Selcouth;

Chapter 5

By: M.S.Jing

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I try to update as much as I can, sorry guys. Warning (?) not really sure if it counts. enjoy.

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" me till I can't walk, Cheol-Oppa”

He just stared at me with eyes that I couldn't read. Almost like both showed different emotions, his left showing lust and his right showing confusion to another degree. I gazed back at him, serious painted on my face for a mere second while butterflies literally tore apart my stomach. I took the hand on his collar away cautiously like I was scared he would jump on me any second. Leading it without vision towards the door knob, opening it quickly and rushing in. The older feel, the weight he had on the door falling inside the area. I rushed around the corner and up the stairs, not hearing the older move let alone lock the door. I grabbed the sweater I had slept in and fished out the flash drive, running back downstairs.

“Here's the song, Just listen to it and leave” I blushed, seeing his frozen state at my closed front door. I put the drive on my counter as I went to the fridge and looked inside. I didn't want to look at him directly, It was too embarrassing. I wish I didn't do something that stupid, saying something that risqué. I leaned my head against one of the cold shelves in the fridge, contemplating my decision. One hand on the pop can as I stood there, not even hearing the approaching footsteps. I felt two arms encircle my midsection and pull me back into a back-hug of sorts, making me stand up straight. The back of my head hitting the man’s shoulder. One hand detached from my waist and closed the fridge, putting the pop on the counter in front of me before snaking back around.

“I believe I owe you a sandwich and a kiss”. I paused, loosening his grip with my hands before turning around and placing both hands on his shoulders, trying to push away. “Excuse me? You didn't say anythin-”. I was cut off as a pair of lips connected with mine, molding perfectly. I tried pulling away, the strong arms around my waist moving to my jaw line where they held my face there. I starting hitting the bold chest that was against mine, attempting to stop him, only to have him smile against my lips. My hits got weaker as he started moving his lips, teeth nipping at my lips once and awhile. And the soft protests eventually turned into my hands clawing at his shirt.

He pulled away slowly as I hid my face in my hands and finally ran away. “What the was that!” I hollered, pushing him away firmly. He allowed himself to be parted and leaned back on the counter “a kiss, you won the bet”. “Hey, we bet a sandwich, that's only if I made you nervous” the shorter recalled, pacing in circles in his empty poor excuse of a corner for a dining room. “You'll get the sandwich, the kiss was because you got me going crazy” the older smirked, stepping a large stride into Jihoon's ‘warpath’, close to his face.

“J-just… you still owe me a sandwich, you ” I grabbed the flash drive and shoved it in his hand. I looked up at him through opened fingers and almost smiled at his grinning face “of course”. He took the drive, or more like my hand, and dragged mine to my computer setup in the corner. He didn't even sit down, he just pulled I in the already on the monitor and pressed play when the button came up.

The melody started and he nodded along with the lengthy intro. I took this time to think. Seungcheol, who is he really? Does he like me? Or is he just teasing me? Should we talk about it? But I wouldn't know what to say, what to confess or what to pull out of him. He's so handsome and kind, but he's best friends with Soonyoung and I'm not even sure if he's a genuinely nice p

Right before the chorus he took my hand and pulled me into his chest, snapping me out of my thoughts. I stumbled awkwardly into the motion attempting not to slip as my first instinct to slap him disappeared “What are you doing?”. “Dance with me” he murmured, taking both my hands and slinging them around his neck while his hands landed on my waist. He led the whole thing, swaying side to side with our bodies against each other. His head rested on the side of mine which was on his shoulder, his soft breathing on my neck.

“Your voice is nice” he commented, his breath getting in my ear and making me twitch to the side. “Your breath isn't” I muttered, hoping he wouldn't hear that part. “Did you mean the smell or on your ear?”. ‘Oh, he heard’ I thought as I sighed like I was thinking “both”. The defensive-sarcastic side of me has come out and seems to want to stay, in my nervous state. “Really?” He grumbled, pulling back and raising an eyebrow at me. “That's not the only thing that you stink at,” I huffed, stepping on my own foot while trying to shut myself up. “Oh? what else should that be?” he wondered, his voice almost sounding scared, like I was about to say rapping or composing, or even something serious.

