If Youngbae were being honest, and he normally was because he truly hated lying, then he would have to admit that he really didn’t want to tutor Jiyong. It was awful, he knew, but he couldn’t help but to dread each session. It had been barely two months, being only the beginning of November, and he was still convinced that Jiyong would bail on their weekly tutoring sessions. He knew better, instinctually really, especially since Jiyong and him always did their homework together on Sundays and Jiyong was far from flaky when it came to meetings and appointments. However, Jiyong had a rather…unfortunate knack for walking out on his tutors just a few sessions in; or merely frustrating them to the point that they quit.

Jiyong had been nothing but an attentive student over the course of their almost two month long tutoring endeavor, and Youngbae was almost as unnerved by that fact as he was frustrated by Jiyong’s lack of understanding. It was Wednesday, and Youngbae and Jiyong had been in the Library going over their Herbology notes for an assignment that was due the following day. Youngbae had already completed it as it was just a simple ‘how to’ type of assignment with a couple of simple questions to go along with it, but Jiyong was finding it 100 times more difficult.

Youngbae was standing behind Jiyong with one arm leaning against the edge of the table as he tried to read the scrawling mess that Jiyong had declared was his notes from the lesson they were doing the assignment for. Jiyong was staring at his hands, trying to pretend that Youngbae’s other arm wasn’t on his shoulder.

 “Ji, this says that…no, I don’t even know what it’s trying to say” Youngbae takes in a deep breath and stands up straight, stretching before sitting down in the seat across from Jiyong. “Why don’t we just forget about the notes, and try just answering the homework questions.” He was obviously rather frustrated already.

Jiyong was glad to forget about the notes. Most of the time he didn’t pay attention in class, not because he didn’t want to learn, but more because he just plain didn’t get it; it didn’t help that Youngbae would stand there practically fondling the pruning shears because he just couldn’t be still. He also would have preferred to forget this whole studying session, if it weren’t basically the only reason he continued to take Herbology.

“I don’t understand why we need to know this!” Jiyong whines, frustration written plainly across his face, even though he knows exactly why they should know these things. Youngbae doesn’t stop twirling the quill between his fingers, and Jiyong thinks that’s a problem.

“That doesn’t matter. If you would listen to what I was saying instead of staring at me blankly, then you would probably understand what you were supposed to be doing.” Youngbae was smiling at him, obviously making fun of him, so Jiyong kicked Youngbae under the table and crossed his arms in defiance.

Youngbae barely even winced at the contact, making Jiyong feel like he should kick him again for good measure. He refrained though, because he liked Youngbae’s shins, and he knew that if he pushed too hard Youngbae would end the tutoring session early.

“Fine, what were you saying?” Jiyong didn’t really care, except that he did because he wanted to do well in the class, and if he didn’t get better then Youngbae would stop tutoring him like the other tutors did.

It was an irrational fear of his, Youngbae quitting his new position as Jiyong’s Herbology tutor, and Jiyong knew just how stupid it was. Youngbae wouldn’t quit. He might get frustrated and call the session early sometimes for the sake of their friendship, but he would never stop. It would be ridiculous of him to quit, especially since they did all of their other homework together anyway, so why should this be any different? Because you’re inept and he’s not. Jiyong fights back a scowl but obviously loses as Youngbae leans forward and puts his quill down.

“You’ll get it, Ji, I swear you will.” Youngbae smiles and tilts his head to the side, trying to catch Jiyong’s eyes. “You just gotta stop shutting down when you don’t understand.” Jiyong nods and they fall back into their tutor/student roles.

Jiyong had finished the assigned work in around 15 minutes, and for the last 10 he had been staring at Youngbae as he checked all of his answers. He couldn’t understand what was taking Youngbae so long to check the answers, but he didn’t really care, this was always his favorite part of the tutoring session. He scoffs at himself inwardly and tries to shake that thought out of his head without alerting Youngbae to his actions. All he ever wanted to do was stare at his best friend lately, and it was probably for the best if Youngbae stayed unaware.

Youngbae lets out a sigh and tries for what was probably the eighth time by then to read over Jiyong’s answer for the third question. He would get about a third of the way down, his brows furrowing at Jiyong’s mention of gilly weed while trying to discuss the use of poisonous fauna in herbal remedies, before he would lose track of what he was doing and have to tamp down the heat trying to make its way up from his neck; Jiyong was doing it again, staring. Youngbae didn’t know why it bothered him so much, and if he were being truthful, which is obviously rather commonplace for him, he would have to say that it didn’t really bother him so much as it sometimes took him by surprise.

