It's half an hour before the game and Chanyeol's still in the locker room putting his uniform on. Normally they'd be ready and on the court by this time warming up, but Chanyeol has a sinking feeling in his gut that comes with the fact that today is not a good day for him. It's one of the days where his muscles feel weak and his head is pounding, but he continues to shove on because he doesn't want anyone else to worry about him.

Which kind of happens anyway since Baekhyun takes to watching him closely after finding out he's going to play in the game today. The rest of his friends are with Baekhyun on the bleachers, though Jongdae actually walks into the locker room while Chanyeol pulls his jersey on.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Jongdae asks gently,  and Chanyeol just sighs as he puts his headband on.

It's not the first time he's asked that question today, and not the first time Jongdae's actually asked him. Baekhyun's asked him a couple of times as well, although Yifan hasn't said a word about him playing. He hates that Chanyeol's going out there, but he understands what Chanyeol is going through and that Chanyeol needs a bit of normalcy to return to his life.

"Do I have another choice?" Chanyeol asks in return, and they both peer over the wall of lockers to see both Jongin and Yixing walk inside. They're in the middle of a heated discussion and when they spot Chanyeol, Yixing hurries over to him and his eyebrows are furrowed in irritation.

"What's going on between you and Yifan?"

Chanyeol feels his eyes widen because where did that question come from? Jongdae tenses beside him and even Jongin shifts in discomfort as they stand there together. Yixing is basically seething, and though Yifan does have a bad reputation, he doesn't know what Yixing dislikes so strongly about him.

"He's waiting outside for you." Jongin explains, and the slightest of smiles grows on Chanyeol's face as he glances at the door connecting to the school hallway.

"Please, Chan. Please don't tell me you're falling for him." Yixing pleads, and Chanyeol's eyes return to him narrowed because why does it even matter to Yixing if he likes Yifan?

"What is it about Kris that you dislike so badly, Yixing?" Jongdae questions the male in suspicion, and Yixing shakes his head with a sigh.

When he looks back at them, there's pain dancing in his gaze and Yixing actually just backs away, "Forget it. Just be careful with him."

"Xing!" Jongin calls in disbelief, and then he's running after his boyfriend and trying to coax him into stopping or at least to tell him what's going on.

Chanyeol and Jongdae glance at one another and then Jongdae shakes his head, leaning back against the lockers with his arms crossed over his chest. He seems to be contemplating something, and Chanyeol raises an eyebrow because he can already tell what the short male is thinking. Sure, Yifan is a great friend and Chanyeol is falling for him, he'll admit it. However, he's been friends with Yixing for years and Yixing has never reacted this way about anyone.and Chanyeol just wants to find out why.

"I'm going to send him in. You look like you could use something to calm your nerves." Jongdae says with a pat on his shoulder. Chanyeol blinks repeatedly as Jongdae follows Yixing and Jongin, but takes a seat at the bench by the lockers to try and calm himself down.

He's terrified to go out there, because he's not even sure if he can play the game today. There's a bad feeling in his gut and Chanyeol's typically not the kind of guy who would ignore that kind of feeling, but it's already too late to find a substitute and he can only hope the game goes well.

"Chanyeol?" Yifan's voice calls out, and Chanyeol weakly lifts his head to see Yifan just staring at him from near the entrance of the locker room. There's worry on his features as he waits, to see if maybe Chanyeol will be okay with him getting closer. Things are a little awkward between them due to the tall boy's confession but Chanyeol has never pushed him away and Yifan has never asked Chanyeol for an answer to the confession. Being together now, just the two of them calms the anxiety in his stomach and instead there's excitement coursing through him.

"Yifan!" He breathes out, and he's up off the bench and lunging at Yifan. The tall boy catches him and it's a surprise that they only end up pressed against the door and not on the floor but Chanyeol ignores that detail because he's with Yifan now.

Yifan merely chuckles and Chanyeol's not used to such soft laughter coming from Yifan so he just buries his face in the crook of Yifan's neck. He knows how worried Yifan is, even though the taller boy doesn't say anything, because even he's worried about how things are going to go in the game. When they pull back, Yifan steps around him to where Chanyeol's locker is and takes a seat on the bench to watch Chanyeol and be out of his way as he got himself ready to play.

"How are you feeling?" Yifan questions him, and Chanyeol feels like he's swallowing a lump. He doesn't want to be honest because he knows it'll just make Yifan worry more but he's not very good at lying to Yifan.

