It had been four and a half days since Jackson left his flat, and Mark was going crazy. He couldn't get the boy out of his head. And just when he thought he had, Jackson would text him and bring it all rushing back. 

He remembered how they'd woken up on the Sunday morning. All tangled limbs and messy hair, wrapped up in one another, warm and content. Until Mark had gotten embarrassed and ran off to the bathroom.

Mark rolled his eyes at himself. He was such an idiot sometimes.

Looking up, he noticed he was going to be late if he didn't hurry his along. He picked up his pace, holding the straps of his back pack for good measure. 

He managed to make it to his lecture five minutes early, which was good, since he wouldn't have been allowed in had he been even a second late. The Professor was a , okay.

He sat down in his usual seat next to Jinyoung, who rolled his eyes, punched him on the arm and turned to look at the front of the room.

"Gee, love you too" Mark huffed, getting out his notebook and a pen.

Jinyoung glared at him, "You've been neglecting me" he said, "You hardly even texted me the last few days. What's going on with you?"

Mark blinked, "I... Uh... I"

"Mark!"

Looking up, Mark bit back a smiled as he saw Jackson walk into the room, a grin on his face as he waved at Mark.

"Hey, Jacks" Mark waved back, then watched as Jackson walked up the steps to the row behind him and sat down in the seat directly behind his.

"Are you doing anything later?" Jackson asked, ignoring the weird looks the two were getting from Jinyoung.

Mark bit his lip, "Uh, not that I can think of, why?"

Jackson opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off as the Professor started up his lecture.

Mark reluctantly turned around to at least try and focus. After all, he kind of did want to pass.

He was thinking about taking a nap, because well, he wanted one, when a piece of folded paper landed on his desk.

He stifled a yawn as he unfolded it. As he read it over, he couldn't help but smile.

Mark,
What I was going to say before that old cut me off, was that I was wondering if you wanna go get coffee with me after this, you know, like a date?
- J

Uncapping his pen, he wrote his reply just below;

Jacks,
You wanna go on a date with me? Like, really? Are you sure? Because I'm not that great... But like, if you want to, then I would be up for it.
- M

He pretended to strech, dropping the paper onto Jackson's desk as he did before bringing his arms back down and folding them across his desk.

"What was that about?" Jinyoung whispered.

Mark smiled at him, "Nothing" he whispered back, but seeing the look on Jinyoung's face, he added, "I'll tell you later, okay? I'll call you and tell you everything"

"Promise?" asked Jinyoung, pouting slightly as he did.

Mark rolled his eyes and held out his pinky, "Promise"

A smile bloomed on Jinyoung's face as he linked his pinky with Mark's and shook.

Mark turned back to see the piece of paper on his desk again.

Marky Warky,
You're stupid. You really don't know how amazing you are, do you?
Okay, wait for me after class and we'll go. I know this really cute place. You'll like it!
- J

Mark bit his lip as he smile,  chewing it slightly as he wrote his reply;

Wang Kong,
Maybe you just think too much of me. Out of the two of us, you're the one with more charm, better looks, and all that . 
Okay, and since you asked me on the date, you're paying, right? ;)
- M

He waited until the Professor turned to write something on the board before turning and placing the paper on Jackson's desk. Their eyes locked for a moment, and they shared a smile before Mark turned back to face the front.

Jinyoung leant in close to Mark.

"Please tell me you don't like Jackson Wang" he whispered.

Mark turned to give him a curious look, "Why?"

"He's just... so loud" Jinyoung complained, "And if you start dating him, I'll have to put up with his loud being around all the time"

Mark had to fight back a laugh at that. He would have laughed out loud, but he didn't really fancy being kicked out of the lecture, if he was honest.

"He's not that bad" Mark chuckled quietly, "He's actually really great once you get to know him"

Jinyoung rolled his eyes, but shot Mark a small smile to let him know that he would support him no matter how things went.

The piece of paper landed on his desk again. Jinyoung looked at it and rolled his eyes again before going back to taking notes, like the good boy he was.

Mark grinned at him before unfolding the piece of paper and looking at what Jackson had to say again.

Sweet cheeks,
I don't. You just don't think enough of you. And puh-lease! I'll admit, I'm a good looking chap, but you're ing cute, Mark. Like seriously, do you know how long I've wanted to ask you out for? And then I got to know you better, and let me tell you, A-ing-plus in personality!
And since I'm a gentleman, I'll pay :P
- J
Mark was really, really trying his best not to laugh at that point. But now not only his best friend was making that hard for him, but Jackson too, but his smart-arse-ness.

