10Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRv5K9oM1mF
The moonlight spilled in like a secret through the half-open curtain, casting gentle shadows over Ren’s blanket. His phone screen lit up again with the familiar name: Ric 🐻📸.
> 🐻: “Still awake?”
Ren smiled a little. His heart had been buzzing since the coffee shop. Since Ric’s warm fingers brushed his cheek. Since those two seconds where he thought… maybe he wasn’t the only one feeling something.
He texted back slowly.
> 🌧️: “Didn’t feel like sleeping yet.”
Not even a minute passed.
> 🐻: “Wanna call?”
Ren hesitated. Then he tapped the call button.
The line connected. Silence.
Not awkward. Not tense. Just soft, like sitting beside someone in the dark and knowing they’re breathing with you.
“Hi,” Ric said, his voice low and sleepy. “I missed your voice today.”
Ren felt something in his chest flicker. “You saw me all day…”
“Exactly,” Ric murmured. “And I still missed your voice.”
Ren buried his face in his pillow, trying not to melt.
---
🕯️ Meanwhile, across the city...
Kao was scrolling through Film’s drama posts again, smirking.
“Seriously? ‘A love that burns like a forbidden flame’?” he muttered aloud.
Sun, sitting on Kao’s bed, looked over shyly. “I think it’s kind of… poetic.”
Kao stared at him, amused. “You’re worse than Film.”
Sun blushed, brushing his fingers through his hair.
Down the hall, Ric leaned against the wall, barefoot, smiling into the call like an idiot. His roommates didn’t even tease him anymore. They knew who he was always on the phone with these nights.
---
🎧 Back to Ren’s room…
“You okay?” Ric asked softly, voice echoing through the quiet.
“I think so,” Ren whispered. “It’s just… been a long day.”
“Yeah?”
“I don’t know. I keep replaying it in my head. That moment at the café. You were close.”
“I wanted to be,” Ric admitted, voice raw. “I always want to be.”
Ren’s breath caught.
Ric continued, “Can I tell you something?”
Ren nodded, forgetting Ric couldn’t see.
“…I think I like you,” Ric said quietly.
The rain slowed outside, as if the world paused to listen.
“I think I’ve liked you for a while. But I didn’t want to scare you away. You always look like you’re about to run.”
Ren’s heart felt full and fragile all at once.
“I’m not running,” he whispered. “Not anymore.”
A silence bloomed between them — not empty, but comforting.
“I think I like you too,” Ren added, shy and small. “A lot.”
---
☁️ The next morning…
Ren woke up to a message, not a usual one.
> 🐻: “Breakfast’s on your windowsill. Don’t open until you’ve smiled.”
He blinked. Sat up. Opened the window.
A small bag from his favorite bakery. A warm cup of cinnamon coffee. And a sticky note that said:
“Your smile is my favorite thing to wake up to.” – R 🐻
Ren sat back, heart blooming.
---
📸 Meanwhile, in Ric’s apartment…
Ric stared at his phone, grinning like a fool.
Kao passed by, eyeing him suspiciously.
“Is that a love-struck idiot I see before me?”
Ric didn’t even argue.
“I told him I liked him,” he said.
Kao froze, then grinned. “Finally.”
Tae walked by, sipping tea. “About time. The whole campus was starting to bet on when it would happen.”
Film popped in from the doorway dramatically. “WHAT? You confessed and didn’t tell me?? Tae, we need to celebrate. Come kiss me right now.”
Tae blinked. “No.”
Ric shook his head, laughing.
---
🌧️ Back to Ren…
That evening, Ren texted Ric first.
> 🌧️: “Call me?”
The second Ric picked up, Ren spoke before he could overthink.
“I want to see you.”
Ric blinked. “Now?”
“Yes.”
“I’m coming,” Ric said without hesitation.
---
🛵 20 minutes later…
Ric showed up at Ren’s door, slightly out of breath, holding a jacket in case it rained again.
Ren opened the door slowly. His eyes were soft. Nervous. Hopeful.
Ric stepped in quietly. “Hey.”
Ren looked at him. “Hey.”
They stood there, both waiting for the other to say more.
Then, Ren stepped closer. Close enough to feel Ric’s breath.
“I’m not good at this,” he whispered.
Ric smiled. “Good at what?”
“This,” Ren said, placing his hand against Ric’s chest. “Letting people in. Letting them stay.”
Ric placed his own hand over Ren’s.
“Then let’s learn together.”
Ren looked up.
And then — finally — their lips met.
Slow. Gentle. Real.
The kind of kiss that didn’t rush. That said I’m here. I’ve always been here.
That felt like a beginning, not an ending.
---
🩵 To be continued…
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