Face Off AU
Pairing: HimUp (slight ZiBang, lots of brotp JongLo)
Rated: PG13
Length: 4K
This is because someone on Tumblr requested more Face Off AU. I'm taking requests again but I don't know how long that will be happening. Depends on how fast I can write.
The only reason Junhong was sitting quietly in study hall while Jongup and Himchan made googly eyes at each other and had their hands only god knows where under the table was because he had been promised an hour after school of time with just Jongup. No Himchan’s allowed.
He narrowed his eyes at the way Himchan’s whisper had Jongup laughing into his palm and it made him want to gag.
“Someone looks jealous.” Himchan winked playfully at him from across the table. “Do you want some Himchannie cuddles, too?”
“Touch me and I swear I will rip your arm off and feed it to you.” He warned the older boy when his fingers got a little too close to his own. “Do you two have to do this every second of the day? It gets a little boring when you have no one to talk to because you guys can’t keep your hands off each other’s junk for more than five seconds.”
Jongup blushed at the crude words, but managed to straighten himself with what little dignity he had left. “We didn’t mean to annoy you, Junhong. I’m sorry. What do you want to do after school?”
Junhong grinned, all traces of his previous upset disappearing. “I want to play baseball again. Me against you. Yeah, yeah, you’re better, I’ll lose. But I want to you to teach me.”
“Sounds fun.” Jongup turned to Himchan with a sad smile. “Maybe you should go look for Yongguk so I can babysit the freshman.”
“Hey!”
Himchan sighed as he gathered his books with his good hand and stood up to leave. “I’m pretty sure he’s back in the Home Ec room. I pulled him out yesterday with his face covered in marinara sauce. He threw up before we made it to last period. Shocking that he doesn’t have a girlfriend isn’t it?” He blew a kiss to Jongup as he left the room, his arm in the sling trying clumsily to help hold his books up.
“You two are pathetic.”
“Don’t be mean.” Jongup kicked playfully at his best friend’s legs under the table. “You made fun of us before we started dating and you’re still making fun of us.”
Junhong flicked a wad of paper at him, expertly hitting him between the eyes. “Just because you’re so easy to make fun of. Himchan jumps when you tell him to and you look at him with rainbows and unicorns popping out of your eyeballs. It’s gross.”
“Well what do you want us to do? Yell at each other all the time? We’ve only been dating for eleven days. I’m pretty sure we’re not supposed to hate each other already.”
Another paper wad hit him, this time in the mouth. “Of course not you idiot. But you can at least make him work for it a little bit. Play hard to get or something. Make it fun.”
He wasn’t sure taking dating advice from a boy who was too scared to even talk to a girl was the right thing to do. But he had to admit that Junhong had a point. Maybe Himchan had liked the thrill of the chase before they started dating. And maybe he was starting to get bored with a boyfriend who followed him around like a puppy everywhere he went.
“What am I supposed to do?” He asked quietly, fingertips smoothing along the edges of the rough table. “I don’t know how to do those things.”
Junhong waved off his concerns as the bell rang and they gathered their books to head for their next class. “I’ve watched a lot of dramas so I can give you lots of tips after school. Just make sure you act cool towards him when school ends. Pretend like you’re more interested in spending time with me than with him.” Junhong pinched his side making him shriek in the middle of the busy hallway. “Which should be true since I’ve known you longer.”
“At least Himchan doesn’t pinch me.” Jongup muttered, earning him another twist of skin over his ribs. “I’m telling your mother!”
---
The sight of a grinning Himchan waving excitedly at him from their normal after school meeting place of his locker sent a thrill of happiness through Jongup’s spine. His boyfriend was so excited to see him that he was practically bouncing on his toes and vibrating in pleasure.
Jongup raised his hand to wave back, but Junhong’s tight grip around his wrist stopped him in his place. “Hard. To. Get.” He murmured through closed teeth.
The hand by his head awkwardly ran through his hair and he hoped no one saw the happy expression on his face fall from disappointment. “When this backfires I’m sending Himchan your direction.”
“Hey!” Himchan looked around quickly to make sure no one was looking before reaching for Jongup’s hand and giving it a squeeze. He frowned down at the limp fingers Jongup was giving him, but blinked the confusion away. “What time will you and Junhong be finished? Do you think you’ll have time to meet up before dinner?”
“No.” Jongup could feel his hands shaking as he emptied his books into his locker and grabbed his backpack. “We won’t be done in time. Sorry.” He smiled weakly at his boyfriend as he let a smirking Junhong pull him down the hall. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Jongup?” Himchan voice was strained behind him but Jongup refused to turn around because Junhong was squeezing his hand as tight as he could. “Can I not… Will you at least call me later?”
He nodded just as Junhong’s nails dug into his wrist. “M-Maybe. If I have time.” The door slammed behind them and Jongup took a deep breath before shrugging Junhong off his arm. “I hate you.”
