Follow, like, heart

The thing is, Mark has never, like never ever in his life put his nose in Jaebum's business.

He didn't do a thing when his brother was caught with their mother's favorite mug in his hands when he was four; he didn't do anything when Jaebum tried to jump off his friend's car when he was thirteen (no, actually, before Jaebum did the stupid move, Mark was about to yell at him to ing stop being an idiot, but, oh well, Jaebum had already jumped); he didn't do anything when Jaebum started dating the biggest in their school and he didn't do anything when their dad grounded Jaebum and the latter tried to sneak out of their house at three o'clock in the morning and Mark only saw him because Jaebum himself woke him up and told him what he was going to do.

To tell the truth, Mark helped Jaebum that time. He called him around six thirty, telling him to bring his back home because mom and dad were going to get up in less than half an hour. 

And okay, maybe, if Mark stops and spends some time thinking about it, he'll probably end up with more than two times where he's kind of meddled with his brother's choices.

But the point is, in those moments when Mark meddled, he got the situation better. Jaebum was out of trouble. 

Mark helped.

On the contrary, everytime Jaebum wants to provide help, it usually leads to Mark not wanting to talk to him for weeks.

He doesn't really understand why Jaebum keeps trying.

-

Mark thinks he's joking, but the strange glint that Jaebum has in his eyes is the kind the guy usually gets when he's done something extremely Jaebum-like (which is definitely a synonym of the adjectives stupid, embarassing and very very very ridiculous. Sometimes it's a combination of the three). 

Needless to say that Mark doesn't like it at all.

"Did you hear me or do I need to repeat it a second time?" Jaebum tilts his head, his mouth forming a small smirk.

When Mark does absolutely nothing except for batting his lashes once, Jaebum cackles.

"Jackson, you know, the jock dude that your nerdy self likes so much? He is coming in fifteen."

Mark's eyes widen. Like, saucers sized.

His knee jerks up and he hits it against the table. And it hurts, but he doesn't have time to think about the pain, let alone see if there's going to be a bruise. "What do you mean Jackson is coming over in fifteen?"

Jaebum grins. Wide and smug. The er. "Exactly what I told you: he's coming over in fifteen minutes. You better change 'cause that shirt full of holes ain't y at all." He adds as he looks at Mark up and down.

"This is my—" favorite shirt and you bought it for me, Mark's going to say. Instead his gaze travels to his own clothes. He absentmindedly inserts a finger in the biggest hole before snapping his head up to meet his brother's judging look. He scowls. "You're a liar."

Jaebum stands up, wiggling his forefinger in response. He walks toward the fridge to take a bottle of water. "If you don't care being seen by your sweetheart looking like —," he shrugs his shoulders while making a face, "your problem, bro."

Mark clenches his jaw. He adjusts his glasses on his nose. "You are a big ing liar." He punctuates each word, stubbornly refusing to believe that he and the guy he's been crushing on since the beginning of his high school life are going to be under the same roof (roof which isn't the school's, let's specify that).

Jaebum drinks his water slowly, and it's just because he's deliberately making Mark wait for an answer. He's the worst brother ever in the history of brothers. Mark wishes that he chokes on his drink. Unfortunately it doesn't happen.

"I was out with Jongin before, remember?" He starts to explain. He walks back to sit next to Mark. "We were looking for running shoes because apparently Kyungsoo—" Jaebum gives Mark a side-eyed glance. "Ja know, guy who looks like a little owl with his mothering giant—"

"Yes, yes, he's in section D."

"Yup, that, and fyi, D's also the thing Jongin wants from him." Jaebum says seriously. "Okay, fine, your disgusted face is telling me that you really don't want to know, but you shouldn't be like that since that's what you want from Jack—"

"Jaebum."

"Oookay." Jaebum drags the 'o', holding his hands up. "So, we were manly shopping for shoes and we were looking at this good pair of Nike. A minute later or more, I can't really tell, but it was soon after, okay? Jongin was about to pick the shoe when someone else grabbed it and, guess what? Yeah, Jackson the guy with the Wang you like, was the one who took it." Jaebum's eyebrows are irritatingly going up and down suggestively.

