SUNGMIN couldn't look the police officer in the eyes. But he mumbled all the answers to the questions they threw at him. He was still drunk, that much he was sure of. But he had coffee in his system and the bright light in the police station stunned his drunken stupor to the minimum. But clearly, he was going to get in trouble if he didn't tell his student to keep this from spreading over the university-tweet-sphere. He could see it now, #SMUniprofdrunk #SMUnigyosohnimfail #robbedSMUniprof #loserdefenceclassprof That would have been the least scandalous thing that could get out. The reason would get him fired or suspended. One's image was an important thing for SMUni. The President of the university could fire someone on a whim and there were people lined up to replace any post that was vacated. And if he lost his job now he would have nothing. Well, he could go back home and be under his father's tyranny yet again and be forced to work for the family business. But he would have to walk on even more delicate eggshells there. And he had barely escaped it by getting a post in the music department. Something that also cost him his happiness. Vicious cycle indeed.
When he finished giving his statement it was Tao's turn. He was amazed at how confident he was and how he used his skills to save him. Had it been anyone else, they would have bailed and left him for dead. But not this kid. He was glad that he was around though he would still have to worry about how to pay back this blood debt. Tao did save his life so it was just appropriate that he did something to thank him. Maybe a gift?
Once all the statements were done and the bad guys were booked the police allowed them to leave. They didn't ask for a professor for Tao since it was confirmed that he was a professor in the former's university. He got his phone and his wallet back so he was free to leave.
"Wait." He stopped Tao by the arm. When Tao faced him he bowed in gratitude.
"Ssam! You don't need to do that!" Tao helped him stand up straight because he was still a bit wobbly.
"Just let me know what I can do to repay you!" then he countered his offer. "But you can't ask me to do anything illegal and that includes giving you a grade that you don't deserve!"
Tao laughed at what he said then shook his head from side to side. "I wouldn't dare ask that of you. And for the record, you don't owe me anything. I was just doing the right thing. Anyone would have done the same thing I did."367Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNlMu82kKUW
367Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEnsrm8ERVk
Sungmin had forgotten how idealistic some kids were. Tao was a breath of fresh air in his suffocating world. "I owe you my life. God knows what does guys would have done if you weren't there. The phone and my wallet I can replace but my life..." he didn't even want to think what else could have happened. "Aside from your grade in any of the classes I would teach now and in the future, you can ask me for anything."
Tao scratched the back of his head. Then a slow smirk came out, Sungmin gulped at the sight of his mischievous smile. "How about you just owe me a favor and I will cash it out later on. I mean, I am not going to ask you for money or anything like that. But if I was in a difficult situation I would call on you to help me out." he took out his mobile and then look at him shyly. "But I would have to have your number to do that..."
Sungmin gave him the number since he had committed it to memory. He was curious as to why Tao sounded so shy when he asked for his number. "You can call me any time."
Tao scratched his nose and blew out a breath. "Can I send you a message as well? Or is that too much? I mean...if I have questions about Uni and stuff..."
Sungmin smiled at him. He put his arm around the kid's shoulder and said, "I owe you more than that so it's not a problem. I'll consider you as my dongsaeng from now on. Okay?"
Tao didn't look like he liked the idea but still nodded. "So you are my hyungnim now?"
"Yeah, but in class, I am your teacher so don't be too casual, okay?" He needed to make sure that people didn't talk about them being too close.
"Sure. I don't say much in person anyway." Tao sighed.
"You look friendly enough." Sungmin teased. "The girls must be all over you. Do you have a girlfriend, Tao dongsaeng?" Why did you have to ask that?
"No!" Tao looked shocked that he asked him that.
"Well, if you ever what to get to know a girl better and you have questions about that then you can shoot me a message or call me if you get your heartbroken and I'd be there for you. Araso?" Sungmin was glad that he made a new friend but he didn't want to get too close to someone right now, even if it was just a dongsaeng. He had way too much baggage to unload it to a nineteen-year-old.
TAO looked at the number on his phone screen. It was all that he could do not to place a <3 next to Hyungnim S that he placed on his phone book. What am I a thirteen-year-old girl? He couldn't help but grin, the rare one that people can't get to see unless they were his close friend and he has overwhelmed with giddiness. If Kris hyung could see me now, he would kick my ass so being such a pus$y.
