Jongin’s got a theory.

There are some people in life, we don’t really need a reason to like them. We just like them. Same theory, there are also people we dislike for no damn reason.

Do Kyungsoo is such a person in his life.

Well, more like in his class, because Do Kyungsoo is nowhere near involved in his life, to be honest.

“We’ve never even talked.”

“Seriously?” Byun Baekhyun had swallowed a huge gulp of milk earlier and his big mouth causes some to spray in the air, ew. Ew. Ew. Jongin scoots back on his bench.

“But you’ve shared classes with him since sixth grade!” That’s Chen.

“We’ve shared no more than ten words.”

“Wow, not even ten words with Do Kyungsoo! That’s a feat, yo. Everyone in this school likes Do Kyungsoo.”

Yes, Jongin is aware. And that just makes him dislike him even more.

Jongin roots for the underdogs, ya know?

“He’s really nice, you should start talking to him today.” Chen grins. “Come with me after lunch, I’ll introduce you.”

“Thanks, but no thanks.”

Nice, yeah right. All that “nice” is a facade.

“Aw, why not?”

“Mind your own business, Chen Chen.” Jongin shoves Chen’s forehead.

“Ayoo guys.” Chanyeol from the popular crowd graces their table. Grace is a massive stretch to describe him though, because Park Chanyeol is the living opposite of grace.

Both Chen and Baekhyun are social butterflies unlike Jongin, so they can afford to know the likes of guys like Park Chanyeol.

Get the three together and it’s a full on live circus.

Jongin sticks two balled up napkins in his ears. He can’t even enjoy his goddamn rice in peace.

“Hey Yeol,” Chen suddenly says.

“Yeah man?” Chanyeol slaps Chen’s back. Jongin is thankful he’s not Chen because Chanyeol’s back slaps hurt like hell.

“Jonginnie here,” Wait that’s him, “he failed that Algebra quiz man.”

“Aw man, really?” Chanyeol’s sympathetic eyes are on Jongin. Then they widen. “Hold it. I know just the person who can help.”

“You do?” Both Baekhyun and Chen chorus.

Is Jongin missing something?

“Yep! My homie Kyungsoo. He’s the man you need.” Chanyeol winks at Jongin.

“No-”

“Ohhhhh yes! You’re a genius Yeol, now why didn’t we think of him before?!” Baekhyun bangs the table louder than necessary.

“Heh.” Chanyeol grins. That too wide, too white, extremely cranky grin. “No worries yo. I’ll text him.”

“Wai-”

“Naw, isn’t our Jonginnie lucky today”. Baekhyun drapes a hand over Jongin’s shoulders.

Chen snickers from behind his chopsticks.

Suddenly it all makes sense to Jongin. They were planning this.

Byun Baekhyun and Kim Jongdae “Chen” are so dead.

--

 

Jongin should get an award. He somehow managed to stop Chanyankee from texting Kyungsoot.

Yep, Jongin’s such an intellect.

Although it doesn’t erase the fact that his grades are in the drains. He does try to study occasionally, but in vain.

At least Jongin can hope to make rhymes for a living.

He drags his feet into his next class after lunch. He managed to drop the twin fleas and the giraffe at the cafeteria entrance, thank God. Or they’d even follow him to his class, just to bug him.

Jongin slumps in his seat. As far away from Kyungsoo and his minions as possible, which is not easy considering they’ve stationed themselves smack dab in the middle of the classroom. As usual.

Then, something that’s never happened before, happens. To Jongin’s horror, Kyungsoo looks at him.

AND gets up from his seat.

AND makes his way to Jongin- holy no don’t come anywhere near-

Kyungsoo sits himself on the seat next to Jongin. He adjusts his glasses and produces a notebook out of nowhere. He’s all serious.

“Hey Jongin. I saw you didn’t do too well in the Algebra quiz, I’d like to help you.”

Jongin can’t speak.

“See, this question. It looks hard but is actually easy if you figure out the core theory. Now-”

“What did Chanyeol tell you??”

Kyungsoo looks up. His eyes are huge just like his round glasses. “Chanyeol?”

“Yeah, Chanyeol. He asked you to do this, didn’t he? Or Byun Baekhyun or Chen.”