"You're impossible."

"No, stop, bro. Don't even front because I know that you like it when I make these innuendos about you and the guy." Jaebum says. At Mark's exasperated look, he goes on with his narration. "We started talking about the shoe. He said that he was thinking about starting to go for a run everyday too because he wants to be faster and bla, bla, bla, until he and Jongin asked for different sizes of the same model and when we were out of the shop, I kind of recalled that you're after the guy, so I invited him over for some Mario Kart." 

Mark is trying to absorb every single word. He's also careful of Jaebum's facial expression, somewhat expecting his brother to shout that it is all a joke.

But Jaebum looks excited, pleased with himself. "We shoe-bonded with Jackson Wang! Cool, right?"

Mark continues to look. 

Jaebum doesn't falter. Actually, he's beaming now, eyes disappearing into two curves. "You two can Mario Kart bond. It won't sound cool like a shoe-bonding, but hey, even if it's lame, at least it's something."

With his bottom lip trembling, Mark gulps. "Are you saying that he's really coming over?" He asks slowly for one last confirmation.

Jaebum rolls his eyes, but he's smiling. "Ten points to Ravenclaw for being slow!"

Mark wants to frown. He doesn't get to do it only because now his mind is in total chaos. "A-and he's going to be here in fifteen minutes?"

"Ye—" Jaebum halts. He pulls his cellphone out. "No, in less than three minutes if he's really going to come here with Jongin." It's like there's some sort of conspiration, one trying to make Mark go insane because after saying his friend's name, Jaebum receives a message. "Oh, hey, great news! They're parking and they'll be—"

Mark has never run the stairs so fast.

-

Mark is never going to deny that he's got a huge problem, which is falling head over heels for people who are 99,9% out of his league.

He's not going to bring lots of examples. He'll stick to Jackson Wang because he's the worst person Mark should have crushed on, meaning he's the best of all the crushes he's ever had (and he will have) in his entire life.

Jackson is the ace of the soccer team, then he's obviously also popular and he has an amazing body because, duh, of course, since the guy's a jock. If that is not enough, Mother Nature also gave him two expressive wonderful eyes and a smile that can melt snow—no, seriously, Mark can totally picture Jackson smiling at a snowman and said snowman to slowly turn into a puddle of water, because who can resist Jackson Wang's charms?

Last, but not the least, Jackson is not a moron with muscles and no brain.

Mark isn't in his class, unluckily, but he knows that Jackson is smart because Jackson's classmates say so, and so the rest of the guys and the teachers. Plus, there are girls from the math club who want to study and flirt with him in between solving equations.

And Jackson spends time reading in the library. Mark has seen him a lot of times—like, he's not there with a magazine. Or, there pretending that he's reading while in reality he's texting or just hiding from his noisy and incredibly annoying fan club (see? the guy has a ing fanclub. They call theirselves, the Dumplings. Because Jackson is Chinese, it's his favorite dish, and once he called himself Wang Mandu. Isn't that, huh, adorable?).

Jackson Wang really reads.

He likes reading Dan Brown and Mark caught him borrowing Shakespeare from the library. A midsummer's night dream.

And—and there was this day he spotted Jackson with glasses on (like Mark, but obviously Jackson's glasses were fashion black and not dull and sad like his), smiling down as he busies himself with a book.

It was one of the most beautiful scenes Mark had ever seen. (Bonus: Jackson was wearing a black wifebeater).

Yeah, he knows, alright?

Totally out of his league.

-

"Dude." Jaebum is staring at him in horror. 

The doorbell rings again, but Mark is staring back at his brother. He's asking himself what's wrong because the look he's getting makes his knees weak.

"Not okay?" He says slowly, biting on his lip.

"Why the hell are you wearing a ing peach-color cardigan with those old pants?" Jaebum hisses, palming his cheek. "At least it!"

Mark does, and Jaebum's frustration only grows.

"Isn't that granpa's?" 

