The movie ends with Bambam's arm over your shoulders. When he carefully maneuvered his arm, he looked at you for consent. You just gave him a tired smile and a nod. All the attention honestly makes you dizzy. There's only so much you can handle.

"Are you okay?", Bambams asks when the screen finally darkens. Your eyes flutter back open. The Thai boy is staring at you with concern etched onto his face, "You seem tired. I'll take you home."

His cheeks are slightly red from being stuck in a room for so long and his plump lips looks sticky, probably because of the carbonated drink he had.

You look down at the floor and bite your own lips. "No", you then shake your head adamantly. "It's ok."

You don't want to give off a bad impression. You don't want to seem like a boring killjoy.

But Bambam stands up and holds out his hand to pull you up, "I'll drive you home."

This time you don't have the strength to disagree and internally you
feel grateful that he was able to pick up on your mood.

"Thank you", you murmur, voicing out your inner feelings. You take his hand and let him help you up.

The curse of introversion has appeared again, it seems, leaving you exhausted and craving for the comfort of your own four walls. It's a trait that you've had for as long as you can remember.

Bambam's hand never leaves yours while you walk through the stream of people, the cowds trickling out of their respective movies. You accidenally catch some girls staring at your interlocked hands and it makes you nervous. You wiggle your fingers slightly out of Bambam's grasp.

He turns to look at you, his eyes bright and twinkling, even in the dim-lit building, "Did you like the movie? Was it your taste?"

He opens the door for you and you try to remember something from the movie. Anything. Because, honestly you couldn't really focus on the screen with Bambam sitting right beside you.

"It was nice... I liked the scene where they... fought?" Your voice comes out in an unsure stutter. Perfect. It sounds more like a question and you know that with how perceptive Bambam is, he can probably see through your lie.

You feel something squeezing your fingers. Lightly. Gently. You look down to your intertwined hands and the familiar blush creeps onto your cheeks.

"It wasn't that good", Bambam laughs good-naturedly. "It was kind of hard to follow the plot because they kept on introducing new characters."

You look at him from behind your fringe as he keeps rambling. You nervousness slowly decreases as he speaks, the only proof left of it being the slight pink tinge of your cheeks.

"Action isn't actually my favorite genre either... I really like sci-fi. I even brought some DVDs into my dorm. If you want you can come to my dorm sometime-"

You glance down at you hands quickly and Bambam stops for a moment and blinks, then hastily opens his mouth, "Oh god, that sounds wrong. I swear I'm not trying to trick you into coming to my dorm..."

You blush fiery-red when you understand the insinuation. Going to his dorm on the second date. Oh god. You're not particularly dirty-minded but from the occasional story that your sister tells,
college guys mostly seem like hormonal douchebags.

As if hearing your thoughts, Bambam puts his hands in front of his chest defensively, blushing. "I was just trying to say that we could watch a movie! They have Korean subtitles!"

You look at him with your heart pulsating in your chest and gulp. He looks handsome with his blue clothes and cool-toned hair and strong arms and slight smile that is always there, his face submerged in the half-shadow of the building and his hand holding yours and you decide to
just let go. Of your hesitance. Your reservation. This is just like dancing with him at the party. You can do it.

You look up at him again and try to give him an almost cunning smile, "If that's what you say."

Bambam is not used to you teasing him. He blushes even harder and you
laugh. The next words just spill out of your mouth involuntarily, "I would love to see your dorm someday."

***

Bambam takes you to the ice cream parlor after the movie. He was ready to give you a ride home, but you insisted on continuing the date. You shouldn't let your anxiousness ruin another day, right?

But you did disentangle your hands, trying to be inconspicuous, but now his hand sometimes brushes against yours and you wonder if it is coincidental. It probably isn't.

He opens the door again and waits until you enter.

