After the match, the whole school went to the Great Hall for the late lunch, the euphoria after the match still lingered in the air, evident with the loud chatters of, ‘Did you see—?’ and ‘The move s/he made when—’.

Chanyeol made notes too about the game, the things he’d tell his team later on practices in preparation before they’d play against Hufflepuff, but right now he didn’t have anything to say, that’s why he opted to zone out when the kids around him started to discuss the game.

That’s his reason as of why his eyes wandered to the Great Hall’s door from time to time, why he didn’t hear when Sehun called him from across the table, why he barely touched his meal—

“Look, Cap,” a voice cut Chanyeol’s thoughts and he turned his head to his best friend, startled with how Kyungsoo called him ‘Cap’. He never did that outside the field – even during a game, the moments were rare.

Kyungsoo’s expression was a bland as ever but Chanyeol swore he did it on purpose, the way he stretched the ‘Cap’ in his pronunciation. “If you’re worried, just go to the hospital. Or, there,” he nodded to the entrance of the Great Hall, where Baekhyun and the rest of Gryffindor’s Quidditch team just walked in. “Go ask Byun.”

“What—I’m not worried,” Chanyeol hissed, wanting so bad to kick Kyungsoo’s shin under the table.

Kyungsoo made a show of rolling his eyes.

As soon as his best friend’s attention was no longer on him, Chanyeol took a glance at Gryffindor’s table across the room. Surely there was no blonde among the Quidditch team, meaning that the shorty Seeker stayed in the hospital. He wondered if she’s hurt… out of curiosity, not because he’s worried. Kyungsoo was being ridiculous.

The Gryffindor students must be curious too, because they all crowded around Baekhyun when he arrived and they opened their mouth at the same, presumably asking about Bomi’s condition. And of course, Baekhyun chose this time to speak in a normal human’s volume that Chanyeol couldn’t hear what his reply was.

All of the sudden Kyungsoo stabbed a potato from the stew and shoved it to Chanyeol’s mouth, forcing him to eat and effectively making Chanyeol looked away from Gryffindor’s table. “Of course you’re not worried,” he said. It’s weird how Kyungsoo was able to make everything he said sounds like a sarcasm.

Chanyeol was absolutely not worried, though.

***

Slytherin Dungeon – the common room – was not as crowded as it was a couple hours ago, the younger kids already hit their bed time and now it’s only the older students who stayed behind. Chanyeol sat on one of the black leather sofa, glancing at Sehun on the opposite side. Usually the kid didn’t stay up very late.

The sound of the swishing water from the lake above them was always giving a relaxing feeling at night, and Chanyeol looked up in time to catch how Sehun’s eyes fluttered close and how he nodded his head down.

Chanyeol put down his book and nudged the younger. “Hey, Sehun, don’t sleep here. Go to your room if you’re sleepy.”

“Huh?” Sehun opened his eyes, already disoriented. “… Oh. Oh, okay. What about you, Yeol?” he asked, standing up and rubbing his eyes at the same time.

“I, uh, still have some reading,” Chanyeol said, waving his hand randomly at the book on his lap.

Sehun muttered something about Chanyeol being unusually studious, but he bid him goodbye and went to his room, leaving Chanyeol behind by himself. After making sure that Sehun wouldn’t come back, Chanyeol stood up.  

There were still some students left in the common room but no one paid attention when Chanyeol got out from the common room despite it’s already past curfew time. It’s not like anyone would rat him out – the Park might not be as powerful as the Do, but they did have quite the power.

Still he’s being careful, climbing the stairs and crossing the halls while being mindful of the patrolling professors, Prefects, and Flich all together. He reached the first floor in no time, and he’s about to turn in the corner to the Hospital Wing when he caught sight of something yellow, something bright from his peripheral vision, slipping out from the hall and to the direction of the Entrance Hall.  

Today Bomi was blonde.

Chanyeol sped up his steps and he barely caught the glimpse of Bomi taking the stone steps down into the basement through the door on the left. He raised his eyebrows, wondering where Bomi sneaked out to, and what was so important that she left the Hospital Wing at this time. Shouldn’t she go back to Gryffindor Tower if she felt fine?

The thought that Bomi was in a good condition brought a strange sense of relief to Chanyeol, but he’s also pissed off because he had been worried for nothing. Actually… No, he’s not pissed off because he was worried, he’s just upset because Bomi made people worried. Other people, that didn’t include him. At all.

