Work Text:
Mark was unable to concentrate when there was noise
From the time he entered university, he spent a lot of time in the library, from when it opened in the first hour until he stayed last at closing time. It was a great solution to his concentration problem, he felt productive and it also helped improve his grades
But that wasn’t the only reason he liked being there so much, there was someone who caught his eye from the first time he saw him.
Their first encounter was when that boy asked him nicely if he could sit at his table because the others were clearly full, Mark nodded his head.
Five minutes passed before the brown-haired boy got his attention again, apparently he’d left his case behind, and asked if he could lend him a pen or something he could use, request that Mark accepted again although he was a little annoyed ‘cause it was the second time he interrupted him and he wasn't understanding anything he was studying that day.
To be honest, Mark’s first impression of that boy wasn’t the best, because not olny he deconcentrated him several times but also he didn’t give him back the pen he lent him.
But ignoring that... he was pretty cute
It wasn’t until a few weeks until he saw him again, that time the library was practically empty but the boy came up to ask him if he could sit down with him, Mark nodded, in the background grateful to fate for giving him the chance to talk to that boy again
"I’m Haechan, and you?"
"Mark, nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too, Mark"
Mark smiled at him in response and kept writing on his computer, even though he couldn’t concentrate again that afternoon
It became a routine ever since, Haechan sat with Mark without asking and sometimes they had little conversations about how complicated it was their study that day or any trivial conversation, nothing really remarkable, but they ended up like study buddies
Mark liked to be in the library, he liked the silence and the atmosphere but since he met Haechan he liked it a little more
They met again that day, each to his own things and everything happened as always, except that haechan called him as they left the building
“Do you want to go out for a drink? Its my treat tonight”
He caught Mark by surprise, who planned to come home, lie in his bed, scroll his phone and sleep early, any plan seemed more interesting than his, but going out with that guy was a thousand times more interesting
“Yes of course, its ok”
Haechan took them to a caffe, secluded but charming, the colors were pretty, the atmosphere was good and there were a couple of tables full, enough that there was no absolute silence but no annoying noise
They sat down and ordered their drinks, Mark said the atmosphere was very pleasant and Haechan smiled sideways, feeling a rush of confidence that encouraged him to engage in conversation with him.
"Mark, what was your first impression of me?"
"uhm.. you honestly surprised me, besides that you kidnapped my pen and I haven't seen it again, I guess it was not the best, but it has definitely changed now, it is funnier to study now that we do it together" Mark smiled but decided to omit the detail that he caught his whole attention and was dying to see him again
"Oh, your pen? it’s safe and sound, you want me to tell you why I haven’t returned him yet?" haechan smirked
"Yeah, of course"
"It was the only way I could think of to keep in touch with such a cute guy, now that I’ve got it I think I can give it back"
Mark blushed, looking at haechan with his eyes wide open making him laugh
"Oh come on, it’s no big deal, you know? since that day my grades have improved considerably, even my friends are surprised! I have to thank you, after all, seeing you study so hard motivated me to do the same thing, you’re a genius markie"
Mark smiled and followed the conversation a bit out of it, his head kept thinking about the reason haechan gave him.
He had never thought about his feelings for haechan, he didn’t want to fall for his friend, even though deep down he knew it was too late, he knew from the first moment that the other boy seemed to feel the same way
When leaving the caffe, they were going to take it on their way home, but Haechan spoke again, offering his phone to Mark
"Hey, it was wrong of me not to return your pen, I don’t have it on me right now so tell me your number so we can meet one day and give it back."
Mark was a little overwhelmed, he wanted to balance the situation alone and taking one more step after realizing he might felt something for him … leaving things as they were felt like the best option
"Mmh, I don’t know, it’s really not that important, you can keep it-"
"Then give me your number just because I want it, no excuses, I’d really like to have it," said while he looked at him with puppy eyes
"It’s okay then..." was when mark slapped himsef mentally by completely ignoring the rational side of his head just because his entire attention vanished at the moment that haechan acted cute
Haechan smiled victorious and said goodbye with a hug, leaving Mark wanting to stick his head under the ground for the sudden urge to kiss him
Mark dropped into his bed, realizing it had been a couple of months since Haechan and him met for the first time at the library
Mark was neither blind nor dumb, deep down he felt that Haechan also had some interest in him, some glances, physical contact (excessive) when they said goodbye, and after the conversation they had a few hours ago, he was almost 100% sure, but on the other hand they didn’t know each other as well, what if it was his way of being? He preferred not to get excited, he was not the one who takes the first step and he was also too shy to ask or flirt with him to confirm his suspicions, althought the screen of his phone illuminated interrupting his thoughts
xxxxxxx
Mark
Im haechan
I had a lot of fun today
I hope I didnt make you feel uncomfortable, when I get excited I dont think properly and I forget to keep my limit
Mark
its fine, I didn't feel uncomfortable at all, it was a very nice conversation
Don’t worry, I also had fun, I'll surely come back there, the site was very pretty
xxxxxxxx
really? The place is very cozy, I thought you’d like it and I’m glad I got it right
Are you going to sleep already?
