“Our game’s off. Victoria doesn’t want to do it anymore.”

Kyuhyun looked up from his laptop at what Gyuri said. She and Changmin were talking about the upcoming Sigma Mu event and he had listened only half-intently to them until Gyuri dropped that piece of information.

Kyuhyun and Changmin leaned closer. They were at one of the benches near the library and students were walking back and forth along its corridors. It wouldn’t be good to have someone they know accidentally overhear what they were talking about. 

“But I thought it was already decided that she’ll be going with Nickhun? Didn’t he already invite her?” Changmin asked in low tones.

Gyuri just shrugged. “I don’t know exactly what happened. Khun’s parents visited him this weekend and he took Victoria with him to meet them.”

“Ah, that’s it,” Changmin snorted, “She got guilty and decided to not go through with it.”

Gyuri frowned thoughtfully, “I think it’s more than that though. She was quite upset when she called me to say that I can take the victory on this one.”

Kyuhyun rolled his eyes, “She’s the one who backs out and she’s also upset about it? Girls, really.”

Gyuri just scowled at him, “You’re now a girl too,” she snapped at him and ignored Kyuhyun’s protest that he wasn’t a girl; he was still a boy who just happened to realize that he liked other boys too. “Anyway, I told her that we can cancel our charm battle this time. The party’s already this Friday and Eunhyuk hasn’t exactly asked me out yet.”

Changmin chuckled and Kyuhyun just smiled amusedly at their friend’s pout. Then Kyuhyun, as if realizing something, asked, “Wait, you mean Eunhyuk hasn’t asked you? Then that means Victoria would have won so why bother cancelling your bet?”

“That’s just it. I don’t know and no,” Gyuri added as she saw the expression on Kyuhyun’s face, “She doesn’t have any intention of dating Khun for real. So I don’t know what the deal is.” She glanced at her watch and gave a surprised yelp before she started gathering her things. “I need to run. I suppose I could say that one good thing about this is I don’t have to run after Hyuk anymore.”

“Why? Is he that bad?”

Gyuri shook her head, “No, he’s way too charming to everyone and surprisingly, he’s very popular. I didn’t fancy having to fight for his attentions with his fans and oh, even your favourite Donghae too,” she added as she waved at them before leaving.

When she was already a few paces away, Changmin suddenly grabbed his books and dashed off and Kyuhyun just managed to crumple a piece of paper before throwing it hard at the other boy’s disappearing head. Bastard! He was going to make sure not to confide anything anymore while under heavy alcohol influence to his supposedly best friend.

Kyuhyun was still in a foul mood by the time afternoon came and Changmin was wise enough to keep his chatter to a minimum in the locker rooms as they changed for soccer club practice. Surprisingly, Minho was also keeping some distance from him. Usually, he would be all over his hyungs but Kyuhyun figured the expression on his face was already familiar to the younger boy and he knew when to avoid being clingy.

Changmin possibly letting slip to Gyuri (and probably their other friends) about his former crush on Donghae wasn’t the sole reason why he was in a bad mood. The results on his last exam weren’t what he expected and he just found out that his partner on a paper for another class just dropped from the course right when the submissions for the paper was due next week. Inconsiderate jerk!

“Hey! See you on the field!”

“Uh-, y-yeah,” Kyuhyun would have liked to kick himself for stuttering but just tried to smile calmly as Yoochun gave him a pat on the shoulder as he left the room. Seriously, he should be used by now to Yoochun’s presence. Thanks to Siwon, he had been hanging around the other soccer varsity members more. His friends and Siwon’s friends and teammates have started to hang out more often whether for meals, parties or the movies these past few weeks. Probably the only thing missing was Siwon attending the Kyu-line gatherings but of course, Kyuhyun would never invite him there. He wasn’t dumb.

Kyuhyun glanced at Changmin with a glare, expecting to hear some sort of teasing, but his friend just smiled and raised his hands in surrender. “I didn’t say anything. Are you done? We’re already late.”

