WEDNESDAY II.V

Jongin is waiting, like she knew he would be, when Chanyeol gets out of the volleyball practice. She smiles at how focused he looks, fingers tapping hastily at his phone screen, immersed in whatever game he’s playing. She tells him time and time again not to wait for her after practice but he’s always there. It’s both reassuring and painful how he sticks by her side. Sometimes she wishes he wasn’t too shy to talk to girls and would find himself a date or something because then she could stop getting her hopes up. She’s been crushing on him for a year already.

As she walks over to him, he looks up with a soft smile that makes her heart leap.

“How was practice?” he asks. He reaches out an arm to take her gym bag.

Chanyeol begins to slip the strap off her shoulder when her name is called. Settling the strap back on her shoulder, she turns around to see one of the sophomores from the boy’s volleyball team jogging up to her.

“Oh, Jooheon! Good work today.” She smiles.

He blushes at her praise, the tips of his ears lighting up with pink, but he shrugs it off. “When do I not do good?” He slips his hand, the one not clutching the strap of his own gym bag, into his pocket and averts his eyes.

Chanyeol rolls her own because she’s used to his fake ego and overconfidence. For as much as he likes to puff up his chest around his friends too seem cool, he’s actually a complete cinnamon roll.

“But, uh,” Jooheon starts with a cough, “I was wondering if you’d, uh, maybe run through some setting drills with me sometime.”

Normally, Chanyeol would be confused at the request but she understands immediately. The boys’ team didn’t fare too well during the tournament and Jooheon especially was off his game the last two matches. Being one of the better players at the school, Chanyeol sometimes helps the others practice when the captains aren’t available.

“Yeah, of course! I know this nice court we can go to!”

Jongin clears his throat.

Chanyeol looks back, waving at him a sign to be patient. At Jooheon, she smiles. “Text me when you want to practice, okay?” She ruffles his already messy hair. “See you tomorrow!”

Jooheon rubs his palm across the back of his neck, embarrassment starting to rush into the rounds of his cheeks. “Y-Yeah. Tomorrow.”

Chanyeol pats Jongin’s arm and says they can head home. As they walk towards the exit on the other side of the building, Jongin asks for her bag once again. This time there is nothing distracting her from slipping it off her shoulder and passing it to him to carry.

He doesn’t say anything else until they exit the school, but as soon as the door swings shut behind them, he looks at Chanyeol with a frown. “What was that about?”

“What was what about?” Chanyeol returns with a frown of her own.

“That kid back there.”

“Jooheon? He wants extra help. What’s the problem?”

A few boys are lingering around the soccer field, lazily kicking around a ball. They pay no attention to the two of them as they walk past.

“Did you need to be so touchy?” Jongin asks. He crosses his arms over his chest.

“What?” Chanyeol makes a face. Jongin has these odd moments every now and then where he gets mad for no apparent reason. Chanyeol has gotten used to them but she’s still no less confused whenever they happen.

Jongin heaves a sigh and shakes his head. “Nothing,” he says. “But I don’t like that kid.”

“Jongin, you’ve never met him. How can you already say you don’t like him?”

“I don’t need to know him. Did you see his face when you were talking to him? That’s all I need.”

There’s a girl sitting at the bus stop with her headphones plugged in, doing something on her phone.

Chanyeol takes a seat on the bench next to her while Jongin opts to stand.

“What?” Chanyeol repeats.

“He was redder than a baboon’s , Yeol,” Jongin presses, looking uncomfortable at having to point it out.

Chanyeol is reminded of how he reacted to her theory about Yixing liking Sehun but she doesn't get where exactly the sudden protectiveness is coming from.

“He’s shy.”

Jongin only shakes his head again. “That’s our bus,” he says, pointing down the street and dropping the conversation.

short cuz this should have been at the end of the last part but i'm a mega loser who takes a month to write 700 words

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