The staring was kind of…distracting. It was kind of weird knowing that Jiyong was focusing entirely on him, and he really wasn’t certain how he felt about that fact; aside from completely and utterly unable to concentrate. He gives up after another five minutes of fruitless reading.

“Ji, just what on earth does gilly weed have to do with medicine?”

***

Seungri really wanted to go, he said that it would give them experience and an understanding of what it would be like to go on dates and be with girls alone. Except that they would be going together and Daesung was definitely not a girl. That and, though Daesung had yet to really and fully admit it to anyone except the one girl from his House that he talked to on a regular basis, he didn’t exactly like girls in the way that Seungri was hinting. And besides, Seungri was barely a third year, what did he know about taking girls out on dates?

GD was forcing Taeyang to go birthday shopping with him (‘because everyone knows that it’s smarter to get them all at once’), and TOP was with the gobstones club back at the castle. Daesung and Seungri were left to their own devices, which apparently meant that they were going to Madam Puddifoot’s Tea Shop. Daesung would probably never admit it, but he really would rather have been watching Seunghyun play gobstones of all things than step foot inside this shop.

It was rather gaudy inside; everything was pink, and frills, and lace. The small tables were almost all empty, except for some extremely old gentleman who was sitting secluded in a corner and a frightful looking woman two tables away from where they ended up. They had a fairly pleasant time, if only because Seungri couldn’t stop chattering and the waitress was clearly convinced that he and Daesung were together and on their first date or something. It was amusing because she would stay behind the counter and watch them all sigh-ing and giggly, and then bring them free food.

“Did you order scones?” Daesung asks on a whisper as the waitress walks away from the table after depositing a tray in front of them.

Seungri looks up at him and shrugs his shoulders. “Nope, thought you did…”

Or Daesung was just looking at this whole thing wrong, which he was because when she next came to the table and ‘tripped’ as he was getting up to go to the bathroom and fell into him…well, let’s just say that he figured out what she was really thinking (and it wasn’t that Seungri and Daesung were a cute couple…at all).

Seungri laughed the entire way back to the castle. After she tripped and uh ‘d’ (almost too nice a word) Daesung, he had understandably had a rather large reaction. He had obviously grabbed her when she fell into him, but then he let go like his hands were on fire and made a terribly unattractive, and loud, startled noise. The unattractive lady turned out to be the waitress’ ‘only living relation’ and the current proprietor and was convinced that Daesung had been feeling up the young girl and ‘how dare he!’

They were banished for life and the odd hex that was sent after them (like boots kicking them out the door) didn’t wear off until they were no longer within sight of the building. Seungri was more shocked that Daesung hadn’t realized she was flirting and had thus ruined a chance at a date, than he was at the fact that they had just been banned from a frilly tea shop. Daesung was fairly certain that he would never be able to look anyone in the eyes again; he was downright mortified.

“You didn’t realize she was flirting?” Jiyong asks, his eyes glowing with laughter as he leans over the table and his glass of pumpkin juice at dinner that night.

Daesung feels his face flush and looks down at the table. “I wasn’t paying attention to her, why would I expect her to be flirting?” He asks, and chances a glance up. His eyes meet the amused but also sympathetic face of Youngbae, who just lightly shrugs his shoulders.

“Don’t worry; I probably wouldn’t have been able to guess either.” He says, and Daesung smiles slightly, glad that someone was on his side.

Seunghyun remained quiet throughout the entirety of the meal, which Daesung found odd. No matter how many times Seungri said something that normally would have gotten Seunghyun all up in arms, the older boy stayed quiet, obviously contemplating something.

***

“We need to talk.” Daesung says, and it’s almost ominous sounding, except that it’s coming from Daesung and Seunghyun is fairly certain that nothing that comes out of Daesung’s mouth could ever be considered legitimately ‘ominous’,

“What about?” Jiyong asks, turning to look at them. They had found Jiyong sitting in one of the large windowsills on the 4^th floor that overlooked the grounds. Just outside the window, the Ravenclaw Quidditch team could be made out, running around in the snow.

Seunghyun nudges Seungri to get the younger boy to pay attention, and then returns his focus to Daesung, who had agreed to do the speaking for them on this little mission. Daesung lets out a slightly put upon sigh before leveling Jiyong with a stare.

“You’ve got a problem.” Daesung starts and Jiyong’s eyebrows immediately furrow as he tries to figure out where the conversation was going.

“What do you…” Jiyong starts, but Seungri got impatient and cut him off.

