Seventeen "The Bad Boys Series"

Chapter 25.1 "The Weird Pair"

Nothing can keep anyone from a happier future than a lingering relationship wound. But it doesn't matter what the circumstances were, or who was right and who was wrong. Fact is that it hurts and that the pain is preventing you from moving forward. So Ghide decided to do the first aid of time healing –cutting off any possible contact with her ex-boyfriend, Kim Mingyu.

12:00 pm. Ghide went to the cafeteria which is traditionally the last place many kids avoided during lunchtime. 67% said that the cafeteria made them anxious because it's always too crowded. The number of freshmen, sophomore and juniors eating at the cafeteria during this hour are total of 500. These numbers do not account for some seniors who have lunch labs, study in the Learning Commons, visit math lab, etc.

The Aubun high school's cafeteria surely is an eye-popping visual experience, due to its spacious and contemporary place. They serve multiple offer day-to-day variety, from pizza, burgers and soups to sandwich and salad boxes. But when it is crowded like today... Ghide loses her appetite.

"Where should I eat?" she asked herself while scanning her eyes around. There was barely room to eat, unless she sits down on the ground.

Minutes of searching and waiting, she saw a one and only free seat. It is the seat next to another seat occupied by a male student. Due to her rumors going around the campus, Ghide expected for this man to avoid her gaze. But he didn't. How could he, when he's her beloved ex-boyfriend?

Of course, she rather chooses skipping lunch than eating with him on the same table. But before she could flee, Mingyu stood up, snatched her tray and place it on his table.

"Eat. It's not like we need to talk to each other while eating," he murmured as he sat down.

Ghide is aware that she will gather more attention if she gets the tray back and ignores his unwanted compassion. So, she perched at the seat across him, with square table in between, and ate her lunch.

Even if she doesn't look around, she can feel the piercing gazes on her nape. Students are gossiping about them; and majority of it are full of negativity.

It's not too long for her stomach to feel upset as she overheard the murmurs around them. Taking a deep breath, Ghide put down the spoon and fork.

'Eating seafoods with mister Jethro is way better than this,' she thought inwardly.

After comparing two events that she hates, on which she gave her favor at the lunch she had with Jeonghan, Ghide looked at Mingyu with apathetic gaze. Then, she tossed a sharp rhetorical question, "Are you out of your mind?"

Mingyu stopped moving for a moment. As if he heard nothing, he continued eating his meal without receiving his ex' ferocious gape.

Ghide allotted enough time for him to response. Mingyu, however, kept his lips pursed, except when he had to open his mouth to feed himself. At his ignorance, Ghide was loss for words.

'I couldn't believe he'll be this shameless,' she huffed inwardly, then bit her lower lip until it get swollen.

When they were still dating, Ghide always finds it hard to win in logical arguments against Mingyu. Now that she considers him as her enemy, it infuriated her even more.

Therefore, in order to collect herself, Ghide sat straight. She stopped her breath for a while, counted up to ten, inhaled then exhaled. "Phew..." Then in a flash, she showed her sneering eyes, together with a deresive, snarling grin on her swollen lips.

"If we are eating together like this, everyone would think that the rich-couple are dating again," she murmured, chuckling.

At last, Mingyu stopped for a long time while keeping his head down. He promised he will ignore her as much as possible, but it was a hard thing to do.

"Opps," Ghide faked a gasp. She covered her mouth as if she made a mistake, even though there's a mocking smirk behind her hand. "I forgot that I am not rich anymore. Your father backstabbed my father that's why I am experiencing this hell."

Head hung in sorrow, Mingyu's let go of his cutlery and placed his hands beneath the table. Ghide watched his small gestures, and his head that he couldn't lift up.

"That's right," she murmured. "Keep your head down. Feel guilty, because you deserve it."

No matter what the circumstances were, or who was right and who was wrong, the pain of missing someone you tried to forget is preventing you to move forward. Mingyu tried his best to forget but his eyes always followed her.

Restricting to show any sign of pain, Mingyu clenched his fists under the table.

"Why are you eating with your ex-boyfriend?"

Ghide and Mingyu lifted their heads to see who just spoke harshly like that. It was no other than...

"Let's go. Eat with me," said by the tall man with crimson hair. Everyone inside the cafeteria, stopped their paces when they saw Xu Minghao, the school owner's troublemaker son.

Ghide stared at him and hesitated to answer. She wondered if Minghao came at the wrong table, because she couldn't think of the sensible reason for him to offer her to eat lunch with him instead.

"Hey, if you don't response, you'll put me in an awkward position," Minghao said to Ghide while directly looking at her eyes.

'So it's really me!' She gasped inside her head.

"Ahhh, damn," Minghao harshly clicked a curse from his mouth, before he carried Ghide's tray.

"My food!" Ghide stood up and tried to snatch her food back. She spent her own money she made by working from Joshua, and so she felt unfair if someone will snatch it just like that. Yet, because Minghao is way taller than Ghide, she didn't succeed on getting her tray back.

"Finally, you responded," Minghao mumbled. "Let's go." He walked away, together with Ghide's tray.

"Hey!" Ghide shouted. She didn't even remember that Mingyu was watching at them, when she followed the stubborn man with crimson hair.

"What's that? Is Ghide dating the school's owner?" murmurs from the students buzzed around.

Hearing these, Mingyu tightly grabbed his spoon, until it bent.

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