Still, I can't fight it

Closing my eyes, waiting on you

To come and bite it

Now we're in too deep 

• The Best I Ever Had By Limi

Nine commended himself for paying attention in calculus class without breaking focus. Well, Nine did pinch his leg until it bruised to remain his focus. Still, a win is a win. 

As he walked out of the class, Nine pulled out his phone, preparing to ask Quin if he still planned to come. Although it was never guaranteed, Nine hoped Quin would show up. 

It has been two years since Quin last ate with him at his university. Since then, Quin is always saying he is busy. After two years, Nine should have given up, but he is always trying. 

As he opened Quin's and his chat, Jon wrapped an arm around his shoulder, complaining. "I don't want to go to my next class alone. Nine, come sit with me." Jon whined like a child. 

Nine rolled his eyes while typing out a text to Quin. "Don't whine like a child, Jon. And ask Lee." 

Lee, who was texting Cassy (anyone could tell from his smitten smile) while silently walking next to them, looked up. "Ah, I rather not. Jon would most likely fall asleep and ask me to write his notes." 

"Ugh, how can you call yourselves my best friends when you don't want to do anything for me?" Jon continued to whine, almost dragging Nine down with his pull. 

Nine pushed Jon's arm off him, "Whatever. I let you copy my work all the time, don't pull that card." 

"I plead the fifth." Lee laughed before he went back to texting. 

Jon grumbled under his breath, "I am going to throw a tantrum." 

Nine would have rolled his eyes at Jon's spoiled behavior until he saw a text message that had him broadly smiling. 

Quin: I can come. See you in ten. 

"Oh. Oh! Quin said he could join me to eat!" Nine happily exclaimed. 

"What does that have to do with sitting with me in my class?" Jon hugged Nine, getting ready to beg. 

Lee slapped Nine's shoulder, "That's good; it has been a while since I saw him at the school. Do you want me and Cassy to join you? We don't have a class until two." 

Nine harshly rubbed Jon's back while shaking his head at Lee's question, "It is fine. It has been a while since we ate out together." Then he turned toward a begging baby, "There, there, Jon. Stop being a baby and go to your class." 

Lee hummed in response while Jon groaned. "No one loves me," Jon complained. 

"Love you too." Nine and Lee simultaneously replied. 

Cutting out Jon's sighs, Nine kept looking at Quin's message. He finally agreed. Nine happily thought. Maybe today won't be terrible, and he could forget what he did with Vee. 

Nine sat at a table in the sandwich shop near the school. There were already two drinks at the table as he waited for Quin to show up. 

He grabbed his water, leaning back while scrolling through social media, sipping from the straw. The ice rolled around as he got closer to the bottom of the drink. 

He laughed at a funny video he clicked until he saw a new message notification from Vee. Nine bit his lip, wondering if he should click to see the whole message. He looked around for a second before opening it. 

Vee: I cannot tell which hurts more, the scratches in the front or back? [image.jpg][image.jpg]

Nine swallowed, staring hard at the pictures Vee sent him. Vee was in the men's bathroom, showing off his bare back with scratches covering it in one photo. And in the other one, he had his shirt pulled up, showing off the scratches that started from his chest to his abs. 

Licking his lips, Nine felt his throat drying, and the feeling continued to grow worse when Vee sent him another text. 

Vee: Now, if only the culprit were here to rub some wound cream on me. 

Fuck, Vee. He couldn't torture him in class, so he decided to do it now. Why did Nine have to suffer like this? Especially when his boyfriend would be here any second? 

And speaking of the devil, Quin walked into the shop, instantly making his way toward Nine when he saw him. "Nine," Quin called, causing Nine to fumble his hands, dropping his phone, facedown, onto the table. 

"Quin, you're here!" Nine practically yelled, awkwardly laughing toward the end. 

Quin looked at Nine's weird behavior before glancing toward his phone that hit the table hard. "Are you okay?" He asked, sitting down in the seat across from Nine. 

Nine grabbed his phone, quickly pocketing it without checking if he cracked the screen, "Yeah, sorry, I am a bit nervous. It has been a while since we ate out together." 

Quin hummed, "Does this place still sell some of the same things, or did they change the menu?" 

"Everything is the same. Do you want to get what you used to get?" Nine asked, already ready to call the server over. He already knew what he wanted when he entered the shop. 

"Yeah." Quin nodded, grabbing the only full drink on the table and taking a sip. 

Nine called over the server, getting ready to tell them his and Quin's order when a sight caused his words to get caught in his throat. 

Vee entered the sandwich shop, stopping for a second when he saw Nine sitting with someone. He looked Nine up and down before smirking and taking a seat near Nine's table. 

Fuck me, were the only words Nine could think. 

"Nine?" Quin questioned, noticing that Nine was not speaking as the server waited on them. 

Quin's voice cut Nine's thoughts, causing him to cough. "Haha, sorry, my throat felt a bit itchy." 

He tried looking at the server while telling them their orders, but he couldn't stop the way his eyes kept falling toward Vee. 

Why did Vee have to show up here when he finally got Quin to agree to a short date?