“I know, I know. We promised we’d be there but--” Daniel was cut off before he could expound any further. “Yeah, I get it. Seongwoo already texted me that you both forgot about us because of a cat. Although it seems like a very Daniel thing to do, I’m more surprised that Seongwoo was the one who actually wanted to take care of it.”

“Hey! What’s so wrong about that?” Came Seongwoo’s voice from the background loud enough for Minhyun to hear. Daniel looked back at the other male who now had his beanie removed as he continues to play with the cat. If the image in front of him isn’t considered as ‘fluffy’ and ‘soft’ then he doesn’t know what is.

“Okay, we’re sorry, hyung. Promise we’ll make it up to you next time.” Daniel replied with an apologetic voice and Minhyun just sighed, “Don’t worry about it, just look after the cat and make sure nobody gets caught, alright? It’s quite risky but I’ll let you two be” Daniel smiled and muttered a quick thanks before he was about to end the call.

“Wait.” Came Minhyun’s voice on the other end and Daniel placed it back on his ear with a confused hum. “Is Seongwoo still stuttering around you?” Daniel smiled like a proud parent as he shook his head before he remembered that Minhyun can’t see him. “No, I think he’s starting to warm up to me.” Minhyun could instantly hear Daniel’s excitement but you can’t blame him. Seongwoo warming up to someone is a pretty big thing to him too after being his only friend for the past few months. “Alright, see you around then.”

Minhyun ended the call not long after Daniel also said his goodbyes and looked back to Seongwoo playing around with the kitten who has probably grown attached to Seongwoo by now. Daniel stared, not wanting to ruin the most innocent image he has seen and secretly took a picture on his phone.

Daniel made a satisfied smile at the outcome before putting his phone away in his pocket and approached the bespectacled male. “So what do you plan on naming him?” Seongwoo hummed deep in thought, “Unfortunately for you, he responds to your name” Daniel blinked, “You’re not going to name him Daniel, are you? Seongwoo chuckled, “Of course not, though we can shorten it so you wouldn’t be confused. You can be Daniel and he can be Niel” Seongwoo replied with a hint of amusement in his voice.

“Besides,” Seongwoo continued, “Didn’t Samuel name his dog Muel? It’s practically the same but you’re Daniel and this little guy is Niel” He said while he went back to the kitten’s ears as it positioned itself comfortably in his arms.

Really, who was Daniel to complain? The pink-haired male chuckled and went beside Seongwoo to the cat too, “Alright alright, this lil guy will be Niel then” He replied with the usual smile and Seongwoo’s smile widened. “Jisung-hyung is probably going to find it difficult since he always calls me Niel but I’m sure he’ll find a way”

Seongwoo laughed and Daniel commits the sight to memory, “No wonder you had objections about the name” The business major doesn’t usually laugh that much around him. Though if he’s already warming up to Daniel, then this wouldn’t be a rare sight soon but Daniel thinks it’s still worth remembering.

“Now that I think about it, it’s going to be weird calling out my own name. Got any other name in mind?” Seongwoo only laughed and waved him off.

“Niel-ah” Jisung called out as he entered the dorm but was surprised when he was greeted by a pristine white cat who innocently stared up at him. “Oh you’re back early” Daniel replied as he picked up the kitten as if it’s been there ever since. “What is that?” Jisung asked and Daniel raised a brow, “It’s a cat.”

Jisung could facepalm himself at that, “Not that. I mean, what is that doing here? You know pets aren’t allowed! I already stopped you from bringing Peter and Rooney into the dorm when you moved here!” Daniel bit his lower lip while the kitten in his arms.

“I know, I know but this is Seongwoo’s cat though. He was torn on risking his dean’s list status for it or not so I just wanted to help him out.” Jisung raised a brow at that line, “Seongwoo as in .. Ong Seongwoo?” Daniel turned his head back to Jisung, “Wait, you know him?” The Junior nodded in reply and proceeded to settle down by the sofa while Daniel remained dumbfounded by the doorway.

