Secrets (1/1)

It was official, Taemin was avoiding her. After some hesitation, Gwiboon had finally gathered enough courage to contact him. She had waited anxiously for his response to her text. Nothing. She even tried sending it again in case he had missed it. Nothing. After two days of nothing, Gwiboon’s pride took a hit and she decided that she wouldn’t take no for an answer. So, of course, she bombarded him with messages through every form of social media or personal connection she knew. She even tried having Jonghyun text him for her for Taemin seemed to be hiding. All she got for her efforts was a big, fat nothing. It was a Friday afternoon and Gwiboon was waiting for Jinki in the library. She had just finished working on some homework with Amber and, once again, was checking her phone desperately for any word from Taemin. The other girl didn’t miss the melancholy mood but tried not to let Gwiboon see her curiosity. Not seeing any responses, Gwiboon sighed dejectedly before shutting her phone and looking around the library for Jinki. “Where is that old man?” she asked, mostly to herself but loud enough for Amber to catch it. “I can wait with you if you want some company?” Amber asked, not wanting to leave the other girl alone if she was having an off day. Jinki had told her about Gwiboon’s conversation with her brother and knew that she was going through some identity issues, but Amber was also concerned about the party incident. She didn’t want Gwiboon to think she was alone in this and had made sure to cut off any of Isaac’s attempts to talk to her in their class. “No, that’s okay, llama. I’ll just read or something. Thanks for offering.” “No problem. I guess I’ll see you later?” “K,” was all Gwiboon said before once again returning her attention to her phone. She was almost annoyed with herself for how much she now depended on the thing, but she was going a little crazy trying to reach Taemin. What if he didn’t love her anymore? What if he had found someone else? What if he was still heartbroken? The silence was driving her crazy and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could handle it. “Gwiboon-ah!” Minho’s loud voice shocked her so much that she nearly fell out of her seat. “Minho,” she hissed, adjusting herself so that she was once again sitting normally. “We are in the library!” He only chuckled, ruffling her hair before sitting down next to her. Gwiboon got a whiff of his cologne, a heavenly smell, and tried to scoot her chair away, but he just leaned in so that he was invading her space, as usual. “Hey, you,” he said, this time in a quieter voice as he pecked her cheek and nuzzled their noses together. Gwiboon tried not to swoon at the actions, but he was just too perfect sometimes. “Uh…hi…” was all she managed to say, her worry over Taemin combined with Minho’s overwhelming presence too much for her to even pretend to be coherent. “Aigoo, so cute,” he said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear before finally sitting back in his chair. Although there was now some distance between them, Minho was still sitting too close for comfort. They hadn’t done anything since that night - since the kiss – but Minho had definitely started to take some liberty with skinship. Gwiboon loved it, she did, but it also made her stomach clench. Minho somehow found ways to get close to her. One minute he would be sitting at Jinki’s desk for a study session and the next he would be leaning over her to reach something, his arm brushing against her. Or, even more bewildering, he somehow knew how to find the perfect time to sneak a quick peck on the cheek or a light squeeze to her waist just when Jinki or Amber looked away. Everything he did made Gwiboon’s heart flutter, she just couldn’t figure out if it was from excitement or guilt. “What’re you doing tonight?” he asked, his voice calm but his body rigid as if he was anxious for her response. “Nothing,” she said, almost like a question but she hoped neutral enough to stop any additional questions. “We should do something, just the two of us.” Gwiboon bit her lip. She did not have time for this, she needed to try and talk to Taemin before she let this thing with Minho – whatever it was – get any further. An uncomfortable silence settled over them as Gwiboon avoided eye contact and Minho tried to act cool and collected. She risked a quick glance and saw the uncharacteristic worry line on his forehead, the unusual stiffness to his body as he leaned back in the chair, his arms crossed and his gaze trained on his feet rather than looking up. She was so used to Minho’s large, penetrating gaze and forward advances, that she was shocked that the nervous boy before her was the same person. Her heart clenched at the thought, her poor