GLOW-UP

39 | ice rink invaders

it didn't take much for sicheng to agree to anything yuta suggested, especially when it involved sneaking off in the dark to get a little alone time away from the prying eyes of moon taeil or the rest of the world.

this was the situation one winter evening when he caught the japanese man attempting to leave the apartment without a sound, hockey kit bag dumped next to his worn-out sneakers.

sicheng smiled at the sight of the older male, his whole body longing to be up against him, or wrapped in his arms. they'd barely seen each other all day and it was killing him. since taeil was busy studying in his room with the door closed, sicheng crept up on yuta and slid his arms around his torso from behind, pressing his cheek into yuta's neck.

"hey," yuta exhaled in surprise, that sunny grin spreading across his lips at sicheng's touch.

"where are you sneaking off to?" sicheng murmured, hands mindlessly tracing the lines of yuta's chest, as if memorising the way he felt in case he wouldn't get another chance to hug him for a while.

twisting around in his embrace, yuta looped his arms around sicheng's waist, hands resting at the bottom of his spine. "why? miss me already, baby?" he teased in a soft voice.

"i've been missing you all day, you idiot," sicheng told him, pouting his lips as he reached up to tangle his fingers in yuta's messy hair. "you need a haircut. it's getting so long now," he added.

"mhm, i look sexy when i come out of the shower though, right?" yuta raised an eyebrow seductively, which caused sicheng to roll his eyes.

"mhm, sure."

yuta chuckled then and pulled sicheng up against his body. "but since you asked, i'm going to get in some extra hockey practise. we've got the away game soon, and i'm trying to get man of the match and beat johnny for once."

"shouldn't be too hard... he seems a bit distracted now, don't you think?" there was a look of mischief in sicheng's eyes that was really hot to yuta. "but isn't the rink closed now? it's late."

"yeah, about that..." yuta hesitated, "it's not trespassing when it's my own college, right?"

"yuta!" sicheng hissed, "that sounds pretty illegal..."

"but fun?"

sicheng took a breath, a slow smile forming on his face. "...but fun," he agreed, "can i come?"

"can you hell!" yuta grinned, nuzzling his face into sicheng's neck before picking him up in his arms and spinning him around, "i'll take any excuse to spend time with you... let's go!"

and just like that, yuta's day was instantly better. there was something about dong sicheng that was like medicine to a sick man, or sunshine bursting through a billowing cloud. it was a feeling yuta just couldn't get enough of. he was certain he was nothing short of addicted to the chinese boy he held in his arms.

"go where?"

yuta dropped sicheng on the floor, letting the younger slip out of his arms in surprise.

taeil was standing further down the hallway, an empty mug of tea in one hand, and an expression of perplexity written all across his face. yuta started to panic. he personally would love to shout his relationship in taeil's face, but he was worried that sicheng wasn't ready yet. the younger boy had made it very clear that publicising their relationship wasn't something he was comfortable with doing yet, or at least that was the impression yuta still had.