Kyungsoo blinks.

“Um no, they didn’t.”

“Yeah, right. Then why are you--”

“Ah, no,” Kyungsoo interrupts him, holding out his hand. “It was I who distributed the papers after they were marked, remember? I couldn’t help but notice your grade.”

That doesn’t explain anything.

But Kyungsoo shrugs. And taps his pen on the question and resumes explaining some theory.

Jongin’s got to protest against this sudden invasion and ask how- why- how come- why??--but he can’t get in another word because Kyungsoo looks all determined. Jongin’s kinda scared of the guy.

That’s the thing with people you dislike for no reason- there’s always this tension in the air. And this Kyungsoo, he’s pretty perfect and scary as it is. Double the tension.

Ugh.

Jongin flicks his gaze down from Kyungsoo’s face to the sum he’s buried in. Yeah, that’s a . There’s nothing Jongin hates more than studying. Which is why he didn’t exactly study for this quiz. He hardly ever studies nowadays.

But as Kyungsoo talks and scribbles away, he eventually finds himself following along. He’s so serious.

The teacher walks into the class, “Alright students, back in your seats! We’re starting the lesson!”

Kyungsoo gets up and pats Jongin’s shoulder, “I’ll meet you after class.” Then he turns around and trails back to his seat.

Jongin blinks. He has to pause and think for a really long time, because what the just happened. What’s Do Kyungsoo’s motive?

Jongin tunes out the teacher in favour of thinking harder. He stares at the still open notebook Kyungsoo left behind on his desk, trying to comprehend .

--

 

Before Jongin can escape, Kyungsoo is onto him.

Goddamit. Now how can Jongin make this polite?

“Uh, no offense,” Jongin starts, wincing subtly but also really hard and rubbing his nape, “but I don’t need your help, thanks.”

Kyungsoo just stares. “Why not?”

“Er, seriously…?” Jongin shuffles, “We… barely talk? Then you come here out of the blue to ‘teach’ me. Really? Isn’t that baffling?”

“No. What’s baffling is your grades spiralling down as of late. Jongin, that’s not good.”

What the hell.

And is that concern Jongin sees in that boring face he hates? How come- why?! “Why do you care? This is so sudden?!”

“You should give more attention to your studies, Jongin.” Kyungsoo does the most bizarre thing. He grabs Jongin’s wrist and pulls him out of the classroom.

And even further down the corridors. Jongin tries not to blush from the curious looks of passersby, because heck, this is everyone’s best friend Kyungsoo dragging him somewhere by the arm- that somewhere turning out to be the library.

“Hey, what about class?!”

Kyungsoo glances at Jongin over his shoulder. “This is our free period. It’s free for me and I know it’s free for you too. So sit here.”

Kyungsoo pushes Jongin to a chair, releases his arm and sits on the next chair.

He produces his notebook again. Starts teaching before a heartbeat can pass.

Jongin is baffled, he doesn’t know what to do. He just gapes at Kyungsoo who’s acting like this is totally normal everyday behaviour.

--

 

The bell rings.

They both raise their heads from the book and their eyes connect. Kyungsoo says, “I guess we’ll have to stop for now. But you understood, right?”

In a very strange and roundabout way, Jongin sort of did. He breaks the gaze because eye contact with Kyungsoo irks him. “I guess?”

Kyungsoo pats his shoulder. “If you need help with anything else, let me know.”

“Statistics,” he says before he can stop himself.

“Huh?”

“I need help with Statistics. Also Geography, but I think you don’t take that class.”

“I don’t, but I can help you with Stats.” Kyungsoo smiles- no, almost smiles. He covers it up by flicking his nose.

Okay, so maybe he’s not 1K% bad. Although…

How can Jongin say this.

“Uh-” he starts. They get up from their seats and shuffle through the library doors while he tries to figure out.

“Were you going to say something?”

There is no easy way. Jongin might as well get over with it. He’s come this far with Do Kyungsoo in a single day so it can’t get any worse, right?

“I thought you hate me?”

Jongin winces. That didn’t come out great, more like something off of a dramatic chick flick. Jongin is not a dramatic dude.

“I don’t hate you.”

