(for EtherealReality) Starboy [1/2]
For: EtherealReality
Title: StarBoy
Genre: romance, smut, slight angst
Rating: N-17
Side Pairings (if any): Mentions of ChanBaek
Warnings: [Click to view]underage drinking
Word Count: 10594
Summary: A space loving boy meets a dancer.
Author's Note: Idk if it’s too long but I hope you enjoy.
The rush of busy parents hurrying past his back sent shivers down Kyungsoo's spine, making the small hairs on his arms stand on end. The hustle and bustle of parents evening was always majorly off-putting to the young Soo, so he stayed within his own little metaphorical mind bubble whilst the teacher spoke about him in a condescending tone to his mum and dad.
"I really do think that little Kyungsoo here is rather capable of being a very bright student, but he just needs to apply himself more. maybe... Engage with others.” How dare she call him little, the old hag, he was the same age as everyone else in his year. Just because he wasn’t the tallest didn’t mean he was a 5-year-old.
She stared down at him as if he'd failed at being a 17-year-old somehow (God he couldn’t wait to leave this school). Her deep set wrinkles curving into a look of superiority and her purple glasses sliding down the bridge of her nose. But Kyungsoo said nothing. Instead, he nodded, wanting to get home quicker and quicker by the minute.
The car journey stayed mostly silent. Kyungsoo was preoccupied with the twinkling stars, although he knew that the stars didn’t actually twinkle. It was just the light being emitted from the stars having to pass through the earth’s turbulent atmosphere, which caused the stars to appear as twinkling. But that took away some of the magic, so he smiled happily with his head against his palm as he imagined the stars twinkling for real.
As soon as the car pulled into their driveway Kyungsoo flung the car door open and speed walked into the house, his mum was close behind and pulled him into the kitchen suddenly.
"Soo, I know I promised not to bug you anymore about this but-"
She said in a begging tone, before being cut off.
"Mum, I can't help if no one likes me, so no, I'm not going to chess club."
His mother let out a deep sigh as he dashed up the stairs to his room.
His bedroom walls were covered in everything astrology. Maps, charts, pictures, drawings. He had stacks of books in the corners of his room and glow in the dark plastic stars stuck to the ceiling. His pride and joy though were the small fairy lights that subtly hung throughout his room, draping off his mirror and onto the black frame of his bed and then down behind the bedside cabinet. His astrology collection was the one thing he was proud of.
The young teen had black fluffy hair, wide eyes and puffy lips. To say that he was picked on would be an understatement, his nickname was "Alien" from day one. But to Kyungsoo he just thought how cool it would be to be an actual alien. He had a feeling the nickname was due to his larger eyes, he was sometimes referred to as "owl" too. But his mum of course, always said his eyes were pretty. That they held constellations of their very own, and that they held no resemblance to alien eyes at all.
Naturally, Kyungsoo denied these comments about being pretty, being a pretty teen boy was hard.
As far as Kyungsoo was concerned, the stars were his only friends.
--
8:01am
"Kyungsoo, are you awake yet?!"
What!? Kyungsoo shoots upright in bed, a massive wave of nausea hits him like a tonne of bricks. He sways back and forth as he feels all the blood suddenly drain from his head. The lines between reality and fantasy blur and fade into a swirling mess of morning light and galaxy posters.
All this fades when his bedroom door flies open, presenting his mum at the door with a stern look on her face,
"Get up, you're gonna be late. Out the door in 15 minutes Soo!"
Today was going to be rough.
Lunch had just started so decided to head to his usual hangout, the library.
He mindlessly walked down the hallway contemplating what he would do in the case of a zombie apocalypse. The students were all rushing in the opposite direction to him while he conjured up the scenario in his head. Lots of people flocking towards the canteen reminded him of a horror situation. He started imagining that a massive hoard of zombies got into the school; thinking that this would probably be a similar looking reaction. He came up with a plan in his head while making his way through the crowd:
Step 1: Raid the staff room; teachers always have secret biscuit stashes.
Step 2: Find the nearest -Oomph-
Kyungsoo collided head first into someone's shoulder. Being the smaller one, he fell backwards onto the ground and his bag sliding across the cold tiled floor.
The world around him now consisted of the sound of people stepping dangerously close to his head. He recoiled into himself in fear.
"Oh my god, I’m so sorry!"
A startled voice crouched down towards him.
Kyungsoo was pulled up by the by the other guy and he could feel his legs shaking, He opened his eyes and stared at him. He was familiar but the only two things on Kyungsoo's mind was how sweaty his hand was becoming, interlaced with the other's, A sure sign of nervousness on his own part. And the other guy’s defined jaw line. It looked like it had been chiselled by the God’s, he wouldn’t mind inspecting it closer.
They awkwardly released hands and the taller handed him his school bag.
"I'm sorry again, are you okay? I think you hit your head."
"Uh yeah, it's fine. I don't usually make a habit of running straight into strangers."
An awkward beat of silence passed, the familiar boy blushed slightly; Kyungsoo told himself it was a trick of the light.
The activity in the hallway around them began to slow down so their voices echoed off of the lockers.
"Well you're in my Science I think, so we're not technically strangers, Kyungsoo right? I'm Jongin."
Jongin laughed awkwardly, Kyungsoo stuffed his hand into his coat pockets and said goodbye and thank you to him. They walked past each other quickly with a smile on both of their faces, Kyungsoo would never admit it but he thought Jongin's smile was beautiful, Kyungsoo now felt slightly less dead than usual. In fact, his cheeks were hot throughout the entire 45-minute lunch break and he couldn't stop smiling.
Apart from that his day carried on with no more disruptions, he went home feeling pretty neutral about life.
Jongin was popular in school, he didn't have to deal with being bullied even though he was a dancer and loved fashion, all traits that would usually have target written all over them, instead, he hung around with the bullies, the top of the social hierarchy. But he wasn't one of their group, he didn't get any inside jokes and gags that they laughed about or hang around with the popular people outside of school after football practice, the only reason they let him stay was because of Sehun. Sehun, his best friend since childhood, the boy that was always invited to birthday parties and given valentines cards in his school tray in year one.
Jongin just put up with being his “plus one” to everything, because if he left, the gangs would circle him like hungry vultures, ready to make his life a living hell. All this aside, Jongin couldn’t help the feeling of imprisonment sinking into his gut and making his head thump painfully whenever he sat with them, making minimal input to the conversation.
He wanted to be himself for once, to be able to openly discuss his guy crushes while also gushing over anime with his friends, to talk about the lame things his favourite artists were doing and have stupid, nonsensical dance offs in his living room. But that couldn't happen. None of it could, not until he found friends to be himself with. But of course he trusted Sehun to know his little secret, and in turn Sehun had told him about the time he hooked up with one of the football players at a party one night, Sehun blamed the alcohol for his actions but Jongin knew Sehun didn’t like drinking all that much, but went along with his story anyway. Fast forward to Sehun crying into the elder's shoulder about said football player going out with some girl in his maths class and ignoring him completely. They listened to Adele and cuddled all day to make him feel better.
