Taehyun was waiting for Mino at the Coffee Bean the next Monday evening, two cups of coffee to go on the table. Mino arrived in a flurry of movement as if he ran all the way to the shop.

"Did you wait long?" he asked Taehyun, looking worried. Did he run because he didn't want Taehyun to wait for him? Was Bobby correct in assuming the boy liked him? Taehyun's heart clenched at the thought.

"Not really. Here," Taehyun said, giving one cup to Mino as he himself got up and picked up his bag.

"Thanks, um, where are you going?" Mino asked with a confused look.

"We can't study here," Taehyun answered. Did Mino really not remember what he said last time?

"What's wrong? You think we'll get disturbed again?" Mino asked. Okay, maybe he remembered a little, Taehyun conceded.

"Yes," Taehyun replied shortly. Wasn't the boy annoyed too, with the constant distraction?

"Should I put up a sign then, "DO NOT DISTURB" on our table?" Mino asked, smiling.

"That won't help," Taehyun mirrored the smile, picturing the idea. "You attract too many people, maybe we should head to the library?" Mino agreed easily. They made their way out of the shop.

"Hey, you dropped your ID card I think," Mino called out when he entered the library doors. Taehyun quickly turned back to see Mino holding his card, looking at it. He snatched it away from his hand as fast as he could. It must've fallen when he took out his library card to scan at the entrace of the door.

"Woah, is that really your birth year?" Mino asked. So, he didn't snatch it away fast enough. Mino actually read what was written on his ID.

"No." Taehyun lied, secretly wishing Mino would not press on. He was annoyed that the boy was excessively curious. Granted, it was standard practice to know each other's age at the beginning of any relationship, as the unwritten laws of their society suggested. However, Taehyun had had enough of people commenting on his age. He had simply wished to be treated the same as everyone.

"It is, isn't it?" Mino continued.

Well, his wish did not come true, Taehyun sighed. "And what if it is?" he asked, turning back to the boy and looking at him defiantly, daring him to say something wrong.

"You're like, almost two years younger than me," Mino stated the obvious as Taehyun tried to look for a good place to sit.

"So?" he asked, trying to appear nonchalant. Okay, he found a good secluded place near the window and walked towards it, Mino following closely by his heels.

"So that means you graduated early from High School. Are you a genius or something?" Mino asked as they settled themselves in their seats.

Taehyun snorted at the ridiculous question. However, it was definitely better than Mino suddenly acting like he deserved Taehyun's respect simply for being born earlier. "Why? Just because I graduated early? You've never met someone graduating earlier?" Taehyun asked. 

"Never, what are you? What are you even doing here?" Mino asked, looking amazed.

"It's nothing big. I started school early and graduated early that's all," Taehyun explained cutting his academic history short.

"How are your GPA's then?" Mino wanted to know.

"They are perfect of course," Taehyun gloated a little. He couldn't help himself. "Actually, if my parents didn't mess up my documents I would've been in Yale right now instead of this ty college," he continued in a huff and regretted it as soon as the words left his mouth. He didn't intend to be so frank or sound like a show-off. And Mino jokingly telling him "Wah! Egocentric much" induced a wave of embarrassment to wash over him. He could feel his cheeks heat up. Sure he had complained to his High School friends plenty of times with that same line before but he never felt ashamed of being a little proud. He wondered why he cared so much about what the boy in front of him might think of him, or why he even cared to censor his words, even acting nicely in front of his friends. Does he really have a crush on the boy? He asked himself again for the umpteenth time.

"Hey, I was kidding. That's Ivy League man, it's something to boast about," Mino amended, evidently thinking he may have hurt Taehyun's feelings based on Taehyun suddenly getting quiet.

Taehyun could not say anything, a little tongue-tied. he had never been at a loss for words before. He only stared at the boy in front of him.

"So that's why you seemed like you hate everything about this place huh? I get it now. I would be too if I missed an opportunity like that," Mino continued.

Taehyun breathed out, relief flooding him. "Yeah, well, nothing I can do about it now. So, shall we start?" he suggested, starting to open his laptop while willing the boy to drop the topic.

"And shouldn't you be calling me hyung?" Mino asked, smiling.

So here it comes, Taehyun thought irritably. He should have known. "Don't you even dare," Taehyun glared at him.