“You’ll thank me when Himchan gets excited at having to chase you again. Boys love that kind of stuff.”
“How would you know? You’ve never had a girlfriend.”
An elbow in his stomach made him double over in pain. “I watch a lot of dramas. I told you that.”
He couldn’t get the sound of his boyfriend’s voice out of his head the entire time they practiced. The soft way he said his name and the hurt tone when he thought he wouldn’t get to hear Jongup’s voice anymore that day.
Not even Junhong telling him that Youngjae wanted to practice with them sometime was able to wipe the pout off his lips.
“He said he’ll bring some friends so we can have an actual game. I made him promise not to tell Daehyun though because he didn’t even manage to wear his mitt on the correct hand last time. He’s an idiot.”
“Do you think Himchan is mad at me?”
Junhong rolled his eyes and swung at the half-hearted pitch thrown to him. “He’s probably at home smearing all the words in his diary with his tears. Why is my little Jonguppie-pie so mean to me? Doesn’t he realize that I want to smother him with my kisses and bury him in my sweat-soaked love and buy him a dozen roses every time he sneez- Ouch!” He rubbed his leg and glared towards the pitcher’s mound. “That was on purpose!”
“I can’t wait until some girl is dumb enough to date you so that I can make your life miserable.”
“What girl would want to date me when I’m surrounded by my best friend sticking his tongue down my brother’s best friend’s throat all day? Let’s not even talk about how my brother is gayer than gay but refuses to admit it. Oh yeah, I’m such a great catch. I’ve got the girls lining up for me.”
They took a time out in the dugout and lied down on the bench to relax. “Himchan said your brother and Zico used to be friends. What happened between them?”
Junhong let out a yawn as he stretched his tall body across the tiny bench. “I don’t really know he won’t talk about it. They were really close for years but one day they stopped talking and Zico moved away and Yongguk’s hated him ever since.” He lifted his head up to wink at Jongup. “At least he says he hates him. It’s kind of obvious he wants to either cry at Zico’s feet or jump in his lap anytime we play against them.”
The sound of the breeze and the still slightly warm but growing crisp air was enough to make Jongup close his eyes and start to slip off into sleep. “I wish everyone could get along.” He murmured, smiling as Junhong pushed himself forward to lay his head on Jongup’s shoulder. “And I wish I hadn’t of listened to your stupid idea of ignoring Himchan. I don’t like thinking about his feelings being hurt.”
“He’ll get over it.” Junhong patted his arm reassuringly. “I bet he’ll call you the second you walk through the door and he’ll be waiting for you by the front door as soon as school starts tomorrow.”
He was wrong. It was after eleven by the time Jongup finally stopped staring at his cell phone and wishing it would ring. And Himchan was nowhere to be found when he got to school the next day. The only person he could see was a very intimidating, very pissed off Yongguk waiting by his locker.
“We need to talk.” Yongguk grabbed him by his elbow and dragged him into the bathroom. He ducked his head under all of the stall doors to make sure they weren’t occupied before he turned back to Jongup with eyes flashing in anger. “Want to tell me why Himchan came over to my house saying you were mad at him? And why he looked like he was going to burst into tears the whole afternoon when you never called him? Or how about the fact that my brother refused to tell him what you did yesterday after school? I don’t really care if Junhong is my little brother if you’re messing around with him I will beat both of you into the ground.”
“I…” Jongup blinked down at the hands around his shirt collar. “I’m doing what with Junhong?”
Yongguk let him go, pinching the bridge of his nose and sighing. “Jongup, you’re a good kid and Himchan’s been obsessed with you since the second you showed up at school. So I’d really like to give you the benefit of the doubt here. What’s going on with you and my brother?”
“Nothing?” Jongup rebuttoned his top button and adjusted the crumpled uniform top. “I wouldn’t cheat on Himchan and your brother has made it perfectly clear he’s into girls so if you’re implying something you need to come out and just say it.” He crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow at him. He respected Yongguk and considered him a friend but he wasn’t raised to sit meekly by when someone was insulting him. “It kind of sounds like you’re insulting me here, Yongguk.”
“Why are you ignoring Himchan?”
“Your brother told me to.” He answered honestly. “Apparently me and Himchan being together 24/7 is pathetic and I need to play hard to get or he’ll get sick of me.”
Yongguk groaned into his hands as Jongup explained his actions. “Are you serious right now? You think you’re pathetic? Have you seen how sappy Himchan gets around you? Not to mention how crazy he is when you’re in class and he can’t see you. Do you think Jongup’s too warm? I wonder if Jongup ate enough for breakfast. I hope Jongup passes his math test. Did you see how that girl stared at Jongup like she wanted him? Jongup, Jongup, fucking Jongup.” His laughter broke through the rant. “God, both of you are idiots. You’re perfect for each other.”
