“Baby, come on. You’re so slow.” Joonmyeon laughed as he glanced over his shoulder at you.

Little does he know, that made your heart flutter. You could die hanging on the words he says. Did he mean it as a flirty name or just a name for a friend? He was so hard to read.

“Maybe if you helped me carry something.” You squinted your eyes at him, the cake in your hands feeling like it would fall.

“I was seeing if you’d try to carry all the birthday stuff by yourself.” He grinned and took the cake.

His smile was so cute. You wanted to pinch his little cheeks. Ever since you met him in that math class in high school, you swore to yourself you wouldn’t fall for that stupid smile. But the closer you became, the easier it was for him to unravel all resistance you had built up.

As you walked into Baekhyun’s apartment, you heard several friends ask Joonmyeon about his vacation trip with Sehun, Minseok, and Jongdae. It was a guys only holiday, so you kept up to date with their adventures through social media. They spent a week and a half at a gorgeous resort. You were pretty jealous, to say the least.

“How you holding up, champ?” Chanyeol teasingly asked you, resting a hand on your arm.

“I will set you on fire.” You warned, and his touch was gone.

“Sounds like somebody didn’t confess.”

“Hush!” You hissed, making sure no one heard, “If he hears you, I promise I’ll kill you, and it’ll look like an accident.”

“God, you are so violent today. Who lit the fuse on your tampon?”

“You know there’s no way I’d tell him.”

“I’ll do it for you. Where did he go?” Chanyeol looked around the kitchen as you glared even harder at the tall boy.

A hand suddenly pinched Chanyeol’s ear and yanked him back.

“If looks could kill, Y/N would commit capital murder. Quit teasing her, you .” Kyungsoo shooed Chanyeol away and turned back to you, “Why does he even know?”

“In high school, he took my diary out of my backpack thinking it was my notes. He has yet to let me live it down.” You sighed, placing the gift bag on a counter.

“But he does have a point.”

Your glare returned quickly, finding a new victim.

“What? You really should confess. What if he feels the same?”

“I can tell he doesn’t. I’ve been friendzoned ever since he called me ‘bud’ and finger gunned me.” You rolled your eyes at the memory.

You remembered that night you had a project to finish and Joonmyeon got a text from a girl saying yes to his date offer. Of course, he didn’t want to leave you to do the rest of the work, but you assured him it was fine. “Thanks, Bud.” Bang. Bang. You would be even saltier if she hadn’t stood him up last minute. You also remembered how upset he was when he came back over and how quickly he brightened up when you suggested watching his favorite movie. That adorable little smile and those actual peachy cheeks… kind of like how he looked right then talking to Jongdae. God, you were in deep.

“Please stop staring. You’re being embarrassing.” Sehun huffed next to you, knocking you out of your daze.

“Shut up. I wasn’t staring.”

“Sorry, ogling. You got a little drool right there on your chin,” He pretended to wipe it away as you swatted at his hand, “But there is something I need to tell you.” His voice lowered.

“What? About Joonmyeon?”

“Yeah… Um, on the plane, Jongdae and I were bothering him, and I happened to glance down at his phone. A picture of you and him was his lockscreen. So we-”

“I’m his lockscreen?” You felt excitement bubbling up in your chest.

“He was in the picture too. Calm down. Anyways, we started teasing him about it and asked if he liked you or something.” Sehun looked down at his hands for a moment, and you knew Joonmyeon’s answer.

That excitement fell to the pit of your stomach, and you wanted to throw up. The room was suddenly warm. The air was thick; you couldn’t breathe correctly.

“Why would you tell me that?” Your voice cracked.

“I don’t want to see you pining after someone who doesn’t like you back. It felt selfish not to tell you. Now it’s starting to feel selfish telling you. You shouldn’t waste your time on something that’s not going to happen. I’m sorry I told you.”

“But- How- I don’t understand. He’s been so sweet to me, calling me ‘baby,’ paying for my food, surprising me with candy.” You grasped at words but couldn’t comprehend the situation. Every hug, every hand held, every lingering glance, none of it was real. Was it only in your head the whole time?

“Y/N, he’s just really friendly. You’re one of his best friends, so he’s going to be like that with you.”

“As much as I want to die right now, thank you fo