[✔] r (i) v a (l) r (y) // smeb x faker

ch 13 (end)

rumors eventually began to arise about sanghyeok and kyungho's relationship.

fans were beginning to see many more interactions between to the two compared to before this, and had speculated that it had something to do with the picture of smeb holding faker's hand for a bit longer than necessary - a sensation that went viral especially among the fans who were all readers of boyxboy lck fanfictions.

unfortunately, no official statement came. the "kyunghyeok is real" hype train eventually died off, and the joke was starting to get stale, even between the members of kt rolster, sk telecom t1, and the disbanded rox tigers themselves. kyungho was no longer teased in the groupchats he was in, and sanghyeok was no longer labelled the "tsundere" of the kyunghyeok couple.

it wasn't long before people stopped being all upfront about "kyunghyeok" and resorted to reading more fanfictions instead.

they soon saw sanghyeok and kyungho's increased interactions as something more friendly rather than romantic. some even claimed it was probably just fan service. but the bottomline is no one is really surprised that sanghyeok and kyungho have started to get more friendly with each other anymore. it looked normal to them.

nobody noticed the playful nudges that kyungho gives sanghyeok whenever they pass each other at the arena. nobody noticed how sanghyeok would occasionally "steal" kyungho's jackets and wear it like it was normal. nobody noticed how kyungho would hold sanghyeok's hands or how sanghyeok would let kyungho hug him for a longer time than friends usually do.

everyone assumed that they were just close.

after all, rivals never date, right?