Renjun sighed, leaning his head on Jaemin's shoulder, tired. “How long will this thing last? I’m cold.”

Jaemin patted his head in sympathy, the textbook he'd tried reading before the guys had come out and started playing laying closed on the seat beside him. "It'll be a bit longer, I'm afraid. They're just getting started."

Renjun groaned. 

It was the soccer team's last practice game before the real match out of town tomorrow, and Jeno had begged them to come wait for him so they could all go eat something together when they were done.

They were acting as some sort of a moral support for him, and it worked out great with resolving the tension between them two, too.

For a moment Renjun had hesitated sitting beside Jaemin in case he was still in a bad mood, but Jaemin had just sighed and pulled him closer, making sure they could share their body heat against the chilly evening air. 

It was as easy as that, settling back to how it usually was between them. Neither of them had addressed it, simply letting it go without an apology, fully knowing it was going to happen again sooner or later.

Renjun was just glad Jaemin seemed to have been able to sleep a bit better, his mood stabilizing drastically with a more regular sleeping rhythm that gave his mind and body some time to rest and cool off.

The worst was still ahead when the actual exams came around and Jaemin would be back to walking around absolutely exhausted with a pale face, tired eyes and zero patience.

But Renjun would take this moment for now, even if it included freezing their asses off as they stared at Jeno running around the field like the ball he was chasing was made out of gold.

He had missed this,  hanging out together even in silence as they watched Jeno play, sitting so close that their thighs were touching.

"Need a jacket?"

Renjun nodded without thinking until Jaemin started taking off the baseball jacket that Jeno had offered him while he was busy that Jaemin had draped over his shoulders.

“No, you’ll be cold,” Renjun argued, trying to suppress a yawn but failing.

Jaemin tried to hide the way his mouth stretched in one of his own. After he was done, he chuckled and poked Renjun’s nose, “Cold and tired? You’re like a little baby.”

It wasn’t condescending at all, just fond. Renjun willed the heat of embarrassment from his cheeks away. "Shut up."

"Get up," Jaemin told, patting his thighs. "I'll let you sit on my lap."

Renjun's head snapped at him, dumbfounded. It wasn’t like he’d never sat on either one of their laps, but he still felt a bit flustered doing it here where anyone could see.

Jaemin just nodded, patting his thighs again. "Come on, you weigh like nothing. And it's cold."

“Oh, uh… okay. Like- like this?” he asked as he was about to sit with his back against Jaemin’s chest, eyes still on the field – the way they usually did it.

“No, just turn around and lean against my chest. You can put your hands under my jacket so neither of us will get cold. And you can rest against my shoulder, if you want. It's gonna take a while till Jeno’s done.”

“Okay,” Renjun whispered quietly as he turned around, feeling too embarrassed to look Jaemin in the eyes. He placed his legs on both sides of his waist, straddling him before he softly leaned forward, his hands cradled carefully between their bodies, feeling a little shy.

Jaemin adjusted him better in his arms, making sure his bare hands were covered while one of his guided Renjun's head on his shoulder so he could get more comfortable.

"You can close your eyes. I won't mind."

And Renjun was too tired to argue, the vague shouts coming from the field drowning under the sound of his own heartbeat. It was so loud he was certain even Jaemin could hear it.

But the warmth of his chest was so comfortable, making him even more drowsy. And when Jaemin hugged him even tighter, arms wrapping loosely against his lower back, it didn’t take long for Renjun to nod off, wondering hazily if this was Jaemin's way of trying to apologize.

Renjun must’ve actually fallen asleep at some point during the practice, rousing from his little nap only when he heard soft murmuring around him. He shifted on Jaemin’s lap, groaning as he buried his face deeper into Jaemin’s neck.

Jaemin’s laughter rumbled in his chest, making Renjun flush red as he felt it against his own body. He blinked his eyes open and lifted his head, feeling like the bright lights of the stadium were trying to blind him. 

“Okay, he’s up,” Jaemin exclaimed.

"I figured," Jeno stated, rolling his eyes. 

