A/n: this is Mino's POV. the pace of this story going back and forth. The first chapter is only a prologue^^

There’s someone new at the front desk in the library. The deep brown hair and that blank stare somehow seem familiar. Mino stares at the guy from where he and Seungyoon have been hunching over books for their essays. He ignores Seungyoon’s snorts from beside him in favor of trying to put a name to that new face. “Really now?” he heard his friend says. Mino shoves him in return, muttering, “Shut up, he seems familiar, is all”. The guy is checking off some books for a student now, scanning the barcodes, all the while keeping his head lowered. Mino couldn’t hear what the student said afterwards, but he saw it clearly when the guy finally lifted his head a bit to give a small smile and a bow. His eyes are mostly covered with fringes, but Mino could tell they’re big. He looks so pale, or that’s what Mino thinks, judging from the skin visible. (The tiny fingers peeking out from his shirt, the neck and the face). It contrasts nicely against his green uniform apron.

Mino almost laughs when suddenly their eyes met and how the librarian had ducked his face before fiddling with something on his desk. Well, that’s cute. It would be nicer if he had a name for that cute cute, though. “Staring at some dude won’t get your essay somewhere, you know. At least, direct your stare onto that text about Maslow, which is like, right in front of you. I doubt your brain would process them, though” Seungyoon quiped without halting to write on his paper. Mino shoves him, but he gets pulled instead and hears, “He’s from our class” Mino quirks an eyebrow. “What? Unlike you, I paid attention to my surroundings. It’s been like, two months since the new semester started and that guy had been in our class ever since. How the hell you just noticed him?”

It turned out Seugyoon was right. On Friday (the day where the paper was due), Mino sees the librarian sitting at the farthest corner in their class. He halts his steps a bit, taking in the view of the guy. Mino chose the same row as him, though he sat two chairs away. Without the uniform and the front desk as their barrier, Mino gets a full view of his side profile. He’s clad in black skinny jeans and a baby blue shirt under a peppermint green sweater. He looks drowned in them. The tips of his fingers peeking out from under the clothes’ hemline.

As their professor explains today’s chapters in his power point, Mino notes the way the guy writes. He writes so fast, right hand scribbling, looking like almost furiously, on his paper. His blank eyes look tired, like as if they’re upset for having to pay attention and jotting it down into lines and lines of words. Well, mino doesn’t blame him. The professor for this class is quite a bore, he thinks as he spotted Seungyoon nodding off in his table at the middle row. He shifted his gaze back to the guy when he heard something knocked down onto the floor. It was a pencil case, one of the contents spilled out and rolled near Mino’s foot. He took the pen and the case, offering it back to the owner. The librarian only bows curtly and going back to jot down his notes. Mino hasn’t gotten a chance to even smile.  

Mino decided he wants a name.

Therefore, on Monday, Mino strides into the library. He says hi when he arrived at the front desk, depositing the books Seungyoon had borrowed as an excuse and mentioning that they have one class together every week. “This wasn’t your card” was the only reply Mino got from the new librarian. Mino tried to smile, leaning his elbows on the table. He wears a turtleneck under a brown jacket this time. Mino wonders whether he’s sick because it’s still too hot to wear clothes that thick. Kim Jinwoo, he read the name printed on a plate pinned on his front. Kim Jinwoo stiffened, eyes flickering onto him. His eyes are deep brown, Mino notes. Kim Jinwoo then gathered Seungyoon’s books and gestures Mino to move aside because there are several people trying to get in line behind him. Mino asks him whether he’s angry that he read his name out loud. (It wasn’t that loud). Kim Jinwoo only gestures to him once again to move aside, this time, he grips onto the table hard. Truth to be told, there are indeed several students like him, queueing with annoyed faces.

*

Seungyoon told him he’s being desperate, as he caught him buying a medium cup of caramel macchiato. Mino thinks other wise. He’s just that type of guy who would go after something that caught his sole attention. “Does he even drink coffee?” Seungyoon had asked, amused. Mino didn’t know, because after their first encounter he still hasn’t got a chance to talk with Jinwoo at all. “Who doesn’t?” Mino had retorted back.

Kim Jinwoo doesn’t.

He outright ignored the medium cup lying on top of his front desk. The fifth time Mino left the coffee, he even saw Jinwoo moved it somewhere else. Whenever Mino came onto him, he would always quietly check the barcodes of the books he borrowed. He never said anything to Mino’s attempt of small chat, never replied to any of Mino’s question about the essay for their class (because there aren’t any essays, Mino just made them up). Funny thing is, there are always some people queue behind him, so he never had a chance to prolong their interaction.

Mino somehow realized that he never saw Jinwoo aside from the library and their class. He brought this up the next time he’s at Seungyoon’s house. “Heard that he’s repeating his class. I think he’s two years our senior, I supposed” Seungyoon had said. Mino asked back, where did he get that information but Seungyoon forgot the trusted source, unhelpful as ever. Well, it was still information nonetheless, Mino thought as he added ‘hyung’ to the name scrawled at the side of the coffee cup.

