#but then the next one is 'JANITOR' and you're like. hm why | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

a-blue-secret · 3 years ago

Text

My Sputnik (1)

g: college au, fluff, angst, slowburn, hurt/comfort, pining, metaphors, strangers to lovers/ friends to lovers, rooftop stargazing

pairing: taegyu

wc: 16.9k+ of 42.2k+ (yet again i can't post all in one go hmph)

warnings: emotional manipulation, physical abuse

an: just a brief glance at my works can show how much i love rooftop stargazing scenes. so did i write over 40k+ words centered wholly around that? yes i did. enjoy! -also on ao3 here-

summary: taehyun is a mystery. the riddle student, soobin had called him, and while beomgyu ha never really had any reason to acknowledge taehyun, after a chance encounter with him, beomgyu's whole life is suddenly filled with taehyun. taehyun, the mystery, the riddle student who, strangely, likes to look at the stars. as beomgyu begins to learn more about the riddle student, he opens up his heart to a world of starry skies, shimmering words and sparkling eyes.

next ->

"O—oh my god, I'm so sorry! Here, let me help you with that."

Beomgyu internally cringed at himself for his stupid mistake. He knew that he should have looked where he was going, especially since the floors had been cleaned (for once) and were incredibly slippery. It was just his luck that he ran into someone the one time the uni remembered that it had janitors.

Quickly, he gathered the papers which had fallen and messily attempted to organize them, before looking at the person he'd run into.

"Again, I'm so sorry. It's just, I'm late for my class and it's literally in a whole other building. I'm so sorry, I don't normally do this." Beomgyu apologized profusely, before realising the boy was still on the floor. "Oh—here, let me help you up." He extended a hand.

The boy stared at the hand, before slowly struggling to his feet on his own. He didn't look at Beomgyu, just gently tugged the papers out of Beomgyu's grip.

"It's fine."

His words were soft, completely contrasting the panicked squawks Beomgyu was making.

"Are you sure? I'm sure I'm already late by now, so I can help you take those to wherever you need to go—"

"No, I'm fine," the boy said. He still didn't look at Beomgyu. "It's fine. I'll just go."

"Wait," Beomgyu called as the boy attempted to walk past. The boy paused, but didn't turn his head to look at Beomgyu. "You seem familiar. Do I know you?"

For a long moment, the boy didn't move. But then, finally, he spoke.

"I think you're rather late for your class now," he said, before walking away.

Beomgyu watched him go, curious. He glanced at the clock in the hall. He was definitely late now. With a sigh, Beomgyu turned around, and headed to class.

.・✥・゜・。.

"Gyu, you barely even paid attention to the dance in class at all," Yeonjun said, nudging him. "And you haven't even touched your food. What's up?"

Beomgyu stared, gaze unfocused, at his food. But then suddenly, he spoke. "Yeonjun."

Yeonjun looked up, mouth full of rice. "Hm?"

"You know everyone in the school, right?"

Yeonjun gave a cocky scoff, leaning back. It would have looked cool if he didn't still have flecks of rice on his cheeks. "Duh. Your boy here knows everyone, and everyone knows him." His fellow dance major blinked at him, unimpressed, and he leaned forward again. "Why?"

"Do you know a boy about my height with a really pretty nose and soft voice?" Beomgyu asked.

Yeonjun frowned. "Pretty nose?"

"The prettiest," Beomgyu said. "After mine, of course."

Yeonjun rolled his eyes. "Of course."

"How do you measure the prettiness of a nose?" Soobin asked, walking up to them and sitting beside Yeonjun.

"Agreed," Huening Kai said, sitting next to Beomgyu. "What are you talking about anyway?"

"Beomgyu was spacing out then he just asked me about a boy with a pretty nose and soft voice," Yeonjun commented, eyeing Soobin's food. The taller had brought chips. "Only, I have no idea who he could be talking about."

Soobin pursed his lips thoughtfully. "What about his eyes?"

Beomgyu shook his head. "No idea. He wouldn't look at me."

"Oh, that's Taehyun then," Huening Kai spoke up. "He doesn't look at anyone."

Soobin's eyes lit up. "That's right, Taehyun! I get what you mean, Beomgyu. He has a really pretty nose.” He frowned as Yeonjun quickly swiped a couple of fries from his lunch, but let the elder continue to take them.

"So why did you want to know about Taehyun, Beomgyu?" Hueningkai asked.

"I bumped into him in the hall," Beomgyu said. "And like I said, he wouldn't look at me." He frowned. "I don't know why."

"Maybe ‘cause you're ugly," Hueningkai snorted.

Beomgyu rolled his eyes. "That's not true. The proof literally approached me this morning."

Hueningkai snickered. "Another love confession? It's not even February."

"Another five," Beomgyu groaned. "I don't know how many people I've turned down at this point. By the end of the semester I think I might have turned down half the school."

“All girls, I presume?” Soobin quipped.

“No, actually,” Beomgyu said. “Finally, people have caught on that I’m bi.”

Hueningkai laughed.

"But back to the point," Soobin interrupted. "You bumped into him?"

"Yeah, I did. He didn't say much. I had no idea who he was, but at the same time I felt like I knew him too," Beomgyu said.

Yeonjun clapped his hands together, eyes brightening with recognition. “Oh, Kang Taehyun! The small one with really pretty hands and super high nose? That Kang Taehyun?”

Everyone blinked at him.

“Did you only just realise what we were talking about?” Soobin said.

Yeonjun waved his hands. “Maybe, maybe not. Food was more important than discussing Beomgyu’s morning.” Ignoring Beomgyu’s indignant “Hey!” he carried on, “He’s in our music theory class, Gyu. I knew I’d heard of him!”

There was an awkward pause as everyone looked at Yeonjun, who had clearly only just realised the subject of their conversation. Yeonjun looked back at them, before promptly returning to his food.

“But back to Kang Taehyun,” Beomgyu said.

“Right. Everyone knows Kang Taehyun,” Hueningkai said simply.

"A-star student, always getting 100% in any test, whether it’s a midterm or just a pop quiz. His essays are known to make professors gasp, and his creative writing pieces known to reduce people to tears. And yet, no one truly knows who he is," Soobin said. "He's like a famous riddle to which no one knows the answer."

"I don't really care for riddles," Yeonjun spoke up, shovelling rice in his mouth. "Good for him, I guess. But I for one prefer straightforward questions."

Soobin sighed. "It's a metaphor."

"I know," Yeonjun replied. "But I still don't really care about riddles." He noticed Beomgyu, who was still looking thoughtful. "Gyu, you okay?"

"Yeah," Beomgyu said. "Hyuka, you said he's a lit student?"

Huening Kai nodded. "Yep."

"Hm. What minors do lit majors normally take?"

"Taehyun is a creative writing minor. He's in the same class as me. And, from what Yeonjun said, he's a music theory minor too," Soobin said.

"So nothing to do with maths or physics, right?" Beomgyu asked.

"Nope," Huening Kai said.

Beomgyu frowned. "So then why was he headed upstairs to the astrophysics department?"

.・✥・゜・。.

That was not the only time Beomgyu would end up pondering over Kang Taehyun. Their second encounter happened not too long after the first, when Beomgyu was on his way back to the dorms after a tiring day.

It was early evening. Soobin, Yeonjun and Huening Kai didn’t have any classes that day. Beomgyu, adjusting his bag on his shoulder, made his way out of campus, giving a loud, satisfied yell as he stretched.

“No more classes for the rest of the day! Whoo!” he whooped, causing lots of students to look at him oddly. “I wonder what I should do,” he hummed to himself. “Maybe I’ll—”

His thoughts were cut off when he subconsciously glanced up.

“Wait a minute.”

Beomgyu did a double-take, squinting at the small figure sitting on the ledge of the roof of one of their university buildings.

“What the…”

Beomgyu didn’t know how, but he knew immediately that it was Kang Taehyun. The riddle student.

Beomgyu’s feet slowed, and he continued to stare up at the roof. Students streamed out of the building, flowing seamlessly around Beomgyu, who was still rooted to the spot.

He stared up at Kang Taehyun, who continued to remain on the roof. From where he was, it was difficult for Beomgyu to notice specific details, but from Taehyun’s posture he had a distinct feeling that the literature major had his head tilted up to the sky.

Not taking his eyes off Taehyun, Beomgyu walked through the sea of students (accidentally stepping on way too many shoes and nudging far too many ribs) until he was by a bench, which he sat down on. From there, he continued to watch Taehyun.

The campus slowly emptied of students, and early evening turned to late evening. Stars began to blink into life in the sky, and still Taehyun sat on the ledge, looking up. Beomgyu, down below, also continued to sit there, watching Taehyun.

He didn’t know why he was here, looking at Taehyun from down on the ground. But it just never crossed his mind to get up and leave.

So, knees pressed against his chest, Beomgyu rested his chin on top of his hands, continuing to gaze at Taehyun from afar.

That was, until his phone rang.

Beomgyu flinched, fumbling with the device, almost dropping it several times before he managed to click the answer button.

“Hello?”

“Beomgyu, open the door will you? I locked myself out again.”

Beomgyu gave a sigh. “Now how did you manage to do that, Kai?”

“Hey, this time it’s not my fault! Yeonjun stole my keys because I ate some of his pizza, and he said he won’t give it back to me until Monday!”

Beomgyu could hear the pout in Huening Kai’s voice, and chuckled. “Alright. I’ll see you in ten minutes.”

“What, you’re not in our dorms?”

“No, I’m still on campus,” Beomgyu said, glancing up again at the roof. Taehyun was gone.

“Huh? Why?”

“It’s nothing.” He stood up, stretching his stiff legs. “I’ll be there soon, okay? Try not to die of loneliness until I get there.” He hung up, glancing around.

Taehyun really had gone. Picking up his bag, Beomgyu was about to walk away before he saw a person in the distance.

Wait… was that Taehyun? How had he walked past Beomgyu without him noticing?

“Hey, wait up!”

Picking up his bag, Beomgyu scrambled to catch up with the boy.

“You… you’re Kang Taehyun, right?”

Beomgyu came to a stop beside him. Taehyun had his head lowered. Beomgyu waited patiently for Taehyun to answer him.

After a long, stretched-out minute in which Beomgyu was worried that he hadn’t heard him, Taehyun spoke.

“Yeah.”

Beomgyu beamed. “Great!” He held out his hand. “Nice to meet you, Kang Taehyun. I think you share the same music theory class as me.”

Taehyun stared at Beomgyu’s outstretched hand for a moment. Was it just Beomgyu’s imagination, or had Taehyun flinched a little when Beomgyu moved?

After a beat, Taehyun spoke again.

“You’re Choi Beomgyu.”

It wasn’t a question. There was no uncertainty in his tone, despite his voice being so soft.

Beomgyu smiled wider. “That’s me! Wow, I’m surprised you know my name.” It was clear that Taehyun wasn’t going to shake his hand. Beomgyu retracted it, stuffing his hands inside his pockets.

Taehyun blinked slowly. After a moment, he began to gradually back away. “Nice to meet you, Beomgyu.”

With that, he slowly turned, walking away from Beomgyu.

Beomgyu didn’t say anything, watching as Taehyun disappeared through the streets. His overexaggerated grin faded, replaced with a look of curiosity.

.・✥・゜・。.

"Guess who saw Taehyun again!" was the first thing Beomgyu said as he sat down beside Soobin.

Yeonjun barely glanced up from his food. Hueningkai, on the other hand, choked on his noodles.

"Say what?" he croaked. "You saw the riddle student? How is that possible?"

"Dunno, but it happened," Beomgyu replied.

"Where did you see him?" Soobin asked.

"Roof of the physics building," Beomgyu said. “The roof where the stargazing observatory is."

Finally, Yeonjun looked up. "Why was he there?" he asked. But, through his mouthful of food, it sounded a lot like "Waaaeurheurghhh", which made no sense.

Beomgyu, thankfully, having known Yeonjun for a long time, knew exactly what he was saying. He shrugged.

"Dunno. He was just sitting on the ledge thingy. Looking up at the sky."