“Um, no- what I meant was-” Ugh. “We’ve never really talked before, like, all these years… so I was wondering…”

“Oh yeah. That’s strange, isn’t it?”

“…Strange is a mild way to put it,” Jongin mumbles.

They reach their lockers. Which are two spots away from each other- something that always gets on Jongin’s nerves because not just in class, he has to see Do Kyungsoo in the hallways too and every morning before class! Him and his phoney pretentious minions constantly at his feet. That’s a whole lot of annoying a whole bunch of times each day.

That reminder suddenly turns Jongin very annoyed again. Whatever trifle points Kyungsoo scored earlier resume to nothingness.

“I thought it was the other way around, to be honest,” Kyungsoo is saying, “I thought you didn’t like me.”

“Yeah, I don’t really like you,” Jongin blurts before he can stop himself.

Kyungsoo freezes. “Oh.”

“I mean, you’re pretty intimidating. And overrated,” He just screwed up some more, didn’t he.

“Ah…”

“Like,” Jongin’s mouth starts rolling on its own. He shortly tells himself that at this point, he doesn’t actually care to filter, because whatever, “everyone crowds around you because you’re so smart and good looking and “nice”, but I see the fake smiles you give sometimes. No, most of the time. You’re two faced and let people up to you. And I see how you look at me, it gives me the creeps. The reason you taught me today, it’s ‘cause you could make me feel small, right?”

Jongin should have probably stopped but God, it feels so ing good to get it all off of his chest.

It’s silent for a really long moment, like someone pressed the pause button between them, although people around them go on like normal. Yeah, there are other people hanging around the lockers but Jongin doesn’t talk loud, so he doubts anyone else heard him.

It’s ages but life does finally come to Kyungsoo. He doesn’t say anything, or look at Jongin, just hauls out a couple of books from his locker and clamps the door shut. He mumbles, “Okay. See you later.”

That’s it. And he flees. Jongin stands there and watches his back getting smaller, he watches with mixed feelings.

--

 

There is a boulder in Jongin’s chest. He thought he got rid of it, but apparently not.

It’s even heavier now.

Ever since several days ago.

“Dude, are you listening?” Chen slaps his cheek. “Okay, so Minseok was like, no I don’t like him. But I know he’s totally got the hots for Luhan. So I was like uhuh, but Tao wants to- Goddammit are you listening?!”

Jongin’s head is met with a textbook. Hard.

“Ow!” He glares at Chen.

“Listen to me when I talk.”

Jongin rolls his eyes. “Snatch Obama from his seat. Then I’ll listen to you.”

“Obama? Did someone say Obama?” Baekhyun pops up out of nowhere. “My god, America’s president is so rad.”

Chen snickers. “How can we forget, Baekhyun’s got a crush on the man.”

“Hey I’m straight! And I have a girlfriend. I just totally agree with his principles and all, ya know?”

Jongin is thankful Baekhyun came into the scene, and now he tunes them both out.

Only to falter when he spots something on the other end of the hallway. Rather, someone.

Yeah, Kyungsoo. Huddled against a wall, talking with a dude twice his size.

That boulder in Jongin’s chest rolls around. Well, this .

He can’t help it, he can’t help but stare as Kyungsoo follows the guy somewhere. He stares because that guy looks like one of the nasties in school and Jongin hasn’t seen him around Kyungsoo before.

Heck, who cares. None of his business.

He says bye to Baekhyun and trails after Chen to their class.

Something keeps tugging at him.

--

 

Jongin can’t concentrate. Even Chen is giving him looks. All Jongin does is constantly shift around in his seat.

His phone beeps. He checks. It’s Chen, of course.

 

You ok man?

Wanna go to the loo lol

off

 

Jongin rolls his eyes at Chen.

At last the class ends.

Jongin beelines to the exit before Chen can ask him questions. He’s relieved when Chen doesn’t follow him either.

He treads down the hallway and then another.

Now where did he see them go?

He decides on a direction. If it’s wrong he’ll have to come back.

It leads to the dumpsters behind the school.

Oh yeah, it’s the nasties’ favourite haunt. It’s where they do whatever it is that they do, while skipping class. Those two might be around here…

Except there isn’t a soul in sight.

