inches : j&d

07

it had been a week since the awkward confrontation, and joong had kept his distance from dunk. he spent his time buried in books, in lectures, in endless hours of studying that allowed him to forget the unease that always seemed to linger when dunk was around. every time their paths nearly crossed, joong would go out of his way to avoid him, his mind too cluttered with confusion to deal with whatever *that* kiss had meant.

but then came the day it all changed.

joong was walking to his car, his thoughts lost in the logistics of his next assignment, when he heard a voice call out to him from behind. "hey, joong! wait up!"

it was dunk.

joong's heart skipped, and before he could stop himself, he found his feet moving faster, his body instinctively turning to face him. dunk was walking toward him, his usual grin on his face, though it looked a little more nervous than usual.

"i didn't think i'd catch up to you," dunk said, stopping a few feet away. his voice was a little breathless, like he'd been trying to find joong for a while. "you've been avoiding me. are you still mad about... you know, before?"

joong's chest tightened. he didn't want to talk about it. he didn't want to *think* about it.

"i'm not mad," joong said stiffly, trying to keep his tone as neutral as possible. "it was just a mistake."

"right," dunk said, nodding, but his eyes were searching joong's face. "it was a mistake. i get it. i just... i wanted to make sure we were good. i didn't want things to be awkward between us."

"they're not awkward," joong lied, but even as the words left his mouth, he felt the weight of them. he knew things were different. everything had changed.

dunk took a step closer, and joong instinctively stepped back, his body betraying him. he couldn't stop it. the tension between them was thick enough to cut with a knife.

"you don't have to keep running away from me, you know," dunk said, his tone softer now. "i'm not gonna bite."

joong wanted to laugh, but the feeling in his chest made it impossible. *god, this is ridiculous,* he thought. *why is this so difficult?*

before he could speak, there was a sudden shout from behind them. "hey! dunk! where the hell have you been?" boom's voice rang out, and both joong and dunk turned to see him jogging toward them.

"hey, man," dunk called out, waving. "just talking to joong for a bit. everything's fine."

joong shifted uncomfortably on his feet, wanting nothing more than to escape. this was a conversation he didn't want to have with either of them.

"okay, well, i'm starving. let's go grab lunch," boom said, his tone casual. he barely spared joong a glance, too focused on dunk.

"sure, sure," dunk said, still looking at joong. "i'll be there in a sec."

boom gave a half-wave and disappeared into the distance, leaving joong and dunk alone once again.

"you should go with him," joong said quickly, his voice a little too sharp. he didn't want to stay here. he didn't want to feel *this*-the pull between them, the unspoken tension that was building higher and higher with every passing second.

dunk looked at him for a moment, his expression unreadable. but then, to joong's surprise, he took a step closer again, much closer this time, until joong could feel the heat of his body just inches away.

"what are you doing?" joong asked, his voice shaking slightly.

"i don't know," dunk replied softly. "i just..." he paused, his eyes flicking to joong's lips, then back to his eyes. "i just want to get this right."

before joong could process the words, dunk leaned forward, and joong instinctively tilted his head back. but then, just as quickly, dunk seemed to hesitate, and in that brief moment of hesitation, their lips brushed-just for a split second.

the touch was soft, light, and almost too quick to register. it was an accident, a miscalculation, both of them so close, yet neither fully committed to crossing the line again.

joong's heart pounded in his chest, but instead of pulling away, something inside him stayed rooted to the spot, his pulse racing. but it was a mistake, he reminded himself, even as he felt his breath catch in his throat.

dunk pulled back almost immediately, his face flushed. "shit, i'm sorry," he said quickly, his voice barely above a whisper.

"it's fine," joong managed to say, his voice tight, though it was clear that nothing about this situation felt *fine* at all.

but neither of them moved. they stood there for a long moment, both of them trying to process what had just happened. neither of them could meet the other's gaze, the weight of the accidental kiss hanging heavy in the air.

finally, joong stepped back, his mind swirling. "this was a mistake," he said, his voice barely audible.

"yeah," dunk agreed quietly. "i know."

"we need to stop," joong said, his words coming out like a quiet plea.

dunk nodded, his shoulders slumping slightly. "yeah, we do."

and without another word, joong turned and walked away, leaving dunk standing there, his heart still racing, the taste of that accidental kiss lingering on his lips.

but joong couldn't shake the feeling that this was only the beginning of something much more complicated than either of them could have imagined.