Growing Up in Ferngrave [A Seventeen Fanfiction]

Chapter 8: Fourth Grade and First Crushes

  As mentioned before, in terms of popularity when it came to girls, Seokmin was number one. Perhaps it was the boyish smile, with white straight teeth lined perfectly and eye crinkling in the most adoring way. Or perhaps it was the sense of humor, everybody knew that Seokmin was always happy and a good time to be around. Whatever it was, it was working, quite well. The entrance into fourth grade made that all too apparent.

•

"Another letter?" Mingyu marveled as Seokmin pushed a little pink note off of his desk quite carelessly. "You could make a whole posther from the amount of letterth you've been getting every morning!"

Mingyu only spoke the truth. Since the first day of fourth grade, Seokmin had been finding little notes written by girls entailing their undying affection for him. Well, the words in the note weren't so elegant as to allude to something like undying affection, but you could get a good idea of what contents they had. It was truly amazing what little girls who were barely at the age of ten could write so shamelessly.

Seokmin, who seemed completely unbothered for someone so desirable, only shrugged carelessly. "I guess."

Seungkwan, with a smile that seemed a slightly bit too forced, fought a twitch in his brow as he reached down to pick up the paper. Crumbling the paper tightly into a ball, he then threw it towards a nearby trash can and muttered. "This is ridiculous. What does he have that I don't?"

You giggled upon hearing his gritted words. "Jealousy isn't a good color on you, Kwannie."

"Aish, shut—,"

"What happened to no more S word?" Wonwoo's smile was teasing. Seungkwan sputtered helplessly, finally resorting to flapping his arms threateningly at you and Wonwoo who only laughed at his exasperation.

"Maybe that'th why no one liketh you, you thay the 'eth' word thoo much." Seungkwan made a face as spit came flying towards him from Mingyu's direction. Mingyu's lisp had gotten a bit too overpowering after he lost a front tooth the week before school began.

"And I'm sure you're a real Romeo with your missing tooth." Seungkwan's words dripped with sarcasm, earning a laugh from all of your group save for Mingyu who was not in the least pleased at the comment about his teeth.

"Hey! At least I've got most of my big boy teeth out already, you don't even have half of your teeth out yet."

"Eomma says I'm just a late bloomer."

"Don't look now," Wonwoo interrupted Mingyu and Seungkwan's squabble cleanly, only to gesture behind them. The five of you turned to see a girl standing at the door. But it wasn't any ordinary girl. It was Jenny Sport. A fifth grader.

"It's Jenny Thport!" Mingyu gasped.

"What do you think she's here for?" You wondered aloud.

"Don't tell me..." Seungkwan began, his voice and expression in awe.

The five of you watched in bated silence as Jenny entered your classroom with her hands behind her back. She looked flushed almost, as if she were slightly embarrassed about something. That something became all to obvious when she shot a letter out to Seokmin and scurried away like a madman without a single word.

"You've gotta be joking..." Seungkwan continued, a hand coming to his hair in outrage. "A fifth grader likes you too?!"

"Oh, well, I don't know, this letter could be about anything." Even Seokmin didn't sound sure of himself, especially with the heart stickers that practically covered the envelope in his hand.