POSTED LOVE

VII

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“Hold still, sunshine,” Chanyeol couldn’t help but smile at every hiss from Kyungsoo’s mouth.

“T-then be more gentle!” Kyungsoo whined, as an alcohol-dipped cotton was dabbed on his bruised cheek. Jongin punched it hard enough so that a wound formed on the tender skin.

“Kyungie, you were supposed to be taking care of Jongin, not enraging him. So much for first impressions. How do you expect him to trust you now? He probably thinks you’re a psycho.” Chanyeol gently placed a bandage on Kyungsoo’s cheek.

“I’m sorry, okay? I got pretty excited… I got movie feels. You should’ve seen me with my shades and all—way cool.”

“Yeah well, let’s be more civilized next time, okay? I’ll be taking away your frying pan, for now.”

Kyungsoo gaped at Chanyeol. “Y-you can’t! I love that thing! It’s such a convenient weapon.”

Chanyeol chuckled. “Listen up, Soo: we have to schedule a proper first meet up with Jongin. We can’t leave things like this, so you better invite him to lunch or something. And that’s why I’m taking away the frying pan; because if he gets hostile, you should try to hold him down calmly. You want to be friends with him, remember? That’s not going to happen if you two hit each other.”
Kyungsoo bit his lower lip as it wobbled. “Darn… this whole tutor thing was harder than I thought. I really have to treat him out?”

“Only if you want him to warm up to you. If he spends so much money on his vices, then I doubt he eats well. Maybe this could be your lure. So visit him again tomorrow and ask him out to some good restaurant, alright?”

“Oh… you’ve gotten smarter, huh?”

“Kyungie, being hit by your frying pan on several occasions finally knocked some sense into me. Hahahahaha.”
 

“I take it back. Don’t ever tell another dumb joke as long as you live.”

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“You always come with us here, you drink and flirt, but you never get on the dance floor. Why is that?” Yifan asked after downing a shot of tequila.

Jongin was out with Taemin and the gang in their usual night club, El Dorado. Yifan was one of the quiet ones in the group, which is why Jongin sometimes preferred to chat with him. 

The tanned male shrugged in response. “I just don’t feel like dancing. I used to be in the dance club, but that was before. I’m not so interested anymore.”

Back in the day, he used to love dancing but lost his passion when he first found Taemin and Soojung together. Later in the year, the couple were both kicked out of the dance club because of their bad reputation and obnoxious behavior, but Jongin chose to go. And he had not been dancing ever since.

“I see… Oh yeah, you still a ?”

“Pretty much.”

“Strange lad, aren’t you? Most people come here to get laid. Not hungry for some action?”

“Not really. I flirt around and stuff, but I don’t think I’m willing to go that far. Love is just a game, anyways.”

Yifan chuckled softly. “You sound like a depressed man.”

Jongin shrugged once more. “Well, how about you Sherlock?” he questioned, before taking a sip from his cocktail.

“I’m going out with Tao. It’s actually been… four months already.”

Jongin almost spit everything out had he not controlled himself.

“Tao? Black-belter, wushu extraordinaire, Huang Zitao?”

“You missed cute panda.”

“Gross, don’t get all sugary with me. Four months!? How the—wait, you’re gay?”

“…As gay as can be.”

“Wow, you look as straight as a ruler, though. And I didn’t think Zitao swung that way either.”

“Got a problem with it?”

“Not really… just didn’t expect it… So… um… have you guys f***ed?”

“Yeah, but only once. On the first date, too. Call it an impulse and rushed, but it was f***ing fantastic. Can’t wait for the next time we do it.”

“So… why haven’t you done it again? I mean, you said it’s already been four months.”

“Well… we’ve decided to wait until the proper time. We’re going to… take things slow and stuff. We’re going to try falling in love.”

Jongin would have scoffed at anybody else, but at that moment, Yifan looked so serious about what he was saying. Serious and determined and firm. It wasn’t something to laugh at; if anything, it was remarkable. Yifan was pretty handsome, so choosing one person instead of fooling around was worth recognition.

“T-that’s good to hear. Zitao and I don’t talk that much, but umm… I think he’ll be great with you.”

“Yeah… hey Jongin?”

“Hmm?”

“You’ve noticed that Zitao hasn’t been around lately, right?”

“Uh…” Jongin gave it a thought. “Now that you mentioned it, yeah. I haven’t seen him in the club or buying drugs from Jonghyun.”

“It’s ‘cause he’s changing back, he told me.” Yifan downed another shot. “No more drinking and drugging; he’s going to fix his sh*t and take care of the school garden like he used to. But he said he’ll keep the wushu training as a form of fitness exercise, which is weird because his body’s already amazing.” Yifan chuckled, and Jongin could see a light red tint spread across his cheeks.

