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Renjun enters the Great Hall completely unaware of the heads turning in his direction and the murmurs that ripple through every table as he makes his way to the Gryffindor table and joins Mark for breakfast.
Jisung is already there and ignores his presence, fully immersed in his reading of the Daily Prophet, the ungrateful boy. Renjun shakes his head, discarding the idea of flicker Jisung's forehead, and turns to sit next to Mark, who scoots over a little to make room for him.
Mark beams at him and it's all it takes for the built-up irritation from the past night to melt immediately.
"Morning, Markie." Renjun leaves his satchel on the floor before taking a seat. "Anything interesting?”
“Johnny Suh voted most stylish wizard,” Mark glances at the newspaper Jisung is still holding."They also released dating evidence of chief auror Kim Doyoung and alchemist Taeyong. It's the cover story."
“I can’t believe that’s what they decide to write about.”
Mark munches on a piece of fruit. and swallows before answering “Well, it’s the Daily Prophet so don't set your expectations too high.”
Renjun sees a flash of yellow move in their direction out of the corner of his eye. “Please remind me, why are you still subscribed to that?”
“Because of him.” Mark says with a chuckle.
Renjun waves his hand, defeated. Mark is going to spoil rotten the young Ravenclaw if no one stops him, which means Renjun will have to do it, so he rolls his sleeves up, preparing himself to give an enlightening talk about parenting styles thanks to his pal Diana Baumrid.
He doesn't get to do so, because a reddening Jeno materializes in front of them, visibly shocked if the expression on his face is anything to go by.
"Is that true?” Jeno is panting and his eyes sparkle with genuine curiosity as he interrogates, “About the rumors?"
Renjun and Mark exchange a brief look before the latter replies. “If this is about the dating rumors, then yes”
Renjun is vaguely aware of the boy folds the newspaper and puts it down. So this is what it takes to get his attention, uh.
"Dating?" Jeno wails.
"Yes? Kim Doyoung and Lee Taeyong are dating, I didn't know they were important to you though."
Jeno stares at him in confusion. "What? No! I'm talking about--" He pauses and sneaks a look to Jisung, "The wand fight you had with Jaemin yesterday, you know, in the bathroom."
Renjun's eyes widen in surprise. Jeno hast to be the least involved student when it comes to gossip, it's just not in his kind and prudent nature. And if Jeno knows...then the whole student body knows as well.
Suddenly, he's aware of the whispers and murmurs flooding the room and the not so subtle stares in his direction. Mark seems to notice it too because Rejun can feel his friend tense next to him, so Renjun places a gentle hand on his shoulder and gives him a little squeeze.
"Yes," Renjun mutters to Jeno, "Although I wouldn't use those words to describe the situation. He barely lasted a minute."
Jeno gives him a scandalized look, reaching to Jisung and covering his ears. "That's not polite, Jun."
"But it's the truth!" Renjun huffs and lowers his voice. "It wasn’t something serious, really."
"Did he hurt you?" Mark asks, worry dripping into his tone.
"I'm fine, really." Renjun goes back to his breakfast, not before his eyes scan the Great Hall until he finds the culprit, a figure on the opposite side of the room, snickering with no remorse.
It couldn't have been Jaemin as the rumor wouldn't benefit him in any way –defeat isn't well accepted in Slytherin, not to mention committed an act that deducted points from his house.
Myrtle waves at him before walking through the wall.
Rumors, Renjun finds out later, can become exaggerated and altered over time. And he learns a valuable lesson: to be incredibly specific, otherwise, people will assume you make out and have it off with the most annoying boy at school.
Nevertheless, every time Renjun tries to clear up the rumor, he receives a bunch of knowing looks, a bunch of "yeah, sure" and an even larger bunch of high fives.
Jaemin doesn't even try to correct the rumors.
***
Jaemin can't blame Myrtle. It's not hard to imagine that, when she has spent hundreds of years trapped in one place, there are only a few things she can do to entertain herself.
Still, he gives Myrtle and stern look and only bothers to tell Donghyuck what really happened before moving on. Nevertheless, despite Jaemin insists that nothing happened, as if that night meant nothing to him, that doesn't stop him from replaying the events in his head over and over again.
In any other situation, that’s if he wasn’t involved, Jaemin would find it funny how both Myrtle and Renjun's remarks were taken completely out of context.
After all, nothing could be further from the truth.