"Parapet," Soobin said, taking apart his sandwich to remove the avocados. Everyone blinked at him.

"Huh?"

"It's called a parapet, Beomgyu, not a 'ledge thingy', Soobin said calmly.

Beomgyu rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes, literature major. I sincerely apologise for my wrong words."

"Indeed you should," Soobin said, flicking Beomgyu's forehead playfully. "Anyway, he was sat on top of the parapet?"

"Of the physics building, no less," Beomgyu said. "Dunno why, but he was up there for a good few hours. He left around the time Hyuka called me to let him into our dorm, because someone confiscated his keys."

Yeonjun held his hands up. "In my defence, it was the last slice of pizza. He should know I get defensive over the last slice of pizza."

"But still, my dorm key? That was a bit unfair, don't you think," Hueningkai said, pouting. "And Monday is three days away!"

"Should have thought about that before you took that pizza," Yeonjun sniffed.

“But back to me,” Beomgyu interrupted. “What do you think about the whole Taehyun thing?”

“What about him?” Soobin asked.

“Don’t you think it’s strange ?” Beomgyu said. “I get the feeling he’s been going up to that ledg— that parapet for a while. But why ? He doesn’t even study anything to do with physics.”

Hueningkai shrugged. “Astronomy club?”

“Yeah, but he was by himself,” Beomgyu said. “Why?”

“Maybe he wanted time alone,” Soobin suggested. He started calmly piecing his sandwich together again. “People who like to be alone do exist, Beomgyu.”

“Okay, but why the roof ?” Beomgyu pressed. “Straight As, you said. I get the feeling he isn’t your typical rebel. So why is he up there in the middle of the night where he might get caught? Don’t you think this is interesting? What do you think?”

“I think you’re being nosy,” Hueningkai said. “Just like you always are.”

Beomgyu placed his hand on his chest, looking melodramatically offended. “How dare you assume that I am being nosy!”

“Kai’s right,” Soobin said, slapping Yeonjun’s hand away before the elder could snatch his abandoned avocados. “Eat your own food first, Yeonjun,” he chastised. “I told you Beomgyu, Taehyun’s like an enigma.”

“He is an enigma,” Hueningkai said. “He’s barely anywhere and yet everywhere at the same time. It’s best to just leave him be. There’s no point in trying to do… whatever it is you’re trying to do.”

“I’m not going to do anything!” Beomgyu said, waving his hands. “And you said that really weirdly. You make me sound like a creep.”

Soobin just chuckled. “What we mean is just don’t go and try to make friends with him. It won’t work.”

“You never know,” Beomgyu challenged, eyebrows knitting playfully. “I bet I could make friends with him.”

Soobin shook his head. “You can’t. Look, even Felix failed in talking to Taehyun so I don’t think you can.”

Beomgyu frowned. “Are you saying my friend-making skills are subpar to Felix’s?”

“Leave Taehyun alone, that’s what Soobin’s saying,” Yeonjun finally said, finishing the last of his food. “Even I got that message. No one’s suggesting you might try to make friends with him. We’re all just telling you to let him be. Don’t bother him.”

Beomgyu slumped his shoulders. “You could have just said that.”

“I just did,” Yeonjun said, ruffling Beomgyu’s hair. “Now are you going to eat that apple or can I?”

.・✥・゜・。.

That day, as Beomgyu was leaving to go back to his dorm, he looked up and saw Taehyun on the ledge— wait, the parapet . As Soobin called it.

Beomgyu stood there for a good few moments, neck craned upwards. His first thought was to call the others to show them what Taehyun was doing, but then he thought better of it. He remembered what Yeonjun said about leaving him alone, and was about to carry on walking when he stopped.

He looked upwards again. Observed Kang Taehyun’s relaxed position. Turned slowly on his heel.

And walked towards the physics building.

Sometimes, Beomgyu had strange urges to do things. Not in the obsessive kind of way, just in a more impulsive way. 9 times out of 10 these impulses were down to his instincts, meaning that he didn’t have a real reason for why he did those things, other than the fact his gut told him to do it.

Beomgyu never questioned his instincts. Even if they got him seriously hurt (like that time he had to go to hospital for a concussion while trying to shield a distracted Soobin from a malfunctioning drone) or got him seriously scolded (like the time he didn’t go to school for a whole week just to take a train to Daegu because he had an inkling that something was wrong) he always followed his impulses.

So even as he walked up the stairs towards the parapet, he didn’t question his movements. He let his feet move wherever they wanted to go, and once they’d reached their destination, he’d figure out what to do from there.

Beomgyu opened the door and smiled. Taehyun was leaning against the parapet, his head tilted upwards.

Beomgyu stood beside Taehyun, looking up at the sky. Taehyun flinched as Beomgyu appeared in his periphery, shuffling away from the dance major in surprise.

"The sky looks pretty," Beomgyu said, almost as if he hadn't seen Taehyun. "Golden hour, I think it's called."

“Choi Beomgyu?” Taehyun said in surprise.

Beomgyu looked at Taehyun, and widened his eyes, smiling. "Oh, hello. Didn't see you there. Do you come here often?"

Taehyun, having recovered from his initial shock, cleared his throat and took his gaze away from the sky, looking down. He was still quite a distance away from Beomgyu.

"Is there a reason you're here?" he said eventually.

Beomgyu shrugged. “I have no idea,” he replied.

There was a moment of silence as Taehyun tensed his shoulders, obviously unsure as to how to proceed. Beomgyu just grinned, leaning against the parapet too.

“Is there a reason you’re here?” he asked.

Beomgyu watched Taehyun as his eyelids fluttered nervously as his fingers picked at the concrete of the parapet. He’d been right: Taehyun had a really pretty nose. His whole side profile was very pretty. It was a shame he didn’t look anyone in the eye. Beomgyu had a feeling his eyes were beautiful too.

“No reason.”

Beomgyu nodded at that, looking up at the sky. “Understandable.” He didn’t say anything after that, content with tracing the path of the setting sun with his eyes.

After a moment, Taehyun lifted his head to watch the sky too.

“For me, twilight is the most peaceful part of the day,” Beomgyu said, as vibrant purples and pinks streaked across the sky. “The world begins to calm down at this point. There’s not as much noise.” He tilted his head to the side, watching as the university campus began to slowly darken, yellow lights from various buildings slowly flickering on. “Everything is so much more peaceful when there’s little noise.” Beomgyu turned to Taehyun. “Don’t you think?”

In the fast fading light, Beomgyu could only see the dark outline of Taehyun’s face.

“I suppose,” Taehyun murmured after a while.

“So how long do you stay out here, Taehyun?” Beomgyu asked after a few more minutes of watching the world steadily darken around them. “Until the sun comes up the next morning?” he joked.

Beomgyu heard Taehyun breathe out softly, and turned to see him lower his head, looking down at his fingers.

“No,” Taehyun said quietly. He twisted his fingers together, then untangled them. “Just until the stars come out.”

“Oh, right,” Beomgyu said, nodding. “Yeah, I guess the stars are quite pretty too.” He pursed his lips thoughtfully. “But… stars take a while to come out, don’t they?”

A pause.

“Yes.”

“You’re going to stay out here for hours, until they appear?”

Another silence.

“Yes.”

“Don’t your hands get cold, though?” Beomgyu asked curiously. “I don’t know about you, but if I stay out too long then I feel like my hands will freeze off. And my legs!” He shook his legs to emphasise his point. “Don’t you get tired from standing for so long?”

Taehyun kept his gaze fixed on his hands, before lifting his head upwards. “The stars are worth the pain.” His voice was soft, immediately diffusing Beomgyu’s hyperactiveness that had appeared while he was talking. “They’re worth the suffering.”

Beomgyu sighed, shoulders sagging in tiredness.

“As much as I’d love to suffer with you, it’s getting late and I have an 8am class tomorrow,” he said, regretfully pushing himself off the parapet. “So I’m going to have to get going now.”

Taehyun gave a nod, not taking his eyes off the sky.

"Goodnight, Taehyun," Beomgyu said. He waited patiently.

"Goodnight," Taehyun responded.

Beomgyu leaned against the parapet again. "Goodnight Taehyun," he repeated pointedly.

A beat. "Goodnight?"

"Taehyun," Beomgyu repeated. "Goodnight Taehyun. I'm not leaving until you return the phrase properly."

Maybe it was just the dark playing with his vision, but Beomgyu was sure he saw a small smile on Taehyun's lips.

"Goodnight, Beomgyu."

Beomgyu nodded, satisfied. "Sleep well, okay? Don't stay up too late."

"Sleep well, Beomgyu," Taehyun said softly as Beomgyu left the rooftop.

Beomgyu made his way down the building, a smile on his face.

As he walked back to the dorm, he saw Hueningkai also approach.

“Oh, Hueningkai? What are you doing?”

Hueningkai looked up and, seeing Beomgyu stand outside their dorm, smiled and skipped up to him. “Beomgyu! Where have you been?”

“I could ask you that, too,” Beomgyu said, curiously taking in Hueningkai’s hyper state. “Where have you been? Why aren’t you inside?"

"I don't have my key, remember?" Hueningkai chirped. He lifted up a bag. "And I went to get bubble tea!"

"This late at night?" Beomgyu said incredulously. "They were open?"

"Mhm!" Hueningkai nodded. He reached into the bag and handed Beomgyu a boba. "Here, I bought one for you too."

"Oh, thanks, Kai," Beomgyu said. With one hand holding his bubble tea, he fished into his pocket and pulled out his dorm key.

"Where were you, though?"

"Me?" Beomgyu chuckled, opening the door and stepping inside their dorm. "I watched someone who suffers in order to see the stars."

Hueningkai stood outside for a moment longer, confused. “Wait, what?” He stepped inside after Beomgyu. “What do you mean?”

Beomgyu just laughed, shutting the door. “Don’t worry about it.”

.・✥・゜・。.

“Oh, hello again.”

Beomgyu climbed up onto the parapet beside Taehyun, feet dangling. Taehyun flinched in surprise, obviously not expecting Beomgyu to suddenly appear next to him.

Beomgyu smiled, watching Taehyun’s side profile. “Fancy seeing you here again, huh? What a pleasant surprise.”

Taehyun was silent for a moment. “What a pleasant surprise,” he agreed after a moment. “Beomgyu.”

Beomgyu beamed. “You said my name! It’s nice to see you again, Taehyun.”

Taehyun just nodded. His fingers held onto the parapet tightly, shoulders tensed. Beomgyu didn't say anything else, and returned his gaze to the sky.

After a moment, Taehyun’s shoulders relaxed.

Don’t ask Beomgyu why he was there again. He didn’t really know himself. It had been an impulse thing, like before, and without him even knowing, his feet had led him to Kang Taehyun.

Not that he minded, really.

Even though it was cold, Beomgyu had to admit it was quite relaxing. Sitting atop the parapet, watching the world go by as the light slowly dimmed all around them. From where they were, it felt like they were suspended in time, a whole world away from all the hustle and bustle below them. It felt calm.

Twilight came and went, but still Beomgyu did not leave. Neither of them had said a word for the whole time, but Beomgyu knew from the way Taehyun had glanced at him that he was wondering if Beomgyu was going to go, like last time.

“I want to see the stars with you today,” Beomgyu said. The first words which had been spoken that evening. “I only have one afternoon class tomorrow. It’ll be alright if I sleep late tonight.” He looked at Taehyun. “Is it okay if I stay with you?”

Taehyun had his eyes shut, head tilted backwards. When Beomgyu spoke, he lowered his head and opened his eyes. Gaze fixed on his lap, he seemed to be pondering Beomgyu’s words for a long time.

“Sure,” he said softly. “That’s okay.”

Beomgyu smiled. “That’s good.”

Down below, the sound of people chattering and cars driving by was loud and boisterous, but from up on the parapet, all the noise felt muffled. The sky continued to darken, until the moon eventually rose in the velvet navy canvas of the night. Miraculously, there were little clouds in the sky, and the waning moon glowed gently up above them.

“There’s the moon,” Beomgyu said. His voice was gentle, calm. Different compared to his usual tone. “Now where are the stars?”

