Chapter Text
Ricky has never been a very confrontational person, however recently he feels as if his patience is being tested.
He’s only three pages into his paper—which is due in another two hours—when he hears a yell and an onslaught of explosions behind him.
He closes his eyes, bracing himself for what he knows will come next.
“Shit!” A loud thud and a slam follow as the unwelcome interruption begins to raise his voice, echoing through the empty room and breaking the blissful silence. “You just sold the whole fucking round!”
Ricky sighs and turns up the volume on his headphones.
At the heart of the city, nestled in between a park with a scenic view and a neighbor that loves to throw parties, Ricky lives with his best friend Zhang Hao. His routine isn’t anything special. He wakes up at 8 for his morning classes, gets food at the dining hall, takes up a shift at the cafe, and whenever he has the time, he goes to bother Hao—whenever Hao isn’t busy following Hanbin around and making heart eyes at him, that is.
All in all, Ricky would say he enjoys his routines. He was never one to go beyond his comfort zone. In high school, he never followed his friends around to parties and his ideal night was staying in and rewatching his favorite shows. His cousins would tease him for his soft spoken demeanor, especially Xiaoting.
Lovelicky, she’d cry while pinching his cheeks, you’re as soft and gentle as a kitten.
Deciding to move from China and leaving them was the biggest risk he was willing to take. Majoring in art history followed shortly after.
Ricky swallows the familiar feeling of homesickness, something that doesn’t get easier despite the years, reminding himself to make a call home soon before Xiaoting gets angry at him. His backpack digs into his back like a sack of rocks as he makes his way to the convenience store, deciding to refuel with some snacks and a quick meal before going to the library.
The street looks beautiful at night, and Ricky lets himself soak in the view as he walks, a small comfort to the shadowy mood that has been hovering over him the whole day. It’s the little things.
Upon reaching his destination, Ricky pauses, taking a moment to examine himself in the store windows. The glowing lights of the neon sign wash over his face as he takes note of his deep eyebags, old sports hoodie, and a pair of well-worn sweatpants—a far cry from the perfect and polished appearance he prefers to reveal to his classmates.
Sighing, Ricky pushes open the door. No use in getting bothered about it now, he thinks to himself as he approaches the drinks selection. Grabbing two of his favorite energy drinks and a bag of chips, he approaches the cashier—who can’t possibly be a day over 17 and who looks as dead and tired as he feels. He reads the employee's name tag, Yujin. Taking pity on him, he places a handful of dollar bills into the tip jar.
Once he’s finished paying and his purchases are in hand, Ricky continues towards the library, this time at a brisk pace. Already, he is making quick work of his first drink in preparation for the long night ahead of him. He prays that he isn’t too late, and that that guy isn’t there.
For reasons unbeknownst to him, the third floor of the library was usually vacant, with rarely a student around. Maybe it had something to do with the broken elevator, which was never fixed despite the complaints made by students and staff alike. Most likely, the reason behind the empty upper floor was that nighttime trips to the library were not exactly popular among his classmates.
Ricky never minds the extra cardio and his sleep schedule has already gone to shit, so he unfortunately always finds himself on the third floor of the library at 8 PM every week. In his defense, his brain works better at night, when the library is both empty and quiet—at least, it used to be.
It seems Ricky is not the only one who enjoys a late-night visit to the library; for as long as Ricky has been showing up, the man behind him has been there too.
Ricky flies up the stairs, already breaking out into a light sweat and his heart sinks at what he sees.
In the corner, with his hoodie pulled down low on his head, is the guy who Ricky has come to hate for the past couple of months.
Ricky is all about order. He loves sticking to his routines and he doesn’t like drawing more attention to himself than necessary. That being said, he believes that this man is going to bring out a new side of him sooner or later. The reason is simple: if Ricky finds himself at the library studying every week without fail, then the man is always playing games with his volume at full blast as well.
Another thing about Ricky, and something he hates to admit despite how true it is—he’s stubborn.
Ricky was here first, he’s been coming to the library, and this specific spot, since last year. This mysterious and aggravating man only started appearing a week after, and the only reason he knows this is because that is where the root of his troubles began. He was not about to be chased away from the best spot in the entire library by some guy who doesn’t understand what a headset is.