A little-known fact is that Jaemin cannot be physically around a lot of people for very long. During his first year, in an attempt to get away from the Slytherin crowd, he hid in the girls' bathroom where he found a full-on sobbing girl.
A moaning ghost was much better than a bunch of hyperactive students, he thought, and stayed with her longer than he initially planned.
Once she got over her crush on Jaemin, after spending enough time with him to realize that his good looks didn't make up for his tiresome personality –Myrtle's words–, the two struck up a friendship rather quickly.
At first, Donghyuck did not look favorably upon such friendship, keeping his distance and a wary eye on her. That's until she proved to be useful on his little crusade against Mark.
Unlike them, Myrtle couldn't leave the castle, for obvious reasons, so every year, during his first day back at Hogwarts, Jaemin made sure to visit her at night, when everything was quiet and everyone was sleeping, to check on her. Myrtle would always claim she was fine and ask for a vivid description of his vacations, the people he had met and the places he had visited.
On the night of the incident, Jaemin had sneaked out to meet Myrtle in the girls' bathroom. It was past eleven when he heard the faint sound of rapid footsteps, growing louder as they approached.
Before he could hide in one of the cubicles, the door opened revealing a small slender figure and, while he could make out Myrtle's face thanks to her pearly white ghostly matter, it wasn't enough to light the dark room.
But a "Lumos!" is muttered soon after and Jaemin nearly fells off the countertop where he was sitting when the tip of a wand lits up, and he met Renjun's stare head on.
Renjun looked positively ethereal standing in the room, holding his wand high. The light danced along his smooth pale skin, making him glow in an almost unnatural way.
So unreal, so beautiful.
Renjun's hair was longer Jaemin remembered and–was that a two toned effect? Jaemin resisted the urge to reach over and feel Renjun's long hair between his fingers and let his eyes travel along the line of Renjun's jaw, a sharp contrast of his otherwise soft features.
He was barely aware of Myrtle's sigh followed by an aggressive and violent cough.
“10 points from Slytherin for breaking the curfew,” Renjun announced curtly, before turning to the girl. “Good to see you, Myrtle.”
"What? You're breaking the curfew too!" Jaemin huffed, rolling his eyes. “You can’t take away points from Slytherin just like that.”
Renjun pointed at the little shiny badge on his robes that Jaemin hadn't noticed earlier. “I'm a prefect now, and I was patrolling the corridors, not smooching with my girlfriend in the bathroom. Of course I can."
Jaemin's lips stretched into a smile. "Are you jealous? Wanna switch places with Myrtle?"
Renjun clicked his tongue, annoyed. "Whatever you said, Na. Now get out of here before your House runs out of points to take away from."
"Good to see the authority thing didn't go to your head. "
"Tou your dorm, Na."
“I’m not one of your little friends you can push around, Jun.” He threw the nickname he’d heard several times Mark using to refer to the Ravenclaw.
"Tou your dorm, Na." Renjun repeated, voice dangerously low.
Finally.
Not that getting a reaction from Renjun was exactly difficult, but Jaemin considered it a victory nevertheless.
"Make me."
As soon as Jaemin spoke, both of them pointed their wands at each other and the room went pitch black.
Despite the darkness, Jaemin could physically feel Renjungetting closer. Holding his breath, Jaemin gritted his teeth before casting the spell. "Expelliarmus!"
A pause, and then his wand was flying out of his hands and he felt like the wind had been knocked out of his lungs.
Another moment and Renjun set the tip of his wand alight silently.
Jaemin does the only appropriate thing on such occasion, which is gape because not only Renjun shielded from his disarming spell but also casted an expelliarmus without saying a word.
Renjun stepped closer, lifting his wand and pressing it against Jaemin's throat, a delicate touch. “Now get out of here.”
And Jaemin did as he was told.
***
Had he not known that Renjun was avoiding him like the plague, Jaemin would have thought the Ravenclaw was actually looking for him.
Renjun is never alone, however. He's usually accompanied by Mark or Jeno or the not-so-little fourth-year Ravenclaw.
Jaemin hadn't been able to talk to Renjun again after the second night and it seemed like Renjun was patrolling other corridors since Jaemin hadn't seen him again.
He had even stayed in the girls' bathroom for four nights in a row, according to him to keep Myrtle company, but after the third night, the girl had gotten bored of him and called him clingy .
Jaemin watches as Renjun packs up his stuff and rushes out of Potions class with Mark. More than once Jaemin tried to walk up to him, but the Ravenclaw was quick on his feet and managed to get away.