Taehyun’s side profile was but a dark smudge in the near blackness of the night. His head was tilted upwards, gaze fixed on the navy sky above. “They’re there,” he murmured. “You can’t see them yet, but they’re there.”

Beomgyu tilted his head up further, squinting at the night sky, unable to see anything but then—

“There’s one.”

Beomgyu followed where Taehyun was pointing. Among the swath of navy velvet, there shone a tiny pinprick of light.

“There’s a star.”

Taehyun’s hand dropped back onto the parapet, but his gaze remained fixed on the small star. Beomgyu could see the way his shoulders relaxed further, like that little ball of light had released so much of the worries weighing down on his shoulders.

“And look, there’s another one.”

Beomgyu laughed softly. “They appear to you one by one, don’t they?”

Taehyun nodded, letting his hand fall again. “If you’re patient, your patience is always rewarded.”

“I suppose that’s the beauty of it all, isn’t it?” Beomgyu said, turning to Taehyun. He watched as Taehyun’s head moved minutely, trying to spot any more stars in the sky. Taehyun nodded. Beomgyu smiled, turning his head back upwards. “I feel like if I stay here long enough, I could figure out all the secrets of the sky.”

He heard Taehyun huff softly, and even in the dark, he thought he saw a small smile on his face. Just hearing Taehyun’s quiet laugh had Beomgyu smiling too, watching him continue to look at the sky.

“I suppose you could.”

.・✥・゜・。.

To Beomgyu’s own surprise, he kept on going up the parapet at night to sit beside Taehyun. It was strange. He’d never had any interest in the literature major before, and he’d been almost invisible to him. But, after their first encounter, Kang Taehyun was suddenly everywhere.

“I can’t believe you managed to forfeit your key to Yeonjun yet again,” Beomgyu laughed.

Hueningkai pouted, slumping across the table. “I don’t even know what I did!”

“He cheated in a game against Yeonjun,” Soobin said calmly, eating his food.

“But it wasn’t even that much of a big game!” Hueningkai argued.

“What game were you playing?” Beomgyu asked.

“Laugh You Lose,” Soobin replied. “First one to laugh or break their stance lost.”

“There was no rule saying you couldn’t kiss them.” Hueningkai folded his arms pettily.

“He kissed me! Right between my eyes!” Yeonjun exclaimed. “Who even kisses someone there anyway?”

“Why, would you have preferred the lips?” Hueningkai made exaggerated kissy noises at Yeonjun, making the elder side-eye him. He laughed at Yeonjun’s disgusted face.

“No way am I giving your key back for at least another four days.”

Hueningkai’s whole demeanor changed at the mention of his key. He wilted sadly, shoulders drooping. “Oh. Okay.”

Soobin sighed. “Look what you’ve done, Yeonjun, he’s going to release the big guns.”

“Well I’m not falling for it.” Yeonjun crossed his arms, turning away. Hueningkai whined like a kicked puppy, and Beomgyu snickered. Yeonjun was really in for it.

“Please?” Hueningkai continued to pout sadly.

Yeonjun glanced at him. "Nope. I refused to be convinced by the pout." Hueningkai's eyes widened dolefully, and he tilted his head to the side. Yeonjun pressed his lips together, shaking his head.

"Please," Hueningkai said, rubbing Yeonjun's stomach. "For Hueningie? Please?"

There was a long, drawn-out silence, but then Yeonjun caved.

"Alright! Alright! I'll give it back by the end of today."

"Promise?" Hueningkai asked cutely, holding out his pinky. Yeonjun sighed, linking pinkies with him.

"Promise."

Soobin laughed. "You're so weak for Hueningkai, you know," he said.

"He's my baby, that's why," Yeonjun said, pinching Hueningkai's cheeks. "You're my baby, aren't you?"

Beomgyu pretended to look hurt. "What about me? Am I not cute enough? Have I been shunned?"

Yeonjun grinned and turned to Beomgyu about to say something, before his mouth pursed, eyebrows twitching into a frown. His eyes were fixed on the spot above Beomgyu’s head.

Beomgyu blinked. “What—” He turned around, and his face fell.

A girl stood behind him, with a bright smile and a face that looked far too young to be in college. She held a gift-wrapped box out towards Beomgyu.

“Please accept this,” she said, voice high-pitched and quavering with nervousness.

Beomgyu sighed internally, before gently pushing the box away. “I’m sorry,” he said, trying to sound as nice as possible. “I can’t.”

The girl’s eyes widened. Beomgyu saw tears forming, and resisted the urge to scowl. Why was it that no one was ever able to take a rejection in a dignified manner?

“I’m sorry, but I don’t know you,” Beomgyu said, voice apologetic. “I don’t think I’m...right...for...you…” Beomgyu trailed off, looking past the girl. His eyes widened. And then, without another word, he stood up and ran away.

Everyone watched him go, in shock. The girl still stood there for a few moments, before giving a sob and running away. No one paid any attention to her. Yeonjun frowned. It wasn’t like Beomgyu to leave someone hanging when they were confessing. Where had he gone? But then he saw Beomgyu running to catch up with someone, and his frown cleared, replaced by a look of surprise.

"Is that… Taehyun?"

Soobin turned to follow Yeonjun's gaze. His mouth fell open into a surprise 'o'. "Indeed that is," he said. "Oh wow. That really is."

Hueningkai’s eyes were wide. “But… why did Beomgyu cut off a confession just to talk to Taehyun?”

“Taehyun! Hey, Taehyun!”

Beomgyu jogged up to Taehyun, smiling.

“Oh, good, it is you. I thought I saw you.”

He walked side by side with Taehyun down the paths.

“Where are you going?”

Taehyun glanced in Beomgyu’s direction. After a moment, he spoke. “What are you doing?”

“Talking to you,” Beomgyu said, still smiling. He tilted his head. “Are you going somewhere?”

Taehyun faced forwards again. Beomgyu, undeterred by his lack of response, put his hands into his pockets, amiably matching his steps with Taehyun.

After a few more minutes of walking, Beomgyu realised where Taehyun was going.

“You’re… leaving?” Beomgyu asked, confused.

They walked for a little longer. “I’m done for the day,” Taehyun said eventually.

Ah . Beomgyu nodded, a little disappointed.

“Well, I am, unfortunately, not done for the day,” he said, chuckling a little. He slowed down, but Taehyun carried on. “Well, see you Taehyun!” he said, waving as the literature major retreated.

He heard a soft “Bye” in return, and smiled.

“Have a nice day!” he called, before turning back to the cafe.

“What?” was the first thing he said as he sat back down beside Soobin.

His friends gaped at him.

“What do you mean ‘What?’” Yeonjun said. “You ditched a girl to talk to Taehyun.”

Beomgyu shrugged. “Talking to Taehyun is a rarity, and you must cherish the opportunity when it arises.”

Hueningkai snorted. “Not you trying to sound all wise.”

Beomgyu leaned over the table and flicked Hueningkai’s forehead, making the younger yelp. “Shut up.”

“You conversed for five seconds, max,” Soobin commented. “You left a confession hanging to talk to him for five seconds?”

“He normally talks to me for longer than that,” Beomgyu said. He frowned. “Maybe because it isn’t night time? Normally he’s comfortable with talking to me. Today he seemed tense.”

Soobin, taking a sip of his water, choked. “What did you just say?”

“Why? All I said was that he normally talks to me for longer. I don’t know, maybe the sun gets to him.” Beomgyu shrugged. “Now I think of it, he does seem more relaxed at night.”

“The— the riddle student? Kang Taehyun? Where are you meeting Taehyun at night?” Soobin said, still coughing. Beomgyu, being the nice person he was, patted Soobin on the back. “Ah, stop, you’re making me choke even more.”

Beomgyu stuck his tongue out. “Meanie.”

“Immature,” Soobin responded, but he ruffled Beomgyu’s hair affectionately. “Anyway, answer my question.”

“Does Kang Taehyun go to nightclubs or something?” Hueningkai asked, eyes wide.

“What? No! No.” Beomgyu shook his head. “Just the roof. Like I told you.”

“Why are you going up onto the roof with him, though?” Yeonjun asked. He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “Do you like him?”

Hueningkai gasped melodramatically. “Choi Beomgyu has a crush on Kang Taehyun?”

“Shut it!” Beomgyu hissed, reaching across the table to wack Hueningkai upside the head. “Do you want our whole university to know?”

“Probably not a good idea to scream that aloud, Hueningkai,” Soobin said, unfazed by Hueningkai’s squawks of distress as he was repeatedly smacked on the shoulder by Beomgyu. “Unless we want hoards of disappointed people flocking us everywhere we go.”

“Yeah, you’ll disappoint all of Beomgyu’s admirers,” Yeonjun said.

“You were the one who brought up the idea in the first place!” Beomgyu exclaimed, jabbing a finger in Yeonjun’s direction.

“Hey, hey, watch the face,” Yeonjun said, leaning away before Beomgyu’s finger could poke him in the eye. “My face is precious.”

Beomgyu sniffed, sinking back into his seat and crossing his arms. “I don’t have a crush on Kang Taehyun.”

“Whatever you say, Beomgyu. Whatever you say,” Soobin said, patting his shoulder.

“Hey, don’t you start patronising me!” Beomgyu complained.

Soobin just chuckled.

.・✥・゜・。.

“I didn’t even say you liked him,” Soobin protested as they walked out of the cafe. “Why am I getting pinched too?”

Beomgyu pinched him again. “For being patronising.”

Soobin frowned. “That’s not a good reason.”

“It’s a good enough reason for Beomgyu,” Hueningkai said, rubbing his arm. “I got pinched three times. Count yourself lucky, Soobin.”

“Shut up you two, I was pinched three times and poked in the ear,” Yeonjun called from in front of them. “And hurry up! Class starts in fifteen minutes and I want to get my coffee before that.”

“You could have bought that in the cafe we just left,” Soobin said.

“Yeah, but their coffee doesn’t taste as nice,” Yeonjun said. “Gyu? You coming?”

“Let me go to the bathroom first,” Beomgyu said, gesturing behind him. “You go ahead!”

Yeonjun watched Beomgyu sprint back inside. “He does know that the cafe we’re going to has bathrooms too, right?”

Hueningkai shook his head. “He’s a little scatterbrained. We know that.”

Soobin hurried them along. “Come on. Let’s get Yeonjun his coffee.”

.・✥・゜・。.

Drying his hands on his jeans, Beomgyu left the bathroom. He checked the time. If he ran, he might be able to catch up with the others and order a coffee of his own.

He sprinted across campus, barely stopping, before a voice suddenly brought his feet to an abrupt stop, causing him to almost fall over.

"Ugh, that Kang Taehyun is so annoying."

Beomgyu skidded across the grass as a female voice sounded from around the corner.

"I know right?" someone else replied to the first voice. "I said hi to him in the hall, and he wouldn't even look at me."

"Oh my god, you too? He did the same thing to me!"

"He must think he's so above us all, just because he's so smart. I hate people like him."

"Right? His stuck-up nature, refusing to look at anyone and not talking to us. Honestly, he really needs to sort out his behavior."

Beomgyu frowned. He walked around the corner, feeling anger build up within him.

"Don't talk about Kang Taehyun like that."

Both of the girls whipped around, eyes wide, before they saw Beomgyu and started squealing.

"Choi Beomgyu!"

They ran up to him, clinging onto his arms and Beomgyu had to clench his fists to prevent himself from shoving them away.

"You're friends with that Kang Taehyun?" one asked, eyes exaggeratedly wide. Beomgyu wanted to scoff. The intentional widening of their eyes, instead of making them look cuter, made them seem as if they were a pair of permanently startled deer.

"Aw, you're such a wonderful person," the other gushed. "Taking pity on the unloved and giving them attention!"

Beomgyu's frown deepened. "Alright, listen here," he said, and almost gagged as both girls immediately stared up at him, eyes big. "Don't talk about Kang Taehyun like that. He's not like that at all. And really, badmouthing someone when you know they'll do little to stop you is incredibly horrible."