Purposefully never telling his bestie about a crush he has on a certain someone though.
Kyungsoo wasn’t popular, he’d come home crying some days because people would spread implausible rumours about him doing undignified things, to put it nicely. He’d had his fair share of physical encounters with gangs but they backed off after a while, knowing that messing with him mentally got under his skin just as much as physically did and without as much effort as beating him up either. He was easy to manipulate.
Kyungsoo, was very nonchalant about sexuality, unlike Jongin who was an uncertain mess, he realised a few years ago that he often had crushes on guys in his maths revision sessions at lunch but pushed his thoughts aside when he came to the conclusion that he'd start getting beaten up again if anyone found out, and besides, his feelings for other crushes were easily forgotten, they were only small crushes. This is why his sudden affection towards Jongin who sits a row behind him in Science (and Geography apparently) caught him off guard. He hadn't had a serious crush in forever and found himself staring at Jongin in Science and listing off all the features he liked about the other, keeping a mental note of his soft voice in his head. But Jongin usually wore a frown on his face, the one thing he didn’t like was a frowning Jongin.
Kyungsoo was propped up against his headboard reading a chunky book about star signs when his phone lit up next to him. Inside had an entire calendar for the year and what each day held for him and apparently every other Capricorn though Kyungsoo wasn’t dumb and knew it was all rubbish but a little fun never hurt anyone. He finally put down the book and picked up his phone to see a message from Chanyeol.
Channy:
The forecast looks clear tonight m8, 7:30 where we usually meet?
6:56pm
Ksoo:
It’s tooo cold, I’d rather die. Let me live Chanyeol.
6:58pm
Channy:
Pleeeaaaaasseeeee
I won’t stop until you say yes
Y’know u wanna
!!
7:00pm
Kyungsoo spent a couple of minutes contemplating leaving his heated room for the nasty outside world, finally deciding that a catch up with his best friend is something they haven’t done for a while.
Ksoo:
Fineeeeeee
Bring extra blankets tho,
Don’t b late :<
7:03pm
Kyungsoo swung his short legs out of bed and got dressed into some extra layers. He grabbed a bag, his favourite astrology books and a spare pair of clothes and scrambled downstairs.
“Muuum, I’m going round Chanyeol’s, I’ll be back tomorrow. Love you!” He blurted out basically all in one breath, hoping to get out the door before she asked questions
He tried to get out the door before his mum could protest but his small legs weren’t speedy enough.
“Hold on, it’s nearly 10 past 7... if you think you’re walking to Chanyeol’s at this time then-“
“He said he’d meet me halfway, no worries, I’ll text you when I’m there. Bye mum!”
Kyungsoo’s mum could hardly get another word in before he rushed out of the door, hoping to avoid any further questioning. He wasn’t going straight to Chanyeol’s though like he had made out to his mum, they were taking a quick detour together to their usual spot.
Kyungsoo quickly walked through the suburban streets of the village he lived in. It was quite a large village and only a few minutes’ drive from the nearest town centre so things were never quiet due to all the people passing through and people stumbling along at the weekends, barely able to stand up straight.
But Kyungsoo liked quiet. So a few years back he found a dog walking field tucked away behind a local kids park. But this wasn’t really the place to find tranquillity either because of the unimaginable amount of dog litter you’d find if you ever dared to lie down in the grass, Kyungsoo found that out the hard way. But behind that, behind a small wooden fence that was slightly easier to get through than the others, was a quiet field, no people, no dogs, only stars and puffs of his own breath floating off into the atmosphere at night.
He put his arms through the straps of his backpack and swiftly zipped up his coat, he could feel the bitter cold seeping up through his sleeves and sending cold shakes through his body. Chanyeol said it’d be clear but he failed to mention the near freezing temperature.
The trees all along the dirt track thrashed back and forth against the wind. The long thorny branches reaching out to grab him and pull him into the void. The walkway to the dog field was a lot less daunting in daylight; his pace increased as he rushed with tunnel vision through the winding mud path towards the opening of trees ahead. As he approached the gap, he noticed a tall dark figure standing out in the open field among the grass, and all of a sudden his mind went into overdrive. With the lack of light, Kyungsoo couldn’t make out what direction the mysterious mass was moving in so stood completely still. Like in dinosaur movies, he won’t be seen if he stays still.
All the distress he felt in that moment though slipped away when he heard a familiar voice shouting “Ah shit, what the shit, eugh!”
“Chanyeol? Are you ever quiet for God’s sake? What’s up?!”
He smirked as he witnessed Chanyeol leap 5ft into the air at the sound of his voice.
The large boy stomped his way over towards a bemused Kyungsoo, if only the older intimidated him. His nose picked up a foul smell right away as Chanyeol got closer to him, his face involuntarily scrunching up.
“I just fell into shit! Here I am trying to cross this bloody field when I trip on a big lump of mud, straight into recycled dog food! Ughhh!”
Kyungsoo started wheezing at the way Chanyeol used big animated gestures to re-tell events.
“Well you can throw that jacket in the bushes or I’m laying by myself, you smelly oaf!”
Chanyeol grumbles but quickly discarded of the ruined jacket, at least the damage was only done on one piece of clothing, he didn’t like the jacket much anyways.
Both teens pushed against the fence, it had become detached from the fence post and was easy enough to push and slide past. They both made it through without a hitch and walked to the middle of the grass, Chanyeol unpacked his backpack and laid out two chequered blankets, wrapping one around his shoulders as a jacket replacement. Both of them settled down next to each other, Kyungsoo takes the comfortable silence to get the latest news on Chanyeol’s weekend plans. Mostly to try and talk him out of it.
“Chan, are you still going to Xiumin’s party tomorrow?”
Kyungsoo looked up at the clear night sky and followed the imaginary lines of the constellations that he recognised.
“Uh yeah but it’s been moved to Sunday now, not tomorrow. Which means I still have time to convince you to go with me.” Kyungsoo felt a pang of guilt about rejecting in the first place.
Kyungsoo grumbled as Chanyeol nudged his side with his bony elbow, so he retaliated with a balled up fist to the arm.
“I told you, I’d really rather not spend my night around loads of drunk people flirting with each other. I’d rather you come to mine and we watch movies and eat popcorn together. Plus, if you haven’t noticed we’re 17 and underage. That’s illegal, stupid!” Kyungsoo exclaims.
“I know Soo, but think about it, this isn’t one of those “popular people only” parties. It’s literally just “come if you want, there’s alcohol” and everyone’s going Soo. You’d enjoy yourself I bet!”
Chanyeol’s over excited tone made him actually consider it for a moment or two, his eyebrows scrunched together as he wondered what he’d even wear, how formal was a piss up?
The delay was noticed by Chanyeol who just grew more excited, he quickly sat up.
“You’re thinking about it! Oh please please please best friend?”
“Fine, I guess I could go for a bit, but if I get hit or hit on I’m leaving.”
