...The first time that Taehyung sees him, Taehyung is performing in front of hundreds of people....

...Showcase is a performance that the Korean national figure skating team holds every year for the public and as a member Taehyung has to create choreography and skate it in the showcase....

...Taehyung is toward the end of his performance, with only one jump left. Everything had gone beautifully this performance, but the last jump is the hardest. He swings his right foot backward and kicks off the ice to help him take off, spraying chunks of white everywhere as he leaps off the ground with the edge of his blade....

...He twirls four times in the air, his feet together and his arms tucked close to his chest. For a moment he holds his breath as he descends from the jump. He lands on his right foot, ice crunching beneath his skate, and he throws his left leg into the air to balance himself....

...The crowd cheers as he lands the jump and Taehyung smiles, secretly celebrating...

...Taking a deep breath of relief, the cold air burning his throat, Taehyung throws himself in the the final choreography. He relaxes now that the jumps are over, and flirts with the crowd as he spins and glides easily over the ice....

...As Taehyung spins in circles to the music, he throws winks at the crowd. He slides his gaze over the people and notices something in the corner of his vision. Over by the edge of the rink, where no spectator should be able to go, is a boy about Taehyung’s age....

...He is standing there, staring at Taehyung. Taehyung loses his breath for a moment, butterflies dancing in his stomach and making their way up his throat. Taehyung almost forgets his next move, but tears his gaze away from the dark haired boy just in time....

...He avoids looking over to the boy again as he does his final move, a combination spin. He stars with a camel spin, lifting his leg behind him as he spins slowly. Then kicking the ground to gain speed and twirl faster, he crouches down and brings his arms above his head, spinning close to the ice before twirling to a standing position. He brings his leg above his head and holding the bottom of his skate around the blade he spins until he slows....

...He brings his leg down with a flourish of his arms and he does a 180 to face the crowd, in time with the last beat of the fast classical music. The crowd erupts in cheers and Taehyung smiles. He lets the adrenaline course through him, feeling like a king as he takes his bows and picks up flowers from the ice....

...Once more he looks toward where the mysterious boy was, but he's vanished. Taehyung frowns to himself and can't help but feel disappointed. He moves off the ice, smiling when he sees his best friend Jimin jumping up and down squealing his name near the bleachers....

...…...

...Jeongguk watches the tan boy with red hair skate easily across the ice. The boy was obviously very good and Jeongguk was impressed with the quad Lutz he had pulled off flawlessly....

...As he watches the red haired boy smile and flirt at the crowd, Jeongguk gets a tickling feeling in his stomach....

...His grip tightens on the railing of the gate around the rink, his knuckles turning white. He takes one last look at the cute smile of the boy and the skin exposed by the sparkly outfit, then stalks off, leaving the rink....

...…...

...Taehyung smiles as Jimin jumps on top of him, yelling about how great his performance was....

...Jimin’s boyfriend, Yoongi, holds his fist out for a fist bump. Taehyung squeals at getting approval from grumpy Yoongi and over enthusiastically fist bumps him and pulls his best friends in for a group hug....

...Taehyung sits down to put his rainbow skate guards on and shrug on a jacket as Jimin chatters away, “I think that was the best performance I've seen from you! That last jump was crazy! You have to show me how to do it right when we get home!”...

...Taehyung laughs at Jimin’s excitement. Jimin skates for fun because Taehyung taught him when they first met two years ago, and he's pretty good....

...“You think you can handle it?” Taehyung asks teasingly....

...Jimin huffs and pouts. Taehyung acts cute for forgiveness and wraps his arms and legs around the shorter boy, careful of his skates. He holds Jimin in the tight koala hug on the bench and Jimin grumbles but hugs Taehyung back. Taehyung laughs and pokes Jimin’s cheek....

...“You should totally do that at the nationals competition.” Jimin says, “You’d get crazy points for that jump.”...

...Taehyung smiles at his awesome best friend who remembers all of his skating events. “I'm planning something even better than that.” Taehyung reveals, smiling secretively down at Jimin....

...Jimin groans, “I'm literally going to die of anticipation if you keep this up Tae! Let your best friend live!” He falls back against Taehyung dramatically, pretending to faint....

