Work Text:
Youngjae sat in the plush chair of the hall outside the vice principal’s office. He leaned back and made himself comfortable, waiting for the office to be made available.
His first mistake was lack of preparation.
To elaborate, he was not prepared for a tall, broad-shouldered male to enter the waiting area and sit down next to him. He was not prepared for the tattoo sleeves that trailed down the other’s arms, the short sleeved uniform shirt only managing to cover a fraction of the ink. And he definitely was not prepared for the nose ring and disheveled dyed gray hair. The boy was a little too sexy for his liking. (Not that he was planning on admitting that.)
To top it all off, Youngjae was not prepared for the other to turn his head and smirk.
“It’s rude to stare you know.” The comment left Youngjae red, cheeks as bright as his orange hair. “What are you here for?”
Youngjae opened his mouth repeatedly in attempts to respond, but all that was let out were sputters and stutters. “I–Uhm, I’m–” he paused, taking a moment to collect himself. A sheepish smile found its way onto his plump lips. “They want to ask me to help out with organizing the Walkathon. How about you?”
“Stabbed somebody with a screwdriver.” He spoke as if this was a normal occurrence for him; as if he was telling Youngjae that he had just taken his dog for a walk that morning or something.
Youngjae froze for a second, taking in the words that had been said. “Oh.” He spoke softly, possibly subconsciously before raising his voice. “Clearly we lead very different lives.”
The tall male snickered. “Yeah.”
“Youngjae!” Both students’ heads snapped towards the office door as another kid left the room with a pout on his lips. Youngjae stood and adjusted his pants before giving a short wave to his small-time acquaintance.
As the young male entered the office, he saw a scowl on the vice principal’s lips. “Don’t associate with that boy, he’s nothing but trouble and I don’t want you to be dragged down with him.”
Youngjae tilted his head in bewilderment, glancing back to spot the other male with a bored expression on his face. “He seems pretty nice to me.” He scratched the back of his head. “Well, putting aside the fact that he apparently stabbed somebody with a screwdriver.”
“He may seem kind at first,” the vice principal scoffed before continuing on with the main topic at hand. They discussed Youngjae’s job helping out, and he was assigned a role in the staff for the event. With papers in his hand he exited the office as the guy from the hall entered. Youngjae didn’t go too far; he rounded the corner and leaned on the wall, aiming to eavesdrop. He was curious.
“Choi Junhong, fix your hair and look appropriate. And wear your uniform properly! Have we not told you multiple times to wear the long sleeved uniform? You're not allowed to publicly display your tattoos in school. And piercings are not allowed either, boy.”
“Nice to see you too, V.P.”
Youngjae smiled and clutched his papers closer, heading back to class.
-/-/-/-
Lunchtime rolled around and Youngjae made his way to the cafeteria, having placed all of his materials in his locker already. As he reached for the handles of the double doors, an unexpected call for attention may or may not have elicited a startled yell from him.
“It’s you again,” Junhong stated, a cocky smirk playing on his lips.
“Don’t you have any expressions that don’t involve smirking?” Youngjae scolded, mainly because scaring the crap out of someone was, as he would say, rude.
Junhong smirked again and reached over, naturally towering over the elder. Youngjae stood frozen in place, unsure of what the other was about to do. His heart raced as Junhong leaned closer, the warmth of his breath and body heat making Youngjae’s position uncomfortably hot. Suddenly the door behind Youngjae opened and Junhong was already halfway through, with yet another amused smirk.
“I’m just opening the door. What did you think I was doing?” And with that, the boy was gone.
Youngjae’s mouth hung agape: an offended visage displayed for all the world to see. He entered the cafeteria before the door closed and looked around for that little punk. Finally Youngjae caught sight of him, but he sitting at a table of other friends who, if Youngjae had to be honest, could lay off the heavy eye liner just a tad bit.
The male frowned and turned away to grab a tray and get food from the lunch line. Tray full, he scanned the area for his friends, finally finding them at their usual table.
“Jae, you took so long~” Daehyun whined as he approached.
“Hey,” Jongup muttered with a tiny wave, eyes focused on nothing in particular. (“Nothing in particular” meaning, by the way, someone’s fine specimen of an ass.)