One girl pouted. "But Beomgyu, he was being mean to us," she said, voice whiny. Honestly, they were in university now, why were they still speaking like cringy highschoolers?

"Yeah, he ignored us," the other added.

"If you cared to look at his intentions properly, you'd find that he's just awkward around other people," Beomgyu said with a sigh. He'd had enough of these idiotic girls. He yanked his arms away, staring at them disapprovingly. "You really shouldn't talk about Taehyun like that."

"But—"

"I'm late for class now," Beomgyu interrupted. "So I'm going to go. But don't let me find you talking about Taehyun in that way again."

He stalked away, ears pink with annoyance.

Beomgyu sat down in the seat beside Yeonjun, face dark. Yeonjun, sipping his iced coffee, watched him curiously.

“Beomgyu? What’s up? You never caught up with us at the cafe, you know.”

Beomgyu shook his head. “Nothing. Just some girls talking bad about Taehyun.”

Yeonjun nodded slowly. “Right.” He paused. “I kind of want to tease you about the whole ‘having a crush on Taehyun’ thing, but I’m not going to.”

“Yeah. Please don’t.”

Yeonjun leaned forward and ruffled Beomgyu’s hair. “Good job standing up for him, though. Just because he’s quiet doesn’t give them the right to talk bad about him. It’s good you showed them that.” He tilted his head, smiling. “I think Taehyun would have appreciated that.”

Beomgyu looked at Yeonjun, and the anger melted from his face. He smiled.

.・✥・゜・。.

“Hey,” Beomgyu said, and couldn’t help but chuckle slightly as Taehyun flinched at the sound of his voice. “Really, I think you need to get used to me coming up here. I have a feeling I’ll be joining you with your stargazing from now on.”

“Why are you…” Taehyun started as Beomgyu climbed up onto the concrete beside him. Beomgyu looked at him.

“Hm?”

Taehyun’s gaze was fixed on Beomgyu’s fingers, before looking away. “Nothing.”

Beomgyu tilted his head but smiled, watching as Taehyun looked down at his lap for a few seconds, before looking up at the sky.

He knew what Taehyun had wanted to ask. Why was Beomgyu here, on the parapet? This was most certainly not the first time Beomgyu had decided to sit on the parapet with Taehyun, and he wasn’t sure he could use the excuse of ‘impulses’ anymore.

Truth be told, he was fascinated by Taehyun. He found himself unusually, inexplicably, drawn towards him. Soobin had been right. Taehyun was like a mystery, a riddle that no one knew how to solve.

Beomgyu liked riddles. He liked confusing things. He liked figuring things out, learning how they worked, exploring the deeper meaning behind every little thing. He was fascinated by the quiet student who everyone knew of but no one knew about. Taehyun was a riddle that had yet to be solved. He was an elusive mystery which no one understood yet.

And Beomgyu wanted nothing more than to understand him.

“You barely spoke to me the other day.”

“Hm?” Taehyun didn’t look at him, but he voiced his confusion with his eyes still fixed on the sky.

“Yesterday. I said hi to you and everything, but you only spoke like three words then walked away.”

“Oh, right.”

Beomgyu thought he heard Taehyun laugh softly, and turned to look at him. Taehyun’s head was still tilted towards the sky.

“Why, were you upset?” Taehyun's voice was quiet, but Beomgyu was sure he could hear a slight teasing lilt to his words.

“What? No, no. I was just… concerned. Yeah. I was concerned.”

There was silence. Taehyun kept his gaze glued to the stars, but then he lowered his head a little, watching the yellow lights of the city below them. “Of course you were,” he murmured. “I don’t feel comfortable talking to others. Unlike when I’m here, I feel more vulnerable. So I don’t talk much.” He looked up again, giving a soft sigh. “I like being with the stars.”

Beomgyu nodded thoughtfully at that.

“Say, why do you like stars so much?” Beomgyu asked after a few more minutes of silence. That night, the sky was clear yet again and though Beomgyu had attempted to point out the pinpricks of light in the sky, Taehyun had informed him that those were merely satellites.

Beomgyu watched Taehyun’s side profile. In the darkness, he thought he saw a small smile appear on his face.

“They’re comforting.”

Beomgyu tilted his head. “How so?”

“They’re so far away, but they manage to shine in our skies.” Taehyun tilted his head up further. Beomgyu was sure there was a smile on his face now. “They appear so small to us, but somewhere far, far away, they are the brightest and biggest light for miles and miles around.” Taehyun gave a small sigh, gaze fixed on the vast navy canvas above. “That small light is actually so huge. It’s a reminder that even the little things are important to someone.”

Those were the most words that Beomgyu had ever heard Taehyun say in one go. Taehyun had yet to look at Beomgyu properly, so he had no idea what his eyes looked like. But, after hearing Taehyun speak with such soft words, Beomgyu knew that his eyes must be shining as he looked up at the sky.

"That's a nice way to think of it," Beomgyu said thoughtfully. "For me, I just like stars because they're pretty."

"It's kind of like how you like twilight because of how calm and peaceful it is," Taehyun said after a moment. "I like the stars because they make me feel safe."

Beomgyu nodded at that. “I understand that. The want and the need to feel safe. To feel protected. To feel like everything will be okay.” He sighed, legs dangling off the edge of the parapet. “It’s one reason I miss Daegu so much. My parents… my family have never failed to make me feel safe. When I came to Seoul for the first time, all alone, I missed them so much. I missed the protection they gave me. But the longer I stayed, the more I found my own safety. In my friends.” He smiled, looking down. “Sorry. You probably didn’t need to hear that.”

“No, no,” Taehyun said softly. “It’s okay. I don’t mind.”

There was silence then, a warm, thoughtful sort of silence which quite contrasted the slight chilliness of the night.

“How about you?” Beomgyu asked. “I know some kids had hard times with their families, but what about you and your parents?”

Taehyun paused. His hands, resting on the parapet, folded themselves into his lap, fingers interlaced. “My parent,” he corrected. He sighed, looking down. “I need her,” he said simply. “It’s just my mom and me.”

Beomgyu tilted his head. “You need her or she needs you?”

Taehyun twisted his fingers tighter together, and looked up at the sky again. “Both. I guess.”

Beomgyu watched Taehyun for a moment, before nodding. “Alright.” He didn’t say anything else, and after a moment, Taehyun untangled his fingers, resting them back on the parapet.

For the rest of that night, neither of them said another word, content with the safety of each other and the stars.

.・✥・゜・。.

When the door to the roof creaked open behind him, Taehyun didn’t even have to turn around to know who it was. Beomgyu dropped his bag onto the floor, leaning against the parapet beside Taehyun. Beomgyu didn’t say anything as he made himself comfortable on the parapet beside him, and Taehyun was glad about that.

Staring up at the sky at night was Taehyun’s escape. Escape from the stress of schoolwork; escape from the stress of home life; escape from everything, really. It was a place he could be alone, but a place he could be protected. Protected by the stars that shone in the sky, whether they were visible or not.

It was the only time he felt safe, so really he should have been annoyed at Beomgyu for invading those precious hours of safety he had. But if he thought about it, he realised that he valued Beomgyu’s presence.

Beomgyu never forced him to engage in lengthy conversations. Beomgyu never looked at him weirdly, or teased him for his almost childish love of stars. Beomgyu simply sat there by his side, watching the sky with him, occasionally voicing his thoughts in a soft voice but most of the time content to watch the world go by.

Beomgyu let him be alone with his thoughts, but also made sure that he wasn’t lonely.

“Good evening,” Taehyun greeted.

Beomgyu looked at him in surprise, chuckling softly. “Good evening,” he replied, voice soft yet gentle. Taehyun felt the tension leave his shoulders at the sound of Beomgyu’s quiet laugh. “So you’ve finally gotten used to me coming here?”

Taehyun nodded, not looking at Beomgyu. “News said there was going to be a meteor shower tonight. If we’re lucky, we might be able to see it, even though we’re in Seoul.”

“Oh really?” Beomgyu craned his neck upwards. “That would be cool.”

“It would.”

Taehyun’s voice was still as quiet as always, but Beomgyu could tell he was looking forward to the meteor shower. He didn’t know how he could tell. But he just could.

“You must really like the stars, huh? You always stay out here later than me.”

Taehyun didn’t respond for a few seconds. “It’s nice to feel safe.”

“You have such aesthetic taste in safety,” Beomgyu said. He paused. “That probably didn’t make sense. But the stars are such a pretty place of safety.” He looked at Taehyun curiously. “But why the stars?”

Taehyun chuckled, looking down. Beomgyu blinked, smiling at the soft sound Taehyun made. It always caught him by surprise when Taehyun laughed, but it made him smile all the same.

“We talked about this before, haven’t we?”

Beomgyu tilted his head playfully, wanting to hear Taehyun laugh again. “Have we? It’s been a while, I think. Why don’t you refresh my memory?”

Taehyun huffed a soft laugh, and Beomgyu’s smile widened. “It was three days ago.”

“Wow.” Beomgyu was surprised. “You keep track of when we have our conversations?”

“Of course.” Taehyun looked at his watch, before looking up at the sky again. “It should be any minute now.”

“What?”

“The meteor shower.”

“Oh, right.” Beomgyu looked upwards too. “Good thing the sky is clear tonight.” He squinted. “How do we know if it’s a meteor?”

“It’ll be a streak of light in the sky,” Taehyun responded.

“And, what, should we make a wish if we see one?”

Taehyun smiled. “You can if you want.”

They both sat there in silence, necks craned upwards, intently searching for the meteors.

Taehyun gasped, pointing towards the sky. “Look!”

Very slowly, streaks of light appeared in the dark night sky, golden tails shooting across the navy canvas before quickly dying away. More and more began to appear, and Beomgyu watched them, mouth open in wonder.

“I get why people thought they should make a wish when seeing this,” Beomgyu said, voice soft with amazement. “It looks so surreal.”

Taehyun didn’t take his gaze away from the meteors. “It does, doesn’t it?”

They were silent for a few moments longer, before Beomgyu spoke again.

“Come on, let’s make a wish before they go away.” He closed his eyes, before peeking them open to look at Taehyun. “Come on.”

After a beat, Taehyun closed his eyes, and Beomgyu shut his too, turning his head up to the sky.

It was a once in a lifetime opportunity, really, to experience a meteor shower that could be seen with the naked eye. Beomgyu should have wished for something big, something which would change his life. He should have wished for his family to always have good health, or for him to have a successful future.

Maybe it was because of the shimmering atmosphere between them that night. Maybe it was because Beomgyu was giddy due to seeing Taehyun laugh not once, nor twice, but three times. Maybe it was because Taehyun was right next to him, their fingers almost touching on the parapet. Whatever it was, in that fleeting moment, Beomgyu wished for something else.

He wished to get to know Taehyun better.

Beomgyu cracked an eye open to see that Taehyun still had his eyes closed. Then, Taehyun let out a soft sigh, opening his eyes and looking upwards again. Beomgyu smiled.

“Did you make your wish?”

Taehyun nodded. “Yes.”

Beomgyu watched Taehyun’s side profile. Though Taehyun had still yet to look Beomgyu in the eye, he could see the meteors reflected in his dark eyes. They looked beautiful.

Beomgyu smiled, turning his gaze back up to the sky.

He wondered what Taehyun wished for.

.・✥・゜・。.

“Finally, you’ve decided to spend time with your friends!” Hueningkai crowed as he dragged Beomgyu through the shopping mall.

“You forced me to,” Beomgyu deadpanned as Hueningkai excitedly hopped from place to place, letting his roommate pull him around by his coat sleeve. “I only have one evening lecture today, and you dragged me out of bed to go… shopping?”

“Yeah well, it’s about time you did something other than homework or stargazing,” Hueningkai said. “We barely see you out of uni anymore.”

“Kai’s right,” Soobin responded. “Besides, Hueningkai’s been complaining about the lack of variety in his wardrobe, so here we are.”

“I had no idea his wardrobe was mostly hoodies,” Yeonjun said, walking beside Hueningkai as they looked at clothes. “I almost had a heart attack when he told me.”

