Chapter Text
With the end of summer came the inevitable return to university, the long days with little else to do other than hanging out with friends and playing guitar replaced once again with early morning lectures and far too much reading for Taerae’s liking.
The second semester of his junior year also happened to involve a group project, for a business module he’d thought seemed interesting at the time and was now beginning to regret. He hadn’t realised that the assessment for this course was entirely reliant on a single group project, and so Taerae had sat through the first introductory lecture with a sense of dread, recalling all the group projects he hadn’t quite been petty enough just to write his own name for.
Thankfully, his friend Yunseo had invited him to join his group, needing one more person to fill their quota of seven people.
“I’m sure you’ll fit right in,” Yunseo had assured him and Taerae had agreed, perhaps too easily considering the weight of this project on his grade for the year, but he knew Yunseo was a dependable student.
As he headed into the library for the first group meeting, he was relieved to see so many familiar faces, some friends he’d known from before and a few he recognised from lectures or around campus. The one person he hadn’t been expecting to see was Kum Junhyeon, who seemed just as surprised to see him.
“No way you got the Kim Taerae on board too,” Taerae heard him hiss, as he made his way over to the group. Taerae knew he’d earned himself a bit of a reputation after a certain fancam of his singing had somehow ended up spreading online, but he still wasn’t used to getting recognised so often.
It was unsettling at first, the way whispers would break out at the sight of him and eyes seemed to follow him around every corner. If he’d been in high school he would have been mortified, but at least now the reason was a good one, and he had a decently viral video to explain what all the giggles were about, so he was mostly flattered by it all, if a little unnerved every time a girl seemed to startle at the sight of him.
How did Sung Hanbin handle it? It caught him off guard every time someone called out to him, especially on days he looked a mess in sweatpants and glasses, and he wondered sometimes what anyone would want a photo with him for.
Kum Junhyeon had his own reputation - there was hardly a person in their department who hadn’t heard of him, whether it be for his penchant for mischief or as part of his wide circle of friends, or just for the overall racket he tended to make around campus. Taerae had heard all too much about him too, connected through mutual friends but never quite interacting themselves. He’d only been able to put a face to the name when he’d watched him perform with his dance team earlier that year, at the same university festival Taerae had sang at.
Junhyeon stood up to greet him now though, and he was taller in person than he’d seemed on stage. He’s cuter in person too, Taerae thought, as Junhyeon shook the hair out of his eyes and held out a hand, grin open and welcoming.
“I’m Kum Junhyeon, but maybe you know me by another name. Prince charming, troublemaker, the genius behind the prank on Park Gunwook last year?”
Taerae took his hand, shaking it firmly despite how overwhelmed he felt. They weren’t kidding when they said Junhyeon was…a lot. His voice was probably too loud for a library, and his eyes too bright for a Monday morning, but Taerae was glad to see that he really was as friendly as he’d heard. At least they’d be able to get along for this project.
“I’m Kim Taerae,” he replied, wishing he had something funny to say too. “Uh, I’ve definitely heard a lot about you.”
Junhyeon looked proud, returning the handshake with enthusiasm.
“I’ve heard a lot about you too, obviously.” He said, dropping their hands as the others settled into seats behind them, chatting as they took out their laptops to work. “You were so good at the spring concert, I really liked your voice.”
Taerae could feel his cheeks start to flush; he’d always been bad at receiving compliments. His eyes flicked away from Junhyeon’s sincere gaze - he hadn’t been prepared at all for such an earnest compliment from someone he’d only heard of in stories of fun antics and daring stupidity.
“Thank you,” he said, smiling sheepishly. “It means a lot.”
But when he looked back up, Junhyeon had already turned away, clearing his throat to bring everyone’s attention to the assignment.
Taerae had classes with Jiwoong and Jongwoo last year and bonded with Yunseo over their love of singing. Minseoung had been on the planning committee for the spring concert, and he’d tutored Yujin last year, back when he was still in high school and Taerae was broke enough to revisit the hell that was studying for the CSAT.
Junhyeon was the only member that Taerae hadn’t talked to before, but he seemed easy to get along with. He was bright and talkative, throwing out ideas for the project that were occasionally brilliant and generally ridiculous. It seemed like he couldn’t go five minutes without piping up, his familiarity with the others evident in the way he joked with them, always ready with a quip and a teasing nickname.