...Taehyung laughs. “You'll be the first person I show when the choreography is finished!”...

...Jimin looks up at him and holds out his pinky, “Promise?” he says in mock seriousness....

...Taehyung mimics the serious expression and links their pinkies. “Promise.” he says staring at Jimin. After a short staring contest they both erupt into uncontrollable giggles....

...Yoongi watches them with half asleep eyes, “Yah! I'm here too!” he whines....

...Taehyung and Jimin look at each other, and in unison, jump on Yoongi. The three of them sit together and watch the rest of the skaters, making comments here and there and laughing at their own jokes....

...At the end Taehyung talks to his coach and says goodbye to the team before leaving with Yoongi and Jimin. Taehyung forgets all about the handsome dark haired boy that was watching him with such passionate, dark eyes, until the next day....

...…...

...Taehyung is sore the next morning. His ankles hurt and his legs feel like they could fall off....

...He groans as his alarm rings a stupidly happy tune. Taehyung rolls over, his blankets getting more and more tangled as he reaches around for his phone on his bedside table blindly. When he finally finds it, he lets out a sigh of relief when everything is quiet again after he turns off his alarm....

...He cuddles deeper into his mound of pillows and blankets and calculates how long he has until Jimin comes into his room to push him out of bed like the disgusting morning person he is....

...He sighs and opens his eyes, blinking away the crust that had sealed them shut earlier. He stares at the plain white ceiling of the apartment he, Jimin, and Yoongi share. He feels bad thinking about it. Ever since Jimin and Yoongi started dating he feels like he had been an intruder in their apartment....

...They say it's fine and that he helps pay rent and they would probably be homeless without his income, but Taehyung knows they could handle themselves, and feels bad that he can't give them the privacy they need....

...Taehyung hops out of bed and gets in the shower, cursing his early schedule and asking himself why he does this as his muscles protest with every move....

...He has early classes because he has skating lessons and practice in the afternoon, and then he teaches kids in the evenings. He loves his job and loves kids so it's worth it (most of the time)....

...Taehyung gets out of the shower and throws on some black sweats, sandals and a white long sleeved shirt that he cut up himself. People criticize him for his horrendous fashion but Taehyung doesn't care enough to change his ways....

...Grabbing his keys and bag, making sure he has his skates, he heads to his first class at 8 in the morning....

...…...

...Taehyung's classes were uneventful and he’s happy to be heading to the skating rink. He has been working on developing his program for the national competition with his coach Seokjin and he is exited to start practicing. The Korean national competition is a skating competition that determines who will go on to represent Korea at the world figure skating championships....

...The preliminaries were two weeks ago and Taehyung had scored second under someone named Jeon Jeongguk. Taehyung had scored a 95.93 which was very good but Jeongguk had scored a 105.40. The current world record for short program is 110.95. Taehyung was more than a little worried....

...It irked Taehyung even more when he found out this Jeongguk kid was younger than him and has only been skating for five years. Taehyung is naturally very competitive, so he fully intends to kick this guy’s *** at nationals. To do that he needs the best choreography possible....

...Luckily his coach and choreographer, Seokjin, was one of the best, if not the best, in Korea. He has trained with Seokjin ever since he made the national team and he's like a father to Taehyung....

...Taehyung's usual schedule has him getting individual instruction for two hours, and then group instruction for another two. Seokjin helps coach the Team sometimes with the head coach, Namjoon. Somehow they know each other outside of coaching but Taehyung isn't sure what their relationship is....

...Taehyung wears simple clothes to practice, long sleeve under armor, leggings, and a sweatshirt with black gloves. His skates for practice are white, but he has tan ones for competitions. Walking inside the the rink is almost therapeutic with how the cool air hits his cheeks and cools his skin. Immediately Taehyung feels at home and when he sees Seokjin's tall form over by the rink he approaches the coach....

...Seokjin greets him with a hug, and fusses over him while he laces his skates, “How have you been? Did your showcase performance go well? Have you been taking care of yourself? If you need food just call me and I'll make you some, okay?”...

...Taehyung whines as Seokjin pinches his cheeks and Taehyung pushes the older man off him. “I'm fine! I've been well! You just saw me two days ago, Jin-”...

