Three more minutes. Jinyoung counts as he finishes the sketch he has been doing since his third period. Ten seconds later, he starts hearing balls being dribbled from the volleyball court next door. A minute later, people start filling up the room, making it impossible for Jinyoung to miss his voice.

"You do know it's not coach's fault that you're slacking during practice." His voice, albeit calm and comforting, has it's strictness in it. He speaks like he means every single word says. He speaks in a way Jinyoung would only end up day dreaming how it'd sound if he were to say his name. Would it be gentler? Would he be calm? Jinyoung's certain if he were him, he would be nowhere near calm. He'll probably run away before getting a foot closer to him.

To him. To him who is now staring back at Jinyoung with an uncertain expression on his face. Like, he wants to smile but something's stopping him from doing so. So, Jinyoung shifts his gaze back to his sketchbook as he hides the light pink tints on his cheeks.

"Dude, you're staring at that creep again." says one of his friends, their team's libero- Yugyeom. Jinyoung sees him, at the corner of his eyes, turning around to face his friend with a tight expression. "Dude, be careful of what you say. You don’t know him; don't say he's a creep." He replied and if Jinyoung had stayed, he would have heard this as well.

Jinyoung knew exactly what was going to happen so he left before he gets to hear it for the nth time. Really, Jinyoung would have stayed in his lane, but he, Im Jaebum, is just so much like a magnet to him. Attracting him to no end, pulling him closer, making him fall deeper.

Jinyoung did what's the only thing he can at the moment. Sigh loudly while tucking his sketchbook back in his bag. "Hey! You’re so emo!" suddenly he hears an oh-so-familiar voice coming from his far left. Much to his suspicion, it's none other than his butterfly of a best friend, Jackson.

Jackson laughs as he runs towards Jinyoung's side, slinging an arm over him after. "So, how did the stalk-the-great-bum-Jaebum went?" Jackson teases which just earns another sigh from Jinyoung. The latter shakes his head, "Nothing. I was called a creep by his friend." Jinyoung then stiffens up and his face contorts to utter disgust.

"Who the called you a creep?" Jackson sputters, his eyebrows meeting together. "Is it Yugyeom?" He continues, but he needs no answer because he already knows it. "He’s really a . He should be thankful he’s hot because if he weren't, he's one-hundred percent trash."

Jinyoung giggles, glancing at his fury friend. "So, he’s not one-hundred percent trash?" He asks and smiles, knowing exactly where the conversation will go. Jackson glances at him, blinking fast as he closes and opens his mouth. "No." he replies a little later. "About ninety-nine point nine."

"What happened to the point one percent?" Jinyoung asks, concealing his laugh with the back of hand because he knows how much Jackson hates being laughed at. Jackson glares at him for a second, but it immediately fades as he, too, gives into smiling. "At least, give his hotness a credit. He's really hot, you know, height, built, abs and all. He's a yummy daddy."

"What the eff? Daddy?" Jinyoung stares at his friend in horror. Lately, Jackson has been getting into weird stuff that Jinyoung's poor soul just can't handle. "He's older than us, for like, three years?" Jackson fires back but did nothing to appease a scared to death Jinyoung. "Three years and you're calling him daddy?"

Jackson only gives him his cheeky smile while nodding.

"Hey! Otaku garbage!" Jinyoung doesn't have to look at the person who is calling to figure out who it is. It's not like he knows their names, their just bunch of bullies who got nothing else to do. "Hey! I'm calling you, why are you not looking at me?"

Then, Jinyoung feels a strong grip on the collar of his uniform. When he looks up, he sees it's the senior he accidentally caught making out with another guy. "If I ever find out you told anyone about it, I swear to hell, you're gonna regret your existence." he whispers, enunciating words slow as if he's afraid Jinyoung wouldn't understand him if he were to say it normally.

Jinyoung nods, closing his eyes, expecting the punch he usually gets. Instead, nothing comes except that the hands on his collar are now trembling. "Let him go." Jinyoung wants to open his eyes so bad, to confirm if the voice he's hearing is really from him. But he's afraid, afraid that when he opens them, he'll fade away and it'll be just another daydream.

"You heard me the first time. Don't make me repeat it." He says again and this time, Jinyoung opens one of his eyes to peek at him. The bully then lets his collar go, scrambling to his feet as he runs away from them.  But there, beside him is none other than Im Jaebum.

"Are you okay?" He asks, leaning down close to his face, inspecting if he had any damage. Jinyoung nods and being the normal functional member of the society, he runs off without uttering a single word to the love of his life. ‘You’re really stupid! That was your moment! Why did you leave? Idiot!' he tells himself as he runs faster, ignoring the faint voice calling him.