Mark frowns, tugging at his shirt. "No, it's mine. Mom—"

"I know that it's yours!" Jaebum says, stomping all the way to the door. He doesn't open it. In fact, he turns around to give another look at Mark. "Next time I'm doing you the favor to set an almost date, please remind me to pick clothes for you? Mom and dad are clearly wrong when they say you're the smart son, Jesus Christ." He murmurs the last sentence.

"There's nothing wrong with my shirt." Mark mutters, flushing red, checking his clothes again.

And that's how he meets Jackson. With him still tugging on his gray plain shirt while saying things under his breathe.

When he looks up, four pairs of eyes are on him.

Jaebum has one eyebrow raised. Jongin looks like he's trying to suppress a laugh. And then there are Jackson and his best friend, NamJoon, who are both curiously gazing at him.

Mark wants to die. "Hi." He squeaks. Yes. He wants to die.

Jackson easily takes a step towards him. "Hi. Mark, right?" He says. Maybe Jaebum has just introduced him and Mark'd missed the moment completely.

"Yes?" Mark mumbles, and , he sounds unsure about his name.

There is definitely someone snickering at this point.

Jackson throws a look behind his shoulder for a moment, confused because he doesn't understand what's funny.

"I'm Jackson." He offers then, as if Mark doesn't know his name. He's the star of the school. Please. Then, because Jackson is not your typical movie-jock who's a Grade A , he playfully punches Mark on his arm, like saying that it's okay to look like an idiot (duh). 

"Thanks, uhm." Mark smiles, flustering a little (no, okay, lie. A lot. He's flustering like a really lot).

"Aw, lovely." NamJoon deadpans beside his best friend, shooting a knowing look between Jackson and Mark that the latter can't interpret at all. He coughs. "I'm NamJoon, by the way," he says after a minute, taking Mark's hand in his own, shaking it and then dropping it immediately after that. "I'm classy. I'm not the punch-on-shoulder-guy." He grins smugly at Jackson who rolls his eyes in reply. "No to any kind of violence is my motto."

Jackson snorts. "Right." He grimaces. "That's why you got suspended a week ago for picking a fight with a dude."

"No, I was actually watching how green was the grass and then this guy came and I thought, 'oh, hey, maybe he'd like to know too'. So, I gave him a little push, but he misinterpreted my intention." NamJoon defends himself. "Peace is my second name."

"Bull."

Mark wishes he could joke with Jackson like that. 

Or, that he could talk with him more. Because it's not everyday that your brother's able to invite your crush to play at your house. It's unbelievable.

Jackson and NamJoon play with Jaebum and Jongin, drinking sodas and cursing. Mark tries to join, but one) he doesn't really like videogames. He's not that kind of nerd. Two) he loathes Mario Kart and the only times he plays he gets knocked off the road—twice by NamJoon and once by that dickface of Jaebum.

"The loser of this match plays maid for tonight, c'mon." Jongin declares as he munches crisps. "So Mark, a Coke. And do you guys still have those chocolate cookies? Bring them."

Mark opens his mouth to protest. "But—"

"Can I have Coke, too?" NamJoon asks, not taking his eyes off the television at all. "You're going to lose. Soon."

"I don't think so. You're going to get owned, man."

"Shut up, you're all dead."

Jaebum sneers. "Not a chance. I've been playing Mario Kart for years. Luigi is the badassest character. He's going to kick your big fat asses." He shouts, but not long after, he's groaning because Jackson has just kicked the controller off his hands, resulting to Luigi falling off a bridge. "That's cheating, dude. You're such a ing cheater. Just wait 'till I—Mark, where are the Cokes? I want a Coke."

"Jaebum, I—"

"Oh, god, bro, don't be such a sour loser." Jaebum complains instead. "Jongin said the loser play maid. You lost, you play maid." He jumps angrily when he falls a second time.

NamJoon and Jackson do a bro fist, snickering.

Mark's chuckling too until Jongin begins repeating that he's a sour loser. "Fine." He snaps, standing up from the couch to take the drinks. He's doing it just because he doesn't want Jackson to think the same of him (even if the guy is completely invested in the game—because apparently he likes Mario Kart too, and he's pretty competitive which is not news since Mark already knew that). 

He remembers Jackson not asking for anything, but he equally picks four cans instead of just three.