Yongguk came in a few minutes later. “Sorry I’m late. Hey Youngjae, you’re helping out with the Walkathon too, right?”
“Yeah, I’m just the organizer. After the whole thing starts I’ll be pretty free.”
“Ah,” Yongguk gave a small nod.
-*-*-*-
Three days of a missing Junhong passed, and finally, on his way home the last day, Youngjae found the other in an alleyway with a few people he didn’t recognize. Honestly, he didn’t want to get involved, but that idea was long gone with the wind when Junhong decided to call out his name. He understood from the incident earlier that week that Junhong had gotten in trouble for that Junhong probably wasn’t exactly the best of people to be hanging around.
Youngjae stopped in front of the group, hands in his front pockets as he stared at Junhong hesitantly; the tall male seemed far too lax under the current circumstances, easily smoking the cigarette in his lips down to a blunt stub.
“Guys, this is Youngjae. New friend I made the other day. Isn’t he just adorable?” Junhong teased, a shit-eating grin taking over.
“He looks like a flower boy,” one stated flatly, doing a once over of Youngjae and immediately scowling.
“Himchan~be nice.”
Himchan raised an eyebrow and scoffed. “Nah. I don’t like flower boys.”
“Just because you dated one and he dumped you in a day? I would dump you too, you know.” Junhong killed what was left of the cigarette by pressing the lit end onto the concrete beneath him. He started gesturing to the three others in the group. “This is Hoseok, Minhyuk, and you already know Himchan.”
“Great, can I go now?” Youngjae requested, feeling an unease in his chest. Minhyuk quickly stood up.
“Why in such a hurry? Do we scare you?” He asked, stepping closer.
“N-No…of course not. I…I just have to get home.”
Minhyuk’s eyes narrowed as he examined Youngjae’s form from a closer distance, the new proximity causing the latter to avert his gaze.
“Leave him alone, Minhyuk,” Junhong pulled his friend back. “Come on, Sunshine, I’ll walk you home.”
The two walked out of the alleyway together, earning wolf whistles and hoots from the one named Hoseok, who found himself on the receiving end of a middle finger from Junhong.
“Sunshine?” Youngjae questioned, making a face at the nickname.
“Your hair.” Junhong responded with a short answer, looking away and not focused on the person to his left. He seemed unamused and bored. As if Youngjae was a bother that he brought upon himself.
Youngjae played with his fingers as he walked. Uncomfortable with the silence, he decided to start a conversation again. “Are you going to the Walkathon?”
“I don’t know.” Another dead end answer.
“Why were you gone from school for three days?”
“Suspended.”
He quickly decided that they were getting nowhere, and he closed his mouth. They reached the front of Youngjae’s house and before Youngjae left he turned to face the other. “Let me get your number.”
“Huh?” Junhong raised an eyebrow, surprised at the other’s sudden request.
“You said we’re friends, right?” Youngjae smiled, pulling out his phone.
Junhong was quiet for a moment before taking the device and entering his contact information.
“Thanks for walking me home, Grayscale.”
“Grayscale?”
“Your hair.”
Junhong’s lips upturned at the corners, forming a small but genuine smile, causing Youngjae’s heart to flutter just slightly. “You're bad at nicknames, Sunshine.”
Youngjae giggled in response and waved, entering the comfort of his home. Junhong stood still for a moment, staring at the door before turning back to rejoin to his friends, but then deciding that he didn’t want to. And he dared not go home, either. Instead he chose to go to the river that bordered the city, eager to be surrounded by the peaceful serenity that encompassed the area.
-/-/-/-
Youngjae normally didn’t do much on weekends. The only times he was busy were when his friends decided they should go out somewhere and dragged him along. This Saturday was not one of those days. Instead, he was stuck in his room, on his bed, watching the early morning episode of Sonic Boom, as he had nothing much else to do.
Suddenly, a chime from his phone distracted him from the flash of animated characters and poorly designed plots. He reached over and looked at the screen, which was displaying a name and a text from a certain someone.
Junhong:
Are you free today?
Youngjae quickly typed back a response.
Youngjae:
Yeah, why? (ᵔᴥᵔ)
Junhong:
Omg you’re an emoji freak aren’t you
Do you wanna hang out?
