"Sehun!"

"What mom?!" I yelled lazily, typing away at my phone as I lay down in bed.

"What are you doing?"

"Studying!"

"Liar. Get down here and help me!"

"Ughhh," I groaned in annoyance, rolling over and off my bed, landing on the floor with a heavy thump. "Can't you just do it yourself, woman? I thought cooking was your job!"

"Yeah, and whooping your is also my job you ungrateful piece of !"

"Oh God, why do you make me suffer so..." I sighed dramatically, finally getting off the floor and dragging my feet to the kitchen. I stood at the doorway, yawning and uttered a polite, "What?"

"Watch these vegetables while I make a phone call. Don't let them burn. We have guests today."

"Great. I literally do everything in this house," I grumbled but did as I was told anyway, standing in front of the stove. Only because my mother's wrath was a lot scarier than this majorinconvenience. She smacked me upside the head on her way out and I tried my best to bite back the curse at the tip of my tongue.

"Watch them!" She repeated and I rolled my eyes, going back to scrolling through my Instagram. I soulessly double tapped selfies of my classmates and memes that made me chuckle dryly before stopping at one particular photo.

It was a selfie of Kim Jongin in a car, brown locks of hair falling messily over his forehead and an eye-smile on as he held up a peace sign. "Love a long ride in hot car ;)" was his caption. I went to double tap but stopped myself at the last moment, scoffing.

Yeah... No.

"Uh huh, yeah, okay. Drive safe. I'll see you soon," I heard mum chirp into the phone as she walked back into the kitchen.

She gasped, "OH SEHUN! YOU HAD ONE JOB. ONE JOB!" She yelled and I almost dropped my phone in shock, now looking at the half-burnt vegetables in the frying pan.

Well, .

Her eyebrows twitched, face contorted in anger, and once the telltale dip in her posture indicated her impending attack and her only son's impending doom, I was already preparing to making my escape.

"I'm sorry! Don't kill me!" I cried out as I bolted out of the kitchen while she bent down to grab her slipper. I didn't get very far though because one well-aimed and practiced flick of her arm later, the slipper had slapped the back of my head and I was down on the floor with a yelp.

"Headshot!" She grinned victoriously as I groaned in pain, rubbing the back of my poor head.

Mom 1. Sehun 0.
 

"Get the door!"

I rolled out of the couch in a similar fashion as earlier that morning, smiling cheekily while I stared at Amber Rose shaking her in my face. Oh yeah, gonna save that for lonely time later, I thought as I swung the door open.

"Sehunnie!" Before I knew it, I was being shoved into a middle-aged woman's chest with a loud screech of my name. I found myself dropping my phone, petrified as she placed two noisy, wet kisses on both my cheeks. "Oh my God, look at you! You're all grown up now!"

I stared at her, mortified as she leaned back to appreciate my face, pinching both my cheeks.

"Who are you again?" I asked blankly as I gave her the once over. She looked about forty and had kind, somewhat familiar eyes. But before I could even ponder over where I'd seen her before, the prominent sweat stains on her armpits caught my attention and made me twitch in disgust. My mother smacked me upside the head for the second time that day, appearing out of nowhere next to me.

"That's Ms. Kim you stupid forgetful fool," she said through gritted teeth before she greeted her friend, who screeched in a similar fashion as she hugger her.

"Come again?" I asked with a cocked brow.

"Woman, couldn't you even help carry your own luggage?!" A loud grunt sounded from behind Ms. Kim. She turned around to face the voice and rolled her eyes.

"Why else do you think I bought you that gym membership, silly?" She cooed, making him grunt even more. "He's such a dumb-dumb sometimes."

"Sehun, go help!" My own mother spanked me and I groaned.

"Why me?" I huffed but made my way to the door anyway. The things I do for this family... The guy was bent over, struggling to drag three suitcases up the porch, the glaring afternoon sun shining down on his lucious brown locks.

"Here, let me help," I said boredly as I reached for the smallest suitcase. I wasn't ready to carry anything heavy.

The guy looked up and his hazel eyes met with mine, making me almost jump back in surprise.

"What the- Kim? Kim Jongin?!" I exclaimed, looking my childhood friend and neighbor up and down in shock. To say he looked different from his 12-year old self would be an understatement. He was dressed in a loose sleeveless black shirt and jeans, showing off his tall stature and toned muscles popping underneath perfectly tanned skin. "What the are you doing here? Weren't you like in Canada or something? And what's with all the luggage?"

"No offense, but it's hot as , so can we get in before we begin the interrogation session?"

