CHANYEOL COULD ALREADY hear Jongin's incessant affronting towards his faulty moves as he runs to the dance practice room. He bursts into the room, interrupting the ongoing dance session. Suddenly, dozens of eyes look away from the mirrors and fixate on the very late Park Chanyeol. That includes Jongin. He could feel the pressure of that very heavy gaze (more like glare) on him yet he had to apologize still.

Chanyeol bows a 90-degree bow to his clubmates, hoping that Jongin would take this as a sign of surrender. "Good morning, people I respect. I am very sorry I'm late. You see-," he starts to explain but Jongin cuts him off.

"Good morning, Park Chanyeol-ssi. Please just come inside and cut your bull." It is evident on everyone's face that Chanyeol's tardiness was not something to be happy about. Feeling remorseful, Chanyeol tries to smile apologetically, hoping it would sway their annoyance at his disturbance. And it did. Even the older women smiled at young boy, seemingly forgiving him.

For reasons unknown to Park Chanyeol, smiling had always been his easy way out. Was it because he was so friendly? Or was it his genuinity? Nevertheless, his smile was the one that got him out of the most sticky situations.

"Jongin-ssi," he says, approaching the brown guy, hoping that if he gave an excuse, he wouldn't have to be subjected to more trashtalking than usual. "I'm sorry for being late. I have a reason, really."

Jongin turns to him, sweating and distracted. "I'm sure that you do, Park, and that's why I don't need to hear it. Now, we have a recital to perform next week, and the new routine requires much more from the lead dancer than usual."

Chanyeol leans back, surprised by the calmness the hoobae was expressing towards him. Usually, he mocked even his smallest movements, as long as he was wrong. And it wasn't just ordinary trash-talking: it was high-level insults, capable of silencing those even with the most sassy of hearts.

"Oi, what are you doing now Park Chanyeol-ssi. We should begin our routine."

Jongin presses play on the stereo placed atop the table, and the room is filled by a beat that thumps through their bodies, filling them with the spirit of movement.

x x x

CHANYEOL HAD NEVER felt more confused in his life.

He manages to get out of a three-hour practice scot-free, which is an achievement in and of itself. And Jongin's good mood actually made Chanyeol clumsy: he tripped and fidgeted and forgot the steps just when everyone was about to move on. It was as if he was tempting the patience of the unusually calm hoobae (who kinda acts like a sunbae), which he didn't want to do.

Despite all of that, Jongin was still at peace.

"Are you having some difficulty? Here, that's actually not how you do it, but you're getting there," Jongin says at one point at practice, calmly shutting off the stereo to run over the steps again. Jongin acts like a perfect, patient tutor, and it terrifies Chanyeol.

Chanyeol emerges from the practice room and enters the shower room confused, but deliriously happy. It felt so good to pursue your passion without having an contradict it. He grabs his towel and dries his sweat-soaked hair. He ruffles it some more and while doing so, he remembers Baekhyun and how the cute eyeliner aficionado does this to him, imposing very, very seductive notions. He remembers that one time when he and Baekhyun tried to skip their 9 to 11am Calculus class and hid in the Music Room just to spend "quality" (cough cough) time with each other. Their toupee-clad professor, however, noticed that two of his most mischievous students were missing and found them there, underneath the piano, hair deviously unruly and lips suspiciously swollen.

Chanyeol insentiently smiles. He realizes that he's having these kinds of thoughts in his mind and shakes his head. He was not supposed to have those kinds of things in mind, he thinks. Things between him and Baekhyun are over.

The tall stout-eared guy leaves the shower room a bit muddled and perplexed. I mean, who wouldn't be, right? Chanyeol was the one who wanted to end their relationship. Why was he having steamy thoughts about his ex? Sure, hot and moments were definitely hard to forget but oh come on, who was he kidding? He misses the guy.

He grabs a paper cup and pours in cold water. Not long after, the paper cup tears at the seams and the water spills out. Annoyed at how easily the paper cup broke, Chanyeol curses out. He wipes his well-soaked pants, however he stops in his tracks when he realizes the reason now why he and Baekhyun should never be. Baekhyun is so easy, it gives him no challenge at all. The shorter guy gives him everything he wanted but what he needed was a challenge - a break from all the taking and taking and taking. Sure, Byun Baekhyun was hella fun to be with but it all changed when they got into this exclusive relationship and it bored him.

Chanyeol only sighs at this realization as he makes his way out of the steamy shower room. See, the guy was hardly a fan of profanity and vulgarism but he curses out for the second time of the day when he sees Jongin lurking by the halls, seemingly occupied by something or someone. Chanyeol scurries back inside the shower room and peeks surreptitiously at the scary hoobae. It seems that whatever the thing that is keeping Jongin at bay was doing hella fine at making the bronze guy smile. Chanyeol inwardly thinks that his hoobae is actually pretty cute when he smiles a genuine smile, but he'll never tell him that of course.

He catches a glimpse of what - or who, for that matter - is keeping Jongin distracted and all giddy, and boy was that little squishy face adorable! He couldn't help himself as he sighs at how cute the little thing is. He wants to squish that adorable devil's face until it's compressed and look all scrunched up while looking cute at the same time and fit it into his pocket and never ever allow it to see sunshine again!

The dwarf-eared boy notices how fondly Jongin looks at the smaller boy. Slowly, Chanyeol smiles as he realizes that maybe this little guy is the culprit behind Jongin's calmness and tranquility awhile ago. And that maybe, just maybe, something is going on between these two.

"A challenge, huh," Chanyeol says to himself as he rubs two long hands together. "Well, here's one."