“Kissing,” I said just below a whisper, head down and face pulled into my shirt like a turtle. “What was that?” He hummed, actually not being able to hear me “speak up”. “Kissing” I pouted, turning my head away and trying to hide anywhere that would get my pride back. Oops that doesn't exist. I just heard a chuckle emit from him, one of his hand coming up to my chin, tilting it up. We made eye contact for the second time that day, making me question my morals about enemies. “Really? are you sure?”. He leaned back down making our lips move together again. I couldn't help moving with his efforts, my hands around his neck, pulling him closer if at all possible.

My brain may hate him and probably wants me to have a very strong shower right now, but my heart was fluttering and wanted more. His feet shuffled forward, my own taking a step back to balance myself. He repeated the movement. His knees bent down and his hands went down to my thighs. I let a hand go and slapped his arm, making him retreat hi action. He walked forward a few paces until I felt my back hit the counter. I grunted a little, the impact hitting my tailbone a bit.

“Sorry” he apologized into the kiss the tips of his finger a little bit away from being on my . My brain suddenly went on high alert with his hands so close. I pushed him away, which seemed surprising to him, and hopped away from the counter. I rushed out of the front door and tried to slam it behind me, the stopped on the door making it less dramatic. I heard footsteps come from the other side of the door and a shake of the door as he tried to open it.

“Jihoon-ah, did I hurt you?”. I shook my head frantically as I held the door shut, just realizing he couldn't see me “no”. “Then why?” He asked, stopping trying to force his way out. “I'm so confused” I barely muttered, him humming in response that he heard it. “What are you confused about?”. I heard a soft thump and his voice came from a lower point. “Who are you?” I whispered, also sitting down and leaning against the door. “I'm just Seungcheol”. “I meant who you really are” I clarified, running a hand through my hair, while looking at the door across from mine. I heard him take a deep breath before speaking up, his muffled but mind voice calming.

“I'm Choi Seungcheol, Captain of the Senior Basketball team, rich bastard that's friends with Kwon Soonyoung, Jeon Wonwoo, Boo Seungkwan, Choi Hansol and Han Haechan for reasons I don’t know. I live alone and I haven't talked to my parents in 3 years. I take the best courses I could ever take in school and I have the best and cutest composing partner ever”. I stopped running hand through my hair and playing with the hem of my shirt. I was almost speechless, my mouth moving but no sounds coming out. He's never actually complimented me before, meaningfully. “I think you're thinking of the wrong person” I tried to argue, head still in my hands. “No, it's Lee Jihoon, adorable shortie with the softest lips ever” he summed up from the other side, making me blush. I stood up as quiet as I could and turn the handle, pulling the door that could go either way.

I stepped back as I felt the weight push out speedily, his body falling back and landing in front of me. I looked down at the groaning, complaining man as he glanced back up “you're making me even more confused”. He did his silly-cheesiest grin, as always did “really?”. I just scoffed with a smile as I walked past him and into my house “idiot”. “But I’m your idiot” he called as I went upstairs, grabbing my change of clothes and pretending I didn't hear that. “Choi Seungcheol, you're too much” I called back, unplugging the flash drive from the computer and tossing it his way. The just risen man scrambling to catch it, still seated on the ground.

“Are you kicking me out?”. “I’m going to work” I hummed, sliding over to the couch and unplugging my charger from the wall. “Do I get a goodbye kiss?” He joked, poking his head around the corner. I glared up from my spot on the couch “not unless you're ready for a punch to the vital organs” I threatened, making a shooing motion. “I’m good, I need those” he admitted jokingly, rubbing his stomach as he stood in the entrance way. “Why are you still here?” I grumbled, peaking out from the corner before going to fill my water bottle. “I’ll walk you there, I assume it’s not far” He explained, making me stop and look in his general direction through the wall “I’m good”. “I could drive you if it’s farther” he automatically decided by himself, making me sigh and walk over while screwing my water bottle up.