Yeah, they probably already went back. It’s been a long time.

Jongin’s relieved, for some reason. He turns to go back.

His shoe meets a crumpled soda can and he kicks it to the curb.

Cue a string of strangled cries.

That’s what they sound like to Jongin. He freezes. He turns around.

Is that what he thinks that is?

His gaze lands on the two dumpsters. With quick steps, he walks to the nearest one and lifts the lid and peeks over.

Jongin almost drops his books. There’s Kyungsoo, bound, gagged and on his side on a pile of trash. This actually happens.

Jongin’s first reaction is to look around himself. Yeah, the area is empty. But what if them a*holes come out now?

He’d be doomed.

Jongin drops his books to the side.

He holds his nose, steps on one of the metal rings on the side of the dumpster and hauls himself into it. The trash sinks under his feet.

He tries to remove the ropes around Kyungsoo’s ankles, but no such luck. Same for the ones around his wrist. At least the gag comes off.

Kyungsoo pants and wriggles around to face him. His eyes widen and he croaks something but nothing else comes out.

He’s not wearing his glasses, Jongin realises.

“Uh, hang in there,” he mutters. He manages to haul Kyungsoo over his shoulder. Thanks to the guy’s genes or whatever, he’s pretty lightweight.

The problem is climbing back down.

Don’t ask Jongin how, but he manages.

He lays Kyungsoo on the ground. He tries to tear at the ropes again.

“There-there’s a divider in my back pocket.”

Kyungsoo’s voice is raspy. Jongin reaches behind him for the divider while trying not to feel anything else. He fishes out a protractor and a divider.

He keeps this in his trousers?

 Never mind... Jongin claws at the ropes with the divider. It doesn’t work, obviously, but the knot around Kyungsoo’s ankles stretches and gets stuck around his sneakers. So Jongin just pulls the sneakers out.

He helps Kyungsoo to stand and picks his books up. “Come on, let’s hurry before they come back.” He pulls Kyungsoo into the school by his bound wrists.

There still are students in the hallways and classrooms so Jongin drags Kyungsoo to the nearest boys’ toilet.

Straight into a stall. A guy standing in the corner peeing whistles. Whatever. Jongin locks the stall door.

He turns to Kyungsoo. “What happened?!”

Kyungsoo holds out his wrists. “Can you untie this first?”

“How?” Jongin then remembers the Swiss Army knife he keeps in his locker just because. He pushes Kyungsoo back. “Stay here.”

He goes out, heads to his locker, gets the Swiss knife and hurries back into the toilet. Kyungsoo is still in the stall.

Jongin locks the door behind him again. “Hold out your hands.”

Kyungsoo doesn’t ask about the pocket knife. Jongin cuts his ropes free. Kyungsoo sighs and rubs at the crimson marks left behind.

“How did you find me?”

How did he? That’s not important. “Who did this and why? Are you being bullied?”

“As of today, I guess.”

“How come? You don’t have haters.”

Kyungsoo looks up and into Jongin’s eyes. “I do. You. And a few other guys.”

Jongin jerks back.

Despite detecting no lies, Jongin’s taken aback; he feels wronged and wants to protest. He takes a moment to find his voice, “Look, I don’t like you, yeah, but I wouldn’t do something like this, okay!”

“Yeah. But when you came to the dumpsters, I thought you were also a part of it.”

Unbelievable. How stupid of Kyungsoo. “But now you know I’m not, ok? Spill who your bullies are and we’ll report them.”

“I’ll do that, you don’t have to tell me.”

Jongin rolls his eyes.

“Okay, fine, good luck. Don’t get bullied again. See ya.” He turns on his heel, because this seems to have got his together already and he’s obviously unneeded.

But Kyungsoo grabs his arm, “Wait.”

Jongin looks back and raises an eyebrow.

“Come with me to the principal?”

Hah.

--

 

“They told you to do their assignments and homework for them and when you refused, they did this?”

“Yes.”

“And you have done nothing to provoke them, but your hunch is that they may be resentful towards you?”

“They’ve been reprimanded in class, sir, and the teacher may or may not have used my grades as a constant comparison, so that must have brought forth bitter feelings.”

“I see. Thank you, Mr Do, and I am so, so sorry you had to go through this.”