He follows them quietly, telling himself that he just wants to clear things up for his own sake and not to wipe off the distressed expression on Renjun's face.
“Since you’re not going to ask–” A high-pitched voice comes out of nowhere and Jaemin jolts startled, dropping his Potions textbook. “Oh, Myrtle, you–”. You scared me. I didn’t see you. Myrtle wasn’t particularly fond of these kinds of greetings. “You’re here.”
Myrtle shoots him an exasperated/murderous look. “I’ve been walking with you since you left the classroom.”
Ah. Jaemin bents down to pick up his book. “Sorry, I was distracted.” He replies in a low tone, glancing one last time towards Renjun.
Jaemin freezes when he meets Renjun’s eyes, looking directly at him, speaking a whole new language that he doesn’t understand. It only lasts a second, though, as Renjun shakes his head, takes Mark's hand in his own and walks away.
“Of course, you were.” Myrtle snaps her fingers, ripping Jaemin out of his trance. “Honestly, I liked you better than Donghyuck because at least you weren’t an angsty teenager pining after your so-called nemesis.”
“I’m not an angsty teenager pining after anyone.” Jaemin grumbles.
“Merlin’s beard, I can’t deal with two oblivious morons at the same time.” Myrtle whines. “Look, If you’re looking for the right time to talk to that boy, I’ve heard he’s going to Hogsmeade this weekend. By himself. Sad-looking Lee has Quidditch practice and handsome Lee has tutoring.”
Having a nearly-omnipresent ghost friend is extremely useful in more than just one way. Over the years, Jaemin (and Donghyuck by extension) has relied on Myrtle's surveillance to get away with his tricks. Come and go as he pleased, they would mess around and play pranks until they were tipped off by Myrtle.
And in her many years of living –or nonliving , as Donghyuck likes to point out– Myrtle had learned to observe students like Jaemin, everything from their gestures to their reactions, especially Jaemin.
Before Jaemin can open his mouth to protest, Myrtle jabs a greyish-silver finger at him. “Please, don’t think I haven’t noticed those dreamy eyes you look at the boy with,” Myrtle says accusingly, crossing her arms. “As if someone would ever see me that way.”
“We’ve talked about this several times,” Jaemin lets out a sigh, “You’re a total catch, Myrtle. All you have to do is get rid of that hideous pair of glasses! It always works that way”
Now Myrtle just looks like she’s about to burst into tears. “For the sake of our friendship, I’ll pretend I didn’t hear you.”
Jaemin clicks his tongue, “Fair enough.”
Turns out Myrtle isn't the reliable source she often claims to be.
Indeed, Mark is at Quidditch practice, which Jaemin confirms thanks to Donghyuck who is standing next to one of the windows that look out on the quidditch pitch where Mark is warming up. He's gathering intelligence on the enemy, observing the seeker and taking notes of his flight patterns, which Jaemin knows is just code name for stalking Mark but lets Donghyuck be.
However, when Jaemin looks for Renjun in the crowd of students walking down the hill into the village, he finds Handsome Lee, the name Myrtle uses to refer to Jeno, chatting animatedly with Renjun.
And Jaemin could easily fall into step with Jungwoo and the other Slytherins, laughing as they make their way to the small village, and spend the day getting full rounds of butterbeer by making small talk.
Considering Donghyuck's always been the one in charge of mingling in with others and making friends, dragging Jaemin with him, Jaemin decides there's no reason to go against his nature. So he prefers to save his energy for something that really matters, opting for laying down on the grass and spend the day in the open air.
Long after the sun has reached its highest position in the sky, he stands up and wanders past chattering friend groups and timid couples while he goes to the heart of the village.
He tries the library first, then Three Broomsticks and finally Honeydukes, but Renjun is nowhere to be seen. He has practically give up by now, and heads to Zonko's to buy a dungbob when catches sight of the Ravenclaw.
He's standing outside the shop, talking to Jeno.
Jaemin's intention isn't to pry, but there's something about the way Renjun’s expressions darkens as he leans towards Jeno and lowers his voice secretly that piques Jaemin's interest. He casts a disillusionment charm over himself and walks close to the pair until he's able to make out what Renjun is saying.
"–Christmas is a significant day and even now can trigger grief, so I was hoping you would stay with him during the holidays this time."
"I got this, Jun. Don't worry, he'll be fine.” Jeno grabs his wrist, rubbing small circles in the back of his hand.