"Oh yeah, sure," I replied, dazed as we made our way in through the front door. I could hardly believe he was really there in front of me. So you just casually waltz back in here after all this time, huh? I thought bitterly. Jongin put the suitcases down with a sigh, eyes downcast.

"There's on the floor," he said blankly and I jumped, picking up my forgotten phone that was still lying on the floor at the doorway.

"Oh no my beautiful ies," I cooed as I wiped my phone gently and placed it in my pant pocket. I looked up to find Jongin eyeing me in amusement.

"Long time no see," he smiled, showing off shiny pearly whites that made me almost flinch back at the brightness. Last time I checked, this wasn't a Colgate commercial.

"Yeah it's been a minute," I mumbled as I shut the front door.

"Oh man, finally some AC. The car's AC is broken so I was literally dying on the way here," he sighed as he walked in casually, crashing into the couch as if he owned the place.

I looked him up and down, silently appreciating his sweaty, muscular arms and the way he brushed his wet bangs off his face. I'd seen him countless times on Instagram and Facebook but pictures barely did him any justice. He looked a lot... broader and hunkier in real life. I was honestly impressed.

"It's rude to stare, you know," Jongin cocked a brow.

"I'm sorry, I'm just having a hard time believing that you're that scrawny, skinny 12-year kid who lived next door and danced ballet in the hall when he thought no one was watching. You look..."

"Like I hit puberty?" He suggested.

"No, like puberty hit you," I said, going to sit next to Jongin on the couch, but keeping a good distance between us. "With a truck."

"I'll consider that a compliment?" He said airily as he laughed, eyeing me in my mango-stained, slightly discoloured and abused white T-shirt and brown shorts that revealed toned legs and part of my luscious thighs. Yeah, I liked to think I was pretty attractive myself. Really should have changed the shirt though. "You don't look too bad yourself."

"Thanks. But I'm kinda bummed now. I've been trying so hard to get my arms to look like that for years but eventually gave up," I grumbled, scrunching my nose up as I looked down at my own skinny arms. Well, they were still fairly toned but they were just basic pistols compared to Jongin's fully blown out machine guns.

"And you called me scrawny," he snorted. I caught the way his eyes lingered on me for a long moment, almost appreciatively. He was probably just amazed to see me at such a long time. "Anyway dude, I need some cold soda, pronto."

"Oh, you'll find some in the fridge."

Jongin blinked at me.

"What?"

"I can't get up," He said flatly.

"Oh yeah you're tired. MOM! JONGIN WANTS SOME SODA!"

"GO GET HIM SOME YOU LAZY PIECE OF ."

I groaned, "Do you see how difficult my life has been?"

"I shudder to think about it," he said with a sarcastic laugh, "You haven't changed one bit."

"Yeah, yeah, now I'm just even more awesome."

"We'll see about that," Jongin chuckled as I finally went up to get him his drink. As I poured the soda into a glass, I heard my mother gushing excitedly to her close friend as they caught up on mundane things while setting up the dining table.

Nine years is a long time.

I remembered crying as I watched my best friend in the world drive away to another country with promises that he'd visit regularly. Ones remained unfulfilled until today. I remembered spending the weekends alone and feeling bored as hell. I remembered the occasional phone calls that had us giggling into the pillows as we talked about girls and cooties and how funny s were. I also remembered how the more time had passed, the more we drifted apart. Frequent calls turned into sporadic texts but even those became few and far between as we both got caught up in our own lives.

And at 18, I remembered seeing Jongin update his Facebook relationship status - With a guy. He publicly came out on social media, posting all sorts of selfies and pictures with his new boyfriend. Kyungsoo was his name.

I couldn't help but feel distaste for him since that day. It wasn't like I was homophobic or anything like that, because really, I wasn't. I just felt odd that my long time childhood best friend just suddenly turned out to be gay... And sort of annoyed that he didn't even bother telling me first. Even though we didn't text all that often but come on, that was big news. I thought I deserved to at least know about it before his 500 fake Facebook friends did.

It felt oddly natural having him back though. It was almost as if nothing changed, although almost everything did.

"Sehun, move the suitcases out of the doorway already. Take Jongin's into your room," mum said as she came into the kitchen with Ms. Kim in tow.

"Wait, Jongin's rooming with me?"

She cocked a brow, "Well where did you think he was gonna sleep?"

"Uh, the couch?"

"Ah you're so funny," she smiled sweetly though her eyes were anything but. I already knew what that look meant. Behave or you shall die.