“It’s quite alright sir. Little setbacks like this only make you stronger.” Kyungsoo flashes his champion smile.

“That’s right, son! I admire your optimism,” The principal shakes his hand.

Jongin just stares from the side; he’d roll his eyes but he doesn’t want to get caught at it. There are multiple security cameras here, heck. He feels like he’d get arrested if he breathes the wrong way.

He’d barf at the handshake, too, because Kyungsoo had been lying in trash, no less, but the first things Kyungsoo had done after he came out of the toilet stall had been removing his blazer and washing himself five times in total with the hand wash.

“And you too, Mr Kim,” the principal turns to Jongin who shoots up straight, “thank you for doing what you did. You are a hero, boy.”

Handshake.

Hero, hah okay. But how come Kyungsoo is ‘son’ and Jongin is just ‘boy’?! Talk about discrimination.

They hang around the office a bit longer, fill up a few documents for the principal’s secretary and talk with her some more. Then finally, they are released.

“Phew.” Jongin runs a hand through his hair. “You should buy me a meal or something.”

“What for?”

Jongin spins around. Is this guy ing kidding him? “I practically saved your life, hello?”

Kyungsoo gives him a look. “But I’m a two faced creep, right? So I shouldn’t bother pretending in front of you, right?”

Jongin snorts. “Yeah, but the least you could do is have manners. Good to see you lack them too. Bye.”

He briskly walks towards wherever, doesn’t matter where, he’s got to get back to his normal life and away from this mess he unwittingly got himself into.

Only a warm hand grabs his hand, stopping him. Jongin almost jolts from the shock. He yanks his hand free and turns to see Kyungsoo shadowing him. “What is it!!”

“Ow, so fierce,” Kyungsoo winces, “You’re so quiet and gentle in class, doesn’t this make you two faced too?”

Wait what.

No, it doesn’t work that way.

“Going by your theory, aren’t we all two faced?” Did Kyungsoo just pout? Jongin not sure, not that he cares either way. “We change ourselves to meet up with each person’s expectations of us. Because we want to be accepted. Am I right? I think that’s just deep-seated human nature, whether we like it or not. Anyways, wanna go to the KFC down the road? I’ll treat you to chicken.”

Hold up- Jongin’s confused, how did he change topics like that? “What did you say?”

“I’ll treat you to chicken at the KFC down the road if you wanna.”

Now Jongin never denies free chicken. The problem is, it’s this lil’ er that’s asking him. He’s so short, looking up at him like he’s doing right now.

And Jongin thinks he might have seen a glimpse of sense in what he said earlier, before the chicken bit, but he needs more time to re-evaluate it.

But should he go for the offer? He really doesn’t want to, despite his earlier demand, but heck, it’s chicken.

But it’s also Kyungsoo.

He clears his throat. “Not today. You stink, a lot. Hit me up tomorrow maybe.”

Kyungsoo raises an eyebrow.

Jongin rolls his eyes and brushes past him. It’s the opposite direction to where he was headed earlier, but whatever.

--

 

A massive weight lands on Jongin’s back. He shrieks. “What the ?!”

Jeez, not one but two weights, because it’s Chen and Baekhyun who proceed to cling to his sides like the freaking monkeys they are.

“We heard news,” Baekhyun starts.

“Gossip,” Jongin corrects, because that’s what it usually is.

“Rumours,” Chen says, “that you and golden boy are going out on a date after school.”

Jongin chokes on his spit. Chen and Baekhyun pound on his back as he coughs his lungs out.

“Not so hard, !” He wrings himself free and holds his poor throat. “Wha- what did you say?”

“That we heard that you and Do Kyungsoo are going out on a date today, after school.” Baekhyun smiles all too brightly. “Did we miss something, Jonginnie?”

“Of course we did, Baek,” Chen throws an arm around Baekhyun and mock whispers, “did you know, they entered the same toilet stall yesterday after school. To-ge-therrr.”

Baekhyun gasps loudly and clasps a hand over his mouth. “Omg! So that’s why he didn’t come home with us like usual!”

“Uhuh.” Chen nods. There’s a glint in his eyes.

Hold it- they both have it. That satanic glint.