Mark tapped his pen on his lower lip for a moment before writing his reply;

Honey-Buns,
I think rightly of myself, I think :') But really, how long did you want to ask me out for? Ahaa. You're crazy! 
Oh Jacks, you'll have me swooning if you keep this up ;3
- M

He subtly passed it back, grinning quickly at Jackson, who beamed back at him in return before he faced back to the front. Only this time he caught the eye of his professor who looked none too amused.

Mark shot the old man an apologetic smile before trying to look like he was taking notes. 

"... Now that we're all paying attention again..." Mark tuned him out as the paper landed in front of him once again.

Babykins,
Nope. You need to give yourself more credit. And remember how I told you I wanted to talk to you since the first day I saw you? Well, since then basically. 
I'm not crazy! Besides, you're just as sane as I am ;)
I knew you'd go crazy over my charms! 
- J
P.S; Way to go with almost getting caught! The old looked like he was gonna kill you :')

Mark coughed to cover up the laugh he knew he wasn't going to be able to bite back, earning him another glare from his professor. But it was worth it when he heard Jackson trying not to laugh from behind him.

He bit his lip as he jotted down his response.

Awful-Petname-Of-some-sort,
You give me enough for the both of us~ 
Oh? Really? Since back then?? Wow... Why did you never just talk to me? 
Did you just go all HP on me? Jackson Wang, I think I might be falling for you! Hahaha! :')
Obviously!
- M
P.S; Shut it! It wasn't my fault! You started the note passing!

Jackson's hand appeared at the side of Mark's head, making him smile as he simple picked up the note, put it in the awaiting hand, and watched it disappear again.

"You're gonna get caught" Jinyoung whispered to him, as the piece of paper flew past his ear and landed on his desk.

"I won't" Mark whispered back with a roll of his eyes as he eagerly opened up the paper.

Worse-Pet-Name-Of-Some-Sort,
Fine, fine. God, you're so stubborn!
I was, like, I don't know... Nervous, okay? You were just... cute, and sweet and everyone likes you, I just.. yeah..
I did! I did, indeed! That's good, Mark Tuan, because I already fell for you! ;)
Obviously~ Ahahaha!
- J
P.S; Yeah, to ask you out on a date! So it's reasonable!! 

Mark let out a soft chuckle. He really needed better control on what left his mouth.

This-Is-Just-Poor-Now,
You love it<3
You were? Oh my god! That is seriously so cute! Jackson, you're adorable!! :3
Well, I guess it's good we're going on this date then :')
- M
P.S; Okay fine, you have a point there... Dammit!

He waited a moment before passing it back. Once he did, he faced the front again, until the professor turned away to write on the board again, he glanced back at Jackson, who was reading his note with a smile on his face.

He couldn't help the fuzzy feeling that washed over him in that moment, but he liked it. He found that he liked it a lot.

There was only five minutes of class left, so it wasn't surprising when Jackson didn't pass a note back. Besides, Mark knew he was probably getting all huffy over being called cute and adorable, which in itself was both of those things.

"Alright, that wraps things up for today. You may go" The old man called out, and within a minute, Mark's bag was packed and over his shoulder. 

He and Jinyoung walked to the door and stood to wait for Jackson, who was talking to his blond friend.

"I'll talk to you later, yeah?" Mark said, turning to Jinyoung.

Jinyoung sighed, "Let me guess, you're hanging out with Jackson Wang?" 

"You don't have to keep saying his last name too, you know" Mark laughed, "But yeah... Um, it's kind of a date..." he admitted, "So, I'll call you later and tell you about it. I promise we'll hang out properly soon, okay?"

"I'll hold you to that" Jinyoung said, as Jackson and the blond boy walked over.

Jackson smiled a Mark and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, "Ready to go?" he asked.

"Yeah" Mark nodded before turning to Jinyoung, "Bye, Jinyoung-ah" he said before Jackson pulled him away, without even bothering to say goodbye to his friend.

***

Mark grinned as Jackson walked him up to his door. Their hands were intertwined, which had happened about halfway back to Mark's place, when Jackson just tutted and grabbed his hand with a small smile. Not that Mark was complaining. 