Chanyeol smiled and laid back down onto the blankets, they spent the rest of their time talking about deep things like the edge of the ever expanding universe and fate. Kyungsoo threw facts at Chanyeol like “did you know that stars don’t twinkle” Chanyeol’s surprised face was exactly the reaction he expected, it was a simple fact that seemed to bewilder everyone, and more complex things like the process of our sun turning into a “Red Giant” star and how the expansion of the sun will happen when it finally dies in a few million years, Engulfing Mercury, Venus, and Earth.
Chanyeol took a genuine interest in Kyungsoo’s love for outer space and would sometimes pester him to tell him facts about stars and planets and constellations. Fascinated by how such intelligent things could be stored by such a young brain.
Kyungsoo unzipped his bag to find his book on “Spotting and identifying constellations”. He shone his phone torch onto the page and pointed up into the sky, they spent most of the night laughing about Chanyeol’s horrible recognition skills and his unwillingness to call “the big dipper” its actual name Ursa Major saying that it sounds too much like Ursula from the little mermaid.
They both settled down back into the blanket again but now Kyungsoo was feeling the cold, his whole body started to stiffen and freeze like an ice cube, the sound of his teeth chattering alerted Chanyeol who shuffled closer to Kyungsoo and wrapped his blanket and arms around the younger. He would usually push the giant away but felt the warmth from being hugged by Chanyeol so buried his head closer into his chest. He felt his eyelids become like anvils as he fought to keep them open, it must have been about 11 pm already and he couldn’t fight the overwhelming urge to sleep.
Kyungsoo became very cute and affectionate when he was extremely tired, not really being the monster he came across as and showing that Kyungsoo secretly really appreciated the closeness of their friendship so that he could do things like receive cuddles and have his hair stroked.
Chanyeol slowly reached over and tucked his friend's books back into his bag and slung it onto his own shoulder, he carefully pulled Kyungsoo up so that he was leaning against him, but his eyes were closed. He used his foot to hook the blankets up to his hands and carelessly stuffed them into the plastic bag. He looped his arm around Kyungsoo’s waist and guided the sleepy boy towards the fence, he held the younger closer to him to make sure he didn’t fall and they made their way back through the long muddy track that leads to the field.
As soon as they got back to Chanyeol’s Kyungsoo threw himself into bed, falling into a heavy sleep without a thought about leaving enough space for Chanyeol even though it was his bed.
Chanyeol rolled the sound asleep corpse over and climbed into bed at 11:57 pm. At least the party `wasn’t tomorrow or he’d have no energy left.
Saturday was filled with watching movies and laying on the sofa with the duvet for hours on end. Kyungsoo had gotten the all clear from mother Do to stay over Chanyeol’s for Sunday with the exception that he goes back home to pick up his school uniform for Monday.
Him and Chanyeol went back to his to pick out clothes for the party the next day but also to pick up his God awful school uniform, the pair rummaged through his wardrobe, picking out what Chanyeol thought was hot enough so that he could pull, Chanyeol did have better fashion sense than him Kyungsoo thought to himself, If it was up to him he would wear grandad jumpers with really long sleeves and big round glasses all day.
Chanyeol picked out his tightest pair of black skinny years and a baggy grey t-shirt that he accidentally bought a few sizes too big so it hung off one of his shoulders, showing his pale freckled skin but Kyungsoo hated it.
“This just makes me look even smaller than I am already, how is that hot?”
Kyungsoo felt irritated that he looked like a 5-year-old in these clothes and refused to go anywhere with the baggy top on, he didn’t get the appeal.
“Do you want me to spell it out for you? Those jeans back your ass look stellar, and the off the shoulder thing makes you look very submissive, its hot trust me on this, have you seen Baekhyun before? DAMN!” Chanyeol smirked at the thought of his boyfriend being the sub he was at heart.
Chanyeol was insistent that those were the clothes that would catch a cute boy’s eye, he also knew that a certain someone was going to the party and that this was the perfect opportunity to get Kyungsoo to stop staring at Jongin whenever he saw him, then denying that he even knew of Jongin’s existence. Chanyeol refused to look for any other clothes and packed his bag full of stuff for another overnight stay and for school on Monday, they headed back to his and played just dance 3 on Chanyeol’s Xbox until both of them were sweaty.
--
“I look awful omg, why did he drag me into this, I might faint!”
Kyungsoo thought to himself as he did a 360 turn in the mirror, Chanyeol had put eyeliner on him like Baekhyun had taught him to, his black hair was slicked back with a side parting and he was wearing the outfit he hated and that didn’t even keep him warm. Chanyeol came out of his bathroom wearing light blue jeans and a white button up t-shirt tucked in. Kyungsoo really didn’t want to go.
Chanyeol was grinning as he struggled to fit his massive phone in his pockets, complimenting him on his hotness saying he looked on point. He wanted to kill himself right there and then.
The party was as daunting as he thought it would be, the booming music being heard from outside the house, they took at 15-minute walk to Xiumin’s house and arrived half an hour late so that the party was already in full swing.
Kyungsoo was ushered into the house by Chanyeol who was immediately greeted by Minseok. They were both passed a red plastic cup accompanied with a pat on the back, the living room was filled with people standing around talking, dancing, and sitting but he didn’t know where to start, he couldn’t just go up to someone and start a conversation could he? He started to panic, the dense crowd pushed against his body, making him squirm away from any physical contact, the sweaty room was almost unbearable to be in but he carried on walking towards the table with the drinks on.
He looked at the selection of alcohol that they had, it was mostly beer and an array of spirits, he meekly picked up a bottle of beer and wondered what the use of the cup was if there were already bottles? Kyungsoo fiddled with the label on his bottle as he spoke to Chanyeol only to turn around and be met with an empty space. He groaned and took a big swig of his beer.
He took a few more small gulps and then suddenly swore someone was calling his name, he couldn’t be that much of a lightweight surely? The calling got closer and suddenly he felt a warm hand holding onto his wrist, the long fingers curling round his wrist and heating up his skin, his pulse was through the roof as he stared straight into a pair of gorgeous brown eyes, he knew it was Jongin. The hand let go of him and Jongin took a small step back, he swayed slightly on the spot though which made Kyungsoo worry about him. He had a small smile on his face and poked Kyungsoo’s chest.
“You’re Kyungsoo, I know you, wanna dance with me Kyungie~” Jongin slurred his words slightly when saying the impromptu nickname; he wiggled his eyebrows then started giggling to himself at the movement of his brows.
Kyungsoo held his hands up insisting that he was the most uncoordinated human to ever walk the earth, and he was completely serious but Jongin just laughed and held his hand out to Kyungsoo.
“I’ll teach you!” The younger boy grinned as he jumped up and down on the spot like a toddler.
Kyungsoo took his hand only to be dragged off into the middle of the dancing crowd in the living room, Jongin smiled sincerely at him and lifted their connected hand over Kyungsoo’s head, he gave a little motion with the other hand to tell Kyungsoo to twirl, and Kyungsoo’s face was on fire. It wasn’t really the music to twirl to, the playlist was mostly full of throwback R&B songs that everyone seemed to enjoy, but Jongin didn’t seem care. Kyungsoo ducked under their hands and did a slow twirl, he looked at Jongin once again and decided to do the same to him, he held up their hands and Jongin was willing to twirl the night away.
