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wave had a bad day.
it's not the i'm-so-annoyed-i-could-punch-someone-in-the-face kind of day that he usually has.
it was the kind that made him want to stare at the ceiling for hours and not do anything else.
the walls of his dorm room painted with mildew stains kept him company as his emotions swallowed him whole.
he had a million things to do. so much that he couldn't do a single one of them. there is so much happening and he could no longer shut it out.
a silent knock on the door interrupted his wallowing. wave used up the very last of his energy to stand up and drag himself to open it.
pang shows up with his hands full, one holding a white plastic bag and the other embracing a bouquet of flowers. wave recognized them from the shop beside the café they always frequented to.
"i bought these for you."
pang is not sure of what tone to use this time, but he knows exactly what wave needs in days like these.
wave gestures for him to come in and pang sets the goods down on wave's bed. it was the first time pang bought flowers for wave.
"thanks. they're pretty."
wave says in a weak, but grateful tone. pang sighs in relief as he sees a small smile peek from wave's lips.
pang still notices the hint of sadness in wave's eyes, though. it brings him this vague sense of unease each time, and it makes him want to get rid of every single thing that could possibly make wave feel that way. he couldn't do anything, though. so he lays wave's head on his shoulder and opens his favorite ice cream cone for him. wave takes the cold treat and pang keeps his other hand warm.
pang may be the dumbest kid in his whole age demographic, but he takes pride in being the only one who stays by wave's side in his worst times. he could be hanging out with his friends on a friday night like a normal teenager would do, but sitting here with wave eating an ice cream cone surrounded with a pile of unwashed clothes is something he wouldn't trade for anything else.
they sat in silence and warmth for a while until wave decided he needed a nap. pang thinks it's better than him staying up and being sad so he tucks him in.
"i'll wake you up for dinner."
wave nods with his sleepy eyes as pang gives him a peck on the forehead.
pang feels a bulge in his throat. there is a part of him that feels responsible for wave's bad days and tells him it was because he got him in this mess. it makes him want to protect wave with every way he can think of. to give him only the best days he deserved.
but he was only somebody. that's why another part of him is scared— scared of all the things going on with the school, scared of risking his future, scared of losing wave. he could only do so much to be brave in front of him. he wonders how wave does it, building what seemed to be an indestructible facade when they were still rivals. he wished he could do that too.
pang brings himself back to reality before he got lost again. he gathers all of wave's laundry in a basket, washes his dishes, and cleans up his room. wave usually forgets to do chores on his bad days. that is what pang is for. like a newfound purpose, it keeps him wanting to do anything to get wave out of the chaos they found themselves in.
pang prepares dinner as he thinks of his next plans. the end seems too far still, but when pang sees the sight of wave sleeping so peacefully, he feels like he is filled with all the will to keep doing what he does. in his mind, he reassures wave that there will come a day when he no longer has to eat ice cream in misery.