They reached the door eventually, at which point Mark turned to face Jackson, his back to the door, his hand still in Jackson's, their fingers still laced together.

"Usually, I'd hang about until you asked me to come in, but I actually have a ton of homework to do" Jackson said. He shot Mark a soft smile as he gave the boy's hand a small squeeze.

Mark shrugged, "It's all good. I actually have to call Jinyoung anyway. He thinks I've been neglecting him" he chuckled.

Jackson rolled his eyes, but his smile remained, "I had a really good time today. You're nice to be around" he said.

"Yeah" Mark smiled back, "I had a good time too. I like spending time with you. Really"

"Good. Anyway, I gotta go, but I'll text you when I get home, okay?" Jackson said, before leaning in and kissing Mark softly on the cheek.

Mark bit his lip and smiled as he felt Jackson's lips press against his cheek. Jackson's free hand came up to Mark's shoulder and slid down his arm, over his hand, before he pulled back, letting go of Mark's hand as he did.

"I'll see you later" Jackson said softly before pulling away completely and walking away. He glanced over his shoulder to grin at Mark before he disappeared around the corner, leaving Mark by his door with a huge smile on his face.

Mark turned and unlocked his door. He walked into his flat and closed the door behind him before leaning back on it and letting out a less than manly sqeak.

He got himself together before walking into his living room. He tossed his bag and jacket on the sofa and made his way into his room, where he kicked off his shoes, pulled out his phone and flopped on the bed.

He scrolled through his contacts and clicked Jinyoung's name to call him.

It rang twice before his best friend picked up.

"Spill" was all Jinyoung said.

Mark let out a chuckle, "Okay, so last Friday I was standing at the bus stop, right? And Jackson walks up to me with an umbrella - it was raining pretty bad, remember? - Anyways, he shared it with me, so that I didn't get any wetter, and he even gave me his jacket - oh."

"What?"

"I've still got his jacket" Mark said, looking over at his wardrobe where said article of clothing was hung up. Jackson had forgotten to take it back Sunday when he left, and Mark had forgotten to take it to class to give it back to him.

"Mark, you're getting off topic..." Jinyoung said, and Mark just knew he was rolling his eyes.

Mark laughed again, "Right, sorry. So anyways, he stayed and then when the bus came, he was like, bye, and I was like, aren't you getting on? And it turns out that he stood with me for the whole hour, just so I wouldn't get more wet! Then he walked home. I got his number though. So he rang me that night. Then he came over on Saturday and we played games and stuff, it was awesome, and he stayed over, and yeah. Then we've been texting since... And then today was like, our first date - I just got back, so yeah - and anyways, he was really sweet and kissed me on the cheek, and Juniooooooooooor! I cannot function right now!"

It was silent for a moment before Jinyoung let out a long whistle, "Wow. Okay, I didn't want to want this, but goddamn. You guys need to be together. As much as it pains me to admit it, you did look cute together earlier." he said, "But, as happy as I am for you... Keep tomorrow free, because I miss my best friend and I need to go shopping, so you're coming with me"

"Fine, fine" Mark laughed, "You're so needy. What do you need to get?"

"Just some shirts and stuff. And maybe a new bag. I don't know. I'll see when I'm there" Jinyoung answered, making Mark roll his eyes.

There was still a smile on Mark's face as he rolled over onto his back. He let out a content sigh, "I'm in a good mood" he said.

"I can tell" Jinyoung laughed, "Really though. I'm happy for you. It's nice to see you like this. I think Jackson's good for you"

"Thanks, Jin" Mark said, genuinely happy that he had his best friend's approval, "I'm gonna go. I need to shower and stuff"

"Alrighty then. Bye Maaaaaaark!" The boy laughed down the phone before the line went dead. 

Mark chuckled and tossed his phone onto his pillow before getting up and stripping out of his clothes, shoving them in the wash basket on his way to the bathroom. 

He the shower to let it heat up and ran a hand through his hair. He brought a hand up to his cheek and grinned, closing his eyes as he remembered the feeling of Jackson's soft lips. 

He couldn't help but wonder how they'd feel against his own. He hoped he'd find out one day soon.

Once the water was warm enough he stepped into the shower and let himself relax. The water running over his body always felt nice to him. He stood under it for a few minutes before going about washing his hair and body. 

