Head Down

◤eleven◢

"You know who stopped them this time?" Jaemin asks, wincing a bit when Mark dabs the cotton swab soaked in antiseptic against the corner of his lip. The elder hums, urging Jaemin to continue. At that, the latter puts his head down, picking at his cuticules. Mark wants to scold him and tell him that it's not a good habit, but before he can get a word out, Jaemin speaks. "Jeno."

The name makes Mark stop what he's doing, freezing with the cotton swab hovering in the air between the two of them. He's looking at Jaemin, staring with disbelief written all over his face, but the younger boy keeps his head down.

"What?"

Jaemin isn't surprised at Mark's reaction, as he was pretty much the same when he saw Jeno approach the group of boys. Jaemin just shrugs at Mark's question, sighing.

"'Don't touch him'. 'Let go or you'll have me to deal with'. 'He's not even that pretty, what's there to ruin?'" Jaemin cracks a smile. "He's funny, isn't he?"

"He's an idiot," Mark barks back. "What kind of asshole says those things to get people to lay off?"

Jaemin shrugs, smiling a smile which is concealed by the angle of his head.

"I don't know," the younger boy says softly, tiny smile never leaving his face. "I'm just glad he was there."

Mark has to bite his tongue in order to stop himself from asking the golden question.

What about me?

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

"Say thank you."

Mark wants to yell into the sky. But he refrains himself from doing so, he is in public, after all.

But the urge to curse at the sky and show his rage to the stars grows stronger with each second he spends standing in the park. Mark might have to start finding somewhere else to resort to when he wants to clear his mind; Donghyuck is always at this park. It isn't really helpful, especially when Donghyuck is almost always the reason he wants to clear his thoughts.

It is kind of creepy how Donghyuck always shows up whenever Mark does, but the latter doesn't want to think about it that much.

"For what?" Mark grunts out, sitting down on his usual bench. He's learned that Donghyuck never sits down on the bench, just always near it. He's always sitting on the grass, always within close proximity of the bench, but never on it. It's odd, almost as if he expects Mark's arrival. Donghyuck doesn't move from where he's seated, legs crossed as he picks at the grass in front of him. He doesn't lift up his head either, but Mark can see the sideways quirk of his lips. It makes an uncomfortable feeling set in the bottom of his stomach.

"For Jeno. And your boy."

Mark tenses, but doesn't say anything. His jaw clenches, but he keeps his mouth shut. His teeth are gritting against each other, but his lips are sealed.

Of course Donghyuck would be the reason behind someone, Jeno, finally stepping in. Donghyuck seems to be behind everything which takes part in Mark's life nowadays. He wants to scoff, but he holds it in.

"He's not my boy." Mark grits out, fists subconsciously clenching on his sides. Donghyuck notices the action, and a smirk takes place on his lips. Mark doesn't see it though, which is why he's somewhat shocked by the words Donghyuck says next.

"But you want him to be."

"Lee Donghyuck—"

"Am I wrong?" Donghyuck asks, voice cheery as he stands up. He walks slowly, his steps are small, but he soon finds himself sitting down next to Mark, staring at the other's face profile. "Your hair says it all." Mark doesn't know how Donghyuck found out the real reason why he dyed his hair, but he would be lying if he said it didn't irk him. Donghyuck seems to know everything, everyone's secrets and everyone's thoughts. It's scary, and Mark doesn't want Donghyuck to dig any deeper. "As luscious as the wine father drinks."

Mark slams his fists down on the wooden bench at those words, trying to keep his breathing at bay. He can't let Donghyuck know how much he's affecting him, so he squeezes his eyes shut and tries to regulate himself.

"I don't want to know everything about your father," Mark finally says, tone even and clipped, but Donghyuck can hear the annoyance in it. It makes him smile a little bit, swinging his feet back and forth as he continues to stare at Mark. "Don't tell me useless things."

Donghyuck will pretend like hearing Mark say his problems were useless didn't sting.

Mark however, is finally looking at Donghyuck, staring at his eyelids dusted in eyeshadow, lashes lifted by mascara, at his sun kissed cheeks powdered in a light blush, his cupid's bow shining with the aid of highlighter. His yellow cropped t-shirt which stops at his waist, exposing his belly button and the fishnets he has on underneath his mom jean shorts, which end mid thigh. The rest of his tan legs are wrapped in his fishnets, stopping at the ankles where his white shoes come in.

Donghyuck doesn't look like any boy Mark's seen before.

"You're staring," Donghyuck teases, smiling with mirth as he catches Mark's eye for the first time this night. "Jeno wouldn't be too happy about that."

Mark looks away after hearing those words, and he wants so badly to ask what Donghyuck's relationship with Jeno is. He wants to ask why Jeno gets the flowers without the thorns, he wants to ask why Jeno only stepped up to Jaemin's side when Donghyuck asked, and he wants to ask why Jeno wouldn't be happy if he found out he was staring at Donghyuck.

But he can't.

Because what right does Mark have to know all of that?

Donghyuck is just a nuisance. A distraction. He's just always there, as if he's crafted to solely serve as a roadblock. Donghyuck is always at school because there's only one in this town, Donghyuck always has a say on Mark and Jaemin's punishments because his father is the principal, Donghyuck is always around at the park—

Donghyuck is just a constant. Donghyuck is the independent variable. He's the center, he's the control. And Mark? Mark, Jeno, Jaemin, everyone else who's even remotely involved in Donghyuck's life? They're just there to play a role. A role in Lee Donghyuck's life.

Donghyuck is the sun. He's the center if attention. Everyone else is a planet, everyone else orbits the sun.

So Mark puts his head down, and stands up. He shoves his hands into his pockets and starts walking away.

But, just like always, he doesn't leave the park without hearing some last words from Donghyuck.

"Don't worry about Jaemin too much. I'll take care of everything."