"You're really polite", you marvel with only half faked astonishment. Because it's really true. Compared to other people you have met, Bambam makes a genuine effort to be nice and after you've seen him thanking the cashier politely or lowering his head slightly so that the other people
in the cinema can still see the movie screen, you realized that it isn't an act.

Bambam grins and tips an invisible fedora, making you guffaw.

"I try my best", he says and you smile at his modesty.

You both sit down at a small table and you try to focus on the nice ambience and modern furniture of the place but your eyes keep being drawn to Bambam. He is busy: giving you the menu and talking about his favorite ice cream. With him sitting opposite of you, you can see his
full face. You take in his features again. His big brown eyes and pink lips that curl up into a constant smile. He looks like he stepped right out of a commercial and it makes you feel slightly self-conscious.

"The strawberry icecream they have here is the best, but the banana split is no joke either..."

Bambam looks at you. You feel as if you've become deaf or mute or both, because his words didn't register in your brain at all.

Caught.

An embarrassed smile tugs at the corner of his lips even though you should have been the one to be embarrassed, having been caught staring so openly.

"Sorry...", you mumble, your cheeks no doubt dusted pink. "I wasn't listening."

What is wrong with you? There are many handsome boys in the world. There are dazzling actors like Kim Soohyun or Lee Minho that don't even faze you. It isn't fair that this boy in front of you right now is making your heart do somersaults.

"Do you want to have the banana split? It's really tasty..." Bambam repeats his words with a smile.

"We can share it."

The words spill out of your mouth before you can do anything and the color of Bambam's face now resembles yours.

"We can do that." He quickly looks down.

Oh god. Oh god. Why did you suddenly have to make it this awkward? Everything went pretty well and now you're back to staring at the options on the menu, trying to avoid Bambam's bright eyes.

As if on cue, a waitress comes over to take your orders and Bambam turns confident again. He has such poise and suaveness that you almost believe that he has been born to give commands, yet he's
incredibly polite at the same time.

When the waitress is gone, you can feel his stare on you once again: warm and comforting and sending shivers down your spine.

When the banana split arrived with chocolate drizzle and whipped cream, he's back to talking. Talking about uni. Talking about Thailand. You make an effort to listen intently, slowly scooping ice cream into your mouth.

You're down to half melted remnants when his phone rings all of a sudden. Bambam looks at you and you nod, mouthing "Take it" and he stands up, gliding his hand into his pocket to take the call.

"Hey Taehyung-... No, I'm out right now... Isn't Yugyeom there?"

Bambam glances at his watch and then at you apologetically. "Yeah, he probably has practice right now. I can drop by in half an hour, if that's ok?"

It's sounds like it's something important, so you quickly grab his arm.

"I can just go now", you whisper, trying to be considerate. You really don't want to bother him, especially if his friend needs help.

He hears it but shakes his head. You insist, though and when Bambam hangs up you put your hand on the table.

“It's ok, I can just go home. It's not that far from here.”

“No, no, nonsense”, Bambam retorts. “I'll just pay and then take you home.” He looks into your eyes. “Taehyung just left some documents in our room that he needs.”

His hand reaches for his wallet, but you shake your head.

“Oh no, you don't have to pay”, you quickly say. “It's the 21st century.”

Bambam laughs at your witty comment, but whips out his wallet anyways before you can stop him. You stop protesting and just make a mental note to pay for your food the next time. The next time. You blush.

After paying, you two head outside. It's gotten a bit chillier and you pull your jacket closer.

You catch Bambam's worried stare in your peripheral and look down at the floor bashfully. What's up with you? One minute you're confident and self-assured and the next you can't even look him in the eye. Ah...

“You live near the big park, right?” Bambam turns to you.

You tilt your head and peer at him from behind your hair. “That's right.”

Though it's not located in the central part of the town, your house looks quiet nice and it's convenient to be close to the park. You always imagine that the air must smell a lot nicer, because there are a lot of trees and when it gets warm, you enjoy sitting on your balcony, enjoying the view.

