the perks of being a fanboy. | kyg. (discontinued)

29.

tate's not stupid.

not to say that she's overly intelligent in any manner. she's forever been well aware that her skills outside of music border on average, ever since high school when she constantly found herself scolded for low grades (that could maybe blamed more on her obsession with various groups than anything else). but she's observant, street smart in a way no one could expect from someone who acts so extra, and she understands yugyeom possibly more than she understands anything else in the universe.

(maybe it has something to do with the overwhelming protectiveness and outright affection for her sort of little brother in everything but genetics. tate has a tendency to be clouded by the want to wrap yugyeom in a blanket and protect him from the world - something that is entirely not her fault, since yugyeom is, well, yugyeom, and its hard to avoid the charm, avoid the smile with pouty lips curved into a heart, his entire face lighting up with his eyes glittering and his squishy cheeks puffed up into little apples. he's so fucking endearing, marked as practically disney princess material with his unfair amount of innocence and she can almost see tiny birds fluttering to his shoulders every time he giggles - and maybe tate is a tiny bit dramatic and crazy in her own imagination but she loves this boy far too much for her own good and sees him entirely through rose-coloured glasses and- what was she trying to say?

oh, her overprotectiveness has led her down a path of needing to watch over nearly his every move to make sure no one takes advantage of the soft boy, because she knows exactly what yugyeom can do to people. one look and you're a goner and that makes tate scared, fucking terrified actually, because this world isn't made for a boy so unnaturally beautiful, because everyone will always try to ruin him.

and so she needs to be observant. for his safety.)

so she knows something is up the exact moment yugyeom sets foot in the dance studio.

he's a long mess of fidgeting limbs and nervous movements as he clumsily enters, a flush spreading across his face and all the way up to the tips of ears as he clutches something in his slightly shaky hands. none of the others point it out, mostly because yugyeom is usually likes this, just a shy little boy trapped in the body of a giant who can only ever feel confident in the middle of a song. but tate knows better, can see the range of emotions in those eyes that seem far too troubled for her liking.

"you okay, gyeom-ah?" she asks, pushing the strands of sweat-soaked hair that have fallen out of her ponytail away from her eyes so she can get a better look at him. hours of practice have left her exhausted and a tad disorientated, but all of that melts away the moment she witnesses her best friend acting so strangely. it's kind of sad, how far gone she is for this boy.

"um," yugyeom is nervously toeing at the ground, scuffing the floor with the edge of his converse as he avoids her gaze. "can we talk in private, noona?"

oh, that's a bad sign. the two have known each other long enough that any politeness isn't really necessary, especially when tate grew up across the ocean in a place that didn't value such customs. the use of 'noona' says a lot about the boy's mental state and all she can do is send him an encouraging smile as he tugs her to the corner of the room, away from searching ears.

"uh, well, you know how i met... him yesterday?" tate nods, not entirely sure where the conversation is going but still holding back the urge to coo at the evident embarrassment painted on the other's features. "well - he gave me this and i don't know what to do." the admission is blurted out so quick that the words nearly blur together, but tate can make the meaning out, especially when yugyeom presses a crumpled piece of paper in her hands that she scans her eyes over.

it's just a bunch of numbers, a name printed underneath and a smiley face drawn to the left... wait.

"oh. my. god."