As if on cue, the screened showed the selca he took with Kris hyung when they won the last dance competition. All smiles and almost exchanging cheeks with his hyung doing a derp while he had a serious face on. It always made him laugh whenever Kris calls him because he could remember how mad the former was that he didn't derp as well.
"Yoboseyo..." the video call was a lil' too much. But Kris had loved that feature since apps made it easier to do that. He got a video call almost every time they were not hanging out.
"Ya! Why did you leave me at the bar, you ungrateful brat?" Kris didn't look the least bit distraught. He had two other people next to him, both ladies of the night, surely.
"I got into some trouble so I went straight home from the police station," he said directly. It was true. After the cab ride that Sungmin-hyung paid for he had gone up to the dorm room that he shared with Kris hyung without much ado. He just needed to rest after what happened. It was too emotionally draining for him. In a good way.
"POLICE STATION? WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED TO YOU?" Kris let go of the two women and faced his mobile almost as if he was trying to get into his phone and come out on Tao's side.
"I'll tell you when you get back to the dorms. I'm going to sleep in a few minutes. Open the door with your key. I'm too exhausted to try to open it for you. Night, ladies." he canceled the video call and intended to go to sleep if not for the grumbling sound that he heard his stomach make. "Hungry." his adrenaline was drained from the whole fiasco that he had not noticed that he was famished.
"Need. Food." he was rummaging through the food cabinet he shared with Kris and decided that noodles wouldn't cut it. He had to go out to buy food. But having just come from the slammer and getting some bad guys checked in made going out in the dead of the night all that safe to him. "Ramyeon it is then." He knew that at some point all the bad stuff he had eaten would cause him some kind of disease. But he had no choice since boiling water is just about all that he could do correctly.
"Ya!" Kris barged into the room, sweaty and distraught. "You pest! You disrespectful Panda-addict!" Kris had grabbed a panda-designed chair pillow at him. He had blocked it effectively it flew back to Kris' face. "YAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! YOU INCONSIDERATE PANDA! I was so worried about you that I almost killed myself getting here faster. ARE YOU HURT ANYWHERE?" He was getting patted down by his hyung and he had to laugh. If only Sungmin hyung panics like Kris hyung. Feel free to frisk me, gyo-soh-nim.
"HOW DARE YOU SMIRK AT ME? Ju go le? TELL ME EVERYTHING." Kris was hyperventilating so Tao had to help him sit down.
"I helped a guy from getting mugged. I had to go to the police station to sort things out there. End of report." he pretended to be a soldier giving his commanding officer a report, albeit a short one.
"Who did you help out?" Kris is a question machine sometimes.
"Just some old guy," was all that he could say. Kris hyung could not be trusted with a secret as big as this one. He was bound to slip out the information in any of the languages that he's mastered. He could get a bit in vino veritas when he's pissed drunk. Which he clearly was a few minutes ago. The return to the dorm probably drained all the alcohol from his system.
"DON'T YOU EVER DO THAT AGAIN! I don't care how good you think you are but you should never ever let yourself get involved in something that would inconvenience you." Tao wanted to do a facepalm but decided that he's aggravated his hyung enough. He placed his hands on his hyung's shoulders to make him calm down by massaging him.
"I won't accept it if it's one of my friends." Kris was not fully convinced.
"You are not the kind to go to someone's rescue. I mean, at least not towards strangers." Kris had his face so close to Tao's he wanted to sneeze just to piss the guy off. He stopped himself. His hyung squinted his eyes to show his suspicion. "Who is it really?"
"Just some old guy. He was too drunk that they had to get his I.D. from his wallet to get things rolling." definitely not a good idea to give his hyung any idea who it was. Sungmin would get in trouble that was crystal clear.
Kris sat down abruptly on their black and white sofa and heaved a sigh. "Just don't make me worry like that ever again. You know that your mom only let you study in SK because I begged her to let you. I'm responsible for you. If she finds out that you got into this kind of stuff, you'd be shipped to Beijing faster than you can say made in China."
Tao walked to the kitchen when he heard the water whistle. "Do you want some ramyeon?" he asked Kris. When there was no response he turned around only to see that the latter had passed out on the couch. He turned off the water and decided to carry his hyung to his room. If he was going to throw up, he would not be doing it in the common area. Because that would mean Tao would be forced to clean it like a good dongsaeng. Puke in the morning smells terrible.
"Goodnight, you drunkard." he pulled the comforter over his hyung and went out to eat his noodles in peace.
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