"What? In our society..." Mino pressed.

"No. Do not pull that on me," Taehyun warned. He's gone through enough of that in High School now he doesn't want to be the youngest one again in college. Mino became quiet and Taehyun secretly sighed in relief, thinking the boy got his message. 

They opened up their respective laptops to work on their designs and it was going fine for a while when suddenly-

"Dongsaeng~* I don't understand this part," Mino called out in an overtly cute fashion. Taehyun was about to protest again but he saw that Mino was looking at him with a pout and he could not help laughing at the sight. A pout on that manly face did not match at all which made it even more adorable and funny.

" you!" he exclaimed, throwing a pen at the boy who had started to make puppy eyes. Taehyun realised his words did not carry any malice at all.

"Dongsaeng~ explain to me this part of your design," Mino continued, pointing at his laptop screen, blinking his eyes rapidly with his eyebrows raised and a beatific smile.

"I swear if you call me that again I'll...you'll..." Taehyun warned again, still smiling at the boy but with a certain threat laced in his voice.

Thankfully, Mino finally stopped and proceeded to talk about the project as if he had not just made complete dork out of himself. Taehyun could breathe easy again.

*****

The days flew by with the two of them continuing with their shared project. Unluckily though, they were disturbed at the library too so they had to change locations a few more times. They tried different parts of the school lawn, but everywhere there were students, there were people who knew Mino. They tried to go once to Mino's dorm room, where they were greeted by a couple of his friends who were having a match on the PS III. They could not go to Taehyun's apartment again as he was worried about Mino going back such a long distance. Finally, Taehyun decided to take Mino to his hideout at the bamboo grove. 

It was not perfect as there were no proper seats, however, Mino had assured him that he loved it, saying it felt like they were on a picnic with their snacks around them. Taehyun had scorned at that, though he did not show it to Mino. The place was musty; full of dirty fallen leaves and Taehyun did not particularly find it a good picnic spot. Nonetheless, it helped with their project as they were finally able to avoid being disturbed thanks to the seclusion the place offered.

The day before they had to present their project to the class, Mino suddenly started getting serious as he faced Taehyun on their way back from the bamboo grove.

"I have something to ask you."

"What is it?" Taehyun looked at him, curious to see a sudden change in demeanor.

"Are you...? I mean do you...? What is...?" Mino started quietly, stumbling on his words but could not continue. Taehyun knew then, exactly what he was planning to ask. He hadn't missed the curious glances the boy sent his way, also the times he caught him staring, thinking Taehyun wouldn't notice.

"I'm biual if that's what you wanna know," Taehyun replied easily. This boy is the easiest person to read ever, he thought, amused.

"How did you....oh yeah, it's written all over my face right?" Mino said, noticing the look of mirth in Taehyun's eyes. His shoulders slumped, his face looking like someone had taken his favorite candy away from him.

Taehyun laughed at the boy. Was he always this adorable?

"So you...?" Mino started again.

"Yes, I've dated both boys and girls," Taehyun finished his sentence for him.

"And you know..."

"Yes, you're gay."

"How...?"

"Oh, the whole campus knows Mino, even if I don't talk to anybody I still have ears. I also hear there are many disappointed girls," Taehyun joked.

"Liar!" Mino exclaimed as if unbelieving, yet he had a glorious smile on his face.

"I'm serious. Do you forget you're the most well-known person on the whole campus, even more popular than most seniors?" Taehyun stated, looking at Mino curiously. 

"Is that a good thing?" Mino wanted to know, chewing on his bottom lip.

"I don't know, you tell me..." Taehyun enquired. To be honest, he had a lot of things to say about Mino being the centre of everyone's attention, however, he preferred to keep his mouth shut. Mino seemed conscious of his popularity.

"I don't even know the difference," Mino shrugged, he looked believable.

Taehyun wondered why Mino had not asked him out yet. He knew it now after Bobby had told him, he paid attention to Mino's body language. He could see it so easily then. The boy was exceptionally easy to understand, with his varied facial expressions and open face. That got him wondering why he still had not tried to make a move. He wondered if he still seemed unapproachable to Mino. He had been talking, laughing and joking with the guy for almost 3 weeks now, he'd even told him, just now, that he liked boys. Mino had not even commented on that fact, seamlessly moving on to a different topic. Then he suddenly remembered.

