yikes

┉┉

Minho looked pale.

No one was aware of Minho's condition until he started acting strangely during the skating process. The boy claimed to have unexpected fatigue, thus everyone rushed to help him, then Jiwoo drove him back to the cottage with Jisung. He only said he needed a rest and it wasn't a big deal.

It was a huge relief to know that Minho indeed just needed a rest.

The vacation continued the next day without Minho, Jisung, Chunhua, and Walmart. Minho's sick, Chunhua had menstrual cramp, Jisung's taking care of Minho, and Walmart's taking care the rest of them because apparently Jisung can't cook. Not like he can't, it's just he never attempted to cook any type of dish, including water.

To be honest, Jiwoo wanted to stay at Chunhua's side too. However, doing that would result in having someone else driving the car which seemed iffy and dangerous at the same time.

"You never told me about your low blood sugar levels," Jisung said, pouting his lips which Minho couldn't see with his eyes closed.

"That's why I'm telling you now." The older switched positions for the fifth time that morning.

Jisung was so worried when he felt Minho fell against his arms yesterday, he even pushed his anger away from whatever's external conflict they previously had. The couple hadn't talked through their problems since then, although now it's not the time to worry about that.

"You should eat more nutritional balance meals," the blonde mumbled. Being raised in a rich household, having proper meals has always been taught to him since his childhood days.

Minho grumbled like a little kid, "I only eat what I wanna eat."

"It doesn't work that way," he whined. This was the first time he felt more mature than the older. "A person who is eating a diet that's nutritionally inadequate or not getting enough to eat may experience mood changes in response to fluctuating blood sugar levels and malnourishment," he quoted from Google.

Ah, perhaps this is why he's so grumpy, a thought danced in his mind as he scrolled down the article.

"Sung-ie, stop lecturing me. I wanna sleep," Minho demanded, shifting again.

Sung-ie.

Jisung pursed a satisfied smile. Sung-ie... he really liked the nickname. In fact, he loved hearing that nickname from Minho's mouth. It didn't sound extravagant or special. For Jisung, that nickname felt like home; very warm, welcoming, and full of memories.

"Rest well, meow!" The blonde had no idea what kind of sound he had produced when meowed, but he couldn't care less. Gently, he moved closer to Minho's side, kneeling to the body lying next to him without a sound. Then he placed a soft kiss on his forehead, his fingers combed through the dark locks, caressing each strands like he's combing baby's head. Minho's hair felt soft against his skin. He loved it so much.

Meanwhile Minho tried his best to act natural. The kiss startled him to the point he couldn't move at all. Stiff as a board, he let the younger do whatever he wanted with his hair. It's not like he's not enjoying it, especially when his lips made contact with his forehead, radiating warmth to his whole body. Jisung had no idea the way Minho was struggling to compose his insides.

His eyes remained shut, he feared to open them. Jisung liked it this way, though. It'd feel awkward if Minho opened his eyes.

"Laterz~" the blonde mused, leaving Minho alone in their room with his cheeks red as the color of Tomato Kim's hair.

The moment he heard the door shut, Minho could only let out faint cusses.

On the other side, Jisung did a fantastic triple axle before jogging to the girls' room while humming to Coraline's theme song. His mood had somewhat been lifted and now he's thinking about lifting Chunhua's mood since she's on her period. Get yourself a piece of Han Jisung.

┉┉

"Have you ever experienced that side of Minho?" the blonde questioned, "you know... the sudden anger outbursts. The Minho who's not the usual Minho—have you experienced it?" At this point, Jisung was basically shooting questions to Chunhua whose head had already been spinning due to inexplicable abdominal pain.

Chunhua cocked an eyebrow in a confusing manner. "I don't think so. To be honest, we never fight."

Walmart's already sitting between them, shoveling sugar-drenched pretzels into her mouth. She almost asked them about Minho's strange behavior, but she couldn't think a way to bring it up without being maladroit. After all, the whole relationship talk was clearly out of her league as she had never experienced such lifestyle.

"You guys never fight? That's amazing," Jisung gasped, not so consciously stole one of Walmart's scrumptious pretzels. "Why did you two break up then?"

"One sided love."

"How so?" Jisung grabbed another piece of pretzel only to have his hand swatted away by the angry Walmart.

Chunhua shrugged. "We're both cool until he started having friends. I think what he needed back then was friends, not lover."

"Ah, I get it." Jisung nodded. "I thought he dumped you or something which is stupid because you're like—the prettiest girl I've ever met. Well, besides Hwasa—you're very beautiful."

"Thanks, I really appreciate it." Chunhua smiled genuinely.

Throughout her entire life, many people had mentioned about her pretty face or her body goals-like physique, but to her those compliments sounded as if they're also seeking for feedbacks. She could fathom their ulterior motives and found them unpleasant.

It's like having people commenting how pretty you are in a single post because they're expecting to receive a reply like "Don't say that, you're prettier" or something like that in return. Chunhua had encountered those moments many times in her life to the point she felt like her beauty was exploited by numerous people.

However with Jisung, she could discern the sincerity in the way he talked. His bluntness reflected the way he's raised with males surrounding him, and males are usually more blunt. She found his honesty very precious, that's why he's perfect for an ambiguous person like Minho.

Minho can be smooth like snakes, he can be dense and kind of stupid, he can also be the inspirational big brother. Furthermore, he's a guy with unpredictable charms which can only be seen by a certain person whom he trust the most. He's a liar, yet Jisung managed to bring out the innermost side of him and caused trouble.

Minho was a liar. Jisung made him more honest to himself—whether he liked it or not.