Their hands switched from the all fingers one side position, to the each finger interlocking position which Kyungsoo took a mental note of. He also realised he left his beer bottle on the table but continued to dance with Jongin.
When the song changed Kyungsoo saw lights go off inside Jongin’s eyes, the beat came in and Jongin did a sequence of sharp body pops in time with the rhythm. At this point, their hands were disconnected and Kyungsoo was just watching in awe at Jongin’s drunken dancing, it was still breath taking somehow.
Jongin shouted, “Try it!” over the loud music, he pops his chest out in one quick movement and motions for Kyungsoo to do the same, Kyungsoo just laughs and shouts, “I can’t!” back at him, Jongin seems to take it as a challenge. He circles behind Kyungsoo, his height advantage meaning he can put his head next to Kyungsoo’s and above his shoulder without straining his neck. Jongin lays one hand flat on Kyungsoo’s chest, the thin material of his shirt bunching up slightly and pushes the top further down his shoulder. The other hand goes to rest lightly on his back. Jongin lowers his head to Kyungsoo’s ear and whispers.
“It’s easy, follow my hands.”
Jongin acts like a puppeteer, guiding Kyungsoo’s chest in and out in time with the music, progressively getting faster. If only Jongin could see himself pulling on his heartstrings. The teaching that Jongin was doing quickly faded into Jongin dancing with his chest pressed against Kyungsoo’s back, everything inside Kyungsoo was screaming. There wasn’t any grinding or sexual advances but Kyungsoo could feel himself being held against a strong chest and Jongin’s head way laying on his shoulder still. His head was thumping and his stomach doing backflips. His crush was right against him, Kyungsoo felt so nervous to move or say anything that he started to panic more than usual. He felt sick and like he would wake up any minute now and this would all be a big sick dream. Destructive thoughts raced through his mind until he couldn’t take it anymore.
Kyungsoo pushed away the hands that were gently wrapped around his waist and ran through the house until he found the back garden. He took no notice of the other drunk people around and collapsed to the ground, the soft grass cushioning his drop slightly. He sat crossed legged with his hands covering his face as tears of anxiety started to run down his face.
I’ve ruined everything. He probably thinks I’m a total weirdo! Why did I run away, he was so sweet and gentle with me like I always imagined him to be ughhh, but he probably didn’t even like me anyways, just the alcohol talking. He’s gonna tell everyone about how much of a loser I am and he’ll turn against me.
These thoughts rushed through his head until he wiped his eyes and saw a blurry Jongin headed towards him, but this time wearing a concerned expression. Kyungsoo pulled his knees to his chest and his beneath his own arms. The older just sat beside him in silence, Kyungsoo usually loved silence but not when it’s overrun by the sound of his sobbing.
“Was I too forward?” Jongin asked in a small voice, the alcohol seemed to have started wearing off ever since he put his hands on Kyungsoo’s chest. He seemed more serious and at least now he wasn’t slurring his words.
Kyungsoo sniffled a no and cautiously lifted his head to see Jongin’s worried expression. He deserved an explanation of some sorts so Kyungsoo shifted closer to him a little.
“It was all a bit too overwhelming that’s all, I-I didn’t even want to come tonight and when y-you came up to me-e I thought I was dreaming, you’re fla-awless and beautiful and I’m just not, so when you danced with me I felt so warm and protected-“ Kyungsoo sniffled, he stopped to prevent himself from rambling on even more. His head flopped back against his knees, he was never going to forget this embarrassing night now.
But Jongin was having none of it, he wrapped an arm around Kyungsoo’s small frame and gave his sides small circular rubs with his fingertips. He took his phone out of his pocket with one hand while keeping the other one around Kyungsoo. He put the phone into the small boy’s hands.
“You should put your number in there, you’re really interesting Kyungsoo.”
Kyungsoo scoffed.
“I don’t think you’d find what I like interesting.” He commented as he tapped away at Jongin’s phone.
“What do you like, then? It can’t be that boring.” Jongin smirked.
Kyungsoo became shy again, handing Jongin’s phone back to him.
“I like space and stars in particular.” Kyungsoo murmured burying his head in his hands self-consciously.
Jongin laughed “See that’s cool, and the stars are out tonight” Jongin said shuffling to cuddle behind Kyungsoo, with the excuse that Kyungsoo was shaking like a leaf in just a t-shirt. “I’m gonna call your contact Starboy.” Kyungsoo tensed at the feeling of Jongin’s arms wrapped around his torso.
“You don’t have to be worried around me, I don’t bite, and hey maybe you could share some of your space knowledge with me, you could tell me what it’s like to be as beautiful as the shining stars.” Jongin smiled down in amusement at Kyungsoo’s embarrassment etched into his rosy cheeks. Maybe the alcohol hadn’t completely worn off yet, it always made Jongin cheekier.
Jongin took off his jacket and placed it over Kyungsoo’s shoulders, then returned his arms around his waist again. Kyungsoo hesitantly leant back into Jongin’s chest like before, but this time he felt at ease with the embrace and never wanted to move. Relief washed over his body when he heard a small chuckle and strong arms keeping him in place.
They stayed there for what felt like years until Chanyeol came out into the garden looking down at the pair snuggled in the grass together. He had the biggest smirk on his face and Kyungsoo could tell he was gonna try to wind him up.
“Kyungsoo I was thinking, you were absolutely right, coming was a bad idea, let’s go back to mine now…plus I thought you said if you got hit on you were gonna go.” Chanyeol declared while waving his bottle around everywhere, the alcohol inside slushing all over the floor, a shit-eating grin on his face.
“Chan, please don’t quote what I said, I was wrong, besides it’s only-“ Kyungsoo momentarily paused to check his phone but was taken aback by the time, half-eleven Kyungsoo sighed, realising that although the last thing he wanted to do was leave Jongin, he had to get at least a few hours of sleep. He shuffled away from Jongin with an apologetic smile “I guess we should get going, ya know, school tomorrow.” Jongin nodded, obviously trying to mask the disappointed look on his face.
Jongin’s legs were still open to where Kyungsoo was sat between them, he smiled and waved as Kyungsoo dragged a shocked looking Chanyeol away. All he heard in the distance was Chanyeol’s whiny voice “I was joking Sooooo ugh!”
Jongin stared down at his new contact Starboy, a burst of happiness erupted inside him, he propped his back up against the wall of the house with a sigh when a cold gust of wind reminded him that Kyungsoo still had his black jacket on. The happiness inside of him tripled as he imagined Kyungsoo walking around in Jongin’s jacket that was too big for him. He pictured the beautiful boy curled up in bed with his clothing to keep him warm, Jongin left the party not long after Kyungsoo, finding himself falling asleep easily even with so many things whizzing around in his head. Kyungsoo’s beauty calmed him.
