Do Kyungsoo is 101% best friend material. To say that the feelings he harbored for his past best friends were all completely platonic is a big, fat lie.

 

 

 

 

An old man is yelling at a kid with a slingshot moving dangerously close to pointing at his direction. The kid sticks his tongue out, closes his bad eye and looks through the slingshot professionally—and aims for the old man’s walking stick. The old man tumbles over and he curses the kid up to his grandchildren’s grandchildren, waving his broken stick in the air like a twirling baton. The kid cackles and runs away, holding his precious slingshot close to his body. He turns around to see if the old man called the police on him and promptly collides with another person’s body. He falls down and winces in pain. He waits for two hands to haul him up but it never comes. Instead, he hears hushed voices of two guys and he looks up to confirm his earlier thought. The two guys tower over him and is at least 5 inches apart from each other. The taller of the two is gesturing wildly with his hands but is talking in a really low voice; and the smaller of the two, the one that he crashed to earlier, looks like someone just told him that his mother died, eyes wide and mouth agape while processing whatever the heck the other was telling him. Sighing, the kid pushed himself up and walked away, murmuring about inconsiderate strangers and bringing their woes to a park, which ironically should have been a happy place.

 

“What I’m saying is,” Chanyeol says exasperatedly, letting his hands fall to his side as his gaze falls to Kyungsoo’s feet. “I don’t see you that way Kyungsoo. You’re a pretty awesome friend to have and I don’t want to ruin that between us in case we won’t work out in the future. No hard feelings, okay?” Chanyeol smiles his best reassuring smile without his left eye twitching and Kyungsoo sighs in defeat.

“Alright, Okay.” Kyungsoo uses his remaining self pride and smiles at Chanyeol, not bright, but smiley enough to reassure the taller.

“Thanks Kyungsoo, you’re a great pal.”

Of course, Kyungsoo thinks bitterly. I’m always just a great pal.

 

 

Kyungsoo’s suffered more rejections from his countless love confessions than a fresh graduate has been rejected from a Big-Named company. At the tender age of 20, he’s been rejected at least half his age, for the past 6 years he’s known about infatuations and What It Does to Your Hormones. It’s always the same reason though, why he gets rejected. Its always ‘our friendship now is enough for me’s’ or ‘we’re better off as friends’ or ‘you’re a better friend (than lover, Kyungsoo sometimes adds in his head bitterly).

Friend.

Kyungsoo abhors the label he has now been known as to all the best friends he’s confessed to. He’s a regular in the Friend Zone and he doesn’t enjoy the stay he’s forced into.

 

 

--

 

 

Kyungsoo recounts the heartbreaking scene rather vividly to Jongin over lunch in the cafeteria the next day. It’s still early for anyone to eat lunch so Jongin and Kyungsoo and some other nerdy kids hunched over their books instead of their meals have the cafeteria all to themselves.

Jongin just hums when Kyungsoo finishes his story, watching in barely hidden amusement as his best friend ends up face first on the table, wailing pathetically.

 “Nobody likes me!” Jongin chuckles and reaches a hand out to rub comforting circles on the small of Kyungsoo’s back. The former is successful in pacifying the latter and pulls his hand away completely once the dying whale sounds recede. Kyungsoo turns his head to the left so he’s facing Jongin, cheek flat against the cold cafeteria table. He sees him playing with the rice in his seafood bento, the tip of his tongue sticking out of his mouth in concentration as his chopsticks struggle to keep the group of rice together. He’s about to shove the clump into his mouth when Kyungsoo shoots another question. He stops midway.

“Jongin, why don’t you have a girlfriend? I mean you’re nice and all and you’re charming and you have a nice face—I’m sure no sane girl would turn you down. I mean hrmm—“ Jongin tuts and aims the chopsticks on Kyungsoo’s open mouth instead, effectively shutting the elder up from his rambling.

“Kyungsoo we’ve had this conversation before, and my answer stands the same,” Jongin sighs and puts his chopsticks beside his large bento, chugging down his bottle of Gatorade before turning to face a chewing Kyungsoo with curiosity shining in his large doe eyes. He hands Kyungsoo the half empty bottle of Gatorade before continuing his earlier speech.