And just like that, all energy has left Jongin. “Please tell me you’re kidding, guys. How do you know this?”

He’s never been a subject of gossip in all his school life. People probably don’t even know who he is. He’s that insignificant.

“What! He’s not even denying it! They’re really going out!” Baekhyun screeches.

“I’m not going out with him ok!” Jongin whispers angrily ‘cause he doesn’t want anyone else to hear. “It’s nothing like that, I hate his guts, remember??”

Chen rubs his imaginary beard. “But how do we know some didn’t go down?”

Baekhyun smirks.

That’s it. Jongin’s not dealing with these clowns anymore. He’s had enough, he can’t get through to them.

And Kyungsoo, that er- he probably lied to the whole school!

“Hey, where are you going! Jonginnie come back!”

“Yah! Hahaha he’s so mad, Baek.”

“Call me when you get a life!” Jongin shouts over his shoulder. “And some sense into your pea sized brains!”

That Do Kyungsoo.

To think Jongin once thought (last night, before bed, for a fraction of a second) that he maybe, just maybe, might not be as bad as he thought. Nope. He’s entirely something else.

Jongin’s initial theory is probably right. Some people in life, you are destined to dislike forever. You can’t change that no matter how much you try, you will always dislike them, and they just keep proving they’re not worthy.

--

 

But Jongin’s got to keep his chicken commitments.

When he walks into KFC, Kyungsoo is already there, sitting at a booth by himself.

“Hi.”

Jongin just glares and sits across from him.

Kyungsoo raises his brows.

Jongin glares some more. If only looks could kill.

“Should I start being afraid?”

“What did you tell everyone? Did you have to do that? Really?”

“What are you talking about?” Kyungsoo looks puzzled. The face of innocence.

He’s such a great actor. It’s obvious, that’s how he got this far up the social ladder.

“You told everyone we ed in the toilets yesterday after school and that today we’re having a date together, that’s what.”

Kyungsoo splutters. “What the ?! I did-said- no such thing!”

“Then how come Baekhyun and Chen bugged me about it?!”

Kyungsoo stares at him wide eyed.

Something seems to click in his mind. Jongin sees it.

“What is it?”

“I… may have told one person, but it’s not what you said.”

“Hah! I knew it!”

“Listen to me! I told Sehun, okay, I told my best friend just casually because he wanted to hang out today after school. I told him no, I can’t ‘cause I’m meeting you at the KFC. That’s all I said, I swear.”

“That’s all? What about the other things? About going out?”

Kyungsoo winces. “I didn’t tell him we were going out, duh. Just told him we’d hang out. And the toilet thing, I have no idea, cross my heart.”

“I don’t believe you.”

Kyungsoo rolls his eyes. “Do you think I’d destroy my own reputation? I don’t gossip and talk about myself or anyone else.”

“That’s what you say. I’m not popular like you so if you spread that kinda stuff around, your stupid minions would be coming at me, not you!”

Just as Jongin says that, he hears a camera flash going off somewhere nearby. He turns to the side and does a double take- is real, there’s a group of girls a few tables away, handphones out and aimed at himself and Kyungsoo.

“Holy I’m out.” Jongin’s never scrambled to the exit so fast.

“Hey wait! Take this chicken with you at least!” Kyungsoo calls.

Good point. Jongin covers his face with his hand, runs back to the table, grabs the chicken bucket and heads to the exit again. He doesn’t spare Kyungsoo a glance. Why should he?

--

 

The next day, it’s all over school. Apparently someone had shared photos of their “date” on facebook. That’s what Chen told him, at least, because Jongin doesn’t have a facebook account.

He shouldn’t have come to school today. He spends his day hiding behind his overgrown bangs. Thank goodness he’s not popular.

But Kyungsoo is popular, and several people Jongin’s never seen in his life come to his class to congratulate him on his ‘date’.

After the lunch bell rings, Jongin saunters over to Baekhyun and drapes himself on him. “Byun Baek, I’m gonna call it a day. My bed is calling out to me man. I can feel his cries.” Jongin clutches his chest in mock agony. He’s actually tired of though. He wants to dump everything and go home right now. “See you in a week, or maybe I should hibernate for a couple of months.”