Jongup didn’t know what to do as Yongguk, still laughing, left him in the dark classroom. The door slammed shut behind him, the sound making Jongup jump because his mind was still racing through Yongguk’s words. Words that were eerily similar to how Junhong had described Himchan’s feelings for him.
Was Junhong just messing with them? Was it really okay that they genuinely enjoyed being together so much? They had barely been dating for two weeks so it was natural that they were still gooey and sappy and completely crazy about each other.
“God, I hate Junhong.” Jongup finally growled to himself, racing out of the room and straight into Himchan’s chest.
“Going somewhere?” His boyfriend smiled brightly at him, but the extra dark bags around his eyes were a dead giveaway he was as worried as Jongup was about what had happened. “Yongguk ordered me over here when I ran into him in the hallway.”
“It’s Junhong’s fault. He made me do it.” Jongup blurted, not even caring anymore that he probably shouldn’t incriminate his best friend. “All of it. He told me to play hard to get or you would get bored of me!”
Himchan blinked in confusion, his lips parting as he tried to think of a way to reply. “Bored of you?” He shook his head, the corner of his lips curling up in amusement as he backed Jongup into the classroom again. “And why would you think I could ever be bored of you?” The late bell rang but Jongup barely heard it over the sound of his heartbeat rushing through his veins and Himchan’s lips skimming lightly across the curve of his jaw. “Do you really have that little faith in us?”
“I told you.” He gasped as teeth nipped playfully over the stud in his earlobe. “Junhong’s fault.”
“Everything’s Junhong’s fault.” Himchan reached behind him to lock the door. “I can’t wait until some girl is dumb enough to date him so she can turn him into a whipped little dog.”
The familiar words made Jongup giggle but the sound caught in his throat when Himchan’s fingertips brushed roughly over the seam of his zipper. “But your broken a-“
“My arm is fine. Untuck your shirt.”
No matter how silly and childish Himchan acted in public Jongup didn’t think he could ever get used to the in-charge tone that his boyfriend used whenever they had a spare moment alone. Himchan was always so sure of himself and confident and it made Jongup’s chest tighten every time he took control and took care of him and treated him like he was made of spun glass.
He shakily tugged his shirt out of his uniform pants. His eyes were clenched tightly closed because if he opened them and saw how beautiful Himchan looked on his knees he might just pass out before anything actually happened.
“I love Yongguk like he’s family but his little brother needs a swift kick in the face.” Himchan’s hands weren’t gentle as they shoved Jongup’s pants to the floor. “Making you doubt how I feel about you.” Jongup whined as the cold air rushed over him when his boxers joined them. “Look at me.”
But he couldn’t. Because Himchan was too perfect and gorgeous and too close and
oh
god…
“I said to look at me. Don’t make me ask again.”
---
“Did Youngjae say how many people he was bringing to play baseball?” Jongup dug through his closet for his duffel bag full of gloves and balls. “I don’t if I should bring a few spares or just take the whole bag.”
Junhong kicked at Himchan’s back as the older boy tried to sit down next to him on Jongup’s bed. “He just said that he was bringing a few boys who already knew how to play. They’ve probably already got their stuff. Maybe it can be us three against Youngjae and whoever he brings.” He glowered at Himchan’s naked arm. “Now that Himchan has his cast off we need to start including him in our playtime.”
“How many times has Yongguk told you that?”
“Three.” Junhong rolled his eyes and jumped up to grab Jongup by the shoulder. “Let’s just go. Youngjae said they’re already there. I’m ready to play!”
They headed down to the ball field with Junhong leading the way, Himchan and Jongup trailing behind with fingers brushing against each other every so often as they walked.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Junhong stopped so abruptly that Jongup walked straight into his back, his nose crunching against the taller boy’s shoulder blades. “What the-“
“Why did you invite them?”
Zico grinned as he sat back comfortably on the bleachers beside the field. “Because he likes us better than you.”
That was the wrong thing to say to the little brother of your biggest rival, but Jongup was smart enough to immediately grab Junhong by the arms and hold him back from beating their enemy to a pulp.
“They’re not as bad as Yongguk makes them out to be.” Youngjae spoke up testily. “Minhyuk and I have been friends for a year or so. I know that they want this stupid fight to be over and done with just as much as I do.” The dark-haired boy behind him nodded.
“Yongguk’s going to be pissed.” Himchan sounded on the verge of laughter. “He’s going to be so mad that he’ll go home and jack off for fifteen seconds.”
Youngjae wrinkled his nose. “Yeah that’s why I didn’t tell him we were playing today. He asked me after school if I wanted to have a quick hockey practice with him but I said I had a doctor’s appointment. No one told Daehyun either, right?”
“Do you really think we wanted him to play again?” The four boys burst out laughing at Junhong’s incredulous reply. “He screamed so loud last time that my ears rang for an hour afterwards!”