When he comes back, his eyes go to the screen first. He internally cheers as he sees Donkey Kong winning because Jaebum and Jongin are annoying s and they deserve it. 

Mark throws two Cokes at the them.

NamJoon snatches one from him while he places the remaining one on the floor beside a sitting Jackson who's arrived fourth. He catches sight of the guy sulking because he lost.

It's so cute and adorable that Mark stays staring a little too much maybe, and the next thing he knows is that Jackson's hand is circling around the Coke.

"Thank you." He says, and the previous expression gets replaced by two rows of perfect white teeth. He's seen Jackson smile after scoring a goal, or simply at the cafeteria when he's fooling around with his friends, or in the hallway. 

Mark's tummy feels funny ever single time he catches a smile. Looking at it up close like now, he feels his heartbeat in his ears.

"You're welcome." He replies, scratching the back of his head.

For a moment, he's staring at his feet, but then, he dares to meet the other's eyes.

This is a rare occasion; he doubts that he'll find the possibility of talking with his crush again. He hasn't had the guts to talk to Jackson ever before. Having the guy at his home is one thing, but it's a completely different matter at school and that's mostly because people like them obviously don't belong to the same group.

Even if Jackson has brains, he still represents the popular Jock capital J stereotype while Mark is just a nerd.

And he's not masochistic enough to ask Jackson to hang out with him when he knows that the answer will be a big no.

Jaebum, on the other hand, has some popular friends since he's a social butterfly. His brother has a fantastic personality. He envies Jaebum so much sometimes.

Mark has to push his luck now. "Do—" He starts at the same time Jackson says, "Wan—"

"The loser has to drink his can of Coke in one go." Jongin is screaming gleefully. "Show us how to do it, Jackson. One gulp. No breathing in the middle."

"J—"

"Bro, there's still some of mom's cake in the fridge!"

Delete every praise Mark's said about Jaebum. His bro is such an annoying too.

-

Mark wakes up.

The first thing he notices as he blinks, sleepy eyes, is that he's still on the couch. He probably fell asleep in between the guys' twenty-fourth or twent-seventh game. His shoulder is wet. 

Ew.

Then, his eyes snap open. He's suddenly very awake. 

He sits abruptly. "Sorry, I fell—" But as he looks around him, he realises that there's nobody left except for Jaebum who's happily eating a bowl of cereals. Mark also notices that his brother is looking at him with his characteristic judging eyebrow raised.

"They left about two hours ago, idiot." Jaebum says.

Mark his lips. Two hours? No. Like, the er is just probably messing with him. He couldn't have slept for two freaking hours. No way. 

Jaebum keeps eating. "I took a picture of you sleeping with Jackson's cellphone." He informs Mark with an uninterested tone. "It was kind of cute if you ignored the drool—"

Mark sputters. "Why the hell would you do that?"

Jaebum frowns at him, suddenly looking very angry too. "In order for Jackson to remember your face, you Mr-Niagara-falls-from-my-mouth dickhead!" He counters. "I invite your crush over and you fall asleep on the couch. I had to do something! You should be thankful instead of protesting, ungrateful brother!"

Mark's eyes widen. "But I was tired because I studied and—and you were ordering me around!"

Jaebum chokes on a spoonful of cereals. He starts coughing, and when he's regained composure, he's red in face. He's glaring at his older brother. "You could have seduced him while you were bringing him stuff. You have no imagination!"

"Sedu—" Mark throws his hands in the air. "I'm done talking to you. Good night."

-

He's back to his life.

Mark has his notebook on his lap, a pen that is slipping through his fingers. He keeps pushing up his glasses that he repeatedly finds near the tip of his nose. He's sitting on the last rows, watching the soccer team train while working on his notes.

The players are running around the field.

The coach, JiHoon, isn't present at the moment, and that explains why Ok Taecyeon and Jackson have put music on and they're dancing stupidly while running with the others who are sort of not taking the train seriously like them.

Jackson Wang lip-syncing Jessie J's Domino all sweaty and with his bare arms exposed is like—watching something very y. And definitely not PG-13.

