Emote: Shinso x OC Reader

Chapter 8

"Look at the stars," Shinso said, his voice full of uncharacteristic wonder as he stopped walking abruptly, tilting his head too far back and causing him to stumble backwards.

I hadn't taken the chance to look up and thankfully my eyes had been locked on Shinso because I immediately noticed his miscalculation in leaning too far. My hand quickly reached out and connected with his back to keep him from falling over. Beneath my fingertips I could feel the heat of his skin practically radiating through the thin fabric of his T-shirt. He looked over at me, his expression shifting from surprise to what I can only describe as adoration.

"Look at you, beautiful," A lazy smile spread across his face as he said it and I felt my face get hot as I swiftly removed my hand.

Why am I getting so flustered? I thought, my eyes shifting to stare at the ground. He's calling me all these sappy names and he keeps looking at me like that. Like I could commit the most heinous crime and he would still love me regardless. Apparently once he's had a few he stops trying to censor himself. Wait, how the hell did he get alcohol in the first place?

"Shinso, how did you even get alcohol?" I asked. My tone was harsher than I had anticipated but he didn't seem to notice.

"How did you get so beautiful?" 

I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose to try to relieve some of my frustration. "Shinso..."

"I don't want you to make that face," He said and when I opened my eyes he was looking at me seriously.

"What do you mean? What face?"

"When it gets all scrunched up and pouty when you're mad about something," His words slurred slightly as he spoke. "It's super cute, but I don't want you to be mad at your best friend."

My best friend? That was a definite slip on his part because suddenly the realization hit me. "Mina?!"

A garbled sound came out of his mouth before saying, "How did you know?!"

I hadn't anticipated the force of my anger. It coursed through me like a raging storm as I considered the fact that Mina had been the one to give Shinso alcohol. Where the hell had she gotten it from? And why did she give it to Shinso? Had it been related to a dare? Or had she wanted him to be drinking so that he would loosen up and be more open to making out with her in front of my entire damn class?

"You're doing it!" Shinso exclaimed, pointing at me. It took me a moment to realize that I must have been making the face he'd been referencing just moments ago. Without warning, he stepped forward, enveloping me in his arms and gently smoothing my hair down in a repetitive motion as he said in a shushed voice, "There, there. Don't be mad."

I would have been offended at the fact that he were treating me like a child if he wasn't being so damn cute about it. Shinso had never been this openly affectionate before. Instead of pulling back right away, I softened into his arms and shifted slightly to raise my arms and rest them on his back, allowing him to continue holding me. He squeezed me a bit tighter and breathed in deeply, the expansion and deflation of his chest feeling like a tidal wave I rode until the water quieted and everything was still again. 

"I'm not mad," I finally said, pulling out of the embrace, and I wasn't lying. It was as though the haven of his arms had extracted all of my negative thoughts and energy, leaving me with a feeling of peace.

He smiled down at me, a sparkle in his lavender eyes as he pressed a hand to my cheek. His skin was warm and yet I felt frozen. Was he about to kiss me? But the moment was fleeting and it seemed as though he was pulling away from me just as quickly as he had leaned into me. He pointed in a determined fashion in the opposite direction of his dormitory as he slurred, "To my bed!"