A/N: This chapter is short but there’s a reason for that: I needed to end the previous one on that note and I needed this one to be more of a booster for the next few chapters

“I’m taking that as a hard yes. Now I wonder though, do you like Renjun?”

It was a simple question and yet the answer was quite the opposite: Na Jaemin found that this conflict would be hard to address. After spending so much time with the Chinese boy he’d grown rather fond of him, which lead to some changes in attitude. Whenever Renjun would struggle with certain things, it was always Jaemin who was there for him no matter what. There were many long nights where he would be woken up by the sounds of his friend crying, which turned into movie nights.

“It’s a bit dangerous to like him isn’t it?”

“Well, that all depends on what the meaning behind that word is.”

“Sometimes, I see him, and I can’t help by smile. He makes me feel warm on the inside, kind of like I’m hugging the sun.”

“Sure, cause the sun totally won’t burn you if you get close to it.”

What was supposed to be a snarky comment to lighten the mood only made the ginger frown at the words. In simple words: Jaemin did really love Renjun, but it was still difficult for him to distinguish what kind of love it was. Part of him wanted to give the world to the older while part of him wanted to save him from the world. Sometime last semester he found himself staring at the boy who focused so heavily on his drawing that he did not notice the eyes that watched him. That memory still remains fresh in Jaemin’s mind, mainly due to the fact that Renjun had caught him watching after twenty minutes.

“I guess that’s what he is to me: the sun. I can’t live without him and every morning he greets me with warmth in his eyes.”

“Jaemin, this is serious.”

“I know, trust me, I know.”

“One thing though: if you do really like him that way, then why the Hell aren’t you coughing up flowers?”

“Ah, about that…”

“Please don’t tell me you are.”

Glossy eyes stared up at the ginger who was at a loss for words that would bring some comfort to the younger. The truth of the matter was that he wasn’t going through the disease, which would have been seen as a good thing by normal people. Jaemin lives without the disease, thus far, but it concerns him that he hasn’t been showing any signs. If he really did love Renjun, the surely, he would at least be feeling tightness in his chest that signals the start of the disease.

“Hey! What’s taking you two so long? Chenle why do you look as though you’ve seen a ghost?”

“Really Jeno? A ghost? If that were the case, we would have seen him running for the hills like a mad man.”

Renjun had come up behind Jaemin and slung an arm over his shoulder as he smiled at the youngest of the group. Said male crossed his arms while making the most displeased facial expression in the history of his life. Jeno sighed heavily as he dragged Chenle away from the others, he was just hungry so waiting for them to finish talking was somewhat out of the question.

They walked after the others, enjoying the sun that shone down and sank into their skin. While Renjun was busy enjoying the summer breeze and short walk to the restaurant, Jaemin couldn’t help but let his mind wander back to Chenle’s question. Why the Hell he wasn’t coughing up flowers was a great question that he didn’t have an answer to, but maybe that was for the best. Though it was a curious thought; if it’s unrequited love then Jaemin should be suffering through the disease. Yet here he stands, strong as ever and with nothing in his way in terms of health. ‘Why the Hell not indeed’ he thought to himself.

“Do you think I should drop a class next semester? I’ve got almost the full amount of credits, so I could stand to let one go but at the same time I like a challenge. What do you think?”

“If it’s a necessary class then no, but if it’s an elective then sure.”

“You know that one class Xuxi somehow convinced me to register for?”

“The circus one?”

“No, but now that you mention it I should probably drop that one. I was talking about the physics of balloon animals class.”

“My god our university… I still can’t believe that’s actually a course.”

While the two roommates talked about classes, just ahead of them Jeno and Chenle were busy trying to figure out what in the world was going on with their friends. It was quite obvious that this wasn’t simply friendship anymore but the line between that and a relationship hadn’t been crossed. Jeno believed that it was possible for Jaemin and Renjun to feel the same way about each other, seeing as they turned into a ‘buy one, get one free’ deal. Chenle, on the other hand, thought that the two probably had something going on already but for whatever reason Jaemin wouldn’t disclose that information.

Chenle pointed out that Jaemin hadn’t said anything about Hanahaki disease, but it couldn’t be taken out as an ending to the situation. Either way the two looked at the situation, it seemed that someone would end up broken hearted. Depending on who it is the result could change drastically. If Jaemin were to walk away broken hearted there might not be another chance of seeing his face again. If Renjun were to walk away broken hearted there would be a definite chance of never seeing his face again.

“We should keep an eye on them. I don’t want a repeat of when it was us.”

“Please don’t remind me hyung, I still feel bad about it as it stands. Keep in mind that was three years ago.”

“How could I forget? Mine was four and I can’t shake the feeling of guilt sometimes.”

“We can only hope that this doesn’t turn into something regrettable.”

“I agree, playing match maker would cause them to hate us. Speaking of which, you need to get an answer out of Jaemin about whether or not he’s going through it. We want to solve the problem before it gets worse.”

“I’ll ask later on.”

At that moment Jeno’s phone buzzed, rather aggressively, in his pocket. He glanced at the ID then smiled brightly for the nth time that day. His brother had messaged him about getting together with the old friend group later in the month to have a sleepover. Chenle caught a glimpse of the message then started jumping up and down with great amounts of vigor.

“Hey guys, how do you feel about a get together with the old gang for a sleepover?”

“I’m down, what about you Injunnie?”

“Why not? I haven’t seen them in quite a while. The last time I heard from any of them was when Sicheng called me to talk about his boyfriend.”

“HIS WHAT NOW???”

“Oops…”