Chanyeol’s best guess to where the girl was going was Hufflepuff Basement – he wasn’t entirely sure because he had no buddy in Hufflepuff but he thought it’s around here somewhere.

When Chanyeol followed Bomi to the basement, he expected to see a dark, gloomy underground passage, but instead he was greeted by a broad stone corridor, brightly lit by torches and decorated by a lot of paintings on the wall; mostly food.

Bomi was seen stopping in front of a portrait – upon closer inspection Chanyeol noticed that it was a portrait of a gigantic silver fruit bowl – and for some reasons unknown to mankind, she was tickling the pear on the portrait when Chanyeol approached her.

“… What on earth are you doing?” Chanyeol asked, half whispered. Still it startled Bomi so much she jumped on air while yelping – Chanyeol covered in time so she wouldn’t make any noise. He let her go when her eyes already focused on him.

“Captain!” Bomi whispered back, the blood returned to her face after she realized that it’s not a Prefect who caught her snooping around after curfew. “You’re scaring me!”

“… Sorry,” Chanyeol mumbled, feeling guilty because Bomi did genuinely scared. “But what are you doing here, aren’t you supposed to be in the Hospital? Uh… Are you—Are you alright? You… fainted.”

“Hm? Oh yeah, I’m good, Madam Abbot said it’s just exhaustion, lack of sleep, stress…,” Bomi shrugged nonchalantly, but then she furrowed her eyebrows. “Cap, did you follow me here? … OH. Hold on. Were you visiting me?”

“I—” Chanyeol opened his mouth, a deny already on the tip of his tongue as his knee-jerk reaction, but then he just had to notice how close they were standing face to face like that – and even though Bomi’s height only reached his chin, she’s just too close, staring at him with expectation, all sparkly and , and it’s probably because of the fact she’s paler than usual that the dust of pink on her cheeks were prominent.

He also happened to notice that Bomi’s lips were kind of there, small and sort of waiting.

Chanyeol swallowed, averting his gaze to anything that’s not Bomi. His eyes landed on the pear on the picture that Bomi had tickled a few seconds before. “So, uh, what are you doing here? I saw you, uhh, tickled this… thing?”

Very eloquent. Bravo. Chanyeol kicked himself inside while scratching his neck.

Bomi didn’t answer immediately and when Chanyeol dared to take a peek he noticed that she’s biting her lips to contain a smile. She stepped in even closer to Chanyeol, holding on onto his sweater without a word.

She didn’t even touch him, yet it still made heat crippled under Chanyeol’s collar, giving him the usual unexplainable itch that came whenever he saw the girl’s grin. This time, though, he wanted to do something about it, he wanted to know what it was about Yoon Bomi that always made him restless, infuriated, so he raised his hand— 

“This is the passage to the kitchen,” Bomi spoke before Chanyeol could say anything – or do anything; already turning away from him as she tickled the pear again with her free hand.

Chanyeol retracted his raised hand and used it to push his hair back, pretending he was about to do that since the beginning. Then he focused at the pear which giggled and laughed before turning into a door knob. He raised his eyebrows at that.

“… I was hungry,” Bomi added rather sheepishly before she turned the knob and pushed the door.

Even though Chanyeol, as a Pure-blood family, knew damn well that the cooks of Hogwarts must be the house elves, he never really gave a thought about the location of the kitchen or how they made the food appeared on the tables. But now everything made sense when he saw five tables identical to the ones in the Great Hall above with the same exact position – they must be linked by magic.

He looked in astonishment at the place, a gigantic, high-ceilinged room with endless pots and pans heaped around the stone walls, also on the counter-tops and on the stoves, with house elves everywhere he looked, walking around and cutting vegetables and stirring soups and cleaning plates and just moving in general.

One of those house elves saw them coming and greeted them, “Miss Yoon!” with a high-pitched voice. The little creature had large ears and bulging eyes, and she’s wearing a necklace made from spoons and forks as the pendants. “What is the occasion that Miss Yoon visit kitchen? Bibi heard that Miss Yoon sick, is Miss Yoon alright?”