“We love to play baseball.” The boy behind Youngjae spoke up, an awkward smile on his lips. “Youngjae’s wanted to get both of our teams together for a while now. He’s just worried that your captain might decapitate our captain.” Zico grinned and waved happily at them. “Look, we don’t know what happened between them and Zico refuses to talk about it but trust me that he’s an idiot but completely harmless.”
Junhong was the lone holdout. Loyalty to his brother held him back from following the rest of the boys onto the field. He cautiously watched Zico make his way over, smartly stopping a distance away. “Yongguk must have a really good reason to hate you so much.”
“He does.” Zico agreed instantly, sadness marring his features. “I did something stupid to him and he’s never forgiven me.”
A hint of what might have really happened between the two was visible in the broken expression on Zico’s face. Junhong wanted to stand up for his brother and cause pain to the other boy but he could tell that nothing he did would cause more hurt than Zico had already inflicted upon himself.
“Do you regret it?” He asked quietly. “What you did?”
Zico lifted his eyes and the cocky smirk returned to his lips. “Nope.”
“Fair enough.” Junhong led the way onto the field. “We’re batting first.”
---
“You’re really good.” Minhyuk wiped the sweat off of his brow and threw a bottle of water at Jongup. “I mean, Youngjae told us, but wow.”
Jongup blushed, looking around for Himchan because when he felt uncomfortable he needed Himchan’s palm on his skin and his soft whisper in his ears. “Thanks. I’ve been playing for a long time.”
Their youngest member, the tall and unusually deep-voiced Jihoon, laughed at something Junhong said. Jongup turned to listen to what was so funny when he saw something that made him gasp in horror.
“Oh shit.”
Himchan laughed loudly from behind the dugout. He popped around the corner with their bags and bats over his shoulder. “I swear, hearing those dirty words come out of your pretty lips will never get old for me.” When Jongup didn’t respond he frowned and craned his neck to see what had caught his boyfriend’s attention. “What’s wr- Oh no.”
“You’re going to be in so much trouble when Yongguk finds out what you’ve been doing!” Daehyun fumed from the other side of the fence, his fingers curled into the metal. “He’s going to kill all of you and I’m going to laugh because you bastards deserve it.” He smashed his face into the fence, eyes wide with fury. “And you didn’t even invite me!”
“Daehyun please don’t tell him.” Junhong pleaded with him, his eyes darting between Daehyun and a smug Zico. “Zico’s not as bad as Yongguk always makes him out to be and we liked playing with their team. We didn’t invite you because you didn’t enjoy playing the last time.”
The cell phone in Daehyun’s pocket chirped with a text. “Poor Yongguk’s been worried about his team. He’s been going all around town looking for you all and he even dragged me away from Call of Duty just to help search.” He pulled the phone out and quickly dialed Yongguk’s number, jumping away with a shriek when Junhong reached frantically over the fence at him. “I found them! Yongguk you’re going to be so mad!” Junhong rounded the corner and came at him in a dead run making Daehyun scream and run towards the street. “They’re at the ball field with the Block Beasts! Come quick! They’re playing with Zi-“
He landed on the ground with a loud oomph as Junhong sat on his back and shoved his face into the grass. “No we’re not! We’re fine. No need to come. See you later, Gukkie!” The larger boy dug his fingers into the side of Daehyun’s ribs and made him screech in pain. “What was that for? Traitor!”
“You didn’t invite me.” Came the muffled reply.
After Minhyuk got him a cold bottle of water from their ice box for his bruised jaw and settled him onto the bench, the angry expression on Daehyun’s face slowly slid back into his normal indifferent one. “You know he’s going to show up and murder everyone here, right?”
“Pretty much.” Junhong felt bad that he had hurt him, but not bad enough to apologize because Daehyun was a well-known asshole. “Might as well get all this over with though. I’m tired of him being such a baby about their team.”
As if talk of him had summoned him there, Yongguk appeared coming up the alley, the storm clouds on his face visible all the way to where they sat.
“Do you think he’s mad at us or them?” Jongup whispered to Himchan, letting his boyfriend jump in front of him when Yongguk got closer.
“Probably both equally.”
Yongguk surprised them by ignoring everything except the quiet boy in the front. The one that stood his ground and waited patiently for what he knew he had coming to him.
“Go ahead.” Zico sighed, his arms spread out to the sides in submission. “Do it.”
The punch was packed with years of tension building up behind it and even though it had to hurt like hell, because Yongguk may have been lithe but he had a deceptive amount of strength, Zico didn’t fall. He closed his eyes and accepted the punishment with only a deep furrowing of his brows and a mouthful of blood spit out onto the dirt.
“Feel better?” He lifted his shirt to wipe the blood off of his lips. “Ready to talk now?”
Yongguk stared at his former best friend, the tightening in his shoulders giving way to defeat. “Yeah. Yeah, let’s talk.”
