[oneshot] the ol' razzle dazzle
Title: the ol' razzle dazzle
Pairing: donghyuk/junhwe
Rating: nc17
Genre: au, romance
Warnings: consensual sex between minors, semi-public sex
Author: gdgdbaby
Notes: hsau. donghyuk is a nerd. junhwe is a jock. (could i make it any more obvious?) very loosely based on this cute series of comics. dedicated to yeolie and frailspells for all their helpful brainstorming on twitter! tysm to beyoffce for the readover ♥♥♥. 3,734 words.
Donghyuk Kim is watching him.
Junhwe knows because he's been watching back. Not that he's, you know, doing it on purpose or anything. The varsity basketball team's rowdy lunch table just happens to have a clear view straight down the aisle to the other side of the cafeteria. From where Junhwe sits, squashed between Hanbin's rapid fire play-by-play of yesterday's practice and Bobby's spinning arms of death, he's got a perfect view of the nerd table.
Which brings him back to the original point: Donghyuk Kim is watching him. Has been watching him. Five minutes into lunch period, Junhwe had glanced up from the cold noodles his mom had packed. His eyes, roaming with casual indifference over the rest of the room, had snagged on Donghyuk's steady, probing gaze. The intensity seemed so out of place that Junhwe almost turned around to see if Donghyuk was staring at something else. But no-there was nothing but concrete wall behind their table. Unless Donghyuk was really preoccupied with nutrition pyramid posters, he had to be looking at Junhwe. Something must've slipped on Junhwe's face, then, because Donghyuk had smiled, clear as day even on the far side of the cafeteria, and raised his eyebrows as if to ask, what exactly are you looking at?
Junhwe broke the stare first. Bent his head down to boggle at his noodles instead. Stirred his fork in his Tupperware for something to do with his hands, the back of his neck burning like it only did when he'd been balling outside for hours. When he'd chanced another glance five minutes later, Donghyuk was talking to the girl next to him, but he was still looking at Junhwe.
As far as nerds go, Donghyuk has always seemed pretty predictable. Coke bottle glasses, vaguely bowl-cut hair, crisp dress shirts neatly pressed and fastened all the way to the top button. Junhwe remembers sitting behind him in freshman year world history and getting very used to the shadow his arm cast whenever he raised it to answer the teacher's questions.
Most of their interactions over the years have been like that. Ships passing in the night-or, at least, in the classroom. Outside of school, the basketball team and STEM club don't mix much. Donghyuk is someone Junhwe knows by reputation only: smart as a whip, a bit of a know-it-all but in the likable way, not the Hermione Granger way, usually rather quiet and unassuming until called upon to answer a question. The kind of person who would help you with your homework if it involved studying together in the library, not straight-up copying. Generally speaking, a good dude.
So it's extra weird that every day for the next two weeks, whenever Junhwe looks up at lunch, Donghyuk's gazing at him, head cocked to the side, chin propped on an open palm. By the second Friday, the day of their next home game, Junhwe's memorized the slope of his jaw and the sweep of his bangs and the wide, almond shape of his eyes behind his wire-rimmed glasses just by virtue of checking all the time.
Ten minutes before the end of lunch, Bobby pauses in the middle of a dumb story about Minho's hat flips, turns to look at Junhwe, and notices. Catches him in the act, staring across the cafeteria, fork spinning aimless circles in his noodles. Junhwe really isn't sure if this is better or worse than Hanbin noticing, but he still feels a trickle of dread drip down his spine when Bobby crushes a heavy arm over his shoulders.
He leans in, cologne pervasive and smothering, and follows Junhwe's line of vision. Junhwe tries not to breathe. "Soohyun, huh?" Bobby says after a minute, completely off base, but so confident that anyone else would believe him. Junhwe relaxes. "She's cute, but Chanhyuk would murder you, probably."
"Yeah," Junhwe says. Soohyun's hair flashes as she laughs at something Donghyuk's saying. His cheekbones round out as he grins, and then he's looking right at Junhwe again. That part Bobby doesn't notice, but Junhwe does. How could he not? He's been noticing all damn week. He tenses up all over again, grip tightening around his plastic fork. "Yeah," he repeats, mouth dry. "Probably."
It's fortunate that Junhwe misses Donghyuk sitting in the stands till halfway through the third quarter, when he checks the clock and sees him smiling next to Jinhyeong and helping him wave a GO EAGLES! banner, because Junhwe's game goes to total shit afterwards. They still win by a landslide, but Junhwe misses almost every free throw he gets because his ankles keep wobbling. Difficult to focus when you know someone's watching you like you're a bug underneath a microscope.
Coach raps him on the shoulder during the postgame huddle. "Don't get too into your own head out there," he says gruffly as Junhwe downs half a bottle of water. "If you overthink it, you psyche yourself out." Junhwe's pretty sure his real problem is still loitering in the stands (he doesn't check, honest to God) but doesn't imagine that excuse going over very well.
"Yes, Coach," he says dutifully. Hanbin knocks their sweaty elbows together, face familiarly stern. Junhwe really doesn't anticipate the extra suicides he'll have to do at practice tomorrow. Maybe, he thinks idly, he could get a Donghyuk ban instated on the gym. That would work, right?