“Bibi!” Bomi greeted back, waving with her trademark stupid grin. Chanyeol made the conclusion that Bomi visited often enough to befriended the elves there. As expected of her. “I was at the hospital, but I’m fine, I’m not sick, don’t worry. But, ah… You know, the food they gave me at the hospital is, um, how do I say it…”

“She’s still hungry,” Chanyeol said it for the girl. Bomi nodded eagerly from her place.

“Ah! Bibi understands! Bibi will bring food…,” the elf trailed off as her eyes shifted to Chanyeol. “And what can Bibi do for you, Sir?”

“Just serve the lady here,” Chanyeol pointed with his thumb, ignoring the way Bomi giggled at how Chanyeol referred her as a lady.

They sat on the nearest table while waiting for Bibi to comeback, the elves around them paid them no mind as they kept on continue to work. Chanyeol tried his best to appear as nonchalant as he could but it’s a bit hard to do when Bomi was blatantly staring at him from across the table.

“What?” finally he asked, irked, but then he realized he’s been shaking his right leg and all of the sudden he remembered Kyungsoo pointing out his nervous habit. He stopped moving and placed his hand on his right knee.

Bomi shook her head, her blond locks falling to her shoulders, a small smile bloomed on her face instead of the usual infuriating grins. “… It’s just… you visit me, Cap. Thank you…”

Maybe he should be the one who’s hospitalized, because his stomach did a flip when Bomi smiled at him, all shy and timid and glowing. This time, Chanyeol didn’t have a comeback, so he hoped the lights in the kitchen was dimmed enough to cover the blush spreading his cheeks.

“… Are you sure you’re alright?” still he couldn’t bear to not ask. “I told you not to practice secretly and exhaust yourself.”

“Ah, yeah… Baek already scolded me. And he apologized for not noticing my worries. But mostly he was mad, he said I should trust him and told him things like that.” Bomi said as she played with the sleeves of her pajamas, it was pink, made from flannel, and in return it made her look warm, fluffy, also… cuddly.

That was a very odd thought for Chanyeol to have so he looked away. “Byun’s right. You’re a team, you shouldn’t worry about winning the match all by yourself. Lee is a good addition, with more practices you should have a solid team next year.”

“Taeminnie?” Bomi’s face brightened up with Chanyeol’s compliment about her best friend – Chanyeol’s eyebrow twitched at the nickname. “He’s indeed good, isn’t he! Jongin but he was the one who encouraged Taemin to come to the try out when Baek wanted to find a Keeper—”

Bomi proceeded with the story of the tryout and Chanyeol was lost in the way Bomi told her story; passionate with a lot of hand movements, sound effects, and comical expressions. By now Chanyeol was already accustomed with Bomi’s bullet-speed speech, able to understand it without getting confused when sometimes she got too excited and slurred in her pronunciation.

But right now he didn’t really pay attention to her story, because he was just glad that Bomi appeared to be like her usual self with no signs of exhaustion or stress, she’s already talkative and cheerful albeit a little pale.

Watching her was, Chanyeol had to admit, fascinat—

“Cap, you’re staring,” suddenly Bomi said, breaking the daze Chanyeol was in.

, when did she stop talking?

“W-What are you saying? Don’t be ridiculous.” He coughed up and averted his gaze to the fire crackling under a pot somewhere behind Bomi, and he’s thankful that Bibi decided to come at the moment, bringing a plate of food with her. She put down a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallow for Chanyeol too, even though he didn’t ask for it.

Bomi cheered and she made sure to thank Bibi before the elf left, digging in almost immediately.

Chanyeol resorted to Bomi-watching again, sipping his chocolate every now and then and just, watch.

Now he had an idea why Kim Jongin always tried to steal Bomi’s food – the girl was capable to make any food looked super delicious with the way she ate.

He didn’t even realize that his eyes were fixated on Bomi until she looked up and met his eyes. He would be conscious about caught staring again if he didn’t notice the smear of sauce on the corner of Bomi’s lips.

“… You’re messy,” he muttered, gesturing with his hand and pointed to Bomi’s face.

“Oh.” Bomi put down the utensils, scrambling to find something to wipe . “I’m sorry—”

“Come here.” Chanyeol leaned from across the table and held Bomi’s chin to stop her head from moving. He used his thumb to wipe her lips. “… All clean. Careful, eat slowly.”

It’s strange, because Bomi did eat slower after Chanyeol’s act but she also ducked her head so low Chanyeol worried her hair would dip onto the soup bowl if she lowered her head even more.