“He won’t be doing this stuff anymore, and I supported him for that. But he wanted me to change too, so that if we got are grades back to something acceptable and stopped being defiant… maybe our relationship could go deeper. You know what I mean? Official stuff. Like, if we really decide to pursue each other, we can present each other to our parents, and no one would have to worry about the other being bad influence.”

“What about you guys being gay? Could your parents handle that?”

“I have a cousin who’s gay, and my parents are alright with him and his boyfriend. Tao also has a gay uncle who’s already engaged to some guy in the states, so no problem on his side either.”

“Oh… wow. So I assume you’re going for it? ”

“Yeah… I thought about it a lot, and I’ve decided that it’s going to be my last night here as who I am now. I was swayed by the high of drugs and alcohol, but after being with Zitao… it just made my sight clearer. I don’t want to act all rebellious anymore; I’m going back to who I used to be. It’s like I’ve found serenity.

I have to admit, I do miss tweaking around in the computer club. I think it’s time to reclaim my spot as president. If they’ll have me, of course; I’ll have to earn it back. Also, as you may know, I’m older than you and therefore a year above you. I should have graduated already, but I flunked my subjects and skipped on summer class. I need to regain footing this year, and at least be at the top ten so colleges will consider me despite my previously bad record.

It’s going to take some time, but with Zitao, I know everything will be alright.

One day, when we’re better and we’ve secured each other, we’ll come back here and dance together. No longer two separate people looking for someone to hook up with, but a couple just having some fun.

I think… my last piece of advice to you Jongin, as the Yifan of before, is to find the love you don’t deserve. I mean, I don’t think someone like me could ever deserve Tao, but, being in a place I thought I could never be—it feels so great. So great to be able to hold his hand and watch his smile; to possibly think of a future where I wake up to him in my arms. It’s better than any kind of high combined. Better than all the drugs in the world, I’m telling you.

It’s just something you can’t miss out on.

Love is a thrilling chase, Jongin. And when you finally catch that perfect person, you’ll feel beyond complete. You’ll be satisfied.”

Yifan had a smile on, and Jongin could see such happiness and peace. How blessed Yifan was.

Jongin kept this secret to himself—that he never ventured to sleep around, because he didn’t want to get intimate with anybody.Even until now, the sting of Soojung’s betrayal still burned—how many guys did she use her lips on? The very same lips she kissed Jongin with. The same kiss that brought Jongin to the depths of joy.

Jonginwas just a player; he never held hands or kissed the girls he flirted with, much less intended to sleep with them, because he would remember Soojung and all her fake affection. In fact, the reason he’s playing with other people’s feelings is because he experienced the same thing. He’s just trying to find the satisfaction in it; trying to make his heart whole again. He finds twisted pleasure in seeing girls plead for his attention, as if they ever had a chance. You act nice to them, tell them some kind words about how they look, give them a handsome smile, and that’s it. They follow you around like dogs. Easy. 

But really… Jongin was stupid, right? How long was he going to stay hung up on Soojung? It’s like that one moment had traumatized him into thinking he could never really love again. If it was even considered love, that is.

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As the night continued on, Jongin decided to head back home. He fist-bumped with Yifan, telling him not to be a stranger and for them to hang-out once in a while. Yifan was more than pleased.

Entering his apartment, Jongin felt the urge to get a little high; he didn’t exactly achieve that at the club since he was having a serious conversation.

He opened his stash cabinet, only to find it empty.

Jongin cursed after remembering the freak who appeared out of nowhere and threw his stash away. Did his parents seriously get that guy as a tutor? Couldn’t they have picked someone more normal? Who even carried around frying pans with them? And those huge eyes, they were like an owl’s—maybe they bulged due to toxic intake. Perhaps his parents thought the only way to control a druggie was to use another druggie.

After much contemplation about the short weirdo, Jongin ended up laughing to himself. Now that he thought about it, their fight was pretty hilarious; almost like fan-fiction material or whatever. Should the “Frying Pan Nerd of Doom,” Jongin decided to call him, seriously be his tutor, then Jongin would have to accept it as another one of the punishments he deserved.

Sighing, the tanned male headed back out to go to the nearby convenience store.

Time for some cup-ramyeon.

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Author's Note:

(Shyly waves at everyone reading this) (O_O) Have you guys watched EXO's comeback with "Call Me Baby"??

Kyungie's teaser was sooo, aaaaggghhhh! I'm in loooove~ And of course, Jonginnie was as handsome as usual

Subscribe! Comment! And let me know what you guys think ^_^

New upvoters in the house! saQ1998, Exo_Kyungie  Thanks for the love~

*Note for anyone who noticed: Kris' character is quiet, but when you start talking to him, he becomes a conversationalist. Similar to Kyungsoo's character ^_^