"I see Sehun retains his cold sense of humour. What a goofball," Ms. Kim said cheerfully, "You have no idea how excited Jongin was to come see you."

"He was?" I perked up.

"Oh yeah. He kept gushing about it the whole ride here. He really missed you."

He missed me? I couldn't help the warmth that spread through my chest on hearing that. But I pretended I didn't care much and simply hummed in response, picking up Jongin's drink and quietly leaving the kitchen.
 

"Mmm... This lasagna is fantastic!" Jongin moaned as he shoved a spoonful into his mouth, white sauce dripping off the corner of his lip.

"Thanks, sweetie. I hope you've missed my cooking! I know your mother was never really gifted in that particular department," my mum teased as she looked at her friend.

"Hey!" Ms. Kim retorted but laughed good-naturedly, "You should stick to roasting chicken and not your guests."

Jongin laughed, "I've forgotten a lot of things, Ms. Oh, but your cooking is not one of them. My mum's cooking however, I wish I could forget."

"Oh I didn't realize we were pointing out each others' flaws now. Well in that case, Jongin has a tiny rainbow tattoo on his left buttcheek that he got when he was drunk. And underage," she said sweetly, narrowing her eyes at her son. I snorted. Wait seriously? I kinda wanna see that.

"Mom!" Jongin widened his eyes, cheeks red and scandalised, "We agreed to keep that a secret! How dare you break our sacred bond of trust!"

"That's a little extreme," Mum said pitifully but giggled to herself. "Hey, I have one on her. We once had a sleepover at my house and she got lazy to use the toilet before sleeping. In the middle of the night, she had the pee dream and completely wet my bed. Minor detail, we were 17."

Ms. Kim gasped, "Well I remember when you accidentally gave me your shoebox full of s on my birthday instead of the actual shoes you bought me! I opened that in front of my boyfriend! Minor detail, she was married."

"Okay now this is just traumatizing," I dropped my fork as I looked to Jongin who was sporting an even more horrified expression on his face.

"That's not really appropriate to say in front of the boys but since we've already crossed that line... Do you remember when your husband wanted to-"

"Okay that's enough, we're trying to eat and I really don't wanna hear you guys complain about your ex-husbands," Jongin groaned and I nodded profusely in agreement.

"I would complain about him... if he wasn't dead now," Ms. Kim said and everyone visibly tensed up. Jongin was never really attached to the guy - he was just a step father, but bringing up his death at a reuinion was pretty dark. I groaned. Great, so now I'm supposed to be all sad even though I never met the guy? Way to ruin my meal. She looked up at us strangely before bursting out in laughter all of a sudden. "In all honesty though, good riddance. He was an ." She said casually as she took a sip of her wine. Everyone at the table visibly relaxed and I only grimaced.

Oh yeah, now I'm starting to remember how psychotic this woman is. No wonder she's friends with my mom.

 

"So what brings you guys back here?" I finally asked after a while of just lounging around on the couch, flipping through Netflix with Jongin.

"It's summer break, your mom got in touch with mine and we decided to have a little vacation over here. You know... To revisit our old home. Which is owned by someone else now obviously so we came to the next best thing."

I clicked my tongue, "So how long you staying for?"

"Until you kick us out. A month probably."

"How about today?"

Jongin shoved my head lightly, ". Just admit that you missed me."

I rolled my eyes, "I did not."

"Oh yeah you did," Jongin smirked, leaning closer almost like a predator. I briefly recalled that look. Oh no.

I began to back away but Jongin only leaned closer and not two seconds later he pounced, jumping on top of me, hands at my sides, tickling me senseless.

"Oh my- Stop! Y-You... Piece of !" I yelled in between laughs as I tried to get Jongin off of me.

"What was that?" Jongin asked as he tickled me harder, only recieving an even louder set of giggles.

"Ew y-you're sweaty! Disgusting! I-I'll get you back for this!"

"You don't sound very angry."

"I am!" I snapped, only to be overtaken by yet another set of laughs. "Dude stop... This is so gay!"

At that Jongin froze and we both stopped to take our breaths, laughter and smiles immediately dying down.

Ah . I messed up already, didn't I?

"I-I mean..." I trailed off awkwardly as I looked up at Jongin's blank stare. For a second, there seemed to be something that flickered in those hazel orbs but it was gone as soon as it came and he simply smiled.

"It's alright dude. Don't think I'm not used to your crude jokes by now," he chuckled as he got off me, sitting back down on the couch and running a hand through his hair. I sat up as well, staring at the floor. I still felt kind of icky for saying that, but what I hated more was feeling like I had to walk on eggshells around Jongin now. This is exactly what I was afraid of... What a pain.

