Chapter Text
Year 7 - July
felix put down the empty dippin' dots ice cream bowl and stifled a yawn with his hand. "bit tired, hey lix?" chris - who felix had been left with when the others went to play with the giant inflatable soccer balls - asked.
felix nodded and rubbed his eyes. "yeah, little bit. it's warmer than expected," he replied, reaching up and chucking his rubbish into the bin near where the nine had set up a circle of bags. "and i had to wake up early today." chris laughed and moved his bag, which was originally leaning against his crossed legs, to the side.
"here, come lie down," chris said, patting his legs. "i'll wake you up if we go get another round of dippin' dots or something."
felix laughed as he lied down. "you say that like dippin' dots is some sort of alcohol and we're bar hopping," he said, wriggling around to find a comfortable spot. he eventually settled on leaning his neck on the cross of chris' legs and placing his head in the gap between them, looking up at chris.
"maybe we are," chris replied. "it's ice-cream, lix. it's the closest to alcohol we're gonna get for a while."
felix giggled. "perhaps you're right." chris smiled down at him as felix felt his eyelids begin to droop. "what?" he said, still giggling softly.
"nothing," chris shook his head. "you're just really cute."
felix's tired brain didn't provide anything smart to say, except for "you're really cute as well", but he was already asleep before he could register what he said or chris' reaction to it.
•••
felix woke up to someone blocking the sun in front of him and chris' quiet voice in his ear. "hey, lix," chris whispered. "lix, wake up." felix groaned and covered his eyes with his forearm, making chris laugh. "come on, lix," chris said, "you've only had a cup of dippin' dots today, you have to eat something else."
"says who?" felix asked, still half-asleep.
"me," chris replied. "and woojin, sort of, but mostly me." felix sighed and pushed himself out of chris' lap, rubbing his eyes. "sleepyhead," chris chuckled.
felix turned around and stared at chris for a moment. "hey, your legs are surprisingly comfortable," he argued, dragging his bag over to him and pulling out his lunchbox. "want some mini jatz?" chris looked overly excited about the premise of miniature jatz, so felix offered him some out of the packet before taking some himself. "where's everyone else?" felix asked, noticing that he and chris were still alone.
chris swallowed the handful of jatz he had somehow managed to fit in his mouth. "woojin and innie are getting some dippin' dots, hyunjin and seungmin are over by the announcer's tent with ashy-boy choosing music, and i have no idea where the other three are," he replied, reaching out for more jatz from the packet in felix's hands.
"probably flirting with each other," felix said, remembering how jisung acted around the two. chris nodded in agreement.
"if those three don't get together before the end of august i'm going to be annoyed," chris said. "everyone knows they like each other, but they're refusing to acknowledge it."
felix stopped chewing for a second and swallowed the remaining jatz in his mouth. "wait, i only knew when jisung told me this morning," he said. "has it really been than obvious? am i just oblivious?"
something crossed chris' face, but it was gone before felix could figure out what it was. "maybe," he said, shrugging. "but then again i only really noticed when both changbin and minho texted me saying they liked one another and also jisung."
felix laughed. “i hope they get their shit together, then,” he said. chris nodded and gasped as a new song came on over the speakers. after a few beats, felix grinned as he realised the song that was playing. “i bet it was hyunjin that put on all star,” felix commented, but chris wasn’t listening, just singing along loudly.
as felix watched chris sing along with a smile on his face, he smiled to himself slightly but, inside, he was frowning at the feeling in his chest. his heart seemed to be wanting chris to never stop smiling (and to maybe direct that smile at felix), but his brain was telling him to not to think about the strange feeling and hope it would go away.
he realised he was staring at chris for a long time and quickly shook the thoughts from his head, hoping to go with his brain and ignore the definitely-not-a-crush on chris. “sorry,” he said to chris’ questioning look. “i was just thinking.”
“about what?” chris asked.
“someone i like,” felix said, instantly regretting what he said before it even came out of his mouth. “i mean, i’m not sure if i like them. but... y’know,” he finished lamely.
chris just smiled softly at him. “care to tell who it is?” he asked, tilting his head cutely. felix shook his head and looked down.
“not really,” he replied. “another day, maybe.”
chris nodded. “well, i’ll beat them up if they ever break your heart,” he said, leaning over and patting felix’s knee. “do you need me to fill up your water bottle?”
“yes please,” felix said, passing his bottle to chris. “thank you.” chris smiled at him and headed off in the direction of the water van.
felix wasn’t left alone for very long, since jisung joined him soon after. “felix!” he said excitedly. “i have date night with changbin and minho! well, sort of, more ‘we’re going to dreamworld together’ and–” he cut himself off when he saw felix’s face. “hey, what’s up?”
“i think i have a crush on chris,” felix said.
jisung looked surprised. “what do you mean ‘you think’?” he asked. “i thought you had had one since you first met?”
“no?” felix replied. “i only just got one now.”
jisung’s smile sort of frightened felix. “this is amazing,” he said.
“please don’t tell anyone?” felix asked, still not so sure about his feelings towards chris, and he said as much to jisung.
“don’t worry, darling,” jisung replied. “i won’t say anything unless you want me to.” felix nodded in reply as chris sat down and handed felix back his water bottle. the small smile chris gave as felix thanked him made butterflies flutter in felix’s stomach and jisung giggle quietly.
felix was in trouble, definitely.