[ dream ] | heejake FF

chapter 4

jake had never really paid much attention to the small things before-like how the sunlight filtered through the classroom windows in the morning or how the leaves rustled in the breeze as they walked to school. but lately, he found himself noticing these little details more and more. and, strangely, they made him think of heeseung.

it was just another ordinary day at school. jake and jungwon were sitting in math class, trying to make sense of mr. kim's latest lecture. jungwon was taking notes diligently, while jake's mind was somewhere else entirely. he kept glancing over at heeseung, who was seated a few rows ahead of them, focused on the board.

jake couldn't help but admire how effortlessly cool heeseung seemed, even while solving complex equations. the way he scrunched his nose slightly when he was deep in thought, the way he tapped his pencil on the desk when he was stuck on a problem-it was all so... attractive.

jake shook his head, trying to snap out of it. what was he doing? it wasn't like him to get distracted by someone like this, especially not by another guy. but no matter how hard he tried, his thoughts kept drifting back to heeseung.

after class, jake and jungwon headed to their next period. as they walked down the hallway, jungwon was talking excitedly about a new game he'd just started playing, but jake's mind was still elsewhere.

"hyung, are you even listening?" jungwon asked, giving jake a playful nudge.

"huh? oh, yeah, sorry. what were you saying?" jake replied, snapping out of his daze.

jungwon raised an eyebrow. "you've been spacing out a lot lately. is something on your mind?"

"no, it's nothing," jake lied, forcing a smile. "just tired, i guess."

jungwon didn't seem convinced, but he let it go. "that's always ur reason but well, make sure you get some rest. you don't want to fall behind in mr. kim's class."

"yeah, i will," jake said, nodding absentmindedly.

...

lunchtime came, and they all gathered at their usual table in the cafeteria. the group was lively as usual, with sunghoon cracking jokes and jay teasing sunoo about something or other. jake sat quietly, watching the interactions, a small smile tugging at his lips.

heeseung was sitting across from him, laughing along with the others. jake found himself stealing glances at him, noticing things he hadn't before-like the way heeseung's eyes crinkled when he smiled or how his laughter seemed to light up the whole room.

"jake, you're awfully quiet today," sunghoon commented, breaking jake out of his thoughts. "what's up?"

"isn't he always quiet?" niki asked, chuckling a bit. "shut up riki" sunoo said as he hits niki's thighs

"oh, nothing. just... thinking," jake replied, trying to sound nonchalant.

"about what?" sunghoon pressed, leaning in with a teasing grin.

jake felt his cheeks heat up. "just... school stuff," he said quickly, hoping to change the subject.

"yeah, sure, school stuff," jay chimed in, winking at sunghoon.

before jake could protest, heeseung spoke up. "give him a break, guys. not everyone has to be as loud as you two."

sunghoon and jay laughed, and the conversation shifted to something else. jake shot heeseung a grateful look, and heeseung smiled back, that same comforting smile that always seemed to put jake at ease.

...

after school, jake and jungwon headed back to their dorm. jungwon was still chattering away, but jake was lost in his thoughts again. the day had felt... different, somehow. like something had shifted inside him, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

as they entered their dorm room, jake flopped down on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. jungwon glanced at him, a curious look on his face. "you've been weird all day, hyung. what's going on?"

jake sighed, running a hand through his hair. "i don't know, uwonie. it's like... i'm feeling things i don't really understand."

jungwon tilted his head. "like what?"

jake hesitated, not sure how to explain it. "it's just... i've been thinking about heeseung a lot lately. more than usual. and... it's confusing."

jungwon sat down on the edge of jake's bed, giving him a sympathetic look. "you think you might like him?"

jake's heart skipped a beat at the question. he hadn't allowed himself to fully consider it until now, but hearing it said out loud made it real. "i... i don't know. maybe?"

jungwon smiled softly. "it's okay if you do, you know. heeseung hyung is a great guy."

jake nodded slowly, processing his own feelings. "yeah... he is."

they sat in comfortable silence for a while, the weight of the realization settling over jake. he wasn't sure what to do with these feelings yet, but just acknowledging them felt like a small step forward.

"thanks, uwonie," jake said quietly. "for listening."

jungwon grinned, ruffling jake's hair playfully. "what are friends for? just take it one step at a time, hyung. you'll figure it out."

jake smiled back, feeling a little more at peace. maybe he didn't have all the answers yet, but he had good friends and time to sort through his feelings. and for now, that was enough.

[ 💭 ]
OK YEAH I KNOW I KNOW IM ALWAYS LATE TO UPDATE BUT LAST WEEK WAS THE BUSIEST WEEK EVER 😭😭