Minho's fingers brush lightly against the cheek of his boyfriend's. The two are lying on the older's bed, after a long night of studying, Jisung fell asleep quickly after his head hit the pillow. Minho's roommates don't pay much attention to the couple and go about doing their own things in the dorm, trying to stay quiet so they don't wake a sleeping Jisung. Though Minho never asked that of them, he appreciates their consideration.
Other's aren't supposed to sleep in dorms that aren't theirs, but the school only actively enforces that rule for the first month or so of school after that, they rely on the students to inform them if other's aren't following the rule. However, no one cares what the other students do and allow friends and occasionally partners of their roommates to stay in their dorm rooms.
"Are you going to take him back to his dorm?" Younghoon asks, whispering.
Minho shakes his head, "I was going to let him stay here if you guys don't mind."
"I don't mind," Younghoon smiles, "goodnight."
His other roommates bid him goodnight as well, all turning in for the night. Minho glances at his boyfriends face, smiling at how peaceful and innocent he looks while he sleeps. Carefully, Minho crawls over Jisung, getting up to change into more comfortable clothing and to grab something for Jisung to wear. Since he doesn't want to wake Jisung with too much movement, Minho decides to change the younger out of his uniform and into a large hoodie that is too big on himself. Minho slowly strips his boyfriend, and carefully glides the sweatshirt over the younger boy's head, careful as to not disturb the sleeping boy too much.
Crawling back onto the bed, Minho lays the blankets over both of them, sliding his arms around Jisung's waist and pulling the younger into his chest. He rests his nose on the top of Jisung's head, breathing in his scent as he slowly drifts off to sleep.
~•~
Jisung doesn't expect to wake up with as much warmth as he does. He nuzzles his face into what he thinks is his pillow, enjoying the comforting scent. The younger starts to drift back to sleep when he feels something glide up the skin of his back, prompting him to open his eyes. The bare skin of Minho's neck and shoulder meet his gaze first, but Jisung pushes back a little, looking up at the older's sleeping face.
His face slightly reddens at the fact that Minho isn't wearing a shirt, and at how close their bodies are to each other. Jisung can feel it now; his legs are tangled with his, and the feeling of Minho's hands under the hoodie and resting on his back. This is the closest Jisung thinks he has ever been with the older, and he likes it, a lot.
The two males used to sleep in the same bed all the time growing up, but there was always that awkward gap of them both trying to keep their distance as to not make the other uncomfortable. Now, Jisung doesn't have to feel awkward, because he and Minho have opened themselves up to one another and these simple, yet intimate activities are things they should be able to feel comfortable doing.
Jisung is comfortable, he feels safe in Minho's arms and he loves the warmth given off by the older male. The fact that there are three other people in the room, doesn't bother him since right now Jisung is keeping his mind on the only one that matters. At this moment, what other people say, do, or think isn't going to affect him, because Minho is the only one who truly matters in this moment.
The older's eyes slowly flicker open, coming to meet Jisung's. He smiles sleepily before closing his eyes once again and pulling Jisung closer to him.
"Are you watching me well I sleep?" Minho mumbles.
"Possibly," Jisung answers, circling his fingers on Minho's arms and drawing invisible patterns.
"Stalker."
Jisung playfully hits Minho's arm, giggling softly as Minho buries his face into the younger's neck. The two lay there, contently, for a minute for them to just breathe each other in. They needed this, and Jisung is a little mad at himself for not speaking up sooner because this could have been happening all along. Minho is in the same boat, hitting himself for ignoring his feeling instead of talking to Jisung about them. If he'd known that taking that risk would have resulted in great things, he would have said something from the beginning.
They don't let the movement of Minho's roommates interrupt them, as they embrace each other. Eventually, the three other bodies make their way out of the room, part wanting to get breakfast and part not wanting to see their roommate make out with his boyfriend.
"We should probably go down there as well," Jisung comments after a few seconds of silence.
Minho groans into Jisung's neck, "I want to cuddle."
Jisung smiles and brings a hand up to pet his boyfriend's head, "we can cuddle later, but I'm hungry now."
The older doesn't answer, instead, he digs his face even further into Jisung's neck, silently telling him that he doesn't want to move. The cute action makes Jisung giggle softly, as he continues to comb through Minho's hair with his fingers. Though the younger is hungry and would like to eat breakfast as soon as possible, he allows Minho his moment and chooses to wait a little longer.
Jisung hums a song softly, has he traces Minho's hairline, moving to different parts of his face to trace those as well. The gesture is calming and it distracts Jisung from the hunger as he waits for Minho to let go of him and let them go downstairs to eat.
"I like it when you sing, it sounds pretty," Minho mumbles, removing his face from Jisung's neck. He looks up at his boyfriend and gives him a small smile.
"You're prettier," Jisung compliments. Its true, Jisung wholeheartedly believes Minho is one of the most beautiful beings on this planet.
"Awe, how sweet," Minho coos, "my boyfriend, such a sweet talker."