Little did Jongin know that Kyungsoo loved the smell of his jacket that he slept in it all night in hopes of getting closer to Jongin.
part ii
Title: StarBoy
Genre: romance, smut, slight angst
Rating: N-17
Side Pairings (if any): Mentions of ChanBaek
Warnings: [Click to view]underage drinking
Word Count: 10594
Summary: A space loving boy meets a dancer.
Author's Note: Idk if it’s too long but I hope you enjoy.
The rush of busy parents hurrying past his back sent shivers down Kyungsoo's spine, making the small hairs on his arms stand on end. The hustle and bustle of parents evening was always majorly off-putting to the young Soo, so he stayed within his own little metaphorical mind bubble whilst the teacher spoke about him in a condescending tone to his mum and dad.
"I really do think that little Kyungsoo here is rather capable of being a very bright student, but he just needs to apply himself more. maybe... Engage with others.” How dare she call him little, the old hag, he was the same age as everyone else in his year. Just because he wasn’t the tallest didn’t mean he was a 5-year-old.
She stared down at him as if he'd failed at being a 17-year-old somehow (God he couldn’t wait to leave this school). Her deep set wrinkles curving into a look of superiority and her purple glasses sliding down the bridge of her nose. But Kyungsoo said nothing. Instead, he nodded, wanting to get home quicker and quicker by the minute.
The car journey stayed mostly silent. Kyungsoo was preoccupied with the twinkling stars, although he knew that the stars didn’t actually twinkle. It was just the light being emitted from the stars having to pass through the earth’s turbulent atmosphere, which caused the stars to appear as twinkling. But that took away some of the magic, so he smiled happily with his head against his palm as he imagined the stars twinkling for real.
As soon as the car pulled into their driveway Kyungsoo flung the car door open and speed walked into the house, his mum was close behind and pulled him into the kitchen suddenly.
"Soo, I know I promised not to bug you anymore about this but-"
She said in a begging tone, before being cut off.
"Mum, I can't help if no one likes me, so no, I'm not going to chess club."
His mother let out a deep sigh as he dashed up the stairs to his room.
His bedroom walls were covered in everything astrology. Maps, charts, pictures, drawings. He had stacks of books in the corners of his room and glow in the dark plastic stars stuck to the ceiling. His pride and joy though were the small fairy lights that subtly hung throughout his room, draping off his mirror and onto the black frame of his bed and then down behind the bedside cabinet. His astrology collection was the one thing he was proud of.
The young teen had black fluffy hair, wide eyes and puffy lips. To say that he was picked on would be an understatement, his nickname was "Alien" from day one. But to Kyungsoo he just thought how cool it would be to be an actual alien. He had a feeling the nickname was due to his larger eyes, he was sometimes referred to as "owl" too. But his mum of course, always said his eyes were pretty. That they held constellations of their very own, and that they held no resemblance to alien eyes at all.
Naturally, Kyungsoo denied these comments about being pretty, being a pretty teen boy was hard.
As far as Kyungsoo was concerned, the stars were his only friends.
--
8:01am
"Kyungsoo, are you awake yet?!"
What!? Kyungsoo shoots upright in bed, a massive wave of nausea hits him like a tonne of bricks. He sways back and forth as he feels all the blood suddenly drain from his head. The lines between reality and fantasy blur and fade into a swirling mess of morning light and galaxy posters.
All this fades when his bedroom door flies open, presenting his mum at the door with a stern look on her face,
"Get up, you're gonna be late. Out the door in 15 minutes Soo!"
Today was going to be rough.
Lunch had just started so decided to head to his usual hangout, the library.
He mindlessly walked down the hallway contemplating what he would do in the case of a zombie apocalypse. The students were all rushing in the opposite direction to him while he conjured up the scenario in his head. Lots of people flocking towards the canteen reminded him of a horror situation. He started imagining that a massive hoard of zombies got into the school; thinking that this would probably be a similar looking reaction. He came up with a plan in his head while making his way through the crowd:
Step 1: Raid the staff room; teachers always have secret biscuit stashes.
Step 2: Find the nearest -Oomph-
Kyungsoo collided head first into someone's shoulder. Being the smaller one, he fell backwards onto the ground and his bag sliding across the cold tiled floor.
The world around him now consisted of the sound of people stepping dangerously close to his head. He recoiled into himself in fear.
"Oh my god, I’m so sorry!"
A startled voice crouched down towards him.
Kyungsoo was pulled up by the by the other guy and he could feel his legs shaking, He opened his eyes and stared at him. He was familiar but the only two things on Kyungsoo's mind was how sweaty his hand was becoming, interlaced with the other's, A sure sign of nervousness on his own part. And the other guy’s defined jaw line. It looked like it had been chiselled by the God’s, he wouldn’t mind inspecting it closer.
They awkwardly released hands and the taller handed him his school bag.
"I'm sorry again, are you okay? I think you hit your head."
"Uh yeah, it's fine. I don't usually make a habit of running straight into strangers."
An awkward beat of silence passed, the familiar boy blushed slightly; Kyungsoo told himself it was a trick of the light.
The activity in the hallway around them began to slow down so their voices echoed off of the lockers.
"Well you're in my Science I think, so we're not technically strangers, Kyungsoo right? I'm Jongin."
Jongin laughed awkwardly, Kyungsoo stuffed his hand into his coat pockets and said goodbye and thank you to him. They walked past each other quickly with a smile on both of their faces, Kyungsoo would never admit it but he thought Jongin's smile was beautiful, Kyungsoo now felt slightly less dead than usual. In fact, his cheeks were hot throughout the entire 45-minute lunch break and he couldn't stop smiling.
Apart from that his day carried on with no more disruptions, he went home feeling pretty neutral about life.
Jongin was popular in school, he didn't have to deal with being bullied even though he was a dancer and loved fashion, all traits that would usually have target written all over them, instead, he hung around with the bullies, the top of the social hierarchy. But he wasn't one of their group, he didn't get any inside jokes and gags that they laughed about or hang around with the popular people outside of school after football practice, the only reason they let him stay was because of Sehun. Sehun, his best friend since childhood, the boy that was always invited to birthday parties and given valentines cards in his school tray in year one.
Jongin just put up with being his “plus one” to everything, because if he left, the gangs would circle him like hungry vultures, ready to make his life a living hell. All this aside, Jongin couldn’t help the feeling of imprisonment sinking into his gut and making his head thump painfully whenever he sat with them, making minimal input to the conversation.
He wanted to be himself for once, to be able to openly discuss his guy crushes while also gushing over anime with his friends, to talk about the lame things his favourite artists were doing and have stupid, nonsensical dance offs in his living room. But that couldn't happen. None of it could, not until he found friends to be himself with. But of course he trusted Sehun to know his little secret, and in turn Sehun had told him about the time he hooked up with one of the football players at a party one night, Sehun blamed the alcohol for his actions but Jongin knew Sehun didn’t like drinking all that much, but went along with his story anyway. Fast forward to Sehun crying into the elder's shoulder about said football player going out with some girl in his maths class and ignoring him completely. They listened to Adele and cuddled all day to make him feel better.
