May 6

7:10 pm

"Jinxi, you don't need to," Haemin said as he refused the jacket Jinxi was trying to give him.

As the night settled in, the streetside shops buzzed to life one by one. The drifting smokey tang of food and the occasional clamour of people in the stalls accompanied the two as they made their way to the cafe.

It has become their daily routine. Jinxi would wait for Haemin near the Business Management department to pick him up, and they would walk to the cafe. Sometimes they would stop at the arcade place on the way for a stress layoff.

Haemin looked forward to those moments when he would be alone with Jinxi.

Even though he had known Jinxi since High-school, he truly began to unravel Jinxi only during his college days. Jinxi had a strong sense of individuality, and he commanded Haemin's attention. Naturally, he fell in love with Jinxi's lazy yet attentive and laid back yet fierce personality. He was everything Haemin would ever dream to be and much more.

It took him more than a second to realize their proximity and Jinxi's protective arm around him as he adjusted his jacket around Haemin's shoulder. Jinxi seemed to have realized that just then too. They had instinctively moved closer.

A nearby streetlight lamp blinked to life and Jinxi's eyes finally focused.

He stumbled back a safe distance from Haemin, "Uhm, see you around," Jinxi said with a flustered look and scurried off.

His retreating figure passed by Sungmin, who sent him a confused look and he waved at Haemin after he saw him standing nearby.

~

Looking at Jinxi's rapidly retreating back Haemin couldn't help but sigh. Since Haemin's had a large family, they had a hard time making ends meet. For that, he had gladly given up the pursuit of his dreams and joined the business management course. He even took up a part-time job at Sungmin's cafe. Which was why he never understood why Jinxi would find him attractive in the first place.

For someone who had gladly given up their dreams, Jinxi, who fought tooth and nail to follow his, was leagues apart. Truthfully speaking, he should have found Haemin weak and worthless, but he gave him the utmost care and undivided attention.

He didn't know where this would lead, but he had a feeling he was ready to find out.

"Isn't that Jinxi's jacket?" Sungmin asked while dusting the carpet. Haemin stilled in place, looking at the black jacket over his shoulder. He had been so engrossed in his thoughts that he failed to notice the jacket was still on him.

Haemin quickly excused himself and ran after the blonde. He was sensitive to cold, but so was Jinxi, and he didn't want him to catch a cold. He had this instictual want to look after Jinxi's needs especially since he knew the other couldn't care less about self-care.

However, when he reached the Bus-stop, his heart stilled. He saw Jinxi lean towards Minyook, and it looked like they had kissed. Minyook's reaction as he covered his mouth was the final straw.

Haemin was a mellow guy, but at that moment, he felt everything, but mellow.

He wanted to push Minyook aside and thrash him against the metal pillar until he spat out the truth, but he knew he couldn't even walk properly if he tried to. So he shouted his doubts out.

Later, he would repeatedly condemn himself for his stupidity.

"How could I do that?" Haemin would say. How could I doubt Jinxi, he would think, and Jinxi would misunderstand that he was worried about accidentally being the reason for the fast-spreading rumour.

But that was a story for another day.;)

7:25 pm

Jinxi was on the bus on his way back home. He didn't know what to feel or how to feel. Earlier, he had been so close to Haemin that he could see the individual strands of his eyelash, and he almost lost his mind.

He had also tried so hard to not let Minyook know of his suffering that the poor boy had assumed that Jinxi was cold. His breathing was still erratic, and he didn't know what to do with his limbs. He kept shifting constantly on the narrow seat.

The passenger sitting next to him gave him weird looks.

He was even stupid enough to shamelessly use Minyook in an attempt to see if he still had the same reaction. He didn't. He couldn't even feel sparks with Minyook compared to the fire that Haemin had ignited.

Jinxi face-palmed himself and the passenger next to him moved to a different seat.