*

On the fourteenth day when it was almost the fourteenth abandoned cup, something happened.

He left the coffee as usual, then pretending to read at a corner where he could hide but provides him a good view of the front desk. Jinwoo had stared a bit longer at the coffee, before moving it onto another table. He had told himself he’s not being desperate, as he walked with a pout to there. He asked Jinwoo, who stood with his back on him, why he always did that. He had startled him apparently, because Jinwoo had turned around so fast with widened eyes. He stuttered a question at Mino, who just sighed in return and handing the book he brought. He couldn’t contain his victorious smile though, when Jinwoo turned the book around and found the paper he had plastered there. It’s just a writing of his name, because Mino didn’t know how to properly introduce himself. (Jinwoo never sat at the same seat anymore in class ever since Mino called out his name outloud. He had come late and got out of class so fast. Well, at least he had known Mino was there.)

In a haste of ripping off that paper, Jinwoo accidentally ripped the book cover. It was such an adorable view, how Jinwoo’s face that usually is pale, painted in red. He had thrown a tease there and got the more adorable reaction, wide eyes and flustered face that squeaked “I didn’t do it on purpose!” Mino had said something in reply, smiling even wider, but what he said afterwards made Jinwoo frowned instead.

“D-don’t do that again”

“Why?” he pouted.

“Just don’t”

“I only want to know your name”

“Seriously, stop it”

“Is it because I look stupid? Seungyoon told me th—”

“Stop it!”

Mino closed his mouth at that moment, eyes wide because Jinwoo just shouted at him. It was then he saw how Jinwoo’s hands trembling and when he moved his gaze upwards, Jinwoo’s eyes were a bit…hysterical? Mino was so dumbfounded he could only stares with mouth agape. “Hey…” he tried, but then an old man appeared, telling Jinwoo to follow him to his office. There were several whispers as Jinwoo walked away, head lowered and hands hidden under his sleeves. Mino stared after his back, still confused and trying to process the situation.

*

If Seungyoon knew about this, probably he would laugh obnoxiously and tells Mino, “I told you so”. Maybe he was right, but Mino is not being desperate.

“Hey, I’m sorry” he says, right after he saw Jinwoo walking out from the library. He had caused him trouble afterall.  

Mino had waited there outside, on the porch, leaning on the wall while thinking of Jinwoo’s panic eyes. It’s raining heavily, the sounds of water drumming on the pavement had drowned his voice a bit. However, Jinwoo stopped and turning around, giving him a glare. He seems like wanting to spit some nasty words, but he only glared harder before leaving hastily. “Hey!” Mino protests loudly. He’s picking up his pace as Jinwoo started running. Really, now? Mino groaned inwardly. Is he that scary? Does he look like a stalker?

His train of thoughts cut off abruptly when his foot slipped on something on the ground. He fell face first, hitting his nose on the cement. He holds back the urge to whimper when pain hits him fully on the nose, blood flows out freely and drops onto his palm. It surprised him more, when he spotted Jinwoo there; unexpectedly stopped and just standing there with the rain still falls upon them. He knows he should say something, before Jinwoo changes his mind and running off again. But he found himself couldn’t utter a single word, because of the look on Jinwoo’s face.

His eyes look emptier than before. They’re on Mino, but they look like staring at something that wasn’t there.

“Seunghoon?” he heard Jinwoo mutters. “What..?” he questions. It seems snapping Jinwoo back to the presence. He got that angry look again on his eyes, though still with the same blankness. He walks quickly, hauling Mino up and gets them both under the building’s shade where they would get shielded from the rain. He presses something onto Mino’s bleeding nose. It was a handkerchief. He pulls Mino’s arm and pressing it on the piece of clothe.

This time, it was Mino who stares at him with wide eyes. Jinwoo’s hands are still trembling. “Please” he heard Jinwoo says in a voice equally trembled. “Please stop doing that” even his breaths sound irregular a little bit.

Before Mino could ask back, before he even could process the meaning behind them, before he could process whether the glistening on Jinwoo’s eyes are tears or not, the latter stood up. He walked into the heavy rain, leaving Mino staring at his back in confusion.    

*  

He didn’t tell Seungyoon anything. Didn’t comment on how the next class in Friday, Jinwoo’s seat remained empty. He washed the handkerchief, now that it’s clean from the blood stains, Mino can see that that it is a baby blue. He fell asleep while working on his paper and dreaming about his university’s auditorium. There are balloons and obnoxious ribbons and Seungyoon enthusiastically pulls him toward several club stands. It was a dream, but somehow he knew it was his orientation day. He could hear people surround him murmur something. He bumped into someone, a man, probably a senior because he wear varsity jacket. The man lifted his head to bow and apologized. His smile is shy, but bright. Someone appeared from behind that man, someone taller, with equal bright smile and eyes and less shy. The taller took the hand of that man.

“Come on, Jinwoo”

Mino wakes up.

The handkerchief laid there, folded neatly near his paper. There are alphabets embroidered on one of its corner.

Mino reads them;

Lee Seunghoon.