Bobby. 

Mino might still be thinking that Bobby was his boyfriend. So how can he let Mino know without being so obvious about it? He shouldn't have kept it a secret for so long, he chided himself. Stupid Bobby and his stupid advice, he thought bitterly. Although he himself was also to blame. He was clueless for quite some time and even after he found out, he was still not sure having a relationship would be a good thing or not considering his current situation. He had not accounted for the fact that the boy had infinite charms, inducing Taehyun to want him selfishly.

Yes, he knew he was only thinking about himself at this moment. All the people he had met, including his parents, have called him selfish at least once. He knew about his own self-preservation tactics. He figured it couldn't hurt to be selfish one last time before he turns over a new leaf.  Maybe the boy will understand. Bobby had also told him it was just college anyway, that it wasn't like they were setting themselves up for marriage or anything. 

"So then, good luck for tomorrow," Mino said as they reached the crossroads where they had to part ways.

"Yeah, right. See you tomorrow," he replied numbly, heading towards the parking lot.

*****

The presentation was finished in class without any more hiccups, which both of them were quite satisfied with. After class, Mino hurriedly came over to Taehyun before he could escape again.

"Hey, so, my friends are throwing me a birthday party this weekend and I'd like you to come," Mino spoke hurriedly, as if afraid he would forget the words if locked in his brain for too long.

"Oh, I didn't know your birthday was coming up?" Taehyun asked.

"Of course you wouldn't. We are not in that kind of relationship to be sharing our birthdays yet," Mino joked.

"I'm...I'm not sure if I can go," Taehyun said uncertainly. He wanted to go, but he won't know anyone there and he had never been to any college party. A part of him wished he could take out Mino to celebrate with him instead.

"I haven't even told you the date and you're already planning on being busy?" Mino looked at him with an amused smile, Taehyun sensed it was another joke.

"You said weekend, I might be busy?" Taehyun insisted.

"Doing what? Both Saturday and Sunday?" Mino asked.

"Y..yeah," Taehyun lied.

"Good then, it's on Friday. I'll be expecting you, and you can bring Bobby too, see ya," Mino said with the biggest smile, leaving Taehyun speechless near the classroom door. He had been irrefutably tricked into accepting an invitation to a birthday party!

He shook his head slowly, laughing at his foolishness and Mino's art of persuasion. He admits he was quite excited at the prospect of attending Mino's party, albeit sufficiently nervous. Although, he figured if he'll have Bobby with him it won't be too bad. He knew he won't be able to count on the birthday boy as he was sure to be surrounded by a horde of friends, especially on his day.

When Taehyun returned to his class after a lunch break, a girl he had never seen before came up to him asking, "Hey, are you coming to Mino's party?" Taehyun was quite taken aback that couldn't even formulate an answer. 

"I'm Bee by the way," she said waving a hand enthusiastically in front of Taehyun with the biggest smile on her face. "And I expect to see you there at the party okay," she said and walked away, giggling to herself. Taehyun wondered if she was all there in the head.

After his classes got over for the day he started moving towards the Coffee Bean shop out of habit. Bobby came to join him mid-way, sidling up to Taehyun out of the blue.

"Let's buy coffee on the go then I can give you a ride back," Taehyun suggested as they entered the shop. While he was ordering, the counter-boy named Baekhyun was again studying him closely. Taehyun raised his nose a little higher, trying to maintain social distance. It didn't work, obviously. His standoffish nature never seemed to work on Mino's friends.

"Hey! You're Nam Taehyun right?"

"Yeah?" Taehyun looked at him, eyebrows raised in question. How did he know his name?

"You're coming to Mino's birthday party right?" the boy asked smiling.

"I... how?" Taehyun was again lost for words.

"What party? Can I come?" Bobby asked from behind Taehyun.

"No!" Baekhyun replied curtly. Bobby's face visibly fell, pouting.

"It's gonna be awesome, even bigger than our Fresher's party. You can't miss it," Baekhyun said, turning his attention back to Taehyun. Taehyun ignored him completely as he took away his drinks hurriedly from the counter.

"What was that about?" Bobby asked.

"I have no idea. What are you doing Friday night?" 

