Chasing the unspoken

Chapter 7: Pushing and pulling

That night, after practice, Minho couldn't escape the pull of his feelings. Jisung had been quieter than usual, his smile a little less bright, his laughter a little too forced. Minho knew something was off, but he wasn't sure if it was just his own guilt over the unresolved tension between them or if Jisung was feeling it too.

They were in the living room, sitting on opposite ends of the couch, but even that distance felt like too much. Minho kept his eyes on the TV, pretending to watch the show they had agreed on earlier. But his mind kept drifting back to the way Jisung's lips had parted slightly that night, how his breath had been just a little unsteady when he had looked at Minho.

Jisung seemed to notice the shift too, his gaze flickering to Minho every now and then, lingering for just a second longer than usual before looking away. The tension was suffocating.

Finally, unable to take it any longer, Minho spoke up, his voice quieter than usual. "Jisung..."

Jisung turned to him, his eyes wide, a little startled by the suddenness. "What's up?"

Minho swallowed, trying to figure out how to say what had been weighing on his chest for days. "I don't know what's going on between us anymore."

Jisung frowned slightly, his lips curving down in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Minho took a deep breath, trying to calm the erratic beat of his heart. "I can't stop thinking about you. About... us. And I don't know what it means, but it feels like something is changing between us, and I don't know how to handle it."

Jisung looked away, his expression unreadable. "I've been feeling it too. But... Minho, we're both guys. This isn't just something we can ignore, right?"

Minho felt a sharp pang in his chest at the hesitation in Jisung's voice. He didn't know how to respond, his thoughts tangled in a mess of fear and desire. "I don't know what I want," Minho admitted softly, looking away, unable to meet Jisung's gaze. "I just know that this... this thing between us is real."

Jisung exhaled slowly, running a hand through his hair. "I don't want to hurt you," he said quietly, almost to himself. "But what if we're just confusing this? I don't want to mess everything up between us."

The words stung, but Minho didn't react. Instead, he just sat there, feeling the weight of the words sink in. They were both scared-scared of crossing that line, scared of what it would mean for their friendship, for their careers.

"I don't know either," Minho whispered, his voice cracking under the pressure of the emotions building inside him. "But it's getting harder to pretend it's nothing. It's hard to ignore the way I feel when you're around."

Jisung's eyes flickered with something unreadable. "I know. I feel it too." But then, he pulled back slightly, as if afraid to get too close.

The air between them crackled with unresolved tension.