...“My baby could starve in two days! I have to take care of my children!” Taehyung laughs at Seokjin’s ridiculous hand motions as he frets over Taehyung....

...“Jin, have you finished the choreography for the second half of the program?” Taehyung changes the subject before he can be coddled again, finishing lacing his skates and putting his favorite rainbow skate guards on....

...Seokjin’s face lights up as Taehyung mentions the choreography, “Yes I did! I finally found some inspiration and I think this is the best routine I’ve ever come up with!” Seokjin almost stumbles over his words with how excited he is and Taehyung is elated....

...“I knew you would do your best for me hyung! Thank you!” Taehyung says excitedly and hugs Seokjin....

...Seokjin laughs and hugs him back, “Let's get out on the ice! I think this routine will definitely win you nationals and take you to worlds!” Jin and Taehyung step out onto the ice and as Taehyung sets his blade guards on the railing of the rink, he gets the feeling someone is watching him....

...He turns around to see a figure sitting on the bleachers, with dark hair partially covered by a hood, and dark eyes staring intently at Taehyung....

...Taehyung pants, his lungs burning as he skates through the difficult choreography Jin had just taught him. Although it’s freezing in the rink, Taehyung is sweating and his skin feels hot compared to the air. He is completely in his element, twisting and turning, listening to his blades scrape the ice. He repeats the choreography religiously until it's the only thing he can think about....

...There's a pounding in Taehyung’s head, and he should probably stop, but he doesn't want to. He doesn't stop because he can feel the ice under him and he’s so comfortable like he was born to do this. At this moment Taehyung doesn't care about prying eyes or the future and responsibilities. When Taehyung skates, he is completely oblivious to anything outside of himself and the ice....

...He doesn't notice Jin skating up to him, a smile on the older man’s face....

...“Taehyungie, do you want to take a break? Tae? Taehyungie? Taehyung!” Jin’s hand snaps out and grabs Taehyung’s forearm....

...Taehyung is snapped out of his daze and he stops suddenly, his skates digging into the ice. He blinks up questioningly at Jin,...

...“Hyung?” Jin rolls his eyes at this, already used to Taehyung’s shenanigans. Jin shakes his head and continues talking,...

...“I was saying you should take a break Tae. You know, get water…”...

...Taehyung drops his head, blushing and embarrassed that he got so into skating, that he neglected the fact that he was practically panting and his mouth felt like the Sahara Desert....

...Jin smiles knowingly and throws his arm around Taehyung, skating to the gate with him,...

...“Don't worry Taehyungie, it’s cute how much you love skating, and if it wasn't detrimental to your health, I would let you skate all day long!” Jin pokes Taehyung's nose as Taehyung puts on his blade guards and the sweatshirt that he had thrown off earlier....

...Taehyung scrunches his nose and bats Jin’s tickling fingers away but wraps his arms around the older boy and buries his face in Jin's shoulder. Jin pats his head and Taehyung smiles, tightening his grip on the older male....

...Taehyung suddenly realizes he no longer has the feeling of being watched and he thinks of his dilemma. For the past two hours during practice, Taehyung has had the feeling of eyes on his back. Not just the casual onlooker watching him kind of feeling, but the someone is staring holes in his back feeling. He doesn't turn around to look for the boy with dark hair because as much as Taehyung doesn't want to admit it, his stalker is hot. Every time Taehyung sees the boy looking at him, Taehyung secretly dies a little on the inside....

...Suddenly Taehyung's stomach makes an angry, grumbling noise that means it's time to go get terrible junk food from the snack bar no matter what Jin does to try and stop him. Jin freezes, hearing the sound and also knowing what Taehyung will want to eat. He lets out a long, tired, sigh, and opens his arms to let Tae wiggle out of their hug....

...Taehyung looks guiltily up at Jin, but Jin shakes his head and chuckles, jerking his head toward the snack bar. Taehyung's mouth drops open but he leaves quickly before Jin can change his mind, blowing kisses and making hearts at the elder thankfully, before entering the warm food area....

.........

...When Taehyung leaves the snack bar with nachos dripping in cheese, he is too preoccupied with licking his fingers to see a person coming towards him. With all the grace of a baby deer trying to walk for the first time, Taehyung looks up at the last second before smashing into a hard, broad chest....