“Go on ahead. I want to change my shoes again.”

Changmin left and after a few seconds, the doors opened again. Two other players entered but stopped short when they saw Kyuhyun. “Yikes! Ugh, let’s just come back later.”

Kyuhyun rolled his eyes and said irritably, “I’m just done and you’ll both be late if you don’t change now. Seriously, it’s not like I actually want to take a peek and pounce or anything. No offense, but have you actually taken a good look at yourselves?”

He stomped out with a huff and for a fleeting moment, he wondered if he would get in trouble. One of those players was from the varsity and his senior as well but then Kyuhyun decided, he didn’t care. His day just kept getting better and better.

Of course he knew that people were talking. He and Changmin have only come out to their friends and their family and only admitted to being gay if others asked them point-blank. It wasn’t because they were afraid to let everyone know but more because they decided that they weren’t obliged to announce it to the world. For the most part, people treated them the same way as before but there were some who, like those players in the locker room, started avoiding them.

“Get in position, Cho!” Coach Choi shouted then blew his whistle and Kyuhyun trotted to the field where the other soccer club members were. The other side of the field was occupied by the varsity team but as usual, they were to run laps together. He noticed from the corner of his eye that Siwon turned to glance at him but he avoided meeting his gaze. Seriously, Siwon should stop smiling like that at him. 

Not because he was feeling guilty but because some rational thought was making its way through his semi-circuited brain that Siwon is a really nice guy and a very attractive one at that.

Donghae assisted Coach Choi in assembling the teams but then Donghae frowned as he surveyed his players, “Where’s Jihun? I saw him a while ago.”

No one knew but then Kyuhyun spoke up, “He just went in to change with Hyunwoo when I left the locker rooms.”

Donghae frowned some more, apparently not pleased that a varsity member was late for practice. But then he shrugged and everyone started running the laps. Kyuhyun already forgot about the incident earlier so he was surprised when Donghae suddenly came and ordered the boy running beside him to switch positions with him.

“Are you alright? Did something happen?”

Kyuhyun was confused, “What do you mean?”

Donghae shrugged, “You had this weird look on your face when I mentioned Jihun. It was as if I said something nasty.”

Kyuhyun had to chuckle at that but didn’t say anything. Nothing really happened and it wasn’t as if he couldn’t handle it on his own if something did happen.

“Look, if any of the guys give you any trouble, just tell me okay. I’ll take care of it.” 

“Thanks, hyung! You’re really sweet.”

Donghae was taken aback and blushed. He was a bit flustered and almost stumbled. He didn’t know if it was because Kyuhyun actually called him “hyung”, told him he was sweet or the dazzling smile that accompanied those statements. He cleared his throat and replied, “Not at all. Jihun’s an and I normally wouldn’t go near him. Unfortunately, he plays soccer well so I put up with him. Anyway, I don’t want anyone giving you a hard time.” 

Strange, Kyuhyun thought as he just nodded and gave Donghae a small smile. He didn’t feel anything at all. True, he had already gotten over the admiration he had for Donghae long ago but he would have thought he’d be feeling some giddiness at least at the older boy’s protectiveness.

They continued to run their laps in comfortable silence until the coach signalled it was time to divide the groups into their respective practice sessions. For the first time, Kyuhyun actually devoted all his attention and energy into practice. He ran faster, he kicked harder, he jumped higher, all these things made Changmin eye him warily.

“What?” Kyuhyun asked his friend as he drank from his bottle during the break.

Changmin crossed his arms, “Mind telling me what made you so worked up? The last time I’ve seen you this enthusiastic about something was when Diablo III was released.” Kyuhyun just snorted but Changmin persisted. “Alright, then explain to me what they are talking about so seriously?”