As I was deep in thought, I distinctly felt someone's gaze burning into the side of my head and I looked up at Jongin with a cocked brow.

"What?"

"Oh nothing, just admiring the new hair. Black is a good colour on you," he gestured with his hand lazily, "Didn't see this on your social media. It's been a while since you put up a photo. And yes I beared witness to the blonde phase, the auburn phase, the cultural appropriation phase..."

"They're called dreadlocks!" I complained.

Jongin only rolled his eyes, "Anyway. I think black suits you best."

"Thanks..." I said awkwardly, starting to feel the room closing in around us, "S-So what, you been stalking me or some ?"

"Not really. Just been seeing your posts here and there. You used to put pictures up every single day, it's kinda hard to miss," he chuckled.

"Oh... Yeah. I'm not really into that anymore. I'm more of a watcher now."

"Yeah I noticed, you watch pretty much every Instagram story I put up," he said, lips quirking up. "But you also distinctly avoided liking any of my photos or replying to my messages."

I almost flinched. Yeah, I knew that one was coming eventually.

I put up a nonchalant front, "Ah you know. Life happens. I got caught up and forgot to reply. I'll also have you know my DM's are as full as Amber Rose's bosoms."

"I see the ongoing crush is still ongoing, considering that's the first thing I saw when I came into your home."

"Had to give you a warm welcome," I winked. Gee, did I just wink? He might think I'm flirting or something. Stupid.

"Hey, you don't have to be so testy around me. I'm still Jongin, you know," he suddenly said, seeming to notice my obvious discomfort. I never was one for subtlety anyway.

"I'm not," I looked away uncomfortably, scratching my head, "Anyway, I'll go see if mom needs any help."

"Obvious escape is obvious," he pointed out as I walked away, flipping him off behind my back and hearing him chuckle.

Was I happy to see Jongin again?

Yeah.

Did I miss him?

Sure.

Then why couldn't I just act normal around him? Why was I thinking twice before and after every word? And why did I care so much what his uality was? It really shouldn't have mattered... Because he's still Jongin. So why...

Why does it feel so weird to finally have him back?

 

"Dude, I'mma just borrow some of your clothes for tonight. I'm too lazy to open my luggage," Jongin said as he walked in after me, eyes curiously scanning my room. I wasn't really big on decorating, so it looked pretty basic. The only thing that stood out was my large queen-sized bed and the sheer adundunce of books scattered on my shelves and my desk (which were never arranged because I never had the time nor energy for such mundane tasks). There was nothing personal in it, not even a framed photo in sight on my plain baby blue walls that I never bothered to paint over even though the colour was a bit childish.

"Knock yourself out," I mumbled, gesturing to my large closet as I jumped into bed with my phone. I briefly recalled how we did this all the time back when we were kids - the random sleep-overs, where he'd just pop open my closet at any time and grab some clothes, and I'd do the same at his place. I guess some things really didn't change, huh.

"Looks about the same as I remember," he commented briefly as he shuffled through my closet where the clothes were never folded. "Even in here."

"Are you judging me, Kim Jongin?" I glared at the back of his head but he only chuckled.

"Not really. I kinda missed this place. I'm glad it doesn't look too different."

I hummed noncommittally as I went through my Facebook.

"You sure must have a lot of friends now since you're on your phone so much."

"Not really," I shrugged, "If I had many friends, I'd probably be out hanging out with them and not staying home all the time."

"You were always more of an indoor person."

"Not always. I had a long phase of outdoor adventures. I was barely home. But I gotta admit, my bed still remains my favourite place in the world."

"That's because you're lazy," he droned as he finally dug out a random blue T-Shirt and shorts. He then went to get a pair of boxers from the very same drawer he remembered. "Oh we're wearing minion boxers now. I bet that gets all the ladies."

"It's not the boxers that gets the ladies, but what's underneath them. That's were the good stuff's at," I said matter-of-factly. He looked at me thoughtfully, cocking his head to the side.

"Can't argue with that," he smirked as he pulled out a gray pair of boxers before making his way into my bathroom. "I'm gonna go shower."

"Cool."

Half an hour later and Jongin was out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped around his hips, his torso in full view. And of course he had a perfectly chiseled chest and toned abs, his tan skin only making him look that much more attractive. I almost groaned because it's just not fair to have a body as perfect as that.

"So how was Canada?" I asked just to distract myself from my own envious thoughts. I also didn't want to make him feel uncomfortable with my creepy staring.