"Hey! What happened?" then he feels a strong but gentle hands on his shoulders, stopping him running farther away. "Jinyoung, are you okay? What happened?" he asks again, holding his shoulders tighter. "Mark.” Jinyoung says breathing hard. "Who bullied you again?"

"Your brother." To this, Mark's eyes widen, completely taken aback. "Did my brother bully you?" He asks carefully and then Jinyoung, too, imitates his actions. With his eyes wide open, he looks up at him frantically with his arms forming an x in front of him.

"NO! Your brother did nothing wrong!" he half yells half cries. "It's just that." He continues and then he pulls his hair, cringing as he remembers what he did few minutes ago. "I'm so stupid. Why am I like that? I am so stupiiiiid!"

"Heeyyy! Hey! Stop pulling your hair! Haha." He then takes his hand with his and keeps them between them. "Now, calmly, tell me what happened." He says comfortingly, like his existence in his life. Mark, or Mark Tuan is Jaebum’s half sibling but they’re practically twins.

Like his brother, he's also one of the popular kids in their school. He's tall like a model, slim, and not to forget very handsome. It's like it runs in their blood. Also, being the vocalist in the most popular in-house bands, everyone knows him. Let's just say that he's a wonderful person with a warm heart. "Hey, what happened?" He prods again after Jinyoung stayed quiet.

"It's not really a big deal, or not. He talked to me earlier, but instead of replying like a normal person. I ran away from him." Jinyoung explains grimacing at his own stupid self. Then, he pulls him for a big bear hug. "Awwwww. You're really cuuuuute!" He says as he pats his back. "I'm sure it'll be very hard for him not to fall in love with you."

Jinyoung would have enjoyed that compliment more if he didn't see Jaebum walking towards the opposite direction with a woman clinging to his arm. 'Yes, and it'll also be very hard for me to see me.' He tells himself as he bows and rests his head on her shoulder. Maybe he should not have done that. If he had not, he would have seen the pained expression on Jaebum’s face when he looked back at him.

He should not have been surprised when he sees Jackson getting a little friendly with Jaebum's girlfriend. Well, because, Jackson is Jackson. "Hi, cupcake!" Jackson yells at him as soon as he notices Jinyoung walking inside the school gym. "Cupcake?" She asks, eyeing Jinyoung from head to toe.

"Uhuh." Jackson nods and smiles, pulling Jinyoung closer to him as he places his arm over his shoulder. "Cupcake, Jinyoung, this is Yoojin." Jackson continues, pointing his finger towards her. "Yoojin, this is Jinyoung." Jinyoung nods at her, but all she did was stare at him.

"Are you guys dating?" She asks, her eyes never leaving Jinyoung. "We look good together, right?" Jackson then pulls Jinyoung closer as he rests his cheeks against his. "Uhhh." Yoojin replies then she looks at her side. "It's just that, I thought-"

"Thought he was dating my brother." Then, out of nowhere, Jaebum appears. His jaws clenched tightly, his brows knitted together, and he is staring at Jinyoung in utter disgust. "Here I thought he was just misunderstood, but look, turned out that the people were true." then, he takes a step closer to Jinyoung. "You disgust me."

Jackson snorts and pushes Jaebum's shoulder harshly. "Listen here, you er." He pushes Jaebum again as he dabs his finger on his chest. "You know no about this kid. You don't have any ounce of right, not even a tiny bit, to judge him. And F Y ing I, that was his line."

Jinyoung then grabs Jackson from pushing Jaebum more, but all efforts were futile. "And here I thought you were different from the others, but you’re just one of those ty jocks. I should not have let him-"

"Stop." Jinyoung whispers, "Stop." he repeats, a little louder this time. "Stop it." And then he leaves, wiping the tears he has been shedding without his consent.

Jinyoung locks himself in his apartment, ignoring Jackson's knocks and Mark's voice. "Go on, leave me. I just want to be alone." Jinyoung says through the door. And by the time he finishes counting from one to ten, he knows they're already gone.

He could have handled those words if they were from other people. But not from Jaebum, not Jaebum, never. He truly doesn't care about how people see him; he has developed a thick skin already. But sometimes, sometimes, he feels too vulnerable, like right now.

All the years spent admiring Jaebum from afar slowly but surely broke down in a single moment.

A month later after what happened, he isn't expecting to wake up from the sound of something hitting his window. Thinking that it was just a bird or a branch, he stayed on his bed and tries to sleep again. When it didn't stop, he stands up and finally goes to the window to open it.

But, as soon as he did, a stone hit his forehead along with a, "Oh my god! Sorry! Sorry, Jinyoung! Sorry!" Jinyoung, not wearing his eyeglasses, squints down and looks harder at the guy on his lawn. "Hey, are you okay? I'm sorry!" the guy yells, and Jinyoung knows whose voice it is, but he can't be fooled.

