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01.
if one would ask a student or two in their university about the couple that they adore the most, they'd probably say it's zhang hao and sung hanbin. but, the thing is, the two kept on denying rumors about them being a couple.
their friends are no exception.
“hyung, would you want anything else other than coffee?” hanbin asked, leaning down so that he would hear hao’s voice clearly.
there’s always been a surge of people in the coffee shop, particularly during after school hours. it’s always been their habit to grab a cup of coffee after studying, and sometimes, they would go with friends. but most of the time, they go there alone.
this time, they went with ricky, and they were lucky to find a seat that caters to the three of them.
hao thought about it for a bit, “perhaps a slice of tiramisu cake?” he asked.
the younger boy chuckled and nodded, “understood, hyung.” he then turned towards ricky, “what about you?”
“i’m all good, hyung. i’ll only stay with you guys because i’m waiting for gyuvin,” he said.
“you sure? not even a strawberry milkshake?” hanbin asked.
ricky laughed, “i’m good, for real. i’m pretty sure gyuvin would also ask me those questions later,” he grinned.
“ah, you two are really insufferable,” hao snorted.
hanbin nodded as he went to line up at the counter.
once ricky noticed that hanbin was out of their sight, he leaned closer to his older friend. “so how is everything going with your boyfriend?” he grinned sheepishly.
hao crossed his arms and raised a brow, “hanbin is not my boyfriend.”
“there you go again,” ricky scoffed and rolled his eyes. “there’s just no way you aren’t dating him. i mean, he wouldn't order food for you like that if he isn't in love with you!" he said, fighting the urge to slam the table in utter disbelief.
"what does ordering food has to do with this?" the older boy raised a brow.
"because i, for sure, wouldn't do that for someone else but gyuvin," he snorted.
hao sighed, "ricky, stop making meaning out of the small things he does for me. he does that for his family, too. even for his sister," he explained calmly.
"you've met his parents?!" ricky exclaimed, now wide-eyed. "and his sister, too?"
hao nodded, "yeah? is there anything weird about that?" he sighed. "i've been to their cafe, too. i've also helped mom out at the cafe a few times. i've watched some of his sister's competitions, too."
"you've helped out at their cafe and called his parents mom and dad, and goes to his sister's games, too?!" ricky could feel his eye twitching in disbelief. he massaged his forehead in total stress, holding his other hand in front of him, signaling hao to stop talking for a while. "you've done ALL of this with him? you two should get married at this point!"
"shh!" hao threw a piece of table napkin to his friend. "what if someone else hears you?! they might misunderstand! and what if hanbin hears about what you just said? that would make things awkward!"
"that should be the least of your concerns!" ricky said, clearing his throat after he realized that his voice was getting louder by the moment. he paused for a while to regain his composure. "oh god, you two will be the death of me."
"what's happening here, and why does ricky look so stressed?" the two looked at the person who just spoke.
it was gyuvin, who was still wearing his varsity uniform and his backpack swung on his left shoulder. "are you fighting?" he asked.
"thank the heavens, you're here," ricky said dramatically. he collected his things and stood up. "get me out of here."
"w-what?" gyuvin looked confused as his boyfriend pushed him out of the coffee shop. "bye, hao-hyung!" he said, waving his hand, but failing in the end.
"that kid," hao sighed and shook his head.
not too long later, hanbin arrived with their orders.
"where's ricky?" he raised a brow.
"got picked up by his boyfriend," hao sighed and removed all his reviewers from the table so that hanbin could place their drinks and snacks.
the younger boy placed their orders one by one, and hao could not help but think of what ricky had said earlier.
"you two should get married at this point."
hao marrying hanbin? that was such a crazy idea that hao could not fathom. how could he marry his own best friend? it was ridiculous.
"are you okay, hao-hyung?" hanbin glanced at his friend who grew silent all of a sudden.
"i'm alright!" hao nods.
02.
the second instance was during their school fair.
the school fair was an annual event open to all students from their university. it was the time when they opened booths and either sold food and other merchandise, as well as showcased an exhibit or anything that they would like. the event ends with a fireworks display each night, and this happens for a week straight.
hao and hanbin attended different classes and were in different majors. hao majored in music, while hanbin majored in dance. both were art students, to say the least, but they were different yet somehow always the same.
they do not share the same clubs or school organizations, too. which is why everyone was practically in shock when they saw sung hanbin standing behind the music club's booth, selling coffee, during the school fair.
"what the- why is hanbin-hyung here?" one of hao's friends, kim taerae, asked upon arriving at their club. "hyung, shouldn't you be at your club's booth? why are you here?" he joked lightheartedly.
"hao-hyung is sick," he simply answered.
taerae raised a brow, "what's that got to do with you being in our stalls?"
"my mom sponsored everything in this stall," hanbin explained. "it's from our cafe. mom said i should help hao-hyung especially now that he's sick."
"hao-hyung isn't even here?" taerae said, with hands on his hips in disbelief.