When she tucked her hair behind her ears, Chanyeol noticed her bracelet was pink.

Her ears were red.

When she’s done they said goodbye to Bibi who decided to give some cookies for ‘midnight snacks’ – Bomi smiled like she had been given the greatest gift in the world that Chanyeol had a stupid urge to ruffle her hair.

“Cap, you don’t have to walk me back to the Hospital Wing,” Bomi whispered to Chanyeol in front of her, who tried to look around the corner and checked for patrol.

“Keep your voice down,” Chanyeol said without looking back. The corridor was clear and he took Bomi’s hand to lead her – there’s a persistent nagging in the back of his mind and it sounded like a joyous congratulatory cheer. He tried to ignore it. “Come on.” 

Bomi’s hand was small and warm, and it fit perfectly with his own hand. Smooth, too. It’s a very nice hand.

Chanyeol hoped he wouldn’t sweat too much.

They’re half-way through the hall when Chanyeol’s ears picked up the sound of footsteps approaching, and Bomi must had missed it because she didn’t stop walking when Chanyeol did, resulting of her bumping into his back.

“Aaww—!”

“Sssh!” Chanyeol shushed her up at the same time someone yelled, “Who’s there?!” from the dark corridor ahead, and their eyes widened when they heard rushing footsteps along with lights drawing in.

Chanyeol looked around in panic and he pulled Bomi to the side, trying to hide behind a statue of knight in armor. Bomi made a little whimper but she kept quiet, pressing herself back to the wall and close to Chanyeol.

They held their breath – the footsteps stopped in their corridor, nearby, and the lights moved as if someone waved their wand over their head.

Whoever it was outside took a step closer to their hiding and Chanyeol pulled Bomi to stand behind him – it’s a vain wish, but he hoped his height could cover her. He would think of how warm she was next to him if he could hear his own thoughts over his beating pulse, anxious and tense about the situation.

The steps continued, quieter but also closer, before all of the sudden there’s a blinding light above of them, shining down from a wand.

Chanyeol tilted his head and raised an arm, trying to block the light with his hand.

“… Chanyeol?” someone asked, sounded confused, and Chanyeol recognized that voice – his first thought was oh thank god, but his second thought was oh .

“Hey, Soo. Can you, maybe…,” Chanyeol nodded to the wand, and Kyungsoo lowered it, dimming the light coming out from his wand.

“What are you doing here?” Kyungsoo asked. He’s a Prefect and Chanyeol supposed tonight was his duty night to patrol. On one side, it’s a relief that it’s Kyungsoo who found them, but on the other side…

Kyungsoo moved his wand when he noticed there’s someone else behind Chanyeol. He furrowed his eyebrows, recognizing who it was. “… Yoon Bomi?”

Bomi had no choice but to stepped aside from behind Chanyeol’s back. “Um, good evening, Senior Do,” she bowed a little, attempting to smile but it came out like an unsure grimace instead.

Kyungsoo stared at Bomi for a moment like he’s trying to process the fact that he had just caught Chanyeol with Bomi together before slowly, very slowly, he leered back at Chanyeol with a cocked eyebrow and an irritating smirk. “... Huh.”

Chanyeol gritted his teeth, he wanted to shout at his best from to erase that ing smirk off his face, but unfortunately he’s fully aware that he’s at Kyungsoo’s mercy right now so he kept his mouth shut.

Kyungsoo turned his attention back to Bomi, and he smiled at her, warm, kind, and 100% fake, in Chanyeol’s opinion. “Good evening. I watched the match, and I was under the impression that you’re hospitalized. Are you feeling well now, Yoon?”

“Ah, yes! I was hospitalized. I mean, I am,” Bomi said in a rush, obviously startled with Kyungsoo’s question like she didn’t anticipate his kindness. She probably thought Kyungsoo would deduct Gryffindor’s point and gave her detention. “… But I already sleep a lot, and eat a lot too! So I’m definitely better now. Although, um, I’m still… supposed to be, in the hospital.”

Kyungsoo smiled again – wider, even. “I see… Well, I can understand, it must be boring in the hospital. The most important thing is you’re alright. My friend here was so, so, worried, about your condition, that he couldn’t even eat earlier.”

