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Donghyuck woke to the feeling of sunlight beaming down on his cheeks, truly the calm after the storm. His eyes fluttered open reluctantly, peering over towards the large window that was partially covered by the curtains.
There was a sheet of ice sitting on the glass, allowing the sun to illuminate its breathtaking swirls and stars. He released a deep exhale, stretching out and feeling that he had had a genuinely good night's rest.
As Donghyuck sat up, he looked towards shared clock above the door and noticed that he was actually quite early waking up today. It was only quarter past six.
Shifting his gaze to Mark's bed, the teen had to rub his eyes to confirm that there was nobody in it. Slightly worried, he clambered out of the small single bed and stumbled to see Mark's sheets pushed back, and his mattress very much unoccupied.
"Where did he go?" He whispered to himself, checking to make sure that the other six were still sound asleep.
Donghyuck hastily ran to his wardrobe, ripping his uniform out in a hurry and stripping out of his pyjamas. There was something nagging at his mind, telling him to be concerned.....as much as he hated it.
Once free of his nightwear and comfortably dressed in his dull uniform, the brunette sped to the door, making sure he hadn't woken anyone up before pulling it open and exiting swiftly.
His eyes were trained straight ahead as his legs guided him towards the staircase at the end of the hall. His mind was a flurry of both concerned and self scolding thoughts such as; what if something happened to him last night? Why would he just leave? Why do I even care? He probably met up with a boy or something.....
Just as the male reached the beginning of the long staircase, he was stopped by a body appearing right in front of his. Their noses touched momentarily before the other stepped back quickly.
"Hyuck?" The boy tilted his head quizzically, joined by another student with jet back hair and sharp eyes.
"Mark...." Donghyuck uttered softly, moving his stare between them both. "What...what are you doing out here so early?"
Mark shrugged as if he wasn't even sure himself. "I didn't feel like staring at the ceiling for the hundredth time last night.....so I left."
"To do what?!" The harshness wasn't intended, and once it was out, Donghyuck immediately cringed at his needy tone. "I mean....it's not safe to wander around in the dark."
The stranger beside his roommate chuckled, touching Mark's arm with this look that Donghyuck couldn't depict.
"And you care because.....?" Mark asked somewhat rudely, leaving the question open for changing if the younger was capable of doing so. "All you do is create trouble for me, so I'm not sure why you're playing the concerned friend right now."
"I'm guessing this is your roommate?" The oldest enquired, glancing over the youngest with a scrutinising gaze.
"Lee Donghyuck," the brunette hummed, keeping his guard up completely around the new boy. "I'm in Mark's year."
"Ten. A senior."
A small silence draped over the trio as all three seemed to size one another up. The chiming of the grandfather clock on the ground floor was the only thing to snap them from their staring.
"I have to go," Ten murmured to his new friend, waving politely to both before muttering something quietly to Mark, brushing past Donghyuck and trailing down the hallway.
The remaining pair had nothing more to say to each other, though the younger wasn't quite ready to let him go. The bedraggled and disheveled appearance of the ravenette was almost heartbreaking. Almost.
Not only that, but Mark had this vacant look that portrayed a certain message to whoever noticed it. 'I'm too tired to function'. That's what it appeared to mean.
"Excuse me," he murmured, nodding to Donghyuck once before returning to their dorm after a late night.
The latter stared at his back as he disappeared, downright curious to know what the hell was going on....
☆★☆
"Jeno, I'm telling you. There's something up with him," Donghyuck sighed as he walked around the snow filled campus with his friend. Jisung blatantly refused to trudge through ice and risk freezing his feet off, so the two were alone.
"Okay, say Mark had something going on..." Jeno nodded along to his thoughts, "What's it to you?"
Ugh, I don't know how to answer that, the younger grimaced, throwing his head back and groaning as loud as he could into the barren area. "I-I don't know. I'm just curious, I guess."
"Hmmm, I can accept that."
"So....ask him?"
"Ugh, what?" Jeno whined, burying his chin in his thick parka coat and becoming only visible from the nose up. It was quite cute really.
"Ask Mark what's up."
"I refuse."
"Please?" Donghyuck begged, "Pretty please with cherries on top? He's super weird lately, y'know? Like....jittery?"
"He's probably stressed. Not being able to sleep has to kill the mind slowly, right?"
"Only if you're stuck in an all boys dorm," the younger joked, poking his side playfully. His expression straightened again, staring ahead as he sorted through his thoughts. "Anyway, I'd appreciate it if you'd ask him subtly for me."
"Yeah yeah. I'm still waiting on a wedding though."
"Fuck off!"
The pair giggled softly as they continued to lap the building. It was only lightly snowing since the clouds were sparse amidst the blue sky. The sun wasn't warm, but the beautiful promise of spring coming soon brought small smiles to their faces.
"By the way," Jeno spoke gently with his sights set on the sky above. "Why do you annoy him so much? And I know you don't care about the fact that he's gay."
Donghyuck watched as his boots pressed the snow down, leaving his trail behind that would disappear by tomorrow. "I suppose it's because he's so brave. So certain......I'm jealous."
"Hah," the older shook his head, "What a confession."
