The Art of Chaos
Chanyeol came up to his friends looking upset and rubbing his cheek like he’d found a new skincare routine — ’Rubbing the Pain Away’ — but it wasn’t working. His friends stared at him, clearly puzzled about why his cheek was as red as a tomato.
"Look who finally decided to join us!" Sehun exclaimed dramatically. "What happened? Why is your cheek red?"
“Well, Some jerk just punched me right in the face." Chanyeol exclaimed, fuming. The second his friends heard that, they burst into laughter.
"What on earth did you do now?” Sooyoung wheezed, trying to regain her composure.
"Why are you assuming it was me?" Chanyeol huffed dramatically, clutching his chest like he’d just been stabbed in the heart by accusations.
“Please.” Kyungsoo chimed in without looking up from his phone. “You’re like a nonchalant tornado, you always manage to leave chaos whenever you go and tend to rub people in the wrong way."
Chanyeol rolled his eyes and let out an exaggerated sigh. "I just accidentally sent this guy’s assignment flying like it was a paper plane! Next thing I know, he’s coming at me like I just tossed his mother’s prized plant out the window.” He paused, waiting for the gasps, but all he got were blank stares. "What? That's the story!"
"You genuinely think we believe it was just that?” Joohyun raised her eyebrow in suspicion. "What on earth did you say to inspire someone’s fist to meet your face?” She asked placing a bottle of iced water on his cheek.
“Well…” Chanyeol hesitated, glancing around as if there were a secret camera documenting him. "I might have teased him for his height... He went all Hulk on me, saying I destroyed his academic life and that he would get revenge on me. I thought it was funny how he was reacting." His voice dropped to a whisper as he confessed, "I called him ‘grumpy dwarf' just for added flair.”
Sehun erupted into laughter. “Karma’s a real punchline! You totally had that coming."
Joohyun and Sooyoung exchanged disapproving looks, shaking their heads. Kyungsoo, however, couldn’t contain himself and let out a snicker.
“Listen, you can’t just go throwing around height jabs." Kyungsoo said, finally putting down his phone. “As someone with small height, that punch was NOT enough. I would have strategically unalived you right there.” He grinned.
“Soo!” Chanyeol exclaimed, mouth agape in disbelief. “I was just trying to be funny! Then he started hurling insults! You know, I had to defend myself."
“Yeah sure.” Sooyoung rolled her eyes. “Next time, try defending your facial features instead.”
As they all burst into laughter, Chanyeol lamented his fate and learned to never underestimate a short guy (especially the ones with anger management issues).
🪢
"Can you believe that guy?" Baekhyun sank into his seat, agitation still boiling inside him. "He destroys my work, makes me fail class and even teases me."
"Well... you did yell at him and insulted him after he apologized and offered to pay for new materials." Jongdae pointed out, setting a plate of food in front of Baekhyun before taking a seat himself.
"Are you actually defending him?" Baekhyun's eyes widened in disbelief as if Jongdae had just betrayed him.
"No, I'm just saying you could have handled it with a bit more composure." Jongdae shrugged casually.
"You could have explained that it was a very important assignment." Seulgi chimed in. "He obviously enjoyed your reactions, which is why he kept teasing you. But honestly, I thought that punch was justifiable."
"Seulgi!" Jongdae reprehended her. "Don't add fuel to the fire!"
“My bad." Seulgi replied with her hands up in mock surrender. “But seriously, what’s your plan now?”
"I don't know. I guess I’ll need to talk to Professor Zhang and see if he’ll grant me a few extra days to redo everything. Otherwise, I'm toast and will need to repeat his class." Baekhyun sighed, he was doomed. The professor was notoriously strict about deadlines, but perhaps this unusual circumstance would warrant mercy.
"You are a straight A's student, you never forget an assignment and you're always on time. You're the model student, maybe professor Zhang will give you a second chance." Jongdae reassured, giving Baekhyun an encouraging pat on the shoulder. Baekhyun nodded, feeling a bit reassured.
As the three friends continued their lunch, they spotted two vibrant figures rushing towards their table.
"SUNBAES!" Jongin exclaimed, a broad grin lighting up his face. "Hey! Can we join you for lunch?" He held up a plate filled with food, showcasing it like a trophy along with his friend.
“Hi!” Yerim echoed, equally beaming.
"I already told you to call me hyung or by name. I'm your older brother, not a stranger." Jongdae scolded Jongin. "Hi, Yerim. You can both sit down."
"I pratically saw you two grow up, no need for formalities." Baekhyun added with a warm smile.
"Yeah, I still remember Yerim as a tiny little kid, lost on her first day of high school." Seulgi laughed, playfully mimicking tears while giving Yerim a tight hug.
"I'm not a kid anymore Gigi." She said giggling and trying to get out of the hug.
“So, what brings you both here? I doubt you just happened to stumble upon us." Jongdae asked curious.
"Well..." Jongin hesitated, exchanging glances with Yerim. "We heard that the second years are planning to celebrate the end of exams at a bar… and we were wondering if we could join you?"
"No. There will be a lot of drunk people and I don't want to be scolded by mom and dad." Jongdae said without even given it a thought.
"Please, please, please." They begged, clutching their hands together in a prayer-like gesture.
"Don’t be a killjoy, Dae. Of course you can come with us. They're not babies anymore." Baekhyun declared, completely bypassing his friend’s protest. “Seulgi and I will take care of them.” A grin stretched across his face.
“You’re the best, Baek!” the two younger ones cheered, giving him thumbs up. Jongdae rolled his eyes in exasperation while Seulgi chuckled.