Purposefully never telling his bestie about a crush he has on a certain someone though.
Kyungsoo wasn’t popular, he’d come home crying some days because people would spread implausible rumours about him doing undignified things, to put it nicely. He’d had his fair share of physical encounters with gangs but they backed off after a while, knowing that messing with him mentally got under his skin just as much as physically did and without as much effort as beating him up either. He was easy to manipulate.
Kyungsoo, was very nonchalant about sexuality, unlike Jongin who was an uncertain mess, he realised a few years ago that he often had crushes on guys in his maths revision sessions at lunch but pushed his thoughts aside when he came to the conclusion that he'd start getting beaten up again if anyone found out, and besides, his feelings for other crushes were easily forgotten, they were only small crushes. This is why his sudden affection towards Jongin who sits a row behind him in Science (and Geography apparently) caught him off guard. He hadn't had a serious crush in forever and found himself staring at Jongin in Science and listing off all the features he liked about the other, keeping a mental note of his soft voice in his head. But Jongin usually wore a frown on his face, the one thing he didn’t like was a frowning Jongin.
Kyungsoo was propped up against his headboard reading a chunky book about star signs when his phone lit up next to him. Inside had an entire calendar for the year and what each day held for him and apparently every other Capricorn though Kyungsoo wasn’t dumb and knew it was all rubbish but a little fun never hurt anyone. He finally put down the book and picked up his phone to see a message from Chanyeol.
Channy:
The forecast looks clear tonight m8, 7:30 where we usually meet?
6:56pm
Ksoo:
It’s tooo cold, I’d rather die. Let me live Chanyeol.
6:58pm
Channy:
Pleeeaaaaasseeeee
I won’t stop until you say yes
Y’know u wanna
!!
7:00pm
Kyungsoo spent a couple of minutes contemplating leaving his heated room for the nasty outside world, finally deciding that a catch up with his best friend is something they haven’t done for a while.
Ksoo:
Fineeeeeee
Bring extra blankets tho,
Don’t b late :<
7:03pm
Kyungsoo swung his short legs out of bed and got dressed into some extra layers. He grabbed a bag, his favourite astrology books and a spare pair of clothes and scrambled downstairs.
“Muuum, I’m going round Chanyeol’s, I’ll be back tomorrow. Love you!” He blurted out basically all in one breath, hoping to get out the door before she asked questions
He tried to get out the door before his mum could protest but his small legs weren’t speedy enough.
“Hold on, it’s nearly 10 past 7... if you think you’re walking to Chanyeol’s at this time then-“
“He said he’d meet me halfway, no worries, I’ll text you when I’m there. Bye mum!”
Kyungsoo’s mum could hardly get another word in before he rushed out of the door, hoping to avoid any further questioning. He wasn’t going straight to Chanyeol’s though like he had made out to his mum, they were taking a quick detour together to their usual spot.
Kyungsoo quickly walked through the suburban streets of the village he lived in. It was quite a large village and only a few minutes’ drive from the nearest town centre so things were never quiet due to all the people passing through and people stumbling along at the weekends, barely able to stand up straight.
But Kyungsoo liked quiet. So a few years back he found a dog walking field tucked away behind a local kids park. But this wasn’t really the place to find tranquillity either because of the unimaginable amount of dog litter you’d find if you ever dared to lie down in the grass, Kyungsoo found that out the hard way. But behind that, behind a small wooden fence that was slightly easier to get through than the others, was a quiet field, no people, no dogs, only stars and puffs of his own breath floating off into the atmosphere at night.
He put his arms through the straps of his backpack and swiftly zipped up his coat, he could feel the bitter cold seeping up through his sleeves and sending cold shakes through his body. Chanyeol said it’d be clear but he failed to mention the near freezing temperature.
The trees all along the dirt track thrashed back and forth against the wind. The long thorny branches reaching out to grab him and pull him into the void. The walkway to the dog field was a lot less daunting in daylight; his pace increased as he rushed with tunnel vision through the winding mud path towards the opening of trees ahead. As he approached the gap, he noticed a tall dark figure standing out in the open field among the grass, and all of a sudden his mind went into overdrive. With the lack of light, Kyungsoo couldn’t make out what direction the mysterious mass was moving in so stood completely still. Like in dinosaur movies, he won’t be seen if he stays still.
All the distress he felt in that moment though slipped away when he heard a familiar voice shouting “Ah shit, what the shit, eugh!”
“Chanyeol? Are you ever quiet for God’s sake? What’s up?!”
He smirked as he witnessed Chanyeol leap 5ft into the air at the sound of his voice.
The large boy stomped his way over towards a bemused Kyungsoo, if only the older intimidated him. His nose picked up a foul smell right away as Chanyeol got closer to him, his face involuntarily scrunching up.
“I just fell into shit! Here I am trying to cross this bloody field when I trip on a big lump of mud, straight into recycled dog food! Ughhh!”
Kyungsoo started wheezing at the way Chanyeol used big animated gestures to re-tell events.
“Well you can throw that jacket in the bushes or I’m laying by myself, you smelly oaf!”
Chanyeol grumbles but quickly discarded of the ruined jacket, at least the damage was only done on one piece of clothing, he didn’t like the jacket much anyways.
Both teens pushed against the fence, it had become detached from the fence post and was easy enough to push and slide past. They both made it through without a hitch and walked to the middle of the grass, Chanyeol unpacked his backpack and laid out two chequered blankets, wrapping one around his shoulders as a jacket replacement. Both of them settled down next to each other, Kyungsoo takes the comfortable silence to get the latest news on Chanyeol’s weekend plans. Mostly to try and talk him out of it.
“Chan, are you still going to Xiumin’s party tomorrow?”
Kyungsoo looked up at the clear night sky and followed the imaginary lines of the constellations that he recognised.
“Uh yeah but it’s been moved to Sunday now, not tomorrow. Which means I still have time to convince you to go with me.” Kyungsoo felt a pang of guilt about rejecting in the first place.
Kyungsoo grumbled as Chanyeol nudged his side with his bony elbow, so he retaliated with a balled up fist to the arm.
“I told you, I’d really rather not spend my night around loads of drunk people flirting with each other. I’d rather you come to mine and we watch movies and eat popcorn together. Plus, if you haven’t noticed we’re 17 and underage. That’s illegal, stupid!” Kyungsoo exclaims.
“I know Soo, but think about it, this isn’t one of those “popular people only” parties. It’s literally just “come if you want, there’s alcohol” and everyone’s going Soo. You’d enjoy yourself I bet!”
Chanyeol’s over excited tone made him actually consider it for a moment or two, his eyebrows scrunched together as he wondered what he’d even wear, how formal was a piss up?
The delay was noticed by Chanyeol who just grew more excited, he quickly sat up.
“You’re thinking about it! Oh please please please best friend?”
“Fine, I guess I could go for a bit, but if I get hit or hit on I’m leaving.”