“Don’t push it Choi” I hushed the man, pushing him lightly out the door first as I grabbed my keys and locked the door behind us. “Okay, I know where my limits are” the man admitted, making me nod in acknowledgement and walk ahead of him down the hall. He followed happily, an extra step audibly in his step. “Don’t be so happy” I muttered, pushing the button for the elevator as I watched the numbers above the doors rise. When the doors opened I stopped myself from walking inside, seeing an all too familiar figure standing in it’s walls.

“Hmm? Jihoon?” the much taller man noticed, looking up from his phone. “Hey… I was just going to go to work early, to make sure the newbie didn’t mess anything up” I partly lied, not wanting the slightly older to reveal my white lie. “Doesn’t our shift” -I face palmed- “start in… an hour and 45 minutes?” he revealed me, stepping out and making me cry to myself as I felt the presence behind me approach. “That long huh?”. I put my head down as I stepped into the elevator, not looking up as the presence followed “Thanks Gyu, thanks, see you later”. He scrunched his face at the sight of the older but stayed neutral when I shook my head.

The doors closed and I turned to the corner, hiding my head in as far as it could go. A larger hand landed on my shoulder and I grunted childishly, making him laugh “What shall we do for an hour?”. “I’m going to work early” I decided, pulling out of the corner and facing parallel to him who was facing towards the doors. “I have time to waste” he shrugged, bending down to take my hand as the door opened. I tried to dash off, loosening my hand from his. I was only held to the slower pace as he tightened his grip on my hand.

I slowed in defeat, lightly clasping his oddly clammy hand. It took us 15 minutes to walk to the shop, rather than the 5 Mingyu and I would take. Which meant he is either he’s the slowest walker ever or he’s stalling. When we arrived at the cafe and I tried to say good bye he persisted, insisting that because ‘it hasn’t been an hour’ he can stay. After two full minutes of silent arguing in the employees room I had convinced him at sit on the other side of the counter and pay for his own drink.

He sat, sipping a latte and watching as I did a check of everything and convinced the newbie that the machine was not broken. “Jihoon-ssi, I’m bored, play with me” he cried after ten minutes, making Jaehyuk, the newbie, and I both roll our eyes. “Sunbaenim, I feel like you should take care of him, before you start for today” Jaehyuk suggested, gesturing casually to the, slightly quieter, whining man. “Fine, can you tend to the register for Jihyun-noona, she’s needed in the back” I added before going over to stand in front of the annoying elder, dishcloth in hand.

He looked up happily and sat up straight, like I was going to give him something. “Can you shut up” I pleaded, leaning forward onto the raised counter. He pouted like a child and crossing his arms across his chest “Fine”. He opened his mouth to say something, only for his phone to interrupt. He pulled out the ringing object and touched the button, putting it to his ear “hello?... Now?... Fine, I’ll be right there”. I stood listening, crossing my fingers that he had to go.

“I have to go to the school,” He sighed, standing  up and chugging his coffee, making me smile and make a shooing motion “I’ll be back in a few hours”. I froze, looking over with wide eyes and a confused face “excuse me?”. “I said I’ll be back when your shift is almost over, then I’ll take you home” he explained, setting his cup down and going to leave. “Wait, don’t come back!” I called after him, trying to make me way around the counter to him. “Jaehyun-ssi, what time does his shift end?” the man asked the busy cashier who just yelled back “7:30”.

I whined at the younger who just shrugged as he wrote down another order. When the older was out of sight I went to back the back to change before going back to work, convincing myself I could finish my shift before he got back. I looked up at the clock, closing the lid of the newly cleaned cappuccino machine. 6:48. “Taehyung, I’m going to head out now” I warned the older, reaching behind me to untie my apron. The knot was tight and double knotted, making it much harder to untie. “Hey, Tae can you-”.

