Aquarium of Us

Chapter 5: Back at the dorm

The day passed quickly after that, and soon they found themselves back at the dorm. The sun had dipped below the horizon, casting a soft glow through the windows of the new, spacious living room. Minho threw his jacket onto the couch and stretched his arms above his head, a sigh escaping him as he relished the quiet of the evening. It had been a fun day, and yet his mind kept returning to Jisung. His words. The touch of their hands.

"Maybe I'm just overthinking," Minho repeated to himself as he walked toward his room. It wasn't like Jisung to be so... distant, but then again, maybe it was just the weirdness of their closeness.

Minho had barely closed the door behind him when the sound of footsteps approaching caught his attention.

"Minho?" Jisung's voice came from the other side of the door, his tone hesitant, as if he wasn't sure if he should interrupt.

Minho's heart raced. He'd been alone for only a few seconds, but already he could feel that familiar, unsettling pull between them. "Yeah?" he called back, trying to sound casual as he tossed his shirt on the bed and moved toward the door.

The door creaked open, revealing Jisung standing awkwardly in the hallway, shifting from one foot to the other. "I, uh, just wanted to talk. About today. And... other stuff."

Minho stood frozen for a moment, his mind racing. Other stuff?

"Come in," Minho said, stepping aside.

Jisung walked in slowly, looking almost too unsure of himself. There was something different in his expression now, something that wasn't there before. It was vulnerability.

As soon as Jisung stepped into the room, Minho noticed how close they were again. The space between them, so small it felt like they were breathing the same air, the same pulse beating between them.

"Look, I know it's stupid," Jisung started, and Minho could hear the tension in his voice, the way he was trying to downplay whatever it was that had been bothering him. "But I... I just want you to know that I-" He cut himself off suddenly, shaking his head. "Never mind."

Minho's heart ached at the sight of Jisung struggling. He wasn't used to seeing him like this. Usually, Jisung was the confident one, the one who made everyone laugh, the one who didn't second-guess himself. To see him standing there, unsure, felt like a punch to the gut.

"What is it, Jisung?" Minho asked softly, his voice barely above a whisper.

Jisung's gaze flickered to the floor, then back up to Minho. He looked almost apologetic. "I don't know how to say it. I don't want to mess things up, Minho. But... I feel like I'm getting too close to you. And I don't know if... if that's okay. Because..."

Jisung's voice trailed off, but Minho could hear what he was trying to say. He felt it, too. The closeness. The pull. Everything that was building between them and threatening to spill over.

"It's okay," Minho said quietly, though his heart was beating faster than he cared to admit. "I feel it, too. But we're just friends, right?"

Jisung's eyes flickered with something like relief, but it was brief. His lips pressed together, and for a moment, he seemed to be lost in thought.

Minho took a deep breath and tried to ignore the fluttering in his chest. "So... we should just stay like this. Friends." His words were soft, but they felt like a promise.

Jisung finally nodded, though his expression was torn. "Yeah. Just friends."

And yet, as the moment stretched, Minho couldn't shake the feeling that something else was lurking just beneath the surface. The tension between them was palpable, and the more they told themselves it was nothing, the more it felt like it was everything.