The Grapevine

Chapter Eighteen

Sean's phone buzzed with a familiar notification, and a smile crept onto his face as he saw Eric's message pop up.

Eric: Hey, hope I'm not interrupting anything. Just... kinda wanted to know how your day went?

Sean could practically see Eric's sheepish grin through the message. It had only been a day since he last saw him, but there was something undeniably nice about Eric checking in.

Eric: And not to be dramatic or anything, but... I might just be dying of boredom over here without you."

Sean chuckled, quickly typing a reply. "Not being dramatic at all, right?" he wrote. "How's your day going?"

Eric replied almost immediately. "Way better now that you asked." Then, after a pause: "Seriously though, it's been a chill day. I went to the market with the guys and finally tried that crazy spicy Buldak ramyeon everyone keeps raving about."

"How did that go?" Sean asked, already imagining Eric's reaction.

"Let's just say I may never feel my taste buds again," Eric wrote, adding a string of laughing emojis. "But at least the guys were entertained. Felix dared me to finish the whole bowl, and you know I couldn't back down."

"Of course not. You do know it's okay to say no to Felix's dares, right?"

"Nah, where's the fun in that? Besides, I've got to impress you somehow, right?"

Sean felt a warmth spread through him at Eric's words, the easy banter, and the subtle flirtation. "You don't need to burn your mouth off to impress me, you know."

"Good to know." Then Eric added, "So, what about you? How was your day?"

Sean paused for a moment, then decided to be open. "Spent it with family. Lots of catching up. It was nice... refreshing."

Eric's reply came quickly. "Family time sounds great. I've been thinking I'd like to meet them someday, but no rush. Whenever you're ready."

Sean felt a flicker of something indescribable, a hint of the future. "Thanks, Eric. I'd like that too... one day."

They continued texting, both of them savoring the simple joy of getting to know each other in these small moments. For Sean, it was easy, comforting—and he was beginning to realize that with Eric, this sense of ease felt like exactly where he was supposed to be.

Sean's phone buzzed again, Eric's message popping up.

"You still haven't told me what you're doing right now, by the way. Are you studying?" Eric asked.

Sean smirked, typing back. "What if I said yes? Trying to distract me?"

"Maybe I am," Eric replied. "If I can get the top student to ignore his studies for me, that's an achievement worth bragging about."

"You're really that eager to steal my focus, huh?" Sean wrote, feeling a grin creep onto his face. "What about you? Busy doing anything worthwhile?"

"Well, if you must know, I'm currently lying on my bed, staring at my phone, waiting for my very cool, very serious friend to text me back."

Sean rolled his eyes, laughing softly. "You make me sound so uptight. 'Very cool, very serious'? Really?"

"Don't get me wrong," Eric replied. "You're also very mysterious. Keeps me intrigued, you know?"

"Oh, so I'm just your latest mystery to solve?" Sean shot back, his heart racing a little at Eric's words.