Slowly, Renjun's thoughts started forming again, and he realized the field was mostly empty. The practice must've ended a while back and the others had already grabbed their things and left, leaving just them and a few others that were too caught up chatting somewhere a bit further away.

He quickly jumped on his feet, ignoring the amused looks he received when he stumbled, almost falling over if Jeno’s hand hadn't quickly shot out to help him before he tripped over his own feet.

Embarrassed, he looked up and tried to act cool. “Good game.”

Jaemin snorted from somewhere behind him, and Jeno was having a hard time stifling his laughter. “Renjun, I didn’t play for like half the practice. I was busy discussing the season with coach.”

“Right. Sorry,” he scrunched his nose, giving him an apologetic smile.

“It’s fine. You must've been tired.”

“Maybe... Just a little though,” he quietly admitted, his gaze dropping down his hands, fingers playing with the pokemon bandaid on one of his fingers. It had been a restless week through and through, but he'd rather not talk about it.

Fortunately for him, his stomach growled loudly, giving them all a distraction to grab onto.

Jaemin grinned, throwing his arm around his shoulder and poking his side teasingly, “Let’s get this baby some food. I think he’s shutting down.”

“All right,” Jeno laughed, agreeing. But he stopped when he spotted someone a few meters away from them. “Hey, why don’t you two go ahead? I’ll catch up with you guys in just a sec.”

Jaemin gave him a confused look. Renjun was too busy using him as a pillar to sleep against to really pay attention to the situation. Jeno smiled and ruffled both of their hairs affectionately before telling them to just order his usual, tossing his half-empty bottle of gatorade at Jaemin.

Jaemin numbly caught the bottle, only able to watch, stupefied, as Jeno turned around and jogged towards a familiar looking girl not too far from them. Yerim, as usual, was surrounded by a mixed group of friends she was busy enthusiastically explaining something to.

It was one of those things Jaemin could never understand about her. How was she able to make so many friends with such different backgrounds so easily? Jaemin couldn't even if he tried. How he even got in Donghyuck’s favor was still a mystery.

But there she was, charming as ever, and Jaemin could only look at the way Jeno's whole face lighted up when he greeted her, eyes crinkling in delight in a way they did when he was happy.

And Jaemin wondered, not for the first time, if there really was nothing more between them.

Because Jeno was always talking about her, always hanging around with her if he wasn’t with them, and he paid so much attention to everything she said or did that Jaemin couldn’t help but to think he had some kind of feelings for her.

They were close at least, that was for sure, but Jeno was tighter with them, right? With him and Renjun. His friends. His best friends that he’d known for ages now, practically all his life. And Yerim had that crush on that older guy, Johnny was it? So there was no way they were dating, right?

Good god, he at least hoped so. Not that he wouldn’t be happy for them, of course! He would be, he just… thought it might get weird with one of them dating and not having that much time for him after that. Especially since it was Jeno’s place they usually hung out at anyway. That’s all.

Jaemin’s eyes lingered on Jeno's face till Renjun’s quiet whines of being cold brought his attention back to the baby in his hands. “Come on, let’s go get some food. Jeno’s probably going to take a while.”

“Hey,” Jeno greeted as he threw his hand over her shoulder. Yerim scrunched her nose, finding the horrific smell of an after-practice teenage boy athlete absolutely distasteful.

She told her friends to go without her before shrugging his hand off of her shoulder with a disgusted groan. "You stink."

Jeno lifted an eyebrow. "What happened to hi, hello, how are you?"

"Hi," Yerim deadpanned, lifting her hand in a mock greeting. "Hello. How are you? Now get away from me. Seriously, you stink."

Jeno shrugged, stuffing his hands to his pockets and taking a step back, creating some distance between them. “Yes, fine, okay, I stink. for you. Anyway, you want to come join us?”

“Us?” Yerim questioned, looking exasperated. “There's no one here. Seriously, Jeno, you do this all the time. And I know I’m amazing, but I’m not a psychic. With who? Where? What for? When?”

Jeno cringed. “Me, Jaemin and Renjun. We’re just going to grab some food and maybe watch a movie later. Why don’t you join us?”