...Taehyung holds his breath. Oh God. Oh God please tell me I did not . Taehyung looks down, horrified to see his nachos smashed into this guy’s white shirt. Taehyung, panicking, jumps back dropping the nachos, and they fall. Right onto the person's white skates....

...Taehyung thinks he might cry....

...Taehyung takes one look up and he regrets it immediately because Oh my God it's my stalker....

...Stalker boy is even hotter up close and Taehyung curses his luck. The dark haired boy is incredibly built and he's got these strong, thick arms that leave Taehyung breathless. Taehyung stares at some moles on the boy’s neck, eventually looking up at his face. He has dark, almost black eyes framed by long eyelashes, too pretty for his sharp jawline. The boy’s skin is tan and there is a little stubble like he didn't shave this morning and Taehyung thinks God may be trying to kill him. His cheeks have a flushed look to them and Taehyung can't tell if it's from anger or something else ....

...They stare at each other for a few moments. Taehyung can't breathe and he's just praying this hot man is not going to try and kill him in the next few seconds. The dark haired boy is the first to break the eye contact, his cheeks flushing even darker....

...Taehyung, snapped out of his daze, hurries over to a table and grabs napkins. When Taehyung gets back, he feels very awkward. Okay. Let's go Taehyung. Just be nice and maybe he won't kill you. Taehyung coughs, getting the males attention....

...He stares down at Taehyung as Taehyung hurriedly dabs at the white shirt....

...“I'm so sorry! Um... if you want I have some extra clothes in my locker! I'm sure I could find something that fits you!”...

...Taehyung rambles, still dabbing at the man’s shirt. He looks up for a second and smiles at the guy. The dark haired boy is looking down at him with a shocked expression and pink cheeks. Taehyung goes further down cleaning drops of cheese off the guy’s black jeans. Taehyung can feel how firm the thighs are under his fingers and he gets a little carried away before he realizes how close he is to something else....

...Taehyung, flustered, freezes and stops wiping the pants. He starts to crouch down to wipe off the white skates but a hand wraps around his wrist. Taehyung is pulled up to his feet and the dark haired boy rubs the back of his neck as he lets go of Taehyung's wrist, looking as awkward as Taehyung feels....

...“Uh no! I mean… U-um don't do that.” The guy stutters, his voice croaking like he hasn't used it in a while, but Taehyung thinks it's still the hottest voice he has ever heard. It's not as deep as his own but sounds boyish and sweet....

...Taehyung thinks this is best and worst moment of his life as he watches the hot boy carefully, his adams apple bobbing as he swallows nervously. The guy sighs and opens his mouth to talk again, “I mean, it's okay, um, you don't have to, uh, clean my shoes.”...

...Taehyung would laugh at how awkward and cute this guy is, but Taehyung doesn't want to scare him off....

...“Okay, thanks! Do you want anything to change into…?” Taehyung asks smiling his cutest smile up at him, hoping to relieve tension....

...The guy almost visibly panics and Taehyung feels kinda bad. The dark haired boy shakes his head as he splutters out his response,...

...“No! Um, n-no thanks.”...

...He says goodbye before turning and hurrying out of there, and Taehyung stands there shocked at the abrupt exit. He is sad that he might never see the hot, cute guy again and then suddenly Taehyung wants to punch himself. I didn't even get his name! Or tell him mine!...

...Taehyung leaves the snack bar, touching the place where the boy touched his wrist and thinking about their encounter....

...…...

...Jeongguk swears he's not a pervert. Or a stalker. He just thinks the red haired boy is really pretty....

...He has to be here for practice with his new team in two hours and he came early to warm up a bit, but as soon as he saw the boy from yesterday going out onto the ice, Jeongguk became too shy to go out....

...So here he is. Sitting on the bleachers watching his crush because he's too scared to even be near him....

...Jeongguk sighs. The red haired boy looks absolutely gorgeous spinning around on the rink, his red hair and tan skin contrasting with the white ice all around him. Jeongguk has to bite his lip to keep from cooing at the boy when he makes a mistake and the cutest pout covers his face....

...Jeongguk has a weakness for cute things. And the red haired boy is incredibly cute....