He rubs his eyes and looks down again. Still, with his poor vision he could not confirm who it is, so he finally takes his eyeglasses. "I'm sorry, I know it's late, but can we talk?" There, looking up at him is the same man who told him he disgusts him.

So, he did what he's supposed to do. He closed the window and moves back to his bed to continue sleeping. "Hey, Jinyoung, please? Let's talk? Even just for a second?" He hears him yell from the outside. Really, he can pretend not to notice it, he's a varsity in that sport, but he's not sure if his neighbors are the same.

"Park Jinyoung! Please? Let's talk." Jinyoung almost blushed at the thought of Jaebum knowing his whole name, but no, he spent a lot of effort building his walls. It won’t crumble that easily. Then, he stands up and runs towards his lawn. "What? It’s already late. Just go home." He says then quickly turns around to leave.

"Hey, please!" a hand then found its way around Jinyoung's wrist. "I just, please? Just give me a minute." When Jinyoung refuses to reply, Jaebum,slowly turns him back around. He places his hand over Jinyoung's shoulder, and then he takes a step back but trails his left hand until it is holding Jinyoung's.

"What is it?" Jinyoung whispers, afraid that if he speaks louder his voice would waver. Jaebum tightens the hold on his hand as he looks straight into Jinyoung's eyes. "I'm sorry. I know it’s late already, it has been a month after all." Jaebum says slowly.

"I don’t need your sorry." Jinyoung shakes his hand until Jaebum isn't holding it anymore. "Let's just pretend that it never happened." Jinyoung says and Jaebum's face lit up. "But please don't ever go near me again." Then, Jinyoung turns around so Jaebum moved faster and hugged him from the back.

"Is that what you really want?" He whispers as he rests his forehead on the back of Jaebum's head. Jinyoung barely gets to nod, frozen in his spot. Jaebum breathes in hard, tightening his arms around Jinyoung. "I'm sorry, I'm late." He starts and gradually his hug loosens up. "I didn’t know how to approach you after what I did. It just took me so long to find strength."

Jinyoung listens and stays unmoving while Jaebum, too, stops and just stayed like that for a minute or so. And then, the arms tighten again, but it only lasted for a second before Jinyoung hears steps moving farther from him. He stayed on his spot, not looking around, not moving at all.

Jinyoung stares at the blank white paper on his desk. Three hours, he has been trying to draw for three hours now. Three hours and his paper is still untouched. He sighs and leans back on his chair, looking up at his ceiling filled with glow in the dark stickers. They're mostly stars, but there are some planets as well.

With the daylight, they aren't glowing, but it doesn't mean they are not there. Very much like his feelings towards Jaebum. The other kept Jinyoung's request, he hadn't seen him in weeks. Not a single glimpse, but it doesn't mean his feelings are gone. They are there, like the stars.

He stands up and takes his keys from the nightstand. He should just leave and eat out, he can't do anything anyway. As soon as he makes his way out of his apartment, he sees a figure leaning on the tree beside the gate. Tall, well-built, whole body covered with clothes.

'Do killers kill in the middle of the day?' He asks himself, uncertain if he should just go back inside his flat and call the police. Taking a step back, he keeps his eyes on the figure until the person turns around with an equally surprised face.

"What are you doing there? You’re scaring me!" Jinyoung yells, clutching at his chest. The guy, Jaebum, pulls down the hood of his jacket to scratch the back of his. "Hey, sorry." He says flashing a timid but boyish smile.

"It has been so long since the last time I saw you." Jaebum says a minute after Jinyoung ignored his apology. "Mark also told me that you didn’t go to your classes yesterday." Jinyoung glances at him, but stays on his spot, still keeping his mouth shut. "I was just worried, I thought you were sick."

Jinyoung glances at him again as he bites his bottom lip. He doesn't know what to say, or what to feel. "Anyway, you seem fine.” Jaebum nods to himself as he talks. "Okay, I'll leave now." Jinyoung keeps quiet, barely looking at Jaebum.

The latter then, after realizing he won't get any replies from the former, turns around to leave.

"Wait!" Jinyoung, too, shocks himself after realizing what he had just done. Jaebum slowly turns around with a shy smile. "Yes?" He replies and Jinyoung swears to the grasses he's stepping on right now, he wants to bury himself.

"Ahh. It’s uh," Eyes not staying on one spot, Jinyoung fidgets with his hands as he rummaged his brain to provide a sound reason for calling Jaebum. "I didn’t have lunch yet. Maybe you’d like to eat with me?" He finally asks, but all Jaebum did was look blankly at him.

"It’s okay if you don’t want to. I’ll go. Bye." Then Jinyoung walks fast but before he could go far Jaebum catches up with him. "Hey, sure. Let's eat together, I’m hungry too." He says, and Jinyoung really wishes that the blush on Jaebum's cheek is just his imagination.