“I already told you it’s my own personal choice hyung. I don’t have a girlfriend because I don’t want one.” (And I won’t ever want one, he wants to add, but saves it for later confrontations)

“But why won’t you want a girlfriend?” Kyungsoo gulps the remaining content of the Gatorade bottle before settling it down beside Jongin’s bento. “We’re in college, and we’re in that stage of our life where we worry about balancing good grades and looking for a potential lifetime partner!” Kyungsoo raises his voice at the end of his sentence and the nerdy guys from the farthest left table look up from their books and give them both judging stares. Kyungsoo grins sheepishly and waves them away with his hand, while Jongin face palms from the side and tries hard not to laugh.

Kyungsoo sees his bestfriends internal struggle of Laugh or Not Laugh and promptly jabs him in the ribs, causing him to yelp as loud as a stepped-on wolf. Jongin pouts and rubs his bruised ribcage, while Kyungsoo snickers contently beside him.

“That hurt hyung,” A pout. “But seriously, I know what your point is. It’s just that, I’m content with what I have now, and I’m not in a hurry to fall in love and commit, y’know?” Jongin shrugs and Kyungsoo looks scandalized.

“Jesus Christ Jongin, I said find a girlfriend, not find a fiancé and get married the next day!” Kyungsoo throws his hands up in the air and Jongin wrinkles his nose.

“But you just said—“

“I know what I just said, okay Jongin? I was just curious why you’re not taking interest in dating. Maybe you’re aual?” And with that said Kyungsoo is now lost in his own world, staring blankly at Jongin’s laptop bag on the opposite chair.

Jongin shakes his head and maybe he wants to shake Kyungsoo too, and scream at his ear that no, he’s not aual, he’s homoual. HOMOUAL! Which means he might want a boyfriend and not a girlfriend; but he keeps his thoughts to himself because this is not the right time and place for confessions that Might Change His Life forever.

 

Kyungsoo’s been murmuring for the past 10 minutes to himself while Jongin’s beside him, chin atop his hand as he watches the various emotions splaying on the former’s face. His eyebrows furrow, they shoot up his hairline, he scrunches his nose, he squints his eyes at the microscopic dirt on the empty table in front of him and then above all, Jongin’s favorite—he bites his lips.

Jongins’ spent many a nights wondering how Kyungsoo’s lips would feel and taste like against his own, but judging from today’s events he won’t be getting there anytime soon. Kyungsoo’s either as dense as oil on water or he just doesn’t see Jongin that way. Nonetheless, Jongin is willing to wait.

Kyungsoo’s snapped out of his midday trance when Jongin gently tugs on his arm. “Com’on hyung, it’s nearing 12 noon already. Chanyeol and the others would be here soon. You wouldn’t want to face him just yet, right?”

Kyungsoo looks up, wide-eyed, and then as he processes what Jongin just said, shoots him a relieved smile. He lets himself get hauled up by the taller, and they both walk out of the rapidly populating cafeteria. “Thanks Jongin, you’re the best.”

Jongin adjusts his backpack strap on his right shoulder and tightens his grip around his laptop bag on the left. He spares Kyungsoo a side-glance who’s staring at him with a wide, heart-shaped smile on his face. His own heart swells and he quickly looks away.

“I know hyung, I know.”

 

 

 

 

 

--

 

 

Kyungsoo wants to kill Chanyeol. And maybe Joonmyeon. And maybe even Jongdae—heck, he wants to behead each and every best friend of his he asked out that turned him down without even batting an eyelash. He wants to make them suffer and see what they lost the moment they decided they didn’t want to date Kyungsoo. He wants so badly to say—‘Hey here’s the guy you all turned down. Look at me now! I’m hotter and better than all you peasants combined’ and he would strut his stuff in an extremely long catwalk and make them drool all over him and then the roles would be reversed. They would want him; and he’d be given the choice to accept or reject. Oh how very fulfilling would that little incident be.

He’s so lost in his own world that he doesn’t notice that he’s stopped halfway from looking for something to wear inside his color-coded closet, and is instead staring intently at a black and white polka-dotted fleece sweater Jongin bought for him last Christmas. As if on cue, Jongin comes from behind him and stares at the sweater too.

“Is it that ugly?” Kyungsoo can hear the underlying pout laced within Jongin’s words which makes him chuckle. He remembers Christmas last year where he made Jongin sleep on the floor instead of the sofa because of the hideous sweater he was making him wear.