Taerae had been curious about Junhyeon for a while now, like he’d been hovering at the edge of his orbit but had yet to be pulled in.
He’d first heard about him from his roommate, Park Hanbin, who’d come back to their dorm exhausted one night, complaining about a new addition to their dance crew that was as troublesome as he was talented. Taerae also vividly remembered the day he’d walked into the dorm common room to see the floor had been turned into a huge ball pit, making such a mess that they were still finding plastic balls in random places 6 months later. Junhyeon’s name had been on everyone’s lips then, but their RA had never managed to find enough proof that he was the culprit behind it.
Taerae had heard vague rumours about the prank he’d thrown on his friend Gunwook last year and the ensuing murderous goose chase across campus, and knew that Gunwook had agreed to room with him this year anyway. He’d finally seen first-hand what a talented dancer he was, had watched his performance at the spring concert in awe (and shock at the stunt he’d pulled involving a shirt printed with Kim Jiwoong’s abs).
That curiosity had been growing for over a year now, so Taerae couldn’t help the way his eyes drifted towards Junhyeon, a mystery that was finally close enough to solve. It didn’t really have anything to do with the fact that he thought he was handsome now Taerae could see him up close.
The team had agreed on meeting at least once a week in the library’s study area, crowding around the same table near the back where their noise wouldn’t bother as many people. People would show up at different times, an 11 o’clock meeting time no problem for early riser Yunseo and more of a struggle for the frequently hungover Jongwoo.
On Mondays Taerae had a hell-sent 9am lecture just beforehand, with a professor who was notoriously stingy about making recordings for anyone who missed out, so he dragged himself out of bed for that and then headed over to the library as soon as it was done.
He knew Junhyeon was in the same class, had heard his sheepish apology for coming in late one morning and the way the stubborn old lecturer had been charmed just enough to let him off for it. Junhyeon seemed to have a gift for making people both exasperated and endeared to him, if all the things he’d heard about him were true.
As soon as the class was over, Taerae turned to look for him, and he managed to catch him on his way out of the lecture hall.
“Oh, sunbae,” Junhyeon said, jumping when Taerae tapped him on the shoulder.
“We’re both heading to the library so I figured we could go together,” Taerae explained, moving to walk beside him. He smiled and bowed his head politely to the girls in the class that had been making their way towards him, and they dodged around him at the last minute.
“Ah,” Junhyeon cast a glance around, and slowed his pace to match Taerae’s. Once they turned around the corner, he leaned over towards Taerae, lowering his voice. “I get it, you needed help deterring the admirers.”
Taerae straightened up, feeling goosebumps spread across his neck where Junhyeon leaned in just a little too close, but Junhyeon was pulling away just as quickly, nodding to himself.
“I guess that’s the curse of popularity, I’m sure you always have people coming up to you.”
Taerae kept his eyes trained on the stairs in front of them as they walked, feeling strangely hot. The last remnants of summer had yet to fade, is all, and the sky was a bright cloudless blue, the plants lining the campus walkways outside still a verdant green.
“It’s flattering, I suppose,” Taerae said, “I’m just not really used to all the attention. But you probably know more about it than I do.”
“Me?” Junhyeon asked, confused.
“Yeah, you’re more popular than me.”
As if to prove his point, someone called out to Junhyeon, waving over at him. Taerae waited behind him while they talked, promising to meet up sometime, before they parted ways at the lobby of their faculty building.
“I’m not really popular,” Junhyeon tried to argue once he left, but at Taerae’s expression he backed down. “I mean, a lot of people know me, but it’s different. I don’t have admirers or anything, since I’m not exactly the dreamy type, unlike…” Junhyeon coughed and held open the door for Taerae to step out before him. “Some other people, you know. Like Jiwoong-hyung, that guy is on another level. You can’t really compare us, because he’s just crazy handsome. Honestly he has the kind of face anyone would like, it’s not surprising that his modelling career took off. I wonder why he doesn’t just drop out and focus on that…”
It was their first proper conversation, but Taerae felt at ease with him already. It seemed like Junhyeon was every bit the character that he’d heard about, and Taerae couldn’t hold back his laughter when Junhyeon was beside him, whether it was because of a joke or an impression or just the way he lit up as he talked.
Junhyeon finally stopped rambling when they reached the library, apologising sheepishly for talking too much and moving to take a seat next to Minseoung.
It was obvious from his interactions with everyone around them that he was well-loved and a loyal friend, but there was so much more that Taerae was learning about him now.