Rated: PG13
Length: 4K
This is because someone on Tumblr requested more Face Off AU. I'm taking requests again but I don't know how long that will be happening. Depends on how fast I can write.
The only reason Junhong was sitting quietly in study hall while Jongup and Himchan made googly eyes at each other and had their hands only god knows where under the table was because he had been promised an hour after school of time with just Jongup. No Himchan’s allowed.
He narrowed his eyes at the way Himchan’s whisper had Jongup laughing into his palm and it made him want to gag.
“Someone looks jealous.” Himchan winked playfully at him from across the table. “Do you want some Himchannie cuddles, too?”
“Touch me and I swear I will rip your arm off and feed it to you.” He warned the older boy when his fingers got a little too close to his own. “Do you two have to do this every second of the day? It gets a little boring when you have no one to talk to because you guys can’t keep your hands off each other’s junk for more than five seconds.”
Jongup blushed at the crude words, but managed to straighten himself with what little dignity he had left. “We didn’t mean to annoy you, Junhong. I’m sorry. What do you want to do after school?”
Junhong grinned, all traces of his previous upset disappearing. “I want to play baseball again. Me against you. Yeah, yeah, you’re better, I’ll lose. But I want to you to teach me.”
“Sounds fun.” Jongup turned to Himchan with a sad smile. “Maybe you should go look for Yongguk so I can babysit the freshman.”
“Hey!”
Himchan sighed as he gathered his books with his good hand and stood up to leave. “I’m pretty sure he’s back in the Home Ec room. I pulled him out yesterday with his face covered in marinara sauce. He threw up before we made it to last period. Shocking that he doesn’t have a girlfriend isn’t it?” He blew a kiss to Jongup as he left the room, his arm in the sling trying clumsily to help hold his books up.
“You two are pathetic.”
“Don’t be mean.” Jongup kicked playfully at his best friend’s legs under the table. “You made fun of us before we started dating and you’re still making fun of us.”
Junhong flicked a wad of paper at him, expertly hitting him between the eyes. “Just because you’re so easy to make fun of. Himchan jumps when you tell him to and you look at him with rainbows and unicorns popping out of your eyeballs. It’s gross.”
“Well what do you want us to do? Yell at each other all the time? We’ve only been dating for eleven days. I’m pretty sure we’re not supposed to hate each other already.”
Another paper wad hit him, this time in the mouth. “Of course not you idiot. But you can at least make him work for it a little bit. Play hard to get or something. Make it fun.”
He wasn’t sure taking dating advice from a boy who was too scared to even talk to a girl was the right thing to do. But he had to admit that Junhong had a point. Maybe Himchan had liked the thrill of the chase before they started dating. And maybe he was starting to get bored with a boyfriend who followed him around like a puppy everywhere he went.
“What am I supposed to do?” He asked quietly, fingertips smoothing along the edges of the rough table. “I don’t know how to do those things.”
Junhong waved off his concerns as the bell rang and they gathered their books to head for their next class. “I’ve watched a lot of dramas so I can give you lots of tips after school. Just make sure you act cool towards him when school ends. Pretend like you’re more interested in spending time with me than with him.” Junhong pinched his side making him shriek in the middle of the busy hallway. “Which should be true since I’ve known you longer.”
“At least Himchan doesn’t pinch me.” Jongup muttered, earning him another twist of skin over his ribs. “I’m telling your mother!”
---
The sight of a grinning Himchan waving excitedly at him from their normal after school meeting place of his locker sent a thrill of happiness through Jongup’s spine. His boyfriend was so excited to see him that he was practically bouncing on his toes and vibrating in pleasure.
Jongup raised his hand to wave back, but Junhong’s tight grip around his wrist stopped him in his place. “Hard. To. Get.” He murmured through closed teeth.
The hand by his head awkwardly ran through his hair and he hoped no one saw the happy expression on his face fall from disappointment. “When this backfires I’m sending Himchan your direction.”
“Hey!” Himchan looked around quickly to make sure no one was looking before reaching for Jongup’s hand and giving it a squeeze. He frowned down at the limp fingers Jongup was giving him, but blinked the confusion away. “What time will you and Junhong be finished? Do you think you’ll have time to meet up before dinner?”
“No.” Jongup could feel his hands shaking as he emptied his books into his locker and grabbed his backpack. “We won’t be done in time. Sorry.” He smiled weakly at his boyfriend as he let a smirking Junhong pull him down the hall. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Jongup?” Himchan voice was strained behind him but Jongup refused to turn around because Junhong was squeezing his hand as tight as he could. “Can I not… Will you at least call me later?”
He nodded just as Junhong’s nails dug into his wrist. “M-Maybe. If I have time.” The door slammed behind them and Jongup took a deep breath before shrugging Junhong off his arm. “I hate you.”