“No, no its not that. I’m just—having second thoughts in attending this party. Every one of my best friends who I asked out are coming and I don’t know if I’m prepared to see rejection shoved at my face all at once.” Kyungsoo sighs pathetically and leans his forehead on Jongin’s shoulder, to which the other reciprocates immediately by wrapping his arm around his shoulder, pulling him close. Jongin cards his fingers through Kyungsoo’s thick black strands and the latter lets out a sigh of comfort instead of exhaustion. Jongin smiles to himself before speaking. “You know, Soo, sometimes you have to face your problems instead of running away from them. You’re not exactly solving the problem by avoiding them, but rather, you’re just prolonging the time you have to deal with them. These people you asked out, they don’t treat you any differently, do they? I mean you’re all still friends, we’re still all friends, and I trust them enough to not embarrass you there tonight. Besides, if anything, anything happens, I’ll be there to back you up, okay?”

At this Kyungsoo looks up with glassy eyes and the smallest hint of a smile on his face, but to Jongin it’s enough. It’s more than enough. The smile Kyungsoo showed him means he trusts him completely not to hurt him in anyway, and that he knows that he’ll take care of him no matter what. Indeed he will.

 

 

They arrive 20 minutes late to the party but no one really cares. The moment Jongin’s parked his car Kyungsoo shoots out of his seat, and walks straight into the arms of a walking Kim Joonmyeon with, presumably his date, Jongdae. Jongin watches as Kyungsoo hugs the both of them, both of which he asked out during freshman year. They’ve come a long way but now they’re all best friends and Kyungsoo doesn’t mind that Joonmyeon and Jongdae ended as a couple. Jongin gets out of his car coolly as Kyungsoo and his friends enter the house, Kyungsoo having forgotten that he came with someone else immediately. Jongin sighs, he’s used to this already, and so he lets it slide.

He’s walking with small steps to the door, the wild party sounds from the inside flowing out through the windows. It already smells like gin and beer from where he’s standing and he crinkles his nose a little. Suddenly, the door swings open and he’s being yanked inside.

“Hey everybody, Kim Jongin is here!”

 

 

 

 

Kyungsoo’s sitting in one of the cleaner couches inside the large and loud party house, and he’s right beside Sehun and Luhan who both look like they want to make out but can’t because Kyungsoo is seated so close to them. Kyungsoo takes a quick sip of his gin and scans the rows and rows of dancing bodies for someone interesting enough to talk to, or to take home for the night. His head is already buzzing but he’s not quite drunk yet. Suddenly, the music changes and everybody in the dance floor part to form a huge circle. They’re banging their heads side to side and are clapping wildly as someone enters the circle and walks right to the middle. He’s wearing impeccably familiar black pants and top and—is that Jongin?

Kyungsoo almost spits out his drink as Jongin smirks to no one in particular at the crowd and suddenly he’s doing sinful body waves that match the rhythm of the song currently playing perfectly.

Kyungsoo finally chokes on his drink as he laughs out loud, eyes crinkling on the sides as he watches Jongin make a fool of himself, dancing like a for everyone. Maybe he’s drunk too, Kyungsoo chimes, and hums in amusement. He stands up and mimes a salute to both Sehun and Luhan who’re looking at him like he just said he’s the son of the President of the United States, and turns on his heel to run to the bathroom and maybe puke.

 

Sehun and Luhan share a glance before shrugging and sighing, letting their gaze drift to the now almost topless dancing Jongin in the dancefloor.

“Why do you think Kyungsoo laughed? I think Jongin looked hot dancing there.”

Sehun throws his boyfriend a pointed look. “Jongin could dance seductively in front of him and it still wouldn’t bring out a reaction from Kyungsoo. He’ll probably just stare at Jongin with those huge judging eyes of his and shake his head, before snapping a picture of his ness for blackmail material.”

“Or he’d just say it’s the same as seeing an old man trying to undulate his arthritis-bathed bones, old and gross and ungraceful, where in fact it’s the complete opposite for everyone else.”

Luhan nods in understanding and grabs his boyfriend’s hand, intertwining their fingers. “It’s a sad life for Jongin,”

 

 

 

 

 

Kyungsoo has gathered his bearings almost 30 minutes ago, and is now waiting impatiently for Jongin to get his drunken out of the house and into his car so they can go home. Kyungsoo still has 2 pages left to do for his research paper and the deadline is tomorrow err,—later today. It’s almost 2am, and its cold and Kyungsoo wants nothing than to go home and wrap himself under layers and layers of comforting blankets and sleep the impending hangover away. He’s this close to just jabbing the key on and ignite the engine and get the hell out of there when Jongin tumbles out the front porch with Baekhyun and Chanyeol on either side of him. Jongin’s giggling and Kyungsoo rolls his eyes as he gets out of the car to walk to Baekhyun and Chanyeol awkwardly holding a swaying Jongin up due to their height differences.

