Dating Mark Tuan had been like a novel with it’s up and down’s, and its terrible ending. Youngjae still couldn’t believe he broke up with him (they had been together for years after all), but more than that, the fact that Mark Tuan cheated on him. The cutie had once seen the pretty boy as a perfect human being that was created by the gods (not anymore) with his never ending rains of smiles and kisses, the heart throbbing pick up lines he used on him, and all of his perfect I love you’s when they woke up from and went back to sleep. But now he couldn’t even look back to his fond memories because they had been tainted by his resentful emotions. Where did everything go wrong…?

How much of it was true and how much of it was false?

Youngjae knew that thinking about this was useless at this point because there was nothing he could do about the past. What’s been done has been done already and he needed to accept it as it was. It haunted him though whenever he went back to sleep at his best friend’s house (since he didn’t have an apartment. He used to share one with Mark Tuan) and his mind was suddenly flooded with so many unnecessary thoughts. Were all of his rains of kisses and smiles just a bluff? Were they even meant for him in the first place? No, it can’t be, Youngjae reasoned. He still had the sparkle in his eyes by then. Then what about the pick up lines? It wasn’t by then either; he still laughed whenever the cutie blushed at his straight-forwardness. Maybe it was around when he stopped saying the I love you’s whenever they woke up from or went back to sleep. It must’ve been because he started acting weird afterword…

His nights are spent like this now, cranking his head for answers when the only one that has the answers to everything is Mark Tuan himself. The cutie tosses and turns in the couch (because Jinyoung won’t let him have his bed, claiming his back has been hurting for a while (but Youngjae knows it’s a excuse)), huffing and puffing and feeling angry all by himself. He gets up, giving up on trying to sleep and starts cleaning the house to distract himself from his thoughts. There have been too many occasions when his best friend wakes up and see’s the house sparkling from how much Youngjae has been cleaning it. Jinyoung knows how hard it’s been on him so he takes the time to make him some decent breakfast as a way of gratitude to the latter for cleaning his house. Usually after eating the delicious breakfast, the cutie slumps in the comfortable bed and sleeps until noon because of how tired he is.

Park Jinyoung hated seeing his best friend acting this way. Usually, the latter would be carefree and free spirited, boosting about how Mark Tuan did something that made his heart burst and getting embarrassed over it when he remembered the memory. He would witness for the one hundredth time his beautiful eye smile and his perfect white pearls, and remember why he hated Mark Tuan from the beginning. It was a simple reason, nothing too complicated about it or hard to understand. He thought he had overgrown the pain and forgotten all about it when he went out with his dates and shared countless passionate nights with a couple of them. It was a mess at the beginning; he screaming out a name that wasn’t his partners and being left behind by them. Jinyoung was so sure he had put it all behind him when he saw Youngjae with Mark Tuan, smiling more brightly than he ever had with him.

And yet, here he was, filled with hope.

Hope that just maybe, Youngjae was willing on forgetting that jerk that turned him into a mess. He was hoping to make the latter truly see him for the first time as more than a best friend. Maybe it was a cheap move to put the moves on him during such a sensitive time, but he’s been waiting for far too long already. He wasn’t about to let another chance pass like the first and last time it happened. Jinyoung had been too doubtful back then, too scared to do anything for him that he let the sneaky Mark Tuan steal him away from him. For now though, he won’t attack. The latter was still so mentally drained from everything and it wouldn’t be a rational and honest decision if he were to ask him out now. He wanted it to be because Youngjae wanted it, not because he wanted it.

With that in mind, he approaches the latter with a tray on his hand, hoping that his best friend wouldn’t mind some hot chocolate. “Youngjae,” he called out, shaking the corpse that was currently on his bed with his foot because his hands weren’t free. “Wake up. I made you some hot chocolate.” The said latter groaned tiredly, cuddling and hugging closer the pillow (Jinyoung’s pillow, for that fact. He was so sure it would later smell like him and that would be problematic for many reasons).

“Just five more minutes…” he grumbled sleepily, inching away from the foot that was preventing him to sleep. Although the sight melted his heart, Jinyoung knew better than to give in like that because of previous situations.