“You’ll thank me when Himchan gets excited at having to chase you again. Boys love that kind of stuff.”
“How would you know? You’ve never had a girlfriend.”
An elbow in his stomach made him double over in pain. “I watch a lot of dramas. I told you that.”
He couldn’t get the sound of his boyfriend’s voice out of his head the entire time they practiced. The soft way he said his name and the hurt tone when he thought he wouldn’t get to hear Jongup’s voice anymore that day.
Not even Junhong telling him that Youngjae wanted to practice with them sometime was able to wipe the pout off his lips.
“He said he’ll bring some friends so we can have an actual game. I made him promise not to tell Daehyun though because he didn’t even manage to wear his mitt on the correct hand last time. He’s an idiot.”
“Do you think Himchan is mad at me?”
Junhong rolled his eyes and swung at the half-hearted pitch thrown to him. “He’s probably at home smearing all the words in his diary with his tears. Why is my little Jonguppie-pie so mean to me? Doesn’t he realize that I want to smother him with my kisses and bury him in my sweat-soaked love and buy him a dozen roses every time he sneez- Ouch!” He rubbed his leg and glared towards the pitcher’s mound. “That was on purpose!”
“I can’t wait until some girl is dumb enough to date you so that I can make your life miserable.”
“What girl would want to date me when I’m surrounded by my best friend sticking his tongue down my brother’s best friend’s throat all day? Let’s not even talk about how my brother is gayer than gay but refuses to admit it. Oh yeah, I’m such a great catch. I’ve got the girls lining up for me.”
They took a time out in the dugout and lied down on the bench to relax. “Himchan said your brother and Zico used to be friends. What happened between them?”
Junhong let out a yawn as he stretched his tall body across the tiny bench. “I don’t really know he won’t talk about it. They were really close for years but one day they stopped talking and Zico moved away and Yongguk’s hated him ever since.” He lifted his head up to wink at Jongup. “At least he says he hates him. It’s kind of obvious he wants to either cry at Zico’s feet or jump in his lap anytime we play against them.”
The sound of the breeze and the still slightly warm but growing crisp air was enough to make Jongup close his eyes and start to slip off into sleep. “I wish everyone could get along.” He murmured, smiling as Junhong pushed himself forward to lay his head on Jongup’s shoulder. “And I wish I hadn’t of listened to your stupid idea of ignoring Himchan. I don’t like thinking about his feelings being hurt.”
“He’ll get over it.” Junhong patted his arm reassuringly. “I bet he’ll call you the second you walk through the door and he’ll be waiting for you by the front door as soon as school starts tomorrow.”
He was wrong. It was after eleven by the time Jongup finally stopped staring at his cell phone and wishing it would ring. And Himchan was nowhere to be found when he got to school the next day. The only person he could see was a very intimidating, very pissed off Yongguk waiting by his locker.
“We need to talk.” Yongguk grabbed him by his elbow and dragged him into the bathroom. He ducked his head under all of the stall doors to make sure they weren’t occupied before he turned back to Jongup with eyes flashing in anger. “Want to tell me why Himchan came over to my house saying you were mad at him? And why he looked like he was going to burst into tears the whole afternoon when you never called him? Or how about the fact that my brother refused to tell him what you did yesterday after school? I don’t really care if Junhong is my little brother if you’re messing around with him I will beat both of you into the ground.”
“I…” Jongup blinked down at the hands around his shirt collar. “I’m doing what with Junhong?”
Yongguk let him go, pinching the bridge of his nose and sighing. “Jongup, you’re a good kid and Himchan’s been obsessed with you since the second you showed up at school. So I’d really like to give you the benefit of the doubt here. What’s going on with you and my brother?”
“Nothing?” Jongup rebuttoned his top button and adjusted the crumpled uniform top. “I wouldn’t cheat on Himchan and your brother has made it perfectly clear he’s into girls so if you’re implying something you need to come out and just say it.” He crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow at him. He respected Yongguk and considered him a friend but he wasn’t raised to sit meekly by when someone was insulting him. “It kind of sounds like you’re insulting me here, Yongguk.”
“Why are you ignoring Himchan?”
“Your brother told me to.” He answered honestly. “Apparently me and Himchan being together 24/7 is pathetic and I need to play hard to get or he’ll get sick of me.”
Yongguk groaned into his hands as Jongup explained his actions. “Are you serious right now? You think you’re pathetic? Have you seen how sappy Himchan gets around you? Not to mention how crazy he is when you’re in class and he can’t see you. Do you think Jongup’s too warm? I wonder if Jongup ate enough for breakfast. I hope Jongup passes his math test. Did you see how that girl stared at Jongup like she wanted him? Jongup, Jongup, fucking Jongup.” His laughter broke through the rant. “God, both of you are idiots. You’re perfect for each other.”
