CHAPTER TWO
MOPPING the floors on a saturday night
wasn't kihyun's ideal way to spend his time.
but when he had a perfect view of a certain navy-blue haired boy, it made the task, somewhat, bearable. he wasn't close to changkyun, there was probably fifteen rows of chairs keeping them apart. but the air carried the sound of changkyun's beautiful laugh, all the way to kihyun's ears, and he was in a complete daze.
he was so caught up in his own world, he ended up stepping backwards into the bucket. it tipped sideways, spilling all the soapy-water over the laminated flooring.
the loud splashing sound echoed throughout the arena and, cautiously, kihyun looked up, just knowing that nayoung and the boy he was so hopelessly crushing on, were staring right at him. which he was right; well, the girl had stopped skating, leaning her hands against the railing, looking at kihyun with a concerned expression on her face. whereas, changkyun wasn't even looking at him, his focus seemed more intent on the ceiling than the humiliated boy himself.
nayoung cupped her hands around her mouth, she called out: "you good over there, kihyun?"
"yeah!" kihyun squeaked, mentally kicking himself for being a magnet for embarrassing scenarios. "just... kinda tripped."
the girl shook her head, hair brushing against her shoulders. the dark haired boy saw how she leaned closer to changkyun's side, whispering something to him- probably over the comical scene, judging by the way the two started to chuckle. kihyun looked down at the water-covered ground, sighing, because how does a person even manage to do that.
once kihyun was done cleaning for the night, he glanced at the clock, frowing upon seeing it was only eleven, and his shift ended at one-thirty.
resting his chin on his hand, he turned his head in the direction of the skating rink. he could hear the mixture of changkyun and nayoung's giggles- she was most likely helping the boy skate again. kihyun had noticed changkyun had been getting better at it. the other day, he saw him skate a few meters without nayoung's help, but then he almost hit the ice, so the girl quickly skated over and balanced him, holding his hands once more.
it seemed like the boy already knew some tricks, how he'd push his elbows and hands through the air with confidence, skates freely gliding over the ice. changkyun's hips would move along to whatever song that flowed out of the speakers.
changkyun attempted twirling once, but one of his blades ran over the ice in the wrong way and he fell forward into nayoung's arms.
when kihyun witnessed that, something deep inside of him just wanted to run over there, and take the boy in his arms. he wanted to hold his hand, ask if he wanted to give skating another try. the adoration the dark haired boy held for the other was extremely confusing, considering changkyun barely spared him a glance that lasted for more than one second. but kihyun couldn't stop what he felt, and all he desired to do was scream at the sky to give him a chance to just speak to him.
"will i ever be able to skate like you?" kihyun heard changkyun ask his cousin.
when he saw them walking into view, the girl gave changkyun's hand a little squeeze, and said, "all you need is more practice. you'll be there again in no time."
again? kihyun wondered.
however, those thoughts discontinued to roam his brain, because his eyes followed nayoung leading changkyun to a seat. the girl quickly left, disappearing into the bathroom, giving kihyun the perfect opportunity to finally have a conversation with his crush. thanks, sky.
taking in a deep, shaky breath of air, he started making his way over to changkyun, who seemed really busy staring at his hands in his lap.
"hey, changkyun!" he said, a little too cheery, internally cringing.
the said boy snapped his head up, staring straight past him. kihyun's lips twitched downwards, the nervousness swarmed every inch of his stomach.
changkyun looked back down to his lap, letting out a nervous, "h-hello."
kihyun sat next to him, thinking about how nayoung could return any moment, and he didn't really need her to tease him about this. so, focusing only on what to say, he opened his mouth, words subconsciously leaving his lips.
"can i have your number?"
he felt his cheeks burn. he was pretty sure his entire skin would ignite.
"i-i..." changkyun began, "my phone broke. sorry."
kihyun stayed frozen to the bench, staring at the other, completely baffled. he instantly pressed his lips together, not being able to let another word leave his mouth again, scared he'd embarrass himself further. nayoung soon came back, and kihyun abruptly rose from the seat.
"ki-"
"i have to mop the skates! bye!" he blurted out, voice loud.
this time, he did externally cringe at his terrible excuse, as he hastily walked away from the two, whilst also trying not to think about the way changkyun so bluntly turned him down.
and, so, the saga of kihyun having a pathetic crush continued.
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a/n: hi i have so many plans for this book and i hope u all end up loving it as much as i do