I felt two hands set on mine, pulling them away and working on the knot. I tensed, feeling the presence behind me as familiar yet odd. “Seungcheol-ssi” I hummed, feeling the apron slip off my neck and over my head, one of the helper’s hands on my waist and one holding the black apron in front of me. “Leaving without me?” the currently husky voiced man teased before clearing his throat and resting his chin on my shoulder.

“No way” I huffed sarcastically, grabbing the hand that had the apron in it and dragging him to the staff room, getting a few weird looks along the way. “You were planning on leaving without me, weren’t you, even when I told you I’d be back” he disapproved, clicking his tongue as I sat him down on a chair. “Maybe” I admitted under my breath, going to my locker and pulling out my regular clothes. “Maybe I should have a protest,” he thought to himself, making me laugh softly as I went to hide in the small, only available, corner.

“I should too, my sign will say ‘Choi Seungcheol won’t leave me alone’” I shot back, making him chuckle “mine will say ‘Lee Jihoon is avoiding me’”. “You’re like a puppy, except not cute” I commented, his auditory reaction again childlike “If I was an animal I’d be at least be a tiger”. “Why?” I wondered, coming fully re-dressed out of the corner and stuffing the clean clothes in the locker for tomorrow. I felt hands take my shoulders and turn me around so I was facing the man. “Cause I just love stalking my prey before I take it for myself”.

I just looked up at him with the most stoic face I could make with my heart beating this fast, muttering out words that didn’t make a sentence “… you… prey- have… me”. “I think you mean to say something along the lines of ‘are you talking about me?’” he guessed accurately, right hand coming down and resting around my shoulder. I just nodded as he brought his other hand to run through my hair. “Maybe, you’ll never know, my little bunny” as soon as the words fled his mouth he leaned down to pick up my jacket and bag, rushing hurriedly out the room.

It took me a second to fully process the information before a knot in my heart released and became kindle for a small fire. “Ya!” I yelled, racing after the fleeing man who was casually fast walking through the cafe when I got out of the room. I chased after him while trying to avoid any customers or workers with hot coffee, successfully making it out of the door without running into anyone. I saw him to the right of the oddly small sidewalk, peeking out from around the corner. I dashed over, dodging people and hoping he wouldn’t see me as I approached, with no luck. He ran off just as rounded the corner.

Crash.

I had bumped into someone and I was burning. The feeling of falling to the pavement combined with a hot liquid spread across my chest and face was horribly painful. When the impact came I screeched, the person I hit also exclaiming. I felt my hit the hard rock, soon followed by my back and hand, eyes shut tight “Sir, hurry, get off the road!”. I couldn’t open my eyes but I felt a wind go by my hair, making my instincts go wild so much that they practically shut down. I felt with my hands around me, ignoring the pain as best I could, getting to a wobbly standing position.

“Sir, walk forward now!” the same voice screamed, terror filling the man's shaky voice. I was scared now, my mind was too busy to think logically, but not busy enough to make me move any more. I tried to move my limbs but the signals wouldn’t go through, like a blocked call line. My ears rang as a loud horn, the one from a small car, making me flinch as I successfully took a shaky step, my legs almost giving out on me. “Sir!” the man yelled, the muffled sounds of the small car filling most of my senses. My knees collapsed as I fell to the ground, pain searing over me.

Just as I had given up I felt a large force, like when I played football, my whole dark world going in impossibly slow motion. Not that I should be making jokes right now. I started regretted most of my life decisions at that moment. The saying ‘your life flashes before your eye’ coming up. Not going in that club i wanted to join in 6th grade, not asking to get a dog when I still lived with my parents, forgetting to pay rent the one and only month gangsters owned the building, not properly kissing Seungcheol.