Youngjae:
Let me live ಠ_ಠ
Depends (¬‿¬) What do you wanna do?
Junhong:
Never
Let’s watch a movie
Youngjae:
What movie (；一_一)
I’ll ask my mom (´・ω・`)
Junhong:
I don’t know
Maybe a horror movie? I like horror
Ooh what a goody goody
Youngjae:
Uhh why horror (¬_¬)
Don’t complain when I start to cry ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Rude (ง'̀-'́)ง
Youngjae stood up from his bed and exited his room, making his way to his mother’s. He knocked lightly and received no response, causing him to enter without permission. The male walked over to his mother’s sleeping figure and shook her gently until she awoke.
“Mom, a friend wants me to go to the movies with him. Can I go?”
“Is it Yongguk or the others?”
“No,” Youngjae shook his head. “It’s someone else.”
His mother sighed. “Sure. Take money from my purse. I’ll cut it from your allowance though.”
“Thanks.” Youngjae went over to her purse and sifted through it for twenty dollars, hoping it would be enough. When he left the room and returned to his own he noticed more text messages.
Junhong:
Don’t worry I’ll be your knight in shining armor
For a small person you shouldn’t be fighting
Meet me at the mall in two hours sunshine
Youngjae:
Kay (☞ﾟ∀ﾟ)☞
See you there ᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗ
Junhong smiled and turned off his phone screen. He grabbed some clean clothes from his dresser and changed into a red and black flannel and black jeans, suspenders hanging on the sides. Junhong entered the bathroom and brushed his teeth. While attempting to fix his hair, he passed a hand through it, only to watch it fall back into the same place. With a shrug, Junhong left the bathroom and made his way to the front door, pausing only when he heard his father’s voice.
“And just where do you think you’re going?” Junhong turned to find his father with his arms crossed and right foot tapping.
Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap.
Junhong clenched his fist. The sound was irritating, and he was half tempted to ask his father to stop.
“Out.”
“With whom? And why without my permission?”
Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap.
Junhong bit the inside of his cheek and tightened his jaw.
“With a friend.”
“Bow down and ask to go properly, Junhong.”
Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap.
A harsh sigh left the boy’s lips as he kneeled down and bowed in front of his father. With a scowl on his face that the older couldn’t see, he requested permission. “Please father, let me leave for a temporary amount of time.”
Junhong’s father narrowed his eyes. “Next time I hear attitude in your tone you’re dead. Leave before I change my fucking mind.”
Junhong scrambled to his feet and quickly scampered from the house. He bit his bottom lip in an attempt to calm himself. Looking at the time, he noticed there was little time to arrive at the movies. Forget what just happened; Youngjae was more important.
-/-/-/-/-
“Man I could spot you anywhere, your hair is so bright. Like one of those reflective traffic cones,” Junhong commented as he neared Youngjae, pulling one of the shorter’s strands of hair back and behind his ear.
“You know the comment ‘your smile is so bright’ is much more flattering.” Youngjae poked Junhong’s stomach and the taller jumped back slightly.
“Not here for romance, Baby.”
Youngjae paused to take in the other’s attire. The first three buttons of his flannel were undone, and his sleeves were rolled up to the elbows, revealing the tattoos on his arms. Youngjae subconsciously licked his lips before turning away. “Let’s go to the theatre.”
Junhong followed after Youngjae, watching the other walk around in his loose, oversized cream sweater and denim skinny jeans. A thin black choker with a small silver circle was hung around his neck. He was cute, really. The embodiment of sunshine.
“You wanted horror right? There’s a few; Z Land, Lights Out, Don’t Breathe, The Conjuring 2… Are you even listening?” Youngjae turned to find Junhong staring.
“Sorry.” Junhong shook his head. He leaned closer to see the list of horror movies out. “Let’s watch Conjuring 2.”
Youngjae snickered and they made their way over to purchase tickets. After passing by the security guard, they used the little time left to buy popcorn and drinks.
“What? Why should you pay? Shut up, silly.” Youngjae scolded.
“I invited you, I could at least pay for our food, you know.” Before Youngjae could pull out any money to pay, Junhong handed his money over to the cashier, Cara (he saw her nametag), who most definitely murmured ‘boyfriends’ under her breath.