It was a good twenty five minutes later that he stepped out and wrapped a towel around his waist. He grabbed a smaller one and dried his hair half-heartedly with it, before letting it rest over his shoulders, to catch any dripping water that fell from his hair.

When he got back to his room, he grabbed a clean pair of boxers and a t-shirt and set them down on the bed before grabbing his phone, checking to see if he had any messages.

He did.

[Jackson]

Were you blushing when I left? 
I'm pretty sure you were~ ;3
Your cheeks are really soft, btw^^

Mark felt a smile creep over him, he sat down on the edge of his bed to reply, then grinned. He switched to camera and lifted the phone up and brought his hand to his face, making a 'peace' sign as he pouted. He snapped the picture and sent it to Jackson with the caption;

 'Do I look like I was blushing? You'll have to try harder~ ;D'

He set his phone aside for a moment whilst he dried himself off and got dressed. He threw his used towel in the wash basket, and used the one around his neck to dry his hair more thoroughly, then threw it to join the other one.

He sat back down on his bed and grabbed his phone again to see Jackson had replied.

[Jackson]

Cute~ 
But why are you all wet??
And are you ?! O_O

Mark let out a loud laugh, thankful that nobody was around to hear it. He grinned as he walked, phone in hand, into the living room and sat down on the sofa. He pulled his laptop onto his knee and turned it on. He replied to Jackson whilst it started up.

[To Jackson]

It was meant to be :P
Because I just got out the shower lol
And no! I was in a towel!! My god!
What do you take me for?! :')

He set his phone to one side as he logged into his laptop and clicked onto skype.

Almost instantly a message popped up.

Wild&y: You sent me a pic of you just in a towel? Suggestive much? ;)

Mark_Tuan: I didn't mean it to be, asshat :') So shush

Wild&y: Suuuuuuuuure~ But anyway, did you have fun today?

Mark_Tuan: Yeah, I did~ We should do it again some time^^

Wild&y: You want to go on a second date with me? My, oh my! I must have done something right then!! :P

Mark_Tuan: You did everything right...

Wild&y: I'm sensing a 'but'

Mark_Tuan: It's nothing... Just... >///< forget it, it doesn't matter

Wild&y: You wanted me to kiss you, right? Like, properly

Mark_Tuan: ... Maybe... 

Wild&y: Okay, I'll make you a promise.
Wild&y: The next time I see you
Wild&y: And I do mean the very next time
Wild&y: I'll kiss you properly. To make up for letting you down ;)

Mark_Tuan: I... 
Mark_Tuan: I actually don't know what to say... :')

Wild&y: You don't need to say anything. As long as you kiss me back, all will be good! ;D

Mark_Tuan: Shouldn't you be doing h/w?

Wild&y: Wow, change the subject, much? Ahaha, and I've done most of it. I'm taking a snack break. Speaking of, you should go eat dinner, since I know you haven't yet!

Mark_Tuan: I hate it when you're right... Okay, I'm gonna go eat, I'll text you in a bit~ ^0^

Wild&y: TTFN<3

Mark chuckled as he signed out of Skype, and pushed his laptop onto the coffee table. 

He wasn't sure whether to be excited, or nervous, about the next time he saw Jackson...

***

[Jackson]

Are you busy?

Mark looked at his phone and smiled, because no, he wasn't busy. Not at all. He didn't have any classes and he was free as a bird.

[To Jackson]

Nope, why??

He didn't get a reply, instead he was greated by a knock at the door.

Now, since he'd met Jackson, Mark had learnt it was better not to question things, and rather to just go along with them. Which is why he quickly checked himself over in the mirror to make sure he looked okay - he was donned in black skinny jeans, and a white tee, with a flannel shirt tied around his waist - and decided he did. 

He walked over and opened the door. 

Jackson beamed at him, but didn't give Mark a chance to even say 'hi' before he leant in and kissed Mark softly on the lips.

It was a quick kiss. It only lasted a couple of seconds, but it still had Mark's cheeks turning a deep red colour.

"You asked for it" was all Jackson said before pushing his way inside, kicking his shoes off as he did.

Mark stood frozen at the door. He had to admit, he hadn't seen that coming. But then again, he thought, maybe he should have, given their conversation two days before.

When Jackson realised Mark hadn't followed him, he let out a laugh before walking back to Mark. He closed the door, grabbed Mark's hand and pulled him into the living room, where he pushed the slightly older boy to sit down on the sofa before sitting down next to him and throwing an arm around Mark's shoulders.

