Desperate.

Hyun-woo despises that word, acid in his throat as he avoids eye contact with the classmate he had approached. His tongue is heavy, his situation and the shame that came with it weighing him down. His shame is evident in his body language, in his tone so unlike his usual demeanor as he pleads with the teen a class above him.

“I just need to borrow some money. I’ll pay you back as soon as I can, I promise —“ He knows that as soon as the words leaves his mouth he sounds desperate, pathetic. Because he knows that was what he was, a teen desperate to survive without having a gang breathing down his neck about the money he lost in that incident. An incident no one had anticipated, other than perhaps the perpetrator — even then, how would they have known?

His eyes meet theirs, because he knows he shouldn’t have the audacity to ask them such a big favor without even looking at them. His shoulders are tense, something in his eyes pleading for sympathy, for any semblance of mercy.