He glanced at me as he pulled my boxers up his muscled legs, disappearing under the towel. I looked away so he could change comfortably, pretending to be distracted with my phone.

I wonder if his is bigger than mine.

Wait, what?

"It was nice... Many great places to visit, wonderful people to meet," he replied so I didn't have to ponder over my weird thoughts for too long.

"Like Byungsoo? Was that his name?"

Jongin visibly stiffened and his eyes darted up to mine, but I continued to feign nonchalance.

"Yeah... Like Kyungsoo," he mumbled, "Anyway, you should visit sometime. There's so many cool places I can show you around, we'll have so much fun!"

"I'm good... Like you said, I prefer to stay home."

"What changed though? Just a couple months ago, you seemed to be having the time of your life." He asked curiously.

I shrugged, "It was a phase. I got over it. Now I just read books. It's lame but I enjoy it."

"It's not lame," he said honestly, "So what, you don't even go out to meet your friends now?"

I chuckled, "Don't have any."

"You're kidding."

"Believe it or not Jongin, but you were the only true friend I ever had."

I could feel his gaze burning into me and I looked up to find him fully dressed now, staring at me with guilt in his eyes. Geez... What's that look for?

"I mean I don't mean to sound mopey or anything," I muttered, "I quite enjoy my alone time."

"...No girlfriends?"

"Nah... Girls hate my guts, but they do love my ," I grinned. By then, Jongin was sitting cross-legged next to me on the bed, giving me his undivided attention.

"Well to be fair you kind of are a ."

"I'm just honest... I can't stand bull, and people in turn can't stand me. So yeah I do come off as a sometimes, but I'm not gonna change myself for anyone."

Jongin's face softened, "And you don't have to. You're a good guy. I'd know that. It's just that none of them understand you."

I felt my cheeks heat up slightly but I cleared my throat. "Er... I wouldn't call myself a good guy."

"I mean, you have this tough exterior and a resting face that can make even Rihanna quiver in fear. But on the inside you're just a big ball of mush."

I scowled at him indignantly. " off. I'm literally made of stone."

Jongin laughed. "And for a hot minute I finally thought you came out of your shell and made a bunch of friends."

"I did... For a while. Then I realized they were all fake and didn't give two s about me."

"Seriously? All of them?"

"Yeah, those s. They borrowed money they never returned, ditched me at parties, forced me into doing I wasn't proud of... Even all those girls that flirted with me only ever wanted to and once they get what they wanted, they never even had the decency to stick around till morning. I just felt used in the end... By everyone."

God, I'm so pathetic. Why am I opening up to him like this? Why couldn't I just say I'm having the time of my life here, since he obviously was over there? So much that he never even bothered to visit me.

It's just been so long since I had anyone to talk to. I couldn't even help myself.

"That's... Harsh. I'm sorry man," he placed a comforting hand on my knee, squeezing it lightly. I looked up at him and found that same guilty look in his eyes. "Is that why you decided to just shut everyone out?"

I sighed, "I dont know. I guess one day when I was balls deep in some random sophomore, I realized that this just wasn't fun anymore. Summer break rolled in and gave me the opportunity to ignore all those motherers for good."

"Good for you man. I'm really glad you distanced yourself from toxic people like that," he smiled softly. I looked down at his hand that was now resting on my thigh and he cleared his throat, retracting it. "I don't know... I always just assumed you were having such a good time around here. I didn't realize... Ah, I really should have been around more often."

"It's fine," I shrugged. It really was, I didn't care anymore. Jongin had his own life to live. And I wanted to hear more about it than to mope about my own. "So... How'd your mom react?"

He frowned slightly, "To what?"

"You know... When you came out," I mumbled.

"Oh... She was really accepting. She didn't throw a party or anything but... She supported me all the way."

"I'm glad," I said honestly. There was nothing worse than being disowned for being queer. I was honestly happy for him. "When did you realize it?"

He scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably, "Well... Around the time I was fifteen."

"Oh..." Three whole years of you keeping it a secret from me, I thought bitterly.

"I noticed, you know."

"Huh?" I quirked a brow questionably.

"That you've been ignoring my texts ever since I came out on Facebook."

My eyes widened for a split second but I snorted, trying to play it off. "No I didn't..."

"Don't bull me, Sehun," he said in a warning tone, face stone cold and serious. I rolled my eyes.

"Dude, honestly... We barely talked. You were too busy with your fabulous life to remember me. You never visited like you said you would. And then one day you just came out with a boyfriend out of nowhere. You didn't even care to tell me first... How did you expect me to react?"