On the way back to the locker room, Junhwe holds the door open for the rest of the team and uses the opportunity to casually glance at the bleachers. Donghyuk's head bobs at the entrance to the gym, Soohyun's lyrical laughter bouncing off the smooth wood floors. Bobby waggles his eyebrows as he passes by, sneakers squeaking. "You gonna go for it, hotshot?"
"Shut up, hyung," Junhwe mutters, and drags his sports bag over the threshold.
After games and practice, most of the guys take two minute dunks in the stalls and get dressed as fast as possible so they can grab dinner together at the Burger King across the street before their parents come to pick them up. Junhwe, sore in body and in spirit, feels like he deserves something a little more extravagant today, and waits till everyone else has gone so he can take a longer shower. He definitely isn't trying to kill time to avoid running into Donghyuk outside. His stomach tightens just thinking about it.
The spray of warm water breaking against the crown of his head is welcome relief. He scrubs his scalp raw and watches soap suds circle the drain until the water goes cold.
When he gets out of the shower, the only person still in the locker room is Hanbin, sitting cross-legged on the tiled floor next to a goalie net calculating team and player stats. Under these circumstances, Hanbin's situational awareness is so bad that he might as well be on the other side of the planet.
Junhwe shuffles over to his bag on the bench and is about to undo the towel knotted around his waist when someone pokes his head inside from the hallway that leads back out to the gym. "Holy shit," Junhwe yelps, clutching his chest. His shoulder bangs painfully into the open door of his locker. On the other side of the room, Hanbin's still dead to the world.
It's Donghyuk, because of course it is. Junhwe straightens and tries to collect himself. Also tries to look for an easy way out, but Donghyuk steps up and corners him behind the bench, out of Hanbin's line of sight. The cold metal slats of the lockers leave imprints against Junhwe's back. Up close and personal, Donghyuk's smile seems even more deadly. "Hi," he says, rocking forward on the balls of his feet. "Good game today."
"Thanks," Junhwe says. He swallows. His fingers tighten around the hem of his towel. "I sucked, though. Especially fourth quarter. I think Hanbin passed to me twice."
Donghyuk gives him a thoughtful look. "You weren't so bad. Maybe at the end you just got tired."
"I didn't get tired," Junhwe says defensively, and then clamps his mouth shut.
Too late. Donghyuk tilts his head, intrigued. "Why did you start sucking, then?"
"It was because of-" Junhwe exhales, abdomen tense. "It was because of you! You've never come to a game before, have you? Don't come anymore. It's distracting." The minute it comes out, Junhwe's face goes so hot it feels like it's about to fall off.
Donghyuk doesn't seem offended. He actually starts laughing, the corners of his eyes crinkling. "I was just trying to be supportive."
"Why?" Junhwe chokes out.
"I like you," Donghyuk says, eyes wide and honest. So easy for him to say, to toss out into the open like it's nothing, or everything. A simple truth, the kind he recites in class all the time. Two times two is four. Water is two hydrogens and one oxygen. I like you.
Junhwe would be fascinated if his head weren't full of cotton. Girls have approached him before in the past, because he was tall, because he was on the basketball team, because he was friends with other popular kids, but no one had ever been as forward as Donghyuk is. Right now, Junhwe could probably fry an egg on his face. If he opened his mouth, he'd breathe fire. With effort, he unsticks his jaw and asks, "Is that why you keep staring at me at lunch?"
Donghyuk's eyes light up. He takes a step closer, so they're almost chest-to-chest. Junhwe's got half a head and thirty pounds on him, at least, but he can't even move. "You look cute when you're eating," he says, lips parting in a toothy smile. Then he gets up on his toes, easy as you please, and presses their mouths together.
Junhwe's mind goes totally blank. The weird buzzing in his ears grinds to a halt. Every nerve in his body feels attuned, suddenly, to the soft brush of Donghyuk's lips against his. A hand splays against the lattice of Junhwe's ribs, warm and dry. The insistent forward press of Donghyuk's hips grounds Junhwe against the lockers, and then Donghyuk licks into his mouth, tongue coaxing Junhwe's teeth apart and flicking against the roof of his mouth, as self-assured with this as he is with fucking polynomials. In the back of his head, Junhwe wonders, as Donghyuk bites down gently on Junhwe's lower lip, what else does he know?
The door to the locker room clangs open. Junhwe makes a startled noise in the back of his throat and Donghyuk backs up, wiping his knuckles over his mouth. It's useless, though-his lips are too red and wet to hide.
When Bobby rounds the corner, Junhwe's hopped into his jeans and made a valiant effort to pull his shirt over his head. "Hey," he says, and looks surprised to see Donghyuk. He glances back and forth between them. "What's up, Donghyuk? I came to collect Hanbin before he dies on the locker room floor." He glances at Junhwe again. "I didn't know you guys were friends."
