Kyungsoo glanced at the clock: 4:30. He only had 30 minutes left. 30 minutes left of him sitting alone, fingers tapping the desk. 30 minutes of hearing cheers and yells from the Aerobics Club across from him.

 

And as much as he wished it wouldn’t be, he knew it would be 30 minutes of him thinking of Kim Jongin. Well, not the boy himself as much as what the hell he was doing at the club the week before. Kyungsoo saw him around the school, and although he did have classes with Jongin, he rarely spoke to the other man.

 

They came from different sides of the school, so there really wasn’t any cause to talk. That is, until Jongin waltzed into his club, claiming that he was there to work, and that he wanted to study Kyungsoo.

 

Study me

 

What did that even mean? Kyungsoo shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. Who cared what it meant? He just had to survive the next 30 minutes and then he could go home and do his homework properly. Until then-

 

Kyungsoo snapped up to the sound of the door opening. However his head dropped back down upon recognizing the signature black leather jacket and black hair.

 

Not again…

 

“Wassup Soo?” Jongin casually asked. He was leaning on the door frame, a smirk plastered on his face.

 

“Leave.” Kyungsoo said, busying himself with opening his bag to find the english book that he never managed to read. “And don’t call me that.” He added, flipping the book open to a random page, one that wasn’t even close to where he was at. He didn’t care. Kyungsoo’s mind was on anything but the book in front of him. At that moment he was trying to evaluate his options for the speediest way to get the hell out of the classroom while escaping Jongin’s wrath.

 

“What, you don’t like it? Soo?” Jongin asked. He made his way towards Kyungsoo’s desk, ditching a chair altogether and propping himself up on the desk. Kyungsoo immediately retracted his hands and book as his desk was taken over by Jongin’s .

 

Kyungsoo pushed himself back on the chair until he hit the desk behind him, trying to put as much distance between him and Jongin as possible.

 

“Yeah. Don’t call me it. Only my friends call me Soo.” He said, putting his book back in his bag, sighing. He hoped Jongin would notice how reluctantly he put the book in his bag, and in turn would feel guilty for bothering Kyungsoo while he was trying to read. Except there was no way he was going to read the book whether Jongin was there or not. The fact was, Jongin probably didn’t even notice, and Kyungsoo was over thinking things.

 

“You know, Soo, I was thinking and-”

 

“That’s a surprise.” Kyungsoo cut in. He then widened his eyes, realizing what he just did. He interrupted Kim Jongin. His gaze slowly travelled upwards to meet what he hoped was an expression of annoyance and not fury plastered on Jongin’s face. It was the latter.

 

Jongin took a deep breath through his teeth, and Kyungsoo prepared himself for the worst. However what came out was only a soft sigh.

 

“You’re really something, you know that Kyungsoo?” Jongin said. Kyungsoo’s eyebrows scrunched into a tight knit brow. What did Jongin mean? It was true that usually if a student interrupted Kim Jongin, they would end up with a punch to the face, even teachers occasionally. So why…

 

“Anyway. What I was going to say, was that I was reading the guidelines for creating a club, and I stumbled on something interesting…” Jongin began, and Kyungsoo could already tell where this was going.

 

“I noticed that you must have at least 10 regular members of your club…” Jongin continued, raising his eyebrows at Kyungsoo, who avoided his gaze. “Looks pretty empty here.” Jongin commented.

 

Kyungsoo shrugged. “They’re in the bathroom.” He answered nonchalantly, and Jongin laughed in response. Kyungsoo froze, never having heard Jongin laugh before. Well, he heard the other man laugh before, but it was always laced with venom. His real laugh, though, was open and a little awkward and Kyungsoo found himself wanting to hear it more. He immediately shoved this ridiculous thought to the back of his mind.

 

“You’re funny, you know that Soo?” Jongin said, and he hopped off the desk, wandering around the classroom. Kyungsoo slowly put his book back onto the desk, “I told you not to call me that.” He replied, and Jongin sent him an unexpectedly piercing stare.

 

“I’ll call you what I want.”.

 

Kyungsoo froze for the second time that day. Every time he let his guard down and got comfortable, even a little bit, he was harshly reminded of the difference between them. The thought made Kyungsoo unexpectedly angry. Why the hell was Jongin even there, talking to him? There was no way they could be friends,or anything else, so why did he keep coming? It was just humiliating for Kyungsoo and he was sick of it.

 

“Fine. Call me whatever. I really couldn’t care less.” Kyungsoo said sharply. And he meant it.

 

“You don’t care?” Jongin asked, slowly striding towards Kyungsoo, a smirk forming on his lips. He eventually was directly in front of Kyungsoo, their height difference painfully apparent. Jongin was literally looking down on him in every sense of the phrase.

 

Kyungsoo, however, did not back down. He stood up, tilting his head up to meet the other man’s gaze.

“Yeah. I don’t care.” He said, unwavering. He didn’t break away from Jongin’s eyes. He focused on their soft, brown quality, and wondered what exactly went on behind them. What was Jongin thinking?

 

Jongin was the one to break eye contact, turning away, his hand covering his face.

 

“Oh man, Kyungsoo… You’re really something, you know that?” Jongin said, still not turning around to face Kyungsoo.

