Two weeks of suspension didn’t feel like two weeks of suspension. It was like the days just sped by, and despite their original plans to have some fun and relax throughout the city, Jiyong and Seunghyun ended up spending nearly all of it in their dorm room. By the time they were supposed to go back, they had almost healed, only a few little cuts and scars left to show for the fight.

Jiyong sat down on the couch, lips pursed in a thoughtful frown as he rubbed his temples. Tomorrow would be their first day back since the fight, and he was worried about the reaction they were going to get. He sighed loudly, Seunghyun walking into the room and looking at him with a worried expression.

“You okay, Ji?” he asked softly, sitting down next to the other. Jiyong nodded weakly, not even bothering to look up. Seunghyun quirked a brow, rolling his eyes slightly. “You’re lying.” Reaching over, he let his hand rest on the back of Jiyong’s neck, massaging it lightly. He saw Jiyong’s shoulders drop and the other man exhaled, letting out the tiniest sound of pleasure before nodding again.

“I am lying,” he replied in a sigh, letting a breath trill through his lips. “I’m really worried about tomorrow. I know Kangdae isn’t going to be there, but who else is? How do we know people aren’t just going to take up where they all left off?” Letting his head rest in his hands, Jiyong turned to face Seunghyun, brows furrowed. Seunghyun stared at him for a moment before letting out a deep breath, giving his neck a reassuring squeeze.

“Well… We don’t,” he replied, and he heard Jiyong let out a small groan in response as he buried his head in his hands. “We just have to wait it out. We can get through this, Ji, come on.” There was a pause before Jiyong huffed into his hands, Seunghyun still rubbing his neck.

There were times when he wondered if this was worth all of the trouble, if being with Seunghyun was worth them getting hurt. He didn’t want any of this to happen – he just wanted to be able to be in a relationship, and if that meant they would get beaten up every day, maybe it was better that they weren’t together.

Then there were moments like this, where just being in Seunghyun’s presence made him feel at peace, and he knew he was wrong.

Regardless of what Seunghyun said, Jiyong still had a bit of trouble sleeping that night, though Seunghyun’s arms around him made it easier to drift off.

Jiyong was awoken the next morning by his phone vibrating near his face. He woke up, barely even opening his eyes as he looked around in confusion. Neither of them had gotten up early enough for school since they’d been suspended, so Jiyong was completely out of sorts. When he finally looked at his phone he was greeted with a text message, which he opened immediately. Seunghyun groaned behind him, squeezing him tightly.

“It’s too early,” he groaned, peeking over Jiyong’s shoulder at his phone. “Who texted you?” he added, Jiyong sitting up as he attempted to run his hand through his hair.

“Hyosonn. She wants to walk with us to class,” he replied, voice gravelly from the morning. Jiyong rubbed his eyes, blinking before he leaned down and gave Seunghyun a quick kiss, then stood and stretched. When his back popped he cringed slightly, slipping out to brush his teeth. Seunghyun joined him soon after, the two getting ready for classes despite their half-asleep state.

Hyosonn was waiting for them outside, all smiles though they seemed slightly forced. Both Seunghyun and Jiyong shot each other a concerned glance as they started walking, and by the time they walked into the main hallway they understood just why Hyosonn had been trying to smile.

Every eye in the hallway was on them. Every person stopped what they were doing to look at them as they walked. It was like the hall was parted and they were walking along some odd sort of fence. Either people were smiling at them, silently urging them on, or they were glaring daggers at them.

It was like that the whole day.

There were obvious holes in classes where Kangdae and his group used to be, and people had noticed. It seemed like everyone knew why they were gone as well, as it wasn’t only Jiyong and Seunghyun getting the silent treatment, but Hyosonn too.

By the end of the school day, that feeling of being completely alone had come back.

Jiyong sprawled out on the couch, one hand dragging along the carpet as Seunghyun sat on the floor in front of him. Hyosonn was curled up in the chair next to them, flipping through the book they were supposed to be studying. Glancing at Jiyong’s hand, Seunghyun slid his own along the carpet, fingers twining with Jiyong’s loosely. He didn’t look away from their hands, but Jiyong smiled nonetheless, giving the other’s hand a gentle squeeze.