"I'm tutoring him in chemistry," Donghyuk says smoothly. "It was Ms. Taylor's idea." He digs a pen out of the pocket of his slacks, grabs Junhwe's wrist, pokerfaced when confronted with the way Junhwe sucks his breath in, and scribbles ten digits across the inside of his forearm.
On the way across the street to Burger King, Junhwe asks, "You know Donghyuk?"
"Yeah, we've been next door neighbors for like ten years or something," Bobby says. "He's a sweet kid. More importantly, are you really failing chemistry?"
Hanbin's head snaps up from the playbook clutched in his hand. "Did you say failing?"
great, Junhwe texts Donghyuk later that evening, when he's trying not to fall asleep over his APUSH textbook, too tired to be embarrassed and too embarrassed to ignore the big numbers still penned on his skin. now hanbin thinks i'm failing chemistry and i have to run ten extra laps during conditioning on monday. take responsibility!!
Hahaha, I'm sorry! Donghyuk returns five minutes later. I'll make it up to you, promise ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
Junhwe's tempted to ask how. Even types the three letters into the message box, mulls over it for ten minutes, and then replaces it with: so r u gonna tutor me 4real? i'm alright at science, i suck at history tho
The immediate response: You want our first date to be at the library?
Junhwe has to put his phone down and walk around his room after that. His face is getting hot again. Stomach's doing a funny flippy thing, like he's in the middle of a drop on one of those zero gravity rides at the amusement park.
It's not that he isn't interested. They've only spoken to each other a handful of times over the years, content to operate in social circles that didn't touch often, but Donghyuk's easy to like. A sweet kid, Bobby said, confirming everything Junhwe already knew. And the kissing-well. Yeah. That.
Junhwe just isn't very good at expressing anything beyond basic needs and wants. Emotions are not his strong suit. Every time he tries to talk about feelings, it's like his mouth disengages from his brain. Even Hanbin, the most overbearingly persistent person he knows, can't get Junhwe to speak up when they're doing teambuilding exercises during the offseason. He can barely think about it without turning red.
When Junhwe calms down enough to sit and look at his phone again, there's another text waiting for him. 9AM at the public library tomorrow, it says. It's two blocks away from my house. Bring your APUSH book.
Since Jinhwan graduated and went to college, the only time the rest of them see him during the school year is when he pulls shifts working part-time at the library. "Hey, hyung," Junhwe says. He strolls through the automatic doors holding his backpack by the strap, keys spinning on his index finger. "Didn't know you were working today."
Jinhwan looks up from the circulation desk. "Do mine eyes deceive me?" he says, tempering it with a broad grin. "You came to the library of your own volition?"
Junhwe makes a face. "Ha-ha, very funny. I think you shrunk since I last saw you." Jinhwan rolls his eyes. Junhwe scans the stacks for Donghyuk's familiar bowl-cut, but can't find him anywhere. "I'm actually meeting a friend to study."
"Oh, that's right," Jinhwan says, and puts on his disappointed older brother expression. "Hanbin told me you were failing chemistry?"
"Highly exaggerated," Junhwe says absently. "I'm not failing anything, Bobby misrepresented me. And you know how Hanbin takes everything personally. We're actually here to study for-"
The library doors slide open. Junhwe turns midsentence and almost drops his backpack.
Donghyuk looks-really different on the weekends. Junhwe hadn't noticed piercing holes the day before, but Donghyuk must have them, because he's got cartilage studs in each ear and a spike dangling from his right lobe. The usual button-down/slacks combo's been traded out for skinny jeans and a soft-looking t-shirt. His hair is gelled beneath his beanie, bangs lifted off his forehead in a gentle upward swoop. "Nice outfit," Junhwe manages, because complimenting the clothing seems less dangerous than saying whatever else he wants to say. His fingers tighten around the strap of his backpack. He suddenly feels underdressed in sweats and one of his dad's old Berkeley hoodies.
"My mom wants me to look presentable at school," Donghyuk explains, shrugging.
"Believe me," Junhwe blurts out before he can stop himself. "This is definitely presentable."
Jinhwan coughs politely into his hand. "Study tables and private booths are over there," he says, pointing toward the far back, next to the PRETEEN section, currently advertising the latest RL Stine book to hit the shelves. The only other people here this early in the morning on a Saturday are two moms with their toddlers and a grumpy-looking twenty-something going through the reference section.
They take a booth close to the free computers. Donghyuk slides into the hard-backed chair next to Junhwe's and watches him take his notebook out. "It's not that I'm bad at school," he explains, inexplicably nervous. "I just don't pay as much attention as I probably should. APUSH isn't terrible, it's just a lot of reading."
"Yeah, I get it," Donghyuk says. He leans in and Junhwe catches a whiff of something citrus. "Hey, look at me."
He pushes Junhwe's notebook away. Hops on the desk, red chucks tapping both sides of Junhwe's chair before they drag him, with surprising strength, closer to the table. Junhwe stares up, blinking at Donghyuk's scrutiny. "I thought we were here to study," he croaks, voice breaking.
Donghyuk dips his head and slides a hand in Junhwe's hair. When he beams, breath coasting across Junhwe's face, Junhwe forgets where they are for a moment. "It's still early. We have time for that later."
