CHAPTER TWENTY
DUSTING the vending machine was the highlight of kihyun's night.
obviously, that was until changkyun and nayoung showed up, of course. they arrived earlier than usual, the girl mentioned something about midwinter time competitions coming up and was determined to get in more practice. kihyun tried paying attention to everything that was being said, but he was too busy trying not to sneeze on the dust. however, besides from sneezing, he was also inevitably more focused on the navy-blue haired boy next to her.
the feeling of changkyun's finger still lingered on kihyun's lips. even days after it had happened. randomly, he'd bring his fingers up to his mouth, touch his bottom lip, wishing it could be changkyun again. but then he'd move his hand away quickly, telling himself not to think those things. changkyun was a friend. an extremely sweet friend. undeniably amazing in every way. so, he couldn't just think about that. although, it was only a tiny thought, somehow it still felt intimate in his mind. it wasn't like he would lead those thoughts very far, anyways, kihyun just wanted to hold changkyun in his arms; hold his hand whenever he felt down. and maybe, if he was lucky, he would kiss him on the forehead- in a totally 'just friends' kind of way.
okay, lie. kihyun didn't want it to be in that way but, for now, that was reality.
in the midst of attempting to conceal his sneezes, kihyun did happen to notice something else.
changkyun's nose a tinge of red, eyes seemed tired and almost drained from the spark that permanently lived in them - even if his eyes didn't work, kihyun could still see pieces of hope in them, surrounded by too many stories to count - and he was so worried about him. that was until nayoung spoke up about allergies being terrible that time of year, then wrapped an arm around the smaller boy's shoulders.
once finished with the work, kihyun walked back over to the vending machine. he remembered seeing different flavours of vitamin water, thinking it might help changkyun feel better. well, at least a bit. choosing the grape one, he clutched it in his hands as he walked down the stairs to approach the boy.
he still remembered the first time he sat next to changkyun in those seats, feeling extremely awkward and nervous, constantly trying to think of what to say next.
everything felt like déjà vu in that moment; except, they weren't strangers anymore. changkyun wasn't frightened about kihyun leaving him because he was blind. the wall that used to separate them had fallen down a long time ago. or maybe, that was just kihyun's feelings. he didn't know if changkyun felt the same way and, frankly, he was too afraid to ask. it probably wouldn't hurt, he could just casually say 'hey, so, i really like you' and then hope for the best.
"hey," kihyun said as he sat down next to changkyun.
"hi," he spoke softly.
i really like you.
"i... have something for you."
his inner self sighed: that was not the plan, kihyun. but he only shoved the unspoken sentence aside. instead, he reached out for the boy's hand and placed the bottle in it.
"it's vitamin water." he stuttered, "grape. do you like grape? i could get you another one, if you don't like-"
"this is perfect." his words stopped kihyun from rambling.
for awhile, the dark haired male was watching nayoung skate. he listened to the song he couldn't quite recognize which played out of the speakers as his gaze wandered over the seats on the other side of the arena, then back on the ice, then to nothing in particular. kihyun couldn't remember when he started to think about changkyun - honestly, the boy never left his mind - and couldn't recall when he started listing all the small details about him that he adored.
he began to realize he didn't have a favourite, not anymore. they all seemed to mold together, and that was what made changkyun who he was.
it was the same things that made kihyun fall in love with him.
in love?
"this is nice." kihyun hastily turned his head towards changkyun, making sure not to miss what he was saying. "kind of... sweet," he tilted his head to the side, as if he wasn't certain about his words. though, before kihyun could open his mouth to reply, changkyun said: "want to try?"
absent-mindedly, kihyun grabbed the vitamin water from changkyun's hand and took a sip.
"what do you think?"
he smiled at changkyun, "i like it." partly directed his words towards the drink, but part of it was a sort of indirect confession to changkyun.
it was all he could do.
then nayoung shouted, "you two basically kissed!" as she skated past.
face burning, kihyun gave random, incoherent hand gestures to the girl, silently communicating with her to tell her to stop talking. the girl playfully winked at kihyun, gliding further away on the ice while pretending she did nothing wrong. he sighed and pressed his palms against the cold bottle. the music was relatively loud, he told himself, so, maybe changkyun didn't hear what she said.
when he looked over to changkyun again, ready to give the drink back, he noticed the blush on his cheeks. i really like the colour red. how his fingers cutely fumbled with the hem of his shirt, head lowered to the floor with a shy smile on his lips. i really, really like him.
kihyun stopped.
no, he smiled. i love him.