The “they” meant Donghae and Jihun who, as Kyuhyun noticed from the corner of his eye, were actually engrossed in a very heated conversation. Not once did they glance his way but he was no fool. There could be no other reason for Donghae to be gesticulating wildly while Jihun’s face resembled a ripe tomato. The other varsity members had also given them a wide berth, preferring to mill around on one side of the field. For one confused moment, Kyuhyun felt a pang of disappointment and wondered why he kept hoping that Siwon would go over there himself instead of seemingly, chatting without a care in the world with the other players.

“Did he do something to you?” Changmin asked suspiciously and Kyuhyun could hear the rising aggression in his voice. 

Kyuhyun just smiled. “It was nothing I couldn’t handle,” for all their childish fights, Changmin was still his best friend and would probably give Jihun a piece of his mind, or probably his fist, if he knew what happened. 

As it was, it wasn’t Donghae or Changmin who fought for his virtue. Not that he actually had it but still. It was almost the end of the week when Kyuhyun met a scowling Jihun…with a brand new shiner on his left eye.

“Well, well, if it isn’t pansy boy,” Jihun sneered.

Kyuhyun suppressed a laugh as he needed to know where Jihun got his black eye, “You seriously need to update your vocabulary. Anyway, is that a new look? It really suits you. You should get another one.”

Jihun almost snarled but checked himself, “We have a game against Hanyang next week and thanks to you, we’re two players short.”

Kyuhyun frowned. What do I have to do with this? And two? But Hyunwoo was a member of the soccer club like him, not the varsity, so who…

“What do you mean?” 

Jihun just laughed harshly, “Your knight in shining armor got too protective. I seriously didn’t know he also swings that way. You and your little friend should avoid the soccer field, you seem to be spreading your diseas-…”

Bam!

“I suggest you leave him alone unless you really do want another decoration to your face. And believe me, I can do worse,” Zhou Mi was speaking coldly to Jihun who was holding his nose. There wasn’t any blood but from his expression, it seemed to hurt. A lot.

Jihun just glared at both of them before he walked away hurriedly. Kyuhyun’s eyes followed him before he turned to the tall male beside him. “Mi, are you okay?”

Zhou Mi was now worriedly and softly caressing his bag, “Oh my poor Gucci. I know it was quite distasteful to come into contact with that man’s dreadful skin but it was all for a noble cause.”

Kyuhyun refrained from rolling his eyes. Zhou Mi defended him after all, even if he did use his designer bag instead of his own hands. For someone like Zhou Mi, that was probably even more chivalrous. Then he suddenly remembered what Jihun said. “Mi, do you know what Jihun was talking about? Did he just get suspended because of a fight or something?”

Zhou Mi nodded, “I just heard from Jessica, she’s in my class earlier. They’re both suspended from soccer, from practices and matches, for the next two weeks. Of course, I thought it was quite unfair. It should only be Jihun who should be suspended but I guess the coach was trying to see it from the administration’s point of view. After all, a punch is a punch no matter if it was justified.”

Kyuhyun’s eyebrows lifted, “What? You mean the other one isn’t Hyunwoo?” His heart started to beat fast, a growing suspicion rising inside him, “Who-…who punched Jihun?”

“Huh?” Zhou Mi stared back at him, as if not quite believing that Kyuhyun should even ask, “It was Siwon of course.”

***************

Siwon was surprised to see an almost panting and breathless Kyuhyun running up to him as he walked to his class.

“Is it true?” Kyuhyun demanded in between heavy breaths. The taller boy avoided his eyes and murmured something like, “it was nothing really.” But Kyuhyun saw the other quickly hiding his right hand behind his back. “Let me see that,” he ordered as he grabbed his hand.

Kyuhyun gasped, Siwon’s right hand had a bandage around it. “You got hurt and you got suspended,” he said almost harshly which was in odd contrast to the way he softly and almost delicately ran his fingers around the bandaged part of Siwon’s hand. 

Siwon just shrugged but couldn’t look him in the eye, “It’s only for two weeks.”