(For example, back when they were both in high school and Youngjae hadn’t done his homework, he would always look for him. It was something that always bothered him, lending people his homework and letting them copy it, but somehow, his best friend was always the exception. He knew the latter worked hard for his grades and letting one or two times wouldn’t hurt neither of them.

Except that one time when the cutie was copying from him during a class because he didn’t have time later to do it. Unfortunately, the teacher caught him red handed and Youngjae was never one to lie, especially to his teacher. He confessed it was Jinyoung’s homework and that earned them detention after class and a deduction of a couple of points. Jinyoung was so pissed at him for letting himself be caught like that, but when he saw his best friend pouting and begging him to forgive him, he crumbled into pieces. That was the thing with him. He could never stay mad at him more than a minute because the cutie would manage somehow to get into his heart.

After that, it happened a couple of times more and he knew he couldn’t let himself give in to his best friend’s whims.)

He kicked the cutie a bit harsher because the hot chocolate was starting to get cold. “Yah, get your out of my bed, Youngjae. I made you some hot chocolate so drink it while I’m still treating you nicely.” Jinyoung growled impatiently, checking his watch. He was gonna be late to his work because of him again.

It was only then the cutie slowly got up, eyes still closed and adorable pink lips pouting (not to mention, some dried drool at the end of his lips). His hair was standing all the ways possible, a couple of knots that were rather visible at the end of his hair, and his sweater hanging loose on him, revealing some of his collarbones. He didn’t bother to dress himself up since he was comfortable like that, but mainly because it was Jinyoung. They’ve been together since forever so there was nothing to hide from each other. “You wouldn’t kick me…” Youngjae mumbled before yawning. His best friend’s words might sound harsh but he would never do that to him.

“Don’t test me then.” He answered curtly before handing him his hot chocolate. “Drink that and get dressed.”

The cutie looked up at him and tilted his head. “Why? Am I going somewhere?”

“Hope you don’t mind, but I signed you up for a job interview at my café.” Jinyoung said casually before nodding at him. “It’s time you start shaping up.”

He lowered his eyes to the hot chocolate and started to think how long it’s been since the break up. He realized it’s been almost two weeks since then but his heart still aches whenever he remembers the scene. Youngjae bit his lower lip uncertainly, “I… I don’t know. I mean, I don’t feel ready to get out yet…”

His best friend smiled at him, his eyes turning softer and sat down next to him. “It’s understandable, but you can’t let yourself drown in your own self pity. You need to move forward, Youngjae. That’s how the world works.”

“Y-Yeah, you’re right…” His eyes glossed a bit with emotion. “I… I’m sorry this has just been all so hard for me, you know?”

“Don’t worry, it’ll pass.” Jinyoung said, hugging him tightly before leaving. He flashed him a smile and everything seemed a little better than it was a minute ago. Youngjae managed to smile back at him before getting up and looking for some formal clothes. He had an interview after all…

♦♦♦♦♦♦

The interview went okay. Youngjae tried his best answering the questions and looking confident when in reality, he was all over the place. It had been a while since he last went looked for a part time job. The last time he was looking for one was a couple of months ago when he was still dating Mark Tuan, and it was a part time job at a clothing store. He remembered how smooth the interview had been, how confident he had been, and yet there was never a call. The latter didn’t mind because that way he could focus on his studies but Mark Tuan had none of that and took him out around the park to make him feel better.

There was no Mark Tuan now to make the uneasiness go away.

He was aware that there were a couple of questions that he didn’t answer exactly the way he should’ve, but they were a little difficult for him. Some questions were too personal for his taste and if he wasn’t in a tough situation at the moment, Youngjae thinks he would’ve left the interview half way. The cutie remembers the interview as he sits at one of the tables at the café his best friend worked at. (“Where do you see yourself in five years?” one of the men interviewing him asked, eyeing the paper and then him.

Youngjae tried hard not to snort because honestly, he was barely getting by now so why would he complicate himself and think about the future? “Oh, um, I think by then I’ll have finished studying and have already made my debut as a barista.” He answered, smiling a little because that had always been his dream.