"I can taste the tension like a cloud of smoke in the air!" Taecyeon and Jackson sing, and Mark has to look down before grinning to himself because gosh, so adorably y.

-

It is not like Mark has no friends.

He has. He's got friends.

Not a lot. But he has.

It just happens that this one day Jinyoung isn't there because he's got the flu, LuHan is in his class doing some project with his classmate, Chanhee has a lunch date with Byunghun, and Sunyoung is having an important girls-only chat with Victoria.

And Jaebum is somewhere with Jongin and their friends, trying to win the Kyungsoo guy's heart—it's a good thing that his brother has taken a pause on trying to save Mark's love life. 

Mark's so tired of hearing his stupid suggestions on how to get Jackson's attention—which is a thing that he's not trying to gain, because hello? His crush has to remain a secret to the jock. What if Jackson finds out and then makes fun of him? (Though, he doubts that. Because Jackson is sweet. Like honey. And bees. And babies. And everything sweet in life, really. But Mark will be turned down for sure, and no, he doesn't want that, thank you very much)—or on how Jaebum can totally organise another meeting in order for them to at least "bond"—double no to that because Mark definitely does not trust his brother with this stuff.

Anyway, the point is, that Mark is sitting all alone, and he probably looks kind of miserable, when NamJoon and Peniel (he's a soccer player too. Squared jaw, perfect skin and hair. He looks like a supermodel almost most of the times—scratch that, all the time) sit on two of the vacant chairs.

"Hey, Mark, how's life treating you?" NamJoon greets him, friendly, biting the straw of his small size 7up. 

"It's—okay." Mark says, a little stunned that his name hasn't been forgotten. He watches NamJoon dimple-grin at him before he throws a quick glance to a Peniel who's looking curiously at him with his head tilted.

"You here by yourself?"

"Uh, yes—" Mark responds, looking down. "My friends are all busy."

"Oh, I see."

There's an awkward silence and Mark fidgets with his fingers. He's trying to recall if he did something that would cause Kim NamJoon to talk to him during recess, but he can't find anything other than the Mario Kart night.

Which went well.

Well, he fell asleep, but he couldn't do anything wrong to NamJoon if he was passed out on the couch.

He watches NamJoon lean closer, folding his arms on the table. 

NamJoon sighs. "Where have you been hiding these past days, man?" He asks then out of nowhere. "Do you know that we've been looking for you?" He adds, and a second later Peniel elbows him in the ribs. The latter is glaring at NamJoon.

Mark blinks. "Why where you looking for me?"

"Don't mind him," Peniel is the one who answers. He's waving a hand dismissively. "I heard that this ugly boy and Jackson were at your house a couple of days ago?" He questions.

"Hey, who are you calling ugly?" NamJoon snaps, indignant. "If beauty were bricks, I would be the Great Wall of China, er."

"Your face—" Peniel turns his head at NamJoon, narrowing his eyes at him. "—could be the model for death threats." He drawls, smirking.

Mark watches NamJoon spit his straw at Peniel. Then, he's sulking on his spot, and Mark doesn't know what he's supposed to do because NamJoon's not a bad guy—from what he's seen so far, he's okay. And he doesn't know if he should console him, duh.

He chooses not to say anything in the end, partly because he's in no position to meddle and partly because Peniel is talking to him again.

"Since you're already friends with the two, why don't you come have breakfast at the Dino's Key tomorrow?" Peniel asks him casually, flashing Mark a big smile.

Mark stares.

He stares some more before he chokes out a surprised,

"me?"

"Yeah." Peniel replies, then he frowns a little. "Unless you don't want to which would be so uncool because Ja—I mean, just why not?" He finishes with a little cough. Suddenly NamJoon is sneering next to him.

Mark forces himself not to gape. "But—"

"Pretty please?" Peniel cuts his sentence out. Is he batting his eyelashes at Mark? Because it looks like that. "Have you ever been to Dino's Key? It's the best place for brownies and mocha, and I swear we're be delighted to have you there."

"Yeah, we—especially someone." NamJoon mutters, and what's that supposed to mean?