Youngjae pouted, and Junhong flicked the other in the forehead before grabbing the medium sized popcorn and handing one of the drinks to Youngjae. “Let’s go,” He stated and led them to the room. When they took their seats the previews were already ending.
“I’m scared already,” Youngjae whispered in Junhong’s direction.
Halfway into the movie the popcorn was gone, Junhong’s drink was finished and Youngjae’s was still only a quarter empty because he was too busy hiding his face in Junhong’s shoulder. Said Junhong had an arm draped around the other while he watched the movie with an amused grin.
“It’s not funny!” Youngjae yelled at him when they left the theatre, slapping Junhong’s shoulder. His face was red from embarrassment, seeing as a certain someone couldn’t stop laughing at him. Youngjae started smacking the other’s arm with deadly intent.
“Ow! Ow! Okay, okay! I’m sorry. It’s just… you reminded me of a kid.” Clearly Youngjae disliked the comment, if the ever growing frown on his lips was anything to go by. “Awe, come on. Don’t be mad at me, Sunshine.” Junhong pinched the shorter’s cheek, causing Youngjae to flinch and flail his hands in an attempt to smack away Junhong’s hand.
“I hate you,” Youngjae muttered, quiet because he’d been offended.
Junhong smiled and wrapped his arms around Youngjae, enveloping him in a warm hug. He buried his face in the crook of the older’s neck, hair falling forward and brushing against the fabric of Youngjae’s sweater. “I’m sorry.” He whispered against Youngjae’s skin, breath tickling his neck and releasing a myriad of butterflies in his stomach.
This is moving too fast. Youngjae swallowed, slowly bringing his hands up to push away from Junhong gently. “It’s okay, I’m not really mad. Let’s… Let’s find something else to do.” Junhong couldn’t help but notice the way Youngjae constantly avoided eye contact. Why was there disappointment in the taller’s heart?
-/-/-/-
“Remind me again why I’m asking for advice from someone with no experience?” Youngjae complained petulantly, falling back on the dark leather sofa within Daehyun’s home. His body sunk in, and for some reason he wished the sofa would swallow him whole.
“Excuse you!” Daehyun exclaimed, offended. “I have plenty of experience. In fact, I’m dating someone righ- Fuck.” The tan male paused realizing a piece of information he’d been meaning to keep a secret had slipped passed his lips before he could process the words. Youngjae sat up quickly, a speculative expression giving Daehyun the feeling that there would be no way out of interrogation.
“You’re dating someone?”
Daehyun shifted his weight in his own seat and stared at the wall, a nervous smile on his lips. “No- Haha… Why would you think that? I didn’t say that - not at all.”
“Oh my God you are. Who is it?” Youngjae’s eyes suddenly shone with curiosity, eager to attain gossip and secret information from one of his best friends.
“It’s no one. I just told you. No one.”
“You’re a horrible liar, Dae. Come on, tell me!”
Daehyun muttered a word underneath his breath.
“Huh?”
This time he muttered slightly louder, but the words still fell dead on Youngjae’s ears.
“Repeat that.”
“I said it’s Jongup!” Finally Daehyun used his abnormally loud voice, lucky the house was clear of any family members at the time or he would have been in for a load of embarrassment.
“Jongup. As in, Moon Jongup? As in, can’t understand flirting or hints of wanting sexual interaction?”
“My ass. He knows exactly what he’s doing.”
“Which is, in fact, your ass. Just speculation.”
“Oops?”
Youngjae shook his head. “Adventurous teens these days. The generation is doomed.”
“Ooh, save us oh great Virgin Nerd! We need you!” Daehyun snickered at the sight of Youngjae’s visage.
“Shut up.”
“Alright, alright. Let’s get back on topic. You said this guy clearly is making a move on you, but you think it’s going too fast and you don’t know if you like him like that.”
Youngjae nodded. “Sounds about right.”
“Well,” Daehyun hummed, “I think the best thing to do is test him. If he’s making a move so fast, is it really love. You have to find out: how far would he go for you?”
“In other words, give him competition?”
Daehyun grinned. “Exactly. And I know just the person to help out.”