Beomgyu smiled. “Didn’t you notice how he wears literally almost the same thing every day?”

“I had no idea it was that severe though,'' Yeonjun commented. “No, that absolutely does not work. Put that back.”

Hueningkai pouted, showing the items of clothing to Beomgyu. “Does it really not work?”

Beomgyu shook his head immediately. “Oh, god no. That does not work at all.”

Hueningkai wilted, handing the clothes to Yeonjun. “Oh well.”

“Hueningkai’s words do remind me about that, though,” Soobin said, sipping his iced coffee.

Beomgyu frowned, confused. “About leather jackets and yoga pants?”

Soobin shook his head. “No, the stargazing thing.”

“Oh yeah,” Yeonjun said from in front of them. He was standing with Hueningkai, arms crossed, constantly shaking his head at Hueningkai’s horrible choice in clothing. “Where are you doing all this stargazing? Whenever I call you in the night to go grab a drink, you always tell me that you’re stargazing.”

“On the roof,” Beomgyu said. “With Taehyun.”

“Taehyun, huh?” Yeonjun said. “Interesting.”

Soobin tilted his head. “Why, though?”

“Taehyun likes stars a lot,” Beomgyu explained. “He said that the stars make him feel safe. Says it feels like it’s just him and the stars. Their bright lights, billions of light years away, shine in our skies. He says it gives him comfort. He has really pretty words, too,” Beomgyu said, chuckling a little. “He describes them so well that I think I might like stars too.” He gazed around absentmindedly, too busy thinking about Taehyun’s darkened side profile and the soft way he spoke.

“He talks so nicely. He’s polite, and kind, and even though he doesn’t smile or laugh a lot, when he does I swear it’s the most beautiful thing in the world. I don’t know how someone could ever hate him,” Beomgyu said, a smile on his face. “He’s so gentle and thoughtful and it’s so obvious how much those stars mean to him.”

Soobin and Yeonjun looked at each other.

“Beomgyu,” Soobin said gently, “I was asking you why you were going stargazing with Taehyun. Not why Taehyun stargazes.”

Beomgyu blinked, ears reddening. “Oh.”

“But, I mean,” Yeonjun added, trying to make Beomgyu feel less awkward, “it’s nice to know why Taehyun likes stargazing. Useful information for if we ever meet him, you know?”

Beomgyu covered his face with his hand. “Alright, I get it, I get it.”

“No, I mean, it’s nice to know. Great little tidbits of useful knowledge, right?”

“Alright, you’re just making him feel more uncomfortable now,” Soobin said. “So go on, Beomgyu.”

“Right, okay.” Beomgyu rubbed his forehead, shrugging. “I don’t know. I guess it’s just nice being around him?”

Soobin was about to say something else when Yeonjun shrugged, obviously bored with the conversation. Yeonjun had a short attention span.

“If you say so. Oh wait, Hueningkai no put that back! What are you thinking? Never pair pink with that horrendous shade of green!” Yeonjun rushed over and took the offending green piece of clothing out of Hueningkai’s hands, staring at him in disappointment and horror. “I raised you better than this!”

Beomgyu snickered, relaxing now that he no longer felt like he was being interrogated. “He’s hopeless, you know,” he told Yeonjun. “Hueningkai has no fashion sense.”

Hueningkai stuck his tongue out. “Rude.”

“Alright, children, no fighting in public,” Soobin said, hurriedly backing away from them as they scuffled with the clothes. “If you start fighting you might accidentally knock over my coffee. And you’ll end up having to pay for another one.”

"Childish behavior, Soobin," Beomgyu sighed, shaking his head. "Honestly."

Soobin rolled his eyes and half-heartedly punched Beomgyu's arm. "Shut up and help Hueningkai choose better clothes. Otherwise Yeonjun will have a meltdown right here, and I don't want that to happen."

Four hours later, they left the mall, Yeonjun carrying all the bags.

"I can't believe we bought plushies instead of clothes," he grumbled. "And that was my money we spent too."

Hueningkai skipped ahead, laughing. "Thanks Yeonjun! You're the best!"

“Have you considered that maybe you like him?” Soobin said suddenly. Beomgyu, walking beside him, looked up, confused.

“Huh?”

“Taehyun,” Soobin clarified.

Beomgyu frowned. “I thought we went over this. I don’t have a crush on Taehyun.”

“Uh huh,” Soobin hummed sceptically. “That was about a week ago, and we all know that feelings can change. Are you sure?”

“I just want to be friends with him,” Beomgyu said. “That’s all.” He shrugged. “Sure, maybe you guys think it’s weird that I stay out late every night to watch the stars with someone who I want to be ‘just friends’ with, but it makes sense to me.”

Soobin didn’t say anything for a moment, rattling the last of the unmelted ice in his empty coffee cup. “I don’t think it does, Beomgyu,” he said gently. “You would have rambled about Taehyun and his love of stars for hours if we didn’t stop you.” He looked at Beomgyu. “Are you sure you want to be just friends with Taehyun? Because I don’t think you, Beomgyu, would talk like that about someone you want to simply be friends with.”

Beomgyu waved his hands. “That happens with me. I’m just like that.” Soobin twisted his lips, unconvinced, but didn’t press the matter further.

“Maybe show him that you genuinely care about him and want to get to know him, then. Show him that you truly want to be his friend.”

Beomgyu frowned. “How?”

Soobin shrugged. ��Dunno.”

“That’s not very good advice then,” Beomgyu said, nudging Soobin.

“At least I gave you advice,” Soobin said, nudging Beomgyu back. “And really. It depends on the people involved. Like, how would you show someone that you want to be friends with them? It differs from person to person. And also, will the person you want to be friends with respond positively? Sometimes they don’t, and you have to approach them in ways that you might not normally do."

Beomgyu was silent. "That was very random to just suddenly talk about Taehyun," he said finally.

Soobin shrugged again. "It just suddenly popped into my head."

Beomgyu nodded. "Fair enough. But Soobin, what do you think would be my way of doing that?"

"What, showing that you want to be friends?" Soobin asked. Beomgyu nodded. Soobin pondered it for a moment. "Physical affection? The desire to have a conversation?" Soobin suggested. "When you want to know someone well, you, Beomgyu, always want to know everything about them and be as close to them as possible." Soobin slung an arm around Beomgyu's shoulder. "You're a very affectionate person."

"Uh, thanks?" Beomgyu said.

Soobin squeezed Beomgyu's shoulder. "It's a compliment. Take it."

They didn't say anything else.

Beomgyu pondered over Soobin's words. The longer he thought, the more he realised that, yes, Soobin was right. Beomgyu really was an affectionate person. But would Taehyun take this affection well?

“We’ll walk you to your lecture if you want, Beomgyu,” Soobin offered. “Then we can go back to your dorm to put away Hueningkai’s plushies.”

From behind them, Yeonjun gave an indignant shout. “What? You’re going to make me carry this for even longer? Why are plushies so goddamn heavy?”

“Don’t worry about me!” Beomgyu grinned. “I’ll be fine. I’m not a baby.”

“Yes you are, you’re a cute little baby,” Soobin said, squishing Beomgyu’s cheeks. “Oong-oong goochie-goo Beomgyu baby,” he cooed as Beomgyu looked at him weirdly.

“What does that even mean?”

“It’s baby talk,” Soobin said, hands still on Beomgyu’s cheeks. “It’s how people talk to babies.”

Beomgyu blinked. “I’m not a baby,” he repeated. Soobin opened his mouth to state otherwise, but Beomgyu quickly pointed at Hueningkai, who was ahead of them.

“Hueningkai’s the baby.”

Beomgyu noticed the exact moment Soobin realised.

"You're right. Hueningie! Come here, you little baby!"

"What? Soobin, I'm not a baby—"

Beomgyu chuckled as Hueningkai had his cheeks squished by Soobin. Soobin was an affectionate person too, it seemed.

He waved at Yeonjun. "Have fun carrying all that stuff!" he called.

"Oh, just go already you brat!" Yeonjun yelled, smiling. "Don't get lost, okay?"

.・✥・゜・。.

“Good evening, Taehyun,” Beomgyu greeted as he walked onto the roof that evening. Taehyun didn’t turn around, but Beomgyu saw the way Taehyun’s shoulder tensed and then relaxed at his voice.

“Good evening, Beomgyu,” Taehyun replied.

“The moon looks beautiful tonight,” Beomgyu said, appearing in Taehyun’s peripheral vision as he sat beside him on the parapet.

“It does,” Taehyun said. “It’s a shame there are clouds.”

They watched the sky in the way they always did, content with the calm silence enveloping them. But Beomgyu kept glancing down at Taehyun, preoccupied with what Soobin had told him.

“Hey, can I ask you something?”

Taehyun didn’t take his gaze away from the moon. It was cloudy that night, but if he concentrated hard enough then the silver outline of the moon could become visible.

“Why do you never look anyone in the eye?”

Taehyun froze, eyes becoming unfocused. He no longer saw the moon up above him.

Beomgyu tilted his head, concerned when he saw Taehyun tense up. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

Taehyun looked down. Beomgyu noticed that he did that when he was nervous, or worried. “It’s just… I guess I’ve learnt that it’s a sign of disrespect.”

“Looking someone in the eye?” Beomgyu was confused. But then, he nodded his head slowly. “I suppose.” He chuckled softly. “I guess I just always viewed it as a sign of trust.”

“Trust?”

“Eyes are the window to the soul, as they say. Looking someone in the eye is a sign that you trust that the other person will look into your eyes and see all the emotions and feelings that you’re not able to say. It’s also a sign of respect as well.” He chuckled again. “If I didn’t look my professors in the eye when explaining why I missed an assignment’s due date then they probably wouldn’t believe me, because it could show that I’m being disrespectful and lying to them.”

Taehyun thought about Beomgyu’s words. “Maybe,” he said at last. “But… I’m not used to looking in people’s eyes.”

“What, not even in highschool?” Beomgyu asked curiously.

“I was homeschooled.”

“Ah.” Beomgyu nodded. There was little else for him to say. “I’d like it if you looked me in the eye one day,” he said after a moment.

“I— in the eye?”

“Yeah.” Beomgyu looked upwards at the sky, letting his body relax as he counted the stars. “It would be a sign that you trust me. You know?” He turned to look at Taehyun, whose gaze was also fixed on the stars above. He smiled. “I’d like to be trusted by you.”

Beomgyu looked down at Taehyun’s hands and where they rested on the concrete, millimeters from his own. He stared down at Taehyun’s hand, not entirely sure why his heart was thumping so loudly in his chest. It was just a hand. Why was he contemplating this, anyway? What did he want to do? But then the realisation hit him.

He wanted to hold Taehyun’s hand.

He recalled Soobin’s words about physical affection, about how Beomgyu always stayed as close as possible to the people he wanted to get to know. He looked down at his own hand before looking back up at the sky again.

Then, ever so slowly, he reached out and curled his pinky around Taehyun’s.

Taehyun flinched, startled by the sudden contact. Beomgyu immediately loosened his hold on Taehyun’s pinky, pulling away.

“I’m sorry, I probably shouldn’t have done that without asking you first...”

Beomgyu was already mentally cursing himself. He’d only just remembered how Soobin had said that other people might not respond to his affection in a positive way.

“It’s alright,” Taehyun said softly. He didn’t look at Beomgyu, placing his hand back on the parapet where it was a hair’s breadth away from Beomgyu’s again. Beomgyu looked at Taehyun, who had his head tilted to the sky.

Taehyun hadn’t explicitly stated his discomfort with Beomgyu’s physical touch. Sure, he did flinch away, but then he’d rested his hand back on the parapet again, in the exact same place it had been before. If Taehyun didn’t want Beomgyu to touch him, then he wouldn’t have put his hand so close to Beomgyu’s.

Beomgyu bit his lip, mulling over his options. He could just ignore his strange impulse to hold Taehyun’s hand and pretend like nothing happened, or he could take a risk and hold his hand anyway, ready to deal with whatever consequences his actions may bring.

A normal person might have just ignored their impulse and looked back up at the sky, but Beomgyu wasn’t someone to ignore his impulses. No matter what the consequences could be.