"that's exactly the point," hanbin replied.
taerae sighed, surrendering, "there's, like, six of us here, but fine, you can help," he said, massaging his forehead. he can't afford to have wrinkles now, especially since he'll be performing by the end of the school fair.
besides, it's not like hanbin would stay with them forever, right?
right?
he could only raise his brow in pure confusion upon seeing hao and hanbin decorating the music club's booth together a day after.
"hi, taerae-hyung, hao-hyung, and hanbin-hyung—hanbin-hyung? wait, what are you doing here again?" one of the music club's members, yoo seungeon, stopped in his tracks upon seeing a non-member helping their club president set up the booth for the day.
taerae only had his hands on his hips as he watched the two act all lovey-dovey in front of him. he raised a brow, when he thought he finally caught on, "alright, what the hell is going on," he said, calling the two's attention. "are you two, like, dating? how many chapters did i miss? hao-hyung, i'm your best friend, why didn't you tell me—"
"okay, what?" hao raised a brow. "taerae, calm your ass. who's dating who?"
"you and hanbin-hyung?" he asked, his voice getting louder. "look, there's no way you aren't dating hanbin-hyung," taerae said, wanting to pull his hair out of frustration.
"because we aren't? sung hanbin is not my boyfriend," hao raised a brow.
"oh, you've got to be kidding me."
taerae felt as if he was a character in a cartoon, and the character's head just exploded because he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
hanbin, on the other hand, looked way calmer than hao, who looked like he was about to get into a fit with taerae.
seungeon stood between the two, "alright, stop it. hao-hyung, it was just a joke," he said, facing the older. "and taerae-hyung, that was kinda overboard," he said, widening his eyes at taerae, as it signaling him to just let it go because hao was not going to admit it anyway.
"knock knock."
all four of them look at the person who just cleared his throat. "i believe our stupid club president is hiding in these stalls," gyuvin raised a brow upon seeing hanbin decorating the music club's booths. "what the hell, this isn't even your club and you're helping them earn profit than your own?!" he jokingly scolded him as he pulled him up by the collar. "i'm so sorry if he ever bothered all of you. i don't even know why our sung hanbin is here," he said as he bowed consecutive times.
gyuvin then dragged hanbin out of their booth, shouting, "i'll talk to you later, hyung!" to which hao could only laugh.
hao continued fixing their stack of cups while seungeon and taerae wore their apron, with taerae grunting, "there's three of us, and he'll only say goodbye to hao-hyung?! the audacity."
03.
"so when are you admitting your feelings for him?"
"huh?" hanbin's train of thought was interrupted by gyuvin and ricky sitting in front of him.
"hao-hyung will be late for lunch. he said he's still busy finishing club duties," ricky said. "with that out of the way, you can be real with us."
"what do you mean?" the eldest among the three raised a brow.
ricky slammed one of his books on the table, "hyung, please don't play the same tactics as hao-hyung. everyone knows you're in love with him except for hao-hyung himself," he said, pleading at this point.
hanbin sighed and pulled his hair out of frustration. "i don't know what to do, either. taerae also mistook us as a couple yesterday when i was helping out at their booth," he sighed. "when hao-hyung asked me why i was helping out at their booth, i simply told him that my mom also wanted me to look out for him. but the thing is, even if my mom didn't tell me that, i still would have helped out knowing that he was sick the day before. i kept on dropping hints. i always stay with him during our breaks, during dismissal. sometimes, he even helps us out at the cafe, and i really, really love him for it. i just... i love him. that's it."
ricky and gyuvin looked at their friend, who was at his breaking point in front of them. who knew that the charismatic, stoic, sung hanbin could also feel stress because of their friend.
"i like him a lot that it hurts that he kept on dismissing people everytime they tell us that we look like a couple. trust me, i like it when i hear people say those words, but it frustrates me at the same time because all i can do is just smile and laugh at him when he gets all flustered and red about it," hanbin took a deep breath. "i don't know what to do."
"hyung, you know that those problems would be resolved if you only confessed, right?" gyuvin asked and patted his shoulder. "i actually hated the thought of confessing to ricky before, especially since we hated each other's guts, but look at where we are now," he smiled proudly. "it's been a year and two months since we started dating."
"okay, i get it. no need to rub it in my face," hanbin frowned.
"i haven't asked this yet, but how long have you been liking hao-hyung?" ricky asked.
"since college began..." hanbin said as he looked down. "he performed during the school opening, right? he played the violin, and back then i just transferred, while you guys have been studying here since high school," he said and explained. "i remember just seeing him... and remembering his name, and knowing that he was a foreigner. i liked him even more after that," he said.
"how about we help you?" gyuvin offered.
"what do you mean?"
"we're gonna help you confess so that you won't keep on sulking here, and maybe get yourself a love life and let all of us finally tease you as a couple," ricky said.
"would that be okay with you two?" hanbin asked.
"of course. otherwise, we wouldn't have offered, right?" ricky said.
"alright."
04.
from: gyuvin
hyung, can you make sure that hao-hyung gets distracted enough that he wouldn't go to our booth? hanbin-hyung is planning something. ricky and i are helping. seungeon will be here, too.
"not going home yet, hyung?" taerae asked and sat beside hao.
