Blur memories (Scoups X Reader)

36

FLASHBACK:

[The first time Jeonghan realized he was in love with Choi Seungcheol, they were twelve.

It was a summer evening, one of those rare golden hours where time felt slower and more tender. They'd spent the day at the lake, throwing water at each other like little kids, running through the trees barefoot, laughing so hard Jeonghan's stomach ached. Now, they were sprawled on the grass, soaked and sun-drunk, listening to cicadas as the sun melted behind the hills.]

Cheol:

I wish we could stay like this forever.

[Seungcheol murmured, arms folded under his head, hair still damp. Jeonghan smiled, the breeze brushing his skin like fingers.]

Han:Yeah... me too.

[He meant it in a way Seungcheol would never understand.

That was the first time Jeonghan noticed...the aching warmth in his chest when Seungcheol laughed, the way his heart skipped when their hands brushed, how his breath hitched when Seungcheol's smile softened just for him. Maybe it was just friendship, he told himself. Maybe it was the closeness of best friends.

But years passed, and it never faded. If anything, it grew louder, harder to ignore...especially when Seungcheol started talking about Y/N.

Y/N.

His sister.

At first, it was small things. Seungcheol's eyes brightening when she entered the room. Asking if she was home. Offering to help her. Jeonghan laughed it off.]

Han:

She's my sister, Cheol.

Cheol:

I know.

[Seungcheol said, scratching the back of his neck.]

Cheol:She's just... really sweet.

[Sweet.

It wasn't a sin, liking her. Y/N was kind, bright, and beautiful in her own way. Jeonghan loved her dearly...but sometimes, when she walked in and Seungcheol's gaze followed, Jeonghan felt something inside his chest crack quietly.

He told himself it was fine. It had to be.

But late at night, when everyone else slept, Jeonghan lay awake, staring at the ceiling, asking himself why it had to be her.

Why not him?

There were so many moments he could've confessed. So many times the words trembled on his lips, aching to be said.

Like the night they went to the amusement park. Seungcheol dragged him onto the ferris wheel, despite Jeonghan's fear of heights. At the top, with the world small beneath them and stars stretching wide above, Seungcheol looked at him softly.]

Cheol:You okay?

Han:

No.

[Jeonghan whispered, clutching the railing. Seungcheol took his hand in his, warm and steady.]

Cheol:I got you.

[Jeonghan's heart pounded, and he wanted to say.]

I love you.

Look at me the way I look at you.

Please.

But he didn't.