He frowned, staring at Taehyun’s hand so intensely that it was a wonder Taehyun didn’t comment on it. The literature major was too busy tracing the stars with his eyes.

After several more seconds of hesitating, Beomgyu decided, screw it, he was going to give into his impulses anyway.

He swiftly reached out for Taehyun’s hand, flipping his hand over so their palms touched and their fingers interlaced.

Beomgyu held his breath, gaze fixed on the sky, bracing himself for Taehyun’s reaction. Bracing himself for the flinch and the pulling away of Taehyun’s hand.

But none came.

Instead, Taehyun gripped onto Beomgyu’s fingers tighter, adjusting their hands slightly. Beomgyu looked down at their intertwined hands, smiling at how prettily Taehyun’s hand fit in his. He stared at their fingers for a few moments longer, before returning his gaze to the stars, the smile still on his face.

.・✥・゜・。.

"You're late today," Beomgyu called in a sing-song voice, smiling at the sound of the roof door creaking open. He stayed where he was, splayed out on the floor, eyes closed. He listened as Taehyun breathed out a slow sigh, setting his things down on the floor before shuffling over to a stop beside Beomgyu.

Beomgyu opened his eyes, turning his head to the side to look at Taehyun's shoes, before looking up at him. Taehyun had his head tilted towards the sky.

"There are too many clouds," Taehyun said softly. "I can't see the sky."

Beomgyu sat up, watching as Taehyun walked over to the parapet where he leaned his elbows on the concrete wall. After a moment, Beomgyu stood up and joined him.

“I see you’re not sitting on the parapet today?” Beomgyu said, resting his elbows on the parapet besideTaehyun.

Taehyun shook his head, looking down at his fingers. “I’m too tired to lift myself up onto it.”

“Too tired?” Beomgyu asked, propping his head up on his hand. “Why, what’s been going on? Want to talk about it?”

Taehyun glanced at where Beomgyu’s hands rested on the parapet, before turning away. “Just… life.”

Beomgyu nodded understandingly, turning to look at the horizon, where the sun was slowly sinking out of sight. “I get that. Life is tiring.” He chuckled. “I guess life must be really tiring for you out of all people, considering your grades.”

“My grades?”

“You know,” Beomgyu said. “You and your incredible brain. It must be tiring being that smart.”

Beomgyu spoke in a light, teasing tone. Often when he spoke like that, he managed to elicit small laughs from Taehyun, and he waited to see if Taehyun would laugh this time.

But Taehyun only sighed. “I guess. But really…” He twisted his fingers together. “I just work, I suppose. There’s nothing much to it.”

“Your brain lets you work? Mine wants me to put off work for as long as possible.” Beomgyu sighed. “I wish my brain was like yours.” There was a short silence, and Beomgyu tilted his head. “So it’s not schoolwork that’s tiring you, then? It’s just… life?”

Taehyun rested his elbow on the parapet, putting his chin on his hand. “I suppose.”

Both of them stared up at the sky. The night was cloudy, and the colours of the sunset weren't as clean as they normally were, with the sky covered by a thick layer of hazy clouds.

Beomgyu glanced at Taehyun worriedly. Taehyun had his eyes closed, cheek propped up on his palm. Beomgyu had never seen Taehyun not look at the sky, so it was rather startling to see him with his eyes shut when twilight was almost upon them.

"Taehyun?" Beomgyu asked carefully. "Are you alright?"

Taehyun didn't say anything. He sighed, his eyes still shut. The hand which was still rested on the parapet picked at the concrete, slowly dragging his nails across the surface. Beomgyu looked down as Taehyun continued to scratch the concrete.

"Taehyun?"

Taehyun's hand halted, and his fingers curled into a fist. Finally, he opened his eyes, looking down at the streets below them. "I don't know. I just… feel like there's no point in living right now."

Beomgyu frowned. "Of course there's point in living," he said. "No matter how tired you get, don't give up on life." He turned to Taehyun, eyes earnest. Taehyun continued to look down at the people below. "Don't give in. Don't give up."

Taehyun squeezed his eyes shut. "But everything is just so tiring. I don't even know if this is all worth it. Life is… life is just so difficult."

Beomgyu regarded Taehyun for a moment. "I get that. I get it, life is really, really complicated." He sighed. “But don’t you think life is beautiful as well? I mean, sure, sometimes it’s stressful and worrisome and all in all just a bother to be alive, but really it's actually wonderful.” Beomgyu adjusted his head on his hand, watching the clouds float by in the purple sky. “Like, I’m alive and breathing and there are people whose lives I’ve impacted just by existing. I think that’s beautiful.”

Beomgyu, lost in his thoughts, didn’t notice Taehyun turning his head to look at him. He watched Beomgyu as the dance major continued to stare out at the horizon, and his eyes softened. Taehyun rarely ever looked at Beomgyu, but whenever he did, he looked at him with such gentleness. But of course, Beomgyu didn’t know that.

“I’m just a fleeting, microscopic speck of dust in the grand scheme of the universe, but look. I get to see the sun. I get to see the stars. I get to meet people, and laugh and cry and do all sorts of wonderful things.” Beomgyu smiled, eyes fixed on the setting sun. “If this is what it’s like to be an insignificant piece of dust, then I’ll happily be that dust for the whole of my fleeting life.”

Taehyun gazed at Beomgyu for a few seconds longer, before turning away. “That doesn’t make life any less tiring, though.”

“Well, yeah. But if we get to see beautiful things like this—” he took his gaze away from the sunset in order to look at Taehyun’s side profile— “then don’t you think all that toiling and stress is worth it?”

Taehyun didn’t say anything for a moment. His head was lowered, and if it wasn’t for the way his eyelids fluttered contemplatively, Beomgyu would have thought he’d gone to sleep.

“I suppose it is,” he said at last. He still had his head lowered, looking down at his fingers picking at the concrete parapet.

Beomgyu watched him for a moment, before smiling and turning away.

.・✥・゜・。.

“Why do you come here?”

“Hmm?” Beomgyu turned his head at Taehyun’s question. Taehyun continued to look up at the sky, not glancing once at Beomgyu, who was on the floor beside him.

The two of them were lying on the roof, staring straight up at the moon above them. Neither of them felt like clambering up onto the parapet, but standing for too long left their legs aching, so they decided to lie down instead.

“Why do I come here?” Beomgyu repeated, returning his gaze to the moon.

“Yeah.” Taehyun’s voice was thoughtful. “You’re not here to report me. You’re not here to make fun of me. You’re not here for homework answers either. So… why?”

Beomgyu chuckled, turning his head to look at Taehyun again. “Did you really think I was here for homework answers?”

Taehyun’s clothes rustled against the floor. A shrug. “That’s the only reason anyone else ever talked to me.”

Beomgyu pursed his mouth sympathetically. "That's awful. They only approached you so they could slack off?"

“It’s alright,” Taehyun said. He breathed out slowly. "I never gave them answers, anyway." He squinted through the clouds. "You didn't answer my question, though."

"Hm? Oh, right."

Beomgyu pondered Taehyun's question for a moment. He couldn't exactly say 'instinct', because that would sound weird. All the other options his brain supplied him with weren't useful either, and just made him sound like a crazy person.

"... Beomgyu?"

"Huh?" Beomgyu blinked. Taehyun had two fingers gingerly pressed against Beomgyu's wrist, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"I'm sorry. You don't have any obligation to tell me. I shouldn't have asked."

"No, no," Beomgyu said. Before Taehyun could slip his fingers away, Beomgyu took ahold of his hand, pressing their palms together.

His heart was beating loudly in his chest, as he interlaced Taehyun's fingers with his. But he ignored it, trying to ignore how Taehyun's warm fingers made his cheeks flush.

"It's you."

"Pardon?"

"It's you," Beomgyu repeated. "You're the reason I came up here in the first place."

"Me?"

The confusion was evident in Taehyun's tone. Neither of them looked at each other, eyes fixed on the cloudy night sky above. Beomgyu was too embarrassed to look at Taehyun, who was obviously surprised by what he’d just said.

“Why… why me?” Taehyun asked.

“I was fascinated by you,” Beomgyu said. He was sure his ears were on fire by now, but he carried on talking. Beomgyu wanted Taehyun to know how interesting he was to him, and how much he was fascinated by Taehyun. “You, the riddle student.”

“Riddle student?”

“Yeah. Do you know Choi Soobin? I think he’s in your creative writing class. He came up with the metaphor,” Beomgyu explained. His hand was still intertwined with Taehyun’s as he fixed his gaze on the stars, and not once did it cross his mind to let go. “You were like a famous riddle. Everyone knew about you, but no one truly knew you. I was intrigued by that.”

Taehyun was quiet. “You wanted to solve me, then? Figure out the answer to the ‘riddle’?”

“Not really,” Beomgyu responded. “To me, you were a mystery. Sure, you were confusing and fascinating just like a riddle, but really you were a mystery to me. Something that I wanted to understand. I didn’t want to ‘solve’ you. I wanted to understand you. I wanted to get to know you.”

Beside him, Beomgyu heard Taehyun breathe out slowly, letting out a soft “Oh.”

“I wouldn’t really have tried to get to know you if I hadn’t seen you sitting up here, on the roof,” Beomgyu carried on. “You stared up at the sky for so long. I was fascinated by how you could spend hours looking up at the stars and that was what drew me to come here.”

Finally, he turned his head to look at Taehyun. Taehyun had his eyes closed, and though there was little light, Beomgyu was sure he could see a small tear escape Taehyun’s closed eyelids. He widened his eyes, alarmed, but then Taehyun’s lips moved, stretching into a smile.

“Do you understand why I like the stars so much now?”

“I do,” Beomgyu said softly, watching Taehyun. “I was amazed at how much you loved those giant balls of burning gas—” Taehyun gave a soft laugh at that— “but I understand now. The stars are gentle, and kind, and they’re a little bit of a mystery but they’re so beautiful. We know so little about them but that makes them a lot more appealing, because I get to stare at them in awe, wondering what secrets they have that we haven’t learnt of yet.” The smile was still on Taehyun’s face, and Beomgyu was amazed by how beautiful it looked, even in the dim light of the night.

“The stars are so beautiful,” he whispered, mesmerised by Taehyun’s smile. “They make my nights even better.”

“Me too,” Taehyun whispered back. He finally opened his eyes, looking up at the stars. “Being here makes me feel content.”

“Exactly.” Beomgyu smiled, before turning his gaze back to the sky. He was so focused on counting the stars that he didn’t notice the way Taehyun squeezed his hand briefly, like he was afraid to let go.

“Beomgyu?”

“Hm?” Beomgyu kept his eyes on the stars.

“Thank you.”

Beomgyu blinked in surprise. “What for?”

“For being here.” Taehyun’s voice was gentle, shy. “The stars make me feel happy, but you… you make me feel calm. Thank you for being with me.”

Beomgyu felt a comforting warmth spread throughout his body at Taehyun’s words. “It’s my pleasure, Taehyun. I like being with you.” He didn’t say anything else, eyes still fixed on the sky.

Taehyun turned his head to watch Beomgyu, noticing the way the stars glistened in Beomgyu’s eyes. Watching the way Beomgyu stared up at the sky with such bright eyes had Taehyun smiling.

Swallowing away his tears and pushing away his worries, he gripped Beomgyu’s hand tighter, looking back up at the stars again.

.・✥・゜・。.

The next afternoon, as Taehyun dropped his bag onto the roof, he sank to the floor, back against the cold concrete of the parapet. He closed his eyes tight, trying to keep in the tears. It was not often that he was pushed to the brink, but when it happened the stars always calmed him down.

But now he’d met Beomgyu, Taehyun wished for Beomgyu to come fast. Seeing Beomgyu would calm him more than the stars ever could.

.・✥・゜・。.

“Yeonjun, look! There he is!”

It was the end of the day. Yeonjun and Beomgyu were about to head out to town to meet up with Soobin and Hueningkai, who, unlike the dance majors, didn’t have any classes that day. They were about to leave, before Beomgyu had stopped in the middle of the path.