Kyuhyun inexplicably got annoyed, “Only two weeks? That’s two games you won’t be able to play. And you’re the goalkeeper!”

“We have someone to substitute for me.”

“Why did you do it?” Kyuhyun almost snapped as he continued to inspect the bandage and subtly caressed the injured part.

There was silence and he looked up at Siwon with a frown. 

“You know why,” Siwon answered almost in a whisper.

Kyuhyun froze. “No, I don’t know,” he managed to say after a few seconds and started to take his hand away. 

But Siwon didn’t let him, he put his other hand on Kyuhyun’s own and finally looked squarely at him, “You…seriously don’t know?”

It was Kyuhyun’s turn to look away and he knew that he was officially blushing now. He wondered what people who saw them thought. Two boys seemingly holding hands and both blushing furiously but he persisted, “He’s a jerk, yes, but you didn’t need to punch him. He wasn’t worth getting suspended over.”

“You’re right, he wasn’t worth getting suspended over,” Siwon softly said, “But you are.”

***************

“Can I join you?”

Victoria looked up and was surprised to see a serious looking Kyuhyun, furiously running a hand through his hair, his eyes not quite focused. She patted the seat next to her and Kyuhyun sat down.

They were silent for a few minutes as they just contemplated the scene before them. They were on the stone steps of the big bell tower of the university. It was a quiet spot and afforded a view of the main road leading to their campus. They watched a few cars and a lone biker or two coming and going.

“I heard from Gyuri,” Kyuhyun finally said, breaking the silence.

Victoria just smiled, “And I heard from Minho,” she countered.

“So who wants to start first?”

Victoria gazed at the distance and Kyuhyun wondered if she was waiting for him to talk. But then she suddenly said, “He introduced me to his parents. And they knew about me. Apparently, he had told them about me for some time.”

“Oh,” was all Kyuhyun could say, he was quite surprised. So Nickhun… “And that scared you?” he asked, somehow beginning to understand.

“Yes,” Victoria hugged her knees and rested her chin on them, “I didn’t know he felt that way. It’s-…it’s a little bit scary, isn’t it?”

Kyuhyun just smiled wryly, “I suppose so. I wouldn’t know though.”

Victoria turned to look at him, an eyebrow raised in surprise. She started to say something then changed her mind. “I couldn’t do it. No one ever got this…serious before.”

“So what do you plan to do?”

Victoria shrugged, “I don’t know yet. I’m still analyzing my feelings. In the meantime, avoiding going out with him, to all these events exclusively with him, people seeing us…it’s probably a good start as any.” She adjusted her position and turned towards her friend, “So what about you? I heard Siwon…”

“Vic?” Kyuhyun interrupted, “Do you know if there’s any nasty rumour about Siwon going around?”

Victoria frowned in concentration then said, “Not nasty exactly but some people are starting to question his preferences,” she punctuated the last word with quotation marks in the air. “Of course, some people are shocked. He does have this perfect manly image after all. And some are disappointed, mostly the boys. I was kind of surprised about that since I expected the girls to be more disappointed but I realized the girls probably think it’s hot if for example, you got togethe-…oops, sorry. But seriously, I think that’s what they must be thinking.”

Kyuhyun smiled wryly but he just asked, “So do you think his reputation will still stay intact if and I say if, he were to admit that he’s gay?”

Victoria frowned again as she thought, “Well, I’m not really sure. Realistically, he’s definitely going to lose points and probably be mocked at. More than probably actually. You know how it is. Even if he's Siwon. But overall, I think he’d still be okay.”

“I see,” Kyuhyun nodded, apparently satisfied, “Anyway, I need your advice on something.”

“Love advice?”

Kyuhyun laughed but Victoria thought that she heard some bitterness in it. “Love?” Kyuhyun asked almost mockingly, “No, nothing like that. It’s more like just boy advice.”

“What is it?”

“What’s the best way to turn down a guy?”


---TBC