-/-/-/-
Lunchtime on Monday was not pleasant. Especially not with what Youngjae had just discovered. “Kim Suwong? Are you crazy?”
“You’re talking to one of the most sociable people in school, Jae. Trust me, he likes you. Don’t know why someone of his status and attractiveness would, though, to be honest.” Daehyun sipped his chocolate milk.
Most of the Youngjae’s day was spent side eyeing Jongup (he just couldn’t believe that kid) and occasionally finding his gaze wandering over to Junhong. Youngjae was attempting to form a plan with Daehyun, but Junhong’s appearance was just too distracting. Most of the blame went to the other’s decision that it was a good idea to add snakebites to his piercing collection. They looked so good.
Yongguk slammed his tray on the table, shocking Youngjae out of his thoughts. “If I’m hearing correctly, Daehyun is telling things he shouldn’t be, again, right?” The eldest’s tone was less scolding and more just amused, as was implied by the small smile he wore. Daehyun laughed nervously in response, scratching the back of his neck.
“Okay, I know he likes me and I know we want him to have competition, but how would we get him to ask me out?” Again Youngjae’s eyes wander and find themselves locked onto Junhong. He quickly averted his gaze when he found Junhong was staring straight at him with a blank face. Youngjae’s cheeks reddened in embarrassment.
“Leave that to me.”
Yongguk looked curious. “Are you trying to get him to ask you out so another person gets jealous?” Youngjae nodded. “Ah. I would be your actor, but that wouldn’t look right to my boyfriend. The Hell I’d have to go through to explain to him.”
“Yongguk, do you really even have a boyfriend? You never told us his name, showed pictures, or introduced him.” Jongup spoke up, head rested on his propped up hand.
“Great timing, here he comes now.” Yongguk pointed in the other male’s direction. Three heads turned simultaneously to catch sight of who it was, and Youngjae’s eyes immediately went wide.
“Himchan?!” The man addressed turned his head at the call of his name. He looked surprised when he saw the younger.
Himchan walked over to the table, instantaneously standing next to Yongguk. “Flower boy! Didn’t know you went to this school.”
Youngjae stood up and pointed at the other accusingly. “How can you date someone so rude, Yongguk! He was so… so… ugh!”
“Didn’t know you two knew each other.” Yongguk muttered. “He’s rude at first, but…” Yongguk chose not to complete the sentence and instead smiled to himself.
Daehyun fake-gagged. “He’s so in love it’s gross.”
Jongup stayed silent, but rose a brow in Daehyun’s direction, speechlessly teasing him. Daehyun didn’t look amused when he glanced over to his boyfriend.
“Oh, Junhong!” Himchan suddenly exclaimed at the next table visitor. As soon as Youngjae felt the warmth of his body next to him, he sat down. Again his face was flushed, a panicked look displayed to Daehyun. Daehyun immediately understood that this was the person who supposedly moved too fast. And he understood why Youngjae’s heart was conflicted, too.
He always had a thing for tall people. The tattoos were just a sexy bonus.
“These are your friends, Sunshine?”
“Ah!” Youngjae whined. “Don’t call me Sunshine in front of them!”
A disturbing sound interrupted the peace - or chaos - of the lunchroom. It was the bell, ringing to signify the second part of classes was to begin. Youngjae didn’t waste his time in standing up and turning to run away from the scene. Only his luck, however, would make it so he turned the wrong way and straight into Junhong’s chest, and arms. Damn he smelled nice. Nothing like the cigarette stench from the day he walked Youngjae home.
“Watch where you’re going, Sunshine.” Junhong smirked, amused.
Youngjae panicked once more and pushed Junhong away, bolting for the double doors of the exit.
Junhong looked over at the table, immediately making eye contact with Daehyun. Daehyun shrugged.
-/-/-/-
“The Walkathon is in two days.” Youngjae stated as he looked over an e-mail on one of the library’s computers.
“This Friday?” Junhong leaned back in his chair. “I’ll go.”
Youngjae paused. “Really? You don’t peg me to be the type to walk.”
Junhong shrugged. “I’m going to see someone.”
“See someone?” Was it possible that Youngjae had been misreading the situation entirely? Could Junhong not actually be interested in him?
