TPC 49 [CONTENTID1]

forty-nine: love, juyeon

[/CONTENTID1][CONTENTID2]

[“We’re her favourite boys.”]

[/CONTENTID2][CONTENTID3]

The class was thrumming with new energy, the groups of people that usually clustered together now spread out. Girls were presenting chocolates with either joking smiles or blushing faces, to friends and crushes. It was extremely tense and exciting and very grossly hormonal, but thankfully it was also busy enough that nobody noticed Juyeon come in late.

She slowly walked towards her seat, heart pounding, aware that Sumi was watching her like a hawk as she went to her own seat. She couldn't back out now. This was utterly ridiculous, why was she so embarrassed? These were chocolates she was giving to her guy friends, and besides, Exo weren’t even the only people she made chocolate for. The bags she hefted up in her arms contained chocolates for Key and his friends, and for Seoyeon and Minjun, and even for the Librarian, for gods' sakes.

She could do this. It was fine. She was fine.

”Hey, guys,” she said, walking up to them. They were all sitting in their seats talking to each other in a low tone, looking uncharacteristically nervous, but they abruptly stopped and sat up straight once she neared. They became uncommonly quiet, staring at her in a way that was both intense and nervous, as though they didn't want to make it too obvious what they were hoping.

”Alright, alright, don’t make this weird,” she snapped, cheeks flushing a furious dark red. “Yes, it’s Valentine’s Day, I’m giving you all chocolate, let’s get on with it.”

It was a knee-jerk reaction to try and dissolve the awkwardness around them, but it surprisingly worked. They all laughed and with many choruses of "tomato face", and the tension eased up slightly. Juyeon even found herself relaxing a bit, too.

”If I knew you were this nervous about giving me chocolates, I would have just told you to skip the sweets and give me something else,” Kai said, wiggling his eyebrows and giving her a crooked grin.

”Gross. You’re gross. Take your nasty, undeserved chocolate.” Juyeon nearly threw it at his face. He caught it just before it hit his nose.

”Thanks, darling.” He winked, but his words were a lot less flirtatious and more genuine now. He held the box of chocolates in his hands as though they were precious diamonds.

Juyeon fought to hide her smile, but it was almost impossible. “Yeah, yeah, hope you like it. Baekhyun?”

”Here, Yeonie,” Baekhyun piped up, beaming. He kept wiggling in his seat like an overgrown puppy, which was both annoying and extremely adorable. “Gimme gimme gimme!”

”Here.” She handed him his box. He grabbed it and ran his hands over the shiny wrapping paper, utterly in awe. Okay, it was cute, she could admit it. He was cute.

”Next one is …” she checked the label, “ … for Sehun.” She pulled it out and handed it to him, smiling even as he gave her a cold look. “Do you not like sweets or something?”

”I’ll make an exception today,” he muttered, taking the box from her.

”Wow, Sehun, you feeling alright?” Kai teased. “You look a little pink. Are you getting sick?”

”Shut. Up.”

”Next,” Juyeon said loudly, before Kai and Sehun could start some and ruin the moment. “D.O.”

She handed D.O his box. He gave her one of his heart-shaped smiles, which were becoming more and more frequent whenever she talked to him, although the frequency of the smiles did nothing to stop her from feeling a little flustered whenever he did so. He glanced at the label and raised an eyebrow. “‘Happy Valentine’s Day, love, Juyeon’?”

She blushed again, utterly embarrassed. She had seriously hoped they wouldn’t see the labels she had scribbled down without thinking and then didn’t have the heart to cross out. “It’s—it’s—it’s a figure of speech!” she spluttered. “It’s what you say on holidays, isn’t it?”

Kai checked the label on his own box too. “Awww, you love me.”

”Quiet, Kai!”

Kai grinned, then suddenly stopped dead, as if he was actually considering what had been written. His face began to bloom a pretty, glowing pink colour.

”Um, that is—” he coughed.

Something small and hopeful and maybe a little more hysterical than it should be hiccupped in Juyeon’s chest, and left searing warmth in its wake. “Okay, next,” she loudly said once more, trying to pretend that none of the boys could see her face rapidly reddening until it seemed nearly impossible that any more blood could ascend and pool in her cheeks. “Suho. Just—take it.”

Suho accepted the box graciously, or, well, as graciously as he could make it while trying not to laugh or smile too hard. “Thank you, Juyeon.”

”Right,” she muttered awkwardly, reaching into her bag. She was slowly losing her nerve and she needed to get it all done as soon as possible. “N-next. Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol, who had been waiting eagerly for his name to be called since she first walked in with her bags of chocolates, bounded forwards impatiently and grabbed for his box before she even properly held it out. Their fingers brushed, and