Jisung smiles widely before leaning down and giving Minho a small peck on the lips. However, that wasn't enough for Minho who lifts his hand up to bring his hand around the back of Jisung's neck and pull him down into another, longer kiss. The younger didn't realize just how much he would enjoy this, but now that he is living it, he never wants to let it go.
"Can we go get breakfast now?" Jisung asks after pulling away.
"Fine," Minho dramatically sighs.
Jisung rolls his eyes but plants one last kiss one Minho's lips before sliding out of the bed. Instantly regretting it though since he is only wearing a hoodie.
~•~
There is something about the small action of holding Minho's hand while walking through the halls that Jisung enjoys. Maybe because it is silently telling everyone that they are together and no one else can have the older male or its a gesture that makes Jisung feel like Minho cares. Either way, Jisung love holding Minho's hand and he wishes he could do it forever.
Entering the crowded dining hall, Minho lets go of Jisung's hand, much to the younger's displeasure. Minho tells him he is going to go grab them food while instructing Jisung to find a table. Truthfully, Jisung would rather stay by Minho's side, but he doesn't argue and reluctantly goes off in search of a place to sit.
It didn't take long for Jisung to spot Seungmin sitting at a table by himself, keeping his head low as he eats his breakfast. From where Jisung is standing the positioning of the younger male looks a bit strange, but Jisung has always found Seungmin a little strange.
"Why are you sitting like that?" Jisung questions, standing at the opposite end of the table.
Seungmin glances up at his older friend, before glancing around the room, looking slightly paranoid.
"Sit down," Seungmin instructs, as he sits up fully and continues to look around the room.
Jisung is beginning to think that he should have chosen a different table to sit at since Seungmin is starting to look like a crazy person. Once Seungmin is done scoping out the room, he sinks back down and looks at Jisung. The older gives him a questioning look, extremely confused as to why Seungmin is acting the way he is.
"It's a long story," Seungmin answers, knowing what Jisung is thinking.
"Enlighten me." Jisung leans in as if Seungmin is about to tell him his darkest secret.
The younger went on to explain the situation, briefly. He doesn't want to go into intense detail since it makes him cringe too much, but he gives Jisung enough that he'd be able to understand why he is acting so strange.
Seungmin is very much avoiding Chan, he isn't even trying to be discreet about it, if he sees Chan, the younger won't hesitate to run away before the older can stop him in the halls. There have been a few times where he was late for class because he refused to walk down a hall that the blonde was in, so he'd go around and take a much longer way to his class. Though his teachers were confused as to Seungmin's sudden change in behavior, they don't chew him out for it since he is a good student.
Jisung opens and closes his mouth a few times, searching for the correct words to use after hearing what Seungmin has just told him.
"One, I'm proud of you for taking initiative, but why on earth would you listen to Jeongin? He is like the spawn of Satan. Two, Seojoon's old, and though writing a letter may sound cute, it is a bad idea. Three, why not just say how you feel in person?"
"I'm aware that it was a bad idea," Seungmin states, "also, writing the letter was a way for me to keep it a mystery. I could say what I was feeling, not sign it and give it to him, that way I wouldn't have to face any embarrassment."
"But things failed when Chan caught you?" Minho speaks out of nowhere, taking a seat next o Jisung.
Seungmin looks wide-eyed at the older male, looking around the room once again.
"How long have you been there?" Seungmin asks, looking back at the couple.
"Long enough to hear the story, I didn't want to interrupt," Minho explains, shrugging his shoulders.
"Lovely," Seungmin states, "now another person knows how dumb I am."
"You aren't dumb," Jisung tells him, "I think the gesture and the thought were cute, though admittedly also a little creepy."
Seungmin glares at his friend, his words were certainly not helping the situation. The younger is completely embarrassed and would love more than anything to bury himself in a hole and never come out if it. Luckily for Seungmin, Chan is graduating in a few months, so he will only have to inconvenience himself for a little longer.
"That isn't helpful, why do you say things like tha--oh shit," Seungmin mumbles the last part, looking past Jisung and Minho.
"Wha-"
"Take care of my tray," Seungmin cuts him off, and before either Jisung or Minho can respond the younger male is out of his seat and already running out the door.
Jisung and Minho share a puzzled expression, Minho about to speak before another person is taking the seat where Seungmin once sat. The couple now understands why Seungmin was so quick to leave, as Chan is the one sitting in front of them.
The couple finds it amusing how obvious Seungmin is being, there isn't even a hint of subtleness to his methods. At the same time, Minho feels a little bad for Chan, he's probably been trying for days to get the younger to talk to him, and all his attempts have failed miserably.
"Did Seungmin say where he was going?" Chan asks, sighing and frustratingly running his fingers through his hair.
"What do you think?" Minho gives him a sympathetic look.
Chan sighs again, rubbing his hands over his face. He rests his elbows on the table as he holds his face in his hands. Seungmin is being so difficult, and Chan is getting increasingly frustrated with the fact he can't catch him in time to talk. The younger is deadset on avoiding him, and Chan knows that, but he needs a few questions to be answered and in order for that to happen, he needs Seungmin to stop running.