Outside of the boisterous way he laughed or his dramatic retellings of funny anecdotes, Junhyeon was surprisingly studious, and he had the habit of tapping his pen against pursed lips when he was deep in thought. When his eyes weren’t crinkled with joy they could be dark and serious, distracting Taerae even when he was staying quiet. The voice he’d only ever heard echoing down corridors could be soft and thoughtful, or petulant and cutesy when he felt like being babied by his friends.
He looked serious again now, as they gathered their ideas for their project. They had until the end of the semester to create a hypothetical business plan, involving a few months’ worth of research, analysis and design, followed by the typical dreaded presentation.
It had been a bit of a slow start, but they had three months left so they didn’t feel the pressure of it setting in just yet, and somewhere after the second hour of their meeting, they had finally narrowed their options down to a single proposal.
“You could have just added it to the Google doc like a normal person,” Minseoung said, but Yunseo was adamant about his analogue way of doing things. He’d summarised their winding discussion onto a page in his notebook, so that they’d all had to get up and crowd around him to look over the bullet points.
“Fine, I’ll copy it all over.” Yunseo relented, “But it looks fine, right? We’re sticking with this idea now.”
“Yeah, it looks good. Let’s split it up into topics and get started with the actual research.” Jiwoong announced, ushering them all back to their seats.
Taerae turned to sit back down, but as he did he found himself almost nose to nose with Junhyeon. He hadn’t noticed him stand behind him during the conversation, and Taerae’s sudden movement caught them both off guard.
From this close, Junhyeon was all he could focus on - the scent of his cologne and the sight of him, the dark pools of his eyes and the light flush across his cheekbones took up his entire field of view. Junhyeon’s breath ghosted across his skin for a brief dizzying moment, before they were pulling back from each other.
Taerae covered his mouth and let out a shocked huff of laughter as his brain scrambled to recover, but no one else seemed to notice anything amiss. For Taerae, the world had shrunk to that moment, but Junhyeon had already made his way back to his seat, seemingly unaffected. Taerae couldn’t quite bring himself to look up at him again, so he sat there with the moment replaying in his head, unbidden, until Jiwoong called him out for not paying attention.
He did his best to stay focused for the rest of the meeting, but by the time they wrapped up, Taerae’s thoughts had strayed again.
From even before they’d met, he just wanted to get to know Junhyeon a bit better, there wasn’t anything weird about that. It was just a friendly gesture, nothing to do with the way he’d felt his heart stutter in his chest at their proximity.
Taerae shook the thought from his head and started gathering his things as he waited for Junhyeon to finish talking with Minseoung. He collected himself, swallowing whatever nerves were building against his will, and called out to him.
“Junhyeon?” It came out more like a question than he’d been intending, but Junhyeon turned to look up at him, eyes questioning. “Are you free after this?” Taerae asked, feeling weirdly shy. “I was wondering if we could get lunch.”
It had been a while since Taerae had been the one in this position, in the months since he’d gained his bizarre overnight following. He considered himself pretty sociable, but he hadn’t been ready for it then, and Taerae wasn’t sure he’d ever get used to the idea of being popular.
He’d always been the one to worry about appearances and impressions and trying to fit in, so when people started coming up to him with expectations he didn’t think he could meet, he’d been rightfully terrified. Eventually he learnt how to be gentle with his rejections, and sometimes he did accept invites to outings in the interest of making new friends or at the encouragement of his existing ones, but Junhyeon blurted out his response without a moment of hesitation.
“Sorry, I’m kind of busy right now…” He uttered, gaze flitting around. “Next time!” Taerae hadn’t been able to get out another word before Junhyeon had taken off, clutching his bag under one arm.
Taerae watched him go, feeling his nerves dissipate. They could get lunch some other time, he hadn’t really been rejected. He still felt a little disappointed, sure, but Junhyeon seemed to be in a rush and Taerae didn’t want to disturb him, so that was that. It shouldn’t have been a big deal, but it kept happening.
~
Maybe he was overthinking things, Taerae thought, watching Junhyeon plop down next to Yujin and throw an arm casually over his shoulder, but it seemed like he was avoiding him.