“Drive with me then. The dorms aren't that far away from them park. I'll just get the papers and then I can drop you off, if you don't mind.”

Truthfully, you appreciate his actions. It really is getting cold and uni is on the way to your house anyways. So it would be smart to take him up on his offer.

“Ok.” You exhale finally.

***

Bambam shifts gears and parks the car, turning to you. “Do you want to wait in the car... or come to the room with me? I swear it won't take long either way.”

His cheeks are tinted pink and smile slightly.

“I... Can I just come with you? If that's ok?” Your voice comes out in a stutter, but you'd rather not wait in a car. What if it took longer than expected? The heating in the car doesn't work when the engine isn't on, does it?

Bambam blushes even harder at your response and you put your hand in front of your mouth.

“Ahh- I just don't wan't to wait in a car... That's everything.”

“Oh, yes. That's understandable. I'll just...”

He gets out of the car and you quickly follow suit. He takes his key to lock it and you two awkwardly go to the buildings together.

Suyeon still lives at home, because it's cheaper and more comfortable that way, so you've never been to the dorms before. It's seems quite nice: modern but not too cold, held in grey with big windows.

Many students are walking down the cobblestone paths, trickling out of the buildings, others entering it, talking to each other animatedly. In the midst of the students, you spot a guy with blond hair. It's not just any guy. You recognize him immediately.

Youngjae.

The name echoes in your head and you bite your lip. Your eyes meet for a second, but he doesn't react. His face is full of indifference and you wonder if you've done anything to upset him. Did he expect something for taking you home? Gas money?

His eyes pierce right through you and for a second you shiver-

“Have you seen the building before? They actually modenized almost everything a few years ago, so it looks a lot better now. One of my friends said that it didn't look this way when he went here.”

Bambam smiles at you and you look at him. He could fit right into a university catalogue even with his dyed hair. He catches your stare and laughs good-naturedly. For a moment, you wonder if he has any worries in his life because he seems like such a bright kid.

You shake your head, trying not to think of Youngjae. He has probably forgotten your face, that's why he didn't acknowledge you, right?

“Suyeon didn't take me to the dorms before”, you say absent-mindedly, fiddling with your sleeve. “Actually, I've never been to her uni before.”

You gulp. “We're not... that close.”

It's a quiet admission, a bit like when you confessed that you couldn't dance, because it reveals something about you. Something that makes you vulnerable.

Bambam's hand finds your and he stops you from playing with your sleeve.

“It's fine.” His voice sounds calm and assuring. “I'm sure it will get better with time.”

You stare down at the floor as he continues leading you to his room. “I hope so”, you murmur, before he gets out a key.

When he opens the room, he blushes. “It's a bit messy...”

He sounds like he's embarrassed and you grin slightly, happy to switch to another topic.

“Messy?”, you repeat. “How messy?”

He lets you in and you take in the room. It's spacious with two beds and dressers as well as desk. It is messy, but only slightly, with a few clothes lying here and there and candy wrappers. The worst thing are the desks. They look really unorganized and your inner neat freak comes out, making you cringe slightly.

“It's not that bad”, you mumble and he laughs nervously.

“Should I help you looking for the documents?”

You end up searching for them together, opening the drawers and rummaging through piles of paper. When you finally find it under a report, you show it to Bambam.

“That's it, right?”

The searching honestly was more exhausting that you would've imagined and you sink down on the mattress, brushing your hair behind your ear.

“Yeah, that's it!” He smiles at you gratefully and you see his teeth. “Thank you!” He looks at his watch and then at you. “I'll just bring in to Taehyung, if that's ok. Can you wait her for a minute? You shouldn't have to run through the building.”

He scratches his neck and you nod. At least his room is warm.

“Sure, that's fine.” You give him a smile and he stares at you. “I swear, I'll be back in a minute!”

And with that he's gone and you're left in his room, exhaling deeply and then falling onto the blanket with an exhausted sigh.