Junhwe considers this. "Shouldn't the work come before the reward? Isn't this backward?"
"Fine," Donghyuk says. "This can be a science experiment. Is knowledge of US history sexually transmittable?"
Junhwe snorts, even as the tips of his ears heat up. "Jesus. That was awful. Like, even by my standards."
"Yeah, but you aren't saying no," Donghyuk points out.
He's right, of course. A little infuriating, how the cards always seem to fall that way. "I can already tell you're going to be very bad for my grades this semester," Junhwe says mulishly. He flicks an index finger at Donghyuk's dangly earring. Watches the spike swing. "You don't have, like, a tongue ring I don't know about, do you?"
Donghyuk's eyes disappear with his smile, so cute it's devastating. "Why don't you find out for yourself?"
And then Donghyuk's kissing him, mouth slotting over his, tongue unzipping the cage of his teeth. No surprise piercings, which Junhwe is almost disappointed by, but the kissing part more than makes up for it. Junhwe hopes no one comes around to interrupt them this time, because he really doesn't want to move. His arms drift out for a minute, unsure of where to go. Donghyuk guides them around his waist, his knees squeezed snug around Junhwe's torso.
"Isn't this tutoring, too?" he murmurs against Junhwe's lips. Junhwe huffs, unconvinced. Donghyuk chuckles, the sound reverberating through the kiss to vibrate in Junhwe's mouth.
He's just gotten comfortable, head tilted back so his neck won't get too sore, when Donghyuk licks his hand and reaches down to slip it past the waistband of Junhwe's sweats. Junhwe thinks, oh, shit, and digs his fingers into Donghyuk's pelvis. It's not quite hard enough to sting, but Donghyuk pauses, mouth lifted an inch away, a question in his eyes.
Junhwe lets out a slow breath. He nods, not trusting himself to say anything. Donghyuk bends forward, arm coming around to circle Junhwe's neck. The hand in his pants curls slowly around Junhwe's half-hard dick. His head falls forward. He pants into the soft cotton of Donghyuk's shirt. Sweat's already starting to gather on his skin, hoodie like a sauna. Junhwe's legs spread of their own volition as Donghyuk pulls on his erection, wet palm dragging against the shaft.
The novelty of someone else's hand on his dick kind of kills every other inhibitor in his body. All it takes is Donghyuk's thumb cresting over the head. Before he can even move, he jizzes all over Donghyuk's fingers and the inside of his sweats, hips stuttering in midair. When he looks down, disbelieving, there's a wet spot spreading rapidly at the crotch of his pants. "Oh my God," Junhwe says, mortified. He drops his head in his hands. "Fuck." His face flushes so fast his head spins, blood pounding in his ears. "I can't believe-shit. I'm so sorry."
Donghyuk doesn't say anything, just disentangles his hand. After another minute of stewing in his own embarrassment, Junhwe glances up. Donghyuk's got his index finger stuck in his own mouth, a thoughtful expression on his face. Junhwe chokes a little when Donghyuk slides it out with a pop. "I can get you some pineapple," he announces. Then he peers closer at Junhwe and asks, perplexed, "Why are you so red?"
"I just came in like two seconds," Junhwe mutters. "Aren't you-isn't that-?"
Donghyuk grins. He wipes the rest of Junhwe's come off on his sweatpants. "Don't worry about that," Donghyuk says, patting Junhwe's face with his clean hand. "I can get you hard again in like two seconds." He pauses. Leans back on his palms, the lean line of his torso on display. Junhwe presses his lips together and gazes studiously at Donghyuk's face. "You know, I thought you were a lot cooler than you turned out to be. You don't act like you look."
"I am totally cool," Junhwe says, indignant.
Donghyuk throws his head back and laughs. "No," he says. "It's a good thing. It's cute. You're cute."
"I'm not-" Junhwe deflates. Gives up. Lets his head fall into Donghyuk's lap. He thinks, but doesn't say: You don't act like you look, either. I like it too. "Never mind."
"It's okay," Donghyuk says, perky as ever. A hand cards through Junhwe's hair. "I guess I have enough game for both of us. Let me go get you some paper towels."
They don't get very much studying done. Junhwe does, however, find that he really, really likes making out with Donghyuk, so the day isn't a total bust.
On the way out of the library for lunch, Junhwe tries to subtly hide the dirty spot on his pants with his backpack. Jinhwan, though, has always possessed this spooky ability to see straight through everyone. "This isn't a movie theater, kid," he says, a dangerously blank smile on his face. "The next time you try to have a date in the library, I'm calling Hanbin."
"Please don't," Junhwe squeaks, shuffling sideways out the door. "I'll never do it again, I promise!"
"We'll just have to get better at being sneaky," Donghyuk says, beaming. His hand slides into Junhwe's as they walk to his beat-up Camry.
