SIX

Ten has been sitting in his room for the past few hours, rewinding all the previous interactions he had with Taeyong and no matter how much he tried to squeeze his brain for the much needed ‘what have I done wrong’ moment, nothing really came to his mind. There weren’t many situations when Taeyong would act unlike himself, well, except for this morning when Ten’s bubble burst with a few prickly words that the older has told him.

Ten was saved from his own thoughts when Jaehyun burst inside the room, wide grin plastered across his face. Ten didn’t know why that was, but seeing Jaehyun smile always made him happy, one could say that he was Ten’s personal Happy Virus, making him smile even in the most miserable times.

“Guess what?! There will be a ball next week!” Jaehyun exclaimed excitedly but his tone quickly changed upon discerning Ten’s sullen expression. “What happened?” Jaehyun quickly walked over to Ten and flumped down on the bed, right next to him with their shoulders brushing. If it were any other boy, Ten would be freaking out, but Jaehyun was different – he was comfortable with the boy already as they have supported each other through thick and thin for quite some time already.

Ten took a deep breath but he didn’t say anything, he just glanced at Jaehyun giving him a small sad smile. That smile and sadness in those dark orbs told something to the other. Without saying anything, Jaehyun was able to get a hint.

“Is that about Taeyong?” He asked and when he saw Ten’s lips tremble upon mentioning the name, he reached for his friend’s hand, squeezing it gently.

Ten nodded his head, but didn’t say no more.

“What has that bastard done to you?” Jaehyun raised his voice. “Just say a word and I’ll kick his small pretty for you, I swear!”

Although Ten felt like crying right at the moment, he let out a chuckle when he heard the description of Taeyong’s . “You’re quite observant, aren’t you?” Ten snickered.

“Yeah, there is no way not to observe his , but to be honest, yours is much better in every aspect.”

Ten’s cheeks flushed pink as he faked a glare. “You sure must like his .” He muttered, and his eyes widened. He just thought of something that never really crossed his mind. “Do you perhaps... like him?”

Jaehyun cocked his eyebrow looking at Ten as if he went completely bananas. “ Me... like him?” He reached his hand out catching Ten by his chin to turn his head around examining it. “Did you hit your head?”

“Ugh~ stop it.” Ten swatted his hand off. “You really don’t?” Ten asked again because he didn’t get quite clear answer.

Jaehyun suddenly sat upright, his playful expression turned into a serious one. “I really don’t. For your information, there is someone else I like, someone who is million times better than him, in every aspect.”

Ten wiggled his eyebrows naughtily while looking at Jaehyun. “Do I know her?”

Jaehyun lolled his head to the side, giving Ten his infamous ‘what-the-heck’ look. “When did I ever say it was a girl?”

“No-freaking-way!!” Ten exclaimed, clasping his mouth with his palm. Jaehyun stiffened visibly at the reaction, since he didn’t know what to expect. “You like boys?! I just asked about Taeyong for fun… but do you, really like boys?” Jaehyun hesitated but in the end just nodded jerkily. Ten squealed and threw his arms around Jaehyun’s neck, hugging him tight. “This is so... surprising!” Ten exclaimed loudly right in Jaehyun’s ear, making the other wince a little .

At that moment, Jaehyun’s heart was beating crazily against his chest as if his heart was trying to get out of his body. Jaehyun just didn’t know what the reason was for it to beat so fast. Whether it was the fact that he just revealed such a big secret to his close friend or because that close friend was hugging him right now, or because deep inside he knew that the while truth will surface sooner than he expected.

“I’m so glad I have you as my friend.” Ten grinned up at his roommate and Jaehyun returned the smile. “You know I completely forgot about my problems when you appeared.”

Jaehyun chuckled. “And you learned quite shocking fact about me...”

“You know what’s funny? I never really noticed.” Ten elbowed the other playfully.

Jaehyun didn’t say anything regarding that. “We’re here.” He stopped in his tracks when they reached the Pizzeria. Although it was already evening and usually many people came to eat here at that time, today it was surprisingly empty except for a few customers sitting at the table in the furthest corner of the restaurant. “Come in.” Jaehyun held the door open for Ten who blushed slightly. This was the first time Jaehyun has done something like this. He was always nice to Ten, yes. But being this gentleman-like was so unlike him.

“Wow.” Ten whispered when they were already inside u