FRAT LINE-KNJ✔️

+43+

THIRD

Six days. Namjoon leaves in just six days. 144 hours. 8,640 minutes and counting down. That's all Malia has been thinking about. Through practice, through the games, before she goes to sleep. Even in the middle of classes. That's all she has on her mind.

"Aye." Xavier bumps her arm. She turns her head to look at him.

"Hm?"

"You alright? You keep zoning out over there."

"Yeah. I'm good. Just thinking." She sits up in her chair and leans back.

"About?"

"I have to leave soon. Competitions are starting. I'm nervous as hell."

"Ah." He waves her off. "You'll be alright. You got the team on lock and y'all always keep the crowds here up during the games. If y'all don't win or at least get to compete in finals, I'm gonna think somebody cheated."

Malia laughs at his words as the bell buzzes. "Thanks. How was your holiday?"

"It was cool. My mom and dad's anniversary is the day after Christmas so they stayed for the day and then flew out first thing that night. Left me with my annoying ass sister and her friend."

"Oh, come on. She can't be that bad. It's your sister."

"Yes, it can. Her and her friend get together and act like little ass girls. It's very annoying." Xavier screws his face up as they walk down the hall.

"Are they older or younger? That could contribute to your annoyance."

"She's a year younger. Me and her friend are the same age. That's not what it is. It's the way my sister acts when she's around her. It's like she's a different person."

As they're walking, Malia is looking to the side at him. She opens her mouth to respond but never gets the chance to. She bumps into a person coming out of a classroom and they both stumble back. He trips and falls, sending everything in his hands flying.

Malia stumbles backward and Xavier steadies her so that she doesn't fall. "Oh, shit. Are you okay?"

Her heart hammers in her chest. "Yeah I'm okay. Let me help him with his stuff." She's not worried about herself as she walks from Xavier's grasp. He takes his hands off her waist and puts them at his sides. His heart is also beating rather fast. He thought she was going to fall and panicked. Luckily, he caught her in time.

Both of them help the guy with his stuff while Malia apologizes a thousand times.

"I am so sorry. I really need to start watching where I'm going. Are you okay?" She asks him as she helps pick up his papers.

"Yeah. I'm sorry. I've been zoning out all day. I wasn't paying attention at all." He admits as he shuffles his papers together.

"Don't blame yourself. It was definitely on me." She gets the last of the papers up and organizes them in a neat pile. Xavier helps him off the ground and Malia hands him his stuff.

"We'll say it was both of us and call it even. Thank you for helping. Anybody else would've bumped me and kept walking."

"Because they're assholes and I am not." She says. The guy grins at her and so does Xavier.

Down the hall, Namjoon looks at the time and then looks up from his phone. It's second semester. Classes have changed. But he knows that Malia should be out of class by now. He looks around for her and sees the cheerleaders first.

Linked arm in arm are Chloe and Destiny. Namjoon looks at Destiny with a raised eyebrow. She slowly looks him up and down before turning back to her friend as they walk over.