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“Happy birthday to you~” Everyone around you sings, while the birthday boy wears a smile that reaches up to his ears. His mother holds the cake as Jaemin blows the candles out.
“So, what did you wish for?” Renjun shouts from your table. Chenle and Ana, your best friend, nudge you at the same time. “I swear, if Jaemin didn't include you in his wish, I seriously will not believe you two are dating.”
Jaemin looks to your table, tilts his head and winks at Renjun. “That's for me to know.”
Renjun rolls his eyes. “I'm letting you off just because it's your birthday.”
Hyuck suddenly stands up and shouts “IT'S TIME TO EAT!” at the top of his lungs, to which everyone cheers and lines up to get their food.
You decide to let everyone else get their food first before you do, opting to stand at the corner and watch them converse with each other. You were too focused on observing others that you didn't even notice Jaemin sliding beside you.
“And what is the most beautiful person in the world doing here, all alone and not getting food?” He asks with a frown.
You scrunch your nose. “I'm letting others get their food first, birthday boy. They seem very hungry already. I had a little snack earlier so I'm fine,” I say.
He purses his lips and looks you in the eye. Used to the eye contact, you return his gaze with ease. “What is it?” You ask softly.
He smiles and holds out his hand. “Let's go get some ice cream?” You nod and follow him wherever he led you.
—
When he invited you to go get ice cream, you certainly did not expect him to lead you out of his own party to the nearby ice cream parlor.
“Jaemin, are you really sure this is okay?” You ask him for the third time, but his smile never wavered despite your repetitive questions.
“Like I said, my parents are there. Hyuck is there. Entertainment is sure.”
“But it's your birthday, not theirs!” You raise the same point you've been trying to get across, but never got acknowledged. Jaemin suddenly halts, smile gone from his face. Your heart beats a little faster.
“Hey. Believe me, it's okay. And besides,” he sighs and runs his hand through his hair, “I wished for this earlier.”
“You what —”
“I wished for ice cream with you,” he says with a shrug. You look at him with disbelief.
“You turn legal, and what you wish for is ice cream ?”
“With you.”
You sigh in defeat. “Okay, then,” you say slowly. “Let's make your wish come true, I guess?”
He grins widely at your response. Soon enough, you arrive at the ice cream parlor, where you ate a lot of ice cream with the man whom you loved and who loved you even more.
—
The next day at lunch, a tray slams on the table in front of you. It came as no surprise that it was Ana.
“So, any details on your little escapade yesterday?” She asks with an eyebrow wiggle.
You sigh with a small smile. “Like I told you last night, we just went for ice cream. That’s it. Nothing more, nothing less.”
Ana rolls her eyes, not buying your answer. “You have to be kidding me. How boring can you guys get? At this rate, even I can’t believe that you’re dating,” she gestures to you and Jaemin, who are seated at different lunch tables.
“Ana, calm down and believe me. Let Jaemin hang out with his friends, too. We’re not required to sit by each other all the time just to prove to everyone we’re dating, you know.”
“I know you don’t have to prove to everyone you’re dating, but are you really just going to let desperate losers flirt with your Jaemin?” Ana scoffs. “Stop eating and look at their table.”
You don’t stop eating, but you let your eyes wander to Jaemin’s table with his friends. They were laughing at something Hyuck said, which brought a small smile to your face. Typical. But just a few seconds after that, a random girl you don’t even know somehow ends up sitting on Jaemin’s lap.
“O-oh, I’m so sorry, Jaemin,” she says, clearly not sorry, her hands quickly flying all over Jaemin. You continue to watch, amused.
Jaemin raises both his hands, stopping her. “Whoa there. It’s okay and I’m okay. Can you please kindly get off my lap?” He says, still with a polite smile. The girl definitely took her time getting off his lap, despite Jaemin's friends already staring daggers at her.
“Just quit it already, Yena,” Renjun mutters, loud enough for the girl to hear. “Jaemin’s already taken.”
“So what? It’s not like his girlfriend is here,” she says, dragging out the word girlfriend. “You know what? I don’t think I've even seen her. How the hell are you dating?” Jaemin just purses his lips in a small smile and doesn’t speak. Hyuck glances at you, as if signaling you to make a move. You shake your head at him and smile, to which he rolls his eyes at. Get your damn boyfriend, Hyuck mouths, annoyed.
You see Ana raise a brow at you. “And that, my friend, is exactly why you need to at least be seen hanging out with Jaemin. I'm literally your best friend and I've barely even seen you two hold hands. And here I thought you both made progress last night, but you just act like you’re special friends,” she gestures dramatically, which made you laugh.
“We’re not 'just friends', Ana. And it’s fine. I know where Jaemin stands, and he knows where I stand. That’s the only thing that matters,” you reply to her patiently.
Ana grumbles. “That’s really not how it works, but fine. Let other girls keep on trying to shoot their shot on your boyfriend. I wonder how long you two will last at this point.”
