The entire staff at the new school you work at consistently attempt at getting you and another rather aloof teacher, Choi Soobin, together after witnessing you interact quite often. The catch is that you both are married, and none of the staff have figured it out, yet.
choi soobin x gender neutral reader
established relationship, married, teachers au
It took about three weeks at your new job for you to notice something was going on with your co-workers, and your students as well to top it off. It was as if they were all in on some inside joke you werenât a part of, or perhaps the center of it. But that might just be your own insecurities about being the newest teacher at this school.
You had recently been laid off as a literature teacher after working at the same high school for a few years due to lack of budget to support the creative arts.
So, instead of educating high schoolers, you deemed it would be much better to teach a group of younger kids, much easier and stress free. After a couple of weeks you had gotten a job as the Art teacher at the very school your husband worked at thanks to his recommendation. Everyone there was very accepting of you and you felt right at home, for a while at least.
It was much different then being a literature professor for older kids, now you got to do finger painting for a living. And even though your English degree was collecting dust, (you shed a tear at this every night), you were actually enjoying your time teaching for once. Little children were much more bearable than high schoolers. There were no love triangles you had to deal with, kids giving handjobs under the desks, or getting paper planes thrown at you. The most drama that ever happened in your elementary classes was when Haerin wouldnât share the red crayons with anyone.
Well, you were enjoying it. Past tense.
Ever since you ended up catching teachers and students halting their whispers when you walked by youâve been rather uneasy.
You brought it up to Soobin during dinner one night and the other male merely shrugged, but that one was on you though. Soobin didnât interact with any of his co-workers unless he absolutely had to. It was a surprise he was a favorite teacher among the students, unbeknownst to you it was because the children found the male handsome and his teaching style atrocious.
You were surprised to learn none of your co-workers had even held a coherent conversation with Soobin, despite him working there for much of his career. So when Beomgyu, one of the schoolâs music teachers, let out a gasp at seeing Soobin sitting beside you in the staff room, he was taken aback. Soobin never went out of his way to make new friends, it seems he was content with the little to no socializing he did in college and called it a day.
âSo, whatâs your secret?â Beomgyu sang, sidling up next to you as he poured himself a cup of coffee, âHowâd you get the ever so quiet Soobin to talk to you for longer than a minute?â
âWhat are you on about?â you chuckled, taking a tentative sip of the hot beverage, you didnât want to burn your tongue again, it had ruined your entire week last time, âI just talk?â
Beomgyu and you quickly clicked upon your moving careers, there was something calming about the constant chitter chatter that left his mouth. Although, it was also a little annoying at times. Like right now.
âLast time I did that he just glared at me,â Beomgyu dramatically sighed, âMaybe he has his eyes on you.â
âOoh, are we talking about SoobinYn?â Hueningkai grinned, the actual English teacher, walking into the staff room.
âWhat the hell is SoobinYn?â you questioned, growing uncomfortable, why was everyone obsessing over you and Soobin? Was this their way of welcoming you?
âIâm going to exit this conversation now,â you mumbled, turning around when you bumped into the other half of said conversation.
And to your horror, a little splash of his coffee landed on the other male.
A collective gasp was heard from the staff room, preparing themselves for the ever so aloof male to lash out. Last time Yeonjun spilled his drink on Soobin the dark-haired male had the entire staff shaking in their seats.
âCareful,â Soobin mumbled, catching his arm on your shoulder to steady you before making his way past you to make himself a cup of coffee, not batting an eye as he grabbed a napkin and dabbed at it to lessen the soak.
âFuck, sorry,â you immediately apologized, grabbing the napkin from Soobin and placing your mug down, âDo you want my jacket?â
âItâs fine,â Soobin assured, picking up your mug and handing it back to you before grabbing his own mug that was now full and leaving the room, but not before patting your waist fondly on his way out.
You made sure to pointedly ignore Beomgyu and Hueningkaiâs loud snickers as you hurriedly left the room.
Everyoneâs intentions became clear when you overheard your own students conversing about you. The utter betrayal.
You were running a little late to your class that afternoon after a lively student had spilled glitter on you earlier that morning, you spent a good five minutes scrubbing it off your hands in the staff bathroom before making your way back to class. You had left your classroom door ajar in a hurry to leave, which made it easy for you to eavesdrop on your students when you heard Soobinâs name spoken for the nth time that day.