“Wasn’t he the freshman who couldn’t get a note out during the auditions for the vocal majors?” Daniel snapped his head back to Jisung in breakneck speed with eyes as wide as saucers, “Wait, he can sing??? I’ve only seen him dance though and Minhyun hasn’t said anything about Seongwoo and singing.” His cousin only shrugged as a response and proceeded to turn on the television, “Maybe that’s why he didn’t pass the auditions?”

Daniel became quiet and contemplated at the idea. No wonder why it seemed strange why Seongwoo was taking up dance alongside a business major. If he actually passed the audition, then he should have been a vocal major with a minor in dance.

Seems like there’s literally more than meets the eye.

It was already around early December with everyone now starting to double layers of clothing as the breeze starts to get colder as the seasons' transition from autumn to winter. With their midterms just around the corner, Seongwoo and Daniel along with Minhyun and the others usually spend their time in the cafe across campus to help each other out with their core subjects. Since they were still in their freshman year, their subjects were only different by at least one or two.

At least a week after Seongwoo stopped stuttering around Daniel, his speech has also improved in front of Jonghyun and the others (with the exception of Dongho which took him another week) making communicating with them easier. For the past days, Seongwoo and Jonghyun had done most of the teaching as the only dean’s listers of the group to help the others with their troubles in their common courses.

In the presence of two dance majors namely Daniel and Jonghyun, Seongwoo would also gain additional insight into dance when he eavesdrops on their conversations about their dance classes. Meanwhile, he also gains insight regarding singing with Minhyun and Dongho being vocal majors and Jaehwan who occasionally drops by. Sometimes he wonders what it would be like without studying all the math and instead focus on dancing or singing only.

The remaining individuals, Seongwoo and Minki, we’re the business majors of the group. Based on what Seongwoo has observed, Minki would make the perfect salesperson if he could keep manipulating people into buying things like how he usually does. It was already around 2:46 pm when Seongwoo decided he should take a break and started to put all his studying material away.

“Where are you going?” Minhyun asked when he saw Seongwoo packing up while he was conversing with Dongho about their vocal classes, “I’ll just take a break and probably continue later at night. For now, I’ll be melting the stress away with Niel.” Seongwoo was finishing his drink when Jonghyun suddenly asked, “You call Daniel ‘Niel’ now?”

The bespectacled male suddenly had a coughing fit at the sudden question that he almost spilled his drink on the table. Daniel who was seated beside him got up and started to pat his back to calm him down while Seongwoo muttered a small thanks in between coughs. For some reason, Seongwoo had tinges of red on his cheeks and became a stuttering mess at the innocently thrown question.

“N-No! He’s not..! I was t-talking about the cat!” Seongwoo said which probably came out too defensive than necessary. “You mean the one you ditched us for?” Came Minhyun’s comment and Seongwoo glared, “Get over it already. Unlike you, it can’t take care of it on its own.” Minhyun laughed at the remark and let his roommate be. “I was just kidding, just be sure Niel keeps it down to avoid getting caught.”

“Yes, I’m well aware mom.” Seongwoo said followed by a groan when Minhyun ruffled his hair in mock affection as his ‘mother’ “See you later then.” The business major glared at Minhyun for the second time before he finally put on his beanie and got up. “I’ll be in Daniel’s dorm room when you need me.” He waved to the group as he left the cafe.

Everyone else drowned in conversation again regarding academics and the most random things when Daniel suddenly remembered something. “Hey Minhyun,” Minhyun turned his attention to Daniel when he detected the curiosity in his tone, “What’s up?” The dance major fidgeted with his fingers thinking if it was alright to ask but his curiosity beat him to it. “Does Seongwoo sing?”

As if the question wasn’t just addressed to Minhyun, their whole table became quiet and Daniel became worried that it might have been a forbidden topic. Minhyun sensed the tension and gave Daniel a soft smile to reassure him but it ended up becoming a sad one when he remembered what the question was about.