Junhwe glances down at their interlocked fingers. Maybe it's just the orgasm talking, but he doesn't feel like pulling away. For a first date, it's not bad. All things considered, it might even be fucking great.
fin
A/N: uhhh no promises at all but this is possibly the first installment in a series of oneshots? je ne sais pas. ok bye
Pairing: donghyuk/junhwe
Rating: nc17
Genre: au, romance
Warnings: consensual sex between minors, semi-public sex
Author: gdgdbaby
Notes: hsau. donghyuk is a nerd. junhwe is a jock. (could i make it any more obvious?) very loosely based on this cute series of comics. dedicated to yeolie and frailspells for all their helpful brainstorming on twitter! tysm to beyoffce for the readover ♥♥♥. 3,734 words.
Donghyuk Kim is watching him.
Junhwe knows because he's been watching back. Not that he's, you know, doing it on purpose or anything. The varsity basketball team's rowdy lunch table just happens to have a clear view straight down the aisle to the other side of the cafeteria. From where Junhwe sits, squashed between Hanbin's rapid fire play-by-play of yesterday's practice and Bobby's spinning arms of death, he's got a perfect view of the nerd table.
Which brings him back to the original point: Donghyuk Kim is watching him. Has been watching him. Five minutes into lunch period, Junhwe had glanced up from the cold noodles his mom had packed. His eyes, roaming with casual indifference over the rest of the room, had snagged on Donghyuk's steady, probing gaze. The intensity seemed so out of place that Junhwe almost turned around to see if Donghyuk was staring at something else. But no-there was nothing but concrete wall behind their table. Unless Donghyuk was really preoccupied with nutrition pyramid posters, he had to be looking at Junhwe. Something must've slipped on Junhwe's face, then, because Donghyuk had smiled, clear as day even on the far side of the cafeteria, and raised his eyebrows as if to ask, what exactly are you looking at?
Junhwe broke the stare first. Bent his head down to boggle at his noodles instead. Stirred his fork in his Tupperware for something to do with his hands, the back of his neck burning like it only did when he'd been balling outside for hours. When he'd chanced another glance five minutes later, Donghyuk was talking to the girl next to him, but he was still looking at Junhwe.
As far as nerds go, Donghyuk has always seemed pretty predictable. Coke bottle glasses, vaguely bowl-cut hair, crisp dress shirts neatly pressed and fastened all the way to the top button. Junhwe remembers sitting behind him in freshman year world history and getting very used to the shadow his arm cast whenever he raised it to answer the teacher's questions.
Most of their interactions over the years have been like that. Ships passing in the night-or, at least, in the classroom. Outside of school, the basketball team and STEM club don't mix much. Donghyuk is someone Junhwe knows by reputation only: smart as a whip, a bit of a know-it-all but in the likable way, not the Hermione Granger way, usually rather quiet and unassuming until called upon to answer a question. The kind of person who would help you with your homework if it involved studying together in the library, not straight-up copying. Generally speaking, a good dude.
So it's extra weird that every day for the next two weeks, whenever Junhwe looks up at lunch, Donghyuk's gazing at him, head cocked to the side, chin propped on an open palm. By the second Friday, the day of their next home game, Junhwe's memorized the slope of his jaw and the sweep of his bangs and the wide, almond shape of his eyes behind his wire-rimmed glasses just by virtue of checking all the time.
Ten minutes before the end of lunch, Bobby pauses in the middle of a dumb story about Minho's hat flips, turns to look at Junhwe, and notices. Catches him in the act, staring across the cafeteria, fork spinning aimless circles in his noodles. Junhwe really isn't sure if this is better or worse than Hanbin noticing, but he still feels a trickle of dread drip down his spine when Bobby crushes a heavy arm over his shoulders.
He leans in, cologne pervasive and smothering, and follows Junhwe's line of vision. Junhwe tries not to breathe. "Soohyun, huh?" Bobby says after a minute, completely off base, but so confident that anyone else would believe him. Junhwe relaxes. "She's cute, but Chanhyuk would murder you, probably."
"Yeah," Junhwe says. Soohyun's hair flashes as she laughs at something Donghyuk's saying. His cheekbones round out as he grins, and then he's looking right at Junhwe again. That part Bobby doesn't notice, but Junhwe does. How could he not? He's been noticing all damn week. He tenses up all over again, grip tightening around his plastic fork. "Yeah," he repeats, mouth dry. "Probably."
It's fortunate that Junhwe misses Donghyuk sitting in the stands till halfway through the third quarter, when he checks the clock and sees him smiling next to Jinhyeong and helping him wave a GO EAGLES! banner, because Junhwe's game goes to total shit afterwards. They still win by a landslide, but Junhwe misses almost every free throw he gets because his ankles keep wobbling. Difficult to focus when you know someone's watching you like you're a bug underneath a microscope.
Coach raps him on the shoulder during the postgame huddle. "Don't get too into your own head out there," he says gruffly as Junhwe downs half a bottle of water. "If you overthink it, you psyche yourself out." Junhwe's pretty sure his real problem is still loitering in the stands (he doesn't check, honest to God) but doesn't imagine that excuse going over very well.
"Yes, Coach," he says dutifully. Hanbin knocks their sweaty elbows together, face familiarly stern. Junhwe really doesn't anticipate the extra suicides he'll have to do at practice tomorrow. Maybe, he thinks idly, he could get a Donghyuk ban instated on the gym. That would work, right?
