The Gentleman (Changsub)
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Genre: slight angst, fluffy ending! best friends to lovers
Word Count: 849
You were an understanding person, so when your unofficial boyfriend stood you up, you warily accepted his explanation that he had forgotten about your date.
“Even if that’s true,” your best friend spoke after taking a loud sip of coffee, “and believe me, I really doubt it’s true, you should still break up with him. How could anyone be dumb enough to forget about dating you?”
Deep down, you knew Changsub liked you— no, you knew he loved you, and that love motivated all of his actions. And deep down, past the fear of feeling something so real, you knew that if soulmates exist, Changsub was yours.
Still, you responded, “He gets one more chance. And if he wastes it, I’ll move on.”
“Whatever,” Changsub frowned and dropped his fork onto his plate. When the clatter compelled you to look at him, Changsub begged, “Will you be so understanding of me when it’s my turn to love you?”
How would you have reacted if Changsub hadn’t rushed out of the cafe, carelessly forgetting his coat?
Most of the time, he was so funny, but the way he glanced back at you before opening the door with a thrilling chime of the bells— there was no hint of laughter, only eyes darkened and lips weighed down with sadness.
Did you like anyone enough to justify breaking Changsub’s heart? No; and you especially didn’t feel so strongly about that guy who so easily forgot about your dinner plans.
Just thinking of how you hadn’t been upset enough by his actions to make last minute movie plans with Changsub that night, it was obvious that you had fallen in love with your best friend. But did he have to look so crushed for you to acknowledge your feelings?
When you typed out your breakup with the guy you hadn’t even dated once, you didn’t expect him to reply just seconds later to confess that he didn’t really like you that much from the beginning. But that mild embarrassment and discomfort didn’t compare to how you felt minutes later when, while walking away from the cafe in Changsub’s coat, you saw Changsub scolding your now ex-almost-boyfriend.
Through the window, you watched Changsub tower over him and some girl. Even before you walked into the restaurant to collect him, you could hear him yelling, “You didn’t deserve to have her attention for even a minute!”
“Not when you’ve been waiting for her for years?” The guy challenged. Noticing you approaching, and with Changsub effectively silenced, he said, “Don’t sweat it, man. You’ve got a chance with Y/N— we just called it quits a few minutes ago, right Y/N?”
When Changsub whirled around to follow his gaze, he blushed at the sight of you. “A few minutes isn’t long enough to find a new girlfriend,” he mumbled.
You pretended not to notice Changsub’s blush or his remark, refused to give into the urge to spit in your ex’s face, and focused on saying, “Yeah. It turns out my best friend is right about a lot of stuff.”
“Ooooh, best friend.” Your ex clapped, laughing. “Hear that, Changsub? You’re at least in the friend zone.”
As even Changsub’s ears burned red while more people turned to observe the dispute, the other girl grumbled, “Why are you being such a jerk?” And she apologized to you and Changsub before storming out of the restaurant.
“See what you did?” Your ex glared at you and Changsub before bumping past you to chase after her.
“What a loser.” You rolled your eyes as you rubbed at the shoulder he ran into on his way out. “C’mon Changsub— that’s out queue to get out of here.”
The two of you walked in uncomfortable silence for a few minutes before Changsgub finally dared to ask, “You broke up with him? Even though you said you’d give him another chance?”
“Yeah— it turns out I didn’t like him enough to forgive him,” you shrugged. “Oh— you left your jacket—”
Changsub stopped you from taking it off. “Just wear it, Y/N— it’s kind of cold out here.”
Having fully acknowledged your feelings for him, you blushed at the gesture. “In hindsight, I know I made the right choice.”
“Because he was dating some other girl?”
“Well, kind of.” You stuttered, wrestling with how you should confess your feelings. “You know, I’m a lot more into gentlemen: the kind of guy who is willing to yell at someone in a restaurant to defend me, and let me wear his jacket when it’s only kind of cold, and remind me when I deserve better.”
“You always deserve better.” Changsub studied your expression before brushing his hand against yours. He gasped when you laced your fingers with his, but he managed to say, “You’ll always deserve better.”
You shook your head. “No, there’s nobody better than you.” Then, suddenly embarrassed by your boldness, you quietly added, “To answer your question from the cafe— I’ll always understand you as long as you love me.”
“Guess you’ll be understanding me for a very long time.”