"I swear to God, NamJoon—" Peniel is gritting his teeth and his friend rolls his eyes at him before starting to chew on his straw again. When he looks at Mark, he's back to smiling.

"So?" He prompts.

Mark feels uneasy. He furrows his eyebrows. He takes a deep breath.

"Uhm, okay?" The request looks suspicious, like they're planning something, but he doesn't have bad vibes about the whole thing.

Plus, the only guys on the soccer team who are real s and pick on other students are Heechul and Hyukjae, but those two don't mix with the others. They stick to being a duo, so.

"Oh, fantastic. Great. Great!" Peniel is rubbing his hands together. The smile he's showing now looks a lot more genuine than the previous ones. "Do you need indications or do you know where Dino's Key is?"

"I had breakfast there. Twice." Mark admits, offering a smile too. "I know where it is."

"That's so good!" The jock replies, looking excited. He stands up and he drags a nagging NamJoon with him. "See you tomorrow. 7.30 o'clock in front of the place, okay?"

Mark only nods timidly.

He gets a squeeze on his shoulder from both guys before he's alone with his barely eaten lunch.

He doesn't know what to expect tomorrow, but one) he'll sit with popular kids which is terrifying and amazing at the same time, two) they mentioned that Jackson will be there. And three) NamJoon didn't forget about his name.

The probabilty that Jackson may remember his name too makes him tremble a little. 

-

"I'm so proooooooud of you!" Jaebum is biting on his fist, faking a sob. 

Mark doesn't even know why the hell he told his brother.

Jaebum pretends to wipe tears off the corners of his eyes. "So, so proooooud! My baby bro—"

"I'm older than you." Mark says, unimpressed.

"—I'm so happy for you that I could cry." Jaebum continues, ignoring his brother. "You're not nervous, are you?"

Mark sighs. "A bit?"

"Just a bit?" Jaebum says, staring at him with wide eyes. "You have to do everything on your own. Have you realised that you're going to be surrounded by the popular kids of the school that are all friends with each other? You should act cool like them. No shyness because they might eat you alive. And you don't want to look bad a second time when Jackson's around, do you?" He questions. He looks genuinely curious. "I'm wondering if he still has your pic."

Mark hides his face in his hands. "I hate you so much."

-

Playing with his fingers, Mark puts his hands around his body, hugging himself a little.

It's 7.27 am. He's been in front of Dino's Key for about five minutes. And for the same amount of time, he's been asking himself if maybe it should have been better if he arrived later instead of being here already.

But it would be rude since he's basically a stranger to all the guys. He's the new one, so it's totally okay to be punctual—uhm, to arrive before all of them. 

Mark is not like Jaebum. He's got manners.

On the other hand, his brother isn't a loser like him.

He looks at his clothes briefly before tensing up. He's wearing his uniform, of course. Because they're going to go to school after having breakfast.

Telling himself that they're all going to be dressed exactly like him, he tries to relax. It's not like they're going to show up wearing shirts that cost more than Mark's personal belongings. Right?

Gosh. He should stop thinking about these things. Everything will go fine, anyway.

This is the solution: instead of obsessing over whether he'll fit or not, it'd be better if he channels his energy into more positive thoughts.

For example, that Jackson will be there too.

No. Wrong thought—Mark gulps down all the saliva in his mouth.

The mere thought of having his crush near him again makes his stomach twist with panic. Add the fact that his brain chooses this exact moment to recall Jaebum's words, and there you go, a Mark jumping slightly from toe to toe out of nervousness.

Because, what is he even doing here? He won't fit for sure. What's the point of waiting until the others arrive only to make a fool of himself?—why did they invite him?

Okay.

He's ready to flee.

What stops him is a bouncing Namjoon on the opposite side of the street.

"Mark!"

Nice. Now he can't escape anymore.

Mark waves timidly as Namjoon crosses the road.

"Good morning."

Namjoon bobs his head up and down in an overexcited nod.

"Hey, dude, yeah, morning." He looks so fresh, so awake, and it's not even eight o'clock? Mark wonders how's that possible. "The others are arriving—they're waiting for Mino. But they're just around the corner they will be—oh, here they are."