As usual, you simply answer her with a smile. Let Jaemin prove you wrong.
—
Unsurprisingly, the number of attempts of others to flirt with your boyfriend did not stop there.
It was past 5 in the afternoon when your last professor dismissed the class. You knew Jaemin was either already waiting for you in your usual meeting place by the benches or on his way as well, so you don’t bother to message him anymore. You decide to stop by a small food pub near the benches to buy some takoyaki when you see a girl sobbing, and a guy trying to comfort her.
The vendor hands you your two orders of takoyaki when you realize that the guy comforting the girl is Jaemin. Curious, you walk near enough to eavesdrop, but not too near that they'll spot you immediately.
“I-it’s just— hik,” she says, and you hear Jaemin hushing her while caressing her back.
“This is probably the fifth time I’m saying this, but I can’t help you calm down if I don’t know why you’re crying in the first place,” he says, doing his best to extend his patience. You smile and take a step closer, where he could see you. “You’re making this hard for me, too, you know,” he mutters as he runs his other hand through his hair.
The girl suddenly jerks up, which catches Jaemin off-guard. She places her hand on his cheek and caresses it. “I-I’m sorry! S-sorry f-for making it hard for you!” She exclaims quite overdramatically. “What can I do to make it up to you? Let’s meet tomorrow at three?” She sniffles, and Jaemin holds back a cringe. You laugh quietly at the sight.
“Hey, I’m sorry, but I have class tomorrow at three—”
“Four, then? Five?” She presses on, leaning forward Jaemin. He shakes his head and slightly pushes her away.
“I don’t know what it is that you cried about today, but if it’s only a ploy to get me alone tomorrow, then I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to refuse. I sincerely hope you feel better soon”—he pauses for a short while and smiles as he sees you watching him—“but just in case you didn’t get the memo, I have a girlfriend.”
The sobs immediately stop, replaced by a burst of anger and jealousy. “How are you dating?! I rarely see the two of you together, and when I do, you guys never even hold hands, for f—'s sake—”
Jaemin’s facial expression becomes serious and unreadable. “Now, now. You wouldn’t want to meddle with something you’re not involved with, okay? We’re dating, and that’s that. In fact, she’s right here, where we're supposed to meet,” he gestures to you. You smile at the girl in attempts to calm her down, but in her anger she greets you back with one hand balled into a fist, ready to punch. You freeze up at the sudden action and attempt to dodge, but she lands a hit near your shoulder, causing you to drop the takoyaki as pain flares up your shoulder. It takes Jaemin a second too late to process what happened, but once he does, he quickly steps in between to grip the girl's hand tightly, shielding you from further attacks.
“Well that’s not a very nice way to greet my girlfriend,” he says coldly. The girl cowers a little with his tone, but bites back. “No way in hell is she better than me at all. She doesn’t deserve you.” She snarls at you before walking away. Jaemin sighs in frustration and runs his hand through his hair while turning to face you. He immediately places a light hand on your shoulder, finding the spot where you got hit. “I’m really sorry for that. Are you okay?”
“It’s okay, I’m fine, I’m fine. The punch was a little painful, though,” you manage to say with a nose scrunch, hiding your wince as he finds the spot. But of course, nothing goes past Jaemin.
“Clearly, you’re hurt.” He motions you to sit down on the benches. You sigh. He was right - you were pretty sure it was going to bruise.
“I didn’t say I wasn’t hurt, though.” In an attempt to lighten the mood, you add, “What hurts me more is that we didn’t get to eat the takoyaki I bought for us.”
Jaemin chuckles at that, glancing at the now-dirty takoyaki on the concrete. “Let’s just get another one.”
“Two,” you correct. “One order would definitely not do for the both of us.”
“Two it is, then,” he smiles. “Let’s also get some ice for that”—he pokes your arm twice—“after eating. We don’t want the pain to last long, don’t we?”
“Yes, doc. Got it.”
You head back to the takoyaki place which was just about to close. Thankfully, Jaemin and you were frequent customers so you were still able to buy. Afterwards, you find out that the university clinic is closed already; thus, you decide to go to Jaemin’s dorms to ice the forming bruise on your shoulder.
“Are you sure it’s okay that I enter?” you ask Jaemin, wary of his dormmates.
He glances at you, brows knit in confusion. “Of course it's okay. Besides,” he says as he fishes for his keys, “normally if the door is locked, it means no one else is around. No need to feel uncomfortable.” The lock clicks, and he guides you through the door.
“I am not uncomfortable—fine, maybe a little,” You huff as you sit down at the dining table while Jaemin gets an ice pack from the freezer. You watch him quietly, admiring the soft features of your boyfriend. It was moments like these that you treasure most—Jaemin taking care of you with the smallest of things, like carrying your bag whenever he thinks it’s too heavy, buying you your comfort food, to going out of his way to make sure you got home safely, and taking care of you whenever you got sick. These were the littlest moments you would never trade for the world—and that you would rather only you yourself know.
