“Choi Seungcheol. Where are you.”

It's not so much of a question anymore. Those words sound more like what will be printed on his gravestone.

“I swear, I'm on my way, Jihoon, I had to help mum with something and there was a broken down truck on the main street - “

“YOU LIVE A STREET AWAY FROM ME.”

“Did you or did you not ask me to get chocolate on the way?” Seungcheol answers calmly

He hears Jihoon sigh heavily. “Hurry up, I'm getting bored.”

“THE Lee Jihoon? Bored of study? Is that even possible?”

“Another word, and I won't open the door for you, Seungcheol.”

“Hey, would it kill you to call me oppa once in a while? I mean, I know we've known each other for ages, but I’m still a year older,” Seungcheol mutters as he makes the turn off the main street.

“Seungcheol-oppa,” Jihoon says in a voice is so sugary sweet, Seungcheol feels sick in the stomach, “if you don't hurry up, I'll rig your car to explode, okay?”

And then she hangs up.

Seungcheol arrives a solid half hour later because there was a broken traffic light, and all the damn cars speed through that intersection, and then he had to help that old lady cross the busy road and -

Jihoon is going to murder him and display his head from a spike outside her window.

He knocks on the familiar front door with a heavy sigh, accepting his fate. The door opens to Jihoon’s mother.

“Oh, Seungcheol-ah, hello,” she beams brightly and Seungcheol smiles back warmly, greeting her. “Jihoon is just in her room,”

Seungcheol smiles, compliments her latest stew that she brought over for his family a few days ago, and shows her the chocolates he bought before taking the stairs two at a time.

Now he's worried. If Jihoon didn't leave her room to open the door for him, she's probably prepared something awful -

Seungcheol knocks on the door and pulls away to hide. When it doesn't open, and there's no angry voice telling him to go away, Seungcheol nervously twists the door handle, peeking inside. He glances above his head, but there doesn't seem to be anything about to fall on him. A glance in the room also makes everything seem clear, so Seungcheol takes a chance and opens the door properly.

Nothing happens.

Seungcheol scans the room and then realises why.

Curled up in the middle of her large King sized bed, is Jihoon. She's practically swimming in the giant jumper, one cheek on a sleeve that hides her hands. Like a sleeping kitten, Seungcheol thinks. Her reading glasses she hates wearing are still perched on her nose, slightly askew from her sleeping position.

Seungcheol slowly steps up to the bed and smiles gently. She looks so peaceful like this, curled up like a cat on her huge bed, surrounded by books and pens and paper.

Seungcheol goes over to the windows and closes the blinds, making the room darken. He packs up her books - making sure to keep them in their groups according to subject, because she hates anything out of order.

When everything is neatly stacked on her desk, he slowly reaches over to pull her glasses off her face, placing them on the bedside table. Smiling to himself, Seungcheol gently scoops her up - she's so small and light in his arms - to tuck her into bed.

She stirs a little when he picks her up, but only responds by curling closer to him, face pressing against his chest. Seungcheol tries not to linger there, despite just wanting to keep holding her, cuddle her in a way he knows she’d hate.

He tucks her in, making sure the blanket is secure around her shoulders. He leaves the chocolates on her desk by her books and closes the door softly behind him.

“Leaving so soon, Seungcheol?” Jihoon’s mother says as Seungcheol says goodbye to her from the kitchen.

“Jihoon’s asleep,” he says with a small smile. “I'll see her tomorrow, for soccer.”

Then he kisses Jihoon’s mother goodbye and drives the familiar street back to his house, mind filled with thoughts of a certain girl who sleeps like a kitten that he’s known almost forever.

Seungcheol hears the scoffs as soon as they arrive at the soccer field, the opposite team of boys in red jerseys sneering at their group of what looks like misfits. Seungcheol sees Hansol step in front of Seungkwan a little, as they walk past the other team to their allocated bench. Jihoon is pointedly ignoring them, just fixes her ponytail of platinum