Unravel Me (Joohyuk)

18.

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    He stood outside the amusement park staring at the attractions from the other side of the gates as they wait for the rest of their party to arrive.
He's nervous and he knows it. He can feel the way his heart is beating out of his chest and he feels his legs are about to give out at any second. He seriously hates rollercoasters.

  There was one ride in particular he was staring at, it went up so high you could only see the bottom of the seats and his head went all the way back as he watched. While he stared at the ride, he felt a lump in his throat and he didn't realize he was holding his breath the whole time. The longer he stares, the more he just wants to go back home. He honestly doesn't even know why he accepted. Seems like Jooheon was right, he's just hard to say no to.

  Suddenly after that thought, he feels a hand on his left shoulder and he turned his head slightly in the same direction seeing Jooheon's face from the corner of his eye.
"You look like you're about to pee your pants," Jooheon stated as he smiled brightly.

  Minhyuk smiled slightly before turning his attention back to the gates they were standing in front of. "I'm just nervous to hang out with your friends." It wasn't totally a lie. He is nervous to meet Jooheon's friends but most of his nervousness comes from the rollercoasters but Jooheon doesn't need to know that.

  He heard the way Jooheon let out short a chuckle but he couldn't take his eyes away from the ride going all the way up and quickly dropping back down. "Well if it makes you feel any better, that night at karaoke, I wasn't only afraid of the dark."

Minhyuk turned his head in Jooheon's direction again but this time their eyes met with each other's and Minhyuk felt stuck. He knew what he wanted to say but while looking into Jooheon's eyes as close as they are, he completely lost his train of thought and instead he realized how beautiful Jooheon's eyes are.

"Joo!" A voice called out breaking the eye contact and breaking Minhyuk out of his thoughts again. When he finally came back to reality after spacing out, Jooheon went on and exchanged handshakes with each of the guys.
Minhyuk followed the group boys and went on to introducing himself but when he did, Taeyeob was giving him a look that was a mix between confused and something else that Minhyuk couldn't read.

  I'm surprised you're still around. The memory of Minhyuk's first "meeting" with Taeyeob came into his mind again along with the information given to him from Changkyun. He wondered if that thought Taeyeob had of Minhyuk not sticking around was part of it.

"Hey, Minhyuk." He heard Johnny greet him and Minhyuk quickly replaced his thoughtful look to a friendly one as he shook the tallest male's hand. "I didn't know you'd be here, the more the merrier. I guess."
He mumbled that last part as he walked to the others that were headed towards the entrance. Those words probably weren't meant for Minhyuk's ears but he heard them anyway only instead of reacting, he just brushed it off. Today was for Jooheon, not him and he could tell how much this means to the younger.

After ignoring the other male's words, Minhyuk looked over to see Jooheon standing there with Taeyeob's arm around him while they all smiled and laughed about everything they talked about. Regardless of what the tall guy said, it was nice to see Jooheon spending time with his friends.

"Which ride are we going on first?" Taeyeob asks with his arm still hanging around Jooheon's shoulder as they all walk towards the entrance of the park. They all named different rides but eventually decided they'd let Jooheon choose since he was the one that paid for them.

Seeing how they never left Jooheon's side, or how they made Jooheon laugh, or how the other two, Johnny and Seungyoun offered Jooheon the seat next to them on the rides before they even walked into the park made Minhyuk realize just how close they are but he couldn't stop pondering over what Changkyun said.

As they arrived at the ride Jooheon chose, Minhyuk felt his stomach drop just looking at it. It was the very ride that caught his eye from the other side of the gate but now it looked so much bigger. He definitely wasn't getting on that thing.

"We're up next, are you ready?" Jooheon asked while smiling as he was playfully hitting Minhyuk's arm.
Minhyuk nodded at his question in a weak smile because once again, as he looked up, the nerves got the better of him.

"Hey, what's up? Are you okay?" Jooheon asked in a tone that seemed more concerned than excited now.

"I think i'm gonna... sit this one out." Minhyuk finally decided after watching the ride going up and down at a speed that was too fast for his liking.

"Oh, okay. Are you sure? I wanted to get on with you." Jooheon was now pouting but Minhyuk only smiled because although the younger was pouting, he found it extremely adorable.    
  Suddenly without giving much thought, Minhyuk lifted both hands bringing them to Jooheon's soft cheeks and used his thumbs to bring the corners of Jooheon's lips up again. The dimples appeared and the glimmer in Jooheon's eyes returned ten times brighter and the only thing Minhyuk could think about was how much he wanted to poke his dimples but that's all it was; just a thought.

  "I'll cheer for you down here," Minhyuk said moving his hands back into his pockets and Jooheon simply nodded.

"Joo? We're up," Taeyeob said, patting Jooheon's shoulder but his eyes stayed on Minhyuk.

  He saw the way Taeyeob looked at him and once again Minhyuk became lost in the same thoughts as before. His mind was clouded even when he watched as they got on their seats for the ride.
That all changed the moment Jooheon finally got seated and turned around. They met each other's eyes again and suddenly instead of thinking about the look Taeyeob gave him, his focus completely shifted to the guy that was looking at him.

    It was as if everyone around them suddenly disappeared because Jooheon was all he could see. He saw the way he smiled as the cart started lifting and even the fear on his face when cart dropped the first time and Minhyuk couldn't help but smile through all of it. The trip had only just begun but Jooheon was already having fun and you can see it on his face.

  The cart went up again and again and each time it did, Jooheon's smile was as wide as the ocean. Before, Minhyuk couldn't even look at rollercoasters up close but this time was different, this time he had a view that made watching the entire ride worth it.

  The ride started to slow down as it gradually reached the floor for the end of the ride. When it landed, Jooheon immediately stepped off before the rest of the row could even get their seatbelts off and walked straight towards Minhyuk.
  "You seriously missed out, it was the perfect way to start this trip."

"Next time," Minhyuk responded and they walked off to the next ride with the other guys following behind.
  Minhyuk has always liked how it feels having Jooheon around. Something about his presence is calming and his smile makes Minhyuk want to smile. Right now that feeling of comfort he feels around Jooheon is in overdrive and that is making him even more nervous than the rollercoasters.