ever seen ༄ heejake

009

"I think I'm gay."

Sunoo immediately chokes on his coffee, his eyes wide as he hurriedly clears his throat so he can squeak out a 'what?'

Heeseung waits until he's done coughing to keep speaking, swirling his straw around in his drink. It's still almost completely full, and the croissant-waffle hybrid—croffle?—he ordered sits practically untouched in front of him. He's been too busy working up the courage to say something, unfocused on his food. "I said, I think I'm gay."

His best friend stares at him, mouth open, eyebrows disappearing under his bangs. He's never been one for subtlety when it comes to facial expressions. "Like, bisexual?" Sunoo asks.

"No," Heeseung says with a sigh. "Like, gay. Just gay."

Sunoo blinks at him, then huffs, leaning back in his chair, a disbelieving look on his face. "I'm unsure whether to congratulate you, laugh, or ask what the hell I've missed," he says. He keeps an even face for about five seconds before laughing abruptly, but quickly covers his mouth with his hand, trying to school his expression. It's useless, because Heeseung can still hear him giggling, and he sees the way his shoulders shake. "Sorry, sorry. Congrats, hyung."

Heeseung just smiles, shaking his head. "Is this the part where you ask what you've missed?"

"I suppose so," Sunoo says. "I'm going to assume this didn't come out of nowhere and that someone triggered it?"

"Sim Jaeyun," Heeseung offers as an explanation.

Sunoo looks confused for all of two seconds as he processes the Korean name, then he gasps so loudly it attracts the attention of other patrons. "Jake Sim?" When Heeseung nods, Sunoo keeps going. "Is that why you asked me about him recently?" Another nod. "Do you like him?"

"I don't know," Heeseung admits, dragging his hands over his face in frustration. "But he's so pretty, Sunoo-yah. And smart, and sweet, and fun to be around. I could barely sleep last night because I was thinking about him."

"Hyung, that's so gay."

"Yeah, Jongseong's given me enough shit about it already."

Sunoo's eyes widen at that. "Jay-hyung knows?"

"He's kind of the entire reason this all started anyway," Heeseung says. "So I've mostly been keeping him updated. I mean, he was the person I told last night when I kissed Jaeyun—"

"When you what?!" Sunoo interrupts, unable to control the volume of his voice.

Heeseung clamps his mouth shut, very aware of the stares they're receiving. Yeah, maybe telling his extremely expressive friend about this while they're in public was a bad idea. "Keep it down, will you?"

"Sorry," Sunoo says, a bit flushed as he notices the attention they're getting. "It's just hard to process that you kissed Jake-hyung. I mean, I always figured you'd eventually realize you like men, but—"

Now it's Heeseung's turn to choke, his straw halfway out of his mouth as he nearly inhales his coffee. "You knew?!"

Sunoo snorts at Heeseung's reaction. "With all due respect, hyung, your entire friend group is queer. We seek each other out, even if we don't realize it. Plus, you literally cried after your first—and only—time with a woman. In a negative way."