There's an unpleasant sensation, vaguely familiar, in the pit of Jaemin's stomach but before he can even think of putting a name to that Renjun withdraws his hand from Jeno's and looks in Jaemin's direction.
No, Renjun is looking at him .
"Hey, can you go inside and check on the boys? I’ll make a quick trip to the post office." Renjun asks calmly, eyes flicking towards Jeno.
As soon as Jeno leaves, Renjun moves forward until he’s just a few inches away from Jaemin who holds his breath and waits for Renjun to leave. That never happens.
"Show yourself." The difference between Renjun's warm breath against Jaemin's cheek and his ice-cold tone voice makes Jaemin shiver.
There's no apparent reason that prevents Jaemin from running away, sprint towards the castle and pretend he didn't hear anything, as the charm hasn't worn off yet. Except this is Renjun, whom Jaemin has been trying to talk to, and he's kindly making a request.
So Jaemin does what anyone would do in his place. He removes the spell, revealing his identity, and gives a little wave. "Hi"
"What did you listen?" Renjun hisses.
It's not like he isn't used to be at the receiving end of Renjun's angry stares, but it had never been like this –eyes piercing and dangerous, with an intensity impossible to match. "Nothing." Jaemin voice cracks at the end.
Renjun groans, rubbing his face with his palms. “You cannot tell Donghyuck any of this. He would use it against Mark.”
Jaemin understands where Renjun is coming from—based on every single interaction the pair has had in the past, people would think Gryffindors and Slytherins still had a direct and open conflict with each other.
For years he had been obliged to watch Donghyuck and Mark fight like, well, like an old married couple, albeit it had been mostly one-sided, with Donghyuck trying to irk Mark on every possible occasion.
In fact, it was often that Jaemin wondered how was it possible to hold a grudge for so long, and every time he would reach the same conclusion—the same way it was possible to hold on to a crush.
And while Jaemin had never been able to understand Donghyuck's fascination with the Gryffindor–the same unimpressed expression on his face as if it was sculpted that way, plain and boring– he had been struck by Renjun's fierce appearance, despite his delicate features, and the way he would glare at them on his friend's behalf.
Yet, Jaemin can't let Renjun talk that poorly about his friend. “You don’t know Donghyuck. He wouldn’t mess with Mark about this.”
“I don’t care. I'm not taking my chances with this.” Renjun exhales, shaking his head. “You cannot tell him, please.”
A silly, stupid idea flashes across Jaemin’s mind, probably not the best if he wants Renjun to trust him enough to let him be around him. Jaemin has never been known for having the best ideas, though, and there's not much to lose if Renjun allegedly despises him already. “What am I getting for keeping quiet about this?”
Jaemin expects Renjun to retort, to pull out his wand and push it hard against Jaemin’s pulse point much like the last time. He doesn’t though. Instead, he shrinks back and mutters weakly “What do you want?”
Jaemin winces, feeling a hint of guilt that he associates with the Ravenclaw looking defeated, very unlike his normal self. He pushes it away.
“Teach me how to perform nonverbal spells.”
***
The sound of something falling and hitting the ground fills the room. That something being Jaemin who starts regretting his decision after the ninth time his back hits the solid stone wall and he falls to the ground.
Standing up, Jaemin shakes himself off and brushes imaginary dust off his robes. “Do you really have to use the disarming charm?”
Renjun spins his wand around his long fingers. "You need motivation."
"Well, clearly this isn’t working." Jaemin huffs and picks up his wand, preparing himself for another attack.
With just a flick of his wand, Renjun has Jaemin stumbling backward, his wand flying out of his hand.
To be fair, Renjun did walk him through the foundations of non-verbal spells patiently, albeit Jaemin hardly paid attention to whatever the Ravenclaw had told him. Jaemin had preferred to watch Renjun’s fingers curled around his wand and the precious birthmark on the back of his hand. He even found endearing the fixed expression on Renjun’s face, eyebrows slightly pulled together in concentration.
Besides that, Jaemin had spent most of the first lesson learning how to fall properly, given the fact that casting a counterspell was simply impossible and, by the time they part ways after the third tutoring session, Jaemin is convinced that the actual reason Renjun accepted to teach him was to have a valid excuse to hex Jaemin over and over again.
He would feel guilty for using Mark's secret as bait if it wasn't for the fact that Renjun seems to be enjoying himself.