On the surface it’s not like there was anything wrong. He couldn’t exactly complain that he was being ignored or excluded; the entire team had begun hanging out outside of meetings or lectures, eating lunch together or heading to the internet cafe after classes. He and Junhyeon were just in that strange limbo of being acquaintances but not quite friends, and it shouldn’t have bothered him as much as it did. But it had been two weeks since he had tried asking Junhyeon out (in a entirely platonic way to a friendly lunch with no other implications whatsoever) and Junhyeon had hardly talked to him since.
It seemed like there would never be a next time, because Taerae would wave to him from across the corridor and Junhyeon never seemed to notice, he’d ask a question and Junhyeon’s answer would be stiff and straight to the point, even though Taerae knew for a fact now that he loved to talk. After his morning lecture finished, Taerae would turn to look for him and he would already be gone, and whenever he tried to spark a conversation after their meetings wrapped up Junhyeon always had somewhere to be.
But what bugged him to no end was that Junhyeon just wouldn’t look him in the eye. Even when they spoke, about ideas for the project or lecture material at best, his gaze would sweep over him for the briefest of moments, and then he’d pull someone else into the conversation as well, like he couldn’t bear the thought of talking to Taerae alone.
Taerae didn’t want to jump to conclusions, but it was such a jarring contrast from the easy way he’d spoken to him at first that he couldn’t ignore it. He tried testing his theory, spending an hour that afternoon trying to catch Junhyeon’s eye rather than paying attention to what the others were discussing.
He had pretty eyes, Taerae realised. They were sat by the window, and while he’d usually be distracted by the vibrant autumn foliage outside, he was too busy noticing the way Junhyeon’s eyes seemed to sparkle as they caught the light. Eventually his gaze landed on him, and Taerae shot him what he hoped was a reassuring smile, but Junhyeon’s eyes darted away again.
Taerae snapped back to reality - they were dividing parts to research for their project proposal, and Taerae had no idea what he was supposed to be doing. Taerae leaned over to Yunseo, asking guiltily about what he’d missed, and shoved thoughts about Junhyeon away.
He kept his head down after that. They hadn’t known each other for as long, so it was only natural that they were a little awkward around each other compared to the others. He thought they’d been getting along just fine, but if Junhyeon wanted to avoid him, it didn’t really matter to Taerae. They were just classmates, and once this project was over they might never talk again.
It was just curiosity that made him glance over at him, just one more time, but Junhyeon was already looking back. They both turned away this time, quickly enough that maybe Taerae had just been imagining it.
Ah, the autumn leaves really were as pretty as he’d been expecting.
~
One afternoon they’d ditched studying in favour of playing games at the nearest internet cafe, some snacking and watching while the others were busy struggling in PUBG. Jiwoong turned out to be pretty awful at video games, while Yujin had an impressive aim for how studious he appeared. When Minseoung got eliminated and just Yujin was left in their party, they all gathered around his chair to watch.
“How can you play this for so long? I think I’ve got a headache,” Jiwoong grumbled, removing his headset with a sigh in the seat over.
“It’s alright, grandpa. I guess games just aren’t your thing.” Junhyeon quipped.
Jiwoong retaliated with a light shove to Junhyeon’s shoulder, but both of them were laughing even as Taerae felt his weight bump against him. All eyes were on Yujin’s screen so Junhyeon probably hadn’t realised, or surely he would have moved away. Instead, they stayed there, pressed arm to arm and leaning over the back of Yujin’s chair while they all watched him snipe a character on screen and Taerae watched Junhyeon’s side profile from up close.
The moment was broken by cheers as Yujin won, and Junhyeon had already pulled away to high five him.
“Shit, I need to go.” Junhyeon declared a few minutes later as he cast a glance at the clock. “I’m gonna be late for work.”
He gathered his things and left, waving an arm over his head at them with a grin.
“Junhyeon has a job?” Taerae asked Yunseo while the others switched seats.
“Oh yeah, I think he mentioned he works at the 7-eleven near the dorms. We should go there next time he’s on shift and ask if he’ll give us a discount.”
So that’s where he went in a hurry after their meetings.
Taerae hadn’t really intended to do anything with that information, not when it seemed like Junhyeon wasn’t willing to give anything about himself away to him directly, but the next day Taerae was running low on snacks and it just so happened that when the glass doors slid open it was Junhyeon greeting him from behind the counter.
Taerae waved back, but Junhyeon’s face was carefully blank. At least he couldn’t ignore a customer, right? Not that Taerae was here for him. He would casually go about his shopping and then casually strike up a conversation with him at the counter where he wouldn’t be able to run, and then maybe he’d find out a little more about him straight from the source.
