[FF] Chasing A Melody
Title: Chasing A Melody
Characters: Yixing/Jongin (Yixing!centric)
Genre: University! AU
Rating: PG-13
Summary: 2009 words. Yixing is born for the court. But he prefers chasing melodies instead.
Note: Set in the same verse as " One on One," " Eyes Wide Shut," and “ So They Say” but can be read as a standalone fic.
He sits on the plastic bench with a towel draped over his head, eyes closed and lost in the moment. He allows himself to imagine dancing along to the rhythmic sound of the drum beats, blocking all the other noises of the dugout, of the whole coliseum, of the whole world. He pictures himself spinning and twirling, moving and flowing as the music starts and his mind becomes one with the music.
This has always been the Yixing that he has aspired to be-a dancer, an artist, a performer-someone who expresses oneself through arts and its beauty.
Yixing channels the inner artist in him, with his eyes closed, taking him back to his childhood dream, his real passion.
He is ten when he discovers he wants to dance. Yixing thinks it started once upon a time, when he sees a boy his age, in the dance area beside the indoor gym his basketball training classes are held. Yixing finds himself hypnotized with the how the boy moves with grace and fluidity with a music seemingly sung by angels. Yixing's world stops, and soon he finds himself in front of a full-length mirror, imitating the young boy's movements, vivid in his memory.
Young and curious, Yixing teaches himself how to dance.
His little limbs are always tired from basketball practice, but every day, he tries to recall every footstep, the hand movements, and the body snaps. He never sees the boy again, but it never stopped Yixing from dancing. It kept him moving and chasing a formless dream his young mind never understood.
“Show off,” he sometimes hears other kids at the training camp speak behind his back.
“Just because his father is famous, it doesn’t make us less than him.”
“He can’t even control the ball, why is he even here?”
Yixing leaves the locker room in a hurry and plugs music on his ears, blocking all the mocking voices in his head. As soon as the music plays, Yixing no longer feels the anxiety. There is a surge of a tingling feeling that makes his heart jump as his lips curl into a smile and he walks back home.
When the music stops, Yixing opens his eyes again and he releases the breath he has been holding. The coach gathers the team and gives his instructions, and Yixing realizes this is his reality. This has always been his future-the Yixing of the ring, of the court, born to be a cager.
Young Yixing was naïve who used to chase hopeless dreams.
So the Yixing today allows himself to imagine instead.
***
Yixing’s new found haven takes the form of ‘Pegasus,’ a popular club for university students in the city district, where the youth usually goes out to drink and dance. But for Yixing, it is the place where he witnesses bodies and rhythm merge. The multicolored lights are blinding and the loud music is deafening, but Yixing doesn’t mind because thinks this place can actually be his sanctuary-the closest thing he can get to his dreams.
Yixing decides to come dressed up one night. He chooses a printed sleeveless man top, the v-shaped neck line plunging just right onto his chest, revealing his perfect collarbones to accentuate his toned upper body. He decides to pair it up with a dark tight fitting jeans, and buckle-up boots to finish his simple-yet-sexy look.
Despite his busy training schedule, Yixing makes time to go to Pegasus least once a week. Most of the time, he only goes to drink a little and observe people, picking up new dance routines through the messy yet artistic movements of the crowd. When he’s lucky, he’ll get to see performance-like movements, from a student or a group of them who are most probably part of the nearby universities’ dance teams.
But of all those times he has been to Pegasus, Yixing has never danced yet.
Tonight, he has decided, he will dance.
So Yixing enters the club, his lined eyes surveying the crowd. He orders a drink just to calm his nerves. The now familiar-faced bartender gives him a smile and Yixing politely returns the gesture with a slight bow.
When he thinks his ready and his heart beat comes back to normal, he makes his move to the dance floor.
And just like that he moves to beat. Yixing writes his musical notes through his graceful movements, the dance floor being his musical sheet. He allows himself to drown in the melody of the moment; his body feels light and all he wants to do is dance to the music.
He creates his own special stage. Yixing doesn’t deny that he enjoys the attention his audience is giving him now. He enjoys it a little bit more than he enjoys the wilder crowd of sports enthusiasts. In this stage, no one is there to chant “Zhang Yixing” and no one boos him when he tries to shoot a free throw. This is just him. Just Yixing.