The men nodded before another one piped in. “Why is there a gap in your employment? You were working for a couple of months at another café.”

This is where the difficulty levels start to rise up by a centimeter. It’s true that before the break up and everything else, he had been working at a couple of months at another café. “Were you fired? If so, why?”

The latter turned paler at the memory but he still managed to have eye contact with the interviewers. “I wasn’t fired… I quit because of family reasons…”)

It was around then he saw his best friend approaching him at long last, and Youngjae never wanted to have someone’s presence as much as that moment. “It was horrible!!!” he exclaimed right away Jinyoung sat across him. The latter looked almost taken back because from what he remembered, his interview wasn’t so bad.

“Why? What happened?” he asked genuinely curious and confused as to what could’ve gone horrible for him.

“They asked me about my gap employment.”

“Oh.” Both males fell quiet, the tension overflowing incredibly in just a few seconds. Youngjae didn’t have to explain much to him because he already knew what he meant by that statement, and because he knew, he knew that the cutie didn’t feel the greatest at the moment. If there was a topic his best friend hated talking about, it was related to family matters and it was understandable. Whenever that topic popped up, the cutie’s face would turn grave and serious, his eyes hard and cold, displaying no emotion whatsoever. It was similar to now, Youngjae in his own world, deep in thought while Jinyoung worried about him like he always did. Thankfully, the cutie is easily distracted and it’s easier to cheer him up.

Jinyoung sighed before leaning in closer like he was going to say a secret and smiling wickedly at him. “You know what you need? You don’t, don’t you?”

The cutie humored him, shaking his head indifferent to his best friend.

“You need some puppy therapy and some ice cream.” He stood quickly, grabbing Youngjae’s wrist and pulling him along. Before taking off with his best friend, Jinyoung excused himself from his work and changed into his normal clothes.

Even after knowing Jinyoung all of his life, the cutie didn’t have a clue to where his best friend was taking him. All of his previous thoughts were forgotten momentarily as he was pulled by the male in front of him, for some odd reason, determined to make him feel better. Or well, it shouldn’t be odd because that’s what friends do, right? The only reason why Youngjae thought it was odd because for some freaking reason, his face felt hot the moment the other took lead. He blinked many times, confused as to why he even feeling that and that it was all in his head. This was probably just some weird after effect of the break up is all, he convinced himself mentally. He was weak and vulnerable at the moment so this kind of thing was bound to happen at some point.

But with his best friend?

Like really? How desperate am I? Youngjae’s mind reeled with dizziness, becoming ultra aware of the hand that was holding his wrist. This never happened before, him looking at his best friend like that… but now, everything seemed a little different and frankly, the cutie wasn’t sure if that was good or not. The only thing he was sure was that Jinyoung’s hand felt really nice against his and really, really warm. It wasn’t anything like Mark Tuan’s hand, all cold and firm, but he guesses he himself made up for that. Thinking back on those days, it was nice for a while because he basically made up for whatever Mark Tuan lacked. Youngjae remembers thinking that it was like he was Mark Tuan’s other half and that’s why they fit each other so well… not anymore, anyways.

Both males continued walking in silence. They were certainly farther from the café they were just at and while Jinyoung seemed to walk around in familiarity, Youngjae stared at his surroundings curiously. He’s never been in that part of town after all. The most he had gone around there was at the café his best friend worked out and that was a couple of blocks away from they were at now. There were shops he had never seen before; some clothing stores while others were for phone repairs and what not, a few more cafes and restaurants, and some puppy stores. It wasn’t a busy street but there were still a couple of crowds crossing the roads and waiting for the cars to pass. The cutie wondered how much they had walked and how much was left for them to walk. He was getting tired from all the walking they had done…

It was only then Jinyoung seemed to get happy about something. Before the cutie asked him about it, his best friend pulled him along, making Youngjae’s cheek burn even more than before. The latter stared at the back of the male in front of him and wondered if it was even okay to feel like that when they finally made a stop at a shop. The sudden stop made him snap out of the dangerous trail of thoughts and made him look immediately at the shop. A small smiled graced his lips when he saw it was a puppy store and he turned to his friend, looking at him curiously. He pointed at it, a playful tone in his voice. “Really?”