On the way back to the locker room, Junhwe holds the door open for the rest of the team and uses the opportunity to casually glance at the bleachers. Donghyuk's head bobs at the entrance to the gym, Soohyun's lyrical laughter bouncing off the smooth wood floors. Bobby waggles his eyebrows as he passes by, sneakers squeaking. "You gonna go for it, hotshot?"
"Shut up, hyung," Junhwe mutters, and drags his sports bag over the threshold.
After games and practice, most of the guys take two minute dunks in the stalls and get dressed as fast as possible so they can grab dinner together at the Burger King across the street before their parents come to pick them up. Junhwe, sore in body and in spirit, feels like he deserves something a little more extravagant today, and waits till everyone else has gone so he can take a longer shower. He definitely isn't trying to kill time to avoid running into Donghyuk outside. His stomach tightens just thinking about it.
The spray of warm water breaking against the crown of his head is welcome relief. He scrubs his scalp raw and watches soap suds circle the drain until the water goes cold.
When he gets out of the shower, the only person still in the locker room is Hanbin, sitting cross-legged on the tiled floor next to a goalie net calculating team and player stats. Under these circumstances, Hanbin's situational awareness is so bad that he might as well be on the other side of the planet.
Junhwe shuffles over to his bag on the bench and is about to undo the towel knotted around his waist when someone pokes his head inside from the hallway that leads back out to the gym. "Holy shit," Junhwe yelps, clutching his chest. His shoulder bangs painfully into the open door of his locker. On the other side of the room, Hanbin's still dead to the world.
It's Donghyuk, because of course it is. Junhwe straightens and tries to collect himself. Also tries to look for an easy way out, but Donghyuk steps up and corners him behind the bench, out of Hanbin's line of sight. The cold metal slats of the lockers leave imprints against Junhwe's back. Up close and personal, Donghyuk's smile seems even more deadly. "Hi," he says, rocking forward on the balls of his feet. "Good game today."
"Thanks," Junhwe says. He swallows. His fingers tighten around the hem of his towel. "I sucked, though. Especially fourth quarter. I think Hanbin passed to me twice."
Donghyuk gives him a thoughtful look. "You weren't so bad. Maybe at the end you just got tired."
"I didn't get tired," Junhwe says defensively, and then clamps his mouth shut.
Too late. Donghyuk tilts his head, intrigued. "Why did you start sucking, then?"
"It was because of-" Junhwe exhales, abdomen tense. "It was because of you! You've never come to a game before, have you? Don't come anymore. It's distracting." The minute it comes out, Junhwe's face goes so hot it feels like it's about to fall off.
Donghyuk doesn't seem offended. He actually starts laughing, the corners of his eyes crinkling. "I was just trying to be supportive."
"Why?" Junhwe chokes out.
"I like you," Donghyuk says, eyes wide and honest. So easy for him to say, to toss out into the open like it's nothing, or everything. A simple truth, the kind he recites in class all the time. Two times two is four. Water is two hydrogens and one oxygen. I like you.
Junhwe would be fascinated if his head weren't full of cotton. Girls have approached him before in the past, because he was tall, because he was on the basketball team, because he was friends with other popular kids, but no one had ever been as forward as Donghyuk is. Right now, Junhwe could probably fry an egg on his face. If he opened his mouth, he'd breathe fire. With effort, he unsticks his jaw and asks, "Is that why you keep staring at me at lunch?"
Donghyuk's eyes light up. He takes a step closer, so they're almost chest-to-chest. Junhwe's got half a head and thirty pounds on him, at least, but he can't even move. "You look cute when you're eating," he says, lips parting in a toothy smile. Then he gets up on his toes, easy as you please, and presses their mouths together.
Junhwe's mind goes totally blank. The weird buzzing in his ears grinds to a halt. Every nerve in his body feels attuned, suddenly, to the soft brush of Donghyuk's lips against his. A hand splays against the lattice of Junhwe's ribs, warm and dry. The insistent forward press of Donghyuk's hips grounds Junhwe against the lockers, and then Donghyuk licks into his mouth, tongue coaxing Junhwe's teeth apart and flicking against the roof of his mouth, as self-assured with this as he is with fucking polynomials. In the back of his head, Junhwe wonders, as Donghyuk bites down gently on Junhwe's lower lip, what else does he know?
The door to the locker room clangs open. Junhwe makes a startled noise in the back of his throat and Donghyuk backs up, wiping his knuckles over his mouth. It's useless, though-his lips are too red and wet to hide.
When Bobby rounds the corner, Junhwe's hopped into his jeans and made a valiant effort to pull his shirt over his head. "Hey," he says, and looks surprised to see Donghyuk. He glances back and forth between them. "What's up, Donghyuk? I came to collect Hanbin before he dies on the locker room floor." He glances at Junhwe again. "I didn't know you guys were friends."
"I'm tutoring him in chemistry," Donghyuk says smoothly. "It was Ms. Taylor's idea." He digs a pen out of the pocket of his slacks, grabs Junhwe's wrist, pokerfaced when confronted with the way Junhwe sucks his breath in, and scribbles ten digits across the inside of his forearm.