Already, he can see the man booting up the computer and logging into his game. Luckily, Ricky always comes prepared and as he makes his way to his usual seat a couple of tables in front of the man, he puts his headphones on and selects a playlist at random.
Everything goes well for the first twenty minutes. Surprisingly the man has been silent since Ricky walked in.
Maybe he decided to try something different today, like Stardew Valley, Ricky snorts to himself. It's really the least he could do.
Ricky cranes his neck around to look at the man, curious to see what he is up to, when just at that moment, he hears the first keyboard smash.
He spoke too soon.
Xiaoting would laugh if she saw him now. Her cute and shy cousin, currently contemplating murder.
Gritting his teeth, Ricky foolishly decides to stick it out and for the next hour, he is subjected to shouts, slams, and more profanities than he thinks should be appropriate in this sacred place of learning.
His final straw however, comes a little over half an hour later, when he hears the man throw what he can only assume was a chair, and yell at his teammates.
Okay, now this was ridiculous.
How could he possibly be louder than the music currently blasting into his skull, Ricky thinks to himself exasperatedly.
Realizing that he can not bear this a moment longer, he quickly gathers his stuff and slamming his laptop shut with a little more force than necessary, Ricky rushes out the library without a glance behind.
He can always finish the rest at home.
“Ricky, you look like shit.”
Matthew smirks at him, cheeks stuffed with whatever disgustingly sweet mint chocolate chip pastry he decided to order. Ew.
Meanwhile, Hao whips his head around and fixes him with a deadly glare.
“Matthew!” He reaches over and gently slaps him on the head.
“Sorry,” Matthew mumbles, looking at Ricky guiltily, “But seriously Rick, you look really tired today, is everything okay?” he says, revealing his genuine concern.
Ricky groans, slamming his head down on the open laptop in front of him. Not even the delicious aroma of coffee beans drifting through the cafe, or the nice weather can brighten his mood today.
“I am so exhausted,” he admits, dragging his hand over his face in frustration, “I was supposed to have this assignment completed by yesterday but I’ve completely fallen behind.”
Hao rubs Ricky’s arm in a comforting gesture. “Don’t you usually do all your work at the library though? Maybe you can finish this up later today.”
Ricky groans louder this time, leaning back and pressing the palms of his hands into his eyes.
“I totally would, if that wasn’t the reason this is even happening in the first place!” he cries.
The floodgates have opened and once he starts, Ricky can’t seem to stop his rant about the annoying boy at the library.
“That sounds horrible,” Matthew winces sympathetically, “Is there anyone you can report this behavior to?”
“The library is completely deserted at night and besides, I don’t even know his name,” Ricky grumbles bitterly.
“Still, it’s a big problem if this is disrupting your ability to work.”
“Trust me, I know.” Ricky reaches out and grabs the coffee next to him, chugging it in one swift motion. “It feels a little silly that I’m so worked up about this but it’s been months of the same thing,” he sighs after a beat.
“I would be annoyed too,” Hao admits, “How about I leave the apartment for a few hours whenever you want to study? I know you need silence to concentrate.”
”I feel bad kicking you out of the house,” Ricky says, “It’s not your fault that it’s so hard for me to concentrate sometimes.”
He hates being an inconvenience to others, even if he knows that Hao just wants the best for him. Still, he feels a rush of gratitude at Hao’s kindness—although the sentiment leaves after his next sentence.
“I can stay at Hanbin’s house,” Hao smirks, “We could always use some alone time.”
Those two. He really doesn’t need to know the kind of things they get up to.
“You dog!” Matthew cries, kicking Hao under the table. Ricky just shakes his head.
“Don’t be dramatic.” Hao stands up, gathering their empty dishes and clearing the table for the baristas. Matthew stuffs his face with the rest of his mint chocolate monstrosity and follows suit.
“Come on, we still have a couple more hours to kill, and I know just the kind of distraction you need.”
Ricky collects his stuff and trails behind them, vowing to forget about schoolwork and the strange man at the library for the time being as Hao ushers them out the doors and onto the sunny sidewalk.
After a week of studying from home, Ricky feels much better about the situation at the library. Of course, all good things are never here to stay.
The day already starts off horrible. He forgot to check the weather this morning and on his way to class he got caught in the rain. Not to mention, he was already running late so there was no time to grab a change of clothes.
Ricky curses his luck, and he can already feel that today is going to leave him with 3 separate headaches.