Junhong ran his tongue over the back of his snakebites. They were still fresh so there was a slight pain that accompanied the action. “Yeah. They’re pretty attractive.”
“Oh.” Youngjae couldn’t help the disappointment in his tone. Quickly he replaced his sudden gloom with a fake smile. “I hope it goes well between you both.”
Junhong made a noise to indicate he was grateful for Youngjae’s wishes.
-/-/-/-
“Water bottles?”
“Check!”
“Food?”
“Check!”
“Hosts and activities?”
“Check!”
“And the chairs and tables are set up.” Youngjae muttered to himself. He smiled and put his hands to his hips. “Alright, it’s starting soon, don’t forget to have fun.”
Ten minutes later the place already had over fifty students and parents who came to the Walkathon. There were still more to come, but Youngjae had already been looking through the crowd. Luckily, Junhong found him. A tap on the shoulder made Youngjae turn around and he immediately smiled.
“Hey, you - oh my God.” Youngjae whispered the last three words in shock. He was - wow. Junhong had a sleeveless shirt on, and needless to say he looked gorgeous when his tattoos were revealed completely. His arms were a nice build and the tattoo sleeves encompassed his muscles perfectly. His chest looked strong too, especially with the way it seemed to stick out without the male trying.
Junhong reached out and pushed Youngjae’s chin up in order to make him close his mouth. Of course, he had a smirk. “Like what you see?”
The elder started looking around nervously, red faced and scratching the back of his neck. “I- I- Uhm. Oh, hey, Yongguk!” Quickly Youngjae escaped by walking over to his nearby friend, who was one of the ‘security guards’ for the event.
“Help me.” He whispered while clutching onto Yongguk’s shirt.
Yongguk looked down and then up to find the source of the problem. When he spotted Youngjae’s little friend and the clothes he wore, he laughed. “You’re so weak. Hey, don’t leave him all alone now, Jae.”
“You are the worst person to ask for help.” Youngjae decided he should go back to Junhong, but suddenly the announcement was on.
“Hosts and participants, please make your way to the walkathon starting line. We will be passing out water bottles.”
Youngjae made his way to the starting line and placed himself in front of the crowd with two other staff members. They were meant to keep the crowd from straying. More staff members were on other sides of the crowd to watch those areas as well. When all the water bottles were handed out the starting announcement caused the crowd to move forward on their five kilometer walk.
The path was planned to make a full circle in order to get back to the activity area. Youngjae didn’t bother to look back the whole time, for fear of spotting a certain someone with the person he was seeing. He didn’t want to know who it was.
When the walk was over with people began to line up for food and those who weren’t hungry either left to play volleyball or decided to start a game at the basketball court. All was well and Youngjae was satisfied, until suddenly a greeting came from his left.
“Hey.”
Youngjae turned to the semi familiar voice. “Suwong. What’s up?” Youngjae was unexpectedly bashful, fearing that trying something out with Suwong could unintentionally lead to something more.
Junhong nearly approached his Sunshine, only to spot another male coming his way. Quickly the tallest hid behind a thick tree nearby, eavesdropping on their conversation.
“Not much. Your hair looks really nice, by the way.”
Junhong’s face contorted into one of confusion.
“Thanks.” Youngjae smiled.
“I wanted to ask you a question.”
There it goes. “Go ahead~”
“Do you think… do you want to go on a date?”
Youngjae paused for a moment. His heart was beating abnormally fast. Even if this was just to see what Junhong would do about it, the confession was real. It’d never happened to him before. “I would love to.”
Junhong’s fist clenched. His hair fell over his eyes, casting a dark shadow as a frown deepened in his expression.
“Great! Let me get your number so we can set the date.”
Junhong pushed himself off the tree and walked away. Yongguk spotted the male about to leave with an angry visage. The elder frowned shaking his head slightly before turning back to what he was doing moments prior.
When Youngjae came over and asked Yongguk where Junhong was, Yongguk gave him the silent treatment.
-/-/-/-/-/-
It was on Monday that Junhong began to act different. He never came over to Youngjae, instead Youngjae was forced to ask for his attention. Whenever he did, however, Junhong would be either emotionless or rude - there was no in between.
Suwong was a lot more flirty after their date on Saturday. He wasn’t a far-away admirer anymore. Youngjae was sure that anybody with two eyes and a brain could see that.
