My kitten (Hyunlix)

Chapter 16, friend or enemy?

Hyunjin hastily followed Felix because the older was on his feet in seconds, grabbing his jacket and walking out the door.

He didn't know if it was healthy for Felix to be out and about, so he was genuinely relieved when they came close to their destination after only a few minutes of slightly awkward walking.

Felix stopped in front of a nice looking building, with a small garden and fountain to the side. The pair walked up the steps and into the restaurant, the small bells above the door jingling happily as Felix opened it and held it wide for Hyunjin to enter.

Hyunjin, who was beyond not used to this sort of treatment, blushed and walked in, all the while wondering why on earth Felix would be doing this.

"Thanks." He muttered, and looked down to his feet.

"Welcome." The older replied with a smile and slipped inside as well, turning to the man at the front who greeted them.

"Hey Lix, How ya doing?" The man asked in an accent very much like Felix's, beaming as he went and patted the blond vaguely on the back.

Hyunjin's stomach did a turn, for whatever reason. Who was this man?

"Much better Chan, thanks for worrying. What about you?"

"I've been really busy lately, and I'm so very sorry that I couldn't find the time to come and visit you in the hospital, but I'm really glad you're back up on your feet again." The man, or as Felix called him, Chan, gave a slight chuckle.

"It's alright, but I can't believe you took my shifts for me for the time I was gone, and you also got that lead role in your acting show! You really find time for everything, do you?" Felix joked, eyes glowing.

Hyunjin didn't like this one bit.

"Well, not being able to sleep comes in handy," Chan winked, his light brown hair falling over his other eye. The brunette shifted his fingers to remove it, and finally noticed Hyunjin. "Whaaat???" Chan gasped in mock astonishment. "Don't tell me you were finally brave enough to ask someone out?! Where's my cute little shy Lixie?"

Felix's cheeks burnt red. "Chan!" He whisper yelled. "There are people here!"

"That's more like the Felix I know!" Chan laughed, and Felix swore.

"Noooo, it's not like that." Felix explained in a whiny tone, Hyunjin noticing that Felix never behaved like this in front of him.

"Don't worry mate, I won't judge." The other Australian (if Hyunjin's assumptions were correct) burst into another set of laughter.

"No but seriously Chan, he's not my boyfriend! This is Hyunjin, remember, I mentioned him in my text?" Felix tried to explain. "Hyunjin," He continued, the said boy's eyes flying to him right away.

"Yes?"

"This is Bang Chan Hyung, he's my copartner and best friend." Seeing slight confusion on the latter's face, the blond added "I work here." Then, with a shake of the head, he corrected himself. "At least, I used to. I took a month break before the accident happened because I had lots of schoolwork, and obviously I couldn't come after that."

Hyunjin gave a reluctant smile, and observed the older from head to toe, noting how strong and beautiful the Australian looked.

"Nice to meet you." Chan said pleasantly, shaking Hyunjin's hand.

As Hyunjin let go, Chan swapped his beam for a business smile. "Now lovely sirs, what can I get you?" He asked, gesturing them to their table, with a slight amusement in his voice. It seemed the brunette was always in a happy or joking mood.

Felix ordered right away, already familiar with the menu, while Hyunjin took a bit longer.

Once the meal was settled, Chan nodded and asked "Guys, would you mind if I join you? My shift ends in a few minutes, and I would love to know your friend more." He said, making an exaggerated emphasis on the word "friend".

Felix rolled his eyes but glanced at Hyunjin with a questioning look, and Hyunjin nodded, covering up his reluctance with a smile.

He was already on thin ice with Felix, and he didn't have any right to object. They weren't even friends...

——————

Chan returned to them after some time, sitting down next to Felix as Hyunjin bit his tongue and tried to look as non affected as possible. It seemed to be working, for no one said anything.

"So Hyunjin, how old are you?" Chan asked, starting the conversation.

"19." He answered curtly, watching how close Chan's hand was to Felix. "And you are?" He shook himself and continued, not meaning to be rude. Hyunjin couldn't understand his current behavior. Chan really seemed to be a nice guy, but the way he and Felix were acting....

"24" Chan said, watching Hyunjin's gaze and raising an eyebrow, then shifting his hand even closer.

Hyunjin wasn't sure if that was a "We're best friends, duh" look, or a "He's mine, and?" look, but he knew which one he preferred it to be.

"That's a lot older than you look." The Korean boy tried to laugh it off, but inside he was quite annoyed.

"Really? Well thank you." The Australian returned with a mischievous smile.

Felix, finally sensing some discomfort radiating from Hyunjin, interrupted their conversation, but to the said boy's annoyance, he turned to Chan.

"So, how is Yeji doing?" The blond asked.

Hyunjin felt a weight being dropped off his shoulders. If Chan was taken, then that would mean he had Felix to himself.

Where are all these thoughts coming from, huh, mister? His mind asked, and Hyunjin couldn't help but wonder.

"She's alright, but she's been really sulky since I spend so much time at work now." He paused. "Though, I've bought her some new toys to play with, and she seems to be forgiving." Chan chuckled, and Felix smiled in his direction, looking at him in a way Hyunjin really didn't like.

Chan, noticing both the relieved look Hyunjin had when he mentioned Yeji, and the confusion and slight anger at Felix's attention on the older, said, as if on purpose, "Yeji is my pet dragon."

The younger did a double take to make sure he heard that correctly, while Felix laughed and explained that "She's not an actual dragon, just a white cat who he bought cute little dragon wings for." 

That just made Hyunjin even more confused, but he didn't have time to respond to that irregular sentence since their food had arrived.

——————

The boys didn't talk much while they ate, silently cutting and swallowing. Hyunjin couldn't help but notice the way Chan had slid closer to Felix, and then gently handed the blond a glass of water.

Hyunjin's insides were boiling for a reason he was yet to admit, and he was anything but happy at the moment. Of course, this interaction between the pair was probably nothing, and yet... Hyunjin couldn't help but doubt his thoughts. It was obvious that Felix had Chan in a special place in his heart, seeing as he was so joyful when they got to the cafe and how intent he was to go there.

Hyunjin pointedly ignored these less than pleasant thoughts and continued to chew on his food. This evening turned out to be both the best and the worst.

The best because Felix offered him a home, and the worst because.... He could simply say "Because of Chan", but that would be super selfish and mean. Chan didn't do anything. But the way Felix looked at him...

The Korean boy was beyond confused and really unsure of what to think. Chan was Felix's friend, and that would make him Hyunjin's too. But Hyunjin didn't like Chan. No, he really didn't like Chan. Especially the way his hand was currently interlocked with Felix's, their fingers and palms pressed together.

He really, really, really didn't like Chan.