Except by the time he made his way to the counter with a basket full of snacks and what was hopefully a good conversation starter, Junhyeon had already vanished. The employee at the counter was another bored-looking student, his head leaning over to the left like he was spaced out even as he scanned Taerae’s items.
“Um, do you know where the other worker went?” Taerae asked.
Kamden, Taerae read from his name tag, shrugged his shoulders.
“I’m not sure,” he said, “That’ll be 17,000 won.”
“But he was just here…” Taerae sighed and paid, surveying the store one last time. “Actually, can you give these to him? Or if he’s really gone, you can have them.”
Taerae opened the bag of his favourite strawberry candy and left a few on the countertop, a peace offering of sorts.
So much for that. Taerae hadn’t wanted to assume, but all the evidence pointed to Junhyeon purposefully avoiding him.
~
It had already been a month since they first met and Taerae was at a loss. He didn’t know when exactly it had become his mission to befriend Junhyeon, but it seemed like none of his efforts were paying off.
He managed to catch Minseoung after the group had grabbed lunch, as they were both heading in the same direction to their classes. Of course Junhyeon had sat at the furthest end of the table from him, cracking jokes to the team at large between mouthfuls of food and expertly dodging Taerae’s gaze.
“Can I ask you something?”
He and Minseoung hadn’t really talked much one on one either, but the quiet between them didn’t feel uncomfortable, or charged with the weird tension he felt around Junhyeon.
“It’s about Junhyeon. Do you think he…” Taerae tried to find the right words. “Does he…Is he bad with new people?”
Minseoung let out a thoughtful hum.
“I guess you could say that. He’s a pretty friendly guy, as you can tell, but not everyone can match his energy, you know? We were honestly pretty awkward at the beginning too.” He admitted. They were certainly an interesting pair, with Minseoung’s level-headedness and Junhyeon’s proclivity for chaos. “I think he needs some time to decide whether he feels comfortable being himself.”
Taerae didn’t think they had been awkward though. It was one thing if their personalities clashed or they couldn’t find things to say, but Junhyeon had hardly given him a chance.
They stopped outside the lecture hall.
“Anyway, I wouldn’t worry about it. He’ll come round to you eventually.” Minseoung gave him a pat on the shoulder, pausing like he had more to say, but he bade his goodbye and headed into his class.
Taerae didn’t stop worrying about it.
Soon enough it had become a habit. He found himself paying more attention when it was Junhyeon speaking, checking for his reactions when it was his own turn to speak in case it gave anything away, but he couldn’t figure it out for the life of him.
One time Junhyeon mentioned his name in passing as they were discussing ideas, and Taerae’s head snapped up at an embarrassing speed. Their eyes met for the briefest of moments, but then Junhyeon’s gaze passed over him and all Taerae could do was give his agreement, ducking his head to scribble down notes with a warmth high on his cheeks.
Sometimes he wanted to grab him by the shoulders and shake an answer out of him - had Taerae offended him somehow? Did he hate him? Was he so repulsed by the sight of him that he couldn’t bear to look?
Taerae was a planner and apparently a bit of a control freak, and Junhyeon was the most unpredictable variable he’d ever met, so he couldn’t shake him from his mind.
It was made worse by the fact that the more he noticed, the more likeable Junhyeon seemed. He took care of the others whenever he could, and wherever he went on campus he seemed to hear Junhyeon’s name, always on his mind but just out of sight. He’d even spotted him with Park Hanbin, and felt a petty sense of betrayal at watching them laugh together, but he’d slipped away again before he could say anything. Junhyeon made sure to get his work done on time, and he sent the group chat cute videos of dogs, and the more he brushed Taerae off the more he wanted him to look his way. If he was so friendly with everyone else, what made Taerae the exception?
~
Taerae hummed along with the music in his earphones as he made his way out of the art building.
It’s raining hard today
It’s a bit too much for me
What perfect timing, he realised, looking through the rain-drizzled glass doors at the dark clouds looming outside. The consistent patter of rain was muffled by his music, and on any other occasion he would have loved the sound, but he was exhausted after a day of studying and band practice, and rain was much better enjoyed from the warm comforts of home and not whilst running in it.
He’d been all over the place recently, so he’d forgotten to check the weather forecast, but Taerae slipped his airpod case into his pocket and rummaged around in his bag in the hopes his umbrella was miraculously there.