And sure enough, the entire group is where Namjoon was before, walking slowler than the guy did, though. They're all wearing their uniforms, Namjoon is too, but seeing them together is still quite intimidating. Especially if you take a look at Ok Taecyeon and Shim Changmin who look like titans. 

There is also the problem that the jocks all look incredibly handsome, while Mark—Mark is just Mark. With his glasses and his old brown rucksack that compared to Jackson's just so so sad.

Jackson is coming nearer and nearer to him and Namjoon, by the way, not talking to anyone, and looking like he hasn't rest well. He's already yawned three times—not that Mark's counting, no, no, not at all. 

"Jackson always look like a zombie in the morning." Namjoon shares with him all of a sudden.

Mark blinks. He has no idea why he's beeing told that. "Okay?"

Maybe he's got caught staring at the guy. . Before he can have another panic attack, Namjoon gives him a quick smirk, and then he's off meeting the other boys halfway and greeting them enthusiastically.

"The proof that you're not human, but a troll lays in that ing smile." Peniel is complaning, shoving Namjoon away from him. "How the hell can you be smiling at this time? Jesus."

Everyone chuckles at that. Mark cracks a smile. He abandons himself to a laugh at Namjoon's very offended face.

And it's not the right move, he realises a second later, as Song Mino turns his head at him.

"You must be Mark." He's saying in a knowing tone. "I heard about you."

What. Mark stares.

"Yes, true." Taecyeon confirms, grinning maniacally. So Mark's not imagining things. "From this fellow here," he says, indicating Namjoon, "and of course this one here," he continues, his finger pointing at Jackson who widens his eyes in response.

"What the are you saying." Jackson spits out, his words colored with poorly hidden embarassment. Then his eyes zero on Mark. He his lips, drops his gaze down, and when he's looking up again, there's a broad smile on his face as he says quickly, "good morning," before he stomps off inside the Dino's Key.

It went so fast that Mark is left wondering what the just happened. He's perfectly aware that he's still staring, now at the door of the coffee and bakery shop, but he can't bring himself to move nor to talk. 

"Ain't he cute?" Taecyeon coos, looking in the same direction.

"You're an , dude." Changmin tells him disapprovingly. He shakes his head. "It's getting late. Let's have breakfast."

-

The guys, Mark learns, are not only popular, good looking and very good at sports, but they are also hilarious and very easy to get along with. Also, half of their sentences consist of swear words.

They include Mark in their jokes—telling him how he should just put glue on his nose so that his glasses stop falling down. They're not mean at all. They're just teasing. It feels like being around Jaebum and his friends, or his own friends. Mark feels so comfortable that he loses the initial fear of sitting down with them (fear that broke out after he saw about three tables being occupied by giggling girls, all fans of the guys).

By the end of the time, he can definitely say that it was all nice. 

They're at school now—they should all head to their respective classes.

"You should have breakfast with us more often, man." Taecyeon tells Mark, smiling widely at him. "You're cool, and you should bring that brother of yours too. From your stories, he seems like the type of person I'd totally love to meet."

Mark doesn't doubt that one bit. He's spent just half an hour with the guy, but he can clearly say that Taecyeon and his brother would become immediately friends forever if given the chance to hang out together. Hell—Taecyeon could probably take Jongin's place in Jaebum's life. They're so much alike. 

"Sure." He responds, although part of him wishes that it will never happen because it's always Jaebum they're talking about. 

"I'm counting on that." Teacyeon says seriously before breaking into a big grin when Mark nods.

Peniel and Namjoon excuse themselves, saying that they still have to finish this thing for History. They cannot really stay. Changmin pretty much says the same, and after letting Taecyeon blabber for five minutes non-stop, Mino drags him away, but not before flickering his eyes between Mark and Jackson,

"why don't you walk Mark to his class, Jacks? You have nothing to do, anyway. Because you're not going to read that book ten minutes before the lessons start now, are you?"

"Hey!" Jackson frowns. "Don't tell me what to do, jerk." He says to a retreating Mino.

And suddenly it's only him and Mark (plus the other students who are walking in the school area, but who cares about them?).