"I didn't know how you'd react," he said softly, "That's why I couldn't tell you."

"Man I just... Ugh I sound so petty. I really considered you my best friend, even after all those years of not seeing you. It just hurt that you didn't tell me first. It's not like I was gonna hate you for being gay."

"So... You're really fine with me being gay?" He asked, seeming genuinely surprised.

"Uh, yeah! Why would I let you be my roommate if I wasn't? I don't care about that. I just thought you forgot about me and didn't even consider me your friend anymore."

Jongin blinked at me, "I would never do that! I mulled over telling you, like a lot. I just couldn't stand the thought of you shaming me... So I chickened out and took the easy way out."

"I'm honestly offended that you thought I'd disown you over this," I retorted, shaking my head in disbelief. "You know me better than that!"

"I know, it's stupid," he sighed, rubbing his forehead. But his shoulders were more relaxed now and he seemed somehow relieved. That's when I realized wow, he must have been really nervous about telling me. I could understand him, in a way. We let the truth sink in for a while as we sat in silence. Eventually he looked up at me and laughed softly. "Well that was one big dumb misunderstanding."

I found my own lips curling up. "The dumbest."

We stared at each other for a long moment before we both burst out laughing. I didn't realize how much this whole thing was weighing down on me until the weight was lifted. And it felt great, feeling like I finally got my best friend back.

"Ah man, it's so good to be back here," he said with a genuine smile, eyes glinting. I couldn't help but stare a little, because Jongin really had grown to be incredibly handsome. But there was something else apart from his appearance - his contagiously free spirit and kind personality. It just reminded me why I hung out with him so much back in the day. And why I still would now.

"It's good to have you back."


 

Jongin eventually passed out like a log a few minutes later, right while I was in the middle of recounting the tale of how I once caught my ex-girlfriend off my friend Jared in my bathroom. And as tempted as I was to kick him in the stomach so his dinner would come out of the wrong end, I decided to cut him some slack since he had come a long way and was probably really tired.

So I stared at the ceiling for a long time, hearing his obnoxiously loud snores that had me stifling another kick to his stomach.

Yeah, even that hasn't changed.

I sighed, tugging at my blanket that he was so generously hogging all to himself. I could swear he was consciously using those muscles of his to make sure it wouldn't slip from his hold. Knowing that the nearest other blanket I could get was like two rooms over, I groaned and decided to just let him have the damn thing. Too lazy to get up now, I curled into myself for some much needed warmth and tried to catch some sleep.

Just as I was beginning to nod off, two heavy limbs were suddenly draped over my body. I almost squeaked in shock but held it in. As much as I wanted to push him off, I respected other people's sleep and begrudgingly decided to leave him be. Only for tonight, I thought to myself sourly and shut my eyes.

It's also kind of warmer now, I guess.

The next week passed by mostly uneventfully, which was ideal for me. Jongin and I hung out everyday, whether it was catching up on each others' lives, bickering over mundane topics, working out together whenever he managed to get my lazy up, going for swims in my backyard pool or just silently reading some books on my bed before he eventually got bored and forced me to do something else. It was simple, but the most fun I've had in years. I wasn't going to admit that out loud though.

"Pass me the flour," Jongin urged as he put some butter into a pan. My ever-energetic friend's activity for the day was cooking. Since he hated his mom's cooking so much, he eventually picked it up himself so he could eat some half-decent meals every now and again. My mom of course was ecstatic to hear that she could stay out of the kitchen for a day, but then I was forced to help out. After a bout of whining and complaining, I was eventually dragged to the kitchen by Jongin who claimed I should learn a thing or two from him.

"Sure," I said mindlessly as I passed him a random bag. He opened it up and was about to fill a spoon but stopped halfway.

"Sehun, this is sugar."

"I mean it's basically the same thing," I shrugged.

He gaped at me, "Oh God, it's worse than I thought huh."

"Don't judge me because I don't know the slightest thing about cooking."

"Just admit you're lazy."

"I am. It's the best. Everything just comes straight to me. Case in point, I don't even know where shirts come from. I just throw them in the laundry basket and they magically show up in my closet a few days later. Crazy stuff."

He rolled his eyes as he went to search for the flour himself in all the cabinets.

"What are you making anyway?"

"Chicken and mushrooms in white sauce," he replied, beaming when he finally found the bag of flour.

"Can you just call me when you're done so I can pretend I was helping the whole time?" I groaned.

"No, I need you to help me out."

"With that exactly? Last time I 'helped' resulted in burnt vegetables and a slipper to the head."