Walking around all day with wet socks was not what he had in mind for his Friday, but the real bad luck came in the form of a message from Hao a few hours later.
hey ricky, hanbin decided to drop by and he’s going to stay here for a few hours… if u get what i mean
Ricky feels himself getting increasingly more frustrated as he stares at Hao’s message. He loves Hanbin, don’t get him wrong, but he was looking forward to going home and sinking into his bed after a long day.
He opens his keyboard, prepared to send something along the lines of fuck u hao, when he feels something shove against his back and suddenly, his phone is not in his hand anymore.
“Sorry!” A man on a bicycle rushes by, his hasty apology already lost to the wind. Ricky gawks at the part of the sidewalk where his phone is currently lying, the puddle it landed in already seeping in, and the screen a pitch black.
Great.
Homeless and with no way to contact anyone, Ricky decides that his next best bet is to go to the library to pass the time. He gingerly picks up his phone and wipes it clean, already mentally calculating how much a new one would cost.
It’s not long before he reaches the familiar steps of the library and habit has him heading towards the third floor.
He brushes past the computers and throws himself down onto the nearest chair, noticing that the bane of his existence is already occupying his same spot and has already made himself comfortable. Does he ever go home?
Ricky resolutely decides to ignore him, and although his phone isn’t working, he decides to pair his headphones to his laptop to block out any noise. Might as well get some work done while he’s here.
But then, the final straw: as he goes to turn on his headphones, he hears the familiar sound warning him of a drained battery. He has no time to react before they shut off and he realizes his headphones are dead.
Ricky contemplates throwing himself out the nearest window and letting Hao deal with the aftermath when out of the corner of his eye, he sees the man start up a game on his computer.
That’s it.
The accumulation of every bad event that has happened in the span of minutes boils over inside of Ricky, until he finally snaps.
He’s had enough.
“Excuse me!” Ricky shoots up from his table, marching over angrily in the boy’s direction. “Could you please—“
His words die on his tongue as the boy lifts his head to lock eyes with him. At last, Ricky is able to get a clear view of his tormentor’s face. He takes in a tousled head of brown hair, pouty lips, and a pair of big round eyes.
It’s almost comical how fast everything happens. One glance, and he forgets why he was even mad in the first place.
In the middle of the empty library, wearing his frayed hoodie and down 2 energy drinks, Ricky feels something close to love.
“I’m sorry,” The man tilts his head in an endearing manner, “Can you repeat that?”
It takes Ricky a couple seconds to register the words coming out of the man’s mouth, too busy staring at his lips. He sputters and waves his arms around, his brain needing a moment to recalibrate.
“Nothing! I just– wanted to ask about the game you’re playing?” It comes out more as a question, and Ricky cringes at himself internally.
Nice one, now he thinks you’re some weirdo trying to bother him.
“Oh!” the boy exclaims, pulling Ricky out of his self deprecating thoughts. “It’s just some battle game I picked up today!” The sweet flush on his cheeks and the smile on his face as he talks is quickly becoming dangerous for Ricky’s heart.
Cute, he thinks to himself—unaware that the boy is speaking to him again.
“Kim Gyuvin.” The man glances bashfully at Ricky’s at Ricky’s confused expression. “That’s my name.. in case you wanted it that is!”
Ricky snaps himself out of his daze, begging himself to act normal.
“Shen Quanrui,” he says, shyly looking into Gyuvin’s eyes, “But you can call me Ricky.”
A lapse of silence follows as they simply stare at each other, and the awkward pause has Ricky wishing the ground would swallow him whole.
Suddenly, Gyuvin’s face lights up and he sits up straight in his chair, looking at Ricky eagerly.
“You can sit next to me if you want! Do you like video games?”
His face reminds Ricky of those puppies he sees in the window of a pet store. He doesn’t think he could ever deny Gyuvin anything with that expression, so he takes a seat. Gyuvin’s pleased expression sends a rush of warmth through him.
“I do..” Ricky says after a moment. Gyuvin doesn’t seem to catch on to his hesitation, and instead he positions his fingers over the keyboard and mouse.
“Well Ricky,” Gyuvin says, leaning in closer to him conspiratorially, “I’m about to blow your mind.” He smirks before promptly walking his character over the edge of a cliff, and the screen fades into a START OVER.