Chanyeol smiled and laid back down onto the blankets, they spent the rest of their time talking about deep things like the edge of the ever expanding universe and fate. Kyungsoo threw facts at Chanyeol like “did you know that stars don’t twinkle” Chanyeol’s surprised face was exactly the reaction he expected, it was a simple fact that seemed to bewilder everyone, and more complex things like the process of our sun turning into a “Red Giant” star and how the expansion of the sun will happen when it finally dies in a few million years, Engulfing Mercury, Venus, and Earth.
Chanyeol took a genuine interest in Kyungsoo’s love for outer space and would sometimes pester him to tell him facts about stars and planets and constellations. Fascinated by how such intelligent things could be stored by such a young brain.
Kyungsoo unzipped his bag to find his book on “Spotting and identifying constellations”. He shone his phone torch onto the page and pointed up into the sky, they spent most of the night laughing about Chanyeol’s horrible recognition skills and his unwillingness to call “the big dipper” its actual name Ursa Major saying that it sounds too much like Ursula from the little mermaid.
They both settled down back into the blanket again but now Kyungsoo was feeling the cold, his whole body started to stiffen and freeze like an ice cube, the sound of his teeth chattering alerted Chanyeol who shuffled closer to Kyungsoo and wrapped his blanket and arms around the younger. He would usually push the giant away but felt the warmth from being hugged by Chanyeol so buried his head closer into his chest. He felt his eyelids become like anvils as he fought to keep them open, it must have been about 11 pm already and he couldn’t fight the overwhelming urge to sleep.
Kyungsoo became very cute and affectionate when he was extremely tired, not really being the monster he came across as and showing that Kyungsoo secretly really appreciated the closeness of their friendship so that he could do things like receive cuddles and have his hair stroked.
Chanyeol slowly reached over and tucked his friend's books back into his bag and slung it onto his own shoulder, he carefully pulled Kyungsoo up so that he was leaning against him, but his eyes were closed. He used his foot to hook the blankets up to his hands and carelessly stuffed them into the plastic bag. He looped his arm around Kyungsoo’s waist and guided the sleepy boy towards the fence, he held the younger closer to him to make sure he didn’t fall and they made their way back through the long muddy track that leads to the field.
As soon as they got back to Chanyeol’s Kyungsoo threw himself into bed, falling into a heavy sleep without a thought about leaving enough space for Chanyeol even though it was his bed.
Chanyeol rolled the sound asleep corpse over and climbed into bed at 11:57 pm. At least the party `wasn’t tomorrow or he’d have no energy left.
Saturday was filled with watching movies and laying on the sofa with the duvet for hours on end. Kyungsoo had gotten the all clear from mother Do to stay over Chanyeol’s for Sunday with the exception that he goes back home to pick up his school uniform for Monday.
Him and Chanyeol went back to his to pick out clothes for the party the next day but also to pick up his God awful school uniform, the pair rummaged through his wardrobe, picking out what Chanyeol thought was hot enough so that he could pull, Chanyeol did have better fashion sense than him Kyungsoo thought to himself, If it was up to him he would wear grandad jumpers with really long sleeves and big round glasses all day.
Chanyeol picked out his tightest pair of black skinny years and a baggy grey t-shirt that he accidentally bought a few sizes too big so it hung off one of his shoulders, showing his pale freckled skin but Kyungsoo hated it.
“This just makes me look even smaller than I am already, how is that hot?”
Kyungsoo felt irritated that he looked like a 5-year-old in these clothes and refused to go anywhere with the baggy top on, he didn’t get the appeal.
“Do you want me to spell it out for you? Those jeans back your ass look stellar, and the off the shoulder thing makes you look very submissive, its hot trust me on this, have you seen Baekhyun before? DAMN!” Chanyeol smirked at the thought of his boyfriend being the sub he was at heart.
Chanyeol was insistent that those were the clothes that would catch a cute boy’s eye, he also knew that a certain someone was going to the party and that this was the perfect opportunity to get Kyungsoo to stop staring at Jongin whenever he saw him, then denying that he even knew of Jongin’s existence. Chanyeol refused to look for any other clothes and packed his bag full of stuff for another overnight stay and for school on Monday, they headed back to his and played just dance 3 on Chanyeol’s Xbox until both of them were sweaty.
--
“I look awful omg, why did he drag me into this, I might faint!”
Kyungsoo thought to himself as he did a 360 turn in the mirror, Chanyeol had put eyeliner on him like Baekhyun had taught him to, his black hair was slicked back with a side parting and he was wearing the outfit he hated and that didn’t even keep him warm. Chanyeol came out of his bathroom wearing light blue jeans and a white button up t-shirt tucked in. Kyungsoo really didn’t want to go.
Chanyeol was grinning as he struggled to fit his massive phone in his pockets, complimenting him on his hotness saying he looked on point. He wanted to kill himself right there and then.
The party was as daunting as he thought it would be, the booming music being heard from outside the house, they took at 15-minute walk to Xiumin’s house and arrived half an hour late so that the party was already in full swing.
Kyungsoo was ushered into the house by Chanyeol who was immediately greeted by Minseok. They were both passed a red plastic cup accompanied with a pat on the back, the living room was filled with people standing around talking, dancing, and sitting but he didn’t know where to start, he couldn’t just go up to someone and start a conversation could he? He started to panic, the dense crowd pushed against his body, making him squirm away from any physical contact, the sweaty room was almost unbearable to be in but he carried on walking towards the table with the drinks on.
He looked at the selection of alcohol that they had, it was mostly beer and an array of spirits, he meekly picked up a bottle of beer and wondered what the use of the cup was if there were already bottles? Kyungsoo fiddled with the label on his bottle as he spoke to Chanyeol only to turn around and be met with an empty space. He groaned and took a big swig of his beer.
He took a few more small gulps and then suddenly swore someone was calling his name, he couldn’t be that much of a lightweight surely? The calling got closer and suddenly he felt a warm hand holding onto his wrist, the long fingers curling round his wrist and heating up his skin, his pulse was through the roof as he stared straight into a pair of gorgeous brown eyes, he knew it was Jongin. The hand let go of him and Jongin took a small step back, he swayed slightly on the spot though which made Kyungsoo worry about him. He had a small smile on his face and poked Kyungsoo’s chest.
“You’re Kyungsoo, I know you, wanna dance with me Kyungie~” Jongin slurred his words slightly when saying the impromptu nickname; he wiggled his eyebrows then started giggling to himself at the movement of his brows.
Kyungsoo held his hands up insisting that he was the most uncoordinated human to ever walk the earth, and he was completely serious but Jongin just laughed and held his hand out to Kyungsoo.
“I’ll teach you!” The younger boy grinned as he jumped up and down on the spot like a toddler.
Kyungsoo took his hand only to be dragged off into the middle of the dancing crowd in the living room, Jongin smiled sincerely at him and lifted their connected hand over Kyungsoo’s head, he gave a little motion with the other hand to tell Kyungsoo to twirl, and Kyungsoo’s face was on fire. It wasn’t really the music to twirl to, the playlist was mostly full of throwback R&B songs that everyone seemed to enjoy, but Jongin didn’t seem care. Kyungsoo ducked under their hands and did a slow twirl, he looked at Jongin once again and decided to do the same to him, he held up their hands and Jongin was willing to twirl the night away.