You weren't really too keen on sharing his softness with the world.
The second he applies the ice pack on your bruise, he clears his throat. “So, the boys have been telling me things lately.” You raise a brow at that, knowing he usually brushes off his friends' suggestions.
“And?”
“They’ve been telling me how I suck as a boyfriend.” You narrow your eyes and place an arm on his, gesturing for him to look at you. “Yah. That is so not true. Did you believe it?”
He raises both of his hands as if in surrender. “Their words, not mine.” He chuckles and continues. “They said that I was sh— stupid for letting other girls flirt with me despite us being together.”
“I guess that’s the price I have to pay for having such a handsome boyfriend, then,” you say nonchalantly, which got him to look at you amusedly.
“Thanks for the sudden compliment, but that wasn’t really what they meant," he laughs softly. "What they’re saying is, we don’t… uhm, show affection too much in front of other people.” He looks away and scratches his nape, which you found absolutely adorable.
“Why do I have a feeling that’s not just what they said?” You joke, but he looks back at you seriously.
“You wanna know what else they said?”
You gulp nervously. While you were used to meeting his eyes, you had never seen this expression on him before—at least, never directed to you. “W-what?”
He sighs, dropping his gaze to the floor. Biting the inside of his cheek, he responds, “They told me I don’t kiss you enough and they’ve never seen us make out.”
You choke on your own saliva. “What?! Is that a requirement to date?! Does it have to be seen? ”
Despite being nervous about it himself, Jaemin laughs at your reaction. “I think my friends are just wild, but it got me thinking…”
You hit his arm. “Ya, thinking about what?” You say sternly.
“Not about making out! Let me finish my statement!” He says, slightly blushing. “It got me thinking that maybe, maybe, they’re right.”
“Right about what..!” You say-shout, your eyes wide, heart beating fast.
“That maybe, we should show more affection in front of other people.” You didn’t notice when he got the ice pack discarded, but as he said that statement, his hand finds yours and your fingers intertwine. Oh.
You stare at your hands for a short while before responding, mind short-circuiting with how he's rubbing small circles with his thumb. This does feel rather nice... you entertain the thought. However, you were still in a private space—one that only a few people can barge into.
You purse your lips before responding. “Jaemin…” you look him in the eye, “we don’t have to go intensely public if that means we change ourselves. I’m fine with whatever makes you feel comfortable, and I’m not worried about the other people who try to flirt with you because I know I’m the only one you love. They can keep trying, but I know your heart is only mine to keep. And I trust you. A lot.”
He smiles softly at you as he squeezes your hand. “I do love you, and my heart really is only yours. Really. I also thought what the boys were saying was just a bunch of nonsense, but then I realized: maybe I don’t want other people to keep flirting with me anymore. I know we're not exactly loud with our relationship, but we do talk about it. People do know we're together, but I'm tired of others disregarding us, disregarding you as my girlfriend. I want them to see who has my heart, who gives me far more than what I deserve. I know we’re both lowkey people, and this is going to be new for both of us, but I'd like to try showing more affection… but only if you also want me to..?” He looks at you, searching for approval.
His words send butterflies erupting in your stomach. While you were all-too-familiar with scenes of other girls (and guys) trying to get your man, you had never thought about it this way. You just knew that others were the problem for not understanding; you didn't realize that perhaps, you both could have done something to prevent them from flirting in the first place.
You remember your best friend telling you the same thing, that you and Jaemin should show more affection, but you brushed it off countless of times. Now, while sitting in front of him only did you realize that they—Jaemin's friends and your best friend—were just trying to help you.
You answer him with a hug, which he quickly reciprocates. However, what surprises you is that he also gives you a kiss on your forehead. “I love you so much. You know that, right?” He whispers while pulling you closer.
“Hmm, I love you more,” you say with a smile, your eyes closed. “I guess I could get used to more of this,” you whisper, burying your head on his chest. You then hear a door close somewhere in the dorm, which causes you to tense up. Jaemin, on the other hand, doesn’t let go.
“F—ing finally!” Hyuck curses as he spots the two of you. “I was beginning to think you both were plants or something.” You feel the vibrations of Jaemin’s laugh course through you as well, but you were still too flustered to look at Hyuck.
Jaemin answers. “Yeah, I guess I have you guys to thank. Although your ideas were a bit… suggestive,” he purses his lips.
Hyuck scoffs. “The things we said weren’t even borderline erotic…”
Jaemin covers your ears as Hyuck continues speaking, elaborating the things they told Jaemin.
“Nah uh, Haechannie. Not my baby’s ears.”
Upon hearing the endearment, Hyuck starts making gagging noises. “‘B-baby’?! I’m starting to regret my life decisions…” he says, scratching his nape while walking back to his room.
Jaemin pulls away to cup your face in his hands. He smiles lazily as he looks into your eyes, and right there and then, you feel all the love that he has ever given you and more.