
“Well that’s too bad. Although by the looks of it, I can see why people would be reluctant to join,” Junior mused.
“Oh how kind and uplifting. Anyway, are you ready to go or what, I don’t want to be too late,” Jaebum muttered.
“Turn that frown upside down!” Junior exclaimed, swinging an arm around Jaebum’s shoulders. “I just meant it as a joke. Anyway, where are we going next?”
“I don’t understand what you mean by we,” Jaebum answered, scooting out from under Junior’s arm.
“As a new dance group that is albeit made up of only two people, I think we deserve to refer to our team as a whole we, don’t you think?”
“Oh? New dance group?”
“Yes. Our name can be… JJ Project, what do you say, Jay Bee?”
“Please don’t call me that again.”
Recipient: hidden_onigiri
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 2K
Warning(s): none
Summary: There's that kid in the back of the class...
Junior took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as he absorbed his surroundings. “Do you smell that, Jackson?”
“Smell what, your farts?”
“The fresh smell of… Something new. Something fresh,” Jinyoung continued, ignoring his friend’s immature comments for the time being.
“The fresh smell of something fresh, wow, you could totally be a poet,” Jackson answered, still looking down at his phone.
“Shut your mouth and pay attention to me. Today is going to be a great day; this is going to be a great year. It’s a new start, a new me!” Jinyoung said, throwing his hands in the air as if he were some anime protagonist.
“You do realize you said this exact same thing last year, Jinyoung? And then you did the exact same thing you always do, suck up to teachers and have no friends. Way to be original. Natalia Kills would be ashamed,” answered Jackson, unrelenting in his fun game of “mock Jinyoung for being a nerd.”
“Shut up. I go by Junior now. And being smart is better than ‘being cool’ or whatever. Being smart will get me places, being sassy will get you detention. As the head of the Student Council, I can do that to you,” Jinyoung, or rather, Junior, countered.
“See. A nerd. Or should I say, hipster nerd. Those are the worst, you know, you should be glad I’m still friends with you.”
“Whatever, get to class before the bell rings, or we really will get in trouble.”
-
Junior stepped into his new class and made his way to the front desks, only to be greeted with a seating chart. “Uhg, it’s one of those classes,” he heard somebody say behind him. Upon seeing his own seat, he completely agreed. He had been placed in the very back, where all the delinquent children were. What was the meaning of this? How would he make a good impression if he was seated in the back of the classroom? Junior could only hope that his seatmate would be a nice, neat student. And so he went on with his life, hoping for better luck next year.
-
It had been a month or so, and Junior had learned that his seat mate… Well, he was neat. And he wasn’t mean, so it could be assumed they were nice. But Junior couldn’t really tell, all his seatmate had done throughout the days had been sleep, or listen to music. In class. Oh, the horrors. Although, it did make Junior wonder what he could be listening to. A few times he had seen the boy sketching something in his notebooks (instead of taking notes like a normal person), but it had been quickly covered up by the boy’s head as he planted his face back into his desk and his mind into the land of dreams.
Junior didn’t even know the boy’s name, and he couldn’t be sure whether or not the boy knew his, as he hadn’t been able to introduce himself the first day, and was far too shy to for the rest. They had never spoken a word to each other, not even to ask for a pencil. Junior desperately wanted to make conversation with the boy, but he couldn’t bring himself to as he felt he had missed the right time.
And so the days passed, until one day at the end of the class the teacher asked for Junior and an “Im Jaebum” to stay after class. Junior had gone up to the teacher’s desk, looking around for who the other boy could be, wondering why in the world he had been called up. It was at that moment that Junior noticed his seatmate still in his seat. For a moment, Junior thought that perhaps his seatmate was this mysterious “Jaebum,” but then again, it might have just been the kid sleeping after class again.
So Junior was surprised when he saw the student get up and come to the front. He still hadn’t said a word, merely raising his eyebrows when the teacher looked up at him.
“Hello, you two! I’m sure you are wondering why I’ve called the two of you to stay after
class,” the teacher said, and paused as if waiting for some sort of response. Junior nodded vigorously, and Jaebum lowered his eyebrows. “Well, I’ve decided you two could make really great study buddies!”
“I’m sorry?” Junior asked, slightly confused.
“Well, Jinyoung, as the class president, don’t you think it would be nice of you to interact with some of your peers? And, perhaps, nudge them along the right path,” the teacher said, smile darkening her face. “Not that, Jaebum, you are in any way on a wrong path, I just think it would be good for you to try to open yourself up to some more academic choices?”
“What?” Junior said, still not having completely grasped the situation.
He jumped a little when the person next to him sighed loudly. “She’s saying that I’m failing and you should tutor me,” Jaebum put out bluntly.
“No, no, no. Not at all, I don’t want you to misunderstand. It’s a new program that some teachers have going with their students! Pair a couple of them together to help each other. That kind of great thing,” the teacher assured. “But yes, be sure to get together twice a week, an hour at a time. Since you are class president, Jinyoung, I expect some high results. My next class will be in soon, so why don’t you two go ahead and head out now,” she concluded, pushing the two out of the classroom.
“But… It’s her planning period…” Junior stuttered.
“That’s what you’re most concerned about? Whatever, I’ve got to go,” Jaebum shrugged, pulling up his headphones and getting ready to go.
“Wait!” Junior called, coming back to his senses. “We have to plan out when to meet and all that.”
“You’re serious? That’s complete bullshit, you know. I’ve got better things to do.”