“Yes, he does. He was supposed to be a vocal major with me and Minhyun.” Daniel’s eyes widened at the revelation and immediately wanted to know what happened. Minhyun sighed at the memory and Dongho continued for him, “Seongwoo couldn’t get his voice out during the auditions. You saw how he was around strangers, he could barely talk properly let alone a whole crowd.”

Minhyun looked back at Daniel, eyes conveying how much he cared for his friend. “I don’t know when you and the others can get to hear him sing, but I promise you he can easily top half or maybe even more than half of the vocal majors in this university.” Daniel’s mouth was left hanging in shock. If even a vocal major like Minhyun thinks Seongwoo could easily beat the others, then his curiosity was burning more than ever.

“So far I’m the only one who has heard Seongwoo sing before. Actually, it was during the morning after Jaehwan’s house party. I caught him singing again. He usually sings when he’s sure he’s alone.” Minhyun said, slightly smiling to himself when he was met with the memory of Seongwoo’s soft vocals faintly radiating from the other side of the door to their room.

“He could easily convey emotions if he wanted to. The only problem there is that he doesn’t have confidence in his voice and you know how important confidence is when it comes to performing.” This is where Daniel becomes confused, “But I’ve seen him dance and he doesn’t seem to have a problem when it comes to being confident. He can even make expressions while popping!” The raven-haired male nodded and continued, “Yes, that is true. But it’s only because he doesn’t have to use his voice to dance.” For a moment, Daniel looked confused.

“Basically, he doesn’t have any confidence towards anything related to his voice. By now, I’m sure you would have noticed.” No one would have missed it. Seongwoo may have fixed his speech around their group but it would sometimes come back every once in awhile. Similar to what happened earlier. Sometimes he stutters when he’s embarrassed and sometimes he just trips over his own words.

“Ah... I see..” Daniel settled for that since he was too speechless to formulate a proper reply, still overwhelmed by the new revelation. The vocal major gave him a soft smile and the group once again fell into a comfortable atmosphere with their own respective chatters while Daniel was left deep in thought.

After a few more discussions for their midterms, the group decided to call it a day and started packing up their respective materials. It was already around 4:30 pm by the time they all left the cafe. Everyone said their respective goodbyes and walked towards their own dorms. Minki, Dongho, and Jonghyun towards the other direction while Minhyun went with Daniel since they stayed in the same building.

Both freshmen walked in a comfortable silence, only thinking about the calming sound of soft chatter of university students and the faraway buzz of the city. By the time they reached the entrance of their dorm building, Daniel only said a soft goodbye before turning towards the stairs. “Wait,” Minhyun gently held his elbow making Daniel look back with a confused face.

“Don’t tell Seongwoo that you know he sings, okay?” The dance major raised an eyebrow further portraying his confusion, “He’s not so ready to admit it to the others yet even if we all know. But he doesn’t know you do so don’t tell him you know, alright?” Daniel nodded in reply with his usual blinding smile, “Alright, I’ll be sure to keep it a secret.” Just when he was about to climb the stairs, Minhyun gave him the last reminder by telling him to remind Seongwoo to return to their room or the business major would end up sleeping on Daniel’s sofa.

After a few flights of stairs, Daniel finally reached his room and entered the code to his dorm room. When Daniel closed the door behind him, he was met with the very embodiment of innocence. On the coffee table at the center of their living room was Ong Seongwoo with his glasses askew as he fell asleep with his head placed on top of his crossed arms. Beside Seongwoo’s face was none other than Niel who was also sleeping curled up next to the sleeping male’s crossed arms.

Daniel wouldn’t trust his memory with this image so he sneakily took another photo on his phone before putting his bag down and walking over to the sleeping figure. Daniel first woke up the sleeping feline by its ears and was met by a purr before the kitten settled in his arms. The dance major adjusted his hold onto the kitten until he only needed one arm while his free hand settles itself on Seongwoo’s back.  