There was a long silence before Hyosonn slammed the book shut, tossing it onto the floor in front of her.

“I can’t deal with this. It was bad right after the whole incident in class, but now that you two are back it’s even worse. I’ve never felt like this in school before,” she said in a sigh, leaning back in the chair with her eyes closed. She ran her hand through her hair, pushing it off her face. Jiyong and Seunghyun both looked up at her, faces neutral as she finally looked down at them. “I… I don’t really have a right to complain, do I?” she added, Jiyong and Seunghyun both shaking their heads in unison. Hyosonn just groaned, falling back against the chair once more. “I think… I think I’m going to head back. I…” Hyosonn looked between Jiyong and Seunghyun, brows furrowed. “I need some alone time.” Both of them nodded, Hyosonn packing up her things and slipping out into the hall in near silence.

There was a certain unspoken tension in the room, neither Jiyong nor Seunghyun talking about what had gone on during the day. Despite the anxiety it had caused, the two managed to relax, Seunghyun dozing off in Jiyong’s lap as the television faded in the background.

Jiyong let the tips of his fingers run through Seunghyun’s hair, ignoring everything except the man lying in his lap. He smiled softly, sighing to himself.

It wasn’t often that he had the time to himself to just think, and considering what had happened earlier that day, he needed it. The entire school seemed to be against them. The students that smiled at them or offered them any kind of mercy paled in comparison to the ones that were angry at them and, even though they weren’t getting beaten up in the halls, there was still a level of stress involved with even walking around the campus.

All Jiyong wanted was for neither of them to get hurt again. To be completely honest, Jiyong could only think of one way to ensure that, though, and it was a choice he didn’t even want to consider.

Maybe he just needed to rant to someone, someone that wasn’t biased in the whole situation to begin with. Jiyong could only think of one person.

When Seunghyun finally cracked his eyes opened he yawned, breaking Jiyong from his thoughts with a tired smile.

“You didn’t have to stay up,” he murmured, but Jiyong just shook his head.

“Yes I did,” he replied easily, the two sharing a silent grin before Jiyong stretched, glancing out the window.

It was just getting really dark, the perfect time to head out to a nearby bar, have a few drinks, and dump all of your worries on an unsuspecting friend.

“Seunghyun, is it okay if I head out for a while?” he asked, and Seunghyun quirked a brow.

“Hm? Where? Want me to go with you?” Jiyong thought about it for a moment before shaking his head, glancing away from Seunghyun for a moment as he sighed. “You sure?” Nodding, Jiyong offered Seunghyun a soft smile, thumb rubbing along his cheek gently.

“I’m sure. I just need to take a walk,” he replied, watching as Seunghyun rubbed his eyes and pushed his hair away from his face.

“Do you want me to at least wait up for you?” Seunghyun asked, though Jiyong just laughed.

“You just fell asleep in my lap. You should go to bed,” he answered, Seunghyun shrugged as best he could from his position. He eventually sat up, shoulders rolling back to stretch slightly before he stood. A moment later though, he leaned down to Jiyong’s level, one hand planted on the arm of the couch.

“Even though you know I’ll probably still be awake when you get back anyway,” he said, smirking. Jiyong grinned, eyes closing as Seunghyun pressed an easy kiss to his lips. When the other man pulled away Jiyong took his time letting his eyes open once more, his lips.

They tasted like Seunghyun, and he didn’t want to forget that.

“I’ll be in bed. Be safe, okay? If you want to talk when you get back, just wake me up.” Jiyong watched Seunghyun slip into his – their – room, door closing behind him. Absently his fingers dragged along his lips, smiling to himself before rolling his eyes and slipping out into the night.

When he finally got to his destination, he slipped into the bar unnoticed, finding an open stool and settling in. It took less than a moment for Daesung to notice him there and he immediately walked over, all but ignoring one of the other customers as he looked over Jiyong.

“What the hell happened?” he asked, eyeing what was left of the bruises on Jiyong’s face. Sighing loudly, Jiyong let his head fall forward.

“I… I need to vent, Daesung.”

It was like no one else in the bar mattered as Jiyong told the story from start to finish, not skimping on any detail. From him telling Hyosonn what they’d been planning to he and Seunghyun being official, to Kangdae and his crew beating them up, and ending at them getting expelled. Daesung just listened with open ears, letting the other bartender pick up his slack.