“I’ll take it from here, thanks guys.” Kyungsoo beams and Chanyeol raises his eyebrows in question as he slowly removes Jongin’s limp arms around his shoulder.

Its Baekhyun who voices out his thoughts. “Are you sure you can carry him?” It took two of us to carry him, how can you possibly do it alone, he wanted to add, but kept it to himself. The easiest to piss is Drunk Kyungsoo, and Just Woken up Kyungsoo. He’d rather not have to deal with a hangover and a black-eye tomorrow, thank you very much.

Kyungsoo smirks as he takes the entirety of Jongin’s body weight on his back, the latter draped all over him. “You’ll see,” is all he says before turning around (with much difficulty) and walking back to the car.

Jongin is on the verge of falling asleep and barely awake when he unabashedly sniffs Kyungsoo’s neck, his hot breath tickling the latter’s nerves. Kyungsoo shivers from it and the cold. “You—mm, smell—haha good hyung.”

Kyungsoo rolls his eyes and jumps a bit to steady Jongin’s weight on his back again. He grunts and half-walks half-limps his way to the backseat where he all but shoves Jongin inside when he gets it open.

“Ow, ow hyuuuung! Th-that hurts!” Before Jongin can even reposition himself he gets a lapful of Kyungsoo, albeit awkwardly, legs on either side of his on the cramped up space of his ford. Jongin’s unfocused eyes widen, and he looks more awake now than he did a minute ago. Kyungsoo leans in close and his hand is coming up to seemingly caress his face and Jongin’s ready to close his eyes because this is it, we’ll finally make out, this is finally it—Kyungsoo tugs on his nose hard and unforgiving.

“OW! OW—S-STOP IT HYUNG OW! PLEASE—ARGH!” He swats at Kyungsoo blindly while the other just holds his place, all the more tightening his fingers around the sensitive slope of Jongin’s nose.

“ARGH HYUNG, WHAT DO YOU WANT?? OHMYGOD JUST PLEASE, PLEASE LET GO OF MY NOSE!” Kyungsoo chuckles from the nasally voice Jongin says it with and finally lets his hands fall, grinning evilly as he waits for Jongin to come to his senses.

“Are you sober now?”

Jongin opens his eyes and glares at him, his left hand rubbing soothingly on his aching nose and the other perched lightly on Kyungsoo’s waist. Neither of them notice this. Jongin nods but he’s still glaring at Kyungsoo, the alcohol finally leaving his brain from the adrenaline of being hurt a while ago.

Kyungsoo grins again before hopping off his lap and sauntering over to the driver’s seat. “Good, we can go home now. I still have a report to finish.” Kyungsoo glances at the rearview mirror and sees Jongin sitting up straight and his head already leaned on the headrest, neck and Adams apple bared. He has his eyes closed but he nods once to let Kyungsoo know he’s listening. “You can drive?” he rasps out in a throaty voice and Kyungsoo hums loud enough for him to hear the response.

“I’m not drunk and I’ve regained my sober brain a while back, we’re safe don’t worry." He winks at Jongin before pulling and strapping on his seatbelt. He hears Jongin grunt out a response and he’s already pulling out of the parking space and into the driveway, treading the road back to their dorms.

 

 

 

 

--

 

 

Kyungsoo almost, almost asked Baekhyun out because he was cute and they were in the same choir group—but quickly changed his mind when Chanyeol bounded over to them with a sickly sweet smile on his face. Kyungsoo used to like Chanyeol—but despite that he still wants to barf at the overly cheesy grin the other is sporting. His eyes are bright and happy as he converses with Baekhyun, and Kyungsoo doesn’t feel irritation, just left out because now he’s the third wheel. Jongin saved the day however, like he always does by appearing out of nowhere and slinging an arm around Kyungsoo. When he’s in a good mood he usually calls Kyungsoo disgusting pet names while wearing this adorably huge grin on his face. Kyungsoo snorts but let’s Jongin do it, just like he is now.

“Hi babe,” the taller of the two coos and Kyungsoo rolls his eyes before waving Baekhyun and Chanyeol goodbye as they turn right and walk straight to their lockers, which are conveniently placed next to each other.

Jongin momentarily let’s go of Kyungsoo’s narrow shoulder and twists the knob to the correct combination of the smaller’s locker—while the other does the same for him. They’ve been doing this since forever, opening each other’s locker and giving each other’s needed school material without even batting an eyelash. They’ve both memorized each other’s schedule like the back of their hands since the first day of school anyway.