“You stare a lot.” Seungri says, the words tumbling out of his mouth like a secret that he just couldn’t bear to keep to himself. Seunghyun closes his eyes in a look that clearly screams frustration, and Daesung throws him a reproachful glare.

“Is that a crime?” Jiyong asks lightly, turning his attention back to the window, probably hoping that that would signal to his friends that the conversation was effectively over.

“No, it’s not a crime, but it’s not just staring, Ji.” Seunghyun says, trying to salvage the conversation. Daesung nods at his words and Seunghyun feels proud of himself.

“Exactly, you aren’t just staring at random things; you’re staring at a specific person.” Jiyong tenses at Daesung’s words, though he doesn’t turn to face them. Seunghyun takes this as a personal victory and hopes that at least Daesung noticed that it had happened.

“I don’t know what you’re...” Jiyong starts to say after a brief, but charged, silence.

“Youngbae. You stare at Youngbae.” Daesung says, and Jiyong chokes on his words in a just barely audible way.

Jiyong feels like the world is spinning because he was fairly certain that no one had noticed; that no one knew. It was his own little weird obsession, and he couldn’t stop staring at Youngbae anymore than he could stop breathing at this point. It had started out with curiosity and had grown as he realized that what he was feeling when he looked at Youngbae like that wasn’t the innocent curiosity of someone trying to draw a mental picture of their best friend; but of someone with the express intent of committing ever line and shadow of the face before them into their memory forever.

“So?” Jiyong finally says, though he knows that he’s waited just a couple beats too long for his friends not to have read into his hesitant silence.

“Why? When we first noticed it, we figured it would just stop, but you’ve gotten worse, Ji, and I…we just want to know what’s up.” Daesung says his voice soft and soothing. Jiyong kind of wants to hit him.

“I’m not sure what the problem is.” Jiyong says finally, and he has to fight to stop himself from wincing at the aggressive way the words come out. “I mean, Youngbae is attractive, a lot of people stare at him.”

“You think he’s attractive?” Seunghyun asks, and Jiyong doesn’t have to look at him to know that his eyebrows are raised and his face is showing a rather restrained alarm.

“Of course. You could say that I have a rather severe aesthetic appreciation for him.” Jiyong says, trying to avoid Daesung’s eyes without really doing so. Daesung lets out a rather world weary sigh and moves back away from Jiyong.

“Alright.” He says, and everyone turns to look at Daesung in surprise. “If that’s how you want to play it, then ‘severe aesthetic appreciation’ it is. But just…” Daesung sighs and leans in so that only Jiyong can hear him while Seungri starts to complain loudly about wasting their time with this when they could have been drinking hot chocolate. “Remember that we’re here for you if that changes.”

Jiyong is left feeling a little floored. Daesung leans back away from him and the three leave after Seungri asks if Jiyong wants to come and get hot chocolate with them. He shakes his head no and turns back toward the window and the object of his contemplation. He could see Youngbae down there, his longer hair pulled back into a low and short pony tail underneath his hat, as he ran around dodging snowballs. Jiyong lets out a sigh and closes his eyes as he drops his head back against the sill behind him.

Right…Severe aesthetic appreciation. Sometimes he wondered where he came up with these things.

***

Their second kiss was much more public than their first, but just as unexpected; at least for Daesung. Seunghyun had known exactly what he was doing as he cornered Daesung at the New Year’s Eve party they were all attending at the house of one of Daesung’s parent’s friends.

The party was just hitting its crescendo as the whole of the gathering started to count down to the New Year. Daesung was standing with a small glass of champagne in hand when Seunghyun sidled closer to him, blocking out Daesung’s view of Seungri and Youngbae who had been placing bets on whether the girl Jiyong was dancing with was going to throw her punch on him or not.

Daesung had only had time to look up and into Seunghyun’s eyes before the older man had leaned down and placed a very tentative and brief kiss on his lips. Daesung’s eyes had widened briefly before he relaxed and smiled up at his older friend.

“That doesn’t count as my New Year’s kiss, does it? Because we’ve still got a couple of seconds until the New Year, and that was kind of lame.” Seunghyun looked hurt for only a quick second before he took Daesung’s drink and placed on a nearby table, along with his own, and came back with a rather predatory smile on his face.

“We can’t have that, now can we?” Seunghyun had muttered before leaning in again, only this time he grabbed onto Daesung’s waist and neck as he pressed his lips firmly against Daesung’s.

No, no we can’t. Daesung thinks as he wraps his arms around Seunghyun’s neck and kisses him back.