...Jeongguk doesn't realize how tense he is until his foot falls asleep and he has to move. Jeongguk cracks his back and gets up. Walking down to the floor by the bleachers, Jeongguk stretches for a few minutes, wondering if he's finally gotten the courage to go out on the ice....

...When Jeongguk stands up and looks for the red-haired boy, he's gone. Jeongguk is hungry, cold, and now with no cute boy to watch, decides to go get comfort food that will heal his heart from this tiresome crush....

...Still unable to stop thinking about the boy as he walks into the snack bar, he looks out the window to the rink to look for him. As Jeongguk is walking he bumps into something or someone. He feels a hot stickiness on his shirt. Horrified and a little angry, Jeongguk looks down to see fluffy red hair and big brown eyes staring at him, shocked....

...Oh God why. Jeongguk can't stop staring at the boy and he probably thinks Jeongguk is weird. But up close the boy is so much more beautiful than Jeongguk ever imagined....

...He's actually quite tall, Jeongguk and he are about the same height, but the red haired boy is very slender and thin, unlike Jeongguk. He has huge light brown eyes and a cute button nose. His red lips contrast with his dark skin and Jeongguk feels faint. The boy blinks staring back at him and Jeongguk tears his gaze away, flushing even darker when he looks down and sees the boy's slender legs wrapped in very, very tight leggings....

...There are nachos on his skates and his shirt, but Jeongguk can't bring himself to care as he watches how the boy swims in his huge sweatshirt and hurries over to grab napkins....

...The boy has to roll up his sleeves and Jeongguk thinks that's cute and that maybe he can handle this. Jeongguk hasn't said anything embarrassing yet so maybe they can talk and Jeongguk won't look like a total weirdo....

...The real problem comes when the boy speaks,...

...“I'm so sorry! Um if you want I have some extra clothes in my locker! I'm sure I could find something that fits you!”...

...This cute boy has the deepest voice Jeongguk has ever heard. Jeongguk is speechless and incredibly flustered when the boy smiles up at him cutely....

...Jeongguk can feel the warm hands through his thin shirt and he doesn't think he will ever be able to talk again....

...The red haired boy gets lower and lower, cleaning the drips off Jeongguk’s pants and Jeongguk can feel the hands on his thighs very close to-...

...Why me. Oh My God I can't deal with this stress . Jeongguk watches as the boy tries to bend down to clean his shoes, but in a moment of impulse, Jeongguk grabs his wrist and pulls him to his feet....

...Jeongguk’s hand burns where he touches the red haired boy's wrist and he immediately lets go. He stares at Jeongguk as he attempts to talk,...

...“Uh no! I mean… U-um don't do that.” Jeongguk’s voice is scratchy from not using it and Jeongguk winces. 'If there is a God out there, now would be a good time to send down some of that divine power to help me.' The boy blinks at him, waiting for Jeongguk to continue....

...Jeongguk gulps, taking a deep breath before talking again,...

...“I mean, it's okay, um, you don't have to, uh, clean my shoes.”...

...Jeongguk sighs in relief at getting a coherent sentence out of his mouth. But then the boy smiles at him cutely and Jeongguk is short-circuiting again....

...“Okay, thanks! Do you want anything to change into…?” The boy asks sweetly....

...Jeongguk is dying because he's pretty and sweet as an angel. Jeongguk shakes his head and lamely says,...

...“No! Um, n-no thanks”...

...Ugh why me. In the most awkward way possible Jeongguk says goodbye and hurries out of the snack bar....

...As he walks away he wants to die just thinking about what had happened but is also happy he got to meet the cute redhead. Jeongguk looks down at his hand, remembering how it felt to touch the boy’s wrist....

...…...

...“Jinnie!! You don't understand! He was so hot and I smashed nacho cheese into his white shirt!” Taehyung immediately went to Jin to whine, and so far Jin has done nothing but laugh at Taehyung's expense....

...They leisurely skate around the rink having already warmed up and waiting for the rest of the team to arrive....

...“Well did you get his name?” Jin asks with an amused smile on his face....

...“No,” Taehyung says pouting, “I was too distracted by his hotness!”...

...Jin rolls his eyes muttering “kids” under his breath....

...Taehyung gasps and with fake hurt on his face says, “Not like you can talk Hyung! You act the same way around Namjoon hyung!”...

