The empty classroom was filled with a soft banging noise that drew Cho Chang-min's attention away from the book he was reading. He glanced up and saw his friend, Min-jun, repeatedly banging his head against the window. Chang-min had been observing Min-jun's increasingly peculiar behavior over the past couple of days, finding it both concerning and perplexing.
Chang-min knew it started after the day Min-jun got injured and wondered whether the incident had anything to do with it.
'Did he hit his head?' Chang-min thought as he tried to remember the incident, with an amused smile on his face.
The banging persisted for a while but then abruptly stopped. In the silence that followed, Min-jun began muttering to himself.
'It's the blue eyes. You were just taken off guard. There's nothing else to it... But who is he... Why does nobody know anything about him... He can't go unnoticed with those eyes... But no, no one has seen a boy with blue eyes... Was he wearing lenses....'
Min-jun shifted restlessly, pressing his forehead against the cold glass and exhaling deeply as if trying to rid himself of the unsettling thoughts weighing on his mind.
'Minjun-ya, get a grip on yourself. You don't have time or the luxury to fool around. You will be graduating soon and will have to attend medical college. And you are a Han. You have to be careful of your choices.'
Min-jun felt a sharp pang in his chest. As the heir to a prestigious family of doctors and the son of a minister, his future seemed set in stone. His family expected nothing less than excellence in medicine, grooming him to take over the family business. The lack of control over his own life became evident when his father made it clear the moment he entered high school. On top of that, Min-jun had to uphold a spotless reputation, especially with his father's political career in the limelight. The family was always under scrutiny, with his father's opponents searching for any misstep to damage their reputation and weaken his father's influence. So far, Min-jun's easygoing nature had shielded him from this pressure, winning him favor with everyone he met.
Min-jun started banging his head again as he felt his mind sway.
'If I could just see him once, I can make sure that it's nothing. Just once...'
He was unwilling to acknowledge the yearning in his heart, as there seemed to be no space for it to dwell. Nevertheless, he was aware that it had already taken root deeply within him. It was a longing that would never cease to exist. Min-jun didn't know how it was possible, but he was certain of it. He still tried to shake off his emotions with logic.
'Yes, it's the blue eyes. No one expects a Korean guy to have blue eyes. It wasn't normal. Anyone would be surprised and taken off their guard. So just let it go.'
As he grappled with conflicting emotions, Min-jun felt as though his heart and mind were locked in an unceasing struggle. Despite knowing the impracticality of pursuing such a relationship, a glimmer of hope persisted within his faint heart. Each futile attempt to rationalize the situation left him mentally drained, yet his unwavering heart refused to yield.
He was very much surprised at himself. Min-jun had never given any thought to his sexual orientation. He realized that he had always assumed that he was straight. Part of himself doubted every single new emotion that knocked at his heart strongly. But the other part had already accepted the new fate. He had fallen for a boy, and that was that.
Min-jun was acutely aware that he had never experienced such intense emotions for anyone else. Each time the image of those piercing blue eyes crossed his mind, he felt an inexplicable pull on his very soul, as if invisible threads were tugging at him relentlessly. It was undeniable that every fiber of his being yearned to gaze into those entrancing blue eyes once more and to be in the presence of the person to whom they belonged. Intuitively, Min-jun understood that this was not a mere infatuation. It wasn't solely the striking color of the eyes that left Min-jun feeling restless. There was something within their depths that stirred his soul, and the person's touch held an inexplicable sense of familiarity that left Min-jun perplexed.
'They must just be contact lenses... It would explain why nobody knows a boy with blue eyes.'
Unfortunately for Min-jun, there was nothing specific he could use to describe the blue-eyed boy. Most boys were slender and small, except those who did sports. It was like trying to find a needle in a haystack.
Min-jun gazed out of the window, longingly looking at the school grounds. 'Fate is truly cruel, ' he thought. They had gone to the same school for three years, but Min-jun had only met him when he was about to graduate. There was not enough time even for a one-sided love. Not to mention, he hadn't even found out anything about the blue-eyed boy.
'Why now...??? Why him...??? Is this universe's way of testing me...???'
Min-jun only had questions but no answers. He couldn't help but sigh as his heart started to feel heavier. For the first time in his life, he had found something that he desperately wanted but no way to achieve it.
Min-jun jumped with surprise when he felt a heavy hand on his shoulder. He had completely forgotten about Chang-min. Min-jun felt his ears go red, but Chang-min seemed not to notice. He looked at Min-jun with a questioning look on his face.
"Blue eyes? Are you mumbling about Kim Seung-joon?"
***
Do Cho-hee looked at her husband with a scrutinizing look in her eyes. Min-hyuk was sitting behind his desk, going through the files stacked on one side of the table.
"What is it now, Cho-hee?" he asked as he put one file away and took another. Cho-hee took a minute to reply.
"Don't you think you are being too tough on Jun-ah? He never brings any troubles home, and now he is old enough to understand the severity of life. You should cut him some slack. He is a sensitive boy. You might hurt him if you keep treating him like this."
Min-hyuk put down the file he was reading and looked at Cho-hee with a thoughtful gaze.
After a minute, he replied, "I'm doing it for his own good." He then continued to read the report before him. A quiet sigh escaped Cho-hee's lips as she left the room.