“Nuh uh, I think someone wants to talk to you.” Baekhyun points to the doorway where Kyungsoo stands looking at them.

Bloody hell naw. Not again.

Baekhyun pats his bum and pushes Jongin forward. Traitor.

Jongin drags his feet to Kyungsoo. He’s already starting to feel in his bones the aftereffects of talking way too much to this guy the past couple of days. It feels so weird.

“Come with me.”

“No, I’m not going to be seen with you, no thanks.”

Kyungsoo only looks a little hurt. “Fine, follow me a few feet behind then. On second thought, no, you walk in front and I’ll follow a few steps behind you. To the library.”

How the did Do Kyungsoo know Jongin was gonna bail? Dammit.

He grumbles and walks towards the library.

--

 

They go to a secluded corner.

Jongin turns to Kyungsoo and crosses his arms. “Make it quick.”

“Right. First of all, remember the guy who was peeing in the corner when we went to the toilets that day? He whistled and all.”

Yes, Jongin does remember.

“He’s the one who told people we’d been doing stuff in the stalls. I asked him myself and let’s just say, he’s paying damages for his crimes.”

Jongin raises an eyebrow. Okay…

“As for the going out bit,” Kyungsoo pauses. “That’s, ah, a miscommunication. That’s all. Sehun misunderstood what I’d said.”

Jongin squints. There’s like a huge chunk missing, Kyungsoo’s face says so. Plus it doesn’t make sense. He pounces onto that suspicion. “Miscommunication how?!”

Kyungsoo is silent. Jongin sees him take a deep breath.

“Look, I may or may not have a crush on you, okay, which Sehun knows about, so when I told him we were hanging out after school, he’d thought it was like a date, and so he’s told that to Chanyeol, and you know how that goes, with his big mouth and all, so yeah…” Kyungsoo pants a little, avoiding Jongin’s eyes and face in general.

“You,” Jongin points his finger at Kyungsoo, then at himself, “have a crush on me?”

Kyungsoo blushes and wow, that’s quite the spectacle.

“Y-Yeah.”

“You think I’d buy that?”

Kyungsoo shrugs.

It hits Jongin that he just got confessed to for the first time in his life. By the mighty Do Kyungsoo? Yeah, doesn’t sound right.

“You’ve played with me so many times, you really think I’d buy that, huh?”

“When have I played with you?”

“You’re actually asking! Hah!” Jongin scrambles to throw the list of accusations at him, the one he’d surely collected, only nothing comes up. “Look, it just doesn’t make sense, okay?”

“Why? Why doesn’t it make sense to you? It makes perfect sense to me.”

Aha. “‘Perfect sense’. So you cooked everything up, right? You’re a genius, Do Kyungsoo, I give you that.”

Kyungsoo just stares.

He stares and it freaks Jongin out a bit, but finally he speaks. “You think I’m lying, right?”

Jongin nods.

“Then watch.”

Kyungsoo places his hands on Jongin’s cheeks, reaches up on tiptoe and kisses him.

What the-

Holy . Do Kyungsoo is actually kissing him. He is, isn’t he? Is this some sort of dream- or rather- nightmare? Someone’s gonna come and say boo in his face now, probably Kyungsoo himself, who’d have turned into a monster, ‘cause that’s how it works in nightmares.

But why does it feel so ing good? And so soft and electric and- ugh- heart fluttering.

Kyungsoo breaks away. They pant and Kyungsoo stares up at Jongin in something like wonder, and Jongin is probably doing the same because holy that kiss was good.

“I like you, Jongin, I really do. I confessed to you after all this time and you won’t believe me, that’s so unfair.” Do Kyungsoo actually pouts, unmistakably this time. Jongin’s eyes are so wide.

He gulps.

He can’t believe himself, but he actually says, “Then kiss me again.”

Kyungsoo does. This time, Jongin kisses back, tentatively. He’s kissing the last person on Earth he’d have chosen to kiss a few days ago. He’d have laughed if you told him. Even now, it could be a sick joke.

But screw that, it feels amazing and nothing Jongin’s ever felt before, so Jongin might as well enjoy it while it lasts.