His best friend shrugged, smiling because he finally made the other smile. “Really.”

“Okay.” With that, Youngjae didn’t say anything else and instead, entered the store. The store was to be as expected, full of animals. There was a giant tank full of fishes, a couple of turtles around, some hedgehogs, another section full of kittens and then there was the section of puppies. His heart swelled with adoration at the sight of the puppies playfully playing with each other for his attention. All of the puppies were adorable but among them was one that stood out more with its pure white fur and its terribly dark eyes. They locked eyes and Youngjae knew at that moment, he had to take it with him back home.

It seemed Jinyoung also knew that he had to take it back home. With a sad (and heavy) heart, he looked away from the heartwarming scene and looked at his wallet. He couldn’t possibly buy it now. He didn’t have the money for it at the moment. Besides, did his best friend even know the commitment he needed to have once they buy the puppy?

The latter was in his own world, however, when he grabbed the puppy and brought it close to his heart. The puppy struggled a bit, trying to make itself comfortable, but once it did, it started to his face. Youngjae giggled, cheeks turning pink and rosy and feeling 100% better than he was before. “H-Hey, st-stop that,” he said in between giggles, but the puppy continued its rain of all over his face. “You’re so cute!”

He finally looked at his best friend with big, hopeful eyes. “Can we buy him?”

Jinyoung bit his lower lip. “We can buy it later? I don’t have money at the moment…”

“Oh…” Youngjae looked crestfallen and he looked back at the puppy, trying to smile at it. “Not today then. Sorry, cutie.” He kissed its tiny forehead and put it back where originally was.

They looked at the rest of the animals but it wasn’t the same. It certainly made the cutie feel better but the fact they couldn’t buy the puppy made him feel a little down. With a heavy heart, they both walked away from the shop but with different thoughts. “Don’t worry, Youngjae. We’ll visit again soon.” (“And buy it later.” He chose to leave out so it could be a surprise.)

The thought seemed to make the cutie feel better, looking at his friend with hopeful eyes and smiling a little. “Promise?”

“Promise.”

It was a little surprising to Youngjae how just a simple promise like that one made him feel instantly better. He supposes that it’s always been like that with his best friend. Although Mark Tuan had many ways to make him feel 100% again, Jinyoung had his own unique ways that certainly worked like a charm. The latter never made him feel little and pathetic for his worries, and instead heard him out attentively because he knew Youngjae had no one else to talk about his worries with. During such times, he shares some of his and they become closer, and it’s precisely during such times that he wonders why he picked Mark Tuan in the first place.

(But then a hundred million reasons pop up in his mind, and he feels angry and frustrated at himself for being so foolish and stupid.)

On their way back home, they stop by the convenience store and buy some ice cream for the apartment. The cutie has an idea of what his best friend is aiming for and is completely okay with it because he’s always down for some ice cream and movies. They’re both loud and laughing as they walk up to their apartment, ignoring completely the annoying ringtone of the one that shall not be named anymore. Youngjae looks at his cell phone and his heart races hard against his chest when he sees the caller, but he chooses to ignore it and puts it on do not disturb. He smiles when Jinyoung finally opens their door and continues talking about their previous topic as if nothing happened. They both sit down next to each other on the couch as they search for a movie to watch, enjoying the freshness of the ice cream and each others company. As time passes by and the clock tick tock’s loudly, indicating its midnight already, they fall asleep on each other’s shoulder.

And for the first time in what seemed to be forever, Youngjae was able to sleep without waking up until it was finally 11 o’clock in the morning.

A/N: Annnndddd, some 2young action! No actual apperance of Mark but maybe in the next chapter c; 

It also looks like Youngjae is leaning towards moving on... what will happen?!

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Also, I'll try to upload the next one soon... hope this was worth the wait? Enjoy! ;)