 

“You’ve said that twice already.” Kyungsoo replied, sitting back down, satisfied that he had won what he assumed to be a challenge. He did not notice the deep red highlighting the tips of Jongin’s ears. Nor did he question why Jongin was covering his crimson cheeks with his hand.

 

“So when are the other members coming back?” Jongin asked. He turned around, the red on his face faded to a light pink.

 

“When you leave.” Kyungsoo replied curtly, hoping his words weren’t too harsh that they would anger Jongin, but also wishing they were strong enough so the other man would finally leave.

 

“You know what I think, Soo? I think you’re the only member in this club.” Jongin said, as he made his way to the door.

 

Kyungsoo shrugged, “It’s your word against mine.” He said, trying to appear nonchalant about the whole situation.

 

“We’ll see…” Jongin responded slyly, grinning at Kyungsoo. He winked at the other boy, and opened the door to leave. Kyungsoo stood up abruptly, suddenly concerned.

 

“Where are you going?” He asked.

 

“Just to report to the club administrators that I don’t think someone is meeting their requirements…”

 

Kyungsoo widened his eyes in surprise. Would Jongin really go there? And there was a good chance he would be believed. Kyungsoo had made up this club as a last minute resort, and he wasn’t sure how convincing his list of fake members was. If he was found out, it could potentially keep him from graduating, or worse: expelling him from the school. He couldn’t allow Jongin to report anything.

 

“Alright. What do you want?” Kyungsoo asked, crossing his arms. Jongin’s grin widened, and he closed the door behind him.

 

Jongin made his way towards Kyungsoo, his footsteps echoing in the room. His gaze was locked in the other man’s eyes, unwavering. Kyungsoo’s heart beat began to quicken, though he couldn’t understand why.

 

Jongin eventually was only a few inches away from the other man. His breath smelt sweet. Kyungsoo swallowed slowly, his eyes tracing Jongin’s face, his eyes, the arc of his nose, his lips, which were loose, not in a smile or frown, just separated a little bit.

 

Heat started to bloom from Kyungsoo’s chest, settling deep in his stomach. A heat he didn’t even know existed inside of him. Electricity seemed to crackle in him, reaching out towards his fingertips and he suddenly wanted to touch Jongin, to feel him.

 

“I want you.” Jongin breathed out.

 

And there was a moment of silence, and for a second Kyungsoo imagined what would happen if he were to just give in. To let himself be taken by Jongin, by his lips, by his touch, by him. Yet somewhere, in the back of his mind, a small voice reminded him of Jongin’s black leather jacket. Of his boots, and his hair swept to the side. Of the kind of person he was, how he was seen in the school. And of himself, and his awkward outfits, and loner attitude and how every time he even got a little comfortable, Jongin would lash out and remind him of his place and there would forever be a chasm between the two, a great empty space, one Kyungsoo feared he would never cross.

 

And it was this hopelessness that spurred Kyungsoo to turn away.

 

“Stop with that bull.” He muttered. He took a few deep breaths, trying to calm his racing heart beat. Why was he reacting this way? It didn’t make any sense.

 

“Alright I’ll make you a deal.” Jongin said, clearly having recovered from their moment rather quickly.

 

“Why would I want to make a deal with you-”

 

“Just listen.” Jongin cut in. His face hardened for a moment, and he closed his eyes in frustration, before continuing: “I won’t report you. If, you do something for me.” He added, and Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow skeptically.

 

“What?”

 

Jongin gestured to the room, “Make me a member.” He said.

 

Kyungsoo couldn’t really believe what he was hearing. “A what?” He asked.

 

“A member, you know, of this ‘Study Club’ And I won’t report you.” Jongin clarified, walking around the room, swiping dust off the desks.

 

“Right. And what does that mean? Being a member of the club?” Kyungsoo asked. He was sure there was no way that all Jongin wanted was to study. Especially not after what just happened between them.

 

“It means, that every tuesday, from 3:30 to 5:00, I’ll come here and we’ll… You know… Study.” Jongin explained. He approached Kyungsoo and stopped, stretching out his hand in offering.

 

Kyungsoo reluctantly took the handshake, and did not fail to notice how oddly soft the other man’s hands were.

 

The handshake seemed to last an eternity, before Jongin was pulling away, and making his way to the door. He glanced over his shoulder, “See you around, Soo.” He turned around and lifted his arm in a wave as he walked away.

 

Kyungsoo watched as Jongin left the classroom, and the second the other man was out of sight, Kyungsoo collapsed into his chair, and a flurry of emotions washed onto him like a wave. What just happened? Was that even Jongin? All he could recall was the way Jongin approached him, the smell of his sweet breath, and the softness of his hand. And how he almost gave in.

 

Kyungsoo slapped himself: what was he thinking?! He almost wanted to do something there, didn’t he? It was just the heat of the moment, nothing more, he convinced himself. But the truth was, it had been something more. A desire Kyungsoo was trying to muffle, and hide. But it was awakening, and stretching its arms, lazily making its way towards Kyungsoo. And he was afraid it wouldn’t go back to sleep easily.

 

 

 

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hope you enjoyed this chapter, it was a bit darker then the others

but fear not, fluff is coming next chapter!

thank you for reading!

until next time