The girl’s eyes widened hearing that – she turned to Chanyeol with a big ‘Is that true, Cap?’ plastered on her face, she didn’t need to say it out loud for Chanyeol to know. Chanyeol also didn’t need a mirror to know he’s red to the neck, and he’s plotting various ways to get back to Kyungsoo inside his head.

“Don’t you need to patrol?” he asked in the end, irritated and wanted to get away from Kyungsoo as soon as possible.

Kyungsoo looked back at Chanyeol and smirked. “Why, yes, I do, thank you for reminding me. I’ll see you around, Yoon. And I hope you’ll be careful on your way back to the room, Park. Of course, that is, if you come back at all.” He smiled to Bomi’s bow, leaving with a meaningful leer at Chanyeol. 

“Waah… My heart almost exploded when he found us!” Bomi exhaled after Kyungsoo left them to patrol. “Cap, Senior Do is so nice, we’re lucky we were caught by him. But I don’t understand what he said earlier… Why won’t you come back to your room?”

“Ignore him,” was all Chanyeol said, fighting the blush that threatened to come out on his face. Why he’s so weak against stupid remark like that?

The Hospital Wing was quiet when they got there, no one seemed to realize that they’re missing one patient and the two were able to slip back to Bomi’s chamber without any problem.

Now they’re standing next to Bomi’s bed – it was messy, the thrown away blanket on the leg of the bed a clear indication that the bed was used – facing each other, but with no words exchanged. Chanyeol glanced, Bomi was playing with her pajama’s sleeves yet again.

He shoved his hands into his pockets, rocking on his heels. “… So.”  He tried to open a conversation.

He’s aware that he just visited the infuriating Seeker from Gryffindor and accompanied her to eat by his own will, without any explanation at all, and now what should he tell her to explain why he did that? He should come up with a good excuse.

“Uh. You should…,” Chanyeol paused. Reason. Excuse. Explanation. Yes. “… Go to sleep.”

What the actual ?

Bomi made a small nod but made no other move, instead she just bit her lips and something flashed on her eyes, something akin to determination. Before Chanyeol could realize what happened, she’s tiptoeing on her toes, leaning forward with her hand on Chanyeol’s chest, and—

“Ack!” Bomi squealed as she lost her balance, slipping and ended up hitting Chanyeol’s chin with her head. Chanyeol managed to grab her elbow, preventing her from falling onto him even though there’s a throbbing pain on his chin where Bomi’s forehead hit it.

“Ugh—What the—What the hell are you doing?!” Chanyeol hissed, stepping back to regain his footing, one hand rubbing at his bruised chin while the other still hadn’t let go of Bomi’s elbow.

“I was—I was trying to give you a goodnight kiss!” Bomi replied, frustrated. “But you’re just so tall and I—! Captain, are you alright? I’m sorry…” Her fingers brushed against Chanyeol’s chin, careful and attentive, lighting fire inside him.

The whole thing was just plain stupid and ridiculous that Chanyeol didn’t even have the time to be taken aback with Bomi’s bluntness about what her intention to kiss him.

He just pulled Bomi closer and looked down, irritated like always.

“If you’re going to do it, then do it right!”   

Then he leaned down and captured her lips with his own.

The first second, Bomi’s body was stiff against him and his mind supplied him with a big warning ABORT MISSION before he felt Bomi’s relaxing, didn’t push him away like he initially thought, instead she pushed herself closer to him.

He placed a hand on the small of Bomi’s back, feeling warmth radiating from the girl.  

Bomi smelled like clean laundry from what Chanyeol assumed came from her pajama, but she also smelled like something delicious, and her lips – small, soft, just perfect – tasted sweet. Bless Bibi for her hot chocolate she served them earlier.

They could be kissing for an hour or a second, Chanyeol lost the ability to feel the time, but in the end he broke away first.

He his lips—Did he—? He just—? He did, right?

In front of him, Bomi was smiling to herself, cupping her cheeks with her hands as she glanced up at Chanyeol before looking down and giggled again.

. She’s so ing cute.

And Chanyeol felt a little bit breathless.

He cleared his throat, taking a step back because he didn’t trust himself to not reaching out to Bomi and kissed her again. “That’s how you kiss someone goodnight. Um. Yeah. I’ll—I’ll see you tomorrow?”

She nodded, still having the coy smile on her face. Chanyeol didn’t resist the stupid urge to ruffle her hair this time.