"Are you even thinking of the protego incantation?" Renjun has the audacity to ask.
"No, Huang, I actually enjoy being slammed against the wall." Jaemin scoffs, although on second thought."But I'd like it better if you moved closer–."
"Too bad I don't care what you like." Renjun cuts him off and this time he doesn't wait for Jaemin to pick up his wand before casting the spell, knocking Jaemin to the ground. Again.
Noted. Jaemin would have to watch his mouth in the future. “I'm trying.” He sighs, not making any attempt to get up. "It's a lot harder than you make it seem. I mean there's a reason why Hogwarts won't teach us nonverbal magic until this year."
Renjun observes him in silence and then pockets his wand.
"But again, you're the smartest in our class so it's not a surprise that you have mastered it already." Jaemin continues, keeping his voice low on purpose.
"Not mastered." Renjun corrects him. "And Jeno and Mark can perform it as well."
"What a surprise, a hardworking Hufflepuff, and a perfectionist Gryffindor. Tell me, did you use offensive magic on them as well?"
Jaemin is delighted when he notes Renjun's cheeks turn pink.
"I might have used a different approach." Renjun mumbles, kneeling down and sitting on the floor next to him.
“I wonder why is that.” Jaemin leans closer in a completely casual way, or so he hopes, locking eyes with Renjun.
"For starters, I happen to know both of them very well," Renjun replies, completely unaffected by his presence, "I don't even know why you are so invested in picking up nonverbal magic."
He doesn't have an answer for that, at least not one that Renjun wants to hear because, as advantageous as nonverbal magic is, Jaemin thinks it's just for showing off or dueling, nothing he's particularly interested in.
"Only Ravenclaws are allowed to pursue knowledge?"
"I never said so." Renjun glances down at Jaemin's wand lying forgotten on the floor. "You're more than welcome to learn nonverbal spells...during classes."
"Yeah, well, Hogwarts' educational approach doesn't meet my expectations."
"I didn't know you cared that much about your education." Renjun's brows furrow in thought, "So you'd rather learn from an unqualified student than our accomplished and seasoned staffed of professors?"
Whatever. Jaemin stands by what he said, flawed reasoning or not. Besides, it's hard to focus on anything when Renjun is too close, pursed lips and scrunched nose, too cute.
He does his best to shrug nonchalantly. "Pretty much, yeah."
"Be honest, are you doing this because our er..fight? Did it hurt your pride?" Renjun asks softly.
He couldn't be less concerned about his pride. There's a large number of things Jaemin's good at, and an even larger number of things he sucks at –dueling included. And it's fine, he doesn't need to be good at everything to live a happy, quiet life.
Jaemin shakes his head with restrained laughter, feeling guilt tug at his heartstrings, if only because Renjun looks worried. “You did not.” Jaemin looks away, not feeling worthy of Renjun's feeling. "You don't have to do this, forget our agreement, I won't say anything about Mark."
It's the right thing to do, he knows, and while Jaemin does want to spend time with Renjun, it's not up to him. He wants Renjun to choose to stay with him.
Renjun gets up immediately, not wasting a second, and Jaemin’s heart clenches at the thought of him leaving.
It's not like that, though. Renjun turns around and outstretches his hand towards Jaemin not once breaking eye contact with him. “I’m not allowing any slacking from your part.”
Renjun, indeed, doesn't allow any slacking. They settle into a routine, meeting once a week after classes in the Astronomy Tower until the sun settles down, and Renjun has to live first.
That's Renjun's only condition. Now that the students seem to have forgotten about their wand fight rumor and moved on to the next big story –Osaki Shotario, Hufflepuff student, using a love potion on Kim Jungwoo, Slytherin's prefect, or something along those lines– Renjun doesn't want them to be seen together. So they meet up in the Astronomy Tower and, at the end of the day, Jaemin has to wait ten minutes after Renjun is gone to leave the room.
Other than that, things don't change much. They don't talk outside the Astronomy Tower and Jaemin would be lying if he says he doesn't count down the days until their next meeting.
But Renjun is an excellent teacher to say the least, and soon Jaemin gets the handle of it and is able to perform a few basic spells, enough for Charms Professor Kun to give him an approving look when he tries during classes.
"I'm glad he noticed." Renjun smiles softly after Jaemin tells him he got ten house points. "You need to hold your wand properly to aim the spell."
Jaemin thinks imagines Renjun's fingers lingering a second too much on his hand when he tries to correct his posture.