The one who has taught himself to dance was finally dancing.
There is a round of applause given to him as he finishes his routine. Yixing is suddenly back to the real world and all he wants to do is run back home, take a hot shower and sleep after such a gratifying experience.
Just as when he is about to do that, the lights and the music suddenly go out, earning a collective gasps from the customers, only to be replaced by the loud sound of sirens.
“DANCE BATTLE!” The club DJ announces through his megaphone, and the crowd goes wild.
Yixing is then dragged to the center by a lady in skimpy clothing, through the crowd who seemed to clear out and give way for a make-shift dance stage. Everything happens in a blur when Yixing is made to drink a shot of alcohol and the music is played.
He doesn’t notice when his competition comes up beside him, sensually grinding against his body. Yixing backs away, still moving to the groove to get a glimpse of the boy in black and silver, thrusting his pelvis up in the air.
Yixing’s quite sure he stops breathing. He can smell the sweat of their bodies as the boy moves closer again and Yixing thinks that it is the effect of alcohol that causes this seemingly euphoria run all over his body.
This boy. This movement. It all seems too familiar.
Yixing doesn’t quite remember how he is suddenly in the bathroom, the boy who was on a dance battle with him is rubbing circles his back as he throws up on the sink. He’s never in good terms with any sorts of alcoholic drinks, but he likes the initial effect of the alcohol in his system anyway. Tao will probably laugh at him when he sees him on Monday for practice.
“Ugh, I’m so sorry.” Yixing groans as he rinses his mouth with the water from the tap. His face is still flushed red. “You are probably so grossed out right now.”
“It’s okay Yixing hyung,” the boy answers back, and it’s the first time he actually hears him speak. The boy then leans and whispers right behind his ears. “You looked so hot a while ago.”
The comforting hand of the boy that was rubbing circles to his back is suddenly going down to a very dangerous territory, down his spine and to his-
“You know me?” Yixing interrupts before the other can even get there; his voice is evident with surprise.
“Are you kidding me?” The boy raises an eyebrow at him.
Yixing gasps, a bit scandalized as his eyes widen when he has finally come to realize who he is talking to.
“Kim Jongin of the Green Hunters?!”
Holy shit.
***
Kim Jongin of the Green Hunters. Second Year. Guard, Number 14.
Yixing on the other hand, plays for the country’s five-time defending champions of the International Basketball League of Korea, the Blue Assassins. Of course he should know all the members of the “rival team.”
Especially Jongin, who he may or may not be secretly crushing on ever since he saw him play. Jongin plays with a certain charisma on the court. He’s not as good as Chanyeol, their “Captain Dragon’s” infamous boyfriend or the Green Hunters’ team captain Joonmyun, but Yixing likes how Jongin suddenly puts his game face on every time the whistle is blown.
Jongin moves with grace on court. It’s like he uses the whole court as his dance floor and Yixing is an audience watching him perform.
"Watch out!"
Realization comes a tad bit late when the ball hits Yixing straight on the head, making him painfully land butt first on the floor.
"Oww," Yixing groans, not sure whether to rub his aching bottom or his throbbing head first. He swears he heard his teammates snort, the loudest one’s probably Tao.
“Zhang Yixing!”
He gulps. From the corner of his eyes, he spies a very angry-looking Dragon.
“How many times have I told you to stop spacing out during training? Especially not in the middle of a practice match!” Kris glares as he towers the boy on the floor, the sound of his cracking knuckles reverberates in the suddenly quiet gym.
“I’m sorry!” Yixing scrams away before the Captain’s wrath gets into him because heaven knows Kris is having his man period. He hides behind Tao, a teammate who plays forward, who is still snorting at him.
“Help,” he whispers to the younger one. “I promise to buy you a doughnut later.”
Tao rolls his eyes and whispers back a, “Two doughnuts. Premium,” before he turns around to the raging Team Captain. Tao is the only known member of the team who can actually ‘control’ the Dragon, probably because Kris knows Tao can do wushu and he is smart enough to know who he is going against.
“Duizhang,” Tao sighs as he explains things to the taller one. “Yixing is just going through a hard situation right now okay, please understand.”
Kris seems to soften at this, but not before slapping Yixing’s behind while murmuring “Kids these days are so difficult,” leaving an amused Tao and a still-sulking Yixing because his ass hurts more than ever.
