Hot silver curls of smoke unfurl into the warm air in the room, the aroma of the tender boiled chicken floating around the broth in that ceramic bowl was divine. Taehyung stared into it, with eyes full of sheer melancholy.

The diner was awfully quiet with just the sounds of forks and knives clanking. Taehyung nervously peeked through his eyelashes at his father who was now giving the bowl of chicken soup a gentle stir.

"Dad―" he called out, glancing at his mother sitting in front who just sighed when her husband didn't even spare the younger a single glance.

"Dad, I tried my best." the brunet informed, biting on the piece of bread he was given with the bowl of soup (which he didn't like cause he wanted gimbap today) before looking down at his lap when the silence continued.

He didn't speak a word after that and the family kept on eating in repose.

Taehyung was disturbed by his sister Kim Jennie who hit him with her elbow and gave him a disappointed look which was not directed at him, rather at their father who was too strict and bossy with both of them.

Taehyung just blinked at her as he returned back to eating.

"Your best doesn't mean you can become the best," finally those words echoed in the dining area that came from his father who finished eating and now was wiping the corner of his lips with the napkin he had in front.

"Dad, he used magic, he sneaked his wand in the hall, he cheated―" Taehyung tried to reason behind why he and Jeongguk got the same marks in the examination which will highly affect their overall grades at the end of the year. So it was important.

Jeongguk and Taehyung were having their own competition aside from the one all the students were having for becoming the next mage of Belfort.

To replace Jeongguk's father and take that place. This happens every after 25 years and now that it's time, all the students were lucky to get this opportunity because the previous batches never did get that.

It was Taehyung's father who was supposed to be the mage and he did become that too but just after some days of him getting the position, he was replaced by Jeongguk's father who lost to him by few points.

Fate played with him in the worst ways that he was excluded off the Belfort's board of directors plus he wasn't the mage anymore either.

What makes him go nuts is that Jeongguk's father, Jeon Jonhan become the headmaster of Belfort the last year. That's when Jeongguk started to get more privileges than he already was getting, now it was like no one was there to stop him from doing what he wished to do. No one dared to stop him.

"Your excuses won't get your extra points, son," he said throwing the napkin on the table, "You have to work more hard if you want to be the mage, if you want that wand."

His voice was harsh, more than Taehyung's liking and it expressed nothing but utter disappointment and frustration.

"You surely don't want to become failure, do you, Kim Taehyung?" he said glaring at his son who just huffed, "Please like you should appreciated my efforts for once?"

"Efforts don't matter, outcomes do," well this of course isn't true cause results aren't always what matters the most, the efforts do but the brunet's father was too ignorant for understanding that.

"Do whatever you can just score better than that son of a―" he didn't complete the sentence and momentarily pulled himself off the chair only to walk away.

His mom following him as she wanted to talk to him for this type of behaviour. She doesn't like it all but seeing his bad mood, she thought it would be better if she talked to him in private.

"I am honestly so lucky I am not in your batch like all the students in yours are pressurised so bad, dude," a soft sign melted in the air as she let his fork fall on the table, "The soup was delicious."

"I am trying, I am trying my best," Taehyung grimaced, "He is in no way appreciating my anything, hate it here."

"Sucks to be you." the girl laughed, ruffling her elder brother's hair that annoyed him well too much as he yanked her hand and glared, "Fuck off."

"Okay," she understands his situation and didn't snap back, with a smile on her face she reached out for the knife and held it in the air, "Let's just stab Jeon Jeongguk."

"Not in the mood to joke, Jen." the older one expressed rubbing his thumb on his left eyebrow, hard, "I am honestly exhausted."

"I am here doing whatever I can to make his dreams come true and there is being the ungrateful man he is― sometimes wanna just disappear." he with the utmost disappointment in his voice murmured while he poured himself some water in his glass.

"I get you bro. I can see how you're trying your best and how Jeongguk is just taking full advantages of being the son of the headmaster."

"Someone make him understand." Taehyung said and stood up, "It was a mistake to even come here. I am better in dorms."

"We are leaving tomorrow morning, right?" she asked pressing her lips together in a thin line. They visit their house once in a week or two and the rest of the time they are spending in their dorms but with this attitude from their parents and the 'warm welcome' they offer, their willingness to get back here is surely evaporating.

"Yeah, no reason to stay here. Will probably end up getting into a big fight with him." he said sipping on the cold water.

★

"Ascendo!" Taehyung muttered the spell under his breath and started moving the wand in his own direction wanting to get the book on Jimin's bed.

Jimin sighed seeing his book fly and move towards his best friend laying on the bed, looking nothing better than a corpse.

"Will you tell me what happened?" the cotton candy haired boy asked. Well talking about his hair, he was the one and only one in the campus to have that colour. He chose that colour not because he looks cute with that rather because it would be easier to spot him in the crowd. He wanted to be different.

Now with that bright pink colour, he is different and unique.

Jimin was always up to something, like no he won't stay put for a moment and Taehyung just gets annoyed when he always gets in trouble but also will do anything to get him out of the mess.

"Tell me or I will go suck Jeongguk's dick." he nonchalantly said and the brunet just fake gagged at the thought, "Oof no you won't."

"He is big though."

"I am bigger, bitch." he argued.

"So you want me to suck yours?" Jimin asked cocking one of his brows and Taehyung huffed crossing his arms over his chest.

"Oh my God, Jimin. Will you shut up? Weren't we talking about me? Instead of dicks?" he queried, shushing the other for a second.

Jimin laughed, "Sorry, the whore in me jumped out."

"Tell me what do I do more to make dad happy. I am literally missing out all the parties and good stuff for this points." Taehyung sighed, his mind puzzled.

"Listen buddy, you not going to the parties or enjoying life ain't gonna increase the prospects of him being happy about you cause as far I understood, he will never, even if you become the mage." Jimin spoke, sitting up on the bed and grabbing his wand that was laying beside him.

"No offense but I don't like your father, a proper arsehole!" the shorter male said shaking his head a bit while his eyes were wide open as if they were gonna pop out of the sockets, "I really am rooting his character development though."

"I am an utter disappointment, a failure to his opinion and I want to that change that so bad," Taehyung bit his bottom lip in between his teeth and chewed on the flesh as he kept on thinking what we will study the whole night.

"You are not, you're one of the most brilliant student babes, the things you do, if you go beyond these efforts, I am afraid you will fall sick so please don't." Jimin tried to make the other understand but when someone made up their mind, you can't do anything much.

"Hey cheer up!" Jimin exclaimed watching the other sigh yet again.

"Here, take this. You love this bread right?" Jimin used his wand and casted spell, "Ascendo!"

His motive was to get this pack of half eaten chocolate bread to Taehyung and it was going smoothly until in the mid way, it crashed on the floor.

Jimin knitted his brows at this act because this was pretty unusual for this spell to not work.

He might be a bad wizard but fucking up this easy spell? Nah, that wasn't like him.

He again used the magic spell on that packet but nothing.

"Ascendo!" it was Taehyung's turn to do this but what surprised more like what made them flabbergasted was the fact that even when the one of the best future wizards did that.

It didn't work.

"What the hell?"

★

hope you enjoying reading this !

i adore each and every one of you guys <3333