***
Nakamoto Yuta, the previous Slytherin captain, had led Slytherin to victory for almost three years in a row, except last year when Mark Lee, Gryffindor’s seeker, managed to catch the snitch just 15 minutes into the game, setting a new record.
This, of course, only served to infuriate Donghyuck, who as the new captain of the team, had set out to get the Quidditch Cup back.
So Jaemin hurries down the stairs and heads to the quidditch training pitch, carrying his broom in one hand and a bat in the other one, ready to endure another training session that will leave his arms burning and his legs numb for sitting on his broomstick, hitting bludgers across the field for hours.
Jaemin shudders and buries his face in his scarf as a blast of cool air bites his skin. He can smell the snow coming and speeds up, knowing that soon everything will be covered in a fluffy white blanket. Maybe, by the end of the practice, they can throw snowballs at each other.
Jaemin stops in his tracks and changes his course when he spots Renjun standing on the sidewalk, near the edges of the castle grounds. Renjun is looking in the Forbidden Forest direction, fiddling with the sleeve of his robe, and he doesn't notice Jaemin approaching until he's right in front of him.
"Are you trying to catch a cold?” Jaemin asks, taking notice of Renjun’s lack of proper clothes for the weather and the way the tiny flakes of snow settle over Renjun's robes and hair. "I thought Ravenclaws were smart."
"Sorry to disappoint you." Renjun jokes.
Jaemin throws both his broom and the bat into the ground and takes off his scarf. Then, he wraps it around Renjun’s neck and ties a half knot in the middle.
Renjun visibly stiffens but doesn’t back off, so Jaemin pushes his luck and reaches to brush the snowfall from Renjun's bangs. "You could never.”
It's probably from the cold that Renjun's cheeks tinge with the slightest shade of pink, a subtle flush that Jaemin finds absolutely adorable. "Don't you have a practice to attend?" Renjun asks, looking at the gear discarded on the floor.
"I'm early anyways." Jaemin bites the inside of his cheek. "Don't you have 20 inches of parchment on the inanimatus conjurus spell to write about?"
"Done." Renjun shrugs, looking contemplatively to the side.
"Cool. So what are you doing here?"
There’s a fraction of a second when Renjun's expression is wiped blank and Jaemin feels a sense of dread because he'll get pushed away and oh –He didn't realize before how much he wanted to get closer to Renjun, to know about him.
But then Renjun's face softens and Jaemin feels contentment flare in his chest.
"I'm waiting for my brother, he's paying me a quick visit."
"Oh." There are so many questions Jaemin wants to ask since Renjun hasn't mentioned his family before, nor anything remotely personal for that matter. How many siblings does he have? Are they close? Is he way older than Renjun?. "I didn't know we could receive visitors."
"We can't–I mean, it's not really allowed unless the Headmaster gives you the approval" Renjun clarifies.
"So who is this important person who's gotten on Ms.Boa's good side?" Jaemin squints his eyes, "Does he, perhaps, work for the Ministry of Magic?"
Renjun looks puzzled before he snorts, trying his best to swallow his laughter. "Merlin, no."
As much as Jaemin loves the sound of Renjun's laughter, tiny tinkling bells beside him, he can't help but feel lost. "What?"
"He dropped out of school." Renjun shakes his head. "He became a model."
"Oh."
"Unexpected, right?" Renjun sighs. "He made up his mind before his sixth year at Hogwarts and, well, my parents were not happy with his decision, so he's been banned from the house since then. He's doing pretty good tho."
"Is he?"
"Sicheng was born for this. He's been on most covers of Witch Weekly and gotten tons of endorsements." Renjun's voice is flooded with pride as he speaks.
"I'm afraid I don't recognize his name." Jaemin admits embarrassed
Renjun clicks his tongue. "Well, he goes by Winwin."
Oh. That catches Jaemin by surprise. Winwin is a household name, after achieving the heartthrob status a few years after his debut, and Jaemin is pretty sure he had seen his picture hung on a couple of bedroom walls –but Jaemin doesn’t feel particularly inclined to mention the latter, as he shouldn’t have visited other students bedrooms in the first place.
"Winwin?" Jaemin stammers. "As in top 10 Most beautiful faces 3 years in a row by Wizarding World Winwin?"
Renjun nods. “Told you he was good.”
In a split second, Jaemin picks up his broom and his bat, feeling renewed. Renjun just shared something dear with Jaemin, and so he holds onto this new piece of information. “That explains it all.”