“Don’t mind him, I bet he’s not getting any with his Green Hunter boyfriend who thinks it’s a fun idea to abstain from sex because of the Lenten season,” Tao smirks knowingly and Yixing’s sure he’ll spill it if he really pushes it.
“Hard situation huh?” Yixing goes a bit off topic, because really, he is not in the mood to discuss about the sex life of their team captain and Tao looks like he gets the hint. “Where did you even get that?”
Tao shrugs and pats the other’s back. “You seem like it. Spill?”
Yixing nods and rubs his eyes, “Kim Jongin.”
Tao gasps. For a man of his height, his gasp sounds three octaves higher. “Kim Jongin as in Kai of the Green Hunters? The one with the “holy-shit-fuck-me” abs? Oh my god. What about him?”
Yixing shushes Tao down and when the younger looks tamed enough to listen, “We may or may not have hit on each other?”
“Oh my God! Hit on as in…you know? Sex?”
Yixing blushes.
“YOU TOTALLY DID!”
***
If it is between an extreme choice between love and hate, Yixing will not dare say he hated basketball in front of his parents. But he was born with it, for it. He has a professional basketball player for a father, and a sportscaster for a mother. The court, the ball, the ring-everything runs with the blood and the blood comes with that expectation.
Because it was the easier choice for Yixing, he continued with basketball.
As for dancing, he still allows himself to imagine. At least this time, he is no longer limited to just imagining.
From: Kai ^^
Pegasus at 9pm? ;)
To: Kai ^^
Will see you~~ :D
Maybe because he has finally found a new dream.
***
A/N: Written for Clara as a due-since-October birthday gift. I promised her a Yixing-centric fic from this verse but I’m not really sure if her expectations were met after making her wait for so long?? She also beta’d this btw lol.
Anyway, it’s been so long since I’ve last written something (or just something I'd actually x-post and make people read in general) for the One on One verse and I just realized I only need to write four more members (XiuTao and SeLu) before I say goodbye to this AU. Yay? But those two remaining stories are still non-existent idek when will I ever get to write them orz
Though completely irrelevant, please talk to me on @ heeleyn and let us spazz together? ^^
Characters: Yixing/Jongin (Yixing!centric)
Genre: University! AU
Rating: PG-13
Summary: 2009 words. Yixing is born for the court. But he prefers chasing melodies instead.
Note: Set in the same verse as " One on One," " Eyes Wide Shut," and “ So They Say” but can be read as a standalone fic.
He sits on the plastic bench with a towel draped over his head, eyes closed and lost in the moment. He allows himself to imagine dancing along to the rhythmic sound of the drum beats, blocking all the other noises of the dugout, of the whole coliseum, of the whole world. He pictures himself spinning and twirling, moving and flowing as the music starts and his mind becomes one with the music.
This has always been the Yixing that he has aspired to be-a dancer, an artist, a performer-someone who expresses oneself through arts and its beauty.
Yixing channels the inner artist in him, with his eyes closed, taking him back to his childhood dream, his real passion.
He is ten when he discovers he wants to dance. Yixing thinks it started once upon a time, when he sees a boy his age, in the dance area beside the indoor gym his basketball training classes are held. Yixing finds himself hypnotized with the how the boy moves with grace and fluidity with a music seemingly sung by angels. Yixing's world stops, and soon he finds himself in front of a full-length mirror, imitating the young boy's movements, vivid in his memory.
Young and curious, Yixing teaches himself how to dance.
His little limbs are always tired from basketball practice, but every day, he tries to recall every footstep, the hand movements, and the body snaps. He never sees the boy again, but it never stopped Yixing from dancing. It kept him moving and chasing a formless dream his young mind never understood.
“Show off,” he sometimes hears other kids at the training camp speak behind his back.
“Just because his father is famous, it doesn’t make us less than him.”
“He can’t even control the ball, why is he even here?”
Yixing leaves the locker room in a hurry and plugs music on his ears, blocking all the mocking voices in his head. As soon as the music plays, Yixing no longer feels the anxiety. There is a surge of a tingling feeling that makes his heart jump as his lips curl into a smile and he walks back home.
When the music stops, Yixing opens his eyes again and he releases the breath he has been holding. The coach gathers the team and gives his instructions, and Yixing realizes this is his reality. This has always been his future-the Yixing of the ring, of the court, born to be a cager.