Kyungsoo rambles on about how boring their first class went on, how the teacher was as old as time—and Jongin nods and hums occasionally, listening while taking out Kyungsoo’s things for the day. On the other side, Kyungsoo’s doing the same while his mouth moves. He talks about seeing Luhan with light pink hair while picking up Jongin’s geometry book, some graphing paper and a whole pack of rulers and pencils. When Kyungsoo’s done talking he hands the stuff to Jongin one by one and he in return, slips on Kyungsoo’s black-rimmed glasses for him (it gets irritating to wear his contacts during the afternoon; his eye itches all the time and he can’t focus on the lesson) turns him around and casually opens his backpack, placing the unappealing sheets of paper and some pens inside. He zips the bag back up and turns Kyungsoo around again but this time, he attaches his long arm to his shoulder once more. Kyungsoo just rolls his eyes and moves forward to close his locker himself, Jongin’s gold fish memory acting up again. Jongin smiles sheepishly and wraps his arms around Kyungsoo’s waist, placing his chin on top of Kyungsoo’s shoulder. The latter’s breath hitches, but he doesn’t do or say anything.

It’s when a professor passes by their corridor and gives them a reprimanding look does Kyungsoo step away from Jongin’s touchy hands.

“What were you doing?? Are you trying to get us suspended??” He hisses and Jongin just shrugs, but the playful glint in his eye is still there, and Kyungsoo narrows his own.

“No chicken for you.” Kyungsoo revels on how Jongin’s whole face falls and his eyes widen comically. His mouth is shaped into a big ‘o’ but he recovers fast and is soon whining.

“But hyuuuung!”

 

 

 

Sehun has his lips pursed as he watches Kyungsoo and Jongin skirt around each other’s meals directly in front of him. Their huge group of friends is seated at one of the larger and longer cafeteria tables, and Jongin and Kyungsoo are next to each other per usual, Chanyeol on Jongin’s left, Baekhyun on Kyungsoo’s right, and Luhan next to him and Jongdae on his other side. The table is elliptical in shape and so they can see each other clearly. Half the tables’ stopped eating now and is staring at Kyungsoo taking away a huge amount of Jongin’s meat off his meal, and Jongin trying to scoop up as much of Kyungsoo’s homemade kimchi on his plate. Kyungsoo hisses however, when Jongin tries to get a hold of a chicken leg. Jongin pouts cutely (rather disgustingly if you ask Sehun) but Kyungsoo doesn’t relent and instead shoves a spoonful of kimchi into his mouth. Its only when Kyungsoo raises his eyes to meet Sehun does he begin talking. He points his chopsticks at Jongin, then at Kyungsoo, and says, “Are you two sure you’re not dating?”

The question has both of them caught off guard and the whole table quiets down to hear their answer. Jongin looks like he wants to pee and cry at the same time while Kyungsoo just stares at Sehun in shock. It takes him a whole minute to respond. “N-nonsense, Sehun! Jongin’s straight, haha. Plus I don’t like him that way. Right Jongin?” Kyungsoo turns to look at Jongin and beams. Jongin smiles immediately on reflex yet somehow his smile looks kind of strained.

Jongin chokes out a laugh and then hurriedly grabs for the nearest bottle of water before he actually chokes on his food. Kyungsoo reaches behind him to pat him comfortingly on the back while the other’s look on. Sehun catches the frantic look in Jongin’s eyes and sees the many emotions welled up inside of him that he could not voice out in front of Kyungsoo. Sehun understands and nods once, offering him a reassuring smile and Jongin relaxes a bit.

Kyungsoo continues eating as if nothing heavy and personal was asked earlier.

 

 

 

 

“The problem with Kyungsoo is,” Jongin begins before gulping down his first shot of Soju. “He’s too damn dense.”

Sehun gulps a shot of Soju too and winces when it hits the back of his throat. “He’s as aware as a rock…hidden underground for centuries,” he supplies rather unhelpfully.

Jongin frowns as he downs a shot again, fingers curling and uncurling as he waits for the bitter taste in his mouth to go away. Sehun stares at his friends’ angry side profile and sighs. He places a comforting hand on Jongin’s shoulder and the other turns to him, eyes ablaze with different conflicting emotions. Sehun begins to speak. “You know, you could like, try to ask him out.”