--

 

Turns out, Kyungsoo wasn’t kidding. Sehun shows Jongin all the poems Kyungsoo has written about him and as cheesy as that kind of is, the whole thing makes him… yeah, blush. There, he said it. He can’t read them yet, though, and he shoves the book in his bag.

Do Kyungsoo was writing poems about him all this while? While Jongin cursed his off?

Who would have thought.

“Okay, so he’s in the bathroom now.” Sehun whispers and looks over his shoulder just in case. He picks up Kyungsoo’s phone from where it’s lying on his study desk and hurries over to where Jongin is on the bed.

Sehun sits next to him, grins evilly and unlocks Kyungsoo’s phone passcode with ease. Bloody hell. Jongin shouldn’t get too close to this Sehun dude.

But he stops in his thoughts. There, in Kyungsoo’s phone is he, Jongin, himself. Huh?!?!

Sehun laughs. What was the point of whispering earlier if he’s going to laugh so loud? “Your face! You’re blushing, bahahah-”

Jongin grabs Kyungsoo’s phone from Sehun’s hand. The wallpaper is a photo of Jongin. He’s leaning against some wall. Jongin remembers this photo being taken, but how on Earth did Kyungsoo get his hands on it?!

Sehun wipes tears from his eyes. He seems to read Jongin’s mind. “He got it off of facebook. Baekhyun had uploaded it among his pictures last summer or something. And there’s more.”

Sehun grabs the phone again and goes to Kyungsoo’s gallery. There’s an entire folder with Jongin’s photos!

“What the- is he a stalker or something?!”

Sehun laughs. “Yeah, your personal stalker, congrats. All these photos, he got from your friends’ facebook. But don’t worry, he doesn’t snap candid shots of you himself.” Sehun squints into the distance and his chin. “Although he did try once… before I knocked some sense into him.”

Jongin just stares at the rows of pictures, all him. There isn’t much, thankfully. He doesn’t want to imagine how it would have been like if he did have an active facebook or instagram.

They hear Kyungsoo coming out of the bathroom across the hall. Sehun scrambles to lock the phone and keep it where it was.

Kyungsoo walks into the room. He eyes Sehun. “You’re still here?”

Sehun clutches his chest. “Ouch. That hurt. Is that how you treat your best friend, Kyungie?”

Best friend indeed.

“Get out.” Kyungsoo shoves him out of the room and down the hall. “I’m scared you’ll do something disastrous.”

He already did, Kyungsoo. He already did.

Kyungsoo comes into the room several seconds later. He shuts the door behind him, walks over to the bed and sits down next to Jongin.

“You okay?”

Jongin nods. He gulps. What now?

Jongin wonders if he should tell Kyungsoo that he saw the photos and the poems. His poems journal is in his bag. It’s privacy invasion and all, but not too mean, surely…? Jongin didn’t really steal the book himself, Sehun gave it to him, and it’s not like Jongin’s not dying of curiosity or anything.  Nope nope, he just wants to settle down somewhere and read them one by one.

He decides to tell Kyungsoo later.

And Kyungsoo will probably kill him then. So he should make the most of now.

He reaches for Kyungsoo’s hand. It’s warm like he remembers. He squeezes it and watches as Kyungsoo blushes.

He has to admit, Kyungsoo is kind of cute.

“I got you something.”

Kyungsoo turns to him. “Oh?”

Jongin nods. He reaches into his bag and takes out the thick book he’d brought with himself. He hands it to Kyungsoo.

Kyungsoo looks at the cover and smiles- it’s their Statistics text book.

He looks up at Jongin. “This is for me to keep, right?”

“Noooo.” Jongin whines. Wow, this comes so easy to him. The aegyo . “Teach me senpai. For the quiz next week.”

“Give me a kiss then.” Kyungsoo says that but his shyness obviously regrets it, evident from the way he bites his lip and looks like he wants to hide somewhere. That's pretty endearing, so Jongin obliges anyways.

But it's not like Jongin minds. Not at all, not since he discovered a whole new side to Kyungsoo he had no idea about before.

And perhaps that tension he has with Kyungsoo, which he mistook for dislike and intimidation earlier, is actually just- uh, a different type of tension. Not that he's gonna admit it out loud though, of course not.

 

 

 

== the end==