“What?”
“That beauty does run in the family.” Jaemin replies, the sheepish smirk in his voice is audible, before he sprints towards the Quidditch pitch.
If Donghyuck glares at him for the rest of the practice session for being late, Jaemin doesn't notice.
***
"Something is bothering you." Mark's voice brings Renjun back to reality.
Renjun casts a guilty glance at the open book in this lap. He's been reading the same line of text over and over again and still doesn't know what it says.
As exams draw near, students face rising levels of stress, which means most Ravenclaws are either in the library studying or practicing spells outside the castle, and their common room is almost empty.
Groaning, Renjun gets up from the rug where he was sitting cross-legged and slips into the blue sofa beside Mark.
Marks puts his book aside, and smiles earnestly, his hand coming over on top of Renjun's, making Renjun feel immediately a little better. The thing with Mark is that even though wasn't exactly good at expressing his own feelings and vulnerability, as exasperating as it was, he was great at giving support when others need it.
The same year Renjun received his Hogwarts letter, Renjun's older brother Sicheng informed his parents that he would be leaving school in favor of other activities, not leaving room for discussion.
Renjun's attempts to act as a mediator were futile, as their parents refused to listen to their children, arguing that Sicheng was being thoughtless and selfish.
Unsurprisingly, Renjun's parents hadn't allowed Sicheng to be near him, afraid his presumed problematic behavior would pass on to Renjun. They also had put their own expectations –those that their firstborn hadn't been able to meet–on Renjun.
It didn't help that was sorted into a house full of students known for their knowledge and smarts, the only house he wanted to avoid --the house his brother belonged to. As much as it made him feel somewhat closer to his brother, it also reminded him of his absence. Unable to speak or write to Sicheng, Renjun felt discouraged and weighed down but, mainly, he felt alone.
Mark who at eleven years old had an invisible shield around him and a look of infinite sadness that Renjun couldn't understand initially, never failed to stick with Renjun no matter what he put him through.
Only after he found out about Mark's parents' accident did Renjun feel guilty for the way he had acted around Mark. However, at no time did Mark dismiss Renjun’s feelings, but rather he did everything possible to make Renjun feel comfortable at Hogwarts.
Renjun was not the only one to notice Mark's good nature, however. Soon, a bunch of Slytherins, namely Donghyuck and friends, considered him an easy target.
And, although Mark proved to be particularly proficient in the use of magic, Renjun felt especially protective over his best friend. Mark was just too nice and kind to do something about it, putting everyone else’s interests above his own –even his enemies’.
But Renjun doesn’t consider himself to be that good. He would cast an unforgivable curse before letting anything happen to his friend.
But Renjun doesn’t consider himself to be that good. He would cast an unforgivable curse before letting anything happen to his friend.
So when Na Jaemin dared to bring in Mark's name on their little quarrel, he was ready to duel with him –in fact, he did.
And then everything turned out like this.
“Do you think I’m beautiful?” Renjun blurts.
Mark raises a brow and his upper lip trembles dangerously. “Did someone say otherwise?”
“No, no,” Renjun sputters and clears his throat, “Just for science, do you think I’m beautiful?”
“You are beautiful, Huang Renjun.”Mark says earnestly.
Renjun smiles, feeling a warmth wash over him at his friend's words, but just as he feared, he doesn't feel the other things. He doesn't feel the giddiness and excitement building up in his stomach and his heart bursting at the fact that someone considers him beautiful.
***
As usual, Renjun heads for the exit to get out first. He opens the door but doesn't step out, instead, he turns around, running a hand through his silky hair. “Jaemin, I–” He bounces on the heels of his feet, biting his lip, “I wa–”
This time Renjun is interrupted by a commotion coming from the first floor. Renjun, face now a blank mask, and Jaemin exchange glances before flying down the stairs.
The pair make their way through a group of students gathered around two figures and Jaemin feels a cold sweat running down his body upon seeing Donghyuck, straddling the other guy and throwing a punch at him.
Two upperclassmen break up the fight, restraining Donghyuck by the arms. He tries to disentangle himself but stops fighting when Jaemin comes into his view.
The presence of Renjun, prefect of Ravenclaw, makes the students walk away and Renjun dismisses them with a warning, not before taking 20 points from his house and giving a warning.
