GLOW-UP

03 | johnny suh

Taeil kept his head down all morning (not that it was difficult since he was so short) but attention still seemed to find him no matter how hard he tried to avoid it.

He could hear people laughing when he walked by, that damn video playing on their phones, and #ChokeOnThatBananaDick was thrown his way more than a few times.

It was the last thing Moon Taeil had expected to happen in his boring, and rather mundane, life - to become an internet sensation overnight. It wasn't the entire internet, thank god, but the whole college knowing and jeering at him was enough. It was more than enough. And Taeil desperately wanted the attention to stop.

He could never face Lee Taeyong ever again.

"Oh, peel that banana!" someone chortled from behind him.

Taeil wished Satan would come and claim him right now. Even Hell would be better than this. (Anything would be better than this.)

He made the mistake that day of passing through the ice rink next to the college sports hall. There was a cafe there on site where he'd arranged to meet Yuta and Sicheng for lunch. The only problem was that the college ice hockey team was practicing, which made the walk of shame through the hall even more embarrassing.

"Oh, Moony!"

Oh, great.

Taeil slowly lifted his head to see a giant approaching. A giant he sat next to in math, who he didn't particularly hate, but would still rather avoid right now.

"Can you stop calling me that?" Taeil asked weakly, squinting up at the taller boy. He wasn't really in the mood for the usual banter they kept up. (Others might call it banter, Taeil sometimes considered it straight-up bullying.)

The ice hockey player just laughed and clapped Taeil on the shoulder, making him wince. "Did you just say something? 'Cause you could just talk dirty to me instead."

Taeil shot him an unimpressed look. "That's the worst one yet," he said.

Johnny Suh. Chicago transfer, master of flirtation, winner with the ladies.

Or so he says.

"Doesn't explain why you're blushing then, does it?" Johnny smirked, reaching out to pinch Taeil's cheek.

Taeil swatted his hand away in irritation. "Can you leave me alone? Everyone's already staring at me."

Sure enough, even then people around the rink were looking in their direction, still gossiping and giggling, and whatever other shit they did to make people want to disappear. Taeil would've liked to disappear right then. But while he preferred to be invisible, Johnny liked to soak up the attention.

"So? It's fun to be famous," said Johnny easily. "You, my friend, just don't know how to have a good time."

"Okay, goodbye!" Taeil rolled his eyes and tried to scramble away, but Johnny held him back by the collar of his shirt.

"Hey, I still have more pick up lines I need to try out!" Johnny objected, feigning disappointment with a sad little pout. Taeil sighed, and that look on Johnny's face instantly switched to a mischievous smile.

"Why are you even talking to me?" Taeil grumbled. "Aren't you supposed to be practising?"

"I wanted to show off how hot I look in my hockey kit," Johnny told him, "and you walked by, waiting to be blinded with sexiness."

"Ha."

"So, what do you think? Do I look good?" Johnny asked, doing a turn in his ice hockey uniform to give Taeil a 360 degree view, still carrying the hockey stick in one hand. "Just messing with you, I know I look good."