“What?” Yeonjun tilted his head upwards, following where Beomgyu was pointing. “Where? Who?”

“Kang Taehyun! See, he’s up there on the parapet.”

Yeonjun squinted, shielding his eyes from the afternoon sun. “How can you even tell that’s Taehyun?” he asked, surprised. “It just looks like a blob to me.”

Beomgyu tsked, shaking his head. “It’s obviously him. Look at his silhouette, the way his shoulders lean forwards as he rests his hands on the ledge? That’s totally his posture. And look! His side profile, you can clearly see features which are so obviously his.”

Yeonjun squinted for a few moments longer before turning to Beomgyu, mystified. “I don’t know how you know that but, okay,” he said. “Let’s go then. Soobin and Kai are already at the fairground.”

“Wait, let’s stay to watch him for a moment,” Beomgyu said, tugging on Yeonjun’s sleeve. Yeonjun blinked.

“Watch him?” he repeated. “Beomgyu, he isn’t doing anything. Come on, my toffee apples await me.”

Reluctantly, Beomgyu let himself be pulled away by Yeonjun. “Alright then. Let’s go to the fairground.”

A few hours later, they left the park, overstuffed with sugary treats and worn to the bone, but with bright smiles on their faces.

“Fairgrounds during the weekdays are always the best,” Hueningkai exclaimed happily as the four of them walked through the streets. “And we actually won something!”

“I know, it’s great, right?” Beomgyu chuckled. “Don’t thank me. I’m just awesome like that.”

Soobin laughed, glancing behind them. “I think one person doesn’t think that it’s great.”

Behind them, Yeonjun was struggling with the enormous bunny soft toy, glaring at them. “What am I, a donkey?” he called. “Why do I always end up carrying everything?”

“It’s what happens when you’re both the oldest and the strongest,” Beomgyu called back. “Hurry up, grandma!”

Yeonjun sputtered. “Get back here you brat!”

They all laughed at Yeonjun struggling with the giant bunny, four bags, and a variety of crazy headbands on his head, blocking half his vision.

Eventually, Hueningkai took pity on him and took the huge toy from him, along with one of the headbands.

“You’re the only one who cares about me,” Yeonjun said dramatically, kissing Hueningkai’s forehead. “Everyone else has just left me in the dust.” He pouted pointedly at their two other friends, who were walking ahead.

Soobin and Beomgyu, absorbed in a rather nonsensical conversation, did not notice the stare.

Yeonjun sighed dramatically again, before turning to Hueningkai. “As a thank you, I’ll give you a gift, Hyuka.”

Hueningkai’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

Yeonjun beamed, before flourishing Hueningkai’s dorm key. “Here is my gift. Your key.”

Hueningkai’s smile fell. “Oh.”

“What, do you not want it back?” Yeonjun said, twirling the key in his hand. “In that case, perhaps I’ll keep it until Monday—”

Hueningkai lunged for the key. “No it’s fine! Thank you Yeonjun you’re the best person ever and this is the most wonderful gift you could have ever bestowed on me and I am forever grateful for you returning my key back to me!”

Yeonjun chuckled as Hueningkai began to ramble. “I’ll get you some ice cream as well, okay?”

Hueningkai beamed. “Thanks!”

“Hurry up, you two!" Beomgyu called. "We need to get to the dorm in five minutes if we want to have time to watch both Infinity War and Endgame!"

Yeonjun sighed, tipping his head back so the fox ears headband wouldn't fall in front of his vision. "Why is he so loud, honestly? I swear, the whole street must be able to hear him."

Hueningkai giggled. "We're coming!" he shouted back. "You and Soobin can get the food ready then!"

Half an hour later, everyone was squished onto the worn brown sofa in Yeonjun and Soobin’s dorm, half-heartedly fighting over the popcorn as the movie began.

"Hey, Soobin, you're taking up too much room," Beomgyu said.

"What do you mean? I'm literally sitting in Yeonjun's lap at this point. You're taking too much room," Soobin retorted.

"Shh," Hueningkai said. "There's Spiderman!"

Five hours later, they'd finished the two movies. It was dark outside, the sun having set a long time ago.

"Endgame gets me every time," Yeonjun said, stretching. "How many times have we watched it now?"

"Today was the seventh," Hueningkai said, taking the empty popcorn bowl from him.

"Gosh, seventh already? We really need to find other movies to watch."

Soobin checked the time. "We have half an hour till midnight," he said. "Hyuka, we have classes at six tomorrow."

Hueningkai, from the kitchen, gave an annoyed groan. "Oh right, we do. Looks like we have to sleep now."

"Are you guys gonna go back to your dorm?" Yeonjun asked. "You can stay over if you want. Binnie and I can share a bed, and you can share the other."

Beomgyu scrunched his nose. "No thanks. Hueningkai would kick me off in seconds."

Hueningkai's voice drifted in from the other room. "Rude."

"Hm, but it is quite dark," Beomgyu said, peering through the curtains. "Alright. Kai, you stay here, and I'll go back to the dorms."

"What?" Hueningkai emerged from the kitchen, looking distressed. "You're going to leave me with them?"

"It'll be safer for you. You're only a baby," Beomgyu said simply.

"Beomgyu, you're one year older than me–"

"Yeah, but you're a baby. You need to sleep, anyway. I don't have classes tomorrow, so it doesn't matter if I go to bed late. You, on the other hand, will definitely fall asleep in the middle of a lecture if you don't get at least six hours of sleep."

"I hate to admit it, but Beomgyu's right," Soobin said.

"Exactly—wait, what do you mean that you hate to admit it?"

"You and I can have the beds, seeing as we have to wake up early tomorrow. Yeonjun can sleep on the sofa."

"Hang on, why am I being forced out of my bed?" Yeonjun sputtered. "Beomgyu, take me back to your dorms! I'll sleep on Hueningkai's bed!"

"Absolutely not," Hueningkai said instantly. His eyes were wide. "Who knows what you'll do to my poor darlings?"

Yeonjun blinked. "Your what?"

"His plushies," Beomgyu said. "Alright, now that everything's settled, I'll get going then."

"Okay. Wait—take these."

Soobin shoved the bundle of fairground headgear they'd bought that day into Beomgyu's hands. Beomgyu looked at them.

"Huh?"

"We have too many already," Soobin said. "For some reason, Yeonjun likes hoarding them."

"I do not hoard!" Yeonjun said indignantly. "... They were cute."

"All fifteen of them were cute, apparently," Soobin said. "So here. Take them."

Beomgyu blinked, before giving an exaggerated sigh. "Alright. Goodnight, you lot. Hueningkai, try not to cry without me."

Hueningkai stuck his tongue out childishly. Beomgyu chuckled.

"See you, guys!"

.・✥・゜・。.

Beomgyu muttered to himself in annoyance as he dropped a headband yet again.

"These stupid plastic things. Such a waste of money. Why did we buy so many?"

He glared down at the innocent mouse headband, lying on the floor. "Why do you have cheese in between your ears?" With a long suffering sigh, he bent down and picked it up. "You ridiculous accessory."

Beomgyu yawned. The trip from Yeonjun and Soobin's dorm to his wasn't a long one, but it was made incredibly tedious by the fact that Beomgyu's arms were full of, what he had called, plastic junk.

He gazed around with tired eyes, taking in his surroundings as he plodded through the streets. He was nearing the playground close to his dorm. Good, he was almost there.

Then suddenly, he stopped. Blinked. Shook his head, wondering if his eyes were playing tricks on him. Dropped the headbands he was holding and rubbed his eyes just to be sure.

But no. His eyes weren't playing tricks on him. Taehyun was actually there.

Taehyun was actually sitting on the swings in the playground, gazing up at the sky.

Beomgyu beamed. Kang Taehyun had been on his mind far too much lately, and it was nice to see him in the flesh. Even though they'd seen each other yesterday.

Taehyun flinched as someone sat down on the swings next to him. He didn't look up, gaze fixed on the strange amount of headbands the person was holding in his hands. Then the person spoke, and Taehyun knew who it was.

"Fancy seeing you here, huh?"

Taehyun looked away from Beomgyu's hands, turning his gaze to his lap. He didn't say anything.

Beomgyu swung his feet, looking at Taehyun's side profile curiously. "Is your dorm round here? I don't think I've seen you here before."

Taehyun was silent. He didn't move.

"My dorm is here," Beomgyu carried on. He nodded his head towards a building in the distance. "Over there. I'm roomies with Hueningkai. You might know him? He's a literature major. Just like you, I think."

Taehyun's hands curled tight around the metal chains holding the swing up. "I don't live here."

A beat. Then, Beomgyu gave a good-natured chuckle. "Ah, okay. What brings you here, then?"

Taehyun didn't say anything for a long time. Beomgyu recalled that the literature major had been looking up at the sky a few minutes prior, and tilted his head upwards. He squinted.

"Hm, it's quite cloudy tonight. It's a shame you can't see the stars. Where we are is far too polluted for that."

Taehyun startled.

"Where I'm from, the skies are much cleaner than in Seoul, so you can see loads of constellations," Beomgyu said, gaze still tilted towards the cloudy night sky. He gave a sigh. "I miss Daegu sometimes."

He looked at Taehyun. Taehyun hadn't moved. But after a moment, his fingers loosened around the chains.

Beomgyu gazed at him. "You said you don't live around here," he spoke again. "Where do you live then? Where's your dorm?" He waited patiently for Taehyun to speak.

"I don’t live in the dorms."

Beomgyu hadn't been expecting that. He nodded thoughtfully.

"Ah. Just your mom and you, right? You're lucky, then. You must already live close to campus, so there's no need to move into the dorms." He gave a small chuckle.

Taehyun, gaze still fixed in his lap, twitched his lips slightly. "Yeah. Lucky."

Neither of them said anything.

“Why weren’t you there today?”

Beomgyu blinked, looking at Taehyun. “Hm?”

“On the roof. You didn’t come today.” Taehyun’s voice was soft, softer than usual.

“Oh, right.” Beomgyu chuckled softly. “I went to the fairground with my friends today. Sorry, I probably should have told you beforehand.”

Taehyun didn’t say anything. He nodded his head, twisting his fingers together.

A silence enveloped them. But this silence was more awkward than the silence they were normally wrapped in: it felt more unsure, more uncertain.

"Well, I better get going—"

“I needed you today.”

“What?” Beomgyu looked at Taehyun, surprised. Taehyun kept his head lowered for a beat, before slowly raising his eyes to look at Beomgyu.

And— oh. Beomgyu’s breath hitched.

Taehyun’s eyes were beautiful. They were large and soft and sparkled even in the dark, as rich and velvety as the dark, aromatic coffee granules which made up Soobin’s iced coffee. Looking into Taehyun’s eyes, Beomgyu was sort of glad that Taehyun rarely looked people in the eye: that way, he would be part of the few people who were able to see all the raw emotions sparkling in his dark irises. They were breathtaking, they were soul-healing, and they made Beomgyu’s heart hiccup oddly in his chest. Beomgyu gazed at him, speechless, before realising that Taehyun’s eyes had a slight glassy sheen to them, and he gasped.

Taehyun had been crying.

Immediately, Beomgyu dropped all of the headbands and reached forward to cup Taehyun’s cheeks, not even noticing the way he flinched. He was too focused on Taehyun’s eyes.

“Oh, what happened to you?” He rubbed his thumb under Taehyun’s eye, brushing away the remnants of tears. “Why were you crying?” Hands still cupping Taehyun’s face, he gasped worriedly as Taehyun’s eyes began to well up again. “Don’t cry, please, don’t cry.”

Taehyun’s eyes remained fixed on Beomgyu’s face, even as they brimmed with tears. He didn’t say a word, keeping his mouth shut, hoping his eyes would explain everything he couldn’t say.

Beomgyu’s eyes saddened as he gazed into Taehyun’s.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t realise that you needed me. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, don’t cry…”

Tears continued to stream out of Taehyun’s eyes, but he refused to close them, trying to tell Beomgyu how much he trusted him. How much he needed him.