Mark
Yeah , why?
xxxxxxxx
nono is fine, good night, thank you for today
Mark
No need, night Haechan
The next morning, Mark checked his messages before getting out of bed as usual, finding several from haechan
Haechan
Hey Mark
guess you’ll be asleep already, hope you have your phone mute cause I don’t want to wake you up
I didn’t tell you in person cause I didn’t find the time, but I feel very comfortable with you, remember I said since I met you my grades went up because you inspired me? It’s really not all the truth, I don’t like to study, I’ve barely passed thanks to the notes my friends give me, but the first time I went to the library was because I had some free time before a class and the cafeteria was closed and then you got my attention. I spent a few weeks looking for you on campus unconsciously and I came to the conclusion that I wanted to see you again, so I went back to the library and found you there, I sat with you and since that day I was going just to spend time with you and it turned out very well because also my grades have gone up
I’m sorry to tell you this at this hours but I’d probably explode if I take this one more minute.
good morning btw hehe
Mark felt his face burn and his heart pounding after reading those messages, was it mutual? Should he gave him an answer? But above all why did that idiot decided to tell him all that by text message?
Mark
Uhm are you free today?
I think we should talk about this in person, u know
Haechan
I’m sorry, u are right
I’m free
You can come to my place, here’s my location:
Mark
I’ll be there in a moment
"hey"
Haechan stepped aside for Mark to come in, it was a big, cozy apartment and smelled like cinnamon, just like haechan
"uhm, where are your roommates? , are they okay with me coming here?" that made haechan giggle a bit
"I live alone, its my parents apartament, so you don’t have to worry"
Mark was a little embarrassed, but he was still more surprised that Haechan lived in such a big, quiet place and still went to the library, he didn’t see the reason
oh
so, he was the reason
"Please sit here on the couch, I’ll go get something to drink, i'll be back in a second"
Haechan was fast but it was enough for Mark to analyze everything in his sight, family photos, pictures on the walls, all meticulously in place, books with bookmarks in the middle, he really looked like a neat guy
"regarding last night’s messages... I’m sorry, I was very hasty, but after going out with you outside the library and taking a step like having your number I was very excited, there was when I realized you were more than just a library crush, You know. I’m sorry to be so direct but I can’t help it, sometimes I’m pretty impulsive, I’m sorry if I ruined our frienship just by being an egoist, I didn’t mean to" Haechan’s voice was low enough to make Mark worry a little
"no, it’s okay, it’s true that I struggled to process it, but it’s not... like it wasn’t mutual..." he said almost whispering out of shame
"UH? , what did you say mark? I couldn’t hear you can you say that again please?"
Mark felt that his head was going to explode out of shame, but it was a matter of pride not to ruin the progress he already had, he was filled with courage as he looked at his fingers in his lap
"uhm... you know, it’s not like I wasn’t obvious, you also catched my attention at first, it’s not like I’m bothered that you told me"
"my god, are you serious? Is that like are you giving me a chance?"
Haechan approached between questions and questions more to him, making Mark even more nervous, but he recalled that just before he said that when he got excited he forgot to draw a line and saw it as a green flag
"I don’t know, I mean we both... we don’t know each other beyond trivial conversations"
"That’s my point, I’m not asking you to have a formal relationship with me or anything, just give us a chance to get to know each other better and see if we’re compatible, you know, we should start by being good friends first" Mark smiled feeling his chest burn
"It’s okay for me then" Haechan ended up sitting next to Mark on the couch and extended his arms to give a hug to Mark, who threw himself on top of the boy until he was lying down, they stayed still like this, enjoying each other’s company and warmth, Mark never felt that before, after all never had a partner, but he could really get used to it
After a moment, Mark decided to ask what had been haunting his mind since the last few minutes
"so... what are we? I don’t think we can call ourself like boyfriends or something-”
"what do you think about being "great friends" then?"
Mark giggled and nodded over Haechan’s chest, who started to comb his hair with his fingers while Mark caressed Haechan’s back tenderly, both still immersed in the new sensations they was experiencing and definitely enjoying
"Mark, should we kiss?"
Mark raised his body from the younger with his arms, startled and blushing looking at him with his eyes wide open
"I mean, that’s what great friends do"
Before he could give him an answer haechan took advantage and pushed him back over his chest, their lips already together
And the warmth Mark felt at that moment in his chest made him confirm he had made the right choice