Before Jaemin asks any questions, Donghyuck grabs his arm and gives him a look. Hesitantly, Jaemin nods a goodbye towards Renjun and starts walking Donghyuck to their dorm. On the way, they pass a few students who look away when they notice Donghyuck's grave face.
It's very unlike him to engage in any physical confrontation, his parents having told him it was too of a muggle-like behavior. Given the situation, Donghyuck would use his magic rather than his fists to fight --he's talented in the area after all.
But what unsettles Jaemin the most is that there are a few things besides Mark that could drive Hyuck mad. As a matter of fact, until that moment, Jaemin had thought that only Mark was capable of getting Donghyuck so worked up.
Once they're in the dorm, Jaemin unkindly kicks the other Slytherins out of the room and sits Donghyuck down on his bed. Donghyuck looks awful, his muscles are still tensed up and he's clenching his fists so hard Jaemin knows he'll find semi-circular shape marks in his palm.
Jaemin stretches open Donghyuck's hand and takes out his wand. He silently casts a healing spell, touching Donghyuck's palms and knuckles with the tip of his wand, and smiles pleased as the bruises fade away. “What happened?”
Donghyuck blinks, clearing the fog of his mind. “He said, he said that just because Mark was another orphan sorted in Gryffindor who was decently good Quidditch he didn't have the right to act like he was the next Potter."
“Do you know if he told anyone else? About his parents?”
Donghyuck shakes his head, letting out a humorless laugh. “He came to me first, thought that I– for Merlin’s sake, I don’t want to know what the hell he was thinking. He spoke as if I were to be delighted on the information.”
Jaemin bites his lip, avoiding his friend's eyes. “Do you think he spreads the information?”
"No, I think I was pretty clear about it, he–wait you knew.” Donghyuck’s voice is hollow and Jaemin feels a pang of overwhelming guilt. “You knew.” He repeats.
Jaemin nods.
“Why?” Donghyuck shakes his head, almost in disappointment.
So Jaemin tells him the truth
***
On Monday, Renjun walks into the Astronomy Tower thirty minutes earlier than usual, only to find that Jaemin is already there, pacing around the room.
“You are early.” Jaemin blinks surprised.
“ You are early.” Renjun remarks and turns around to point at the silvery figure slouched against the wall. “What is she doing here?”
“I brought her for emotional support.” Jaemin confesses quietly, and Myrtle huffs, the only indication she’s listening. “I need to tell you something. Well, two somethings.”
“Go ahead.” Renjun scratches his head, Jaemin’s odd behavior putting him on edge.
“Hyuck knows about Mark’s situation, there’s this guy who told him and that’s what was all that fuss about, you know, last time,” The words rush out of Jaemin’s mouth, so fast that Renjun nearly misses them. “You don’t have to worry, trust me, he won’t say a thing and he also, uh, threatened the other guy so, no one is saying anything, yeah.”
Renjun narrows his eyes, processing the information. “How are you so sure?”
It's not Jaemin's place to answer that question, not until his friend comes into terms with his own feelings. “Can you trust me with this? Please?” Jaemin looks at Renjun with pleading eyes.
There’s a minute of silence before Renjun nods his head. “Fine, what else?”
Jaemin inhales sharply and walks until he’s right in front of Renjun. “He asked me why I say anything, and I had to tell him the truth.” He bites his lip. “ I told him that I li–I've liked you for a while now."
Another minute of silence, longer than before, and Jaemin drops his gaze.
“Is that why you asked me to do all of this?” Renjun asks slowly
Jaemin feels like he has run out of words, so he just nods his head.
Renjun scoffs. “Why didn’t you talk to me like a normal person?”
“Would you have said yes had I asked you out?’ Jaemin sounds skeptical.
“Probably not.” Renjun answers honestly, and he’s close enough to Jaemin, so he reaches out and lifts his chin gently, looking him in the eye. “And I’d probably had missed the chance of getting to know you and catching feelings for you.”
Jaemin stands there, frozen, wide-eyed, and mouth hanging open in surprise.
“So would you mind if I ask you out this time?” Renjun asks in a hopeful tone. “I still think it’s for the best if we can keep this a secret, only for now, but–”
“Totally-sure-yes” Jaemin’s words run together into one word, and he smiles, aggressively sunny and bright.
Renjun nods and turns one last time to Myrtle. “Please, could you keep this confidential?”
“Whatever, he’s your problem now.” She scoffs before floating away.
That's all Renjun needs to hear to turn around and met Jaemin’s lips