From: Baekhyun
Sorry, I can’t make it today! I wish I could have told you earlier but I only just found out TT_TT
Chanyeol didn’t even bother to tell me his parents were coming around today and you know his parents and if I’m not there they’ll think I’m a cheating hoe bag and they’re coming in half an hour and the place is a mess and I am so sorry.

Minseok sighed, running a hand through his hair. Honestly he was disappointed, they hadn’t seen each other in so long. But then again, he understood why Baekhyun was freaking out and more so, why he couldn’t be there. He quickly typed back a response.

To: Baekhyun
Don’t worry about it, good luck!

A few minutes later he received a message back.

From: Baekhyun
Thanks, I think I’ll need it :/ I promise I’ll make it up to you ;)

Minseok smiled, though genuinely concerned about his friend (because who wouldn’t be?)

To: Baekhyun is y.
Wow, don’t let his parents see that message.

It was no secret to any of Chanyeol’s friends that his parents were overbearing. It was also no secret that they completely and utterly disapproved of (correction: hated) his choice in partner, and Baekhyun’s struggle with them had been a tough battle, but one he had never been willing to give up. They would find anything to call out Baekhyun on, and although anything they came up with would be disregarded by Chanyeol like a brush of the shoulder, he knew better than to give them more reason to hate him (and thus hurt Chanyeol, because it’s not like he enjoyed his parent’s dislike of his boyfriend).

From: Baekhyun
Oh God, I’ll probably delete it. I’ve caught them going through my phone before, the nerve! He’s lucky I already love him or else I would have left the moment they showed up uninvited on our doorstep.

Baekhyun’s responses were coming in stuttered intervals, and Minseok could just imagine him flurrying about.

To: Baekhyun
Message me if you’re okay after, man.

From: Baekhyun is y.
Will do ;;

Minseok sighed, putting his phone in his pocket. Considering he was already there, decided to go up and order something (damn, he couldn’t get Baekhyun to pay). The moment he sat down the door jingled, and he had to groan as a group of girls came in. Perhaps teenagers, perhaps his age, he didn’t care to notice- they were usually annoying. Eyes trained on his phone, he didn’t notice them throwing looks at him and giggling to each other until he turned his head upwards at a curt cough. He looked at the girl, resisting the urge to raise an eyebrow.

“Oppa,” the girl sang, sickly sweet and so, so pink sounding, just like her outfit.

Minseok doesn’t like the colour pink.

You don’t know me, you don’t know my story. Who the you calling oppa, .

“There’s no more room over there and my friends won’t move,” she pouted, looking down in what Minseok assumed most guys may think would be attractive, but then again he was in fact not most guys. “Can I sit with you? I don’t want to be alone.”

It didn’t take much for Minseok to realize that this girl was flirting with him, especially seeing as there was a free seat, right at the table where her supposed friends But of course, Minseok could never say that. There was something (weird, he thought) inside him that stopped it and he hoped that as the girl sat down and begun an incredibly one sided conversation, she’d soon realize that he was not interested.

No no no go away I like don’t you understand I liKE . I LIKE OKAY. .

He nearly found himself screaming after five minutes as she begun to ask him which picture she should use as her KakaoTalk photo and he wanted to punch himself in the face because I don’t care and you’re faker than that MCM bag you’re wearing but obviously Minseok knew what was and what wasn’t politically correct and he felt like that may have been leaning on the lower side of that scale but God was she annoying! It got to the point where he was desperately looking for someone, anyone to help, her not even noticing the way he was looking around the room, too focused on well, her own wants. It must have only been a few minutes, but it felt like a lifetime and damn, he really needed his coffee right now. Then he saw his order coming out, and hope blossomed in his chest in the form of a waiter around the same age as him.

“Help me.” he mouthed desperately, the two already having eye contact.

The waiter looked around, “Me?” he mouthed back, gesturing to himself.

“Please,” Minseok mouthed back, nodding.

The waiter looked at him curiously, not quite understanding whilst he needed help. He then took a closer look, noticing how the customer looked very… uncomfortable with this girl draped around him.“Are you-“ he begun to mouth, Minseok cutting him off by a shake of his head. He made a slight grabbing motion with his hands, before shaking his head once again and pulling a face. The waiter laughed, and Minseok frowned until he nodded, grinning. He’d never had to do this before, but it was all customer service. He held up a finger before running back, and Minseok wanted to cry because why did he just run back to the counter? and sighing because it seemed like he’d never get this girl away from him.  

“Hey babe,”

Praise the Lord and praise Allah and praise Mushu and all things holy and God I will never doubt you again!

Minseok looked up, sighing a breath of relief as the waiter helped him out and the girl he’d been with looked at him like he was trying to pick her up. Not that Minseok would have minded that, but he’d been through the pain of this girl and he didn’t think this guy deserved it. Taking a quick glance at his name tag (another holy thing which must be praised) he smiled in response. “Hey, Jongdae.” he breathed.

The girl didn’t seem to pick up that Jongdae wasn’t talking to her until he put the drink down and took Minseok’s hand. Minseok was surprised, but played along with it. 

