Chapter Text
First day of university. Should sound exciting, right? For Jisung, it was the day he dreaded the most. He was so nervous, even if all of his friends would be there. Chan, Changbin and Seungmin are already in their second year, while the rest starts with them. But no one majors in psychology. So he’s going to be left alone for at least a couple of hours. Maybe it would be an opportunity to meet new people? He wasn’t bad at it. People seemed to like him, even if he might sometimes come off as awkward, but you can blame it on his anxiety. At least that’s what he’s been telling himself, standing in front of the mirror. He was constantly fixing his hair or his shirt.
“You’re gonna do great.” Hyunjin said, patting Jisung on the back, “But now, come on or Chan won’t drive us to the campus.”
Did Jisung mention they all were living in an apartment outside the campus? It was Felix who offered it, saying he would miss all of them too much if they were living in dorms. They all have been friends since middle school, so it seemed valid to live together while at university. It also saved Jisung lots of nerves if he’d have to meet his potential roommate. Now he was sharing a room with Hyunjin, whom he knew most of his life. The perfect outcome.
“Wanna do groceries after the lectures?” he asked Hyunjin when they were walking downstairs to Chan’s car. “I forgot to buy rice the last time we went.”
“Sure. I finish at 4 pm. Meet me by the fountain we saw when Chan was showing us around?” Hyunjin handed Jisung his bag, and they got inside the car.
Throughout the entire ride, Jisung was gripping his thighs. He knew once he got to the lecture hall the fear would vanish, but it was always like that. Although he didn’t let the fear overtake him, letting it sit inside him, making his stomach twitch with nerves. Rather than making him shake and panic.
“I can’t believe I have lectures with Kim for the second year in a row.” Chan was complaining from behind the driver's seat “I literally thought I’d drop the class because of her.”
That’s something Jisung could focus on. His friends talking about their previous experiences. Maybe he could get something valuable out of it? Even if they were studying different things than him. With Chan being a computer science major and Changbin studying music production. Hyunjin was typing something on his phone, and Felix was dozing off with his head against the window. Jisung was the first one to get out of the car, since his building was the closest.
“Knock them dead.” Hyunjin said, taking his place in the car so they’d have more space in the backseat. “Just, you know, not literally.”
“Yeah, let me go and punch my professor.” Jisung laughed, closing the door.
Now he’s all alone in front of a big building. It’s at least 5 floors high and has big windows. Jisung wondered where the library might be. He opened his schedule and slowly found his way to the lecture hall, managing not to bump into anyone on his way there. Once he got there, the door was already open and people were walking inside, so he followed the crowd. Maybe he wants to meet new people, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to sit in the front row. Hell no, he’s not that diligent. There it is. Most places in the back were taken, but everyone left one next to someone empty. Jisung has no idea why, but he’s definitely going to sit there before someone else changes their mind.
“Is this seat taken?” he asked the boy, who was sitting there but was ignored
Well, maybe he got a bad night’s sleep? Doesn’t really matter. Jisung carefully sat down and heard a few gasps. That’s a way to make a good first impression. Their professor was late, so Jisung took his time to take out his notebook because he was so nervous he forgot his laptop and stopped himself from scrolling his phone. The guy next to him didn’t seem to move and Jisung looked over at him. He might as well try to make friends with his new desk mate.
“Hi, I’m Jisung.” he said, trying to grab his attention and when that didn’t work he gently poked him with his pen “What’s your name?”
Only after poking him did the boy look at him with a suspicious look in his eyes. He seemed really tired, with dark bags under eyes, hollow cheeks and chapped lips. This doesn’t look healthy at all.
“Why are you sitting here?” the mysterious boy asked in a tired voice
“The seat was free, and you didn’t object.” Jisung shrugged. “So what’s your name?” he repeated his question
“I highly doubt you need that information.” he said, wanting to turn away and end the conversation, but Jisung didn’t let him
“Seems like we’re going to be stuck together for the next hour and a half. Might as well try to get to know each other.” Jisung said quickly not to lose his attention
“Stuck. That’s a good way to put it.” the boy said quietly, looking down at his hands.
“I’m Jisung.” Jisung extended his hand. He got a good vibe from him and when he felt that, he was really persistent. Even if the boy looked scary and mean. Everyone deserves a chance. “And you?”
“If I tell you, will you stop talking?” Jisung only smiled when the boy finally seemed less tense than a few moments ago. “Minho.” They shook hands and Jisung looked around.
Everyone was staring at them with a pure shock on their faces. What is going on here?