"What are you doing here?" Mark asked, once he'd managed to find the ability to talk again.

Jackson shrugged, "Well, I figured, I have nothing to do. You have nothing to do. So, we might as well do nothing together, you know?"

"You were already outside my door before you asked me..." Mark pointed out, "What would you have done if I'd have said I had plans?"

Jackson grinned, "I would have knocked anyways, and acted really cute and sad until you gave in and hung out with me" he said easily. 

Mark rolled his eyes, but let out a bout of amused laughter at Jackson's antics.

"You're so stupid" Mark grinned, but the fondness in his voice was enough to tell Jackson he didn't actually think so.

Jackson shrugged a shoulder, "yeah, well" he said, then paused for a minute before asking, "Wanna go somewhere?"

"Like where?" Mark asked, leaning into Jackson as subtly as he could.

Jackson noticed though, obviously, and started to rub Mark's arm slowly, "I'm in the mood for ice cream. Wanna go get ice cream? My treat?"

"Well, how can I refuse that?" Mark chuckled, "Let me just go get a jacket"

Mark stood up and went to his room, pocketing his phone and wallet as he did. He grabbed Jackson's jacket off the wardrobe, not really paying attention and shoved it on.

He made his way back out of his room and to the front door, where Jackson stood waiting. His shoes already on. Jackson looked up and saw Mark, a smile bloomed on his face as he watched Mark put on his trainers.

"What are you smiling at?" Mark asked, genuinely at a loss of what was happening.

"Oh, nothing" Jackson said, the smile not leaving his face.

Mark stood back up after lacing up his shoes and grabbed his keys, "If you say so" he said, before the two of them left the flat. Mark locked up and shoved his keys in his pocket before Jackson took his hand and started to lead the way.

Jackson ended up taking him to a small ice cream shop not far from his flat. It was a cute little place. Rather cosy, and not too busy, which he liked. They sat down in a small booth by the window.

"What d'you fancy, then?" Jackson asked, looking over the menu that listed the various flavours.

Mark hummed, "I'm not sure... What's good?"

"Well, I like the cookie dough, and the mint choc chip... Why don't we get one of each and share?" Jackson suggested, "We can get drinks too"

Mark nodded, "Sounds good" he said, "You go up and order, because you seem to know what you're doing"

"What drink do you want?" 

"Can I get apple juice?"

Jackson grinned, "That's what I was gonna get too!" he laughed, "Gosh, we're so N'sync"

"Did you just..."

"I might have" Jackson laughed before walking off to order their things.

Mark rolled his eyes. He really did like that idiot that went by the name of Jackson Wang.

It wasn't long before Jackson came back, a try in his hands, on which was two glasses of apple juice, and two medium tubs of ice cream.

Jackson placed the try on the table before sliding into the seat opposite Mark. He picked up a small spoon from the tray and handed it to Mark before picking up the other one for himself. He scooped up some of the mint flavour and ate. 

"Mmm" he let out in content before scooping up a bit more and holding it to Mark's lips, "try it. It's good" he said.

Mark opened his mouth and let Jackson feed him, fighting back a blush as he did. But his embarrassment was soon forgotten as he tasted the sweet treat.

"Oh my god" he said after he'd swallowed it down, "That's so freaking good!"

Jackson chuckled and scooped up some of the cookie dough flavour, "here, try this one" he said, holding the spoon to Mark's lips once more.

Like before, Mark opened his mouth and allowed Jackson to feel him. He closed his eyes and savoured the delicious treat, "Mmm, god. That's good. So good"

"Way to sound really ual" Jackson laughed before eating a spoonful himself.

Mark's eyes shot open, "Hey! I did not!"

"Uh, you kinda did" Jackson smirked, "here you go, getting all suggestive again. First pictures, now this... What will I do with you?"

Mark flushed, "I wasn't !" he glared, "Stop saying that"

"You're cute when you're embarrassed" Jackson chuckled, "I like it. I mean, you're cute anyway, but this... it's adorable"

"Shut up. I am not!" Mark shot back before shoveling another spoonful of ice cream into his mouth, "Ah! Brain freeze!"

Jackson's high-pitched laugh made an appearance then. He pushed Mark's juice closer to him. Mark shot him a thankful smile before taking a large gulp of his drink.

