116 seconds ☆ h.rj | ✔

01

Falling in love with someone can take a while, months, years, decades even.

But it could also be quick, just a few moments.

It took you one hundred and sixteen seconds to fall in love with Huang Renjun the first time.

He had just transferred to your school from China, your teacher explained as she stood at the front of the classroom with the meek and embarrassed boy. The rushed and awkward introduction took eleven seconds.

There were several other seats in the classroom, but Mrs. Han only took two seconds to determine that he should sit in the empty one beside you. You thought nothing of it.

She had been discussing the lesson for another fifty-two seconds when you finally zoned out, eyes focusing and unfocusing on the words on the board. Maybe you shouldn't have stayed up until nearly three in the morning binging your newest TV show obsession.

The girl in front of you turned around ten seconds later, handing you the worksheet Mrs. Han apparently wanted you to complete for the day. But why did you have two copies?

It took you a whole three seconds to realize that it was because you now had a desk buddy. Without even glancing at Renjun, you passed the paper to him.

You figured that he didn't know much Korean, mainly since your teacher had said he just moved here from China two days ago, and also because it took yet another twenty-eight seconds for him to stammer out a request for help in reading the instructions.

Skimming over the paper for six seconds, you still had yet to look again at the boy beside you. His hands were in your peripheral vision, fingers drumming the desk anxiously.

"Okay, so Renjun," You spoke as clearly as you could, taking three seconds to flip open your pencil case and retrieve a fresh pen from its depths.

"Yes?" He replied earnestly, finally making your eyes flit over to him.

And they got stuck on his. An earthen brown; curious, deep, and unblinking as he looked right back at you. You knew that you were staring for way too long and desperately tried to blurt out some kind of excuse as you finally ripped your eyes away from his to look at the paper again.

Of course, you didn't know what it was, and your oblivious self didn't realize it until years later. You had been absolutely fucked since that day. Why? Because Huang Renjun became your best friend, and then an idol. Debuting at the ripe old age of fifteen wasn't all that bad, except for the phone calls at all hours of the night because he was having a stress-fit and needed someone to vent to as he bawled his eyes out, and the fact that you rarely saw him in person anymore. Despite that, both of you would firmly answer that the other was your best friend if asked. It didn't matter that you hadn't seen him face-to-face in over two months, and that distance unfortunately did only make your heart grow fonder. He was still your best friend. Nothing more. What a cliché you are.

☆  

"Y/N."

You ignored your friend's pleads of your name, still intensely focused on your laptop screen.

"Y/N."

"Renjun." You mimicked him absentmindedly, writing down a few more numbers on your paper as you worked your way through your math homework.

"Y/N, come on!" He whined from where he was perched beside you, face mere centimeters away from yours.

"I need to finish my homework before we go out, Ren. It's not my fault that you decided to show up twenty minutes early."