Jongin sighs and stares long and hard at the bottle of Soju in front of them as if he stared hard enough it would break into tiny little glass shards. “I could, but I doubt it’ll work.” He pauses, and brings the small glass to his lips, but stops midair. “You know what’s ironic, Sehun?” He downs the shot as he waits for the other to respond. Sehun answers with a small “No, what?”

Jongin smiles bitterly and twirls the little glass in his fingers before he speaks. “Kyungsoo keeps complaining to me about the difficult position he’s always forced to be put in, how he’s in the dreaded Friend Zone—where in fact the person who actually likes him he already shunned out into the same, horrid world.”

“Wouldn’t that be romantic though, the both of you trapped in the same world? That he’s kept you there so he has a companion?”

Jongin snorts into the mouth of the glass at Sehun’s response. “Since when did you sound so gay, Oh Sehun? Luhan finally rubbing off on you?” Sehun grunts and whacks Jongin on the back of his head, hard.

“Ow! What was that for—Yah Oh Sehun I’m still older than you! You can’t do that to your hyung!” Jongin’s glare-pouting now, and Sehun thinks he looks like . No wonder Kyungsoo doesn’t find him attractive enough to date.

“Shut up old man and listen to what I’m about to say.” Sehun leans forward and ignores Jongin’s obvious and very rude eye roll. “You need to make Kyungsoo like you. As in, like you. You have to make him feel something, a spark, butterflies in his stomach whenever you’re around—I don’t know, whatever the heck you guys want to feel when you meet. Make yourself desirable for him.”

“What?! Like, seduce him or something? Dude! I am not drunk enough for this,” Jongin reaches for his second bottle of Soju when Sehun’s bony fingers catch his and he halts his movements.

“I didn’t say anything about seducing. Just make yourself super attractive in his eyes and not the you’re-handsome-but-you’re-not-my-type kind of thing. Make yourself his type.” Sehun finishes and retracts his hand from Jongin’s as the latter tries to make sense of what Sehun is trying to tell him. He gnaws on his lower lip as he realizes that Sehun’s plan is sensible and doable; that it just might work.

Jongin clears his throat and looks at Sehun in the eye. “O-okay, okay tell me what I’m supposed to do.”

Sehun his lips as he stares at the empty bottle of Soju right next to his own empty glass. “First we need to convince him that you’re gay.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“I think the pink shirt is over doing it.”

“Really? I think hot pink looks good on him though,”

“Luhan, you like pink. Your opinion doesn’t change anything. “

“Hey!”

Jongin sighs, louder this time as the couple bickers inside his room. He takes the hot pink shirt off like its nothing, and is completely save for the skinny jeans hanging dangerously low on his waist. He doesn’t even bother to change or get dressed when there are knocks on his door and he’s the only who’s heard it amidst the poorly concealed bicker going on between Luhan and Sehun.

“Keep it down guys, will ya?” Jongin turns his head back to shout at them and then hears the sound of something mushy meeting with the floor. His eyes widen as he sees what’s become of Kyungsoos’s little treat—the cake sprawled all over his front porch like a flock of birds’ poo.

Kyungsoo’s staring at him—and his body with wide eyes and oh, Kyungsoo’s never really seen him topless in broad daylight before.

He widens the entrance of the door and shoots Kyungsoo an easy smile. “Come in,” and he adds,” was that for me?” he points to the now cold and lonely cake smushed to the floor. Kyungsoo chuckles and brings a hand up to card nervously through his strands. “It was,”

Jongin wolf whistles and turns around to walk further inside. Sehun and Luhan have both quieted down and is now observing Kyungsoo’s reaction to this—having his hot best friend half- in front of him.

Kyungsoo’s trailing his eyes down the expanse of Jongin’s back greedily and he almost lets out an embarrassing whine when Jongin grabs a random Tee and wears it on, hiding everything from his prying eyes.

Sehun snickers and jabs Luhan’s rib rather harshly. “First part of Senpai notice Jongin now complete.”

 

 

Jongin is fidgety as he rereads Sehun’s text over and over again. It says he hired Taemin, one of their dance club buddies, to pose as someone who wants to ask him out while he’s with Kyungsoo so the latter would know what his ual preference is. Kyungsoo appears beside him after he’s passed his homeroom and as if on cue, Taemin walks out of the next room, smile a little too bright to be considered natural. As planned he saunters over to Jongin and stops in front of him, a hand on his shoulder.

“Will you go out with me?” Taemin asks smoothly, and Jongin can hear Kyungsoo gasp softly from beside him.

