Jooheon stares up at the ceiling, pouting his plump lips as he puffs out his chubby cheeks. His pale skin is dusted a light pink, and his small eyes are filled with a desperate yearning. He doesn’t dare look at his friend, as the older boy is sure to . Minhyuk, on the other hand, intends to do anything but. He watches the younger with a sympathetic expression, crawling across the worn-down carpet to squeeze his forearm consolingly.

He knows all too well what it’s like to be questioning something you’ve been so sure about all your life.

“So… you’re sure about this?” Minhyuk asks gently, running his thumb over the smooth skin of the younger’s inner arm. He does his best to keep his tone clear of hope, as he doesn’t want to unnerve his friend any more. Jooheon sits up suddenly, leaning towards the older. The dark brown in his eyes are flecked with such a pure ray of hope that it’s all Minhyuk has in him to keep from squeezing his cheek.

“Hyung,” Jooheon says, slightly breathless, “I’m more sure about this than I’ve ever been about anything! I don’t know how I’ve gone so long without realizing, but now that I know… Hyung, I could never go back. I… I think I love him!”

Minhyuk’s mouth goes dry, and his face splits open into the stupidest grin. He draws his hand back as his palms begin to sweat, and his heartbeat quickens ever so slightly. Luckily, Jooheon has fallen back against the floor with a heavy, wistful sigh, and he remains blissfully unaware of Minhyuk’s shift in mood.
This is it. This is the moment Minhyuk’s been waiting for. This is the scene he’s pictured in his mind time and time again. The wonderful moment when Jooheon finally realizes the one boy who’s always been there for him, the one that’s meant to be with him. The moment he realizes Minhyuk and him belong together.

“Hyunwoo-sunbae is so handsome and kind,” Jooheon mutters, his voice surprisingly light considering how much it tears apart Minhyuk’s very soul. “I don’t know how I can live without him.” The older boy his lips silently, his gaze growing hard as he crosses his arms over his chest. An attempt to keep himself from physically falling apart.

The tune of a familiar hip-hop song fills the room, and Jooheon immediately sprints up from his spot on the floor to answer his phone. He doesn’t even say hello before his mother’s voice can be heard clearly from the other end. Jooheon gulps, and he smacks his lips as the woman nags at him. He glances over at the alarm clock on Minhyuk’s bedside table, and he immediately gets up to get his things.

“I’m on my way home,” Jooheon assures the caller. “I’m sorry, Eomma. I’ll be home soon, I promise.” He hums after a moment, shoving notebooks into his backpack and zipping it shut. He then slings it over his shoulder and pockets his phone, already heading for the closed door. “I’ll see you tomorrow, hyung. Thanks for listening, you’re the best~”

Minhyuk isn’t afforded the chance to respond. Jooheon’s out of the room before he can even think of what to say back. The boy quietly stands, holding onto his own elbows as he throws himself onto his bed. It squeaks under his weight as he does a belly flop onto the unmade sheets, and he buries his face into the pillow. He takes a deep breath, the citrus smell of his own shampoo filling his nose.

He turns onto his side, blindly grabbing for his phone as he needs a sufficient distraction from his own heartbreak.

Kihyun pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose, sticking the top of his pencil in between his teeth as he needs both hands to now flip furiously through his textbook. His gaze flicks between the pages of the textbook and his notebook. He swears, chemistry is going to be the death of him.

His phone rings, and he releases a small breath as he grabs for his cell.

“Hello?” he says, arching a brow as he takes the pencil out of his mouth. He holds his phone in place with his shoulder, leaning forward to scribble down a correction for his own notes from class.

“Ooooh, study voice,” a familiar voice teases on the other side, and Kihyun can’t help but sigh, setting down his pencil.

“As if you’d ever know what that feels like, Minhyuk-ah,” Kihyun fires back, unable to keep from smirking. Minhyuk hums on the other end, falling silent. Kihyun glances down at the phone in his hand, his smirk giving way to a frown of concern. “What’s wrong?”

“Jooheonney just left,” Minhyuk says dramatically. Kihyun can hear him shifting around on the other end, and he leans back in his own chair, closing his textbook and setting it atop his notebook. He fiddles with the two until the corners are lined up, his brow creasing together. Nothing’s ever good when Minhyuk’s this quiet.

“He still insisting he’s straight, or something?” Kihyun prompts, knowing this to be something that’s been bothering the slightly-older for quite some time. Of course, this isn’t so much due to Minhyuk’s concern for Jooheon’s wellbeing than to Minhyuk’s ever-growing crush on the underclassman.

“No, he’s just in love with someone else.”

Kihyun can’t help the amused breath that passes through his pursed lips. He can almost hear the pout that comes to Minhyuk’s lips at the reaction, however, so he quickly pushes it back down.

“It’s just puppy love,” he tries to console the boy. “Not only that, it’s his first legitimate boy crush. He’ll move on eventually.” Minhyuk whines loudly at his friend’s words, and Kihyun has to pinch the bridge of his nose to fight off an oncoming headache. He takes off his glasses and tosses them atop his textbook, rubbing at his eyes.

“He’ll never love me, Kihyunnie,” Minhyuk sighs. “It’s okay… I’ll just die alone. My red string of fate with Heonney will forever grow longer and longer until it finally breaks. My soulmate will look at every other man in the world until he dies, and we’ll just die alone. Hell, he’ll even date you before he bothers looking at me like that.”

“You make me sound like such a catch,” Kihyun comments dryly, tapping his desk in aggravation.

“Don’t turn this around,” the other boy argues. “I called needing comfort, and as my same-age friend it’s your job to help.” Kihyun chuckles under his breath, shaking his head fondly.

“If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be,” Kihyun tells him. He knows it’s lame and cliché, but he has absolutely no idea what else to say at this point. Minhyuk’s pining for their dongsaeng has been going on for months now, and all his words of wisdom he’s gained from his seventeen years of life have long been used. Minhyuk groans in outrage at this, and Kihyun just rolls his eyes at the other’s antics. Though, he doesn’t fight off the fond smile pulling at his lips.

“That’s lame, gremlin.”

“You’re lame, beanpole.”

Minhyuk cackles at the immediate retort and sighs, the sound bringing a noticeable heat to Kihyun’s cheeks. He his lips anxiously, gaze flitting around his room as he tries to not focus on the way his heart skips a beat at the sound.

Just puppy love, Kihyun tells himself as he looks up to the ceiling, reminding himself. Your first legitimate boy crush… It’ll go away eventually…