Junior sputtered, “But of course I’m serious! The teacher expects me to help you, and I will!”
“Yes sir, class president Jinyoung. You do that. I however, have a life and things to do.
I’ll be on my way then,” Jaebum said, sashaying away from Junior, down the hall.
“Well!” Junior called after the retreating figure, “We can decide on that next time, I guess! And my name is actually Junior!”
“Yeah, ok, and you can call me ‘JB.’”
-
“HEY there, Jaebum!” Junior said, jogging up to the boy. The same boy who ignored Junior and continued to walk straight forward and out of school. “Wait, stop! You can’t leave yet, it’s both of our free periods and I have to tutor you! Plus, school isn’t out yet. Skipping is truancy, and that is illegal,” he tried to reason.
There was no response, as Jaebum kept moving forward. Can he not hear me?Junior thought as he drew closer to him. “Boo!” he said, tapping Jaebum on the shoulders.
“What the hell?” Jaebum finally said, pulling out both ear buds.
“Oh.”
“What do you want? Go away,” he growled, continuing forward.
“So you weren’t ignoring me!” Junior shouted, still following behind. “Must mean that you don’t hate me that much. What are you listening to anyway?” he asked, legs working faster to keep up.
Jaebum continued walking forward, and it may have been Junior’s mind playing tricks, but he was pretty sure he sped up, too.
“Can you… Can you slow down a bit?” he gasped out. “Wow. You must be really busy, right?” he said, reaching out to grab onto Jaebum’s shoulder.
This finally made the other boy stop. Or rather, jerk to a halt and turn around. “What the hell. Don’t touch me,” he said, huffing as he shook off his shoulder.
“I just, I just want to tutor you, or whatever, and have you get some good grades, okay? And I’m trying to be a nice good citizen, or whatever. Gosh, there’s no need to curse at me,” Junior defended, taking a small step back. A very, very small step. He wasn’t scared. At least, not that much.
Jaebum sighed, turning back around and continuing on his path. “Just shut up. Can’t you see I’m busy right now?”
“Wait, but I really do need to tutor you, she said it could reflect badly if I, the class president, wasn’t able to help the whole class achieve a higher average.” Junior was about to continue his tirade, but decided it was a good idea to shut up after seeing Jaebum’s glare. “Or, I’ll just let you go on, and I can go back to school. See you later, Jay Bee.”
Jaebum just sighed, shaking his head before finally continuing on his way. That is, until a voice called out to him. “Hey, I’m super sorry but… I don’t really know where we are and… You know what can I just follow you? Not in a creepy way, just, until we reach somewhere I recognize… That would be great, thanks.”
Jaebum didn’t seem particularly interested in babysitting Junior, but it seemed he preferred it much more than walking Junior back to school (and likely deal with the hassle of having to sneak him back in). “Fine. Keep your mouth shut, and leave when you know your bearings,” he said gruffly, looking ahead. Junior scuttled after him, wondering where they were going. He was tempted to ask, but he really was lost, so it didn’t seem like such a good idea to rile up his guide… For the moment.
They continued walking in silence for a few minutes, and just as Junior opened his mouth to pester Jaebum some more when he quickly shut it again. And then opened it again. “Where are we?”
“No questions. No noise,” Jaebum said as they headed toward the large crowd in the middle of the lot. “If you still need me to show you how to get back, you’re going to have to wait. Go sit and read one of your books or something,” Jaebum ordered, slipping into the middle of the crowd before Junior could say anything.
Left behind with nothing to do, Junior figured that he might as well do as he was told, until he heard the music coming from the middle. Curiosity peaked, he waded through the crowd to the front. So this is Jaebum’s style? I like it. Although he didn’t see the other boy among the crowd, it slipped from his mind as he watched the crew in the middle perform. Getting into the groove, he began to sway along with the crowd, laughing as he let the music run over.
“Hi!” he heard a voice say to him.
“I noticed you dancing and if you’re interested in joining… Oh, it’s you,” Jaebum said, surprised.
“Oh, yeah, it’s me. I didn’t know you liked dancing?” Junior asked. “Are you on a crew?
What’s this?” he asked, grabbing the flyer Jaebum had been holding out. “You’re leading a dance team? Impressive. Who’s in it?”
“Nobody,” he answered shortly.
“No need to be so rude, I was just asking a question. Really though, who is in it?” Junior persisted, examining the flyer.
“There’s actually nobody in it, why do you think I was recruiting?” Jaebum responded tersely.
Junior paused his talking. “Oh. And how’s that been going?”
Jaebum sighed, shaking his head. “Not particularly well. Most people here know me by my temper. You’re the first person to actually take a flyer,” he said pessimistically.
“Well that’s too bad. Although by the looks of it, I can see why people would be reluctant to join,” Junior mused.
“Oh how kind and uplifting. Anyway, are you ready to go or what, I don’t want to be too late,” Jaebum muttered.
“Turn that frown upside down!” Junior exclaimed, swinging an arm around Jaebum’s shoulders. “I just meant it as a joke. Anyway, where are we going next?”
“I don’t understand what you mean by we,” Jaebum answered, scooting out from under Junior’s arm.
“As a new dance group that is albeit made up of only two people, I think we deserve to refer to our team as a whole we, don’t you think?”
“Oh? New dance group?”
“Yes. Our name can be… JJ Project, what do you say, Jay Bee?”
“Please don’t call me that again.”