“But now… Now the school’s against us, Daesung. It’s like they know what we did and they don’t like it. I mean, we have some people on our side, but they don’t have the guts to step in front of the people that hate us.” Jiyong crossed his arms in front of him on the counter, head resting on them as Daesung reached forward to ruffle his hair comfortingly. Jiyong sighed. “I love him. I do. But I don’t want him to get hurt again. I can’t handle seeing him unconscious in a hospital bed again, Daesung.” There was a silence, Daesung obviously thinking as he absently cleaned a glass in front of him.

“So you’re thinking about ending it, aren’t you?”

Jiyong bit his lip, shaking his head softly as he looked down.

“I don’t want him to get hurt and I don’t know any other way t-”

“Jiyong. Listen to me. You love him. And he loves you back. Do you know how much those words mean?” Jiyong was silent as he watched Daesung lean back against the bar, gaze directed at the ceiling.

“Look at it this way: love is just a game. Everyone’s a player in it. It’s a complicated game, though, and everyone goes through it a different way. Some people do everything by the rules, never straying from them at all. Some people cheat. Some people win, and some people lose. You won, Jiyong. You won, and you’re thinking about giving up that win because of someone who looked at the rule book and tried to tell you that you did something wrong? Please. I know you, and this isn’t how you’d normally act. Which is why I know you mean it when you say you love him.” Daesung flicked his hair out of his face, looking back to Jiyong with an easy smile. “But don’t be an idiot. You two are happy when you’re together. Don’t let the s around you change that.”

Jiyong spent what felt like a long time looking at Daesung, trying to decide what to say in response. Eventually he just laughed, biting his lip as he shook his head at himself.

“Daesung, I could kiss you right now.”

“Please don’t.”

“I won’t. But… Thank you. That’s what I really needed to hear right now,” he replied softly, pushing his hair out of his eyes as he let out a deep breath. “I feel like an for leaving him to go to sleep by himself, though… Text me or something; we need to hang out more.” Jiyong pushed himself out of his seat, Daesung barely having a chance to wave as Jiyong nearly ran out the door. Shaking his head at Jiyong, he simply went back to cleaning, rolling his eyes.

Jiyong spent the walk home looking up at the sky, thankful that Daesung was so good at knowing exactly what he needed to say to calm Jiyong down. This was why they were friends.

When Jiyong finally slipped back into the dorm all of the lights were out. He tried to move as quietly as he could, not sure if Seunghyun was awake or asleep at this point but being careful nonetheless. By the time he made it to their room he was already mostly undressed, only in a pair of boxers as he slid into the bed.

It seemed like Seunghyun knew what to do on impulse, the other man barely awake as he slipped both arms around Jiyong’s waist and pulled him close. Smiling, Jiyong let his hand rest on Seunghyun’s neck, fingers toying gently with the soft hair at the nape of the other man’s neck.

“Mm, welcome back, baby,” Seunghyun said sleepily, and Jiyong quirked a brow, almost laughing.

“Baby?” he asked. Seunghyun furrowed his brows, lips pursed as he exhaled sharply.

“Shut up. You smell like cigarettes,” he mumbled in reply, eyes finally opening a crack to look at Jiyong, who nodded.

“I was at a bar.” Seunghyun let out a hum of understanding, giving Jiyong a squeeze. Jiyong settled into the touch easily, the tip of his nose touching Seunghyun’s.

“Talking to Daesung?”

Jiyong nodded in silence, watching as Seunghyun’s skin prickled at his touch. He heard the soft groan rumble in the back of Seunghyun’s throat when his fingers moved to his ear but he didn’t act any further on it, content with the satisfied albeit sleepy smirk on Seunghyun’s face.

“Do you feel better?” he asked, and Jiyong nodded once more. “Good. Now fall asleep with me and in the morning we can talk more,” he mumbled, lips dragging against Jiyong’s. It was almost a lazy kiss, Seunghyun’s lips catching Jiyong’s and moving against them slowly before he pulled away.

Seunghyun was asleep only a few minutes later, Jiyong not far behind, head resting against Seunghyun’s shoulder and legs linked together loosely as he drifted off.