“I’ll be back in two minutes, it’s my break but I’m just going to get something to drink, okay?”

Minseok pouted, not letting go of Jongdae’s hand even though he was so surprised that Jongdae had decided to lead this and not just play along. “Can I get a kiss first?”

Jongdae let go and swatted his hand away. “Not now!” he scolded, before smiling, “You know my boss; if he sees me I won’t get a break.” Minseok nodded, and Jongdae walked away.

“Who was that?” the girl asked, not sure whether it was or was not legit, suspicion laced through her voice.

Suspicious indeed.

“Jongdae,” he replied, chin resting on his palm as he looked towards the staff room as dreamily as he could, “My boyfriend.”

The girl bit her lip, standing up and looking to her group of friends. “Well I’m just uh- there’s space for me over there and I don’t think I should disturb you any longer- have fun with your- your boyfriend.” she squeaked as her face went bright red.

“Are you sure?” he asked, not that she was going to stay because oh he knew she would not do that.

“Yeah, uh, I’ll let you be.” she awkwardly shuffled away.

Minseok beamed a genuine smile this time, because thank , she was leaving, sending a polite wave. He begun to sip at his iced coffee, not thinking much of anything except how if Baekhyun was there he wouldn’t have been in this position, and only when he felt the couch shift as someone sat down next to him did he snap out of his thoughts.

Oh God, she’s not back again is she is it one of her friends oh- “Hey… Jongdae?”

The boy grinned, sitting down next to him, leaning over to whisper in his ear. Minseok was caught slightly off-guard, to be honest. He hadn’t even been sure if he was going to come back, his job already done. “If you can hold out until the end of my break, I won’t lose customer service points from anyone,” he whispered, grinning cheekily, to which Minseok just raised an eyebrow. Jongdae laughed, “I could hear what they were saying. If you leave before the end of my break it’s suspicious, and I’m bound to get asked questions. These girls are regulars, so help me out a bit and stay a while.”

Jongdae had saved his , so Minseok decided the least he could do was sit there for the next twenty minutes, somehow bypassing the awkward stage, (but maybe it was because they had to act like they were dating; the girls kept on throwing them glances). Plus, Minseok got free cheesecake when Jongdae fed it to him, eyes crinkling in laugher, and who the doesn’t like free cheesecake? Or Jongdae’s smile, but he couldn't be blamed for that. It radiated.

A few days later he was back, this time with Baekhyun in tow. The latter had offered for Minseok to choose where they were going to go, but he automatically found himself saying that the café where he’d been only a few days ago - where they'd originally meant to meet. It was a relatively quiet day, the two placing their orders and sitting down where Minseok had been a few days previously. It was definitely nice to see Baekhyun again, the two too caught up with university until break to see each other at all.

It was also definitely nice to see the one that brought their drinks was a familiar face. 

“Hyung!” Jongdae exclaimed as he placed their drinks (and cake, because Baekhyun did owe him), “Back soon, hey?”

Minseok shrugged, “I got bailed on last time, he’s here now.”

Jongdae looked over to Baekhyun and between the two, smiling. “You didn’t even need me, you should have told her you had an actual boyfriend in the beginning.”

Baekhyun spat out his drink. “We’re not dating!” he said, so fast Jongdae could nearly not pick it up.

“Oh God, God no we’re not dating.”

“I’m dating someone else! I'd never date him in this lifetime.”

He cocked his eyebrow, standing a bit straighter. “Could’ve fooled me,” he said, before backing up slightly. “Anyway, I have to get back to work, nice talking to you.” he gave a small smile, wave and nod of the head before walking off.

“Who is he and why is he so beautiful?” Baekhyun draped himself over the lounge dramatically, hand on his forehead like a lovesick teenager.

Minseok shoved the body that’d fallen on him off. “Jongdae, he works here.”

“You didn’t answer my second question.”

“I never thought of it like that.”

“Seriously Minseok! You are the least observant gay guy I know, and that’s saying something! Just look at him!” Baekhyun exclaimed as quietly as he could (which obviously, knowing Baekhyun, wasn’t very quietly). “That shirt, it should be illegal for him to wear it; just look at the way it hugs the top of his biceps, unf. And those jeans, ugh, look at how ing good his looks,” he fanboyed, Minseok’s eyes raking down Jongdae’s figure and finding that (and he didn’t like to admit this) Baekhyun was right. “And that jawline, that jawline! That jawline carved the Greek Gods it is that perfect. How did you not notice this?”

Minseok shrugged. "I don't know - I just didn't notice." He was lying; of course he’d noticed it, but Baekhyun didn’t have to know that. “He has a super nice smile and he smiles a lot and that’s what I tend to look at, ya know. People’s faces.”

“And that,” Baekhyun said, “Is the best part. He’s gorgeous, if I didn’t have Chanyeol I’d be all over that.”

If you didn’t have Chanyeol you would have been here last time.

“Please tell me you have his number.”

“What? We’ve met like, once. I don’t have his number.”

“Only once?” Baekhyun nearly jumped up in shock, “You seem so familiar?”

“That’s a long story.”

“And we have time,” Baekhyun smiled sweetly, “So spill.”

