bad alive {dong sicheng}

35

keni and winwin walked through the entrance of the nct house, both of them collectively letting out a deep breath that they didn't know they were holding in. 

keni looked and winwin and he looked at her, both of them bursting into a fit of laughter. after he caught some air, winwin looked at keni fondly.

he bent down to untie her shoes for her, placing a pair of house slippers in front of her for her to step into. 

he stood back up and pulled her close, her face snuggled up against his chest as he rested his chin on her head, "i will always be there for you like today," she spoke softly, "but you surprised me today too."

keni looked up at him curiously, "how?"

winwin smiled, "the way you stood up for all the boys when your mom insulted us. not a lot of people do that. i'm just happy you see us as more than a group of criminals."

keni patted his back, "even if you really were just a group of criminals, i'm a part of that group now."

"forever?" winwin held out his pinky.

keni didn't hesitate to intertwine her own around his, "forever."

"keni."

both keni and winwin turned to look at lucas, who had called out keni's name. keni immediately pulled her hand away from winwin's and cleared her throat awkwardly.

"can we talk?" lucas asked, his voice sounding hurt and pained. 

keni followed him hesitantly to his room and he closed the door behind her with a sense of finality.

keni gulped, "what did you want to talk about?" she wouldn't look at him in the eyes, staring at the floor instead.

lucas's slippers came into view and she looked up at him, startled at how close he was to her. she stumbled back a bit, only to find her back hitting the door.

he placed both hand on either side of her, trapping her. keni held her breath, wondering what he was going to do or say next.

what she didn't expect was for him to completely lose his confidence and slide down to the floor, crouching with his face in his hands, tears pooling into his big, innocent eyes. 

"i like you," lucas cried out, as she pried his hands away from his face.

"i like you so much it hurts. it hurts to pretend keni," he was anguished.

"what do you pretend?" she asked calmly.

lucas's voice dropped to barely a whisper, "that we're only friends."

keni stared at his beautiful face, his agony mirrored in her own face. she didn't know how to respond but yet lucas seemed to already understand that she didn't reciprocate his feelings at all.

her heart only had ever truly belonged to one boy, the same boy that had broken her heart over and over again.

she stood up slowly, her hand on the doorknob.

"i have to go," she mumbled and ran out of his room, not knowing how to do with the situation and not wanting to see anymore of his tears. 

~ a week later ~

"are we really going to this ball?" winwin asked as he struggled with his tie.

keni gave him a look, "well you don't have to go," she pointed out, resulting in a winwin pout.

she instantly uwued and took it back, "i'll give you a kiss on your cheek if you stop complaining and just go," she offered.

winwin's eyes sparkled with delight, "really?"

keni nodded and approached him, turning around and pointing to her dress zipper, which she couldn't reach. 

winwin pulled it up slowly and it was almost purposeful, the way he let his fingers slide up her bare back. she shuddered and turned around, "dong sicheng stop flirting," she reprimanded as she fixed his tie. 

"what if i don't want a kiss on the cheek?"

keni looked up at the boy, confused at his sudden switch of tone, "well i don't know, then i won't give you one."

keni shuffled her feet awkwardly, seeing his intense gaze.

winwin smirked, knowing the effect he was having on her. he placed his hands on either side of her waist, "hua keni look at me."

keni took her time to meet his eyes, and when she finally did, she only saw the gleam in his eyes for a second before he crashed his lips onto hers. 

she tried to mumble incoherent words about being late for the party, but that only made winwin press his lips against hers even more aggressively. 

she gave in, wrapping her arms around her neck and standing on her tiptoes, her body pressed against every curve of his as they kissed. 

his hands began to roam her body, traveling all over the soft velvet material of the plum colored dress.

he stopped the kiss and motioned for her to jump. she did so hesitantly and he caught her as she wrapped her legs around his waist. 

he pushed her against the wall so that he wouldn't have to carry her whole weight on him. it gave him more freedom and his hands rested on her ass lightly as he kissed her exposed neck. 

she was already a mess for him when his teeth nibbled on her sensitive skin, making a mark right below her collarbone. 

when he looked back at her face, he couldn't help but feel proud at the way she gazed at him, out of breath and completely in love. he kissed her now swollen lips one more time before setting her on the ground, fixing her dress for her in the process. 

he examined the mark that was already forming on her neck. leaning close to her ear, he whispered, "you're mine now," as his fingers pressed lightly on the bruise, making her shudder and nod. 

a soft cry made both of them turn to look at a certain boy, who looked like he had just seen everything that had happened between keni and winwin.

winwin looked back at keni, "i'll wait for you by the front door."

when winwin had left, keni approached lucas slowly, "lucas-"

"don't," lucas said, wiping his tears, "i already know. i should've known that you wouldn't ever stop going after him."

"i'm sorry," she said quietly. 

"don't be," he smiled bitterly through the pain.

keni examined his face, "lucas we're still best friends."

"yeah. friends."