Jongup didn’t know what to do as Yongguk, still laughing, left him in the dark classroom. The door slammed shut behind him, the sound making Jongup jump because his mind was still racing through Yongguk’s words. Words that were eerily similar to how Junhong had described Himchan’s feelings for him.
Was Junhong just messing with them? Was it really okay that they genuinely enjoyed being together so much? They had barely been dating for two weeks so it was natural that they were still gooey and sappy and completely crazy about each other.
“God, I hate Junhong.” Jongup finally growled to himself, racing out of the room and straight into Himchan’s chest.
“Going somewhere?” His boyfriend smiled brightly at him, but the extra dark bags around his eyes were a dead giveaway he was as worried as Jongup was about what had happened. “Yongguk ordered me over here when I ran into him in the hallway.”
“It’s Junhong’s fault. He made me do it.” Jongup blurted, not even caring anymore that he probably shouldn’t incriminate his best friend. “All of it. He told me to play hard to get or you would get bored of me!”
Himchan blinked in confusion, his lips parting as he tried to think of a way to reply. “Bored of you?” He shook his head, the corner of his lips curling up in amusement as he backed Jongup into the classroom again. “And why would you think I could ever be bored of you?” The late bell rang but Jongup barely heard it over the sound of his heartbeat rushing through his veins and Himchan’s lips skimming lightly across the curve of his jaw. “Do you really have that little faith in us?”
“I told you.” He gasped as teeth nipped playfully over the stud in his earlobe. “Junhong’s fault.”
“Everything’s Junhong’s fault.” Himchan reached behind him to lock the door. “I can’t wait until some girl is dumb enough to date him so she can turn him into a whipped little dog.”
The familiar words made Jongup giggle but the sound caught in his throat when Himchan’s fingertips brushed roughly over the seam of his zipper. “But your broken a-“
“My arm is fine. Untuck your shirt.”
No matter how silly and childish Himchan acted in public Jongup didn’t think he could ever get used to the in-charge tone that his boyfriend used whenever they had a spare moment alone. Himchan was always so sure of himself and confident and it made Jongup’s chest tighten every time he took control and took care of him and treated him like he was made of spun glass.
He shakily tugged his shirt out of his uniform pants. His eyes were clenched tightly closed because if he opened them and saw how beautiful Himchan looked on his knees he might just pass out before anything actually happened.
“I love Yongguk like he’s family but his little brother needs a swift kick in the face.” Himchan’s hands weren’t gentle as they shoved Jongup’s pants to the floor. “Making you doubt how I feel about you.” Jongup whined as the cold air rushed over him when his boxers joined them. “Look at me.”
But he couldn’t. Because Himchan was too perfect and gorgeous and too close and
oh
god…
“I said to look at me. Don’t make me ask again.”
---
“Did Youngjae say how many people he was bringing to play baseball?” Jongup dug through his closet for his duffel bag full of gloves and balls. “I don’t if I should bring a few spares or just take the whole bag.”
Junhong kicked at Himchan’s back as the older boy tried to sit down next to him on Jongup’s bed. “He just said that he was bringing a few boys who already knew how to play. They’ve probably already got their stuff. Maybe it can be us three against Youngjae and whoever he brings.” He glowered at Himchan’s naked arm. “Now that Himchan has his cast off we need to start including him in our playtime.”
“How many times has Yongguk told you that?”
“Three.” Junhong rolled his eyes and jumped up to grab Jongup by the shoulder. “Let’s just go. Youngjae said they’re already there. I’m ready to play!”
They headed down to the ball field with Junhong leading the way, Himchan and Jongup trailing behind with fingers brushing against each other every so often as they walked.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Junhong stopped so abruptly that Jongup walked straight into his back, his nose crunching against the taller boy’s shoulder blades. “What the-“
“Why did you invite them?”
Zico grinned as he sat back comfortably on the bleachers beside the field. “Because he likes us better than you.”
That was the wrong thing to say to the little brother of your biggest rival, but Jongup was smart enough to immediately grab Junhong by the arms and hold him back from beating their enemy to a pulp.
“They’re not as bad as Yongguk makes them out to be.” Youngjae spoke up testily. “Minhyuk and I have been friends for a year or so. I know that they want this stupid fight to be over and done with just as much as I do.” The dark-haired boy behind him nodded.
“Yongguk’s going to be pissed.” Himchan sounded on the verge of laughter. “He’s going to be so mad that he’ll go home and jack off for fifteen seconds.”
Youngjae wrinkled his nose. “Yeah that’s why I didn’t tell him we were playing today. He asked me after school if I wanted to have a quick hockey practice with him but I said I had a doctor’s appointment. No one told Daehyun either, right?”
“Do you really think we wanted him to play again?” The four boys burst out laughing at Junhong’s incredulous reply. “He screamed so loud last time that my ears rang for an hour afterwards!”