On the way across the street to Burger King, Junhwe asks, "You know Donghyuk?"
"Yeah, we've been next door neighbors for like ten years or something," Bobby says. "He's a sweet kid. More importantly, are you really failing chemistry?"
Hanbin's head snaps up from the playbook clutched in his hand. "Did you say failing?"
great, Junhwe texts Donghyuk later that evening, when he's trying not to fall asleep over his APUSH textbook, too tired to be embarrassed and too embarrassed to ignore the big numbers still penned on his skin. now hanbin thinks i'm failing chemistry and i have to run ten extra laps during conditioning on monday. take responsibility!!
Hahaha, I'm sorry! Donghyuk returns five minutes later. I'll make it up to you, promise ㅠㅠㅠㅠ
Junhwe's tempted to ask how. Even types the three letters into the message box, mulls over it for ten minutes, and then replaces it with: so r u gonna tutor me 4real? i'm alright at science, i suck at history tho
The immediate response: You want our first date to be at the library?
Junhwe has to put his phone down and walk around his room after that. His face is getting hot again. Stomach's doing a funny flippy thing, like he's in the middle of a drop on one of those zero gravity rides at the amusement park.
It's not that he isn't interested. They've only spoken to each other a handful of times over the years, content to operate in social circles that didn't touch often, but Donghyuk's easy to like. A sweet kid, Bobby said, confirming everything Junhwe already knew. And the kissing-well. Yeah. That.
Junhwe just isn't very good at expressing anything beyond basic needs and wants. Emotions are not his strong suit. Every time he tries to talk about feelings, it's like his mouth disengages from his brain. Even Hanbin, the most overbearingly persistent person he knows, can't get Junhwe to speak up when they're doing teambuilding exercises during the offseason. He can barely think about it without turning red.
When Junhwe calms down enough to sit and look at his phone again, there's another text waiting for him. 9AM at the public library tomorrow, it says. It's two blocks away from my house. Bring your APUSH book.
Since Jinhwan graduated and went to college, the only time the rest of them see him during the school year is when he pulls shifts working part-time at the library. "Hey, hyung," Junhwe says. He strolls through the automatic doors holding his backpack by the strap, keys spinning on his index finger. "Didn't know you were working today."
Jinhwan looks up from the circulation desk. "Do mine eyes deceive me?" he says, tempering it with a broad grin. "You came to the library of your own volition?"
Junhwe makes a face. "Ha-ha, very funny. I think you shrunk since I last saw you." Jinhwan rolls his eyes. Junhwe scans the stacks for Donghyuk's familiar bowl-cut, but can't find him anywhere. "I'm actually meeting a friend to study."
"Oh, that's right," Jinhwan says, and puts on his disappointed older brother expression. "Hanbin told me you were failing chemistry?"
"Highly exaggerated," Junhwe says absently. "I'm not failing anything, Bobby misrepresented me. And you know how Hanbin takes everything personally. We're actually here to study for-"
The library doors slide open. Junhwe turns midsentence and almost drops his backpack.
Donghyuk looks-really different on the weekends. Junhwe hadn't noticed piercing holes the day before, but Donghyuk must have them, because he's got cartilage studs in each ear and a spike dangling from his right lobe. The usual button-down/slacks combo's been traded out for skinny jeans and a soft-looking t-shirt. His hair is gelled beneath his beanie, bangs lifted off his forehead in a gentle upward swoop. "Nice outfit," Junhwe manages, because complimenting the clothing seems less dangerous than saying whatever else he wants to say. His fingers tighten around the strap of his backpack. He suddenly feels underdressed in sweats and one of his dad's old Berkeley hoodies.
"My mom wants me to look presentable at school," Donghyuk explains, shrugging.
"Believe me," Junhwe blurts out before he can stop himself. "This is definitely presentable."
Jinhwan coughs politely into his hand. "Study tables and private booths are over there," he says, pointing toward the far back, next to the PRETEEN section, currently advertising the latest RL Stine book to hit the shelves. The only other people here this early in the morning on a Saturday are two moms with their toddlers and a grumpy-looking twenty-something going through the reference section.
They take a booth close to the free computers. Donghyuk slides into the hard-backed chair next to Junhwe's and watches him take his notebook out. "It's not that I'm bad at school," he explains, inexplicably nervous. "I just don't pay as much attention as I probably should. APUSH isn't terrible, it's just a lot of reading."
"Yeah, I get it," Donghyuk says. He leans in and Junhwe catches a whiff of something citrus. "Hey, look at me."
He pushes Junhwe's notebook away. Hops on the desk, red chucks tapping both sides of Junhwe's chair before they drag him, with surprising strength, closer to the table. Junhwe stares up, blinking at Donghyuk's scrutiny. "I thought we were here to study," he croaks, voice breaking.
Donghyuk dips his head and slides a hand in Junhwe's hair. When he beams, breath coasting across Junhwe's face, Junhwe forgets where they are for a moment. "It's still early. We have time for that later."