"Maybe you should give him some space and let him come to you," Jisung suggests, earning a raised eyebrow from both Chan and Minho.
"Do you really think Seungmin will do that?" Minho asks though the answer is already known by everyone at the table.
"Even if he does, it will take too long for him to come to that conclusion, I need to talk to him now, so waiting for him isn't a good use of my time," Chan explains, already standing up from the table, "I've gotta go."
"Chan," Jisung stops the older, by grabbing his wrist, "He is my best friend and I may not know if you return his feelings, but if you hurt him I won't hesitate to break every bone in your body,"
The older hesitantly nods, prompting Jisung to let go of his wrist and send him on his way.
"Do you really think he'll hurt him?"Minho asks once Chan is out of earshot.
"I hope not."
~•~
Pouring your feelings out to anyone can be scary, even more so when you have no idea how to gauge their reaction. Seungmin isn't sure whether it is the rejection itself he is scared of or if it is the fact he has no way to tell how Chan is going to respond. He'd rather have Chan say nothing so he can take that as his rejection instead of having to listen to the older explain why he isn't enough for the older.
Silly love stories, this is what it feels like to Seungmin, except he wouldn't call it love and a story would imply the couple ending up together.
Running away isn't the best option, talking to Chan and resolving the issue is the best option. However, Seungmin isn't close with the older, they have a few mutual friends and they know each other, but they aren't friends with each other. Seungmin only got to know him through Seojoon, and through that, stemmed the fascination which only branched off into more. Seungmin doesn't know exactly where to go, so wandering in the halls is the best he can do until something comes to his mind.
Unfortunately, this will mean if Chan has chosen to continue searching he will be more exposed than he wants. He would go back to his dorm room, but he doesn't want to risk Jeongin being there. The younger has made it clear that he wouldn't hesitate to let Chan in on Seungmin's whereabouts, believing that it is for the crushing male's own good, so Seungmin has made the decision to avoid the younger as well.
Seojoon says he is being ridiculous and should just face his problems, but luckily the older isn't throwing Seungmin under the bus like their young friend. The oldest is only encouraging Seungmin to step outside his boundaries and face his issues head-on.
Seungmin rounds a corner and continues to walks, not caring where the path takes him as long as he isn't trapped by the older he is trying to avoid.
Maybe I'm being a coward for hiding.
Talking to Chan would solve this a lot sooner, and probably will make it so he wouldn't have to avoid him in the halls anymore. But on the off chance that it doesn't change anything, he'd be stuck having a conversation he never wanted.
Just avoid him for now, and later if you change your mind you--
"Seungmin!"
The said boy whips his head around, catching the older making his way down the hall towards him.
I said I would decide later! Seungmin thinks before jumping into a sprint. He can hear Chan call after him again, but Seungmin keeps going, hoping that his legs won't give out on him before he can get away.
The younger sprints down the hall, descending a flight of stairs at the end. He nearly trips but is able to keep his balance and continue running, looking for an open path to take. Seungmin barely recognizes the hall he is running down, probably never having a class here, so he can only hope he can navigate through it well.
Ahead is another corner he can take, but before he manages to get there, he feels fingers wrap around his wrist and yank him to a stop. Seungmin stumbles back, catching himself before falling to the ground. Turning around, Seungmin already knew Chan had caught him, now he is forced to face it though he doesn't want to.
"Holy shit, you're fast," Chan pants, he had to really push himself to be able to catch up with the younger.
Seungmin doesn't know what to say, so he doesn't say anything. He stares at Chan waiting for the older to speak, waiting for him to reject him, so Seungmin can carry out his day.
Chan holds up the letter, Seungmin has written, the younger internally cringes at the sight of it. He can remember every embarrassing word of it and Seungmin is thankful he didn't sign it, though that means nothing now. If only Seungmin had been more careful with his timing then he wouldn't be here right now.
"Did you mean everything you said in this?" Chan asks, and Seungmin visibly gulps. He doesn't know how to answer that, how does Chan want him to answer that?
"Uh..." Seungmin looks up at Chan, and into his questioning eyes. He has already caught me, what is the point of lying?
"Yes," Seungmin mumbles, hanging his head shamefully.
Seungmin waits for Chan to laugh or to scoff, anything that will give him the signs of rejection. None of that happens, nothing does. The younger looks up at Chan and he is simply staring back, nothing in his eye that Seungmin can gauge any sort of emotion from. In many ways, the silence is worse, because Seungmin isn't getting an answer, and as much as rejection would hurt, not knowing would sting the most.
"Chan, I-" working up the courage to speak only to be cut off by a loud cackle coming from down the hall.
The two male's attention is instantly drawn over there. Spotting three students entering a classroom at the end of the hall. Seungmin knew he recognized the laugh, he spots Hyunjin with Changbin and the new students Felix, all entering without noticing him and Chan.
"What the hell?" The older mutters before moving away from Seungmin and down towards the other students.
~•~
Word count: 3,197
-Thank you all so much for the support, it means so much to me. I hope you all are doing well, get enough sleep, eat well, stay healthy!