âI saw them eating lunch in Sir Soobinâs room the other day when I went to get my backpack!â Hyein insisted, a lollipop hanging halfway out of her mouth as the group that had gathered around her table eagerly nodded along to her story, âI think they like-like each other!â
âLike-like?â Haerin drawled out, tapping her chin, âThatâs very serious.â
âWe should make them be a couple!â Sunoo giggled, clapping his hands, âTeacher Y/n is very nice! Mister Soobin is not good enough for them but itâs okay.â
So this was what your coworkers were giggling about, they thought that you and Soobin were pining for each other. Which wasnât necessarily untrue, but had Soobin really not mentioned being married even once?
Truth be told, you never wore your ring to school, you didnât want any paint or glitter to get stuck between the diamonds and have to pay to get it cleaned, but did Soobin really leave his ring at home too? Seems even Mathematics teachers were prone to disasters via children.
âAlright, back to your respected tables, please,â you greeted as you made your way back into class, ignoring the exuberant glances the children gave you. âValentines is coming up this week, how about we make little cards for your friends?â
âOr boyfriends,â Sunoo giggled behind his hands as the class shrieked in laughter. You merely patted him on the head and sighed. Today was going to be quite the long day.
ââI say we send Y/n a Valentine in Soobinâs name, we all know he wonât do it himself!â Beomgyu rebuked, pointing an accusatory finger at Yeonjun.
âShouldnât we give him the benefit of the doubt!â Yeonjun huffed in response, âTheyâre clearly into one another.â
âYou got it all wrong, Y/n will make the first move and we should allow them to do so,â Taehyun, the schoolâs gym teacher, drawled, tapping his finger on his chin. âI believe they will ask Soobin out on Valentineâs!â
âAre you guys chatting about me again?â you deadpanned, already backing out of the room, but your back ran into something, or rather someone.
âClumsy as always,â Soobin murmured, placing a hand on your waist and gently pushing you out of the way, âWhat are you idiots looking at?â he questioned, glaring at Beomgyu who was stifling a laugh.
âYou never come in here, I should be interrogating you!â Yeonjun defended, hands on his hips.
âLunch,â Soobin dryly stated, reverting back to his one word answers, and handed a bag to you, âYou said you were craving Chinese earlier.â
The familiar smell of fried rice wafted through the room as you peered inside the bag, âYou remembered? Thank you.â
Soobin hummed, turning to leave the staff room and hermit himself in his classroom once again.
The moment he left all hell broke loose.
âSEE! I knew Soobin would make a move!â
âBut itâs not Valentineâs yet! Y/n still has a chance!"
âWe should just lock them up at this rate, this is getting frustrating.â
You clutched the bag tightly and walked out the room, ignoring the shouts questioning the nature of you and Soobinâs relationship that your coworkers shot behind you.
âSoobin?â you called out, knocking on the door as you opened it, which took away the actionâs purpose but you were impatient.
Said male looked up from where he was typing and gave you a glance before averting his eyes back, humming to show he was listening.
âHave you eaten yet?â you asked, shutting the door behind you as you pulled up one of the studentsâ chairs to sit beside Soobin, leaning back into it as Soobin gestured to his half finished take out box.
âEveryone thinks you and I have a crush on each other,â you blurted, leaning your chin on your palm as you watched Soobin work, watching how his nimble fingers came to a stop at your words.
âA crush?â Soobin repeated, turning to face you, âWhat? Thatâs childish.â
âThey donât know weâre married!â you huffed, âDid you not tell them? Whereâs your ring?â
âIt never came up,â Soobin mused, âLast time I wore my ring I took it off to help a teacher out and when I came back the kids were tossing it, so I started leaving it at home.â
âOh, it seems theyâve never seen us with our rings,â you frowned, causing Soobin to spin on his chair to face you, an amused smile on his face.
âThey just canât believe I managed to make you mine,â Soobin shrugged, chuckling at the immediate shove you sent to his shoulder.
âStop trying to be corny,â you smiled, reaching out to tug on his dress shirt and yank him closer.
Without a second of hesitation, your guysâ lips interlocked as if it were second nature. The familiarity behind Soobinâs every touch was still as refreshing as it was years ago when you both first met.
The moment was interrupted with a gasp from afar, and both of you pulled apart to see who had walked in on them, exhaling a sigh of relief to see it wasnât one of the students. But perhaps this was worse.
Hueningkai was staring with a flushed face before he realized he had come over for a specific reason and walked up to Soobinâs desk, dropping a file onto it which led Soobin to groan and sadly flip through it.
âSo how long have you two been together?â Hueningkai drawled, leaning forward as Soobin shot him a glare. Despite being one of the few people Soobin actually sort of talked to, it seems even Hueningkai hadnât known of their relationship status.
âSince graduating college, married now,â you answered, earning a smile from Hueningkai as he nodded, turning to make his leave.