“Oh,” she said, blinking in surprise. She'd been totally caught off-guard by that offer. “I don’t know. Your… friends don’t really like me. Or something. I don't know. It just really doesn't feel right to tag along with you.”

“No, they–“ Jeno paused and gave her a sheepish smile, “I guess they’re not that good with other people. You know how they are, they prefer less of a crowd, especially Renjun.”

Yerim laughed, “God, I’m fine with it, really, don’t worry. I just don’t want to upset them by hogging all your attention.”

“You’re not! You’re like… like a sister I never had!”

“Ew, gross. Jaehyun is already annoying enough, thanks. Seriously, I don’t even know why you're even asking, I would just be intruding.”

“Huh? I mean, you don’t have to come if you don’t want to?”

Yerim stopped and rubbed her temples with a sigh, “Look, you’re dumb, nothing new there. But I didn’t want to think you were actually dumb dumb.”

Jeno just blinked at her, making her shake her head in disappointment. "So that's a no?"

“Go get your friends and enjoy your night. You don't need to worry about me, Mark's giving me a ride back home.”

Jeno shifted a bit, “You think I should wait here till he shows up? You know, just in case?”

Yerim laughed, actually laughed, “Please, like anyone would dare to pull a stunt on me. I’ll call Mark and talk with him till he comes if you think it’s that necessary.”

“Very. I’m not going to leave you alone unattended so some creep can just come up to you and do whatever.”

"Uh-huh," Yerim told him, unimpressed. “Now, if you just had this energy with your boy friends, too, then maybe we wouldn’t need space between the two words.”

Jeno eyed her with a frown. “You've been acting all weird about them lately. This isn’t… This isn’t a cry for help, is it? Oh god, Yerim. Are you in trouble?”

Yerim rolled her eyes, “It's you who needs to stop acting so weird. Anyway, I’m calling Mark now. See? No need to wait with me, go enjoy your night now. Shoo.”

Jeno sighed, knowing he was getting nowhere with this. “Fine, fine. But I will call you later just to see if you got back home safely or not.”

"Oh my god, somehow you can be more annoying than Jaehyun at times... Just go! Hurry! The night is already starting! You won't stay young forever!”

“All right, all right, jeez. I’m going.”

“Then stop stalling!”

"God!"

Half an hour later, Jeno was choking on his burger, his whole face going strawberry red as he coughed, eyes tearing up.

Jaemin, the whole reason he was in his current predicament, was cackling like a maniac right next to him, continuously slapping his shoulders as he laughed his head off.

Renjun stared, disgusted at the food Jeno had accidentally spat out, but even he couldn't help but be amused by his short-lived misery. Honestly, Jeno's reaction to Jaemin's lewd joke was about ten times funnier than anything he'd said all night.

"You're making us look bad," he chided with a barely suppressed smile, throwing a napkin at Jeno. "We're still in public, people are staring."

"Tell... tell that to him!" Jeno choked out, almost pushing Jaemin off of his chair. 

Jaemin only snorted and promised to buy Jeno another burger if that's what it took to appease him, and that had gotten Jeno to finally calm down and agree. He'd always been an athlete that ate like one. Renjun shook his head with a fond smile on his face, quickly going back to counting his coins.

Jaemin got up, wallet in hands. "All righty then. A double layer burger with extra bacon coming right up. Renjun, you want anything?"

"Hold on a sec, I'm coming with you," he mumbled, focused on the loose change in his hands.

When they'd arrived, he'd noticed almost immediately that they had some vanilla swirl ice cream toppings he really wanted to try. He just wasn't sure if he had enough coins. And sure, his friends wouldn’t hesitate to chip in for something so small, but Renjun really wanted to use his own money.

He cheered quietly to himself when he got just enough to be able to treat himself for an ice cream. Just one more coin and- The coin slipped through his fingers and bounced on the table top before falling down to the floor, rolling away from him. 

"My ice cream!" Renjun made a distressed sound before getting up to chase the runaway coin, startling both Jaemin and Jeno, who had patiently waited for him to finish.

“Renjun?” Jaemin called, watching curiously as his friend started crawling on the floor of the fast food diner, unsure if he should help or stop him. 