Youngjae sat down at the table where his friends sat.
“So how’s it working out?” Daehyun asked immediately.
“Horrible. Junhong either ignores me or says something rude. He’s so… cold.”
“That’s what happens when you play with someone’s feelings.” Yongguk started up.
“What do you mean?”
Someone else walked up to the table and sat down in Jongup’s seat. “He’s saying that emotions aren’t a toy. It was obvious Hongie liked you from the get go, maybe even loved you. He doesn’t love people - but you made it so easy for him.” Himchan sighed. “I really do hate flower boys.”
Youngjae looked over in Junhong’s direction and a sudden sadness encompassed his heart.
-/-/-/-
“Is it really a good idea to just ignore him though?” Hoseok asked worriedly.
Junhong tipped his head back and threw up a popcorn kernel. Mouth open, the snack fell in and he closed it as his head was put back into place. He side-eyed Hoseok and his boyfriend, Jimin.
“He picked someone else, right?” Junhong crumpled up the empty bag of white cheddar popcorn. “There’s no point anymore.”
Jimin pouted. “Well that’s dumb. You’re just gonna give up like that? Did you ever really want him then?”
Junhong narrowed his eyes, sending a half glare with a hint of confusion. He scoffed and stood up, stretching. “I don’t know. Did I?” The male left his friends to themselves.
-/-/-/-/-/-
Youngjae:
Junhong
Junhong
Answer me
Text back please
Grayscale
Don’t ignore me
Please
Let’s talk
Junhong felt bothered by the sudden income of texts. Like a planned ambush on a sole enemy soldier. The repeated dings and chimes of his text ringtone was annoying him to no ends. Despite his attempt to resist the urge to respond he caved and opened the message app, preparing himself for talking to the last person he wanted to talk to.
Junhong:
Meet me at the river in 20 minutes then.
Youngjae pounced on his phone after hearing the ring of his phone. A wide smile spread on his face when the name he wanted to see was displayed on his screen. He sent a quick agreement to Junhong and got dressed in casual clothing.
It was 11:47pm. His mother was asleep and he risked getting in trouble, but Junhong was worth it.
Junhong himself was struggling to keep as quiet as possible at that time at night. He seemed to have not been careful enough, however, when the sound of a belt being whipped on the ground awoke his senses. He turned sharply and stood straight, staring with fear into his father’s eyes.
“The sound of your phone going off woke me up. And just where do you think you’re going right now?”
“That’s none of your business.”
The words seemed to have triggered his father, as soon a belt came crashing down, right across his face. And that wasn’t the worst of it either. Junhong became, once more, the receiving end of repeated blows and cuts. He attempted to crawl away, or run from his father - only to be dragged back, hit, and yelled at.
Unexpectedly, Junhong was reduced to a fetus position, awaiting his father’s constant hits.
It was a good thing he chose to wear long sleeves.
-/-/-/-
He’s really late. Youngjae looked at the time on his phone. Did he bail out on me last minute? Youngjae sighed and looked over to the river. The water was steady and calm with the light breeze that swept through the grass and his hair. Youngjae dug his fingers into the rich soil beside him, allowing tranquility to set the atmosphere.
“Youngjae.”
It was so unfamiliar, hearing that voice say his name.
“No more Sunshine?”
Junhong took a seat beside the other. “You don’t look too happy to be considered sunshine right now.”
Youngjae smiled sadly and looked to the ground. “You suddenly just stopped talking to me.” His gaze went back to Junhong. “Why are you wearing long sleeves? It’s warm tonight.”
“Well… I have my own reasons for ignoring you.”
“Answer the question, Junhong.”
Junhong clenched his fists a s pulled out fistfuls of grass from the ground. “What question?”
“Why are you wearing long sleeves? You never cover your tattoos.”
“It’s not a big deal, Youngjae, drop it.”
“Since you won’t tell-” Youngjae jumped on top of Junhong, taking him by surprise. He attempted to pull up the other’s shirt, but Junhong pushed it down, and he was much stronger. With countless struggle and repeated rolling on the ground, an inch of the other’s shirt rode up and Youngjae halted his actions. There was a large purple bruise, right at his v line. It was fresh.
