Chapter Text
Yanjun didn’t believe Xukun when he told him during dinner that Yanjun was one hundred percent in love with You Zhangjing.
Xukun was joking ( “You know, you spend so much time talking You Zhangjing that you should probably just skip asking him out and go straight to proposing” ), and Yanjun laughed it off. But then Yanjun kept thinking about it as they left the cafeteria.
Zhangjing’s my best friend. Of course I spend so much time talking about him , Yanjun told himself as he and Xukun split ways, as they lived in different dormitories.
I mean I know Zhangjing is cute. But that’s about it , Yanjun reassured himself as he jabbed the button his dormitory building’s elevator.
Yanjun lived on the fourth floor. By the time the elevator passed floor three, Yanjun was entertaining the possibility that he was completely, totally in love with his best friend You Zhangjing.
Not in love, but maybe just a little, tiny crush, he reasoned with himself as he walked down his dorm hall in a sort of trance.
Because apparently, all he did was talk about You Zhangjing.
Two weeks go by. Yanjun’s suspicions are confirmed.
Judging by the fact that Yanjun suddenly was just noticing how his heart would immediately leap into his throat every time Zhangjing smiled in his direction, yes, Yanjun was a little bit super in love with his best friend.
Which isn’t always the best thing to feel towards a platonic best friend, Yanjun knows.
But maybe You Zhangjing shouldn’t be so fucking adorable, Yanjun thinks to himself.
Zhangjing was so fucking adorable, in fact, Yanjun often forgot that Zhangjing was the junior in college and Yanjun was the sophomore. For example, the shorter boy’s wardrobe consisted strictly of oversized sweaters and hoodies that completely draped his smaller frame, kind of like how Yanjun really wanted to drape his arms around Zhangjing and keep him there against his chest forever.
His thoughts ran away extremely easily whenever he was thinking about Zhangjing.
Zhangjing’s smile was absolutely hypnotic, Yanjun realized. They were in the same chemistry class for the first semester, and obviously it was the class Yanjun looked forward to the most. He looked forward to Zhangjing’s smile whenever Yanjun walked into class a minute and a half late every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Yanjun was an English major and hated chemistry with every bone of his being. But it was where he first met Zhangjing, so it was his favorite class.
Second semester, no classes together. That’s fine , Yanjun had said to himself in his advisor’s office on the first day of second semester, dropping his German 201 class and switching into Zhangjing’s Religion class. He could take his required language credits next year.
Two months and three weeks into second semester marks the moment Yanjun realized he was in love with You Zhangjing. Two weeks had gone by since then, and Yanjun is just figuring out that the reason why his feelings for Zhangjing aren’t going away is because they’ve already been there for too long.
Yanjun hates his intro to linguistics class.
It was a Thursday. During lunch, (they always eat lunch together on Thursdays, Zhangjing made sure of it) Yanjun mentioned how stressed he was for his linguistics test the following day.
“Oh,” Zhangjing had said, frowning a tiny bit as he stabbed at his ravioli with his fork, “I was about to ask if you wanted to come to a party with me tonight. Good luck on your test though!”
Zhangjing smiled, and Yanjun instantaneously smiled back against his will. It wasn’t his fault Zhangjing’s happiness automatically translated into Yanjun’s own happiness.
Thirteen hours later, it’s two in the morning and Yanjun is still cramming for his stupid test. He would have been done studying by now, but there was a tiny, little, barely noticeable part of Yanjun that was wondering just how many boys Zhangjing had talked to tonight. And it was very distracting.
His phone buzzed, and when Yanjun saw the contact name he immediately picked his phone up.
Text from Zhangjing | 02:18
hI h0ws uour nighht ypou shsouldve come wyh me to yhe partiy
Yanjun smiles, of course. Most people would probably be kind of annoyed to get a drunk text, but coming from Zhangjing, Yanjun found the text kind of cute. That same little part of Yanjun was pleased with himself that Zhangjing chose to drunk text Yanjun over anyone else.
Yanjun types out Hi to you too Zhangjing but stops before he hits the send button. Zhangjing was drunk. Who knows where he was and who he was with? Yanjun would absolutely go looking for him to make sure Zhangjing made it back to his apartment safely if necessary. He had done it before.
He’s just about to add a question of Where are you before he receives another text.
Text from Zhangjing | 02:19
I l0va3 uou sop much iy huerts
Yanjun’s hands freeze.
He’s tempted to throw his phone across the room in pure, uncontainable happiness, he’s tempted to get up and just run, because he feels like he can run a two minute mile right about now, he feels like he can do a couple laps around the whole country of Belgium right now, and he’s ready to scream in pure joy before that same part of him from before reminds himself that being happy that Zhangjing told Yanjun something that he wasn’t ready to say was wrong, and that Yanjun should really be putting Zhangjing’s wellbeing over his own and make sure Zhangjing was home and safe before he starts celebrating, and then Yanjun’s phone buzzes again in his shaking hands.
Text from Zhangjing | 02:19
Wamg zoyi i lovw yoo u
Just as quickly, Yanjun shatters.
Yanjun shatters.
Everything in his mind goes silent for a little.