Young Yixing was naïve who used to chase hopeless dreams.
So the Yixing today allows himself to imagine instead.
***
Yixing’s new found haven takes the form of ‘Pegasus,’ a popular club for university students in the city district, where the youth usually goes out to drink and dance. But for Yixing, it is the place where he witnesses bodies and rhythm merge. The multicolored lights are blinding and the loud music is deafening, but Yixing doesn’t mind because thinks this place can actually be his sanctuary-the closest thing he can get to his dreams.
Yixing decides to come dressed up one night. He chooses a printed sleeveless man top, the v-shaped neck line plunging just right onto his chest, revealing his perfect collarbones to accentuate his toned upper body. He decides to pair it up with a dark tight fitting jeans, and buckle-up boots to finish his simple-yet-sexy look.
Despite his busy training schedule, Yixing makes time to go to Pegasus least once a week. Most of the time, he only goes to drink a little and observe people, picking up new dance routines through the messy yet artistic movements of the crowd. When he’s lucky, he’ll get to see performance-like movements, from a student or a group of them who are most probably part of the nearby universities’ dance teams.
But of all those times he has been to Pegasus, Yixing has never danced yet.
Tonight, he has decided, he will dance.
So Yixing enters the club, his lined eyes surveying the crowd. He orders a drink just to calm his nerves. The now familiar-faced bartender gives him a smile and Yixing politely returns the gesture with a slight bow.
When he thinks his ready and his heart beat comes back to normal, he makes his move to the dance floor.
And just like that he moves to beat. Yixing writes his musical notes through his graceful movements, the dance floor being his musical sheet. He allows himself to drown in the melody of the moment; his body feels light and all he wants to do is dance to the music.
He creates his own special stage. Yixing doesn’t deny that he enjoys the attention his audience is giving him now. He enjoys it a little bit more than he enjoys the wilder crowd of sports enthusiasts. In this stage, no one is there to chant “Zhang Yixing” and no one boos him when he tries to shoot a free throw. This is just him. Just Yixing.
The one who has taught himself to dance was finally dancing.
There is a round of applause given to him as he finishes his routine. Yixing is suddenly back to the real world and all he wants to do is run back home, take a hot shower and sleep after such a gratifying experience.
Just as when he is about to do that, the lights and the music suddenly go out, earning a collective gasps from the customers, only to be replaced by the loud sound of sirens.
“DANCE BATTLE!” The club DJ announces through his megaphone, and the crowd goes wild.
Yixing is then dragged to the center by a lady in skimpy clothing, through the crowd who seemed to clear out and give way for a make-shift dance stage. Everything happens in a blur when Yixing is made to drink a shot of alcohol and the music is played.
He doesn’t notice when his competition comes up beside him, sensually grinding against his body. Yixing backs away, still moving to the groove to get a glimpse of the boy in black and silver, thrusting his pelvis up in the air.
Yixing’s quite sure he stops breathing. He can smell the sweat of their bodies as the boy moves closer again and Yixing thinks that it is the effect of alcohol that causes this seemingly euphoria run all over his body.
This boy. This movement. It all seems too familiar.
Yixing doesn’t quite remember how he is suddenly in the bathroom, the boy who was on a dance battle with him is rubbing circles his back as he throws up on the sink. He’s never in good terms with any sorts of alcoholic drinks, but he likes the initial effect of the alcohol in his system anyway. Tao will probably laugh at him when he sees him on Monday for practice.
“Ugh, I’m so sorry.” Yixing groans as he rinses his mouth with the water from the tap. His face is still flushed red. “You are probably so grossed out right now.”
“It’s okay Yixing hyung,” the boy answers back, and it’s the first time he actually hears him speak. The boy then leans and whispers right behind his ears. “You looked so hot a while ago.”
The comforting hand of the boy that was rubbing circles to his back is suddenly going down to a very dangerous territory, down his spine and to his-
“You know me?” Yixing interrupts before the other can even get there; his voice is evident with surprise.
“Are you kidding me?” The boy raises an eyebrow at him.
Yixing gasps, a bit scandalized as his eyes widen when he has finally come to realize who he is talking to.
“Kim Jongin of the Green Hunters?!”
Holy shit.