"Well you can watch me and learn something new."

"I don't need to, I'm gonna grow up and marry a trophy wife that'll cook all my meals and my when I'm back from work."

"And who'd marry you with that greasy attitude?" He asked in amusement. "And you wonder why the girls hate you so much."

"What's not to like about me?" I complained, "I always split the bill, I don't open the door for them because it's offensive, I am honest and straightforward... And I'm hung as . I'm like the total package!"

Jongin grimaced, "Dude, you have zero tact. You're rude and spew offensive most of the time."

"Zero tact?! Are you kidding? I bet if I flirted with you right now you'd be swooning to the moon and back."

He paused and looked me up and down before chuckling. "No actually, you're not my type at all."

I cocked a brow, "What? Why not? I'm pretty hot."

"It's not all about appearance you know," he said as he busied himself with making the white sauce.

"So what is your type? Shorties like Myungsoo?"

His shoulders visibly stiffened when I said that and he sent me a side-glare. "Stop bringing Kyungsoo up."

"Why? You guys in a rough patch? Did he cheat on you? Oh I know... He gave your friend a !"

Jongin grimaced, running a hand through his hair. "Can you just stop?"

"What? I'm just tryna understand what's so good about that guy. And why the hell you find him more attractive than me."

"He's not insensitive as hell, for one."

I pouted, a little offended. I always had a lot of confidence in my looks, and it was easy for me to charm any girl into my bed. I always thought of myself as that person who can attract almost anyone. So the fact that I wasn't Jongin's type just kinda put me off.

And in my mind I knew that justification made literally zero sense but I went along with it anyway.

"Okay I'm sure I have a better than him though," I pointed out, turning a little too show off my . "Aren't you guys into that?"

He raked his eyes down to my bottom that I was purposefully jutting out just to prove my point. He smiled in amusement, turning back to the pan, "Why is this bothering you so much again?"

"I'm just tryna figure out this algorithm, ya know?"

"There's no algorithm. Attraction is attraction. Just like you straight people."

"So you're not attracted to me?" I blurted before I could even think about it. And why the hell do I sound so bitter? The ? Jongin turned to me, eyes furrowed in confusion. Eventually he turned back to the pan, clearing his throat.

"On second thought, why don't you just go out and wait? I think I've got it covered here."

"So now I'm being kicked out too? Wow, that hurts," I said dramatically as I clutched my chest.

"You're not really helping. You're just hindering my progress if anything."

"Alright, I'll be outside if you need me. By the way..."

"What?" He cocked a brow. I smirked.

"If you were a triangle, you'd be acute one."

"Get outta here already," he rolled his eyes as I laughed at my own joke, making my way back to the living room. I turned to glance at him before leaving and I swore I could see the faintest hint of red on his cheeks.

I didn't think much of it though, it was probably just the heat.

Dinner was a lot better than I expected, as it turned out Jongin had quite a knack for cooking. It was pretty impressive and I found myself going for seconds without even realizing it. Of course I was stuck with washing the dishes since Jongin did all the work, which I begrudgingly got up to do. Not without splashing Jongin with soap and water when he came in to get a drink, resulting in a full-fledged water fight that had us, and the kitchen drenched within minutes. And then I got stuck cleaning up that mess as well, with Jongin helpfully making an excuse out of going to take a shower to ditch me.

When I was finally done, I went up to my room and got into a change of clothes, throwing the drenched ones into the laundry basket. I could hear Jongin still in the shower and decided I'd do some reading until he came out.

Most of my collection comprised of young adult fantasy or horror novels. The more demons, blood and , the better. It was just something I liked to pass the time with.

Within a good fifteen minutes of reading, I was pretty hooked when I found myself reading a very vividly described scene between two males. It wasn't the first time I read something like that, I just never really paid much attention to it before. But now that I had a gay best friend, I subconsciously felt the need to read it more... intensively. Just out of curiosity, of course. I began to imagine all the events unfolding in my head, which was one of my favourite things about reading. But as I liked to put a face and body to my imagination, I found myself unconsciously imagining Jongin's in there. You know, cuz he's the nearest gay person I can think of. Totally reasonable. Bent over on the bed, buttcheeks spread, and groaning into the pillows as a thick dragged in and out of him while lewd squelching noises echoed throughout the room.

I found myself biting my lip at the image. My vivid imagination was honestly making that particular scene a lot more worthwhile. Even though it was a gay scene, and I was pretty straight, I found myself getting a little .