Then, as those last  words crossed my mind, I realized, the force wasn’t coming from the side where the sound of the machine came from, this was from the front. I came back to reality as I felt the small force but strong pull my wrist harshly forward. I felt like my arm was dislocated, but it didn’t matter once the apparent force that pulled me away from the continuously honking car embraced me with warmth. The coffee was burning everywhere, the impact was sore and my mind was crazy. But as soon as I took in the familiar smell of the older man i couldn’t think of that.

His arms were so familiar, almost making me laugh. He rested his head on my tilted cheek and I felt it, no words needed to be said, no actions needed to be pointed out, just this. The feeling of protective arms was so familiar, similar to Mingyu’s, yet so different. I could faintly feel a warm, less hot, liquid on my cheek and smiled quietly into his neck “crybaby”.

The commotion around us was practically hectic, I heard someone call 119 and I heard some crying, among others. The man pulled up from the hug, refusing to let go, even when i regained my senses and tried “you don’t need to call the police”. I agreed with an invisible nod, arm wrapping around his waist under his heavy bomber jacket. He hummed and started leading me away, with small questions and encouragement. When the noise of others died off and I felt like i was sitting in a car I finally tried to open my eyes.

There was a small sting but only for a second, the blurry vision adjusting like a video screen. Seungcheol came into my vision and i finally saw the tears. I was in the passenger's seat, facing to the open door, and the older was crouched in front of me, head rested on my knee. He looked so pitiful for his usual jock=like image. I reached forward, hand landing on his head and his hair “cheol-ssi”. “I told you to call me hyung” I barely hear him correct me.

I just looked at him in understandment “sorry, cheol-hyung”. “Don’t be sorry” he snapped, shooting up suddenly and showing his tear stained face. His usually bright or condescending brown eyes were sad and made him look vulnerable, clear tears falling down his pale face. He reached over with both hands, starting to my shirt. I instinctively slapped his hand away even though I knew what he was doing. He just waited for another second before trying again, this time my hands stayed still.

He slipped my dress shirt off of my shoulders, taking it away from me and putting it on the ground. Dark brown liquid dripping from it. He reached beside me, picking up the clothes I had borrowed from him earlier and putting it over my head. The whole time I was staring at his face, the way the creases in his face moved when I looked up at him. “Choi Seungcheol, why are you crying?” I whispered, hitting his chest with a weak slap, making eye contact with the older who was just staring at me with no expression. “Hey, if you cry, I’ll cry too” I followed up, the fabric of his over sized shirt. More staring and no words followed, only more tears.

“” I muttered, reaching up and hitting his chest with my other hand, hoping to get a reaction from the man. I was the one that almost got hit by a car, why is he crying. I probably wouldn’t have died any ways. I huffed out a long breath as I tried to stop him from crying, my own tears falling. “You look stupid with all those tears, you’re a grown man aren’t you, don’t-”.

My eyes were open as I watched the man lean forward and capture my lips, hands on the side of my jaw. My hands gripped his shirt tighter, face relaxing. When he pulled away, his hands moved to my shoulders. His eyes weren’t on me though, no matter how much his body motion was. His vision was looking towards the hood of the car, hands quickly coming up to his face to wipe his tears clean “I should go”.

“Why? I want you to stay” I pleaded, hands still holding onto his shirt as I tried to pull him in. “It’s just the emotions taking over, I’ll leave now, get out of my car” he growled, the sound of pain in his voice even as he cursed me out I felt like he didn’t mean it. “What are you talking about? I thought-” I looked over to where his gaze was locked and stopped myself from protesting any further “I’ll leave, call me” I spoke below a whisper as I hopped out, picking up my drenched shirt and going out to stand beside the wall, in front of the car. I looked at the man getting ready to drive away who just shook his head calmly, turning the car on.

I turned to the person standing in front of where the car was pulling out. Looking up at the man, I don’t know how to explain this to him. “I’ll explain… Mingyu”