He returned to his own room without any trouble, and Chanyeol lay on his bed for minutes, just staring at the ceiling with a wide grin on his face. He probably could do that all night long – kicking blankets in unexplainable excitement, punching his fist into the air like he just won something – if it’s not for Kyungsoo’s coming back to the room.

Chanyeol quickly turned to his side and closed his eyes, pretending to sleep. He heard Kyungsoo paced around the room carefully, changing his clothes to his pajama, and then he heard him climbing up his bed. Seemed like his best friend thought he’s already sleeping and spared him from obligatory teasing after their meeting earlier.

He tried to sleep for real, but the images of Bomi’s shy face after they kissed came back to his mind and Chanyeol ended up kicking his blanket again, tossing around on his bed.

“Stop moving,” a hiss out of nowhere made Chanyeol went rigid. He tried to peek at Kyungsoo’s bed – he could only see the back of Kyungsoo’s head, his blanket up to his neck. “I’m sure your love escapade is wonderful, Park, but some people need to sleep.”

“… Sorry,” he mumbled to the dark and turned away, feeling his ears turned hot.

But he’s too elated to take Kyungsoo’s usual sarcasm to the heart, and Chanyeol hugged his pillow, trying to hide his smile on it as the night came over and he drifted to a restful slumber.

***

The following days, Chanyeol had to admit albeit very, very begrudgingly, were pure torture for him. They’re a blur of places and colors and people, but there’s no Room of Requirement, there’s no pink, and there’s no Gryffindor’s Seeker on them.

Slytherin’s team was determined to win the Quidditch cup this year and to beat Ravenclaw’s point they needed to win over Hufflepuff in the next match, so they practiced every day. Kyungsoo dragged him away whenever Chanyeol tried to sneak to talk to Bomi, although he wasn’t sure he could get her alone since she’s always with her friends.

There were glances during meal times, but Chanyeol always hesitated – were they… dating? Him, and the infuriating shorty from Gryffindor? Dating? Or not? Seriously, what were they? – and Bomi’s attention was often stolen by her friends; Eunji chatted her, Jongin took her food, Taemin demanded attention from the whole world.

‘ what if it’s just a one-time thing, a good night kiss, and that’s that?’ was one of Chanyeol’s favorite recent worry between his study and the practices.

The sequel was, ‘What if she meant it as a casual kiss and I’m the only one thinking about it as more .’

When he couldn’t take anymore Chanyeol decided to do something. He’s a Slytherin, a Park, he could do whatever he wanted, right? If it turned out Bomi just thought of him as a friend, as a senior, well he could be a ing fantastic senior.

So he ordered a pack of Butterbeer from Three Broomsticks and sent it to Bomi’s room with a simple note – ‘Enjoy it while studying with your friends’.

Nothing happened for a whole day after that, and Chanyeol was definitely not nervous and wondering whether Three Broomsticks delivered his order right or not, he definitely didn’t think about it all day and he definitely didn’t get dirty looks from Kyungsoo because he couldn’t stop shaking his legs. Nope, he’s a cool with being a ing Fantastic Senior.

He certainly wasn’t disappointed when nothing happened, and he didn’t go to his room late at night with slumped shoulders after yet another tiring Quidditch practice, and he didn’t throw his robe carelessly to the floor because he’s too tired to function—

“Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo said from the next bed, a tinge of warning in his tone.

“Yea yea, I know, I’ll put it on the hamper,” Chanyeol said, picking up the cloth and took steps to put it away.

“It’s not that, Doofus, look at your table.”

“Huh?” He turned his head to his desk, and he saw something that wasn’t there before when he left the room for practice. There’s a big, white mug there, steaming, and when Chanyeol approached it he noticed that it was hot chocolate with marshmallow. There’s a note plastered on his table with a familiar handwriting – he’d seen it on the Christmas Card…

Thank you for the Butterbeer – my friends also said thank you!

Good job for today, and have a good night sleep, Cap! ^^

There’s a smile threatened to bloom on Chanyeol’s face and he struggled to suppress it until he heard Kyungsoo snorted from his bed. He glanced at his best friend, already tucking himself in and turning his back on him.

“Hope whatever bothering you is answered now, Park,” Kyungsoo said.

Chanyeol couldn’t help but to grin now. “Good night, Soo.”