“We love to play baseball.” The boy behind Youngjae spoke up, an awkward smile on his lips. “Youngjae’s wanted to get both of our teams together for a while now. He’s just worried that your captain might decapitate our captain.” Zico grinned and waved happily at them. “Look, we don’t know what happened between them and Zico refuses to talk about it but trust me that he’s an idiot but completely harmless.”
Junhong was the lone holdout. Loyalty to his brother held him back from following the rest of the boys onto the field. He cautiously watched Zico make his way over, smartly stopping a distance away. “Yongguk must have a really good reason to hate you so much.”
“He does.” Zico agreed instantly, sadness marring his features. “I did something stupid to him and he’s never forgiven me.”
A hint of what might have really happened between the two was visible in the broken expression on Zico’s face. Junhong wanted to stand up for his brother and cause pain to the other boy but he could tell that nothing he did would cause more hurt than Zico had already inflicted upon himself.
“Do you regret it?” He asked quietly. “What you did?”
Zico lifted his eyes and the cocky smirk returned to his lips. “Nope.”
“Fair enough.” Junhong led the way onto the field. “We’re batting first.”
---
“You’re really good.” Minhyuk wiped the sweat off of his brow and threw a bottle of water at Jongup. “I mean, Youngjae told us, but wow.”
Jongup blushed, looking around for Himchan because when he felt uncomfortable he needed Himchan’s palm on his skin and his soft whisper in his ears. “Thanks. I’ve been playing for a long time.”
Their youngest member, the tall and unusually deep-voiced Jihoon, laughed at something Junhong said. Jongup turned to listen to what was so funny when he saw something that made him gasp in horror.
“Oh shit.”
Himchan laughed loudly from behind the dugout. He popped around the corner with their bags and bats over his shoulder. “I swear, hearing those dirty words come out of your pretty lips will never get old for me.” When Jongup didn’t respond he frowned and craned his neck to see what had caught his boyfriend’s attention. “What’s wr- Oh no.”
“You’re going to be in so much trouble when Yongguk finds out what you’ve been doing!” Daehyun fumed from the other side of the fence, his fingers curled into the metal. “He’s going to kill all of you and I’m going to laugh because you bastards deserve it.” He smashed his face into the fence, eyes wide with fury. “And you didn’t even invite me!”
“Daehyun please don’t tell him.” Junhong pleaded with him, his eyes darting between Daehyun and a smug Zico. “Zico’s not as bad as Yongguk always makes him out to be and we liked playing with their team. We didn’t invite you because you didn’t enjoy playing the last time.”
The cell phone in Daehyun’s pocket chirped with a text. “Poor Yongguk’s been worried about his team. He’s been going all around town looking for you all and he even dragged me away from Call of Duty just to help search.” He pulled the phone out and quickly dialed Yongguk’s number, jumping away with a shriek when Junhong reached frantically over the fence at him. “I found them! Yongguk you’re going to be so mad!” Junhong rounded the corner and came at him in a dead run making Daehyun scream and run towards the street. “They’re at the ball field with the Block Beasts! Come quick! They’re playing with Zi-“
He landed on the ground with a loud oomph as Junhong sat on his back and shoved his face into the grass. “No we’re not! We’re fine. No need to come. See you later, Gukkie!” The larger boy dug his fingers into the side of Daehyun’s ribs and made him screech in pain. “What was that for? Traitor!”
“You didn’t invite me.” Came the muffled reply.
After Minhyuk got him a cold bottle of water from their ice box for his bruised jaw and settled him onto the bench, the angry expression on Daehyun’s face slowly slid back into his normal indifferent one. “You know he’s going to show up and murder everyone here, right?”
“Pretty much.” Junhong felt bad that he had hurt him, but not bad enough to apologize because Daehyun was a well-known asshole. “Might as well get all this over with though. I’m tired of him being such a baby about their team.”
As if talk of him had summoned him there, Yongguk appeared coming up the alley, the storm clouds on his face visible all the way to where they sat.
“Do you think he’s mad at us or them?” Jongup whispered to Himchan, letting his boyfriend jump in front of him when Yongguk got closer.
“Probably both equally.”
Yongguk surprised them by ignoring everything except the quiet boy in the front. The one that stood his ground and waited patiently for what he knew he had coming to him.
“Go ahead.” Zico sighed, his arms spread out to the sides in submission. “Do it.”
The punch was packed with years of tension building up behind it and even though it had to hurt like hell, because Yongguk may have been lithe but he had a deceptive amount of strength, Zico didn’t fall. He closed his eyes and accepted the punishment with only a deep furrowing of his brows and a mouthful of blood spit out onto the dirt.
“Feel better?” He lifted his shirt to wipe the blood off of his lips. “Ready to talk now?”
Yongguk stared at his former best friend, the tightening in his shoulders giving way to defeat. “Yeah. Yeah, let’s talk.”