To say the air wasn't filled with 'awkward' would have been an understatement. The four boys sat restlessly in the booth of the cafe that Mark had suggested. Mark and Jackson on one side and Jinyoung and Jaebum on the other.

Mark was figuratively ripping his brain out at how painfully awkward the situation was. Maybe he should have given this more thought before randomly inviting everyone out but he was here now and couldn't take it back. It was actually just Jinyoung that was making him uncomfortable with his patronizing glare. Jaebum was busy looking through the menu and Jackson was giving him curious looks but kept to himself.

The whole point of this was to be civil with Jinyoung and that was what he was going to do. 

"So... You guys find anything you like?" He asked cautiously not looking directly at anyone.

Jaebum turned to him and started saying something about crepes but he was only half listening to the other boy. He was more interested in what Jinyoung would say. Jinyoung looked reluctant as he looked down to breeze the menu.

"Mark" He felt a nudge at his side and turned to see Jackson looking at him.

"Yeah?"

"Let's share the grilled cheese sandwich, I'm not really that hungry." It was a good idea as Mark wasn't all that hungry either.

"Yeah, let's do that." he murmured back leaning slightly into Jackson's side. He really wanted to just curl up in Jackson's arms but that would have been a bit much. Mark scrunched his eyebrows in a question when he noticed that Jackson was watching him with a stupid smile.

"What?"

"Nothing. You're just cute." Mark's eyes widened and he quickly glanced across the table to check if anyone had heard but it seemed as though Jinyoung and Jaebum were in their own little world.

"Jackson..." The smug look on Jackson's face wasn't going anywhere. Mark just rolled his eyes and turned back to the other boys. He stiffened for a second then relaxed when he felt warm fingers lace with his own under the table. Jackson really knew how to make him melt sometimes. 

Out of the corner of his eye, Jaebum could see Mark and Jackson conversing in hushed voices. The weird smile Jackson wore every time he looked at Mark was something he couldn't quite put his finger on. It looked so gentle... Maybe he could ask Jinyoung later.

He looked to his side to see the said dark-haired boy staring at his menu distractedly. From this angle, Jinyoung looked kind of cute when he pouted whilst deep in thought. Again Jaebum mentally shook his head to clear it. He really should stop thinking those kinds of thoughts about the poor boy.

"Not a fan of sweets?" He asked instead. Jinyoung hummed still scouring the menu.

"I don't know what to get... I've never been here before." Again he pouted unconsciously.

A crazy idea ran through Jaebum's mind and before he could stop himself he found himself asking, "Do you want to share mine?" Immediately he could feel his neck burning in embarrassment when Jinyoung turned to him with wide eyes. He probably thought he was being weird!

"I-I mean, you could try some of mine and see if you like it..." He quickly looked down at his hands not wanting to say something else embarrassing. What was he doing? He usually was never this much of a mess. Why was it that every time he spoke to Jinyoung, he always said something completely different than what he wanted to say?

"Thank you..." Jinyoung whispered and smiled softly. "That's... really nice of you."

Damn, those eye wrinkles were going to end him.

---

"So... You wanna tell me what that was all about?"

It was a little after one when the group decided to split. Jaebum and Jinyoung going their separate ways and Mark and Jackson heading towards Mark's house. Jackson had insisted that he would walk Mark home. He hadn't said anything about Mark's decision during the lunch date and for that, Mark was thankful.

It hadn't gone exactly the way he had(hadn't) planned it. Jinyoung spoke the bare minimum to him, instead choosing to speak just to Jaebum which wasn't anything Mark was unhappy about. If anything he was glad that Jinyoung's attention was finally on someone that wasn't himself or Jackson. So in a way, it was a small step forward as there was no name calling or insults thrown at him.

Although he had noticed that Jinyoung hadn't been his usual self in front of Jaebum. Usually, when there was someone he took a liking too, he was always showing off his looks and money and just being stuck up. But that wasn't what happened today. Call him crazy but Mark would dare to say that Jinyoung had looked almost shy in front of Jaebum. It was very out of place...

"Maaark!"

"Tell you what was all about what?" Mark asked laughing at his boyfriend's whining. He knew exactly what Jackson was talking about but Mark was feeling a little playful.

"Mark...You know what." Mark yelped when Jackson wrapped an arm around his middle and pulled him into an embrace.

"Jacks..." Mark whispered when he found his face inches away from Jackson's. It didn't matter that they were already dating, Mark still felt the butterflies going strong when he was so close to the dark haired boy. Mark's eyes wandered across Jackson's face, looking everywhere except for the twinkling pair of eyes in front of him. He groaned inwardly at the heat blooming in his cheeks.

The weight of Jackson's arms around his waist, the warm breath that fanned over Mark's cheeks, the strong muscles under his hands, Mark felt so sure he was going insane. He didn't know why it felt so different from the time when he had been sleeping pressed against Jackson but the feeling was overwhelming.

Firm lips pressed against his own and his eyes quickly fell shut. An airy heat filled his head and he was suddenly thankful for the other boy's arms around him else he would have become one with the ground.

Somewhere floating in the back of Mark's mind was the fact that they were still outside but he couldn't seem to pull away from the other boy's warmth. It was too addicting and Mark wanted to be swallowed by it. The kiss was gentle and unrushed, and Mark felt cherished. 

When they finally pulled away, it was only a small distance. Their lips gently brushed against each other making the red head's cheeks dust pink. 

"Hi" Jackson whispered back smiling softly. When Mark finally locked eyes with the other boy he felt his heart stutter. Jackson's soft brown eyes shone with so much adoration, Mark couldn't help the sting forming behind his eyes.

"Hi yourself" Mark pressed one last kiss to the other's lips before pulling away. He took their hands and laced them as they had done at the cafe. He could feel Jackson squeeze his hand just because it felt nice.

Together they walked to a park nearby Mark's house. It looked like it was about to rain but a few more minutes outside was okay. He didn't really know how to tell Jackson about his decision at first. He didn't know how the other boy's reaction would be. But as they walked down the path, he'd felt so much confidence knowing that Jackson would still be there for him and everything just had just come spilling out.

"I... was just tired, you know?" Jackson didn't say anything but let him continue. "I know that Jinyoung has done so many horrible things to me, but I just don't want to hate him anymore... It really is so tiring."

Mark looked up from this feet to gauge the other's reaction. There were a lot of emotions running across Jackson's but the only one he wanted and found was understanding. He just needed Jackson to understand why he was doing this. Even if he didn't agree. Reassured, Mark continued.

"You know, I never would have done something like this for Jinyoung if I hadn't met you. I would have just continued to seethe in silence."

"Me!? I made you forgive Jinyoung?" Mark stifled his laughter at the appalled face Jackson was making.

"Sort of. You just made me realize that I'd rather spend my life loving someone than hating someone." 

At some point, they had taken a seat on one of the benches in the park. Jackson had one arm wrapped around Mark's shoulders and finally, Mark was able to curl up against Jackson. Anywhere near Jackson was his favorite place.

"I get it." Mark felt the other's deep voice rumble through his chest and it was doing things to his heart. "I'm still gonna hate him though. I don't think I can forgive him for hurting you..." Mark sighed, he had expected this anyway. It would have been too much to ask Jackson to forgive Jinyoung too.

"That's okay. You don't have to forgive him, but you can be civil right?"

"...right."

"Jacks..."

"I'll do my best!"

Mark chuckled to himself and pressed his face into Jackson's chest.

"That's all I ask for."

A/N - Firevein: Heyyy long time no see... hehehe.

Dunno if there are people still reading but enjoy!