The School Idol's Roommate [BL]

Phone (2)

It was just a busy tone. Aki shrugged. Not a big deal. This happened all the time.

He knew that yet a nagging thought rose from his mind. He shook his head as if to clear his thoughts. After thirty minutes, he tried calling again and got another busy tone.

The nagging thought reared its ugly head again.

Liam was not a big fan of his phone. Aki never saw him constantly use it at home or when they were together. Between the two of them, Liam preferred calling more. But lately, all he ever saw was his roommate glued to it. A couple of times, he found Liam smiling on his screen while texting. Aki did not really mind it at first... or at least that was what he thought.

'Stop overthinking and over-reading things.' Aki inhaled and exhaled a few times. Once he felt calm, he tried calling Liam's phone again. Maybe it was just an important call, like the one he got when there was a family emergency.

Another busy tone dashed his hopes. 'Oh well.'

When he arrived home, his eyes automatically scanned the apartment, looking for Liam. He expected his roommate to be in the kitchen, perhaps poring over a new recipe. To his surprise, Liam was lounging on the loveseat in the living room, texting while chuckling to himself.

'Huh. Would you look at that.' "Did something good happened?" Aki asked, no longer able to suppress his curiosity.

"Hmm?" Liam briefly glanced at Aki. "Oh no, not really."

Aki chewed the inside of his cheek. 'Riiiiiight. Not really.' "Are you looking at memes?" He casually peered on the side, trying to get a glimpse of what had gotten Liam's attention when the other guy almost jumped out of his seat, avoiding Aki.

Liam clutched his phone tightly on his chest, looking like a deer caught in the headlights. "T-this is really nothing. Just random memes and kittens."

Aki stood still, surprised at the sudden rejection. He blinked fast as he stared at Liam, replaying the scene over and over in his head. "I'm-- I'm sorry. I shouldn't have..."

The shock on Liam's face softened to a sheepish smile. "I'm sorry too for overreacting." He stood up from his seat, "Wait here, I'll make us something to eat."

'Nope, I'm not curious. Those were only cute kittens,' Aki thought, watching his roommate retreat to the kitchen.

Without nothing better to do, he stretched and sprawled on the sofa, banishing the unnecessary thought. He daydreamed of their weekend getaway to the country instead. They had planned it and that was all Aki could think of lately. He had not been out of the city since middle school and it was a big plus that it was where Liam grew up and the places that inspired Aki's beloved paintings.

"What?! He left her just like that? Since when?" Liam paused his cooking and massaged his forehead. He listened quietly for a moment then groaned, running a hand through his face. "Stop saying that. I know, I'm not."

Aki was jolted awake at the sound of Liam's voice. He had never seen or heard Liam that agitated. The kind of silent fury that Liam emitted rooted Aki on his seat. He listened and stopped moving, as though he did not want Liam to know of his presence.

"I'm not sure. Fine. I'll think about it." Liam ended the call and went back to cooking, though it was more like standing over the stove, his back tense.

"Did something happen?" Aki whispered as he got closer to Liam.

Liam whipped so fast that Aki had to take a step back in surprise. Liam sighed in relief and gave Aki a weary smile. "I'm fine."

Aki frowned. Liam sighed in resignation, closed the stove and embraced Aki. Despite his worries, Aki returned the embrace, still baffled with the action but he waited until Liam was ready to talk.

After a while, Liam spoke with his arms hung loosely around Aki's back. "That was Chris." He gave a quick glance as if confirming if Aki remembered the guy. When Aki nodded, Liam continued. "Well, he was asking if I wanted to come to our mini-reunion. Nancy has been pestering me about it too."

'But that's not it, right? I definitely heard the word her.' But Aki did not say that and stared blankly at his roommate, waiting.

Hesitantly, Liam said, "Chris was just telling me that Nancy and Mac -- that's my best friend -- broke up. He was just giving me a warning."

"It should be okay, right? You've even met her again when your grandmother got sick."

"Things were busy back then," Liam muttered, more to himself than to answer Aki. Then he shook his head. "You're right. It should be okay."

Aki stepped back. "Why not go to the reunion?"

Liam swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbed visibly. "I'll--I'll think about it."

Aki continued to stare at Liam, his face as impassive as he could when his insides felt like being stirred and shaken side to side. The idea that Liam was still bothered by his ex and this Nancy creeping her way back to Liam gave him mixed feelings.