“Seongwoo..” Daniel softly called out while he gently shook the other male’s small frame. The said male only made a small groan and buried his face into his arms further. Before he could crush his glasses, Daniel swiftly but gently removed it from his face and placed it on the side.

Sometimes Daniel wonders who’s really the younger freshmen here.

The dance major repeated the motion, noticing how small Seongwoo’s body is when his opened hands would practically cover half of Seongwoo’s shoulder width. The raven-haired male finally stirs awake and slowly sat up while rubbing the sleep from his eyes. However, the sight catches Daniel off guard.

The usual Ong Seongwoo that he would see always had the large round spectacles on the bridge of his nose. This was the first time Daniel saw the Ong Seongwoo that hid behind wired framed glasses. Sharp facial features that could rival even the lead actors of the theatre department. Although Seongwoo was still in a sleepy haze, Daniel was amazed at the sight. Who knew such actor visuals were hidden all this time?

When Daniel snapped back to reality, Seongwoo was finally half awake after he noticed the pink-haired man’s presence and muttered a small greeting. Daniel could only smile at the cute sight. He used his fingers to comb down Seongwoo’s bangs in which he closed his eyes at the calming sensation. “I’d say good morning, but it’s already like 5 in the afternoon.”   

Seongwoo looked up at that with eyes widening by a fraction which prompted him to look at his phone. Unfortunately, he couldn’t see the numbers even if he squints and realized that he wasn’t actually wearing his glasses. “Ah.. where…” Was all he said before he swept his hand across the table and accidentally knocking his glasses to the floor in the process.

Seongwoo was just about to pat along the floor next to the table Daniel placed the pair onto his searching hands. “Here,” was all Daniel said and a sense of deja vu overcame them both. The only thing different was how Seongwoo wore his glasses before looking up at Daniel and smiled before muttering a small thank you.

Daniel only smiled back. Nonetheless, he was amazed at how a simple item such as wired framed glasses could drastically change a person’s appearance. The moment Seongwoo placed it back on the bridge of his nose, the once overwhelming actor visuals was now reduced to a softer image as if he was an entirely different person.

Both freshmen fell into a comfortable silence, neither thinking that they had to say anything or break the still air. Well, before Daniel remembered Minhyun’s reminder. “Oh, right.” Seongwoo looked back up at him with his head slightly tilted to the side to show his confusion, “Minhyun told me to remind you to go back to the dorm or you’d end up sleeping on our couch here.” The business major blinked, “Well he isn’t wrong. I was already thinking of staying for Nielie here”

Seongwoo continued to play with the white kitten while Daniel tried to continue his studies. But how can he when the cutest scenario is happening on the other side of the room? Daniel eventually ended up playing with the two with the excuse of ‘I’m taking a break’.

Not long after, the door to their dorm room suddenly clicked at the sound of the door unlocking and in came Jisung. When Jisung closed the door behind him, the first thing he saw was the two freshmen with slightly widened eyes in alarm. Meanwhile, Niel was in between the two males playing with a small ball of yarn. Jisung chuckled at the sight, “You both look like a deer in headlights. Chill, it’s just me.”

The two males finally let their shoulders slump in relief as they both released a sigh before Daniel went back to playing with Niel. Seongwoo, with his things already packed up, got up and slung his backpack onto his bag claiming that Minhyun might call him soon if he doesn’t return. Daniel only nodded with his usual smile and raised Niel in the air to use its paw and waved to Seongwoo. The bespectacled male laughed at the sight and made a quick bow to Jisung before he finally left the room.

Jisung turned back to Daniel who was preoccupied with the cat until Jisung snapped him out of his thoughts, “So that was Ong Seongwoo?” Daniel nodded, unperturbed by the question. “Yeah, he’s the one I’ve been talking about” Jisung opened his mouth to reply, instead he shook his head and told Daniel that he’ll be ordering food for dinner.