freedom ;; xdinary heroes

thirteen

"You didn't have to to walk me to school, what if you're late...?"

Hyeongjun, who was clearly worried about being late, simply shook his head. "If we're going to... have a relationship, shouldn't I be doing things like this?"

"Not at the expense of yourself, silly," Jungsu chuckled, shaking his head. "Take the bus to school today, okay? It's too far to walk in your own time."

"Yes, sir," Hyeongjun chuckled, scrunching his nose as he laughed. "I'll be fine, don't worry. I've walked you to school before - the only difference now is that we're holding hands."

"Well, my hand is in your pocket - is it really handholding at this point?"

"Yes, because we're holding hands."

"Fair point," Jungsu hummed, putting his head on Hyeongjun's shoulder. "I wonder if Jiseok is at school yet. We're going to buy brownies during lunch. I'll bring some for you, I promise."

"Are you and Jiseok friends again?"

"Yeah - kind of? He's got his own best friend, and I've still got a group of friends at school. We practically only see each other at Starlight," Jungsu replied, looking at the other. "Have you and Jiseok spoke yet? It's been almost two weeks, I hope you guys said something to each other."

"Well, we spoke a few times, but we never spoke about you and him... dating," Hyeongjun said, biting his lips together as he hesitated. "But it's in the past. It doesn't bother me. I have you now, and that's all that matters."

Jungsu smiled softly, hugging Hyeongjun's arm to his side. "I like having you by my side as well, Jjunnie."

The crowd became more dense as they got closer to Jungsu's school. Hyeongjun felt shy with Jungsu so tightly by his side, but judging by how Jungsu didn't care, most people probably knew he liked boys already. They stopped on the corner just before the front gate, and Jungsu let go of his arm, turning to face him.

"I'll see you at Starlight later, okay?" he smiled, earning a nod from the other. "Don't be so shy, baby. It's fine, no one cares, anyway. It's none of their business. Besides, I'm with the cutest boy ever - obviously I'll choose you. Don't sweat it."

Hyeongjun nervously nodded, still looking down shyly. "Okay..."

Jungsu stepped forward, putting his hands on either side of Hyeongjun's face to lift his head. The other was confused, but Jungsu quickly leaned forward, placing a quick peck on his lips. Hyeongjun widened his eyes in shock, a clear and bright blush spreading over his cheeks.

"W-wha-?!"

"Do well at school, okay?" Jungsu smiled softly. Hyeongjun nodded, his face still red with shock and embarrassment. "Get used to it, baby - we'll be doing this a bit more often from now on."

"F-from now on...?"

Jungsu nodded, repeating the action and gently placing their lips for a quick kiss. Hyeongjun's body pulled stiff, unable to move. Jungsu finally released his face, stepping backwards as he left the other. "Bye!" He turned around to wave his hand once more before leaving a befuddled Hyeongjun behind.

"W... what just happened...?!"

•

Jooyeon and Jiseok sat in their lunch period together - as usual, seeing as they were best friends - barely conversing as they did their own thing. Jiseok was playing on his Nintendo Switch while Jooyeon watched band performances on his phone while munching away at a packet of chips.

"Jiseok, oh my God, you're here...!"

Jiseok looked up, hurriedly pausing his Pokemon match and taking his headphones off his head. "Jungsu? What's wrong? Did something happen?"

Jungsu pulled someone's chair away from their desk, placing it beside Jiseok's and firmly sitting on it. "Okay, so-"

"My God, your face is so red," Jiseok quickly pointed out.

Jungsu put his head in his palms, letting out a sqeal of excitement. "Hyeongjun walked me to school this morning, and I finally got enough courage to kiss him...!"

"You kissed him?"

"On the lips!"

"On the lips?! Oh my fucking God, Jungsu-!"

The two practically made noises of excitement with no coherent words, hands flailing excitedly. Jooyeon looked at them with a raised eyebrow but ignored them. "I know! How did I not realise how absolutely fucking adorable he is?" Jungsu sighed, his body sinking in the seat. "The way his cheeks turned so red - God, I need to kiss him properly the next time I see him."

"So, like, what's happening between you two? Still testing the waters?" Jiseok asked with a suggestive wiggle of his eyebrows. "Or are you two finally dating? Because I am sick and tired of waiting for you to be yourself and eat his face already."

"You're one to talk," Jungsu scoffed. "You and Seungmin have been holding hands for weeks and have done nothing so far! Tch, you irritate me."

"Seungminnie feels like someone I should be careful with because I don't know his intent," Jiseok replied. "I mean, I got out of a really bad break-up just before I moved homes. I opened up to him about it, and he was very supportive about it."

"Seungmin is a hopeless romantic sometimes - trust me, if has to date someone, he gives his all," Jungsu began. "The thing is with him, though, is that he's really fickle. It's why he has dated so many girls. He's picky but still orders the whole menu, you know? He doesn't have a type."

Jiseok's expression fell slightly. "Oh..."

Jungsu cleared his throat. "But! Maybe you're the one he's been looking for! The one to end his cycle of unfulfilled relationships. If you and Seungmin get together, it's game over. You've won, and so would he. Hyeongjun and I are practically in a relationship already - it's just Seungmin that's still holding onto hope."

"I want to... be his boyfriend too..."

"Attaboy," Jungsu grinned. "But enough about you, let's talk about the fact that Hyeongjun and I had our first kiss. It was quick, though, so I'm not sure if it counts. Whatever, it counts to me because we have never kiss each other."

"You finally got to kiss your boy, I'm so proud of you," Jiseok grinned, patting Jungsu on his back. "How was it, though?"

"There's not much detail because it was outside of school so we couldn't do much," Jungsu began, "but oh my God, Jiseok - I did it. I... I kissed my best friend. Well, not my best friend, but- oh my God, I'm so nervous thinking about it! He's so pretty and attractive and amazing and I think I fell in love with Han Hyeongjun."