"How's my little ball of sunshine doing this afternoon?" Niki asks when you step out of your house.
He lives across the street and waits for you everyday to walk to school together.
"I feel like death." Yawning, you rub your eyes and walk by his side. "I stayed up all night watching Alice In Borderland."
"Are you trying to impress me?" He laughs and you scoff. "You never change, do you?"
You roll your eyes at him but deep inside you're screaming because, as always, he's looking so freaking good.
You've been best friends for a few years now and you're secretly having a crush on him. Of course you're not planning to confess because you don't want to lose him.
I would rather have him as my best friend than lose him if he doesn't like me back, which is most likely true.
That's something you've always told yourself but deep down, you wish you're something more than just friends.
"It's so cold this morning." You mutter and he looks at you for a second before he takes off his gloves and hands them to you.
"Wear these, otherwise your fingers will be swollen."
"What about you?" Looking at his gloves, you smile a little. "Aren't you cold?"
"I'll just put my hands in my pockets." He shrugs.
Niki doesn't know that the smallest things he does for you make butterflies dance in your stomach.
He notices every little detail and remembers a lot of things about you which makes you realize he cares a lot.
Even if it's only as a friend, you're happy that you're in his mind.
"Thanks." You say and put his gloves on, staring at how bigger they are. The size difference makes you blush a little.
"I'm so not ready for two hours of math. It's morning for fuck's sake." He mutters. "I'll just sleep in class, it's going to be so boring."
That's what Niki said. But when class starts, he's taking notes for you, something that's making you like him even more.
"I can write-" You say but he raises an eyebrow at you. "What?"
"Do you want your fingers to be swollen again? Just focus and I'll write for you." He says while directing his gaze on the professor.
"You said you wanted to sleep."
"Sleep can wait. You're my priority now." You don't know if he realizes what he said because he's focused on the professor but your eyes widen and you feel your cheeks heat up.
You can't even focus on what the teacher is saying because all you're doing is glancing at Niki from time to time to find him so concentrated.
The notes he's taking are so neat you're actually surprised. He's using your highlighters and making the notes pretty so you can easily read them.
"Thank you." You whisper as you gently bump his shoulder and you catch him smiling softly.
Class eventually finishes and it's time for another class but the two of you decide to skip it and end up taking a walk near your school.
"Do you want some hot chocolate?"
"Oh, yes, I do." It's cold and the best remedy is to go to a warm café and get hot chocolate and enjoy talking to each other.
You step into the café and he makes the order before he goes to sit next to you. "I also ordered a strawberry cake. You love it so much."
Your heart skips a beat and your eyes soften. How can you not fall for him when he's such a green flag?
Without even realizing it, you reach your hand and ruffle his hair. "You're cute."
"Am I?" He chuckles. "They must be listening to Mr. Kim's boring class, I hate it so much."
"You just hate Korean literature because you're Japanese." You say and he breaks into laughter.
"No, no, you have a point. All I do is sleep or just stare at you while you're focused. You look so damn cute when you scrunch your nose when you don't get something."
Your cheeks start reddening and you just hide them with your hands while he chuckles at you.
Your hot chocolate arrives and you enjoy its warmth and each other's presence while you look out the window.
"The view is beautiful." You say and he nods, sipping on his drink. "I wish for time to stop right now."
"We'll get to do this a lot more than you think," Niki mutters. "But I feel bad making you skip classes so I'll just take you out on dates."
Smiling, you nod and stare at him while he looks into your eyes. "You're very pretty, you know?"
His words take you off guard but your eyes soften and you smile happily.
Eventually, the two of you walk out of the café and decide to head back to school for lunch break.
However, when you're about to cross the street, a car is coming your way and you just forget how to breathe.
"Watch out!" Before you know it, you feel Niki push you from behind and you end up on the ground.
People are gasping and your eyes widen when you see Niki groaning in pain.
You don't even care about the way your knees are bleeding and your mind goes numb while you run to him.
The smell of detergent and the homeroom teacher scolding you is what it takes to get a grip on yourself.
"Are you okay?" Niki's voice brings tears to your eyes and the bandages on his forehead are enough to break your heart.
"I'm s-sorry..." You wrap your arms around him and hug him so tight, all your worries and nightmares disappearing.
You almost lost him. If that driver didn't turn at the right time, Niki would have been gone, yet he didn't hesitate on saving you.
"Why are you apologizing? It's not your fault he's driving like a maniac." He slightly pulls away but doesn't pull apart. "Are your knees okay, though? I didn't know what to do, I just-"
"I like you, Niki." You blurt out. "I've liked you since a while now but I was aways afraid I'd ruin our friendship, but now... I was scared I'd never get to tell you how much you're amazing and how much I like you-"
"I love you-"
"I know you might not like me back but I just-"
"I love you, Y/N." His words take you off guard and your heart skips a beat while you look at him. "I think it's obvious how much I love you and how much I'm happy to have you in my life... you just don't see it."
Your eyes soften and you look down at your bandaged knees when he holds your hands.
"It's going to be okay," He tucks your hair behind your ears, pressing a kiss to your forehead. You take a deep breath to calm yourself.
"Want to kiss mine too?" Niki questions and a little smile grows on your lips. You give him a nod and he bends down, letting you kiss his forehead too.
