“Have you heard the latest gossip going around?” Jaemin asked his group of friends as a form of greeting the moment he sat down at their table for lunch. He was met with blank stares from all three of the other boys. Really, even though they were a university filled with boys, one would think at least some of them would be updated with things around the school. They can’t possibly depend on Jaemin every single time something interesting happened.

 

“You guys are hopeless,” he continued instead.

 

Next to him, Hyunjoon rolled his eyes, “just spit it out, Nana, we don’t have all day.”

 

“Funny you’re the one saying that,” the pink-haired boy said with a small grin. “You’re going to be quite interested in this one, since it’s about you.”

 

“About Hyunjoon? This Hyunjoon?” Dongju asked immediately after, pointing his fork at the boy who sat across him. “Why would anybody talk about Hyunjoon?”

 

“Excuse me—“

 

“Well,” Jaemin said before the other boy could complain further. “It’s not about him exactly. Somebody wrote on the bathroom wall some time this week. You know, the one on the 3rd floor that’s notorious for bringing couples together? It’s always updated with love confessions and the like, but this time, it wasn’t anything direct. All it had were Hyunjoon’s initials and a heart next to it, followed by a tiny note that said it was for a junior student.”

 

If that were so, then Hyunjoon definitely hadn’t heard about it yet. Although it was no surprise that Jaemin knew first, judging by the look on Dongju and Felix’s faces, neither of the other two knew either. Well, the latter had yet to say a word since he’s been eating his sandwich in a hurry to get to his next class earlier and copy homework, but he finally decided to swallow everything down long enough to get a few words into the conversation.

 

“Oh, I actually know this one,” Felix said in between gulps of water, surprising the rest of his friends. “Yeah, I heard it from Eric recently, since he’s friends with Hwang Hyunjin. You know, the only other student in our batch that has the same initials? Now there’s a bet going around about which one of you two would end up in a relationship with your secret admirer first.”

 

“Yup,” Jaemin confirmed, pleased that at least one of his best friends were useful. “No offense, Hyunjoon, but my bet’s on Hyunjin.”

 

“I feel so betrayed,” Hyunjoon said dramatically, heavy Busan accent pouring through with his emotions, pointing his spoon accusingly at the boy next to him with his other hand placed over his heart. He clutched at his chest and gave his best hurt expression, while Dongju and Felix watched, amused. “You’re just voting for him because he’s friends with Lee Jeno, aren’t you?”

 

“Absolutely.”

 

The raven-haired boy turned to his other friends, “what about you guys?”

 

“I’m also betting on Hyunjin,” Dongju said solemnly, giving Jaemin a high five immediately after.

 

“Felix?”

 

“Yeah, I already told Eric and Bomin that my vote’s on Hyunjin.”

 

“Some friends you guys are.”

 

The thing was, if anybody actually bothered asking Hyunjoon for his opinion on the matter, he would have agreed with his friends. He’s never really gotten a chance to talk to Hwang Hyunjin before, even if they were currently classmates for that year, but he’s definitely noticed the other boy. If anything, Hyunjin was someone who was hard to ignore, with the way he just seemed to carry himself with an aura that just made people notice him.

 

It didn’t help that they were classmates for the period Hyunjoon had right after lunch.

 

He entered the classroom all too aware of the whispers that began the moment he stepped in, along with the wary glances that was being thrown his way, and then towards the lone figure seated at the back of class. Hwang Hyunjin was already seated, but he seemed oblivious to what was happening around him, as he idly doodled something on his notebook. Trying his best to ignore the sudden attention himself, Hyunjoon sat himself in his usual seat, right in front of the other boy.

 

He tried not to jump when he felt a tap on his shoulder.

 

He only barely succeeded.

 

“Hyunjoon?” Hyunjin asked when the other boy had turned around to face him. “Heo Hyunjoon, right?”

 

“Y-yes,” the black-haired boy stammered out. He didn’t even know why he was acting so nervous, but he’s never really been good with talking to new people, and definitely not people who were distractingly good looking. He could practically feel rather than hear the whispers grow louder the moment they began to converse, but he tuned them out. It was easy focusing on the other boy.

 

Hyunjin smiled sheepishly, “sorry if this is sudden, I just couldn’t help but wonder if you’ve heard what’s been going around recently.”

 

“The writing on the wall, right?” Hyunjoon replied, thankful that he sounded much more stable now, although his Busan accent still threatened to jump into the conversation. “Yeah, I heard about it just earlier, actually. Kind of a hassle, don’t you think?”

 

“Definitely. I’m not used to so much attention.”

 

Really? That wasn’t something Hyunjoon would have expected coming from the other boy, who wasn’t just good looking, but talented as well. He was often the school poster boy for dance competitions, which Hyunjoon himself would have loved to join, if he wasn’t so often swamped with school work. Maybe he was a little bit of a nerd. That just made him all the more certain than the confession wasn’t meant for him.

 

Apparently, Hyunjin didn’t think so.

 

“My friends think it’s hilarious that I’m even considered and I have to agree,” the brunette said with a small chuckle, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. “They’ve all bet against me.”

 

“Really?” Hyunjoon asked, genuinely surprised. “My friends all bet against me, too. It feels great having their support and all, but I actually think they have a point this time.”

 

At that, the other boy had smirked a little bit, “is that so?”

 

“Yeah,” he continued to babble on before he could stop himself, since Hyunjoon always was bad at shutting up around attractive people, and the smirk on Hyunjin’s lips just made the other boy look even more attractive than usual. Honestly, Hyunjoon’s never really thought about him that way before, but now that he’s started, he couldn’t seem to stop.

 

“You’re way more good looking than I am,” Hyunjoon blurted out before he could stop himself, blushing immediately after, which he was certain would be way too obvious against his pale cheeks. Before he could say anything more, their professor for that class entered the room, effectively shutting up the whispers of the other students and also making Hyunjoon face back towards the front.

 

He was glad about that, at least, but he didn’t miss the way Hyunjin’s smirk merely grew wider.

 

A few seconds later, Hyunjoon could practically feel the way the boy behind him leaned in closer, before he heard a low voice speak right next to his ear.

 

“I think you’re cuter though.”

 

If he had looked back, he would have seen the pleased smile on Hyunjin’s face, no doubt from the way his blush had managed to spread from his cheeks all the way down his neck and towards the tip of his ears. It was a lot harder paying attention in class that time, but Hyunjoon had to force himself not to think about what just happened, chalking it up as a weird hallucination even if he knew very well that it wasn’t.

 

When class ended, Hyunjoon nearly tripped on his own two feet getting out of there as quickly as possible.

 

“Emergency,” he said when he bumped into Dongju in the middle of the hallway, immediately dragging the other boy with him before Dongju could even get a word in. He knew that they shared a break that time, anyway, with the other boy no dou