a/n: Ha so some things before we start.
S'not a happy story. If rape, abuse, cheating, swearing, and really messed up family dynamics trigger you in any way, please go ahead and turn back now.
I just got to reading character wikis and had this huge college/slice of life au idea that wouldn't go away. Not related in any way to gakuen hetalia.
Disclaimer: Himaruya owns Hetalia, not me. I'm just borrowing them for this fic.
A note on names:
Xiao Chun is Hong Kong
Liying is Taiwan
Xiao Chun supposes he knows why he's here, because really, why wouldn't he be? He's the broody Asian kid in a predominantly white classroom full of kids that whisper around him like he doesn't speak perfect English, doodling in his notebook rather than listening to the teacher. And after maybe pretending he didn't, in fact, speak English, just to avoid being called on, and maybe essentially mocking the teacher, he's not surprised he's here; he's more surprised he wasn't sent here before this.
"Mr. Li," the principal starts, huffing as if he's trying to breathe, and Xiao Chun has to repress a very ill-timed snort. "I assume you know why you're here?"
"Gee, I wonder," he mumbles, Cantonese the preferred language this afternoon. Maybe they'll suspend him for being a brat and he can spend the next week catching up on that drama he started with Yongsoo the other day.
"You can drop the act," the older man says, voice nearly disdainful. Xiao Chun's eyes follow his hand as he rolls a pencil over the papers in front of him. One of them is from his notebook, and he can just make out what it is. The beginnings of something probably too rated for school. "I am fully aware that you know what I am saying, and that you can speak English, too."
"And?" Xiao Chun gives, face carefully blank.
"And, you know why you are here, right?" the principal presses, face reddening a little, and Xiao Chun tries to drag it out—see if he can get the other beyond flustered.
"Because the law requires me to attend school?" he says, fully aware that he's being a 'piece of shit' as Yao sometimes rants when he's pushed too far, but he can't really help himself. He's bored, and at least this way he doesn't have to sit in class.
The principal takes a deep breath, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Try again."
"Because you called me here," Xiao Chun continues, biting his tongue to keep from laughing and shaking his bangs a little farther into his face to hide the way his eyebrows quirk in amusement. Where Yao is precariously controlled chaos, Yongsoo an open book, Kiku a damn near psychopath, and Liying the sassy one, he kind of has the apathetic image to uphold. And as it's his only real place in a crazy pseudo-family, he needs to keep a hold of it or be as good as forgotten.
"Better," the man sighs, fingers moving from rubbing between his eyes to pulling off his glasses and rubbing at his temples. "But not the answer we're looking for." His voice is growing steadily angrier, and Xiao Chun is almost there—so close he can taste it.
"Because I walked here—" he starts, voice deadpan and serious, even if what he's saying is anything but, and he's not disappointed when the principal slams his hands down on his desk so hard the pencil snaps, shooting to his feet.
"Because you were drawing dicks in class, Xiao Chun!" he shouts, voice loud enough to carry out the half-open door and into the office space behind him. His name is butchered beyond belief, but he's more pleased with the fact that he got the oh-so-esteemed principal to shout 'dicks' across the workplace.
"I would have never guessed," Xiao Chun pushes, shifting in his seat just in case the principal throws something at him. He doesn't think he will, because he's a school authority and not supposed to do things like that. But then again, family isn't supposed to do what some of his has done, either.
"Mrs. Leavengood!" the older man calls, stomping from the room. "Just—"
The voice fades as the principal turns a corner, and Xiao Chun crosses his legs, grabbing his phone from his pocket and shooting off a quick text to Yongsoo to let him know that yes, he's probably got detention, and no, you shldn't wait for me pls just go home.
Not that home is really the best place to be, but…
"Xiao Chun?" a female voice asks after another minute or two of silence. He turns a little to find the school counselor entering the room, moving to sit in the principal's chair. She grins at him, as if they've plotted something together, and he allows himself to grin back, just a little. He's more familiar with her than he should be, considering how many times he winds up in her office, and he likes to think they're almost friends, of a sort.
"The one and only," he says after a pause, when it seems like she isn't going to say anything else. Without even realizing it, he's sprawling a little more comfortably in his chair, not sitting so rigidly, and it's nice to get to almost relax.
"I understand you were pestering Mr. Grant today," she starts, trying to sound stern, although he can see her slight smile, the way her eyes dart down to the paper in front of her. He feels like he should be embarrassed, but he just can't bring himself to feel as such.
"Maybe," he admits, phone vibrating in his hand as a text comes in. Probably from Yongsoo, since not many others text him.
"Male anatomy this time," she states, wiggling her eyebrows and flipping the paper over to see if there's anything on the back. There isn't, this time at least.
"Mr. Stanford is a dick," he supplies as an excuse—and it's true, honest. The guy is a racist bastard, and Xiao Chun was really just stating what everyone felt.
She laughs before she can help herself, shaking her head and glancing at him almost apologetically. "Drawing skills and personality aside, it really is rather inappropriate to be drawing such things in class, Xiao Chun. As is your behavior today, after you were called to the office." She pauses, as if to let it sink in, and he closes his face off again, expression carefully blank.
"I know." He doesn't sound sorry.
"The principal thought you should have detention."