“… Good night, Yeol.”

***

Chanyeol took a deep breath, seeing his team members went out to the field one by one, each one got a massive cheer from the spectators outside. It’s the day of Slytherin vs Hufflepuff match, and they’ve been working so hard for today, they had better teamwork now with their new Seeker – a third year named Yoon Jeonghan.

Kyungsoo was the last to go out before Chanyeol, and he threw him one last look. “We’ve got this, Yeol,” he said, raising his fist.

Chanyeol bumped it with his fist but said nothing, tense all over with anticipation and anxiety mixed in his gut.

Finally it’s his turn and he stepped out into the blinding light from May’s sky, frowning a little at how loud the cheers he got. He heard the Slytherin’s tribune singing something – a new cheering song, perhaps – that he tuned out as he focused his mind on the upcoming game, and when Chanyeol lined up with his team he was tempted to look at the Gryffindor’s tribune, wanting to check whether she was there.

Of course she’s here, the whole school is here, Idiot, his mind told him.

He stood firm in front of Kim Seokjin, Hufflepuff’s Captain and Chaser, and he was about to shake his hand when he noticed how Seokjin’s not looking at him. Instead, his gaze was directed to something far behind Chanyeol, eyebrows raised as if he couldn’t believe what he saw.

“Jin?” Chanyeol called out, having familiar enough with the boy since they both in their respective House’s Quidditch team for years.

Seokjin shifted his eyes to Chanyeol and he had an amused smile on his face when he said, “I’m going to assume that that isn’t for me.”

“What is?”  

Puzzled, Chanyeol turned his head.

There in the middle of Gryffindor’s red and gold robes, something green stuck out like a sore thumb, a big banner with silver words, All the best of luck, the Captain of my heart! ♥, held by the duo Jongin and Taemin while Bomi sat next to them, wearing an obnoxious large snake hat, her pink hair shimmering in contrast of green and silver on her head.

Chanyeol spluttered at the sight. His first reaction was embarrassed because the whole school surely saw the banner – Kyungsoo shook his head from beside him, he could hear someone whistled, it’s probably Sehun – and what was Bomi thinking?

“Captain!” the girl shouted from her place. “Fighting!”

She got some annoyed glares from Gryffindor’s students, probably thought she’s a traitor for supporting Slytherin, but Bomi paid them no attention as she sported the widest grin ever, waving with two hands at Chanyeol.

And that.

The image of Bomi’s smiling wide, unbelievably happy, making Chanyeol’s stomach churned and his heart burned… That’s infuriating, because he wanted to stop everything he did and went to her instead, holding and kissing her; be with her.   

He wasn’t sure what expression he made – but Slytherin girls were whining in jealousy about it.

He shook his head, turning back to Seokjin. “No, it’s not for you,” he told him. “It’s for me.”

“Good for you, Dude,” Seokjin punched his arm playfully.    

The two teams shook hands with their counterpart and Chanyeol flew to his position in front of the goalposts, looking over his mates scattered around the field with Jeonghan above them all with a bored expression but sharp eyes.

At last Madam Hooch blew the whistle, signaling the start of the game, releasing the Snitch and the Quaffle. From then on Chanyeol’s eyes never leave the Quaffle being thrown around the Chasers, trusting Snitch to the Seeker Jeonghan and the Bludgers to the Beaters Sehun and Jung Soojung.  

He blocked the Quaffle thrown at the goalpost, determined to not let even one goal made by Hufflepuff, all while wishing Jeonghan got the Snitch before Yoongi.

From time to time he sneaked a peek at Gryffindor’s tribune, at the striking snake hat above Bomi’s head that made her even more stood out beside her hair. Every time, Bomi always had a worry, stressed expression on her face, almost like it’s her own team that’s playing, and once Chanyeol looked at her when she glanced back. Her worried expression morphed into her usual grin, and it renewed Chanyeol’s determination.       

Entering the minute forty and Chanyeol already failed to block three goals, he heard the stadium roared in excitement, the atmosphere shifted into anticipation. He dared to look around for a second – he saw Jeonghan in pursuit of the Snitch, while Yoongi was on the other side of the field. Chanyeol held his breath, crossing his fingers as he looked back to the Quaffle, making sure that Hufflepuff wouldn’t score in the middle of the commotion.