", seriously?" I groaned as I looked down at my obvious bulge, covering it up with my blanket. Yeah, it's also been a while since I had any action. That was probably why I was so affected by that particular scene. That's also totally reasonable.

I continued to read through it though, feeling my blood rush south at the even more lewd images that followed. Of a certain hazel-eyed brunette straddling hips, ing himself down on a thick as he threw his back in euphoria. His pace was quick and unsteady as he chased his , tugging at his own member as he brought himself to completion with a loud moan, all over pale, toned abs that suspiciously look a lot like mine.

And in that glorious moment of ecstasy, the bathroom door was opened and the book practically flew out of my hands, my eyes wide, face completely red and body completely still.

"Scared me, man!" I breathed, watching the frown that marred Jongin's handsome face.

Oh great, and now he's too.

He had a towel wrapped low on his hips as usual, perfect tan abs and sculpted chest in full view, looking like he just walked straight out of some creepy teenage fan fiction.

"Gee, didn't realize I looked like the grudge," he retorted, probably mistaking the horror in my eyes for actual fear as I shamelessly ran them up and down his body.

And it just so happened that my pants got even tighter at that very moment. Now this… This is not so reasonable.

I gulped, quickly averting my gaze and reaching for my book again. Okay seriously Sehun? What the ? Control your ... Right now!

"Hey, you okay? You look really tense."

"I'm fine," I mumbled, trying to seem really focused on my book when I literally couldn't even read two words altogether. My mind was completely blank, save for one particular thought.

Jongin.

"You look kinda sick," I almost yelped when said guy was right in front of me, placing a hand on my forehead, face scrunched up in concern. Not that I looked at it very carefully because I was literally face-to-face with his crotch. And lord help me I could not stop looking.

"I-I'm uh... I'm not sick," I stuttered, eyes still glued to the outline of his towel and the way leftover droplets of water were disappearing into it, almost as if tempting me. And I couldn't help the overwhelming curiosity that filled me up.

Just do it.

"Yo... My face is up here," he said in a slightly annoyed tone. I gulped again and looked up at him with a mix of confusion, nervousness and, well, straight up lust.

He seemed a little taken aback with the look I was giving him and he stared back at me, waiting for me to say something. I didn't, I just watched as his gaze slowly morphed into something unreadable.

"Jongin," I whispered, sitting up in my bed as I continued to look up at him. Why I called him though, I had no idea, because nothing else came out of my mouth and I continued to stare at him dumbly.

"Well, this is awkward," he said, voice low and somewhat deeper than usual.

"Are you still dating Kyungsoo?"

He frowned in confusion at the abrupt question. "Huh...?"

"You never changed your relationship status. But then you also haven't been posting about him."

"So you have been paying attention," he quirked his brows up.

"Just shut up and tell me," I didn't even bother hiding my impatience.

"How can I-"

"Jongin."

He sighed in annoyance, "Why does it matter so much to you?"

"Because..." I racked my brain for an answer, but in the end I was unable to find one. Ah screw it. "Because it just does, okay?"

He blinked at me in confusion, searching my face for some sort of explanation for my odd behaviour. He eventually sighed and ran a hand through his wet hair.

"Well if you really have to know, we're on a break right now."

"Okay..." I nodded, exhaling slowly. Wait, why was I relieved to hear that? Because it somehow justifies the dumb thing you're just about to do? Yeah, sounds about right.

"Can I... Try something?"

"Huh?"

"I'll take that as a yes," I blurted as my hand reached forward, softly landing on his toned abs. His eyes widened in shock as he stared down at me in disbelief.

"Sehun, what are you- Ah!"

Without warning, I slid my hand down and grabbed him where it mattered most, feeling his limp through the towel. He immediately smacked my hand away and jumped back, face red hot, flustered and completely taken aback.

"Dude, what the actual ?!" He yelled, eyes wide. It didn't take long before surprise turned into anger and he was glaring daggers at me, demanding an explanation. I couldn't deny that he looked really intimidating like that, in all his half- glory. He was also a lot bigger than me and it seemed like he was about to beat me to a pulp.

But then at the same time even that kind of .

Which was very inappropriate and very, very odd. Because last time I checked, I was straight. But all I could think about at that moment was ripping that towel off his body and ing him senseless into my mattress.

And that, admittedly, actually sounded really fun.

That's it for part one! Will update the next part soon enough, so don't forget to leave your comments because your support means a lot to me! Until next time!

Song of the day: "Trauma" by EXO. Love love love this song, one of my faves from EXO. It's so light and groovy and makes me wanna dance. It also has a nice summer vibe that fits this story.