Soobin was sweating. How had he not realised sooner that this year would also be Yeonjun's last year in high school? It shouldn't be a big deal but it is because next year, Yeonjun will go to university and there's a lot of very pretty people there, everyone knows that. Yeah, Soobin is pretty cute himself (even if he'll never admit it out loud) but he's no match to anyone out there in uni. So, he had come to the one and only conclusion that he had to confess. Confess to Yeonjun to be more precise.

 

Yes, because, you see, Soobin had been in love with Yeonjun for as long as he can remember. Okay, maybe not that long because that would mean since they first met and Soobin was definitely not in love with Yeonjun when they met. The truth is, Soobin didn’t like Yeonjun when they met back in primary school. Yeonjun was that very obnoxious kid and Soobin being the quiet one, he couldn't stand him. Until, one day, Yeonjun had defended him when some kid in another class had told him he was weird for being so quiet and that he probably was super dumb. Yeonjun had gone all frowny face and had screamed 'Soobinnie is not dumb you’re dumb for thinking that being quiet is weird!'. And, they had been friends since then.

 

Anyway, Soobin had not been in love with Yeonjun for as long as he can remember but he can pinpoint the exact moment he realised he was in love.

 

When they entered middle school, Soobin decided to be part of the book club whereas Yeonjun decided to join the dance club. Every month, the dancing club held a little show to entertain the school and in exchange of 2000 won, anyone could come watch. Soobin, being the perfect best friend, paid 2000 won for the umpteenth time and was sitting in the audience when the lights went out. He could barely see people come onto the stage before the lights went on and Block B's Very Good began to play. The energy and confidence Yeonjun radiated during the performance caught Soobin off-guard. He had never seen Yeonjun enjoying himself so much, looking so comfortable in front of so many people. He felt like his chest was exploding and suddenly he understood that he was in love with Yeonjun. It didn’t scare him one bit because 1) he'd known he was gay the very second he stepped in middle school and blushed when he saw a guy bend down to tie his shoelaces and 2) what was more comfortable than falling in love with his best friend? Of course, after some time, Soobin realised that nothing was harder than loving his best friend.

 

High school had been a turning point. Soobin had finally mustered enough courage to tell Yeonjun he was gay and, in return, Yeonjun had told him he was panual. They had never really discussed their uality, hence why it took them both some time to tell the other, but it only brought them closer. Soobin had also left the book club to join the school choir and he had met Kai Kamal Huening who everyone called Hueningkai and his boyfriend, Kang Taehyun.

 

It was actually because of them that Soobin was sweating.

 

"I am truly astonished by the amount of time it took you to realise something so simple." Taehyun said as they sat at their usual table at lunch.

 

"And I think we had already established how much of an idiot I can be. Now, the question is: what do I do?"

 

"I thought you said you'd confess?" HueningKai said.

 

"I will. I have a letter actually I just don't know how to give it to him." Soobin whined, pulling his hair.

 

"Just give it to him and be done with it!" HueningKai said, matter of fact.

 

"I can't! It's... special." Soobin said, blushing.

 

"You've put something in it, haven't you?" Taehyun asked.

 

Soobin nodded, pleading guilty.

 

"I have an idea for you." Taehyun stated, looking at Soobin. "Yeonjun will go home at around 6 and you finish at 4. You don't live too far from his house so, you go there, leave the letter in front of his door and go home. You'll have a reply either tonight or tomorrow."

 

"That's an idea..." Soobin trailed off, pensive.

 

"I think it's great! My baby is so smart!" HueningKai said, kissing Taehyun on the cheek.

 

"By the way, why isn't Yeonjun eating with us?" HueningKai asked, smiling at Taehyun's red face.

 

"He has a test today, he'll eat when we'll be in class." Soobin explained. "Just like Beomgyu."

 

"Well, all I have to say is good luck for your confessing." Taehyun solemnly said.

 

 

Soobin was now waiting for Yeonjun in front of the dance studio. When the pink haired boy finally arrived, Soobin felt as usual. His heart stopped for a second before beginning to beat like crazy, his hands began to sweat and his body became hotter the closer his friend got. He smiled despite himself, a proof that the other guy could make his day better just by breathing. Oh, Soobin was so far gone for him.

 

"Soobinie! I thought I wouldn't be able to see you today!" Yeonjun exclaimed, stopping right in front of Soobin.

 

"Actually, I dropped by to tell you that I won't be able to wait for you today. I've promised my mom I'd go grocery shopping with her, I'm sorry." Soobin explained, feeling bad for lying but knowing it's necessary for his plan.

 

"That's too bad." Yeonjun said, pouting. Soobin wanted to kiss him so bad, that plump lower lip jutting out was so calling for him. "But I get it, you gotta fulfil your loyal son duty. It's okay, I'll see you tomorrow, right?"

 

"Yes, of course." Soobin said, trying hard not to stutter. I hope so at least.

 

"Okay then. See you Binnie!" Yeonjun said, briefly hugging Soobin before rushing inside the dance studio.

 

"Gosh..." Soobin sighed out, running a hand through his hair. "This guy is gonna be the death of me."

 

 

Twenty minutes later, Soobin was standing in front of Yeonjun's flat, the famous letter in his hand. He sighed, tightly closed his eyes, took a deep breath, exhaled and, finally, placed the envelope on the doormat and ran away.