The blood was rushing to his head that Chanyeol felt he could almost hear it in his veins, his hands were sweating around his hold on the broomstick as he waited for Madam Hooch to blow the whistle anytime now.

“Come on, Jeonghan,” he whispered to himself.

Not soon after the whistle did blow off, Chanyeol scrambled to look who got the Snitch. In the background he half-heard Eunji’s announcing Yoon Jeonghan from Slytherin caught the Snitch—And realization came down to Chanyeol that they won.

He abandoned the goalpost, flying to Jeonghan along with his team mates, crushing the new Seeker as they all circled him and attempted to hug him from their own broomsticks. It took a while until everyone satisfied at showering Jeonghan with hugs and pats in the back before they went back to the locker room.

They were chattering, full with happiness over their winning – they still had to wait for Gryffindor’s match with Ravenclaw to find out the final result, but they were optimistic. He entered the room last, that’s why Chanyeol didn’t immediately notice her, it was Sehun’s holler that alarmed him, “We’ll wait for you in the dungeon for the party, Chanyeol!”

Chanyeol looked up, and there in Slytherin’s locker room, somehow Bomi found her way, clearly not abashed at sneaking in as she stood with a proud grin directed at Chanyeol. She already took off her hat, her long hair falling to her shoulders.  

“Oh, great game, guys, congratulation!” She said at the Slytherin team one by one as they walked pass her, leaving the room after putting their broomsticks to the shed. Some thank her back, and Sehun was in a good mood enough that he responded with a salute. “Senior Do, congratulation, you were amazing!” She bowed at Kyungsoo when the boy walked to her.

“I’m sure to you I’m not as amazing as your captain,” Kyungsoo said and Bomi didn’t deny it, only grinning.

When the room cleared out leaving the two of them inside, Chanyeol took off his uniform and put it inside his locker, hyper aware of Bomi’s presence but tried to ignore it. He blamed the adrenaline post-game for his loud beating heart.

“… What are you doing here?” he asked, pulling clean clothes from the locker and swiftly put it on.

“Haa!” Bomi came closer, leaning on Sehun’s locker next to Chanyeol’s. She glanced up at Chanyeol, her finger’s drawing swirls on the wooden locker. “I’m here to congratulate you, of course. Congratulation, Captain!”

“… Thanks,” he said quietly, didn’t dare to look at the girl. Chanyeol wiped his face with a clean towel and raked his hair with his fingers, years of learning language failing him now as he didn’t know what to say. “… Is that why…” Bomi leaned closer and Chanyeol had to clear his throat. “Is that why, you call me Captain?” he asked, referring to Bomi’s banner.

“Hmm…,” she seemed to ponder for a while. “Probably?” Bomi answered with a cheeky grin that used to be infuriating, making Chanyeol wanted to do things.

By habit Chanyeol ignored his wants and stepped back, but when he did Bomi’s grin suddenly disappeared, replaced with a frustrated frown. “… Oh come on, Cap!”

“What?” he asked, genuinely confused.

“You know that I’m too short to kiss you! Just lean down and kiss me already!”  

There again, the bluntness, straight forward to the point, and strangely Chanyeol didn’t hate it. Not at all. The realization came to him just then – that he liked it. The stupid grins, the loud voice, the constant happiness, all of it, all of her; Chanyeol liked it.

He liked her.

He shook his head, chuckling to himself as he commanded his broom to float. He maneuvered the broomstick to float behind Bomi, and nodded to it. “Hop in.”

“Hop in? Why…?” Even though she questioned it, Bomi sat on the broom sideways just like Chanyeol requested. When she turned to face Chanyeol, they were on the same height since the broom flew higher. “Oh. Ooohhhh…”

Chanyeol arranged the broomstick so Bomi could lean against the locker while he stood in front of her. “Now I don’t have to hurt my back trying to kiss you shorty.”

“Well, I have to say it’s a very good idea, Captain Park.” Bomi grinned, more predatory than Chanyeol had ever seen, as she pulled Chanyeol closer for a lingering kiss.

Chanyeol realized now, with Bomi’s lips moving slowly alongside his own, that he’s no longer infuriated.

Or maybe he did – infuriatingly in love.

I FINISH SOMETHING! The end seems a little bit rushed, I’m sorry ;__;

I just need to finish this, I have something important comes up this week and I need to take this off of my mind.

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