pet, meanie

VII

"How-" gasped Wonwoo, panting as he tried to form coherent words. "How do you guys do it on a daily basis?"

Wonwoo was sure as heck he was all red in the face, the freezing morning air biting his nose and lips off. He propped his hands over his knees, struggling to stand properly, and looked up at an amused Mingyu.

It was Day-1 of Wonwoo's marathon training, and he hated it already. Some time in the past thirty minutes, he'd nearly thought of abandoning the idea of ever getting to hold his own cat. The fact that it was six in the morning didn't help either. Slinking off with a very vague excuse for his parents, Wonwoo had ended up with Mingyu on the block near his house. He'd somehow made it through warming his limbs up, pushing the drowsiness out of him, while Mingyu seemed to effortlessly brisk through all of it.

"I've been training this way for the past two-and-a-half years, I'm used to it," Mingyu shrugged, grinning at Wonwoo.

"Well, fuck your training. I'm sure this isn't healthy,"

Mingyu blared with laughter at that. His laughter significantly improved Wonwoo's mood. He soon found himself breaking into a small smile too, standing up straighter. He wouldn't hesitate to smack Mingyu upside the head if he suggested going for another lap of jogging around the block.

"So... Do you wanna go for-"

"No! Absolutely the fuck not!" Wonwoo stopped him from completing his sentence. Mingyu burst into peals of giggles yet again, nodding his head in agreement.

Mingyu stared at Wonwoo for a while before he spoke again. He bashfully rubbed the back of his neck as he did so. "Hey uh- I have practice at seven, and since we're done, maybe you'd want to..? Wait, nevermind. You probably don't. So um, I'll get going then. Walk safe-"

"I wouldn't know if you don't tell me," Wonwoo gently stopped him. Mingyu looked stunned by the sudden contact of Wonwoo's warm palm on his arm. The touch lingered for longer than intended, but none of them were complaining.

"Yeah, no, I was asking if you'd like to head to school with me..?"

"Sure. It's not like I'd do anything worth my while at home. I probably would've slept for an hour again,"

Mingyu grinned, wide. His canines poked through the slit between his lips, and Wonwoo could declare then and there that he hadn't seen anything cuter than Mingyu's wide smile. His floppy, ruffled hair made him look adorably similar to a retriever puppy – Wonwoo had to physically hold himself back from messing his hair up even more.

"Great! So, uh, see you here in thirty?"

"Yep. See you soon,"

"Bye,"

Wonwoo trudged off with difficulty, since his legs shook like strands of jelly. He was vaguely aware of Mingyu's eyes observing him from the back as he walked away.

"Wonwoo? Where were you?"

His dad's voice called for him. He'd just reached, face flush from the early air having nipped at him during the walk. "I gotta prepare myself for the damn marathon, dad," Wonwoo said, unimpressed, as he toed his shoes off.

"Ah. Okay, well, good luck with that,"

"Can't you convince her? I'm dying out there,"

His dad shrugged. Wonwoo didn't even know what made him think his mum could be convinced otherwise in any way. "I don't know, son. You know how she is..."

"True. I'm taking a shower. I'll head out earlier today,"

"Oh, why?"

Wonwoo thought hard before replying, "I have some work to do,"

"Okay. But breakfast..."

"Toast,"

"Great,"

Wonwoo then headed upstairs, rushing through his morning routine, grumbling briefly about his invisible pubescent acne, and returning back to the living room, and into the kitchen. The timer on the toaster beeped five minutes later, and Wonwoo was soon scarfing down four slices of decadent toast, with a side of coffee that looked as emo as him.

His dad waved him goodbye as he headed out the door. Adjusting his backpack on his shoulder, Wonwoo briskly walked to Mingyu's block. He realised he was just acting paranoid when he found Mingyu wasn't there yet. Was he too early?

Just as the thought crossed his mind, he saw Mingyu jogging towards him decked in a bright-red Varsity jacket over a white T-shirt, and a pair of black shorts that looked way too good on him, considering they were mere shorts. He carried a duffle bag in one hand, probably holding his change of clothes he needed after practice.

"Wow. And I thought I was early," Mingyu joked, coming closer and slipping into pace with Wonwoo.

"I don't like to keep anyone waiting,"

"Thanks for joining me," Mingyu smiled.

"Anytime,"