Hate | Nosung

10

The warning was to stay away from Lee Jeno, but that was nearly impossible for Jisung. Even if he wanted to stay away, which he did, Jisung wouldn't have been able to. Lee Jeno was everywhere.

So, Jisung went about his day like normal, including tutoring after practice. That girl clearly was off her rocker if she thought that it was a good idea to let Jeno fail math and fall into a pit of depression for being kicked off the basketball team. Basketball was like Jeno's main point of identity, which was sad, because Jisung didn't really count 'basketball' as a valid personality trait... but what else did Jeno have?

"Hey there, sugarsnap!"

Oh, yes, he was incredibly aggravating.

Jisung shuddered from where he sat at the table and stuck his tongue out in disgust. "If that's the direction you're going in, I'd prefer sweet cheeks."

"Oho, my baby boy is developing a preference now?" Jeno taunted as he sat right next to the boy and put his arm up on the back of Jisung's chair.

Jisung turned and rested his cheekbone on his fist without missing a beat. "If wanting you to shut your mouth is a preference, then you'd be right." his eyebrows were raised with expectancy and he pulled his mouth into a tiny pout.

Jeno studied his face, and Jisung definitely was aware of it.

Unknown thoughts pooled and swirled in the dark, focused eyes of Lee Jeno; thoughts that Jisung couldn't decipher, which was very scary.

Though he wouldn't show it, the younger started to feel insecure. What was he looking at so pointedly? Was something wrong with his face? Jisung just wanted it to end.

Eventually, Jeno chuckled and took his arm off Jisung's chair, focused expression relaxing into casual contentment. "Okay, so there was one problem today that I kinda followed, but I got way confused right after the dividing."

It was such a quick switch of character that Jisung nearly got whiplash, and had to let his brain catch up with the change of gears.

He didn't complain, and watched Jeno pull out his notes from that day while he shuffled his own notes up on top of his mess of papers.

The lesson was going by fairly quickly, but in the back of Jisung's head there was a little nagging thought that slowed his teaching process.

I should tell Jeno about today.

Why? What would he gain from sharing his experience today? Jisung could not find an answer to his own question, but neither could he shake the feeling that it was the right thing to do.

"Then you take the remainder and..." it seemed his feeling was winning against his reason. He slowed his explanation and lowered his pencil, catching Jeno's attention.

"What?" Jeno asked innocently, unwittingly using puppy eyes that usually ground Jisung's gears.

This time, Jisung was too bothered with the news he had to share to possibly be bothered by the way Jeno was looking at him.

"Actually, Jeno," he started, and put his pencil in the dip of the spine of his textbook. His empty hand ran back through his hair, then placed itself on Jisung's knee while he thought about how to proceed.

Jeno was just patiently waiting, without spitting any dumb or flirty remarks. It was a miracle, really.

"Today, a girl cornered me in the hallway, and told me to stay away from you. She pushed me to the ground and ran away before I could see who she was." Jisung had no idea how to format the story, and no idea why he even thought sharing it was a good idea anyway. "I guess I want to know if you have any idea who she is?"

Jeno knit his brows. "How would I know that?"

Jisung mirrored his expression, and over exaggerated a shrug of his shoulders. "I don't know, maybe you recognize a crazy possessive female or two hanging around you? They're kinda hard to miss."

With a shake of his head, Jeno sat back in his chair, dropping his own pencil on the table. "Well, I've had my fair share of crazy girls, but not mean ones like that. Why would they say that to you anyway?" He looked at Jisung with a cocked eyebrow.

"Uhm," heavy sarcasm coated his tone, "Maybe because you mouth off when you shouldn't, and give people the wrong idea about us."

"Us?" He drawled, finding interest in the wrong part of Jisung's words.

Jisung scoffed at the ceiling. "I teach you how to do math, and you annoy me to the ends of my patience. That's the extent of our relationship."

Jeno was having way too much fun with this, as he folded his arms and licked his bottom lip. "Is it, though?"

It took a moment for Jisung to process what Jeno was implying. His jaw dropped and left his mouth agape just a bit. Shaking the shock from his face, Jisung nearly choked on the spiteful laugh that erupted from his throat.

"Yes, it is," Jisung snapped. "Unless you forgot you were straight, and fell for my extra brain cells, then there is nothing going on here." He gestured to the empty space between them. "And still you joke like there is, and it's making my life very hard." A little swear flew under his breath, as he huffed and looked back at the textbook to calm himself down. The math he was trying to soothe himself with actually just made him angrier.

Jeno was very surprised with the reaction he got, but he found it so amusing that it seemed that the substance of Jisung's words went straight over his head. "Wow, babe, you're getting a little defensive," His smug face was looking like the perfect target to the younger.

"That!" Jisung's head whipped up, hair bobbing as he did, and he pointed an accusing finger at Jeno's chest. "That's exactly what I'm talking about. I hate your little jokes." His hands angrily curled and stiffened to emphasize the hatred pumping through his veins.

"I think you hate them because they're a little close to home."

"What?"

"I think you like me."

Jisung inhaled sharply, and his face contorted in confusion. "I hate you so much I literally cannot express it in words." He explained very clearly, wondering if Jeno understood that fact at all. If not, then he truly was stupid. Jisung was about to lose it.

"Hah!" Jeno laughed in a light huff directed at the ceiling, then lolled his head to flash a lopsided smirk at Jisung. Without missing a beat, he said something he probably shouldn't have, with a tone of voice that probably wasn't the best choice.

"Yeah, you definitely like me."

Jisung didn't know whether to laugh or scoff in horror. "Okay so they're not jokes, you think I'm actually pining for you."

"Am I wrong?" Jeno presented his rhetorical question with a grin of false victory, and clasped his hands behind his head, like he'd just won a game.

That sent Jisung over the edge.

The boy only looked at Jeno in disbelief for about two seconds, then flippantly slammed his textbook closed after snatching the pencil from the spine.

The violent slam made Jeno jump, and he unclasped his hands as his eyes looked up and down the seething boy before him. He did not expect Jisung to get that worked up.

"Yes, you are wrong," Jisung spat, while he shoved his things into his backpack with a punch-like movement.

"Woah," the jock sat up in his seat, newfound confusion replacing the smugness. "Where are you going?"

Jisung gripped his backpack tightly and didn't give Jeno another look as he marched toward the door. "Home."

Now Jeno was riddled with a bit of panic and called to Jisung's back. "Wait, what? I still need the second half of the lesson!"

"Figure it out yourself, since you're so smart and all that," If Jisungs words were daggers, they would have cut Jeno into little pieces with how much charged force was behind them. 

It was only the second day, and Jisung already had reached his limit with Lee Jeno. He was done.

Now, he truly did hate Lee Jeno.