 

 

The next day, Soobin went to school early in purpose so he wouldn't meet Yeonjun. To his relief, when he arrived to their meeting point, Yeonjun wasn't there. He also hadn't sent any message which could be either a good thing or a very bad thing. But Soobin wouldn't worry about that now. He kept on walking to school, alone, trying not to think of what could have been Yeonjun's reaction when he read the letter. When he finally saw the school's gates, he also spotted Taehyun and almost ran to him.

 

"Hi." He said.

 

"Hi." Taehyun replied. "So, how did it go?"

 

"Nothing really happened yet. I just placed the letter on the doormat and went home." Soobin explained as they made their way to their first class.

 

"Are you sure he received it? Did he message you?"

 

"Nah he didn’t but I'm sure he got it." Soobin stated, suddenly deep in thoughts.

 

What if he didn’t see it? What if someone else took it? What if his mom saw it and threw it away thinking it was some spam?

 

"Hey, calm down. I didn’t say that to stress you out." Taehyun said, placing one hand on Soobin's shoulder. "I'm sure everything's gonna be fine."

 

Soobin smiled and they entered the classroom, sitting at their usual places, waiting for HueningKai to come and talk their ears off.

 

 

Yeonjun was so excited to go to school after what happened last night. He arrived home quite late, as usual after dance practice, but he found an envelope in front of his door. He took it, looked for an address or something and entered. He asked his mother if she was expecting a letter and when she said she wasn't, he figured the letter was his.

 

He opened it and began to read:

 

Hi Yeonjunie!

I know you like shiny things but I'm broke and we're only in high school, duh, so I offer you this paper ring in hope that you'll wear it. If you do, it will mean that you acknowledge me and my feelings and that you feel the same.

With all my heart,

Soobin ♥

 

Yeonjun turned the envelope upside down and saw a pink heart shaped paper ring fall down. He took it, smiling ears to ears and tried it on. Unsurprisingly, it fit perfectly, as expected from someone as meticulous as his Soobinie.

 

He went to sleep happier than ever and got up in the morning, still happy. He put extra care in the choice of his clothes and after thinking for a bit decided to apply some lip gloss, just to feel a bit prettier. He was gonna confront his crush after all.

 

He knew that Soobin would have gone to school earlier than usual to not meet him, the silly boy. But Yeonjun wasn't about to complain, he found it very endearing. He walked to school alone, his whole body buzzing with excitement. When he reached the school gates, Soobin was nowhere to be seen, as expected but Beomgyu was waiting for him. He instantly noticed Yeonjun's happy mood but made no comment and they talked about what they'd done yesterday. Yeonjun told him about Soobin's letter and told him that everything would take place at lunch. When asked about what 'everything' was, Yeonjun simply smiled and said nothing else.

 

When Yeonjun entered the cafeteria a few hours later, he immediately spotted Soobin sitting with Taehyun and HueningKai, wearing a nervous expression on his face. Yeonjun smiled, took the paper ring out of his pocket and wore it on his ring finger before putting both his hands behind his back.

 

He walked to his friends and sat down next to Soobin.

 

"Hi guys! How are you doing?" He asked, taking his lunch out of his bag with his right hand.

 

"We’re fine, how about you?" HueningKai answered, throwing a glance at Soobin.

 

"I'm perfect!" Yeonjun cheerfully answered before turning to Soobin. "Did you go early today? I waited but you never came." He jokingly whined.

 

"Oh, I'm sorry, I should have told you... I-I wanted to come a bit early because I had a maths test first period." Soobin explained.

 

Yeonjun noticed a light blush on his cheeks but his ears spoke louder for himself: they were beet red, a sign that he was totally lying.

 

Yeonjun laughed out loud, throwing his hand back.

 

"That's okay, Binnie! Next time send a text so I don’t wait for nothing!"

 

At this moment, Beomgyu arrived, out of breath.

 

"Guys! Sorry, I'm late." He said, sitting next to HueningKai.

 

"It's okay, we just arrived too." Taehyun replied, turning to look at Soobin.

 

Soobin sniffed then coughed and turned a bit towards Yeonjun, looking at him, more precisely at his lips.

 

"Um, Jun, did you- did you apply lip gloss?" He asked, his face flushing red now.

 

"Mhm, I did. It's pomegranate, your favourite. I put it on especially for you." Yeonjun replied, leaning in.

 

"Wh-why?"

 

"It's actually a funny story, do you wanna hear it?" He asked and Soobin nodded. "I was back home from dance practice when I found an envelope on my doormat. I took it and opened it. I found this cute letter in it, it was from you." Yeonjun took said letter out from his jacket's inner pocket. "You told me to wear the ring that was inside if I felt the same as you." Yeonjun smiled widely and showed his left hand, ignoring HueningKai's gasp. "So, I'm wearing it and I want to know how you feel now."

 

Soobin stared at Yeonjun's hand for some moments, his mouth ajar before blinking once, twice and smiling to his ears.

 

"Am I dreaming? I think I drank too much hot chocolate before going to sleep. There's no way that's actually real." Soobin said, laughing out loud.

 

"Aren't you smelling the pomegranate lip gloss, Binnie? Maybe you want some?" Yeonjun asked.

 

Without waiting for an answer, Yeonjun kissed Soobin on the cheek, immediately making him go quiet.

 

A beat passed.

 

"I told you he liked you back." Taehyun said, making everyone laugh as Yeonjun and Soobin laced their fingers, loving their matching rings.