Their hands switched from the all fingers one side position, to the each finger interlocking position which Kyungsoo took a mental note of. He also realised he left his beer bottle on the table but continued to dance with Jongin.
When the song changed Kyungsoo saw lights go off inside Jongin’s eyes, the beat came in and Jongin did a sequence of sharp body pops in time with the rhythm. At this point, their hands were disconnected and Kyungsoo was just watching in awe at Jongin’s drunken dancing, it was still breath taking somehow.
Jongin shouted, “Try it!” over the loud music, he pops his chest out in one quick movement and motions for Kyungsoo to do the same, Kyungsoo just laughs and shouts, “I can’t!” back at him, Jongin seems to take it as a challenge. He circles behind Kyungsoo, his height advantage meaning he can put his head next to Kyungsoo’s and above his shoulder without straining his neck. Jongin lays one hand flat on Kyungsoo’s chest, the thin material of his shirt bunching up slightly and pushes the top further down his shoulder. The other hand goes to rest lightly on his back. Jongin lowers his head to Kyungsoo’s ear and whispers.
“It’s easy, follow my hands.”
Jongin acts like a puppeteer, guiding Kyungsoo’s chest in and out in time with the music, progressively getting faster. If only Jongin could see himself pulling on his heartstrings. The teaching that Jongin was doing quickly faded into Jongin dancing with his chest pressed against Kyungsoo’s back, everything inside Kyungsoo was screaming. There wasn’t any grinding or sexual advances but Kyungsoo could feel himself being held against a strong chest and Jongin’s head way laying on his shoulder still. His head was thumping and his stomach doing backflips. His crush was right against him, Kyungsoo felt so nervous to move or say anything that he started to panic more than usual. He felt sick and like he would wake up any minute now and this would all be a big sick dream. Destructive thoughts raced through his mind until he couldn’t take it anymore.
Kyungsoo pushed away the hands that were gently wrapped around his waist and ran through the house until he found the back garden. He took no notice of the other drunk people around and collapsed to the ground, the soft grass cushioning his drop slightly. He sat crossed legged with his hands covering his face as tears of anxiety started to run down his face.
I’ve ruined everything. He probably thinks I’m a total weirdo! Why did I run away, he was so sweet and gentle with me like I always imagined him to be ughhh, but he probably didn’t even like me anyways, just the alcohol talking. He’s gonna tell everyone about how much of a loser I am and he’ll turn against me.
These thoughts rushed through his head until he wiped his eyes and saw a blurry Jongin headed towards him, but this time wearing a concerned expression. Kyungsoo pulled his knees to his chest and his beneath his own arms. The older just sat beside him in silence, Kyungsoo usually loved silence but not when it’s overrun by the sound of his sobbing.
“Was I too forward?” Jongin asked in a small voice, the alcohol seemed to have started wearing off ever since he put his hands on Kyungsoo’s chest. He seemed more serious and at least now he wasn’t slurring his words.
Kyungsoo sniffled a no and cautiously lifted his head to see Jongin’s worried expression. He deserved an explanation of some sorts so Kyungsoo shifted closer to him a little.
“It was all a bit too overwhelming that’s all, I-I didn’t even want to come tonight and when y-you came up to me-e I thought I was dreaming, you’re fla-awless and beautiful and I’m just not, so when you danced with me I felt so warm and protected-“ Kyungsoo sniffled, he stopped to prevent himself from rambling on even more. His head flopped back against his knees, he was never going to forget this embarrassing night now.
But Jongin was having none of it, he wrapped an arm around Kyungsoo’s small frame and gave his sides small circular rubs with his fingertips. He took his phone out of his pocket with one hand while keeping the other one around Kyungsoo. He put the phone into the small boy’s hands.
“You should put your number in there, you’re really interesting Kyungsoo.”
Kyungsoo scoffed.
“I don’t think you’d find what I like interesting.” He commented as he tapped away at Jongin’s phone.
“What do you like, then? It can’t be that boring.” Jongin smirked.
Kyungsoo became shy again, handing Jongin’s phone back to him.
“I like space and stars in particular.” Kyungsoo murmured burying his head in his hands self-consciously.
Jongin laughed “See that’s cool, and the stars are out tonight” Jongin said shuffling to cuddle behind Kyungsoo, with the excuse that Kyungsoo was shaking like a leaf in just a t-shirt. “I’m gonna call your contact Starboy.” Kyungsoo tensed at the feeling of Jongin’s arms wrapped around his torso.
“You don’t have to be worried around me, I don’t bite, and hey maybe you could share some of your space knowledge with me, you could tell me what it’s like to be as beautiful as the shining stars.” Jongin smiled down in amusement at Kyungsoo’s embarrassment etched into his rosy cheeks. Maybe the alcohol hadn’t completely worn off yet, it always made Jongin cheekier.
Jongin took off his jacket and placed it over Kyungsoo’s shoulders, then returned his arms around his waist again. Kyungsoo hesitantly leant back into Jongin’s chest like before, but this time he felt at ease with the embrace and never wanted to move. Relief washed over his body when he heard a small chuckle and strong arms keeping him in place.
They stayed there for what felt like years until Chanyeol came out into the garden looking down at the pair snuggled in the grass together. He had the biggest smirk on his face and Kyungsoo could tell he was gonna try to wind him up.
“Kyungsoo I was thinking, you were absolutely right, coming was a bad idea, let’s go back to mine now…plus I thought you said if you got hit on you were gonna go.” Chanyeol declared while waving his bottle around everywhere, the alcohol inside slushing all over the floor, a shit-eating grin on his face.
“Chan, please don’t quote what I said, I was wrong, besides it’s only-“ Kyungsoo momentarily paused to check his phone but was taken aback by the time, half-eleven Kyungsoo sighed, realising that although the last thing he wanted to do was leave Jongin, he had to get at least a few hours of sleep. He shuffled away from Jongin with an apologetic smile “I guess we should get going, ya know, school tomorrow.” Jongin nodded, obviously trying to mask the disappointed look on his face.
Jongin’s legs were still open to where Kyungsoo was sat between them, he smiled and waved as Kyungsoo dragged a shocked looking Chanyeol away. All he heard in the distance was Chanyeol’s whiny voice “I was joking Sooooo ugh!”
Jongin stared down at his new contact Starboy, a burst of happiness erupted inside him, he propped his back up against the wall of the house with a sigh when a cold gust of wind reminded him that Kyungsoo still had his black jacket on. The happiness inside of him tripled as he imagined Kyungsoo walking around in Jongin’s jacket that was too big for him. He pictured the beautiful boy curled up in bed with his clothing to keep him warm, Jongin left the party not long after Kyungsoo, finding himself falling asleep easily even with so many things whizzing around in his head. Kyungsoo’s beauty calmed him.
Little did Jongin know that Kyungsoo loved the smell of his jacket that he slept in it all night in hopes of getting closer to Jongin.
part ii