"Okay," he agrees, because yeah, he's been a little asshole. Detention was expected.
"For the month," she continues, and Xiao Chun carefully keeps his surprise masked. He'd been expecting a week at worst, but a whole month? Yao was going to flip shit.
"Okay," he says again, yanking his hand up into his sleeve so she can't see his fingers clenching around the phone in his grip.
"We'll have to call your brother," she murmurs, voice softening, eyebrows drawing together. "Since this has happened two times in the last week alone."
"Are you sure?" he asks, trying to hide his upset. Usually he just got detention and wound up home a couple hours late—no big deal. Yao didn't have to know he was pretty much actively causing problems at school. "Just give me detention, and it'll be fine—"
She very nearly winces, shaking her head lightly, and he cuts off, smoothing his face out again and picking at the sleeves of his oversized sweatshirt, eyes focused on the movement so she can't read the emotions in them.
"We've been lenient thus far, honey, but protocol insists we call to let your legal guardian know," she says, sounding sorry almost, and Xiao Chun huffs. She doesn't even know the half of it.
"Whatever," he finally mutters, both feet on the floor as he gets set to push his chair back. "It's not like anything bad will come from that."
"Xiao Chun, you know we don't speak Chinese—"
"Cantonese," he speaks over her, voice nearly emotionless as he stands. "Cantonese. Chinese sounds different. Although I'll bet you couldn't tell the difference," he finishes in said language, grabbing his bag.
"Hey," she says, standing as well and coming around the desk to grab his arm before he can get out the door. He resolutely holds himself still, face and body and tone as blank as the unused papers in his sketchbook.
"Please don't touch me."
"Sorry," she murmurs, taking her hand back and stepping around to try to meet his eyes. "Sorry, I just—where are you going? We aren't exactly done here yet, and we still need to call your brother." She sounds so earnest that he just doesn't get how she doesn't get it. Isn't she supposed to be a therapist with some kind of psych degree?
"Go ahead and call him, but I won't be here for it," he mumbles, half-bowing even as he shoulders past her to get out the door. "I'll just go back to class."
"Xiao Chun—"
"I'll see you in detention," he assures her, shoving his hands in his pockets and slipping out into the hallway that's now filled with kids on the way to the cafeteria for first lunch. He's technically got second lunch, but it doesn't stop him from meshing with the crowd of upperclassmen on their way to the parking lot to grab lunch off campus.
He pulls out his phone as he turns a corner to head toward the coffee shop down the street that he likes, checking for the message.
From - yongsoo
형ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ
To - yongsoo
dn't 'hyung' me. just go home.
And maybe that's a little harsher than he intended to be, but Xiao Chun's in such deep shit tonight that he wants to prolong going home as long as possible. And because he's a good older brother, or friend, or…whatever the hell he is to Yongsoo, he doesn't want to drag the other out way past curfew and get him in trouble, too. But then again, if he's home…
He stops to wait for the light to change, sending another text before yongsoo has time to respond.
To - yongsoo
watch that drama we started for me. w ur headphones in. dont bother yao ge, he's gnna be mad tonight.
Not that that will stop the younger, most likely, but at least this way Xiao Chun can't say he didn't warn him if Yongsoo winds up sporting a bruised lip along with his ego in the morning.
His phone vibrates a second later.
From - yongsoo
싫어ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
Xiao Chun hesitates for several minutes, standing in an alcove just out of the flow of foot traffic, biting his lip. It'd be a hell of a lot better for everyone if Yongsoo just went home and stayed quiet, but because Xiao Chun's pretty sure that won't happen like, ever, he sighs, running hands through his hair instead of banging his head into the brick wall next to him like he wants to.
To - yongsoo
fine. meet me at the usual spot
The response is almost immediate.
From - yongsoo
!
He half smiles, able to perfectly imagine the near squeal, the literal jumping for joy. The smile wilts a little, turning into a nearly full fledged frown at just how excited Yongsoo is over the simple fact that he'll be hanging out with Xiao Chun. He gets that the younger can be a little—okay, maybe a lot—overwhelming, but really, Yongsoo isn't so bad.
At least, not so bad as the rest of his 'family' seems to think.
His phone vibrates again as he steps into the coffee shop, and he sits off to the side, waiting for the line to die down and reading over the new message.
From - yongsoo
김밥주세요 … ㅠㅠ
Xiao Chun snorts, rolling his eyes.
To - yongsoo
/sigh
He's barely hit the send button before a new text pops up.
From yongsoo
사랑한다
He smiles.
To - yongsoo
yeah, yeah. love u too.
And he does. At least—more than the rest of them.
a/n: 'Explicit pictures,' as the wiki says, was the only thing this translated to, I'm only kind of sorry.
If it's confusing to anyone, anything in prolonged italics is being spoken in a language that is not English.
형 - hyung. used by a younger boy to reference an older boy in korean. used for close friends/brothers. like nii-san in japanese.
싫어 - don't want to
김밥주세요 - kimbap please
사랑한다 - more polite/formal ver of i love you
ge - mandarin for older brother. not a usual term like hyung/nii-san are, but used occasionally.
Respective ages in fic are 17 (hk), and 15 (sk).
Thank you so much for reading! ;u; Please let me know if you liked it, or spot any errors! ((kindly please))!
/all the hearts