Junhong wore a look of fear as Youngjae stared at the mark.
Suddenly the older began to remove Junhong’s shirt, slowly. Nobody was stopping him then. His breath hitched every time a new cut or bruise was revealed. The shirt was off completely, and Youngjae sat in Junhong’s lap, looking defeated.
“What…” He whispered, voice cracking halfway. “What happened?”
Junhong turned his head away. He didn’t want to see Youngjae cry. “What does it matter anyways? It’s nothing new.” He bit his lip. “Stop being so emotional, Sunshine. You care too much.”
“Of course I care.” Youngjae stated shakily, reaching out and cupping Junhong cheeks to make him face the older once more. “Who did this Junhong?”
Junhong frowned. “My father.”
“Oh my god.” Youngjae whispered once more, a hand covering his mouth and he suddenly leaned forward to hug Junhong. His arms were wrapped around the taller’s neck as he cried softly. “I’m sorry.”
Junhong pushed Youngjae gently and then gripped his waist. He leaned forward and tilted his head, pressing their lips together in a simple kiss. Youngjae felt Junhong’s snakebites brush against his chin.
When they pulled away Junhong started to talk. “You have nothing to be sorry for.” He kissed Youngjae again. “I don’t want you to feel bad.” Again.
“You.” A kiss. “Are.” Another. “Not.” And a third. “To blame.”
“Junhong…” Youngjae muttered, at a loss for words.
“You probably already know that I love you. And you probably don’t even love me back.” Junhong frowned. “Love is a strong word and I never once used it in my life before. I’ve only known you for nearly a month and a few days but… “
“I love you.”
“What?”
Youngjae took a deep breath. “I love you and I know high school relationships usually don’t last but I’m willing to try.”
Junhong scoffed. “We’ll probably break up soon if we start dating.”
“But I love you right now, so it shouldn’t go to waste.” Youngjae smiled and put a hand to Junhong’s bare chest to trace the tattoo with fancy calligraphy that spelled out ‘CRY’. “Don’t go home, Junhong. Stay overnight at my place. You can tell the vice principal your uniform was dirty as an excuse for not having it.”
“How will your parents react when a half naked, pierced up, and tattooed teenage boy wakes up with you and leaves your room just like that?”
“My mom would give me the talk all over again.”
Junhong wiggled his eyebrows. “We could give her a reason to.”
“Pft,” Youngjae laughed, “Shut up, Junhong.”
Junhong hugged Youngjae, the second time he’d been the one to initiate. Similar to last time, he placed his head in the crook of the other’s neck. Junhong planted a kiss there. Suddenly he began to trail up Youngjae’s neck with kisses before reaching his lips. Youngjae’s eyes were half lidded and he was breathing calmly, awaiting the warmth on his lips. Their eyes met under the moonlight, and they kissed again.
I love you. Never leave my side.
-/-/-/-
At the lunch table Junhong and Himchan joined the group, choosing to sit by their boyfriends. Jongup and Daehyun were next to each other now, and they blushed madly, as if they weren’t already dating. Himchan was resting his head on Yongguk’s shoulder.
Junhong however, was in the middle of biting and nipping at Youngjae’s neck and ear.
Youngjae was giggling and blushing like a schoolgirl, Junhong’s arm wrapped around him to prevent distance from coming in between them.
“And I thought we were grossly in love?” Yongguk smiled.
Himchan hummed. “Junhong’s happy, so I’m happy. But…” He frowned. “Yep, there we go.”
A security guard was pulling Youngjae and Junhong apart. “No PDA, boys.”
“That’s just cruel, Ms. Lee.” Junhong whined, suddenly grinning proudly when he spotted red marks on Youngjae’s neck.
“Junhong.”
“Yeah, yeah, we’ll behave.”
When the couple sat back down again, Junhong began to feel up his boyfriend’s thigh under the table. When he came dangerously close to those areas, Youngjae poked him on the side.
“Behave.” He commanded.
“I can’t help it!” Junhong complained, throwing up his hands in exasperation.
Youngjae leaned close to his ear and whispered, “If you’re good, you can come over later when my mom isn’t home.”
Needless to say, Junhong was an obedient puppy all day long.