...Jin's mouth drops open and he stutters out excuses. Taehyung cackles as he skates away teasingly sending hearts at his Hyung....

...…...

...“Hyung! You know how I can't talk! And he is literally the cutest person I have ever seen!”...

...Hoseok rolls his eyes at Jeongguk's exaggeration,...

...“Kookie, you are super hot. There is no need for you to be so nervous to talk to him, he was probably just as scared and nervous as you were.”...

...Jeongguk and Hoseok walk from the locker rooms where Jeongguk had cleaned up and changed his clothes. They immediately head toward the rink for practice. When Jeongguk first moved here from America and signed up to join the team the coach, Namjoon, had seen how shy Jeongguk was and immediately introduced him to Hoseok. Now they’re good friends even though they have only known each other for a few weeks....

...Jeongguk sighs as he watches how easily Hoseok flirts and socializes with their teammates as they walk toward the ice and wishes he could be like that with the redhead. Jeongguk steps out onto the ice, gracefully letting himself glide forward to the center. Jeongguk closes his eyes and spins, feeling the ice under his skates....

...Hoseok shouts and skates over to the left, presumably to talk to another teammate....

...Jeongguk feels eyes watching him and he turns to where Hoseok skated and sees something that makes his stomach flip. His crush and Hoseok are talking, but the red haired boy is staring right at Jeongguk with a shocked look on his face as Hoseok chatters away next to him....

...Jeongguk quickly turns away and skates around in circles on the other side of the rink nervously....

...Oh my God....

...Jeongguk can hear people approaching him talking and skates sliding against ice. Jeongguk hears Hoseok’s laugh behind him and silently prays that what he thinks is happening, is not happening....

...Hoseok calls his name,...

...“Jeon Jeongguk! Come over here and meet Taehyung!”...

...Jeongguk is going to kill Hoseok....

...Jeongguk turns slowly and looks at the group waiting for him....

...Hoseok is smiling but his eyes were screaming what's wrong??!?! at Jeongguk. Jeongguk glares at Hoseok and turns to look at the other two boys....

...His crush, Taehyung, is still looking at him with a shocked expression. And the other boy, who Jeongguk saw coaching Taehyung earlier, is looking between the two of them with a confused expression on his face....

...Taehyung opens and closes his mouth a few times before sputtering out,...

...“You're Jeon Jeongguk? Why have you been watching me?”...

...Everyone is silent for a moment. Jeongguk can feel his cheeks blazing. Oh my God, I hate life. Goodbye, world. This is the end....

...Suddenly Hoseok bursts out laughing....

...“Hahahah- oh my- hahaaha ha ah- Jeongguk you- ahaha- you like- hahah!!”...

...Jeongguk automatically grabs Hoseok in a headlock and looks menacingly down at him,...

...“Hyung shut up please!” Jeongguk pushes out through gritted teeth....

...Hoseok continues to laugh and shakes off Jeongguk’s choke hold to skate out of the rink. Jeongguk turns and sees the other two boys had been whispering to each other. Jeongguk gulps as he looks at his crush and the coach. Surprisingly the coach seems to be reprimanding Taehyung....

...When they notice him watching, they separate quickly and Taehyung skates forward and looks down at the ice like a child in trouble,...

...“I'm sorry I yelled that out, it was rude and sometimes I can't control what I say, so I hope we can be friends?”...

...Jeongguk is shocked and immediately feels bad,...

...“No! It's fine, I shouldn't have been watching you like that! I just thought you were really good and prett- umm, I mean I didn't even know you were on this team or anything, sorry.”...

...Taehyung looks just as shocked and awkward as Jeongguk but smiles, making Jeongguk think that God has finally given him a break....

...Taehyung laughs and the awkward atmosphere is dispelled,...

...“Wow, that was awkward, sorry.” Taehyung laughs, “friends?” Taehyung asks as he holds out his hand....

...Jeongguk laughs in return and is dazed by how nice Taehyung is and how cute his laugh sounds....

...Jeongguk snaps out of it when he sees Taehyung reach forward. Jeongguk shoots his hand out to grasp Taehyung's. His hand is soft and delicate in Jeongguk's grip and he wants to intertwine their fingers but he doesn't....

