The Foreign Exchange Student

Ryung entered the chemistry lab and took his seat. Most of the other students had already arrived. Their teacher, an old and tiny man who was virtually swallowed by his floor-length lab coat, was standing near an eclectic assortment of beakers, pipettes, and other fanciful glassware.

"Today, you'll work in teams of two. The assignment is on the board, " He waved in the general direction of the white board.

Ryung looked around, and noted a few familiar faces, including Piggy, Princess, and Chun Hei. Before he could make a decision about who to approach, the teacher added, "Oh, and I've already chosen your partners for you. The list is posted on the wall." There was some low muttering by a few students, but they started moving anyway.

A loud and distinctive voice called out, "Teach, I'm going to choose my own partner!" Ryung didn't have to look to know who it was. He had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. It was definitely Tim.

"Teach, I need Ryung to help me out." Tim was already striding over to his table, before the teacher even responded. He was the only American foreign exchange student in their grade, impressively fluent for a second language speaker. Blonde haired, blue eyed, and a hulking mass of muscle, Tim was hard to miss. Since he arrived at the beginning of the year, he had taken an inexplicable liking to Ryung, and constantly pestered him to "hang out". Ryung was almost certain there was something wrong with his brain.

Tim slid into the seat next to him. Ryung was above average height, but he still had to look up. "I would be happy to group up with you, but our partners are already chosen." Ryung said.

"Don't worry about it, bro. Teach, it's fine, right?" Tim replied confidently.

Tim smiled, displaying his perfect pearly whites, and then, in full view of the entire class, he put his beefy arm around Ryung, and squeezed. Ryung attempted to pry himself loose, while the whole class looked on in mute fascination, unsure exactly what they were witnessing. Unfortunately, Tim didn't seem to notice, and after a few seconds of struggling fruitlessly to free himself, Ryung gave up. Desperately wishing to be anywhere else, Ryung called out, "Teacher, Tim already has a partner, right?"

Luck was not on his side. "Ryung, you're with Tim. Make sure he doesn't break anything." Their teacher made a dismissive gesture.

It seemed that was that.

Thankfully, Tim eventually released his hold on Ryung. Ryung hated being the center of attention, but whenever he was in Tim's company that was virtually unavoidable. While there were still some students glancing his way, the majority had already turned back to their own tasks.

"Well, we should get to work then, Tim." Ryung pulled out his textbook.

"Sure, but let's take a breather first. I had the most epic weekend." Ryung didn't respond, but Tim was oblivious.

"I was out clubbing last night, and I found this place down town that was filled with these sexy Geishas, just like in that movie." Tim babbled enthusiastically.

"Geishas are Japanese, Tim." Ryung replied. His mother would absolutely loathe Tim. But maybe that was a point in his favor.

"Sure, same difference. Anyway, they wore these incredibly sexy mini skirts, and kneeled to serve me cocktails. It was some hot shit, bro. I can't wait to go back. In fact, you should come with me. I'll reserve a private room for us this weekend. And don't worry, it's all on me."

Ryung found himself getting hard as he imagined a room full of scantily clad courtesans serving him well-aged tea, but the thought of being alone with Tim quickly returned him to reality. He was pretty sure Tim was straight, what with the amount of time he spent talking about girls. However, it was better to be safe than sorry.

"I wish I could, but my mother wants me to do some cleaning this weekend." He replied in an apologetic tone. There was no need to be impolite.

"Don't worry, mothers love me. I'll talk to her, and explain that I need a cultural guide for the night. Then you'll be free and clear, bro. It's gonna be awesome!" Tim was noticeably excited.

Ryung scrambled to think of another excuse, "We really need to clean the house this weekend. Dust has been building up." It sounded lame even to him.

Tim wasn't phased at all. "That's fine. I'll send my personal maid over, after talking to your mom." Tim slapped him on the back, and Ryung almost toppled over.

Oh, no. This wasn't good. It wasn't good at all.