"Nervous."

Chanyeol is sitting down on the bench again, his basketball sneakers nice and tight and his wristbands where he always has them. He thinks it's time for him to get up onto the court but he feels like his entire body is covered in weights and it makes him unable to move. Yifan reaches out to him and Chanyeol accepts the way Yifan cups his face beause his touch is gentle and warm, and it erases more of the fear that was eating at Chanyeol.

"Go out there and do your best."

Then it's his turn to chuckle because despite how Yifan seems to other people, to him, Yifan is nothing short of supportive and just wonderful over all. If anyone else saw how gentle Yifan was being, perhaps they'd be thinking something more was going on between them; and they'd be right, but right now Chanyeol just appreciates the fact that with Yifan around, he has nothing to be afraid of.

"Are you going to watch the game?" He asks, and there's hope in his tone because he's sure that he'd do great on the field if Yifan's there to watch him play.

Yifan raises an eyebrow like the question has an obvious answer, but because he wants to humor Chanyeol, nods, "I wouldn't miss it."

"Chan! It's time to head up there!" Jongin calls from the other end of the locker room and Chanyeol takes in deep breaths because he's not sure if he can do it after all.

"Chanyeol, look at me." Yifan demands in a gentle tone, and Chanyeol obediently looks in his direction because he knows Yifan's going to say something that calms his racing heart.

"Just do your best, okay?"

Chanyeol simply nods because he doesn't think his words will be enough. He's relieved, though, that Yifan's willing to be there with him even though he doesn't have to be. He reaches out then with one hand, pressing it against Yifan's cheek, and the taller boy leans into his touch; but a moment later, Yifan's eyes are closing. His fingers card into Chanyeol's locks and for a moment, Chanyeol's confused. However, when Yifan leans in, he simply allows his own eyes to close so he can just feel Yifan's lips on his own.

It's nothing more than a simple brush of their lips, but it's enough to have Chanyeol's mind blank and he's left gaping as Yifan stands and heads for the exit. He knows it's his cue to get up and go to the court, but for a few moments, he just sits there with his fingers absentmindedly brushing against his lips. Yifan's so gentle and yet he's the only one who knows that. Part of him feels guilty about this, while part of him is selfish and relieved that most don't know just how genuine Yifan really is.

After his name is called again, Chanyeol snaps out of his daze and he feels energized enough to get up and play his favorite sport. Now if only his muscles felt the same way. At first, it was fine. He just buckled once because he lost his balance but was quick to catch himself before he ended up on the floor. He's so embarrassed that he looks around and he's relieved to find out that most members of the audience didn't see him.

But then the amount of voices in the room start kicking in, and the rush of basketball starts to overwhelm his senses. He thinks its just his adrenaline pumping because of what happened earlier with Yifan but his heart felt at peace when he thought of the kiss. He can't hear everything properly, some voices keep fading in and out and the lights of the gymnasium are causing for his skull to pound so heavily that he can barely concentrate, and he calls for a time out.

The fans that are out of their seats screaming look at each other in confusion because Chanyeol never calls for time out, and both Baekhyun and Jongdae are out of their seats in worry. The rest of his team seems annoyed because where is his head if he's needing to call for time, and Jongin just stands behind him with a hand rubbing his back because it's obvious Chanyeol isn't okay. Chanyeol tries to lift his head and look for Yifan because he knows that just seeing Yifan would be enough to make him feel a little better, but his head is so heavy that it causes Chanyeol to feel dizzy when he tries looking up.

"Park, are you okay?" His coach asks, but he can't hear the question properly because his vision is fading and his heart constricts in fear because he doesn't know what's going on and why does this have to happen in the middle of a game, anyway?

"Switch me out, coach. I'm not feeling too hot." He mutters, and he jogs his way back to the locker room because at least if he faints in there no one will have to see it and worry about him. His coach calls after him and so does several of his teammates, but he can't focus on their voices.

The only thing he focuses on is how quickly he can get down to the locker room and lets out a sigh of relief when he finds himself alone. His vision is getting heavier now, and Chanyeol finds himself lucky considering the fact that he didn't pass out while playing the game. He tries to move, at least to sit down so he doesn't knock his head on something, but his joints don't work and he loses complete control as his body falls to the ground.

Yifan's face is the last thing he sees as his eyes shut.