...Jeongguk smiles back, “Friends.” he says warmly squeezing his hand a little in their handshake and hoping that this means Taehyung doesn't think he's creepy....

...Taehyung joined the team to stand in a semi-circle around their coach, Namjoon, as he explained how to do a footwork drill that Taehyung has already mastered....

...Taehyung was drifting in and out of focus as he thought about the boy that was currently standing opposite to him....

...Unable to help himself, Taehyung sneaks a peek at the younger boy, who Taehyung found to be not paying attention either. Taehyung allowed himself to check out the muscular boy a little longer, thinking back to the two times they had talked and cringing when he thinks about the 'Nacho incident'....

...Jeongguk seemed nice, albeit rather shy. Taehyung was shocked when he found that nacho-stalker-boy was the Jeon Jeongguk who was his biggest competition, but weirdly it relieved Taehyung to meet him. Ever since Taehyung had heard of Jeon Jeongguk, Taehyung thought the boy was some sort of superhuman because of his ridiculously high scores. Meeting Jeongguk in person made Taehyung realize he was silly for thinking that, because Jeongguk is a person just like Taehyung. A person who Taehyung can beat....

...Taehyung watched as Jeongguk's head snapped to attention comically fast at something Namjoon said. Taehyung turned to his friend Jonghyun, who was standing next to him, to ask what was going on,...

...“We're doing pairs work today and we have to find our own partners,” Jonghyun replied when Taehyung questioned him, looking somewhere in the distance with a slight blush on his daydreaming face....

...Taehyung raised and eyebrow and waved his hand in front of the shorter man's face. Jonghyun blinked rapidly and looked at Taehyung questioningly....

...“Do you want to be partners?” Taehyung asked casually, expecting Jonghyun to say yes since they were usually partners for pairs work....

...Jonghyun rubbed the back of his neck looking away awkwardly. “I would Taehyung, but Taemin waved at me! And you know I've had a crush on him for forever! This is my chance to get to know him!” Jonghyun explained apologetically and made his pouting puppy dog face....

...Taehyung opened and closed his mouth a few times in shock before looking over to a smiley Taemin waving at them. Taemin and Jonghyun both like each other, but Jonghyun has always been too shy to talk to Taemin. Now that Taehyung thinks about it he vaguely remembers himself encouraging Jonghyun to talk to Taemin and giving him a pep talk about it. ...

...Taehyung curses as his own kindness backfires on him and he sighs defeatedly as he watches Jonghyun skate toward Taemin. Taehyung resigns to look for a new partner while he grouchily grumbles about true friends and cute boys ruining everything....

...Taehyung feels lost and awkward as he sees that everyone has a partner. He's about to give up and go tell Namjoon when he feels someone tap his shoulder. Taehyung spins around, excited that someone is a loner like him, but freezes when he sees Jeongguk standing there with a cute bunny smile....

...‘Oh my god he is so cute I just want to pinch his cheeks.’...

...Taehyung just stares at him unblinkingly and almost chokes when Jeongguk simply holds his hand out. Taehyung gulps as he takes Jeongguk's warm, rough hand and tries not to seem like he's totally memorizing what it feels like against his. They skate over in line with the rest of the team, who are taking turns doing a pairs drill and getting critiqued by the coaches....

...The drill is simple enough but it involves a lot of touching and teamwork because Jeongguk will have to lift Taehyung. When Taehyung thinks of Jeongguk’s muscled arms lifting him, he shivers and grips a little tighter onto Jeongguk’s hand. Immediately after, Taehyung realizes what he did and he glances at Jeongguk to see if he had noticed, his face heating up. ...

...‘Crap, he thinks I'm weird. Why did I do that?’...

...Jeongguk smiles at Taehyung when they meet eyes, stopping Taehyung's internal freak-out. He squeezes Taehyung’s hand back and Taehyung blushes. Flustered, Taehyung pulls his hand away....

...Taehyung gets butterflies when he sees they are at the front of the line and Jeongguk turns to smirk at Taehyung. ...

...“Ready?” Jeongguk asks with a smirk still on his face. Taehyung takes a deep breath and nods, ignoring the stupid, sexy, distracting face of his partner....