“Taehyun, your eyes are so beautiful,” Beomgyu whispered, feeling liquid build up in his own eyes as Taehyun continued to cry. “Why do you never show them to anyone?”

Taehyun bit his lip, hard, to suppress the sob that threatened to escape.

Beomgyu’s eyes saddened. “Oh, Taehyun… It’s okay. I understand. Thank you for trusting me.” He kept on trying to brush away Taehyun’s tears with his fingers, but every time one drop had been wiped away another one took its place, and soon both Taehyun’s cheeks and Beomgyu’s hands were damp with tears. “Please don’t cry, it hurts to see you cry,” Beomgyu said softly.

Taehyun’s lips quivered, and he tried to speak. “I…” His words turned into a broken sob, and he clamped his mouth shut again, letting the tears silently stream down his cheeks as his shoulders shook.

But by then, Beomgyu couldn’t take it anymore. He roughly grabbed Taehyun by the shoulders and pulled him in for a hug, wrapping his arms tightly around him.

“Don’t cry,” Beomgyu whispered, ignoring the way his own eyes were spilling tears. “Don’t cry, Taehyun, don’t cry.” He rubbed Taehyun’s back, pulling him tighter into his embrace so that he wouldn’t accidentally move away due to the swing’s movements.

Beomgyu was hugging Taehyun so tightly that it had to have been slightly uncomfortable for the smaller, but from the way Taehyun’s hands had come up to grip Beomgyu’s shoulders in an even tighter grasp, it was clear that he didn’t mind.

“It’s alright. I’m here now. I’m sorry I couldn’t be with you sooner, but I’m here now, so please don’t cry. Don’t cry, Taehyun, it makes your beautiful eyes look so sad, and that breaks my heart.”

Taehyun’s hands shook from how hard they were gripping the fabric of Beomgyu’s coat, and his face was pressed against Beomgyu’s shoulder so tightly that he had to pull back slightly every few seconds in order to breathe. But still he refused to let go, refused to release himself from Beomgyu’s comforting, if not slightly ferocious, embrace.

Even when Taehyun’s sobs died down, Beomgyu continued to hug him, half sitting on his swing and half crouching in front of Taehyun. Taehyun’s breathing shuddered from the aftermath of his tears, and only when he began to gently push Beomgyu away did Beomgyu finally slowly release him.

Taehyun’s eyes were still puffy and red, but they were large and soft and sparkled so brightly that Beomgyu was left breathless for a moment. Even after a vigorous crying session, Taehyun’s eyes still shone.

“Oh, dear, look at your poor eyes,” Beomgyu said sadly, gently wiping away the tears still drying on Taehyun’s cheeks. When Taehyun attempted to rub his eyes, Beomgyu stopped him, quickly bunching up his coat sleeve to dab Taehyun's eyes instead. “Here. Don’t wipe your eyes, dab them,” he said softly. “That way you won’t irritate them.” With his sleeve, he dabbed at the last of the tears that spilled out of the corners of Taehyun’s eyes. “There we go.” He smiled at Taehyun, captivated by his pretty eyes.

“I’m sorry for crying all over you,” Taehyun whispered, and even his voice was pretty, despite being a little hoarse. With gentle fingers, he rubbed at the damp patches on Beomgyu’s coat.

Beomgyu gripped Taehyun’s shoulders. “It’s alright. I’m sorry, for not being with you.”

Taehyun shook his head. “No, I… it’s not your fault. You didn’t know.” He lowered his head.

Beomgyu regarded him for a moment, with his puffy eyes and red nose, before abruptly digging into his pockets and pulling out his phone. Fumbling with the device, he pulled up his contacts and held it out to Taehyun.

“Give me your number,” Beomgyu said.

Taehyun blinked at the glowing screen of Beomgyu’s phone, before looking up at Beomgyu, eyes wide. “What…?”

“That way, you can call or text me whenever you need me,” Beomgyu explained. “I promise, I’ll be there in an instant. If you ever feel like you need me, if you ever feel like you’re going to cry again, just shoot me a text. I’ll be there.”

Taehyun shrank away from Beomgyu’s outstretched phone, fingers curling around the cold metal of the swings. “I don’t want to bother you though…” He lowered his head, gaze fixed on his lap.

Beomgyu looked at his bowed head before sighing, lowering his own head to force Taehyun to look into his eyes. Taehyun reluctantly looked at him, eyes big and glistening in the faint light of the moon. Beomgyu smiled reassuringly.

“You won’t be bothering me,” he said softly. “I want to be there for you. I want to comfort you. I want you to know how much it means to me that you looked me in the eyes, and I want to make sure that you’re okay. You won’t bother me, Taehyun. You won’t be annoying. In fact, you’d be comforting me more than anything.”

Taehyun tilted his head. “Comforting you?”

“I don’t like seeing you cry,” Beomgyu said simply. “It really does make me sad to see you upset. And if I know that I can be there for you whenever you need me, it comforts me to know that you won’t become this upset again.” Beomgyu held out his phone, the contact waiting to be filled in. “Please, Taehyun. Let me be there for you.”

Taehyun stared at the phone, before finally reaching out to take the device from Beomgyu. Then, with unsure fingers, he typed in his number before shakily handing it back. Beomgyu smiled, saving the contact before taking hold of Taehyun’s hand, intertwining their fingers.

“Do you want to talk about what happened?” he asked gently.

Taehyun looked down at their hands, not looking Beomgyu in the eye. With his other hand, Beomgyu gently lifted Taehyun’s chin, in order to look at him properly.

“Taehyun,” he said softly. “Are you okay?”

Taehyun reluctantly looked up at Beomgyu, eyes glistening. “I don’t know.”

“Why are you sad, Taehyun?” Beomgyu asked. “What happened?”

Taehyun bit his lip, and Beomgyu tightened his hold on Taehyun’s hand, reassuring him that he was there. “Everything,” Taehyun whispered. “No— nothing. I don’t… I don’t know.”

“Were you overwhelmed?” Beomgyu asked. “Was too much happening all at once?”

Taehyun’s eyes began to well up again at the genuine concern in Beomgyu’s voice. He bit his lip harder, to stop himself from trembling. He nodded silently.

“Oh, Taehyun…” With the hand gently holding Taehyun’s chin, Beomgyu reached up and brushed away the tear that fell from Taehyun’s eye. “It’s alright. It’s alright.”

Taehyun sniffled, gulping down a sob. “It feels like… it feels like no one likes me in this world,” he said, voice thick.

“No, no. I like you, Taehyun. I do. And I’m someone, aren’t I? I promise you, even if you think otherwise, there will always be someone who is looking out for you.”

Taehyun didn’t say anything for a moment. Then in a soft voice, so soft that Beomgyu almost didn’t hear his words, he spoke. “I just need you.”

Beomgyu smiled at that. “I’m all yours.”

Taehyun looked up at Beomgyu, and even with his eyes overflowing with tears, the smile that he gave Beomgyu was the most beautiful smile Beomgyu had ever seen.

"There we go," Beomgyu said softly, smile widening. "Your smile is so pretty, just like the rest of you."

Taehyun's eyes went wide. "What? N-no, I mean, it's not, it's just a smile, and, and I'm just a normal person, and—"

Beomgyu raised a hand, laughing. "Taehyun, calm down."

It didn't take long for Beomgyu's laughter to melt into a smile. He let his hand drop to Taehyun's shoulder in a comforting pat. He squeezed softly before letting go.

"That smile," he said, "is exactly why I'm going to be here for you. Because it makes me feel happy when I see it, because it means that you’re happy."

Beomgyu smiled, cupping Taehyun's face. "Your smile is so beautiful, and actually, I'm quite glad that you don't look anyone else in the eye."

Taehyun tilted his head to the side. "Why?"

"It's breathtaking," Beomgyu said honestly. "I feel glad that no one else can see your beautiful eyes." He gently rubbed away the last remnants of drying tears from under Taehyun's eyes. "I see infinite galaxies sparkling and swirling," he whispered, "and they are even more beautiful and calming than the stars in our skies. I see endless streaks of light and hope, unending journeys of happiness, and countless sparkling miracles just waiting to happen. Your eyes are elusive and unknown, but hopeful and beautiful all at the same time. They are as wondrous and thoughtful just like the rest of you, and I’m so grateful that you decided to look at me with them, because it shows how much you trust me.”

Taehyun was crying again, but he was smiling and laughing at the same time, utterly grateful for Beomgyu’s soft words.

Beomgyu laughed softly, releasing Taehyun’s face to hold his hands. “I feel honoured to be trusted by you.” He chuckled. “It makes me believe that all those nights were worth it, where we sat on the roof and I had to pretend like my hands weren’t freezing off.”

Taehyun laughed a little at that, holding Beomgyu’s hand tighter.

“I swear!” Beomgyu’s smile widened, growing more confident after Taehyun’s laugh, “I don’t know if you felt it when I held your hand the other day, but I swore my fingers had turned into literal ice blocks.”

Taehyun smiled up at Beomgyu, still laughing a little. “If it makes you feel any better, my hands were really cold too.”

Beomgyu gasped at that. “Your hands were cold too?? Ah, then you should have told me! I would have brought heat packs or gloves or something, and I wouldn’t have to suffer! The only reason I didn’t wear gloves was because you never did, and I didn’t want to seem weak,” he said, pouting. Taehyun laughed at that, and Beomgyu’s pout quickly turned into a big smile. “Next time, I’ll bring heat packs so both of us don’t get cold, okay?”

Taehyun nodded, eyes crinkling as he smiled. “Okay.”

Beomgyu melted at Taehyun’s smile, gripping Taehyun’s fingers. “Look at your pretty smile. You should smile more. It looks good on you.”

Taehyun blinked, looking down shyly. “Thank you.” He looked up, eyes sparkling. “You have a pretty smile too.”

Beomgyu’s cheeks pinkened and his smile widened, captivated by Taehyun’s bright eyes

They stared at each other for a prolonged moment, before Taehyun blinked, slowly pulling away.

“I should probably go home now. It’s late.” He gently tugged his hands from Beomgyu’s grip, Beomgyu reluctantly letting Taehyun’s fingers fall from his hands.

“Are you sure?” Beomgyu asked. “Won’t your mom be worried if you turn up like that?”

Taehyun shook his head. “It’s okay.”

“Alright then.” Beomgyu stepped away from the swings, letting Taehyun stand up. “Well, I’ll see you tomorrow then?”

Taehyun nodded. “See you tomorrow.”

Beomgyu watched as Taehyun left the playground, elbow propped up against the gate, chin in hand. As Taehyun walked away, he called out to him.

“Sleep well, okay?”

For a moment, Beomgyu thought Taehyun hadn’t heard him. But then Taehyun turned around, and smiled. He waved. “Goodnight, Beomgyu,” came back Taehyun’s voice.

Beomgyu waved back, feeling his body warm oddly at Taehyun’s smile. Sitting back down on the swing, he looked at his phone, remembering Taehyun’s wide, confused eyes. His eyes had shone like a thousand stars, even in the darkness of the night. He remembered how tightly Taehyun had hugged him.

The smile faded from his face as his mind began sifting back through all their encounters, all their meetings. He remembered what Soobin had said.

“Are you sure you want to be just friends with Taehyun?”

Beomgyu looked down at his phone again, Taehyun’s contact staring back up at him. He looked up, watching as Taehyun continued to walk away.

“Hey, Beomgyu!”

Beomgyu didn’t even turn around at Soobin’s voice. Even when Taehyun turned a corner and he could no longer see him, Beomgyu continued to stare down the street.

“You left your wallet in our dorm,” Soobin said, walking up towards Beomgyu. “Yeonjun made me run here. Said that you’d tear yourself apart if you found out you lost your wallet, so here I am.” He tilted his head, noting Beomgyu’s lack of attention. “Beomgyu?”

Beomgyu was still staring blankly into the distance. Soobin frowned, worried.

“Beomgyu? Are you okay?”

Eventually, Beomgyu turned his gaze towards Soobin.

“Soobin,” he said, voice a little shaky, “I think I like Taehyun.”

next ->

16 notes · View notes