Running a hand through his hair, Jackson tips his head to the side a little. He gives Mark one lop-sided smile. It's a good look on him. Mark is mesmerized.

"They're all ers." Jackson says, his tone sheepish. Or maybe Mark is just fooling himself. But it really sounds like Jackson's all shy and— Mark, really. "You're a year older. Your class is on the third floor, right?"

"Uh, yes." Mark replies, taken aback. How did he know that?

It's not like Jackson didn't talk to him during breakfast, he did—he occasionally chirped the guys in between Taecyeon and Namjoon's rambles, but he did not talk directly to Mark. And all the way to school, Mark spent most of time answering Peniel's questions to him, and from the corner of his eyes, he saw Jackson a couple of steps behind them, chatting with Changmin. Then, Mark talked to Taecyeon.

He and Jackson did not really talk to each other. The latter must have heard it when Mark was telling things to Peniel.

"You don't have to." Mark trails off. He does not want the other to feel obligated because of Mino, but Jackson fakes a cough.

"Oh, uhm..Maybe Mino is right..Like, I could use this time to—I mean, I have plenty of time after school to read my book—" Jackson pauses, frowning. "—at night. Night. Because I have practice, but anyway—" He drawls.

There's another pause in which they're looking at each other. Then, Mark is blushing because Jackson is looking at him, and oh, my gosh, Jackson starts looking everywhere, but at Mark.

"Just let me, okay?" Jackson says firmly.

Mark won't ever say no to that. "Okay."

They walk next to each other. Mark feels his own heartbeat all over his body. The dum-dum-dum is going to turn him deaf. He feels his neck, his very hands, all the veins he's got pulsate.

Jackson is pointing up at something.

Mark doesn't hear him. "Excuse me?"

"Your hair," Jackson says, not sounding annoyed that he has to repeat himself.

"Ah," Mark answers, inclining his head a little so he can touch his nape. There's not even gel there. He's moving unconsciously. Nervously. "M-my brother—Jaebum. He styled them for me." Yes, and collapsed onto his bed right after making him look like he'd just stepped out of the Grease, ready to crack a song at any second.

"It's good." Jackson tells him, and if Mark's not been paying too much attention he'd have missed it again. This time because it'd been said it a little too quickly.

Mark bites the insides of his cheeks. Damn. "Thank you."

"You're worry."

"..."

"Uh?"

"You're welcome. And don't worry about it." Jackson corrects himself. It might be Mark's mind tricking him, but the other guy's ears have turned pink.

They do not say much after that. Jackson has started walking a step further from him for some reason.

Mark tries not to see much in it. He starts wondering if he should initiate a conversation, but he always catches himself at the last second because what could they talk about? Even if he's gathered enough information about Jackson—it's called investigation for personal matters. Not being creepy as Jaebum says—he does not know where to start.

And before he knows it, they are near his class, and he hasn't uttered a single word yet.

Jackson stops walking before reaching Mark's classroom completely. Mark halts too.

He definitely has to thank Jackson, so he does.

"Uhm," Jackson mumbles. He's staring. Conflicted.

(Mark, for his part, does not flinch, but he feels his heart thumping a little bit harder than the last time as time passes by under that beautiful gaze).

"I had bought something for you." Which makes Mark blink.

Jackson is fumbling inside his bag now. What in the world is happening?

"Why?" In what world Jackson Wang—Jackson Wang, the school's number one athlete gets something for him.

"Because I wanted to." Jackson replies casually. There's a tone of finality, he's not going to elaborate that phrase. "Here."

It's a little paper bag from Dino's.

"Thanks." Mark says weakly, without looking inside of it.

Jackson has this one eyebrow raised at him. He does not add anything else. Just stays there, looking intently at a puzzled Mark. Then, something changes. His expression softens.

"Let me know if you liked it, heh. See you, Mark."

+A/N+  hi, guys, how is life treating you? i'm—not really back. i'll probably be uploading a fanfic or two, finish writing one or two, and then disappear again? joking. i hope you like this. i know you've been waiting for this fanfic for so long—for years. oh, my gosh. the first chapter is finally out. let me know in the comment section below your thoughts about it. i missed you!