"Then, one time, we were practicing. His mind was floating somewhere else so a ball hit his face. Hahaha!" Jaebum clutches to his stomach as he laughs his heart out. Jinyoung, too, is laughing hard, wiping the tears from the corner of his eyes.

"You’re too much! Why are you laughing at him? Hahahah" Jinyoung says, covering his mouth with the back of his hand. To this, Jaebum suddenly stops laughing. He reaches his hand to Jinyoung's and holds it tightly. "You're beautiful when you laugh, stop covering your face. I can’t see it."

Jinyoung then his head down, a poor effort to conceal the wide grin his face wants to do. "Don’t bow either; it would be harder for me to see your face." He then tips up Jinyoung's chin, flashing him again with his infamous boyish smile.

He refuses to call it dates because Jaebum never made it clear. But they have been going out to eat more than seven times already. And most of the times, even though Jinyoung still likes Jaebum, he can't help but feel guilty.

Jaebum is still dating Yoojin because he always sees them together. He doesn't want to ask either. "What are you thinking about?"  Jaeuinches closer to his side but maintains a good distance. After they're done eating, Jaebum would always offer to send him home.

And it always ends up with the latter in his living room, sitting on his couch, telling him funny stories, staying until it is dark outside. "Stop overthinking." Jaebum intertwines their fingers and raises it few centimeters away from his lips.

"Come here." Then, he pulls Jinyoung until their arms are touching. Jinyoung can feel Jaebum's warm breath fanning on his cheeks. Their lips merely an inch apart. They're eyes never leaving each other. They're heart beats in sync with one other. Jinyoung blinks his eyes and few seconds later, Jaebum's closer than before.

"Can I..." He whispers, eyes looking down and back to his eyes. "Kiss you?" No. Jinyoung wants to reply, he wants to say no because this is wrong. No. No. No. And then he nods his head and closes his eyes. His heart skips a beat with the friction from the soft lips.

Jaebum dips deeper, slowly as his hands found their way on Jinyoung's jaw. His lips were timid and soft, but Jinyoung could feel the pressure, the urge to kiss him more. So places his hands on his shoulder and pushes him away.

"Let's not do this." He says but doesn't move away from his position. Jaebum leans back a little, breathless and surprised. "You have a girlfriend, let's not do this." Jinyoung continues as he looks into Jaebum's eyes.

"I don’t understand you." Jaebum says, reaching his hand to hold Jinyoung’s but the latter flinches away. "I don't want you to cheat on your girlfriend. I know I have liked you for a very long time now and there is in no way I would want us to part." Jaebum listens and stays quiet, but he looks like he's taking all his willpower to stop himself from doing anything.

"You like me? For a very long time now?" Jaebum asks as if he didn't just hear what Jinyoung told him. He has a shy smile on his face. "Yes, but that doesn't matter.-"

"Why? It matters, to me, at least." Jaebum cuts him and slowly leans down to give him butterfly kisses. "god, I thought it was one sided the whole time." he whispers, kissing Jinyoung’s eyelids and the corner of his lips.

"Jaebum." Jinyoung places his hand on Jaebum's shoulder, gripping it hard. "Your girlfriend." Jaebum looks back into his eyes, tight-lipped. "Who are you talking about?" he asks, finally moving away from Jinyoung as he leans his back on the couch.

"Yoojin! She’s your girlfriend, right?" It's Jinyoung's turn to lean closer to Jaebum. The latter looks at him then he laughs loudly. "Yoojin’s my girlfriend? I know she's pretty, she's nice, but I don't think I have space for her in my heart." Then, he cups Jinyoung's face with his left hand, caressing his cheek with his thumb.

"Not when you take up the whole space." Jaebum sits back up and kisses him again and again and again.

"Are you sure that you like me?" Jinyoung raises both his legs and Jaebum’s shirt, which is like a dress to him, pools down on his hips. It's a lazy Wednesday where both of them do not have classes. A hand then crawls on Jinyoung's legs and pushes them down as Jaebum climbs above him.

"If you don’t stop asking, I'm gonna kiss you for an hour or so, no breaks." To this, Jinyoung only smiles. "Sounds like a plan." He replies, so Jaebum is left with no choice but to fire an arsenal of kisses to his boyfriend.

Almost an hour later, panting hard and sweating a little, Jinyoung pushes Jaebum's shoulder away from him. But he encircles his arms around his neck when the latter finally pulls away from him. "Tell me the truth. Is it okay that I’m like this? I mean, I'm fine with myself but are you?"

Jaebum looks at him then he goes to lie on his back while pulling Jinyoung to his side. He didn't say anything until Jinyoung's head is on his chest. "If it's you, it's okay." He says, tipping the latter's chin so he could look up to him.

"It's okay because I love you."