Junhwe considers this. "Shouldn't the work come before the reward? Isn't this backward?"
"Fine," Donghyuk says. "This can be a science experiment. Is knowledge of US history sexually transmittable?"
Junhwe snorts, even as the tips of his ears heat up. "Jesus. That was awful. Like, even by my standards."
"Yeah, but you aren't saying no," Donghyuk points out.
He's right, of course. A little infuriating, how the cards always seem to fall that way. "I can already tell you're going to be very bad for my grades this semester," Junhwe says mulishly. He flicks an index finger at Donghyuk's dangly earring. Watches the spike swing. "You don't have, like, a tongue ring I don't know about, do you?"
Donghyuk's eyes disappear with his smile, so cute it's devastating. "Why don't you find out for yourself?"
And then Donghyuk's kissing him, mouth slotting over his, tongue unzipping the cage of his teeth. No surprise piercings, which Junhwe is almost disappointed by, but the kissing part more than makes up for it. Junhwe hopes no one comes around to interrupt them this time, because he really doesn't want to move. His arms drift out for a minute, unsure of where to go. Donghyuk guides them around his waist, his knees squeezed snug around Junhwe's torso.
"Isn't this tutoring, too?" he murmurs against Junhwe's lips. Junhwe huffs, unconvinced. Donghyuk chuckles, the sound reverberating through the kiss to vibrate in Junhwe's mouth.
He's just gotten comfortable, head tilted back so his neck won't get too sore, when Donghyuk licks his hand and reaches down to slip it past the waistband of Junhwe's sweats. Junhwe thinks, oh, shit, and digs his fingers into Donghyuk's pelvis. It's not quite hard enough to sting, but Donghyuk pauses, mouth lifted an inch away, a question in his eyes.
Junhwe lets out a slow breath. He nods, not trusting himself to say anything. Donghyuk bends forward, arm coming around to circle Junhwe's neck. The hand in his pants curls slowly around Junhwe's half-hard dick. His head falls forward. He pants into the soft cotton of Donghyuk's shirt. Sweat's already starting to gather on his skin, hoodie like a sauna. Junhwe's legs spread of their own volition as Donghyuk pulls on his erection, wet palm dragging against the shaft.
The novelty of someone else's hand on his dick kind of kills every other inhibitor in his body. All it takes is Donghyuk's thumb cresting over the head. Before he can even move, he jizzes all over Donghyuk's fingers and the inside of his sweats, hips stuttering in midair. When he looks down, disbelieving, there's a wet spot spreading rapidly at the crotch of his pants. "Oh my God," Junhwe says, mortified. He drops his head in his hands. "Fuck." His face flushes so fast his head spins, blood pounding in his ears. "I can't believe-shit. I'm so sorry."
Donghyuk doesn't say anything, just disentangles his hand. After another minute of stewing in his own embarrassment, Junhwe glances up. Donghyuk's got his index finger stuck in his own mouth, a thoughtful expression on his face. Junhwe chokes a little when Donghyuk slides it out with a pop. "I can get you some pineapple," he announces. Then he peers closer at Junhwe and asks, perplexed, "Why are you so red?"
"I just came in like two seconds," Junhwe mutters. "Aren't you-isn't that-?"
Donghyuk grins. He wipes the rest of Junhwe's come off on his sweatpants. "Don't worry about that," Donghyuk says, patting Junhwe's face with his clean hand. "I can get you hard again in like two seconds." He pauses. Leans back on his palms, the lean line of his torso on display. Junhwe presses his lips together and gazes studiously at Donghyuk's face. "You know, I thought you were a lot cooler than you turned out to be. You don't act like you look."
"I am totally cool," Junhwe says, indignant.
Donghyuk throws his head back and laughs. "No," he says. "It's a good thing. It's cute. You're cute."
"I'm not-" Junhwe deflates. Gives up. Lets his head fall into Donghyuk's lap. He thinks, but doesn't say: You don't act like you look, either. I like it too. "Never mind."
"It's okay," Donghyuk says, perky as ever. A hand cards through Junhwe's hair. "I guess I have enough game for both of us. Let me go get you some paper towels."
They don't get very much studying done. Junhwe does, however, find that he really, really likes making out with Donghyuk, so the day isn't a total bust.
On the way out of the library for lunch, Junhwe tries to subtly hide the dirty spot on his pants with his backpack. Jinhwan, though, has always possessed this spooky ability to see straight through everyone. "This isn't a movie theater, kid," he says, a dangerously blank smile on his face. "The next time you try to have a date in the library, I'm calling Hanbin."
"Please don't," Junhwe squeaks, shuffling sideways out the door. "I'll never do it again, I promise!"
"We'll just have to get better at being sneaky," Donghyuk says, beaming. His hand slides into Junhwe's as they walk to his beat-up Camry.
Junhwe glances down at their interlocked fingers. Maybe it's just the orgasm talking, but he doesn't feel like pulling away. For a first date, it's not bad. All things considered, it might even be fucking great.
fin
A/N: uhhh no promises at all but this is possibly the first installment in a series of oneshots? je ne sais pas. ok bye