frog-eyed prince was actually worried that she would reject him. “Minho,” she said softly, leaning forward so that she was now the one invading his space. “I would love to do something with you.” The words left her mouth before she could take them back, but as that mega-watt smile returned to his face she realized that she didn’t want to take them back. She smiled back at him, their gazes meeting briefly before he glanced down at her lips and back up just as quickly, his pupils dilated. The feeling between them intensified and Gwiboon was sucked in; too enraptured to remember what she had been worrying about before. Minho leaned forward slowly, as if drawn closer to her they were two magnets being brought slowly together. Gwiboon felt herself following his movements, no longer aware of anything except the two of them, sitting next to each other and breathing each other in. She closed her eyes in anticipation, ready for his soft lips to overwhelm her, only to feel them brush softly over her forehead briefly before he was gone. Bereft of his warmth, Gwiboon opened her eyes and saw that he was blushing slightly and was once again leaning back in his chair, arms crossed and head bowed. No longer distracted by his closeness, she shook her head to throw off any vestiges of lust still lingering in her system. Gwiboon was embarrassed to acknowledge that it wasn’t quite so easy, Minho’s wonderful scent still tickled her nostrils and lasting feeling of that intense gaze were wound throughout her nervous system like roots on a tree, entrenched so deep that she wasn’t sure how she could uproot it entirely. Jinki, always late to the party, finally arrived at their table. He was surprised to see Minho but didn’t comment as he bombarded Gwiboon with questions about her day. He seemed unusually chipper, and unusually interested in her answers, so Gwiboon couldn’t help but tease him a little. “Jinki, how’s Jonghyun-ah doing? I haven’t talked to him yet today,” she said as casually as possible, catching Minho’s broad grin out of the corner of her eye. “Oh, he’s good, just had some- wait, what? No, that’s not-“ Halfway through his response, he finally caught on and Gwiboon couldn’t hold back a shit-eating grin as Minho barked out a laugh. Jinki finally stopped talking, his mouth just opening and closing as he stared between the two like a fish gasping for air, waiting for a lifeline. One that would not be given to him. “Jinki-oppa, can you please just admit that you’re dating my brother? It’s getting kind of annoying to pretend like you’re just friends,” was all Gwiboon said, refusing to back down. If Jinki was allowed to poke his nose into her business with Minho, then she could return the favor. “I- uh… we’re not- you know that. We’re just, uh-“ “Do not,” Gwiboon said, emphasizing each syllable, “tell me that you’re just friends. That’s bullshit. I know my brother and I know you. Don’t even try to play this game with me, Lee Jinki. I’ll win.” He sat there, dumbfounded, as Minho once again leaned forward smile wide on his face as he brushed a hand down Gwiboon’s back and pinched her side. “Don’t upset the old man,” he said, winking down at her. “Not you too!” Jinki whined, slamming his fist on the table to demonstrate his frustration with Minho using Gwiboon’s preferred nickname for him. Minho and Gwiboon both burst out laughing only to be shushed seconds later by other students who were actually trying to study on a Friday night. Cowed by their peers, they all gathered their things and walked briskly towards the exit where the bright sun greeted them. “So what’re we doing tonight?” Jinki asked, making his way towards his and Gwiboon’s dorm since Minho’s roommate gets easily annoyed about having people over. Minho drew back and grabbed Gwiboon’s hand, halting her attempt to follow Jinki. “Hyung, we’re actually going to do something just the two of us tonight, if that’s all right?” he said, now entwining their fingers. Jinki stopped walked and turned around, trying to stare too long at their hands. “Oh, that’s –uh, yeah, that’s cool, I guess.” “Great! We’ll see you later, hyung,” Minho said, waving at him before dragging Gwiboon after him. Although it felt weird to hold hands with Minho in public, it also felt wonderful. Gwiboon tried not to think too hard about why the simple touch made her blood sing or her stomach feel light, but she knew it would have to be revisited at some point. For now, however, she allowed herself to be dragged along, pulling on Minho’s arm to have him slow down since her shoes weren’t the best for quick jaunts across campus. He slowed down, smiling sheepishly at her as if afraid his enthusiasm had shown too much, and Gwiboon couldn’t help but smile widely back. He really was too cute. “Where are we going?” she finally asked after they had walked for a few more minutes in silence. Minho shrugged without answering, but she opted to let it be. Carpe diem, right?