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Hyeontak was nervous. Very nervous. His hands wouldn't stop sweating, and he felt like he was starting to stink from nervousness. Which was terrible because the shower of perfume he had taken would be worthless.
He wiped the sweat on his black pants, one of the new ones he had put on under Suho and Baku's guidance, and tried to calm down.
Standing there in front of the movie theater, waiting for Juntae to arrive, he analyzed the environment. It was his first official date with Juntae. They had already had many dates — with their friends — but this was their first official date since both of them had confessed their feelings.
He sent a message to Juntae, saying he had already arrived, and put his phone in his pocket. His eyes scanned the surroundings, noticing when the boy appeared in the middle of the hallway. An audible sigh escaped his mouth when he looked at him.
Seo Juntae was gorgeous. Gotak had always found him cute, but since his feelings for his friend began to blossom, the boy had taken on a whole different glow in his eyes. Baku said it was one of the symptoms of being in love and he couldn't deny it. In his eyes, Juntae was the most perfect creature that existed. But today, he was exceptionally well-dressed, wearing beige pants, a white t-shirt and a leather jacket. The boy felt like punching himself for imagining that it was all because of him.
Unable to contain himself, he soon waved his arms, attracting the other boy's attention. He noticed that the boy didn't wear glasses, causing his bangs to cover his eyes a little more than usual. He smiled slightly before approaching him.
“Hi, Jun.” Gotak said as soon as Juntae approached him.
“Hi, Taka-ah.” He replied, discreetly analyzing Gotak, who noticed a red tone growing on his cheeks. “Have you been here long?”
Gotak couldn't help himself, approaching the smaller boy and squeezing his cheeks. Juntae pouted, but didn't push him away.
“No, I just got here.” he replied. “Do you want to get popcorn? We still have a few minutes.”
Juntae nodded and they headed for the checkout line. Despite a brief discussion about who would pay, with Gotak being quicker and taking his wallet out of his pocket, the popcorn purchase was quick and they soon made their way to the theater.
Once in their seats, Gotak positioned the bucket so that Juntae could reach it as easily as possible. The theater wasn't very full, but they opted for the seats at the back, since, according to the other boy, the view of the screen was better. Gotak didn't mind, since he preferred to be as far away as possible.
They had chosen a horror movie. In fact, Juntae had asked if they could watch the new movie of a franchise he liked, and as always, Gotak couldn't say no. Juntae was crazy about movies like that. Psychological horror, slasher, ghost movies. He was like a mini human encyclopedia on movies with that theme. And Hyeontak hated movies like that and would never watch them if he could.
Now, he was there. In that still-lit theater, surrounded by other people who were probably as obsessed with these movies as Juntae was, and the only thing he could think about was how not to embarrass himself in front of him.
“I'm glad you came with me, Taka-ah!” Juntae asked, staring at him. “I was really excited to watch it.”
Gotak smiled at the other boy. Although he didn't like the movies, he was excited to spend that afternoon with Juntae.
“I know, you've been talking about it for days.” He replied, poking Juntae's cheek, who smiled. Summoning up some of his courage, he continued, “If you get scared, you can hold my hand.”
Juntae rolled his eyes, but the smile didn't leave his face, tinged with a slight red hue. They talked for a few minutes, Juntae telling him about his day at prep school and Gotak telling him about the new classes he was taking, before the lights in the room went out and the only illumination came from the huge screen.
The younger boy let out a little squeal of joy when the opening credits rolled, grabbing some popcorn and popping it into his mouth. Gotak chuckled softly, finding it cute, before turning his face toward the screen.
The first few minutes of the film were more of an introduction. There were a few minor jump scares, but nothing too scary in his opinion. Thank goodness. He glanced at Juntae out of the corner of his eye a few times, seeing the boy completely focused, even letting out a few giggles. It was frighteningly cute.
He shook his head, trying to pay attention to the movie. As the minutes passed, the scenes began to intensify. The first scare came when one of the protagonists was in the basement and, obviously, something was passing behind him. He closed his eyes before the scene passed and only opened them when he was sure the tense music was over.
He felt his cheeks flush, daring to look in Juntae's direction, who didn't seem to have noticed his discomfort as he continued eating popcorn. He sighed, relieved, trying to pay attention to the movie.
The movie went on without any more scares, or so Gotak thought. As he ate some more popcorn, the tense music started again. He cringed a little in his seat, turning his face to the side, but he couldn't help being startled when the terrifying figure of a nun lit up the entire room. Gotak jumped out of his seat, closing his eyes quickly, trying to calm down.
“Are you okay, Taka-ah?” Juntae's voice came softly.
He opened his eyes, staring at the boy, who looked a little worried.
“Oh, y-yes, Jun.” He replied, feeling his cheeks flush. “I just got a little scared.”
Averting his gaze from Juntae, he looked at the almost empty bucket of popcorn on his lap. He was feeling a little embarrassed for having been so easily frightened, especially since he was usually the brave one.
Before he could think of anything else, he felt Juntae's small hand hold his, intertwining their fingers. He widened his eyes, staring at the boy, who smiled, highlighting his dimples.
“Don't worry, Taka-ah, I'll protect you.”
The boys stared at each other for a few minutes. Hyeontak could see the boy much better now, noticing the mole in the corner of his eye that he dreamed of kissing one day. Juntae stared at him intently, his eyes following his every move, waiting. Gotak moved a little closer, bringing their faces very close together.
“Usually, I'm the one who protects you.” He said simply.
Juntae leaned in a little, causing Gotak to hold his breath. But instead of kissing his lips, he kissed his cheek, pulling away with a small smile.
“I think this time I'm the one who's going to protect you.”
Gotak nodded in agreement, squeezing Juntae's hand against his, leaving a caress with his fingers. Maybe he should watch more horror movies, if it meant Juntae would hold his hand and kiss him on the cheek when he got scared.