Chunhua admitted, "You know... I really ship you and Minho together."

"And I really ship you and Jiwoo together."

Meanwhile Walmart kept eating snacks because she didn't find a way to butt in with this conversation. She just casually listened and took notes once a while in case she needed their advice in the future. She learned from their experience.

"Frankly, I was terrified when he started yelling, especially saying those horrible things. I hate it because I know it's not the Minho I know. The Minho I know would never associate my wellbeing with my parents' wealth. He's being a jerk," Jisung confided his feelings. He fiddled with his fingers as he talked. "I'm afraid that he's gonna end our relationship that time. I wanna let him know, but I couldn't."

"Maybe he's overreacting due to the lack of blood sugar levels?" Chunhua guessed.

"Maybe." He lied his body on Chunhua's mattress. "Still... I don't like it when we fight."

"No one likes to fight, but that's just life," Chunhua said, slurping her favorite Starbucks drink. "Every couple fights once in a while. Some couples fight everyday, it depends. Just look at the bright side, it means you two are progressing."

"Have you been in a fight with Jiwoo?"

"Plenty." The girl recalled every fights they had; from simple matters like choosing the wrong bubblegum flavor to a more complex problem called misunderstanding. "Trust me, the bond feels stronger after you've resolved the conflict."

Of course. The boy took a moment of silence to recollected the fights he used to have with his father, and the way their bond became stronger after the talk. Most of the fights they shared were unresolved—they didn't talk them through which resulted in further conflicts and grudges. Nonetheless after they tried to understand each other's boat, the fogs faded away. The scenery became clear. They found beauty in discoloration, in differences, in diversity.

"Gosh, I feel so awkward here," Walmart finally admitted before stuffing so many pretzels into her mouth to avoid questioning and weird stares.

Chunhua made a whining sound. "I hope you'll find a girlfriend soon." Jisung agreed, attempting to steal one of her snacks which unfortunately failed again.

"Too bad no one wants to be my girlfriend."

"If I'm not gay, I'd definitely swing to you."

"And if I'm not straight, I'd definitely swing to you as well," Chunhua added.

"Sheesh, okay. I get it." Walmart let out several incoherent giggling. All kinds of cheery, she found Chunhua and Jisung's effort to cheer her up very cute in any sort of ways. She's glad to be friends with them.

Jisung too. From the beginning, he rarely talk to people from the opposite sex. Now that these two had converted their religion to Jeonginism, they found a way to get closer.

It's kind of a funny story to be honest. A rich, extroverted boy like Jisung befriended a girl whom his boyfriend used to date and a girl who used to hang out with the most annoying girl ever.

"By the way, I'm gonna cook lunch. You two should rest and don't even think of going to the kitchen—" Her eyes landed on Jisung's. "I bet you'll burn this place to ashes, so stay put."

Chuckling, the blonde hummed jokingly. "Fine, Chef." A thought about Minho flashed on his mind all of a sudden. "Make sure the food will do justice to Minho's body. That bastard seriously needs to eat properly."

"Sure thing." With that, she leaped her ways to the kitchen as Jisung headed back to his room.

┉┉

Jisung couldn't help but smile when he saw Minho's peaceful body lying on the queen sized bed. He tried his best to stay as silent as possible while he scooted closer to the sleeping body. His feet made hollow sounds on the glossy planks of a brand new laminated flooring. The walls surrounding him were painted beige, yet they tend to appeared tan from certain points of view, matching the bed frame which is clever and boring at the same time. But either way, that particular room felt very welcoming—more like home to him, especially when there's Minho.

He reached for the bed that Minho's sleeping on, then lied beside him, face-to-face. He could feel Minho's steady breath brushing on his skin, radiating warmth and a little smell in between.

Jisung decided to not disturb the boy. Silently, he yanked his phone to his face.

Jisquirrel
watchu up to?

Eunuwu
Nothing much

Jisquirrel
don't lie 😑

Eunuwu
You're getting better at detecting lies. btw i miss u Jesus

Eunuwu
*Jisung. fck autocorrect

Jisquirrel
u good fam?

Eunuwu
Yeah... just busy fingering my boyfrienf

Jisquirrel
wtf?! how can u answer my texts then?

Eunuwu
multitasking. i havr 2 hansd

Jisquirrel
bYE

"That crazy motherfucker," he mumbled underneath his breath. He then switched his attention back to Minho.

The more he paid attention to the older, the more captivated he became. Minho looked so good in every circumstances, even when he's sleeping. His beauty drawn him to the point his face flushed red after realizing how close their faces were.

His fingers found their ways to Minho's soft hair, combing each strands lightly, allowing his fingers to relish every part of his beauty. Never he would've realized how relaxing it is to have Minho's dandruff against his skin, though it was slightly disturbing.

Jisung sighed. "What's wrong with you, huh? You've been acting strange lately," he rambled. He was pretty much talking to himself. "I don't like this tension. Even when we're acting lovey dovey, I still think you're not being completely honest to me. I don't like it. I don't like it at all..."

"I want to understand you better," He let the words flowed like river.

The blonde let his emotions consumed him. His words were no longer the so-called 'faint whispers'. The words raged, getting louder and louder as he spoke. He was frustrated.

He was too preoccupied with his own thoughts until he began to overlook the situation he's in. Seconds later, the boy whose body's only inches away from him started to gain consciousness. The moment his eyes fluttered open, guilt immediately rushed through his body. He knew he owed an explanation to the younger.

"I envy you." His voice hoarse.

┉┉

I wanna eat pretzels too :(