swapped | markson

T H I R T Y - S E V E N

"I gotta go. My girlfriend's waiting for me," Mark looked down, turning around and heading towards the café.

"Wait—" Jackson called, but Mark didn't seem to hear him. God, Jackson's hand shot up to touch the liquid residue under his eye, why am I crying?

Jackson frankly couldn't tell if he was happy to see Mark again or upset that he had a girlfriend now or just frustrated because he didn't say it back in time. He didn't say that he loved him back.

Maybe, it'd have been all good if he had just confessed all those years ago. Maybe, they'd be happy right now. Maybe.

Mark's POV
"Mark?" the boy's eyes shot up to meet his girlfriend's.

"Sorry for the wait, Sana," He smiled warmly, taking a seat by the girl.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm okay," Mark forced on a smile.

To put it simply, Mark's life was a mess. In the two years that Mark had been away from Jackson, he'd become rough around the edges. He had trouble getting back on his feet, and despite the fact that he had a girlfriend, Mark was still gay. Sana, of course, didn't know that.

That was the moment that Mark heard a loud ping from his phone. The sound echoed in his head for a second before he picked up the device.

INSTAGRAM MESSAGE FROM WANGPUPPY
ACCEPT REQUEST TO MESSAGE?

YES | NO

WangPuppy
Just so we're clear on this now...
I liked you back then too

and I still do|
and I sti|
and I|
and |
a|
|

Read

Mark felt his heart pound inside his chest, uncontrollable excitement bubbling up his insides. This is what he hated most. That feeling that only Jackson gave him.

He let out a big sigh.

"Mark?"

"Oh," Mark looked up from his phone screen to his frowning girlfriend, "Sorry."

Sana was sweet but clingy. Mark loved her more like a friend than anything else, but he was content in the current state they were in. She had bright blonde-dyed hair that reached her waist, and she was on the quieter side.

"Mark, you've been so distracted since you bumped into that guy!"

"I know, I know. I just...used to know him."

"Ah, so you were friends?"

"Yeah," Mark rejoiced that Sana was a foreigner and didn't read the older news about Jackson and Mark 'dating.'

The boy started fidgeting, thinking back to the message he had received. He was happy, no doubt, but confused. He shouldn't have cared this much if he were over Jackson, and he had been sure of it until this point.

"-and I really ha—Mark? You're not even listening," Sana groaned, slamming her hand on the table, "Let's grab lunch some other time when you're actually gonna pay attention."

"Sana, I didn't mean t—" The girl briskly walked past Mark, ignoring every word coming out of his mouth.

Great, Mark closed his eyes in frustration, just great.