Gyuvin’s shocked expression is too much for Ricky to handle and he doubles over laughing. Wiping the tears from his eyes, he watches as Gyuvin’s face turns a concerning shade of red.
“I swear that was an accident!” His eyes widen and he grabs Ricky’s hand frantically, “I’m just nervous!”
In his desperation, he doesn’t seem to notice his hands currently intertwined with Ricky’s. Ricky on the other hand, feels as if his nerves are on fire. Torn between the option of pulling away, and the desire to press himself closer, he silently fidgets in his seat.
Gyuvin seems to notice their situation after a minute and he yelps, before jumping away.
“Sorry!”
Ricky glances down at his lap while Gyuvin clears his throat nervously, bringing his focus back to the screen in front of them.
“Well, let’s try that again,” he says sheepishly.
It turns out, Gyuvin is very skilled and although Ricky’s knowledge on games is close to zero, he enjoys sitting next to Gyuvin and listening to his commentary.
Watching his fingers as they fly around the controls and his concentrated expression is only a bonus, and more than once Ricky finds himself wondering how it would be like to be on the receiving end of that look. He doesn’t let himself dwell on those thoughts too long.
Another thing he appreciates about Gyuvin is that he seems to be more relaxed; not raising his voice once despite the frustration that is sometimes apparent on his features.
Ricky’s attention on Gyuvin is interrupted by an announcement coming over the PA system,
announcing that the library will be closing in 15 minutes. The spell has been broken, and Ricky jolts out of his seat, glancing at the time. He hadn’t even felt it go by.
Gyuvin leans back in his chair, stretching his arms high over his head. Ricky tries to ignore the sliver of skin that peeks over his waistband, and instead turns to grab his things. Before he can stand up, he feels a tug on his sleeve.
“Ricky,” Gyuvin says softly, his face unreadable. “Can I get your number?”
Ricky’s mouth opens and closes in quick succession, and he is unsure if he heard Gyuvin correctly.
Gyuvin, detecting Ricky’s shock and confusion, frantically tries to elaborate.
“Just in case you want to talk about video games! I always see you in the library and I just thought—“
“Gyuvin,” Ricky says, sensing Gyuvin’s nervous energy.
“—I just think you’re so cool and I had a lot of fun today! I would like to see you again and—-“
“Gyuvin!”
Gyuvin snaps his mouth shut, staring at Ricky uneasily.
“My phone is broken,” Ricky sighs, “And I'm not just saying that as an excuse, I’d really like to see you again too.” He ends his sentence in a whisper, peering at Gyuvin from under his lashes.
Gyuvin’s expression brightens at Ricky’s response, his sunny demeanor coming back full force. He frantically grabs his backpack and begins digging through the pockets desperately. Ricky watches on, perplexed, when Gyuvin’s hand emerges from his bag with a pen, a triumphant grin on his face.
Gyuvin then reaches over, gently grabbing Ricky’s wrist and turning his hand so that his palm faces upwards.
“Here,” Gyuvin says, writing his number on Ricky’s hand. ”When you get a new phone, please text me.”
Ricky feels his face heat up, and he can only imagine how red he looks. His heart flutters at Gyuvin’s gesture, only solidifying Ricky’s fondness for this man—a far cry from his feelings towards him earlier, but what can he say? He’s always been partial towards kind and beautiful men.
Gyuvin shuts down the computer, tidying up his space and shrugging his backpack onto one shoulder. As he walks towards the stairs, he stops and turns to look back at Ricky, gently smiling and beckoning him to follow.
Ricky trails after him, and they both come to a halt at the entrance of the library, the streetlights casting a soft light over them.
“Well, this is where we say goodbye,” Gyuvin says, rubbing his neck as he faces Ricky. “I have to go down here.” He points to the opposite direction of Ricky’s apartment, and Ricky swallows his disappointment of having to part so soon.
A silence descends over them both, and Ricky senses that he is not the only one who is hesitant to split ways.
“It was nice to meet you,” he says in a low voice, unwilling to break the tranquility and silence of the night. Under the watchful eye of the moon, he and Gyuvin seem to be the only two people in the universe, standing here on this pavement.
Ricky slowly turns around before giving Gyuvin a small wave, and as his footsteps carry him further away, he can feel Gyuvin’s eyes on his retreating form— his number burning a hole through the palm of his hand.