~~~ Jinki stared at his computer screen, Jonghyun smiling at him from the bright surface. “Hyung, I told you she would find out. I don’t know why you wanted to pretend like she wouldn’t know.” “Jonghyun-ah, I didn’t think she’d guess it so quickly!” he whined, upset that he couldn’t bask in the special feeling of his recent relationship. It had taken them weeks to finally admit their feelings to each other and Jinki had only wanted to have it be a secret for a little bit before he had to start sharing it with the whole world. “Jinki-hyung, Gwiboon is part of my world, you know that.” Jonghyun says, making Jinki realize he had said that last bit aloud. “She’s my twin. There was no way this would have been a secret. I bet she knew about us before we did!” He laughs, the light sound causing Jinki to smile until the two are just staring and smiling at each other stupidly. “Well, I have an update for you, I guess,” Jinki finally says, not wanting to admit that he could honestly stare at his boyfriend for hours on end with no need for words. “What?!” the other boy says, almost too excited to hear the most recent gossip the elder has on his twin sister. “Minho and Gwiboon are on a date, right now!” Jinki waits for Jonghyun to say something, to make a funny facial expression – do anything – but the blonde only stares back at him, a look of worry crossing his face. “What is it, Jonghyun-ah?” “I thought she was trying to get back together with Taemin-ah?” Jonghyun’s brows crease in worry and a slight feeling of foreboding settles in the pit of Jinki’s stomach. “I don’t know…I don’t think they’ve actually talked.” Jonghyun nods his head, “They haven’t, but I finally talked to him and he-“ Before he could answer a loud knock sounded on the door and he jumps in his seat. “Jinki? Gwiboon? It’s Aliza!” the RA yells through the door. Jinki sighs, holding up a finger to tell Jonghyun to wait for one minute. “Hey, Aliza!” Jinki says cheerfully as he opens the door, smiling widely at his RA. She doesn’t usually drop by unannounced, but he’s always happy to talk to her. “What’s up?” “Is Gwiboon here?” she says, attempting to look past Jinki into the empty room. Jonghyun can barely be seen on his computer screen from the doorway, but he waves at the pair as if he’s in the room with them. “No, she’s out for the night…” Jinki’s unsure where this is going, before he notices that Aliza isn’t alone. “Oh, well she has a visitor but we’ve been having some trouble communicating… could you maybe translate for me?” “Sure…” Jinki isn’t sure what’s going on exactly but that sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach has returned full force. “This young man is here to see Gwiboon, but we can’t quite figure out anything beyond that. He also mentioned you, so I brought him up with me, but I just wanted to check with you before-“ “Annyeonghasayo,” Jinki says to the young man standing behind Aliza. He assumes he speaks Korean since Aliza asked Jinki to translate. The young man nods, eyes widening slightly before bowing and returning the greeting. “Are you looking for Gwiboon-ssi?” “Ne,” he says, looking past Jinki as if hoping to see her. He eyes Jinki warily, seemingly unsure as to why Jinki and Gwiboon would share a room, but Jinki presses on. “What’s your name?” “Lee Taemin.” Jinki tries not to stare, but he finds it hard as he assures Aliza that Taemin can stay and the RA leaves. Taemin follows Jinki into his room before noticing that Jonghyun is on the computer screen. “Taemin-ah?!” Jonghyun screeches at him from the computer. Taemin waves guiltily before Jinki rushes to cut off the chat, telling Jonghyun that he’ll talk to him later. Turning slowly to face the younger, Jinki takes in the man that has been driving Gwiboon into manic episodes of stubbornness and depression. The younger clears his throat, obviously uneasy in Jinki’s presence. Jinki offers for him to sit at one of the desks and Taemin does, arms stiff at his side while he looks around the room and smiles at the messy array of Gwiboon’s clothes and bedding. He reaches to touch a recent picture she had printed of Jinki, Minho, Amber, and her at their favorite café down the street from a few days ago, only to stop halfway there as he notices the way Minho has his arm curled around Gwiboon’s shoulders and the way her head is leaning on his shoulder. Taemin abruptly turns to stare at Jinki, his serious gaze penetrating the elder to the core. “Where’s Gwiboon-ah?” Jinki honestly doesn’t know what to say. A/N: I know it's been a while. I know. I'm sorry! Much love for comments and subscribers! uwu