Mark saw Donghyuck in the parking lot, walking to the doors of the apartment complex, and immediately started walking faster. He entered the elevator cooly after Donghyuck did as if he wasn't trying to not breathe hard. Fast walking wasn't that easy.
"Hey, Donghyuck. You live on the third floor, right?"
The boy hummed while playing with the hem of his jacket.
"Do you think you could come to my place?"
Donghyuck looked up at Mark in surprise. "Sure. I have time," he said.
Mark smiled at him, and the elevator doors soon opened. Donghyuck followed close behind Mark as the two entered the apartment. Mark's parents would be home later that day, so they had the apartment to themselves.
Mark led the boy to his room and said, "Make yourself comfortable."
Mark sat on his bed and patted the space next to him. Donghyuck nervously sat down.
"How was school?"
"Good," he said, too nervous to say anything else.
"It was good for me too. Well, except for that one guy behind you glaring at me. He made me wonder if I did something seriously wrong. I kind of panicked."
"Oh, that's just Renjun. He's my—" Suddenly, he stopped talking and seemed like he was trying to find the right words to say.
"Friend? Boyfriend?"
"Yeah, boyfriend. He gets jealous easily. Sorry about that."
"No worries, man. Anyway, did anything interesting happen today?"
Donghyuck looked at Mark in shock for a second. Probably because Mark didn't care that he was dating a guy. He thought he would look at him weird or something, but no. Nothing. "Oh. Well, I was surprised to see you there."
"Me too. I was happy, though. The mysterious boy from the elevator ended up being my friend's classmate," he said in a joking tone.
"Your friend?"
Mark nodded and said, "Yeah, Johnny. We've been friends since the beginning of time. But we haven't been spending that much time with each other now that he has a girlfriend," he said.
"Oh. How about you? Do you have anyone?"
"Nope. I've never dated before. I haven't even kissed anyone," he said with a sigh.
Donghyuck smiled a bit, trying to cover up his laugh.
"Ah, I know. It's kind of embarrassing considering the fact that I'm going to graduate this year."
"Maybe it's for the best. Relationships aren't all that. Sometimes Renjun gets too jealous, and it makes me annoyed. Don't tell him I said that, though," he said as he laughed a little.
"I won't, but I wouldn't say relationships aren't all that. I've always wanted to try dating. Holding hands and all." Mark sighed and thought about how stupid he must've sounded at the moment. Here he was complaining about his lack of romance skills to someone he barely knew. "But how can I do that when i haven't even had my first kiss?" After his little rant, he looked over at Donghyuck and saw him blushing. He smiled at the sight and asked, "Hey, do you mind if i call you Hyuck?"
"No, I don't mind, Mark. Can I call you mackerel?" he asked.
"Why mackerel?"
"Mark is like mackerel. So mackerel," he explained.
Mark smiled at him, feeling warm at the nickname. Maybe it was kind of dumb, but it was sweet for Donghyuck to try to nickname him. "Makes sense. I like it."
"I can tell by the blush on your face," he teased.
"Getting bold, are we? Maybe I'll have to mention how you've been blushing the whole time," he shot back. Donghyuck's face became a darker shade of pink. "But it's okay. You're shy, and I get it. I'm kind of shy, too. That's why Johnny is my only friend. Well, besides you, of course."
Donghyuck looked at his feet. "Mackerel." Mark hummed. "You're nice." In this moment, Mark didn't know why, but he loved the compliment because he felt like the boy was way too adorable.
"I have to go, mackerel. I'll see you tomorrow and hopefully I'll see you at school too. Find me," he said as he got up. Mark also got up and walked him to the door. "Bye, Hyuck. See you later," he said as he waved at him. Donghyuck waved back, and Mark shut the door once he walked off.
Mark noticed how Donghyuck seemed much more comfortable around him. He felt glad. Actually, he was really happy, and it was all because of his new friend.