Jongin feigns surprise (or so he tells himself) and looks at Taemin in the eye. “W-what, like a, like a date?”

Taemin nods enthusiastically and says the time and date they’re supposed to meet with later which they will obviously not do for real. Its only when Taemin’s left that Kyungsoo speaks in a small voice, “I didn’t know you swung that way.”

“Operation Let Kyungsoo Know Jongin is Gay, complete!” Luhan hollers into the mouthpiece form the other line and Sehun cackles in delight. Great! My plan is working perfectly, and soon enough they’d both have the happy ending they so want to have together.

 

 

 

Kyungsoo is having the biggest inner war of his life and he’s all alone in his too spacious dorm room mulling over crushing on Lim Hyunsik and ignoring Jongin’s to-die-for-body and y face (which he tried so hard to ignore when they became bestfriends) or letting his feelings out and into the open to finally, finally allow himself to crush on the one best friend he so desperately tried to not have romantic feelings for.

Jongin is as precious to him as diamonds are precious for those greedy treasure seekers. He wants the boy all to himself and thus avoided having to voice out how hot he thinks Jongin is and instead focused on being his best friend out of all his best friends. He and Jongin are both in the Friend Zone, and Kyungsoo thinks he might want to just keep it that way. He kind of understands the feelings of all those who turned him down before; how the value of keeping a lifetime friendship outweighs any kind of romantic attractions.

He understands how risky it is to try out love with a friend when you yourself is beyond unsure and unstable with your feelings for one another. He decides that only, and only if he’s sure enough of what he feels about love will he get out of the Friend Zone with Jongin. But up until now, they will stay that way.

Kyungsoo ultimately decides tonight, with a harsh bang of his fist on his aging table, that he and Jongin will stay in the Friend Zone—until further notice.

 

 

 

The next day the whole group is seated at the large cafeteria table again and their voices are loud as they recount stories and tell jokes that they’ve all heard before but are still classically funny. Kyungsoo is eating his sushi in peace and Jongin is nowhere to be seen. He doesn’t think much about it at first, but when he does catch sight of him, he almost squeezes his bibimbap’s fillings out from how tightly he’s gripping it.

Walking to their table casually, arm-in-arm, are Jongin and Taemin, followed closely by a smug looking Sehun. Luhan immediately hopped off his chair and looped an arm around Sehun. The rest of the table just call Jongin and accuse him of being late while paying no mind to the sudden new addition in their group.

Jongin flashes him a bright smile before sitting opposite him, Taemin in tow. They squeeze right in the suddenly too-crowded table and Kyungsoo feels his eyebrow twitch. He notices Baekhyun and Chanyeol throwing him curious glances every now and then but he’s too busy pretending that he doesn’t care that Jongin is with Taemin (also hot and prettier and taller than him Taemin), that he doesn’t care that Jongin has his arms around another man instead of him, how he doesn’t care that—his thoughts are interrupted by a surprised squeak from Baekhyun.

He looks up and is met by Jongin’s large, surprised eyes.

“Kyungsoo! You’ve sliced right through the Styrofoam plate and your poor bibimbap is now a tiny garden of bibimbap smithereenies—and you’re still not content, now carving a line on the cafeteria table. Really, Kyungsoo, really? A murderous intent in broad daylight? At lunch in a school cafeteria?” Jongdae’s tone is mocking, but the curiosity is there, bright and clear as the day.

Kyungsoo snorts and lets go of his knife. When did he even get a hold of that anyway? He straightens in his seat and lets out a cough. “I’m fine guys, just stressed out lately.”

“Uh-huh, stressed out. Okay,” Sehun chimes in an annoying singsong voice and Kyungsoo wants to kick his shin if only he wasn’t a few seats away and there aren’t too many legs under the table.

Kyungsoo rolls his eyes and sighs. He gets up and grabs his lunch tray with him.”I’m going to the library,”

He stands up and leaves the table, a single backpack strap slung on his left shoulder while his right hand clutches the tray hard enough to dent.

Once he’s left the whole table is silent until Chanyeol pipes up and wolf whistles. “Awooo! Jongin, we’re making progress!”

The whole table is in on Jongin wooing Kyungsoo so they didn’t even flinch when he brought Taemin over (courtesy of Sehun of course). Jongin removes his hand from Taemin’s shoulder and runs it through his hair instead, sighing.