âIâm so winning this betââ
âWhat bet? HUENINGKAI GET BACK HERE! WHAT BET?!â
Valentineâs day had finally decided to make an appearance, and the school would not let it pass by without a proper send off. The hallways were adorned with pink ribbons and little drawings the kids made, along with the occasional love is love poster and rainbow flag. There were streamers hanging on every doorway, and you couldnât count how many kids you had to help untangle themselves after getting stuck.
At least it looked pretty.
âI tried to get them to sing Bad Romance, can you believe theyâve never heard of it?â
âBeomgyu, they are children,â Hueningkai mused, shaking his head as he unwrapped one of the many chocolates they had lying around for Valentines.
âAs their English teacher you should add it into the curriculum to analyze or something,â Beomgyu huffed, perking up as you entered the room, âThere they are!â
âMe?â you repeated, about to take a seat next to them when Hueningkai pointed to the large basket of flowers sitting on the table, âLooks like someone has an admirer,â you added, peering into the basket.
âIt arrived this morning, the card says itâs addressed to you? But thereâs no sender,â Beomgyu mused.
âCoward,â Yeonjun reprimanded, âHow will I get my daily dose of drama if I donât know who itâs from?â
âI can infer,â you laughed, tugging on the card, âProbably my husband,â you thought aloud as you read the writing, a smile growing on your face. You were so absorbed in the note that you didnât notice the staff room grow quiet.
âHold up, youâre married?!â Beomgyu shrieked, getting up from his seat, âNo way.â
âIs that unbelievable?â you frowned, holding up your left hand, âBeen married for six years now.â
âOh my god, weâve been trying to set you up this entire time!â Yeonjun cried out, covering his mouth, âThis is so embarrassing! I didnât know you had someone at home!â
âIâm surprised you guys didnât know,â you sheepishly laughed, twirling one of the flowers from the basket between your fingers, âYou guys have met him before.â
Hueningkai snickered behind his chocolate bar as the other staff looked at him.
âSo THATâs why you made a bet saying Y/n was married to someone, I thought you just had a gambling addiction,â Yeonjun scoffed, hitting Hueningkai on the shoulder as he cackled.
âPay up,â Hueningkai grinned as you shook your head.
âCanât believe you all made a bet and tried to set me up,â you mumbled.
âYikes, I told Soobin I would get him a date tonight with you offhandedly,â Beomgyu admitted, looking ashamed as the door to the staff door opened.
Soobin stepped in, but instead of letting him pass by unnoticed as usual you tugged on his sleeve, shooting him a soft smile.
âThank you for the basket, Soobin,â you thanked, caressing the other maleâs arm to show your affection. Neither of you were big on PDA, it was a lot for you both to even hug in public. Mostly due to Soobinâs awkwardness with it, but he made up for it by showing affection behind closed doors.
Soobin merely hummed, awkwardly shuffling his feet. You felt a little bad about putting him on the spot, but you wanted to show off your husband for once!
âPause,â Beomgyu stated, pointing between the two of them, âNo fucking way.â
âI just lost so much money,â Yeonjun groaned, sucking his teeth and already pulling out his wallet as Hueningkai gleefully counted his bills.
âIâm still processing,â Beomgyu murmured, staring between the two of them, âWhat, when, and where?â
âI donât know what you mean by what, we started dating in senior year of highschool, and got married in the town Soobin grew up in,â you answered, firmly grasping Soobinâs arm so as to not let him escape. He was already trying to run off.
âI owe Hueningkai money?â Taehyun questioned as he overheard the conversation walking into the staff room, âNo way was his hypothesis correct.â
âSuck my dick,â Hueningkai grinned, opening his palm as Taehyun sighed and slapped a twenty on it, rolling his eyes as the other male gloated.
âYou guys are so fucking annoying,â Soobin complained, but his threat didnât look at all intimidating as you were pinching his cheek, âDo you really have nothing else to do then try to set me up? No wonder the education system is shit.â
âIâm surprised you even managed to score someone,â Beomgyu giggled, dodging the box of candy Soobin picked up and tossed at him.
âI still have more game than all of you, whereâs your partner?â Soobin countered.
âThe audacity,â Taehyun murmured as Beomgyu huffed in response, the staff room bursting into laughter.
âGuess we need a new project,â Beomgyu grieved, scanning the room till his eyes landed upon Hueningkai, âI guess Iâll set you up with someone.â
âYouâre gonna what?!â Hueningkai exclaimed, his face aghast as the staff immediately started listing off potential candidates
You laughed as you watched Hueningkai practically run away from Beomgyu, who was interrogating him on which teachers he found the most attractive.
Your new co-workers were a bit crazy, but you wouldnât have it any other way.