❝ Silence is beautiful, not awkward. The human tendency to be afraid of something beautiful is awkward. ❞

━ ELLIOTT KAY.

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flashbacks | primary school

KWON CHAERIN.

Footsteps echoed in the hallways, and all of us knew who was coming. There was one unoccupied and we all had prepared ourselves to welcome the owner. The mixture of anxiety and worry swirled within me as the footsteps sound became more audible, more, and more.

Some of our lips were sewn firmly forming a straight line, and the other half curved into a smirk as they anticipated his reaction of the small surprise.

The footsteps finally stopped as it reached the classroom door. Not only smirks, but now sinister chuckles emitted from the boys who were the main sponsors of this surprise.

As the door slid open, the person who we've been waiting for entered the classroom with a smile as usual. My heart skipped a beat once his eyes landed on the blackboard.

Kim Taehyung is a nuisance, you should stay away from us.

Was written on the board with chalk. There were also some drawings and scribbles of unpleasant things to mock him. I felt bad for him, wanting to stand up, but that feeling dispersed once mother's words came into my mind. Besides, this whole thing was very new for me, it's very different from, it's out of daily cycle, it's sort of... interesting yet concerning. There was a certain mixture of feeling that grew inside me, something that I had yet to crack.

The boys giggled as Taehyung stood there frozen. Tears threatened to fall from his eyes but he immediately shrugged it off somehow and smiled again. Instead of crying, he erased the writings by his own.

Surely, the boys who had planned all this weren't pleased by the sight and gritted their teeth. As long as Taehyung didn't feel miserable, they wouldn't stop. While me, I felt nothing since I had no intention to bully him at the first place nor I wanted to help him either. I had to keep my record clean so my parents wouldn't nag me, wouldn't threaten to disown me, wouldn't see me as a disgrace. I had to be selfish just like what they taught me.

"Wah~ that is very nasty!" One of the boys cooed as he hopped off of his chair and walked towards Taehyung, hands shoved in his pockets.

Whatever his intention was, it wouldn't be a good one. It was predictable that another bad thing would happen. I gulped nervously as I waited to see what he would do.

"Taehyung, let me erase that for you," he spoke and harshly snatched the eraser from Taehyung's hand. He began erasing the board for real, but smirk never left his face while the naive mute boy repeatedly bowed to him to express his gratitude. If only he knew what lies behind the kind treatment he received from the notorious boy...

Taehyung stood there while the boy kept erasing. His smirk grew wider before he purposely slipped off the eraser from his hand and it fell to Taehyung's face, causing him to cough from the debris. It also left black stains on his face.

However, the boy maintained to feign a concerned expressed, as if it was only an accident. "Taehyung, are you okay? Oh gosh, I'm so sorry." He put extra work on his act by crouching down and patting Taehyung's shoulder.

Taehyung shook his head and tried to tell him it was okay through his body gestures. Half of my classmates couldn't contain their laughter anymore, so they burst it out. While me, I genuinely didn't know what to feel after seeing Taehyung's smile.

I was impressed by him. No matter what people threw at him, his face never lost its gleam. However, even the strongest person has a breakdown point as well. All we had to do was wait until Taehyung reached his limit.

If only I was stronger back then...