***
Kim Jongin of the Green Hunters. Second Year. Guard, Number 14.
Yixing on the other hand, plays for the country’s five-time defending champions of the International Basketball League of Korea, the Blue Assassins. Of course he should know all the members of the “rival team.”
Especially Jongin, who he may or may not be secretly crushing on ever since he saw him play. Jongin plays with a certain charisma on the court. He’s not as good as Chanyeol, their “Captain Dragon’s” infamous boyfriend or the Green Hunters’ team captain Joonmyun, but Yixing likes how Jongin suddenly puts his game face on every time the whistle is blown.
Jongin moves with grace on court. It’s like he uses the whole court as his dance floor and Yixing is an audience watching him perform.
"Watch out!"
Realization comes a tad bit late when the ball hits Yixing straight on the head, making him painfully land butt first on the floor.
"Oww," Yixing groans, not sure whether to rub his aching bottom or his throbbing head first. He swears he heard his teammates snort, the loudest one’s probably Tao.
“Zhang Yixing!”
He gulps. From the corner of his eyes, he spies a very angry-looking Dragon.
“How many times have I told you to stop spacing out during training? Especially not in the middle of a practice match!” Kris glares as he towers the boy on the floor, the sound of his cracking knuckles reverberates in the suddenly quiet gym.
“I’m sorry!” Yixing scrams away before the Captain’s wrath gets into him because heaven knows Kris is having his man period. He hides behind Tao, a teammate who plays forward, who is still snorting at him.
“Help,” he whispers to the younger one. “I promise to buy you a doughnut later.”
Tao rolls his eyes and whispers back a, “Two doughnuts. Premium,” before he turns around to the raging Team Captain. Tao is the only known member of the team who can actually ‘control’ the Dragon, probably because Kris knows Tao can do wushu and he is smart enough to know who he is going against.
“Duizhang,” Tao sighs as he explains things to the taller one. “Yixing is just going through a hard situation right now okay, please understand.”
Kris seems to soften at this, but not before slapping Yixing’s behind while murmuring “Kids these days are so difficult,” leaving an amused Tao and a still-sulking Yixing because his ass hurts more than ever.
“Don’t mind him, I bet he’s not getting any with his Green Hunter boyfriend who thinks it’s a fun idea to abstain from sex because of the Lenten season,” Tao smirks knowingly and Yixing’s sure he’ll spill it if he really pushes it.
“Hard situation huh?” Yixing goes a bit off topic, because really, he is not in the mood to discuss about the sex life of their team captain and Tao looks like he gets the hint. “Where did you even get that?”
Tao shrugs and pats the other’s back. “You seem like it. Spill?”
Yixing nods and rubs his eyes, “Kim Jongin.”
Tao gasps. For a man of his height, his gasp sounds three octaves higher. “Kim Jongin as in Kai of the Green Hunters? The one with the “holy-shit-fuck-me” abs? Oh my god. What about him?”
Yixing shushes Tao down and when the younger looks tamed enough to listen, “We may or may not have hit on each other?”
“Oh my God! Hit on as in…you know? Sex?”
Yixing blushes.
“YOU TOTALLY DID!”
***
If it is between an extreme choice between love and hate, Yixing will not dare say he hated basketball in front of his parents. But he was born with it, for it. He has a professional basketball player for a father, and a sportscaster for a mother. The court, the ball, the ring-everything runs with the blood and the blood comes with that expectation.
Because it was the easier choice for Yixing, he continued with basketball.
As for dancing, he still allows himself to imagine. At least this time, he is no longer limited to just imagining.
From: Kai ^^
Pegasus at 9pm? ;)
To: Kai ^^
Will see you~~ :D
Maybe because he has finally found a new dream.
***
A/N: Written for Clara as a due-since-October birthday gift. I promised her a Yixing-centric fic from this verse but I’m not really sure if her expectations were met after making her wait for so long?? She also beta’d this btw lol.
Anyway, it’s been so long since I’ve last written something (or just something I'd actually x-post and make people read in general) for the One on One verse and I just realized I only need to write four more members (XiuTao and SeLu) before I say goodbye to this AU. Yay? But those two remaining stories are still non-existent idek when will I ever get to write them orz
Though completely irrelevant, please talk to me on @ heeleyn and let us spazz together? ^^