Sure enough, it wasn’t. It was already evening but maybe there was someone around he could ask. Park Hanbin was usually here on Wednesdays for dance, right? But if Taerae had forgotten to grab an umbrella that morning, there was practically no chance Hanbin would have remembered either.
Taerae sighed, lifting his bag over his head. He’d prepared the perfect playlist for his walk home, but that would have to wait for another day. If he ran, he could probably make it back to the dorms in about five minutes. His coat was decently waterproof, even if it didn’t have a hood.
The doors slid open and he took a tentative step out, bracing himself for the rain, but it never came. The shadow of an umbrella fell over him, held high above his head so he wouldn’t get wet, and Taerae blinked up through his bangs to see Junhyeon standing in front of him.
Junhyeon stepped closer, wary of the rain cascading around them, but Taerae could only stare up at him. Their height difference was apparent now that they were so standing so close, having to tilt his head up to look at him. When Junhyeon smiled there was a child-like brightness to him, but it was hard to deny how handsome he looked now, dark eyes serious and concerned.
Raindrops shines like the stars
Well everything shines
When I’m with you, babe
Junhyeon cleared his throat, looking off to the side. “Are you heading home?” He asked, speaking up over the sound of the rain.
Taerae lowered his bag, cradling it in his arms because he wasn’t quite sure what to do with himself. For once he’d gone all day without thinking about him, but of course Kum Junhyeon wouldn’t let him off the hook so easily.
“Yeah,” he nodded, his voice a little unsteady.
“If you don’t have one, you can take my umbrella.” Junhyeon offered, holding it out between them.
“But what about you?”
“I’ve got dance practice now so I can just walk back with one of the guys later. Here,” he said, taking one of Taerae’s hands and pressing the umbrella handle into it. He made sure Taerae had a firm grip around it before he let go, ducking out from under its canopy and under the cover of the arched entryway.
“I’ll be going then,” Junhyeon said, as Taerae stood there dumbstruck. “Don’t catch a cold.” He walked backwards through the doors with a little wave, looking like he didn’t have a care in the world, a glimpse of that sunny boy he’d introduced himself as.
He didn’t get it. He didn’t know why Junhyeon would pretend he didn’t exist one moment and then show up like some sort of drama lead out of the blue the next. He didn't get why he treated him differently sometimes, like he woke up in the morning and spun a wheel to decide whether he hated Taerae or not. All he knew was that his heart was pounding in his chest, and the soles of his shoes were getting soaked through the longer he stood there and thought about him.
~
Taerae needed answers, so he arrived bright and early to their lecture that week. Junhyeon was nowhere to be seen, as expected, so Taerae ignored the eyes following him as he headed for the back of the lecture hall rather than his usual seat. The umbrella he’d borrowed was tucked away safely at the bottom of his bag, an excuse if he needed one, and he set it down on the seat next to him and waited.
Junhyeon walked in right on time, his bag hanging off of one shoulder and a coffee in his other hand, as the professor cleared his throat to start the lecture. Taerae waved him over, and he watched him look around curiously before making his way over. He greeted him with a curt nod and sat down beside him without a word.
“Hey, can I borrow a pen?” Taerae asked, tapping Junhyeon on the shoulder. He jumped at the sudden contact, but reached into his pencil case for a spare. He passed it to him a little hesitantly, and Taerae could only mumble a thanks as Junhyeon’s attention returned to the lecture.
A few minutes later, Taerae’s attention had already drifted from the slides he’d been reading and failing to comprehend.
“This professor speaks so slowly, I always get sleepy.”
Taerae yawned and stretched, peeking out of the corner of his eye at Junhyeon’s reaction, but he didn’t spare him a glance, sipping away at the straw of his iced coffee.
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“Have you started the coursework yet?” He tried again a little while later.
“Not yet,” Junhyeon replied simply, busy scribbling notes.
So maybe this wasn’t working. Taerae kept his mouth shut for the rest of the lecture, not wanting to disturb him.
He would have another chance to talk once the lecture was over and they made their way over to the library, but he really should have guessed that Junhyeon would have already gathered his things by the time it wrapped up.
“Sorry sunbae, I need to go to the bathroom. You can go ahead without me,” he said in a rush, and then he was gone, leaving Taerae to watch him disappear through the doors.
The warmth he’d felt from that rainy day had already faded, and Taerae wondered if it had ever been there at all.