"You should be more careful" Jackson said, poking Mark on the nose teasingly.

Mark smiled, "I should be a lot of things" he said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jackson asked in confusion.

Mark shot him a small shrug and an ominous smile before eating more ice cream.

***

Jinyoung flopped on Mark's sofa, a can of coke in one hand and a half eaten Crunchie in the other.

"Dude, seriously..." Mark said, standing at the end of the sofa and looking down at Jinyoung, shaking his head as he did.

Jinyoung grinned at him before taking a bite of his Crunchie, "What? It's not like you don't do the same thing at my place" he pointed out, before shifting his legs slightly, letting Mark sit down, before proceeding to put them on Mark's lap.

"I don't put my legs all over you, though" Mark grumbled, grabbing the remote and flicking on th TV, "The Simpsons alright?"

"Yeah, I won't be paying much attention anyway" Jinyoung grinned, shoving the last bite of Crunchie in his mouth and tossing the wrapper on the table.

Mark raised a brow at him, "you better be planning on throwing that away" he said, before pulling out his phone and checking his messages. 

He had two. One from his dad, checking in, and one from Jackson.

"I will. I'm just too tired to get up right now" Jinyoung replied, then took a sip of his coke before pulling out his own phone.

"Too lazy, you mean" Mark laughed, before replying to his dad, then opening Jackson's message.

"I resent that" Jinyoung shot back with a laugh, as Mark focused on his phone.

[Jackson]

Do you have a band-aid? 
Because I scraped my knee falling for you~ 

Mark let out a chuckle. Jackson was so cheesy sometimes.

"What's so funny?" Jinyoung asked, "Oh wait! Let me guess... Jackson?" 

Mark glanced over at his best friend and stuck his tongue out at him, "Shut up"

"You're so ing smitten. It's kinda gross" Jinyoung rolled his eyes before turning back to his phone.

As did Mark, so he could reply to Jackson.

[To Jackson]

You're so cheesy! Ahaa!
But hey, whilst we're on the topic...
Do you have a map? Because every time
I look at you, I seem to get lost in your eyes~^^

Mark grinned at himself, feeling pretty proud of his reply as he hit send.

"Okay, it's seriously getting creepy now. Like, you smile a lot anyway, but this is getting way outta control, man" Jinyoung said, glancing over the top of his phone to look at Mark with a look of mock-disappointment.

Mark scoffed, "Like you can say anything. You're way too happy for a normal person, Jin. Like, seriously, half the time you're so hyper you give me a headache"

"You're just jealous" Jinyoung laughed as Mark's phone buzzed again, "Quick. You better check that, it's probably your boyfriend"

" you," Mark chuckled, "And he's not my boyfriend"

"Not yet anyway" 

Mark scoffed at his best friend, before clicking on his new message.

[Jackson]

I used the think Happiness
started with a 'H'. Turns out
it starts with an 'M' :)

Mark couldn't help but grin, so wide that his cheeks started to ache. It was cliché and cheesy, and really stupid, but he felt so happy he thought he might burst.

[To Jackson]

Aright, I don't think I 
can top that O:
*grins*

It was only thirty seconds before a reply came through.

[Jackson]

I mean it though. 
You make me really happy

"Jinyoungie..." Mark said, his voice quiet, almost as though he would explode with feelings if he raised it any higher than a whisper, "I think I just died and went to heaven"

Jinyoung put his phone down on the table and sat up, taking his legs off of Mark and scooting closer to him.

He placed a hand on each of Mark's cheeks and made the older boy face him, "Mark Tuan" he said, "Ask him the out already"

"I can't do that!" Mark huffed, pulling away from the other boy and pushing him back to the other end of the sofa, "You're barking! I've known him like, what? Two weeks? Properly anyway"

Jinyoung shrugged, "So? Answer me this; Do you know him well?"

"Yes, but-"

"Do you think he'll be good to you?"

"Yes, but-"

"Do you like him?"

"Yes, but-"

"No buts! Mark, come on" Jinyoung let out in frustration, "You need to live a little. Just go for it! Take a leap of faith for once in your life!"

Mark shook his head, "No. Nope. Not even. Not gonna happen. Look, I'm just gonna see how things go, okay? And I'll keep you updated, or whatever, but can you just... not"

Jinyoung sighed and picked up his phone again, "Fine. But don't pretend like you don't know I'm right" he said with a small shake of his head, "Oh, and Jaebum said hey"

"Tell him hey" Mark smiled, thankful that Jinyoung had gotten off of the topic.

