1 A Popular Boy & A Ghost

oppa - means older brother and can only be used by younger women 

Sunbae - means senior

***

Beep… Beep… Beep….

Minjun involuntarily threw a pillow at the alarm clock. The clock fell off its stand and lay on the floor, still blaring. Minjun sat down on the bed, muttering to himself. His disheveled hair stood at ends, giving him a younger look. He dragged his five-foot-11-inch body to the bathroom. Fifteen minutes later, he sat at the dining table, spooning down the food before him with closed eyes. His eyes flew open when he heard his father's footsteps coming down the stairs. Minjun sat straight and checked himself in the cabinet glass before him. He watched his father sit before him with guarded eyes.

"Good morning, Abeoji."

"Good morning, Jun-ah," Minhyuk said as he picked up the newspaper on the table and took a look at the front page. The maid put food before Minhyuk as he slowly skimmed through the newspaper. Minjun quietly got up from his chair and put his school bag over his shoulder. 

"Straighten your tie," Minhyuk said without taking his eyes off the newspaper. Minjun looked at his father and then at his tie. He straightened the tie and politely left the living room.

***

Minjun sat on the bench, trying to stop shaking his leg. He did his best to ignore the anxiety that was building up. He held the basketball between his hands, feeling its texture to soothe his mind. He looked around, taking in his surroundings slowly. He found himself surrounded by school buildings, each proudly displaying the blue-silver school flag. Minjun sighed involuntarily. The time was slowly approaching to say goodbye to the place he loved the most. Away from home, away from the prying eyes of the media, his school has been an oasis for Minjun's soul to grow. Here, he could be just a student, not the son of the Minister of Health. Here, where all came from either rich or distinguished families, he had the chance to live a normal life, except when his fan club (The so-called fan club had been nothing but a headache and a reason for Minjun's friends to tease him) came to cheer and watch him.

'Oh God, I wish they would leave.'

He wanted to do his job peacefully without getting distracted. Minjun looked up at the sun. It was early morning, the heat was mild, and a pleasant breeze was blowing about. Minjun watched basketball team members appear on the court one by one. When all the members gathered in the middle of the court, he got up from the bench.

The team decided to use the outdoor court for a change and enjoy the fair weather. Most of the players belonged to grade 12, and they hardly had time to enjoy life outside in nature because of the school's tight schedules and workload. They had to spend more than half of the day studying, and they had to allocate their extra time to club activities and sports practices. 

As he stepped into the court, Minjun felt his anxiety evaporate. He felt at home. He watched the team line up and bow.

"All hail Captain Han," Vice Captain shouted.

"Guys, guys, please…" Minjun tried to calm his playful members. "We only have time for one game after warm-ups, okay? So, no fooling around."

"We were just trying to help you since your fan base is here," one member teased. Minjun sighed and looked at his member.

"I wish they would vanish."

"Tough luck, bro. With that face and body, you will never be able to escape them."

"Yeah. I'm beginning to realize that," Minjun said sadly. 'If only they knew how I feel....' He thought and shook his head helplessly.

"Hang in there, bro," Vice Captain said as he patted Minjun's butt with affection. "Okay, guys, let's start," he shouted at the rest.

***

"Oppa, are you okay?"

Han Minjun's fangirls inquired, looking truly worried. 

Everyone was shocked when the basketball hoop came loose, and Minjun crashed onto the ground. It was unfortunate that they were playing on an outdoor gravel-carpeted court. Minjun's hands and arms were severely scratched as he tried to break his fall. He dismissed the team as they had already finished their practice game. 

"Yes, don't worry. It's not as bad as it looks," he consoled them as he passed his fan girls, trying not to wince in pain. 'Damn, it stings like crazy..' he thought as he walked up to his friend, who was waiting for him.

"Changmin-ah, I can go to the infirmary by myself. Can you grab my bag from the class and bring it to the library? Leave it at the front desk. I'm going to skip the classes. I won't be able to do much with these, anyway," he said, looking at his bleeding arms and hands. Changmin had helped him wash the wounds and wrap them with two clean towels.

Minjun walked to the infirmary slowly, taking time to calm his nerves. He was relieved that he didn't meet any students on his way.

'A few more months to go,' he thought as he entered the infirmary and congratulated himself for staying out of trouble so far. There were times when Minjun wished he had been born into a poor family. He wanted to be invincible and unknown. However, being the heir to one of the largest hospital chains didn't give him luxury, and his appearance only worsened it. 

'They wouldn't look at me twice if I had an ugly face.'

Minjun stepped into the infirmary with a sigh. The infirmary was silent and empty. Minjun wiped his face with the hot, steamed towel the nurse gave him and put it on his face to feel the comfortable warmth it gave off after taking the painkillers. The warmth of the towel, the silence, and the painkillers made Minjun drowsy, and he was nodding off on the infirmary bed when someone started to treat his wounds. The coolness of the hands that touched his arms felt like a soothing balm touching his skin, and without opening his eyes, Minjun wondered lazily who could be treating him.

'Must be Ha-yun. She always volunteers at the infirmary,' he thought, trying to ignore the pain he felt as his hands were moved. 

Whoever cleaned the bruises was very careful not to make them hurt, but Minjun was not ready for the sudden sting of antiseptic, which made him take a sharp breath.

"Sorry, sunbae, I should have warned you." The soft, quiet male voice surprised Minjun. He took the wet towel off his face and looked at the person treating his bruises. The boy was small and appeared plain in the white t-shirt and trousers they wore at the infirmary. Minjun had never seen him before and wondered which junior class he belonged to. Minjun was popular among the juniors, and they always dragged him to their classes whenever they found an opportunity. So he knew more or less about most students in the school.

Minjun looked from the boy's small face to his soft hands. The long, slender fingers were clean and neat, almost like a girl's hand. He felt a strange feeling knock on his heart and every time the boy touched him, he felt his heart skip a beat. Minjun felt very much confused and he kept staring at his junior, wondering who he was. As he looked at his face, Minjun noticed the long eyelashes and a beauty mark on the corner of his left eyelid.

'His eyes look pretty,' Minjun thought, taking a closer look. Minjun was startled when the boy spoke suddenly.

"All done," the boy said as he put the last bandage on Minjun's left arm and looked up at him for the first time.

As Minjun's eyes met his, he felt his heart drop a mile. They were big and blue—blue like the deep ocean. The sunlight danced in them, setting them on fire. Minjun felt like he was trapped in a strange dream, mesmerized by the small boy's blue eyes.