Him, Not Me

Where it Started and How it is

A/N: No specific warnings in this chapter. It's just a simple start to what will be coming up. This story does take several turns and it will mess with you just so you know.
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Minho pov:

I don't like having many friends, what's the need for so many? I only had two for the longest time and then I met this guy.

He first appeared out of nowhere as I practiced my dancing in a practice room. I didn't really care since people would stop by from time to time. But at the end of the day he came up to me. I thought he was going to say something but he got shy and walked away. I didn't think I'd see him again.

The next day he came back at the same time and watched me dance again. I didn't believe he would actually come back but there he was once more. He kept on doing this for a week and then one day he came up to me and told me he loved the way I danced. He said he, himself, danced but he's skills were nowhere near mine. He then apologized for his behavior the past week and worried that he had made me uncomfortable.

He then asked for my name, I told him Lee Minho, and he told me his was Bang Chan. I also learned he was a year older than me that day, so I had to treat him with some form of respect. Before he left that day he asked me if he could keep coming and I told him to do what he wanted. And that's exactly what he did.

Everyday, after that day, he would stop by. Everyday when I had a break he'd call out to me. And everyday for two weeks I'd pretend I didn't remember his name. I thought he'd be done with me by then but he would always tell me each day "it's Chan hyung Minho." After those 2 weeks I did "remember" and I would talk to him a little more.

I learned that he was in the same program I was in. Except that he worked in music with two other boys and I was in dance. I also learned about the big friend group he had. There were six people-including him-in the group. I told him it was crazy to be involved in a friend group like that. He told me it was fun to be in it and that I should meet them one day. I told him "no way hyung", but he would just chuckle and move on.

After a month and a half of the weird friendship we had fostered, we became a bit close. He had stopped by my house a bit and met my three cats-you'll learn later- and I went by his and met his dog-who you will also meet later. -

One day he told me that he and his friends were going to meet up and asked if I wanted to come to meet them too. I was going to say no. The last thing I wanted was that, but then I recalled how he would talk about them so i thought I'd give it a chance. And with that I said yes.

We went to a small cafe around the block, where we found his five other friends. I was older than all of them and didn't know each other at all so it was very stiff and formal. But after Chan introduced us all and explained every one's background the ice melted a bit.

After about two months I had gained 5 new friends that I didn't want in the first place but became used to. And Chan and I had become much closer. He was 19 and I was 18 at the time.

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After I had graduated from high school, hyung and I applied for the same uni. He was a little worried about the fact that he was starting later than most students but I told him that he would be alright. When we got accepted we were able to get a dorm room together. I had also decided to change my name from Lee Minho to Lee Know since my name is pretty common. Our first year at uni was pretty calm. We were just trying to get through the year and get used to how things worked.

The next year Changbin- one of our friends and Chan's music buddies- joined our uni. Since he wasn't able to be in the same dorm as us he got his near ours. We would all see each other quite a bit since we were all in the arts department. During our third year things became hectic. Hyunjin, Han, and Felix-our 00 line- joined the uni too. They landed a four person dorm and that's when he came into the picture. Kim Seungmin.

He was also part of the 00 line, the art department, and became the fourth person to occupy the dorm. Him and our 00 line hit it off pretty fast and became accustomed to each other. I, personally, didn't like him that much, but he wasn't super bad. Changbin was glad to meet someone new and slowly got to know him. Chan became attached to him a little too fast. You would see them hanging out around campus, during break, and our dorm. It got to me I won't lie.

It was interesting how everything seemed to unfold after that. In out fourth year our maknae, Jeongin- or how he wanted to be called "IN"- joined the uni. Him and Changbin got to share a dorm, which in a way was great. The group was closer than ever, but Chan and I grew further apart.

I wouldn't be able to tell you how that happened. I don't pay attention to what's not around me. Yet, I knew it had to do with Seungmin. Even though nothing was said, I knew and so did Changbin.

He came by unannounced one night. He looked me right in the eye before speaking. "You know right?"

"Hmm...know what?"

"Hyung..you know what I'm talking about. I've seen the way you act."

"..."

Don't get me wrong Changbin is a pain in my ass, but he knows me well. Which is why hiding it was hard, and admiring it was harder.

I didn't want a friend back then, but I got one. I didn't want love back then, and I still don't. I didn't want the heartbreak, but it was out of my control. You might think you know where this is going, but even I don't know. Because this isn't a story of what has happened, it's of what is about to come. And I have no idea what's coming.

"He chose him, not me"

Written: 5/23/2023
Word count: 1154