Aquarium of Us

Chapter 7: The scar and the thoughts

The room was quiet except for the sound of the shower water still running in the background. Minho stood in front of his mirror, drying off his hair with a towel, his bare chest glistening from the lingering moisture. The soft hum of the air conditioner filled the silence, and the faintest sound of Jisung's footsteps echoed outside. Minho didn't think much of it. Jisung had been in and out of his room all day, and he didn't expect anything different now.

But when the door creaked open slightly, Minho paused for a split second. He caught a glimpse of Jisung through the reflection in the mirror.

Jisung wasn't saying anything. He was just standing there, frozen, staring at Minho's exposed torso.

Minho's heart raced as he quickly grabbed the towel to wrap it around his waist, turning around slightly in a panic. "Jisung?" His voice faltered, as if he hadn't expected him to be there, even though his friend had entered without knocking. The shock and warmth of Jisung's gaze made Minho suddenly aware of the vulnerability of being caught off guard.

Jisung snapped out of his trance as soon as he realized what he had done. His cheeks flushed bright red. "Sorry! I didn't mean to-" He turned his face away, mumbling as if he were apologizing to the floor.

But it was too late. Minho had already noticed the direction of Jisung's gaze-the way his eyes had lingered on Minho's bare torso. A strange tension filled the room, heavy in the air between them, as Jisung tried to recover from his moment of inadvertent admiration.

Minho stood still for a few moments, trying to process what had just happened. Jisung hadn't said anything else, but the tension was undeniable. Minho glanced down at his arms, instinctively flexing them. He didn't have to look closely to see the well-defined muscles in his biceps and forearms. Hours in the gym had paid off, and his body had sculpted itself into something he was proud of-strong, athletic, and undeniably masculine.

But what really caught Jisung's attention, what seemed to keep him frozen in place, was Minho's abdomen. Beneath the towel, the light of the room cast shadows across Minho's six-pack, making the ridges of his muscles more defined.

And then, almost as if by instinct, Jisung's gaze shifted lower. His eyes focused on the scar that ran across Minho's abdomen-a faint, white mark that looked like it had been left by something sharp, something that had hurt. The scar had always been a source of insecurity for Minho. It was a reminder of an accident, something that had happened long ago. He'd never really been able to look at it without feeling a rush of discomfort, a pang of something deeper.

But for Jisung, that scar was different. His heart skipped a beat as he stared at it, his mind awash with strange, unexpected thoughts.

It wasn't a scar of pain to Jisung. It was... beautiful, in a way he hadn't been prepared for. The shape of it, the way it curved along Minho's side-Jisung couldn't help but be mesmerized by it.

It almost looks like a cute baked bean, he thought, his breath catching in his throat. His eyes traced the smooth edges of the scar, the way it blended into the curves of Minho's toned body, and a sudden, intense desire to touch it flooded his mind. The thought came without warning, unbidden, and it made him shiver involuntarily.

I want to kiss it, he thought. The words weren't anything he'd planned on thinking, let alone feeling. But the moment the thought surfaced, Jisung's chest tightened with an unfamiliar kind of warmth. The thought felt reckless, yet so natural at the same time.

Jisung froze. His eyes widened, and his heart rate spiked. What am I thinking? His mind scrambled to process it, but the words had already formed in his head, already carved themselves into his thoughts.

He realized what he had just thought, and with the realization came panic. His cheeks burned hotter than before, and his limbs seemed to move on their own. Without a word, Jisung turned on his heel, practically bolting for the door, his mind reeling.

Minho stood there, confused and completely still, his towel still loosely held in place as Jisung's hurried steps retreated. The sudden departure left an uncomfortable silence in the room.

He looked down at his own body. The memory of Jisung's gaze lingered in his mind, and the weird shift in the atmosphere between them was undeniable. What just happened?

Minho ran a hand through his damp hair, trying to shake the confusion away. Jisung's acting strange today. He didn't understand what had caused him to act that way, but it was clear that something had shifted. That moment, the one where Jisung's eyes had lingered on him, felt so loaded, so full of tension.

Minho took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. The door closed behind him, leaving a heavy silence in its wake. The atmosphere in the room still felt charged, like there was something unspoken hanging between them, but no words seemed right to bridge that gap.

But Jisung's words... his expression... and the panic that had followed. Did he... was he...?

Minho couldn't help but wonder. He felt himself growing more and more curious, confused, and... vulnerable in a way he wasn't used to. He had thought that things between him and Jisung were simple, that their friendship was straightforward. But this? This was something else entirely.