Ben had barely slept.
The previous night still clung to him, pressing into his chest like a dead weight. He had spent hours lying awake, staring at the ceiling of Daniel's apartment, his thoughts crawling into places he had no right to go.
Daniel's innocence… was dangerous.
It wasn't that Daniel was unaware of the world. He was intelligent, talented, and fiercely independent. But he had never felt real danger. Not once had he considered that someone close to him could want something else.
Ben exhaled sharply, rolling onto his side. His fingers twitched as he remembered the fleeting touch of Daniel's face under his fingertips.
How the hell did everything spiral so out of control? The thoughts in his head weren't right. He knew it was wrong to feel this way about his senior and his friend.
And yet, he couldn't stop…
A voice in the back of his head whispered, he needs to learn what real danger feels like.
He clenched his fists, nails biting into his palms.
No.
He wasn't that kind of person. He wouldn't let himself be.
***
By the time morning arrived, he was running on three hours of sleep and sheer willpower. And Daniel was being… Daniel.
"Ben-ahhh," the older boy whined, draping himself over Ben's back as he reached for breakfast. "Feed me."
"Feed yourself," Ben grumbled, shaking him off.
Daniel made a whiny cat noise before trying a new approach, clinging to Ben like a giant golden retriever.
"You're really testing my patience, hyung."
"Don't be mean! I'm injured," Daniel pouted, pointing at his wrapped ankle with puppy eyes.
Ben sighed heavily. "You've been milking that injury for weeks."
Daniel gasped in mock offense. "How dare you say that to a man in recovery? I demand an apology and coffee."
Ben ignored him, dragging him out of the apartment before Daniel could waste another twenty minutes being ridiculous.
***
Ben felt his soul shrink the moment he and Daniel stepped onto campus and were immediately swarmed by a buzzing cloud of Daniel's admirers.
A girl practically materialized out of nowhere, shoving Ben aside like he was an inconvenient bag of groceries, and latched onto Daniel's arm like a leech.
"Sunbaenim," she said sweetly, her voice a practiced honeyed purr, "are you sure you're fully recovered? Maybe I could help you stretch~?"
Ben let out a sigh, stepping back but refusing to go far. He'd long since accepted that Daniel attracted attention like a human magnet, but some of his admirers didn't sit right with him. They were too forward, too touchy, and too opportunistic. And Daniel never seemed to notice.
He scanned the crowd, and sure enough, a few of the girls were glaring at him with pinched faces and narrowed eyes. One girl looked him up and down and then shared a not-so-subtle whisper with her friend, 'Why is this pretty boy so chummy with sunbae?'
Ben rolled his eyes. He didn't owe them an explanation. Still, he stood stiffly, jaw tight.
His spine locked when one of Daniel's male admirers, a tall guy with a sleazy grin and a little too much cologne, casually slipped an arm around Daniel's waist. "You sure you're okay, sunbae?" he asked, voice smooth with intent. "If you need help recovering, I give great massages."
Ben almost groaned out loud. Subtlety was officially dead. But Daniel just blinked and smiled, clearly not clocking the guy's tone. "That's nice of you, but—"
That was it. Ben's patience hit its limit.
He pushed past the huddle, grabbed Daniel firmly by the wrist, and pulled him out of the circle without a word. Daniel stumbled after him, wide-eyed and confused.
"Wha–Ben?! Where are we going?!"
"To safety," Ben muttered, cheeks burning, not even turning around.
When they arrived at the Dance Studio, Terrence and Kai were already stretching.
Terrence gave them one look and smirked. "You two came together?"
Ben shrugged, but Daniel just had to open his big mouth.
"Ben was the best wifey ever," Daniel announced proudly. "He took care of me, cooked for me—"
Ben kicked him in the shin gently. (Sort of.)
Kai snorted. "You're really living your best life, huh?"
"Of course," Daniel grinned, flipping his hair with extra flair. "I am so loved."
Ben sighed. This was going to be a long day.