"Nothing that I know of." 

"Wanna accompany me to my first ever college party?" Taehyun asked as they slowly moved towards the parking lot.

"But that guy said I wasn't invited." 

"But the birthday boy specifically invited you too," Taehyun assured his sulking cousin.

"Who?"

"Mino."

"Ah!" recognition dawned on Bobby's face. He wiggled his thick brows in Taehyun's general direction.

"Hey! don't give me that look."

"What? I'm not saying anything," Bobby defended but he still had that twinkle in his eyes.

"Yeah, but you're giving me a look, I don't like that look."

"Fine, and yeah, I'll come with you. I wanna know how Korean college parties work," Bobby said excitedly.

The next day, Taehyun was again invited to the party by different people he had never met before, it seemed as if Mino's birthday was like some important event of the college. He was starting to get really curious.

When he entered the class he shared with Mino, the tanned boy was waving at him happily from his seat at the back, beckoning him to sit next to him. He ignored it. He won't know how to act around him, he thought, now that he was pretty sure about his feelings for the boy. He determinedly went to his usual seat at the first row. He did not see the look of utter devastation crossing the tanned boy's face when he turned his back on him.

As soon as class ended, three people rushed towards him in a hurry when he already left the classroom.

"Yo, Nam Taehyun, wait up," he heard the so-called project coordinator of their class calling him. Taehyun reluctantly stopped in his tracks.

"Yes, Mino's birthday party, Friday," he said tiredly as the people approached him.

"So Mino already invited you?" the blonde haired boy asked, Zico or something, Taehyun remembered.

"Yes, as well as ten other people whom I've never spoken to before," Taehyun replied with a bored roll of his eyes, tapping his foot urgently.

"Oh, goody, so you're coming? We're the ones organising the party for him. I'm Krystal by the way," the girl with long black hair said, holding her hand out for a handshake. Taehyun ignored it. He didn't trust them.

"I don't know," Taehyun said turning his back on them again. They stubbornly followed and walked right next to him.

"Mino would really like it if you come," the short-haired girl with a deep voice insisted.

"What's his birthday got to do with me? He's got like a thousand people attending and organising his party already," Taehyun told the three people, walking even faster, close to running. He was a little confused with the whole situation, it felt like a candid camera, with everyone knowing what was going on except him. He didn't like being out of the loop.

"Hey, you only attend college once in your life, and you have to experience it to the fullest. We're only looking out for you since you live off-campus and you won't get a chance like this," Zico insisted. He had to struggle to keep up with Taehyun's fast, long strides.

"Fine, I'll think about it," Taehyun acquiesced, thinking it was the only way to get them off his back. "Now, please leave me alone?" he requested.

"It's tomorrow," Zico shouted after him as Taehyun moved away from them.

"How rude!" he heard one of the girls saying.

"Yeah, I don't even know what Mino sees in the guy," the other girl agreed. Taehyun almost felt bad but he continued ignoring them, they were really annoying anyway. But then their words confirmed what he's been feeling. Mino really did seem to like him back, he thought happily. Maybe the party wouldn't be too bad. Maybe they just wanted him to come to make their friend happy. 

*****

The D-day arrived with Taehyun studiously ignoring Mino. He didn't even know why he did it; he just could not face the boy. He still was not quite sure whether he was going to attend the party or not. There was a certain excitement in the air, of course, Taehyun could not be completely immune to it. It was as if the whole college was planning on attending Mino's birthday party. After class, he managed to rush out again. This time nobody followed after him. 

He met with Bobby in his special place to discuss strategy.

"So, have you decided?" Bobby asked.

"I don't know," Taehyun said, frustrated, running his hands through his hair.

"It's just a party, why are you making such a big deal out of it?" Bobby asked, obviously not quite understanding his cousin's reaction.

"Do you know how many people invited me to the party already? Almost 20 people! I feel as if they are planning something. I don't want to go in unprepared, if it's some event or some including me I'm running straight out," Taehyun warned.

"Woah, you're just so full of yourself like always," Bobby chided with a humorous smirk. "You think the whole college will come together just to set you two up?" he asked, credulous.

"You don't know how popular this Mino is," Taehyun tried to explain.

