this is how we fall || kim sunwoo

twelve

“I know you said he’s hot, but I didn’t expect him to actually,” Hyunjae gestures, “be hot.”

“I am offended,” you briefly turn away from the rink to shoot him a glare.

Initially, you’d thought Sunwoo’s idea for turning your skating date into a double date would go terribly. How were you supposed to let him meet the two friends who thought he was a creep? Especially Hyunjae—you were sure that he would make some crude comments that would entirely sabotage your budding relationship. But surprisingly enough, a charming smile and an offer to help lace up their skates was all it took for Sunwoo to have them wrapped around his finger.

Pretty privilege, that’s exactly what it was.

“Hey! I wasn’t sure if you were serious or if you only found him hot because he gave you attention—” The rest of Hyunjae’s words get cut off as he goes to dodge your punch. “Anyway, you’re treating him well, right? Are you nicer to him than you are to me? Don’t hurt him, okay? Don’t break his heart.”

“I can’t believe you,” you snort. “Whose side are you on?”

“Well, he clearly holds the looks in your relationship so…”

“Yeah? Then what do I hold?”

Hyunjae glances at you up and down. Purses his lips slightly. “You hold his cold drinks for him, so his hands don’t freeze.”

You give him the middle finger before turning back to the ice to watch Sunwoo and Jacob lap each other around the rink. You don’t know whether to laugh or to cry at the situation. It’s all too ironic how a pretty face is all it took for Hyunjae to go back on his words about not being so nice to hot people.

A while later, you’re on the ice with Sunwoo, one hand in his and the other trying to clutch at whatever you could to avoid a hard collision with the ice. It doesn’t help that the pain of falling at the park was still too fresh in your mind.

“You’re not going to fall,” he raises an eyebrow at you, eyes brimming with amusement. “I was only joking about that.”

You eye him warily. “You said that you would.”

“Maybe, but only for you.”

When he smiles, you find yourself smiling too. Slowly relaxing like you’re basking in the warmth that radiates off of his happiness. And sure enough, the two of you make it safely around the rink without falling.

Just when you’re starting to wonder where Hyunjae and Jacob are, you vaguely realize there’s a bit of a crowd gathering around the opposite side of the rink. A silence lingers in the air as voices die down, seemingly waiting with bated breath. And when you pull Sunwoo over with you to join the crowd, that’s when you see it: Jacob on one knee, Hyunjae covering his mouth in shock, and a ring resting in the box in Jacob’s hands. The same thin, silver ring that you’ve familiarized yourself with from seeing it in Hyunjae’s future. This must be the exact moment you’ve seen.

There’s a bright smile on Hyunjae’s face when he gives his answer that you’re a little too far to hear, though you don’t doubt it’s a good one judging by the looks on their faces. The crowd erupts into applause and then Jacob’s tackled to the ice by Hyunjae enveloping him. While you think it’s less than ideal being on the ice like that, it’s like the two of them are lost in their own world, too busy to notice anything or anyone else.

“And this is how they fall for each other,” Sunwoo murmurs into your ear. “Guess my reading was wrong; it wasn’t us. It’s them.”

Once the crowd dissipates, the two of you wait for the newly engaged couple by the bench. Hyunjae flashes the ring on his finger before heading to the snack bar, and while later, Jacob joins you with an endearing grin on his face.