Renjun couldn't hear him, too busy trying to avoid tripping people, knowing he looked absolutely ridiculous chasing after a coin like this. But it was a matter of principles, okay? It was his money, and he really wanted that ice cream. And he was so close to catching it, too, if he just reached a bit further…

His fingers almost grazed the coin before someone stepped on it, almost crushing his fingers with it. Renjun pulled his hand back in a hurry, cradling it against his chest as if burned.

“Aww, is our little princess counting his pennies? How adorable.”

Renjun froze at the familiar voice, his eyes carefully trailing along the leg in front of him till he looked up, finding the eyes of a mischievous looking older student he’d had a few run-ins on before.

“Can you…” He cleared his throat, feeling his cheeks flush with the way his voice cracked. “Just give me my coin back. Please.”

“You want your little coin? Come and get it then,” the boy taunted, picking it up and holding it high over his head, knowing fully well Renjun wouldn’t be able to reach it. 

“Oh, come on. Give it a rest,” Jaemin’s voice called out a few steps away from them. "Aren't we over this already?"

“Yeah, aren’t you all already sick of pulling the same stunt over and over again? It’s kind of lame, actually.”

The boy huffed, “Look at that. Your little protection squad is on the call tonight? Little princess needs his big, tough friends to help him out?”

Jaemin clicked his tongue, annoyed. “Yeah, no, we're just not stupid like you, acting like a toddler, calling people names and stuff. So how about it? You gonna give back that coin or what?"

The teen rolled his eyes, “Fine. Here you go.” He tossed the coin to Jaemin, who caught it with ease. "Such a ing fuss over a penny."

"Watch it," Jeno hissed, eyes stormy. He was so sick of people being such s in this hole of a town. After getting drained at the practice and trying hard to just have a fun time out with his friends, his patience was running thin.

The guy didn't respond, just scoffed and turned back to his table, not even bothering to look at Renjun's direction.

"Come on, let's get out of here. This place stinks," Jaemin said as he pocketed the coin and took Renjun's arm, pulling him after him. 

Renjun wanted to protest but Jaemin's grip on him was tight enough that he had no choice but to follow him outside.

The moment they'd pulled out of sight, Jaemin whirled around, inspecting him all over even if he'd seen everything that happened inside. "Oh god, are you okay?"

Renjun nodded, "Yeah, I'm fine."

He was used to this, especially the name calling. It wasn't the worst thing he'd been called since coming out as gay. It had calmed down in the last few years but it would probably never be completely gone.

Jaemin didn't seem too reassured, but that was fine. "Oh, and here, the coin. You still want to go back? Get that ice cream?"

"No, it's... it's okay. We already left anyway, so..."

“You know I’ll buy you all the ice creams you want,” Jaemin promised. "Any time. Just say the word."

Renjun smiled, knowing that he meant it. "I know."

"Everybody good?" Jeno asked once he caught up after them, the rest of their food in his hands. He was still looking tense, like he was ready to turn back and pummel the guy's face to the floor. "Don't mind Seomin. He's a grade A idiot, but at least he got suspended. That's what he deserves."

"I know," Renjun repeated. "I've met him."

"Good. Do you wanna go elsewhere? Mom's not home but we could still watch some movies at my place. I need to sleep early though. You know, with the match and all."

“Yeah.”

"Jaemin? You in? We could finish our food with the movie."

Jaemin shrugged, “Yeah, sure, sounds good to me. I can't stay over though. Mom set up a new curfew again, this time half an hour earlier."

Renjun frowned, "Really? Does that mean I can't come over at all on school nights?"

Jaemin grinned. "Who said that? Just come after they've gone to bed. I need to get some studying in before I get too distracted."

Renjun bit on his tongue before he could ask why he'd be a distraction at all. Instead, he agreed with a small, "Okay."

"Come on. If we hurry, we'll be able to finish one movie before Jaemin needs to go running back home."

"Ugh, I hate my mom. The curfews don't make any sense," Jaemin complained, head thrown back as he stomped after Jeno. "And they're so unfair!"

His friends both agreed, trying their best to cheer him up till Renjun made a lame joke that had Jaemin pushing him into the bush as a punishment, making them all laugh.