“…So you two pretended to date for like, twenty minutes?”

“Pretty much.”

“Oh my God, oh my GoD,” Baekhyun pulled at his hair, “Ship, shipped, I SHIP. This is fate.”

“Baek- people are look-“

“Get his number, you need to get his number!”

“I don’t even know if he’s-“

“Don't give me that !” Baekhyun yelled, even more people turning towards him, “My gaydar is 110% accurate and he basically grew a tail to wag when he found out we weren’t dating. He wants the D and that D belongs to you, my friend.”

“What if I don’t want his number?”

Baekhyun sighed, “He’s attractive, right?”

Minseok nodded, huffing slightly.

“He’s nice, right?”

Minseok nodded once again.

“He’s at least gay, right?”

Minseok stilled until Baekhyun grabbed his face and nodded his head up and down.

“Then if I’m wrong and you don’t want his number, chop my off, actually no, chop Chanyeol’s off, actually no, chop both of ours off,” he said, face dead serious and dead terrifying. “I know you, so am I right or am I right?”

Minseok sighed once more, “Is this why Chanyeol’s parents don’t like you?”

Baekhyun promptly hit him over the head.

It turned out that Minseok didn’t end up getting Jongdae’s number, but it also turned out that he begun to frequent the café a lot more than usual, and it took Luhan (his trusted roommate and not-so-trusted best friend) approximately four weeks and denied food as they were walking to classes for him to figure it out.

“I don’t have money to buy you food.”

“You always have money!” Luhan unceremoniously grabbed Minseok’s wallet out of his bag and sifted through it, face dropping. “You do have money!”

“I want that for later.”

“Why?”

Minseok shrugged, entirely sure of the reason but still trying to act as cool as possible. “Coffee.”

Sadly, Luhan wasn’t as stupid as he acted. “You never used to get coffee this much,” he mused, Minseok spotting his brain click over. “You totally like him! Jongdae, you totally like him right?”

Minseok shook his head, hoping that his stupid best friend would believe him.

“Praise the Lord Almighty, Minseok is finally going to get laid!”

Minseok slapped his hand over Luhan’s mouth., trying to shush him as a crowd of students spectated the scene the latter was making. “I don’t like him!”

Luhan grinned, running around the oval in some sort of celebratory dance before putting his face up to Minseok’s (far too close, an ultimate invasion of his personal bubble). “You like him!”

Minseok’s face went a brighter shade of red, and Luhan let out a squeal.

“My baby, my baby’s growing up!”

“You’re the one that looks twelve and it’s not like I’ve never had before.”

“But it doesn’t matter because you finally like someone and oh my God this is why you’ve been going out so much I am so proud!” Luhan was basically screaming, and Minseok remembered why he didn’t like to tell Luhan these things. “Have you guys gone on dates? Have you held hands, is he flirting with you?”

“No! I mean, I’ve only ever seen him at work.”

“Are you ing serious?” Luhan’s mood dropped instantly. “You spend $20 a week on coffee and you only talk to him when you get your order.”

“No- I mean, we talk during his breaks.”

Luhan sighed, “You’re ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous. I am ashamed to be friends with you,” he pouted, the two continuing to walk. Luhan’s face spread in to a grin. “You’re also lucky that our team has a match this weekend. You said he likes soccer, right? Invite him.”

“When the did I say that?”

“You mentioned it once.”

ing Luhan and his good as memory.

“What if he doesn’t want to come?”

“Oh, because ‘You play soccer? I’ll have to come watch one time!’ isn’t asking for it?”

“He might have been being polite,” Minseok grumbled, before something hit him, “Wait, how did you know he said that?”

Luhan grinned, “Baekhyun tells me everything.”

“Baekhyun wasn’t even there!”

“Let’s just say… he has insiders.”

“I'm going to call the police.”

“We have insiders there too. Anyway, invite him.”

Minseok couldn’t see much of a way around this. “I think he works on Saturdays.” Minseok was lying, he knew Jongdae didn’t work weekends. He wouldn’t admit it but he’d basically figured out Jongdae’s work schedule without asking.

“Bull, you visit three times a week and you said he works three days a week. You have never been there on a weekend.”

“How do you even know this?”

Luhan held up his phone, “Trackers, they work like a charm.”

“You're one strike away from me seriously calling the cops.”

“Just invite him, okay.”

“What if I don’t want to?” Minseok said, slightly irritated now. In all honesty he wanted to invite him, but his fear of rejection was stronger than that want.

Luhan could obviously see this fear, and smiled softly, a stark contrast to the the -eating grin he’d been displaying at first.“Don’t worry, I’ll help. See you at practice, yeah?”

Minseok couldn’t help but be terrified at what this help would involve.

 Authors Note 

Woo part one~

Wow for once I don't really have anything to say.

ANYWAY, I hope you guys are enjoying it.

Comments are much appreciated, they make me happy :3

Thank you to everyone that subscribed and upvoted, even before I posted the first chapter, you guys are the best :D

Hopefully part two will be up next week but no guaratees because I got exams :/

I rambled again orz, I'm going now.

Stay cool, guys ;)