"I kinda got the idea, it still doesn't make sense. I'm sure if he wants to ask you out he'd do it himself. He wouldn't want to embarrass you or himself in front of the whole college when he still thinks you have a boyfriend," Bobby tried to reason with him.

"You really think so?" Taehyun asked expectantly. His worries did seem absurd when Bobby put it that way.

"Yes, so please make up your mind. Everybody in my class have been talking about it the whole week and I really wanna go," Bobby begged.

"Okay, we'll go, but please stay close to me and keep your ears open okay?" Taehyun requested.

"You got it cuz'," Bobby promised.

*****

The party was already in full swing when Taehyun and Bobby entered the dorm building Mino resided in. Even though Mino's room was on the first floor he could see people drinking and dancing from the lawns till the roof. Different sounds come out from different rooms with different sound systems. It was loud, crazy, and Bobby looked like he could not wait to get started. A few people recognised Bobby, whom the boy greeted with "Wassups" and "Heys". Much like Mino, Bobby did not have any trouble making friends. The only difference Taehyun could see between the two was that while Bobby was adorable in a naive kind of way, Mino was likable in a genuine brotherly way, like someone who would protect you and stick by you no matter what.

"Yo! Mino, Taehyun and Bobby are here," someone shouted when they entered room 110, announcing their arrival to the birthday boy who was surrounded by a bunch of people who made way for Mino to greet the newcomers.

"YEAH! Glad you could make it," Mino shouted over the speakers to Taehyun and gave him a hug, almost spilling his drink from the cup he was holding. It seemed to Taehyun that the boy already had a few drinks in his system.

"Happy Birthday," Taehyun wished awkwardly.

"Thanks," he said with a lop-sided smile, looking genuinely pleased. He shifted his gaze to his cousin beside him. "Bobby! glad you could come too," he greeted Bobby with the trademark handshake of slap, bang, and pat again.

"Happy Birthday bro. Hey Cuz', why don't you give Mino what you got for him?" Bobby told Taehyun who suddenly felt very embarrassed.

"You got something for me?" Mino asked excitedly.

"I didn't know it was this kind of party...I..." Taehyun mumbled, his voice could barely be heard over the loud music.

"I told him he didn't need to, he's only been to privileged kids' parties so..." Bobby explained, poking a little fun at his blushing cousin. Taehyun punched him on the stomach to make him stop talking. Seriously, Bobby was of no help at all.

"Aw, I wanna see, I wanna see!" Mino said, finishing his drink in a gulp, bouncing up and down in anticipation.

Taehyun pulled out a small box from inside his pockets and gave it to Mino without even looking at him. Mino quickly opened the box to reveal a pair of silver stud earrings.

"I LOVE IT!" Mino exclaimed. "HEY EVERYBODY! I GOT MY FIRST GIFT OF THE NIGHT!" Mino shouted at the top of his lungs, holding up the tiny box. Everyone within earshot cheered with their drinks in the air, Taehyun hid his face in his palms in embarrassment. "Zico, guys, drinks for the newcomers, what's taking you so long?" Mino continued in his animated tone, looking around the crowded room. Five people came to offer five different kinds of drinks to the two guys. Bobby gladly took two cups in both hands while Taehyun settled for a beer.

"Enjoy the party guys, come, if you want something to eat," Mino said, gesturing for the two to follow.

Taehyun had never been to a party of such large scale and wondered if the college authorities even allowed such things. He looked around him, saw that everyone seemed to be having the time of their lives. Some were dancing, some chattering excitedly; there were even a few couples making out in the darker corners.

He looked over to his cousin who was bobbing his head to the beat of the music with a smile on his face. Taehyun felt a bit out of place, but Mino brought his attention back to him with his constant chattering.

"I don't know what other rooms have what kind of snacks, take the stuff you want and I'll take you on a tour around our dorm building if you want," he said as they reached the snacks table.

"Who prepared all this? You must've spent a ton," Taehyun was curious.

"Not a single penny. Everybody contributed by bringing their own drinks and stuff. See here? Our room is for dancing and stuff, if you go to another room there may be rap music blasting with people nodding their heads in unison, and another where they play games and stuff, come, I'll show you," Mino said, leading the way outside.

"I wanna visit the hip-hop room," Bobby shouted excitedly. "Those are my kind of people."

