SPIDER-MAN: MARK LEE

17

𝟭𝟳: 𝗝𝗨𝗦𝗧 𝗙𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗦

When the bell rung throughout the entire school, English class ended and Mr Kim dismissed everybody. All rose from their seats and dashed out of the room, all having the same destination in their minds: The canteen. I trusted that my friends already saved a spot for me in the canteen, so I was as calm as the breeze in spring. As you could see, I was completely alone in English class because none of my friends have this class, they have it after lunch. I quite enjoyed lonely classes, it gave me the concentration I needed.

"Hey, Juliane."

I diverted my attention to the my tote bag, that I was currently filling up with all my belongings. I turned around, and I saw Gwen approaching with one of her pretty smiles. I returned one too. "Oh, hi Gwen. What's up?"

Gwen took her stance next to my table and watched me pack up, her arms tightening around the books she held. "I just wanted to ask about something. An arbitrary question, I would say." She laughed timidly. Her cheeks somewhat flushing mysteriously. It looked cute on her.

A bit confused, I cocked an eyebrow before wrapping the straps of my tote bag around my shoulder. "What is it?" I said with an assuring tone. She seemed like she was hesitating to pose the inquiry, so I ensured her with comfort.

Initially, I thought it was something about the nationals. But it wasn't.

"It's about your friend, Mark Lee." Gwen began, and this peaked my curiosity. When Gwen noticed how my face turned a bit serious, she shot one of her timid laugh again. "Well... I mean, I'm not sure if he's your friend. Do you like him?"

That was indeed an arbitrary question.

"Uhh..." I said awkwardly. I looked around the room, noticing that Mr Kim was eavesdropping, so I suggested Gwen and I to take a stroll down the hallway. And when we did, we proceeded the chat. "No. I don't have anything going on with Mark. We're just... friends." I rolled my tongue against my cheek after uttering the last word. God, I hated that word so much.

Gwen smiled gleefully. "Oh, okay good."

I didn't hesitate to give her a bewildered expression, almost a bit judging, which I felt guilty of. "Why do you ask?"

"Just wanted to make sure. It wouldn't be too nice to hold study dates with someone's crush. Am I right?" Gwen explained considerately.

Considerate or not, it somewhat ticked me off. I mean it was a natural feeling, when discovering somebody being close to your crush. Especially when it was your crush's crush. I feigned a smile, a weak one. "Oh don't worry, nothing's between me and Mark. Why? Do you like him?"

There was an obvious tint of redness on her skin that spreaded not only on her freckled cheeks, but her entire face. "Oh.. Well-"

"Hey! Juliane Moon right?" A somewhat high-pitched and energetic voice interrupted.

I could've sworn I almost cussed on whoever it was, but I turned around and saw one of The Flashes, Chenle Zhong, with his tall friend next to him, Jisung Park. The two Junior students now ambled next to us, one had a huge grin on his lips, the other had a shy one. These two were actually pretty popular in school. Chenle was known because obviously, he was an extraordinary basketball player, and him being rich added to his popularity. Meanwhile, Jisung was known for being his handsome friend.

"Uhh, yeah that's me." I said, confused.

Chenle flashed his pearly whites. "Your friend Mark Lee, was badass yesterday. Such a shame he didn't go to tryouts for basket this year. Anyways, I'm throwing a party tomorrow for the victory of The Flashes. Everyone is invited. Invite your friend Mark Lee, in fact, invite all of your friends."

"Oh... The tournament ended?" I asked confused. I didn't recall Naomi updating me about this.

"No, we're holding the match tonight. They just fixed the hoop in the gym. I just know we're winning." Chenle explained with a small shrug.

Damn. This kid's confidence was on another level. "Oh... Okay then."

And so we continued trudging down the hallway as an unexpected foursome. Juniors and Seniors together. Who would've thought?

Amid enjoying each other's company, we didn't know that chaos was about to happen.