He glanced back down at his phone and smiled to himself again.

[To Jackson]

You make me really happy too

He hit send and sighed softly to himself. He really, really liked Jackson Wang.

***

"Mark"

If he had to choose one word that he could hear Jackson say over and over again, it would have to be his name. He liked Jackson's voice anyway, but the way his name just rolled off the other's tongue made him tingly.

"Mark? Anyone in there?" Jackson asked, knocking on Mark's head.

Mark blinked before slapping Jackson's hand away, "sorry. Sorry, I was lost in thought"

"I never would have guessed" Jackson laughed, "Anyways, wanna go for a walk? We've still got an hour and a half until we need to be in the old bastard's lecture"

Mark smiled and nodded, "Yeah. Might as well. Nothing else to do" he said, allowing Jackson to take his hand and lace their fingers together before they set off.

Hand in hand, they walked around the small park just off campus. It was a nice little place. Full of big trees and a lot of colourful flowers. There was a small river running through, with a wooden bridge over it. 

It was pretty empty, considering kids were at school, teens were too, or at college, and then the adults - or kind of adults - were at work or uni.

They stopped once they'd got to the middle of the bridge. Mark leant back against the railing, whilst Jackson stood in front of him, his legs between Mark's. 
Jackson let go of Mark's hand to hold onto the railing either side of Mark. Making it so that they were chest to chest. Mark let his hands come up to rest on Jackson's shoulders, just so he'd have something to do with them.

Jackson shot him a small smile, "You okay?" he asked softly.

"Yeah, I'm good" Mark smiled back, "You?"

Jackson chuckled, "I'm always okay when I'm with you" he said, then added, "Was that too cheesy?"

"No" Mark grinned, "I think it was just the right amount of cheesy" 

Jackson laughed softly as he leant forward to rest his forehead against Mark's for a moment, before pulling back to look him in the eye.

"I like you, Mark"

Mark smiled, "I know, I like you too" he said.

But Jackson shook his head, "No," he said, "I mean, I really, really like you"

"Oh" Mark bit his lip, not really sure what to say.

Jackson nodded slowly, "Yeah... Like, a lot, actually. And, well, I know it's not been that long, and we've only been on a few dates, or whatever, but um, I was wondering what you thought of like, you know, being something... more.. than friends?"

Mark looked at Jackson thoughtfully for a moment before asking, "What? Like... Exclusive?"

"Yeah..." Jackson nodded, "I mean, don't feel pressured or anything. It's just... With you, I feel, I dunno, good? And I've not really felt like this about anyone before. In the past when I've liked someone, it's just been like a crush, but with you... With you it's different. It's like, going from black and white to seeing colours. There's just something about you, and I'd never forgive myself if I didn't at least try and get you to be mine, you know?"

Mark was quiet for a moment as he tried to process what Jackson had just said. 

Jackson had just asked him out. He'd really asked him out. Really, really done it. He couldn't help but think that at least now he got to rub it in Jinyoung's face that waiting was the right thing to do.

A smile bloomed on Mark's face as his hands came to rest on the back of Jackson's neck, his fingers playing with the hair that poked out from under Jackson's backward-facing snapback.

"Okay" he said softly, "Yeah. Me and you, exclusive. I like that"

The grin that spread over Jackson's lips was enough for Mark to know he'd made the right choice. Enough for him to know that Jackson was the one it was worth risking everything for.

"So... You're my boyfriend now, huh?" Jackson said, grin still on his face.

Mark couldn't help but chuckle, "Looks like it" he said, pulling Jackson's face closer slightly.

"So, like, can I kiss you now?" Jackson asked, a little timidly, which was cute, considering Mark was used to seeing him so full of confidence.

Mark smiled, "Do you even have to ask?"

"Yep, I'm a polite guy, you see" Jackson grinned before leaning in and capturing Mark's lips with his own.

Yes, Mark thought as he lost himself in all that was the other boy. He really, definitely, completely and wholly, liked the boy who'd stood with him in the rain that day, beneath the blue umbrella. The boy known as Jackson Wang.

Fin.

A/N: Well, there is it.
Part two is up and ready to be judged :')

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