Taemin offers him a soft smile and reaches over to pat his knee. “He’ll come around soon.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soon comes in the form of 2 weeks later when their Chemistry professor, the only class they have together, assigns them together on a reporting practicum project.

Kyungsoo is happy that he’s got paired with Jongin. He’s a whiz at computations and he’s someone he’s completely comfortable with, well, since freshmen year. He thinks himself lucky but is also in doubt as he spares his seatmate a side glance. They’ve been in an awkward position ever since that time Jongin brought Taemin over their lunch table. Kyungsoo rarely grabs lunch together with them anymore, always giving excuses that he has a project due that day, or that he has papers to finish and the list goes on. Every time he says those lies though, his heart breaks because he sees Jongin’s crestfallen expression and he looks away before he can even take back his words and fall into the easy rhythm of their friendship just like before. In the past two weeks he’s been thinking if friendship is all he ever wants and craves from Jongin. He realizes that he wants Jongin’s attention, his warmth, and his presence in his life; the thought of confessing his love and getting rejected by the person he wants the most scares him, and so he’s ‘avoided’ Jongin as much as he can without being obvious these past few days. He knows Jongin’s not stupid, and that he feels Kyungsoo putting a distance between them, and it’s just that he’s not making any move to counter or support it. If the soft sighs Jongin makes every time Kyungsoo rejects his offers of late night coffees is any indication, then nothing is.

Kyungsoo knows he’s being stupid and unfair, but to Jongin, he has to be absolutely sure before he decides on anything about them.

Jongin’s ready to leave, packing his binder into his crummy back pack, when Kyungsoo stands up so fast his head spins. Jongin jerks back in alarm and then eases his features back into one of nonchalance when Kyungsoo looks up at him unblinkingly.

“I,um. We need to talk about the project.” Kyungsoo mentally kicks himself at how flat his voice sounds.

Jongin raises an eyebrow in feigned interest and sits on top of his desk. “Okay.”

 

 

They discuss about when and where to meet for the project and agreed to meet each other halfway at the cozy café down the street because they both need hot, well-made coffee on an early Saturday morning.

Kyungsoo’s halfway freezing inside his large button up jacket when Jongin finally arrives, looking like he just got off a magazine pictorial in his black leather jacket and tight black pants. Kyungsoo gulps and looks away from Jongin’s sunglass covered face, opting instead to blow hot puffs of air onto his freezing hands.

Jongin stops right in front of him and speaks in a scratchy voice, “Where’s your mittens?”

“Does it matter? We’re going to the public library anyway.” He still isn’t looking at Jongin’s face in fear of the other noticing how his cheeks and the tips of his ears are warmer than most of his body parts at the moment.

Jongin tuts and grabs his left hand as if it was the most natural thing in the world, placing it around his waist and into the inner pocket of his leather jacket, and his other hand clutching Kyungsoo’s own.

They walk hand in hand like this until they reach the library, bodies pressed together and suddenly Kyungsoo feels much warmer than he had in years. And he’s not talking about the shared body heat either.

 

 

 

 

 

From then on they’re back to normal again, the Jongin and Kyungsoo tandem much more alive than before. There are no more Taemin’s on the lunch table, no more taunting looks from all of their friends. Just Jongin and Kyungsoo together again in their own little world, attached by the hip like they always have been.

 

One night though, as Kyungsoo watches Jongin sleep, small puffs of breath escaping his slightly parted mouth, Kyungsoo decides that he doesn’t just want to be his best-friend-in-the-whole-world anymore. And as he traces his fingers down the slope of Jongin’s nose he realizes he wants to call this boy his, wants to have everything of him that he can’t have when they’re in the bounds of the Friend Zone. He wants to cherish and care for him even more than what he does now. His gaze falls to his plump lips and all he wants to do is to kiss those lips he’s been having fantasies of since forever.

As he wraps a blanket around Jongin’s tall frame, brushes his fringe up and smiles at the other leaning towards his touch, he comes to the conclusion that he wants himself to mean so much more for Jongin as the other obviously does to him.

Simply put, he wants Jongin.

That night, he makes a decision.

 

 

He’ll get them both out of the Friend Zone.

 

 

 

 

--

a/n:

wow, hello. I didn't think I'd be able to do this in a day but I did. Enjoy dumb Jongin and dumb Kyungsoo! <3

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>> OH HEY LOOK, A SEQUEL. CLICK THIS FOR A RATED SEQUEL (ohohoho) click THIS for a milder one. Because I love you guys and I am er for KaiSoo. Thank you for all the comments and the love!