...They get into their starting positions and Taehyung tries not to become distracted by Jeongguk’s hands on his waist. ...

...Taehyung closes his eyes and focuses on not fucking up....

...…...

...Jeongguk is glad that he can finally be around Taehyung in a normal situation....

...When Jeongguk saw that Taehyung didn’t have a partner he was beyond happy, and his excitement gave him the courage to go up to Taehyung....

...After Taehyung took his hand, Jeongguk was back to his shy self and could only stare at the ground as he stiffly skated in line with Taehyung for the drill. Taehyung’s hand is soft and cold and Jeongguk really wants to grab his hands and warm them up, but he restrains himself. ...

...Jeongguk was busy staring forward trying not to look too affected, when he feels Taehyung squeeze his hand. Jeongguk looks over to see Taehyung looking at him with dazed eyes....

...‘holy. shit.’ ...

...Jeongguk smiles shyly and squeezes back, snapping Taehyung out of his daze....

...Jeongguk watches Taehyung flush red prettily and he quickly pulls his hand away. Watching his reaction, Jeongguk gains some confidence that maybe, just maybe, Taehyung finds him attractive (and not creepy)....

...When they get to the front of the line, Jeongguk feels more confident than ever. Skating is what Jeongguk does best and he’s more than happy for the chance to show off....

...He sees Taehyung nervously picking at a string hanging from his leggings before they get into position. Jeongguk smirks at the thought that now Taehyung is the nervous one....

...“Ready?”...

...Jeongguk hears Taehyung take a deep breath and then he nods. Jeongguk is giddy as he sets his hands on Taehyung's waist, staring at the back of Taehyung's head. Namjoon starts the music and together they skate forward a few feet with Jeongguk still holding Taehyung's waist....

...As they separate they both glance at each other at the same moment. Jeongguk meets Taehyung's eyes and they sparkle a golden brown. They jump and do a triple toe-loop in perfect synchronization. At the sound of their blades hitting the ice again at the same time, they look up and meet eyes again....

...Jeongguk is shocked by the concentration he sees in Taehyung's eyes and how seriously he’s taking a simple drill....

...Jeongguk grabs Taehyung's hands and they skate around the rink, gaining momentum. Jeongguk takes a deep breath and gets serious, not wanting to drop Taehyung and kill his crush before he can ask him out....

...…...

...Taehyung takes a deep breath after Jeongguk grabs his hands. They skate around to gain speed and Taehyung gets in position in front of Jeongguk for the lift....

...Taehyung can hear Jeongguk take a deep breath and Taehyung gasps as he is lifted easily above Jeongguk’s head with strong hands gripping his waist. Taehyung blanks for a moment before he remembers what position he is supposed to be in. He arches his back and reaches his arms out over his head, flourishing them as they skate in a circle. ...

...Taehyung can feel Jeongguk's hands supporting him under his lower back and he tries not to look down at the ice, trusting Jeongguk to hold him up....

...The music shuts off and everyone claps. Taehyung grasps Jeongguk’s broad shoulders tightly when Jeongguk begins to let him down, and he carefully places Taehyung back on the ice. As Jeongguk gently helps Taehyung regain his balance, his hands linger on Taehyung's waist, standing chest to back as they wait for their coaches to give them advice....

...Namjoon smiles at them before he begins to talk,...

...“That was fantastic! Just what I expect from my two best competitors, but I have a few things to nitpick.” Namjoon skates over as he talks and proceeds to explain tiny things they can do better to perfect the drill....

...Taehyung tries to pay attention, actually wanting to remember what Namjoon says. But Jeongguk's hand's fidget on his waist and Taehyung ends up missing half of Namjoon’s critique....

...“Got it?” Namjoon asks and even though no, Taehyung did not get it, both he and Jeongguk nod silently and skate back over to the team....

...Jeongguk still stands close enough for Taehyung to feel his body heat and Taehyung tries to distance them slightly, but the oblivious boy unconsciously shifts closer every time Taehyung moves an inch away....

...Taehyung glares at Jeongguk out of the corner of his eye, Taehyung can already tell that the handsome skater will be the cause of many of his problems in the near future....

...Taehyung clenches his jaw and faces forward, forcing himself to concentrate and not think about the hot boy standing next to him....