"not yet, i'll be fixing the schedule members' shifts so that we could rest, too," hao said as he typed on his laptop. he paused for a bit and looked at his friend, "have you seen hanbin around today?"
taerae raised a brow, "i don't think i did. did he not stop by today? he usually does, no?" he asked.
the older boy slowly nodded as he continued typing on his laptop, "yeah, and he hasn't replied to any of my texts, either," he sighed. "i wonder if they're still at their booth?"
the younger boy stood up, remembering the text he received from gyuvin earlier. "i can go check if you like!"
"that would be great," hao smiled. "thank you, taerae!"
taerae placed his bag on one of the chairs as he left their booth. once he made sure that hao would not hear him if he talked to someone, he decided to dial gyuvin's number.
"taerae-hyung, aren't you with hao-hyung?" taerae could hear a lot of noises from gyuvin's background, and he had no idea what their friends were up to.
"what the hell are you up to?" taerae was trying hard not to raise his voice because hao could still possibly hear him. "hao-hyung looks so worried, and he said that hanbin-hyung isn't replying."
from gyuvin's background, he can hear a lot of shuffling noises, and a loud one at that. as if something just popped. "yoo seungeon!" gyuvin yelled.
"what-"
"let's go! taerae-hyung, the fireworks show is about to start in ten minutes-" gyuvin's voice was cut by a muffled thud, "taerae, it's hanbin. i have no idea what's happening with gyuvin but he's on the floor laughing in pain?" judging by hanbin's voice, it seemed like he was just as confused as taerae, who was on the other line. "anyways, the fireworks display will start in ten minutes, bring hao-hyung to the field with you. i know he'd refuse because there would be a lot of people, but i trust you!"
"what?! what if he doesn't come with me?" taerae asked, rushing back to their booth all of a sudden.
"he has to! it's for his love life!" he heard gyuvin yell before the line was cut.
"what the hell," he muttered under his breath as he rushed back to their booth.
there, he sees hao already packing his things.
"hyung! let's go and watch the fireworks display together!" taerae grinned sheepishly as he went and picked up his bag.
taerae raied a brow, "what? did you go to their booth?"
"yes, and i've got no time to explain!" taerae said as he dragged hao. not having strength to refuse, hao just let himself be dragged by taerae.
the two ran from their booth to the field, which was a long distance for hao, who isn't a bit athletic at all. "taerae... hold on," hao stopped running as he tried to catch his breath. "i'm gonna die," he said as he coughed once.
taerae looked at the time on his phone. five more minutes.
"taerae-hyung! hao-hyung!"
the two looked in the direction where someone had called them. it was gyuvin, standing beside hanbin, who looked nervous.
why was he nervous?
hao's breathing slowly became at par with taerae's, as they walked to where their friends were.
"hi, hyung!" hanbin smiled and handed the older boy some balloons and a small bouquet of roses.
"what's this for?" hao raised a brow but accepted the gifts nonetheless.
"a little peace offering because i couldn't reply to you at all today?" hanbin grinned sheepishly as he rubbed his nape in embarrassment.
hao placed the balloon's stick inside his bag, but the balloon itself was still peeking out.
it was only then that he noticed that gyuvin and taerae were nowhere to be found. "where are gyuvin and taerae?" he asked.
"probably went to find ricky and seungeon. those two went together to buy drinks earlier," he shrugged.
the two stood together in silence as they waited for the fireworks display to begin, along with the other students who were at the field waiting for the same event to start.
"hyung," hanbin started.
hao looked at him, "hmm?"
"i know this is the most inconvenient time and place to say this, but," hanbin held hao's other hand that wasn't holding the flowers. "i always get bothered every time you tell people that we aren't dating. it's like i get showered by an ice cold bath every time, and as much as i want to hate you for it, i can't do anything. i mean, we really aren't a couple," he chuckled sadly as he looked at their hands.
he sighed and looked at him in the eyes, "i've been constantly showing you my love and affection since we became friends, and maybe you don't like me back that's why you keep on telling others that we aren't a couple," he chuckled. "but the thing is, i like you, hao."
the students around them went loud as the fireworks slowly painted the sky one by one. fireworks of different colors were painting the sky. it was loud, and the student body's cheers were also loud, but the only thing hao could hear was his heartbeat.
"hanbin..."
"hyung, can we make those rumors come true?" hanbin asked, a hint of hope in his eyes.
the corners of hao's lips slowly curved upwards as he nodded, "i'd love to."
hanbin was quick to engulf the older in a hug as they spun around, "thank you, hyung... i love you..." he whispered in his ears as they hugged, with the fireworks display coming to a close.
00.
"did i miss a few chapters?" taerae placed a hand under his chin while watching hao and hanbin interact with their customers. "i mean, they've always been like this, but should i still assume stuff at this point?" he raised a brow.
once hao and hanbin were done serving the customers, they went to where taerae and the others were.
"hyung, i wanna ask why the hell you're here again, but you two are basically glued to the hip so i don't wanna know," taerae sighed, massaging his temples.
hanbin chuckled as he placed his arm on hao's shoulder, "of course, i'll help out at my boyfriend's booth," he smiled and leaned his head on hao's.
"oh god," taerae rolled his eyes.