Every time Mino went inside a door all the occupants will shout out "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" at which Mino would scream back. Taehyun had never seen such unbridled enthusiasm from people celebrating another person's birthday.

Finally, they reached the roof of the building where there were lights strung along the edges, with people sitting and talking. Somebody called out to Bobby.

"Oh, excuse me for a sec Cuz', you'll be fine with Mino right?" Bobby asked, already walking towards the caller.

"Cuz'? Cousin?" Mino asked Taehyun. Mino finally seemed to realise what Bobby had been trying to point out the whole night, refraining from calling Taehyun 'babes' like he was wont to do.

"Yes, he's my cousin," Taehyun finally told him, eyeing Mino expectantly.

"Wow, that's... I mean... that's cool. I didn't know," Mino stuttered. He looked relieved to Taehyun, which made him anticipate the next words coming from Mino, but someone had to come and stop their interaction again.

"Yo, birthday boy, new people in the house, and they brought a barrel of beer, the American kind. You gotta see this!" a guy called out excitedly from the entrance to the roof.

"No ? I've never seen a barrel before," Mino said excitedly. "Come, let's go see," he said to Taehyun. Taehyun did not want to go see a stupid barrel. He wanted to be here on the roof talking to Mino.

"Nah, you go, I'll stay here for a while," he said, a little put-out at being less interesting than a beer barrel.

"You sure?" Mino asked.

"Yeah, and Bobby might come looking for me," he made an excuse.

"Okay, I'll be back soon. There are drinks somewhere around here too, help yourself," Mino said as he ran off the terrace.

Taehyun sighed and decided he might as well get drunk. It's a party after all. Also, he didn't have to drive back to his apartment. They had come in a cab as Bobby decided they'd be too drunk to drive the bike. He filled his cup again with a concoction of different drinks before making his way to the corner of the terrace and taking a seat.

He was sitting there for a while now and his stupid cousin brother had not shown his face again. He shouldn't have trusted him. He had already finished a few cups of drinks. He was a little disappointed that his worst fears did not come true. Sure he did not wish to have some surprise event planned for him, but he was a little upset that Mino did not seem to want to ask him out anytime soon, and Taehyun was impatient. If Mino had this many people around him, it'll be quite easy for someone else to take away his attention, he thought bitterly. There definitely seemed to be a lot of good-looking people in this college.

"Taehyun-ah," he heard someone calling him and he quickly got up, he didn't wanna look pathetic sitting there all by himself. He had to hold his head to stop himself from getting dizzy at the sudden movement and realised he must've drunk more than he thought he did. 

"Oh there you are, I've been looking everywhere for you," Mino exclaimed, walking towards him.

"Hey~" Taehyun drunkenly greeted the birthday boy.

"So..," Mino started as he stood next to him on the wall.

"So..." Taehyun replied, a little breathless at the close proximity.

"So Bobby's your cousin," Mino stated the obvious.

"Yes," Taehyun replied simply.

"And you're..."

"Yes, I'm single," Taehyun answered Mino's unasked question.

"Mino, yo, birthday boy, where you at?" someone was screaming at the top of his lungs again. Mino was about to respond but Taehyun would have none of it. He pulled Mino by the hand and covered his mouth with his free hand, stopping him from replying to the unknown caller.

"Aish, where the hell is this guy?" they heard the guy saying and loud footsteps retreating from the roof.

Taehyun slowly removed his hand from Mino's mouth. The alcohol in his system must've made him bold.

"Wha..." Mino was about to say something.

"When the hell are you planning on asking me out?" Taehyun asked, looking at Mino directly in the eyes before the birthday boy could say anything more. 

*****

Old failures will not halt, old triumphs aid,
Today’s the thing, tomorrow soon will be;
Get in the fight and face it unafraid,
And leave the past to ancient history,
What has been, has been; yesterday is dead
And by it you are neither blessed nor banned;
Take courage, man, be brave and drive ahead,
Start where you stand.’

-Berton Braley

*Hyung- elder brother or how to address elder male by younger male.

*Dongsaeng- younger sibling or how to address someone younger than you. (In case you didn't know) 

A/N: Longest chapter ever. 

and yes, I changed Mino's birthday for my convenience, coz I'm god of this story. lmao.