A+, meanie

Hug

"You finally pulled that stupid move, just like your foolish sister?"

Jeon Jisoo's voice is the first thing that greets Wonwoo the next morning, as he'd just entered the house after being discharged.

"You heard?" Wonwoo makes the frustration apparent in his tone, sliding his shoes off.

"Watch your tone, Wonwoo, I just asked you a question."

"Yeah, and taunted your own daughter. She's dead, for heaven's sake. Cut her some slack, at least now that she's no more."

Even before the words had reached his dad, Wonwoo had expected to be hit. And he did, painfully, on the back. It stung, Wonwoo wonders if his dad has claws or something. "Hit me as much as your empty chest wants, but don't ever talk about Somi with that filthy mouth of yours." He spits, silently walking up to his room.

Not even five minutes since he'd returned, and he'd already been hit. Although he's heard it several times before, Wonwoo loathes it when his parents talk about Somi so heartlessly, and disrespectfully. Only if they knew how much of a great sister she was... She even spends time talking to him, despite being dead. Or that's probably Wonwoo missing her a bit too much. He doesn't know.

He slumps on his bed, things thrown aside. His head hurts a lot right now, and he has no idea of what he should be doing to mellow the ache down. Ice it? But that would numb it, Wonwoo thinks, giving up on doing anything. He'll just let it happen, it would eventually calm down. He's survived few of the worst hits from his parents earlier, surely a healing wound on his head wouldn't cause much damage?

Wonwoo thinks about the last twenty-four hours he spent at the hospital. It hadn't been too enjoyable, but he liked it when someone, even if it was Mingyu, came to see him. Of course, he was all on the news, and yet his own parents weren't bothered to check up on their son, who'd survived a fucking suicide attempt. But Mingyu came. Wonwoo still thinks the boy's insufferable, though.

The thought subconsciously brings a smile to his face, one of the rare times Wonwoo catches himself smiling. He thinks how Mingyu's the only one who has brought smiles to his face lately. It doesn't mean much, honestly. Wonwoo wouldn't want to smile anyway.

∿

"How're you feeling, Jeon?"

Mingyu runs up to greet him at Pledis the next morning. Gods, just looking at him gives Wonwoo a headache, but secretly, Wonwoo likes that someone checks up on him. It's an alien feeling, after being devoid of being looked after for so many years, ever since Somi's passing.

"Looking at you gives me a headache, so I was better, before you asked."

Seems like Mingyu took it literally, as he turns around, muttering a tiny 'Okay'. Wonwoo grabs his hand to stop him from walking away, but drops it when he realises what he just did. "I'm just kidding, I'm better now." Mingyu's eyes are wide, as he stares at his own hand, mumbling vaguely, "That's good."

"It's weird to be asked that, you know?"

"Why?"

"No one's ever done that, after her..."

"Oh. I understand. I don't have much idea either, honestly."

Wonwoo wonders what Mingyu meant saying that. Shouldn't he be having at least ten people dedicatedly running behind him, just to look after his needs and all? Shrugging it off, Wonwoo shuffles off, muttering a quiet 'Bye', and goes to his locker room.

Wonwoo thinks he might have missed it earlier, but as he walks to his classroom after getting his stuff from his locker, he notices nearly everyone looking at him weirdly. It's only Lee Chaeyeon, Mingyu's friend, who passes by without any visible reaction; he finds it strangely out of place. Wonwoo wonders what all the hushed voices, and strange stares mean. Everyone acts as if they've never heard about a student's suicide attempt before. Not that it bothers Wonwoo, he has always known people have no good things to do, which only leads them to be intrusively interested in other people's lives.