Yo peeps! Those who asked me to do a follow up of 'Dare Me Not', here it is. I've thought of a five part fic in total. But that will depend on your response about this chapter. Drop me a word if you want this to continue.

Those who commented/voted, I'll send these two dorks to you in your dreams tonight.😉😘

Enjoy the read!😁💟

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Call Me Not

The ringtone cut through WeiZhou’s daydreaming. An unknown number. He frowned. He didn’t have many friends, nor did he like to distribute his number. Then who?

“Hello?”

“Are you backtracking?”

WeiZhou jerked back and looked at the number again. What the hell?

“Sorry, what?”

“Why haven’t you called or texted me yet?”

“Wha- who are you?”

“Oh, you haven’t even saved my number! That’s brilliant!”

Wait! That petulant tone was quite familiar, wasn’t it? He had heard it before…

“…..JingYu?”

“Haven’t forgotten my name yet, I see.”

WeiZhou went beet red, for no reason whatsoever.

“How- how did you get my number?”

“I’ve my sources. But what’s with this not saving my number? Are you- do you not want to talk to me anymore?”

This was probably the first time he had heard the other boy sounding uncertain, hesitant. WeiZhou’s cheeks burned. He shook his head, knowing well of the fact that JingYu couldn’t see it. But what would he say? That he didn’t save his number because somehow seeing that name in his very short contact list would make everything look more real? That it somehow scared him to no end?

“I’m…sorry. I…” He trailed off.

The other side went quiet. WeiZhou checked to see if the call was still connected. It was.

“Hello?”

“Is this…are you sorry because you don’t… want to talk to me.. anymore?”

The words came haltingly, hanging by a thread.

“No!” The negation blurted out of him before he could control himself, with more force than what should be called decent. He bit his lip in embarrassment.

“No. I didn’t mean like that. It was that.. I am sorry for, you know, not saving your number.”

“Oh..” the other boy sounded as if he let out the breath he was holding. “Yeah, you should be. I was waiting like hell for your call or text or anything these past days. Do you know, how many times I’ve checked the phone to see if it’s working?”

Why was the room suddenly so hot?

“Umm..sorry.”

“WeiZhou, trust me when I say I have called you to listen to other things than your apologies!”

“Sor- I mean- well, why did you call?”

“To hear your voice. To know if you’re still there.”

WeiZhou tried to bit back the shy smile that bloomed into his face.

“Okay,” said he in a small voice.

“Soooo…what were you doing?”

Dreaming about you.. “Studying.”

“Did I interrupt?”

“No, not at all, no.”

“But…Can I interrupt if I want to?”

Damn his heart. Why the hell it was trying to summersault inside his chest.

“If you want to.”

“Do you want me to?”

Oh God, yes, please do. “Okay.”

“No, that won’t do. You have to tell me properly.”

What a saddist! “What should I say?”

“That you want me to interrupt you whenever I like.”

“But I don’t agree with it.”

“With what?”

“That you can interrupt me whenever you like.”

“No?”

“No.”

“Then tell me what you want to say.”

Why me? Why did you kiss me? Chose me? “It’s quite late, you should sleep now.”

“Is that all? Nothing else?”

“Umm…yeah.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Nothing at all?”

That brought a laughter out of him. Seriously, this guy…

“No, nothing at all.”

Both went quiet them.

“I missed you.”

Ba-dump.

WeiZhou’s heart gave a thud. That quietly spoken confession pushed forward his own question too.

“Why me?”

A slight pause.

“What do you mean?”

“Out of all the students, why me? I mean, you are the most popular boy in the entire school. There are- there are literally hoards of people that are interested in you. You excel at everything. Compared to you, I’m a nobody. Then…why me?”

JingYu didn’t say anything and WeiZhou waited with a dry throat and bated breath.

“Before you, I never knew looking at someone else could bring so much joy in my life. I never knew a smiling face could be my source of happiness.”

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Stop. Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Shop. Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Stop.

His frantic heart skipped a beat in every two beats. He pressed the knuckles of his left hand over his quivering lips. Biting the skin to keep himself checked.

“Your existence makes me happy, WeiZhou. You make me happy just being you.”

He had lost the sense of time but it must have been long he hadn’t made a sound because JingYu’s deep voice resonated into his ears.

“WeiZhou? You still there?”

With much difficulty, he squeezed out  a half formed, “Yeah.”

“Umm… won’t you…won’t you say anythi-“

“I like you, too.”

No sound came from the other side, but WeiZhou marshaled on.

“I like it when I catch you staring at me. Or when you wait outside my class. Or when you come to sit in the library even though you hate the place.”

“That’s ‘cause it’s a boring place!”

Though it was a protest, the giddiness of JingYu’s voice made it sound childishly adorable.

“Yeah, it is,” WeiZhou began to laugh too, “it really is. And you suffered through it.”

“Only for you.”

JingYu, apparently, had this uncanny ability to make him blush at his every word even over the phone. Biting the corner of his mouth, he picked at his Pikachu key-ring.

“I’m sorry I didn’t save your number.”

“Nah, that’s okay.”

“It’s just-“

“What is it?”

“Everything feels unreal, like, I’m dreaming with my eyes open. And….”

Should I tell him? Will he laugh? Do I want to?

“And?”

“And I didn’t want to get my hopes up, and then, be disappointed.”

“But you won’t!” JingYu almost pleaded. “You won’t. I won’t let you be.”

“Okay.”

They heard each other breathing for a while.

“WeiZhou?”

“Hmm?”

“I’m not a playboy.”

Hammer hit the nail. This. This was what WeiZhou feared the most. He was afraid of being a conquest. He didn’t want to be a ‘next’ then an ‘ex’. He had witnessed JingYu’s wild popularity with his own eyes throughout these years. Had seen how students, irrespective of gender, went crazy after him. And it made him conscious of his own plainness more than ever. He didn’t have anything that could capture the attention of a guy like Huang JingYu. And when the boy said it aloud himself, WeiZhou could only close his eyes.

“You might have heard a lot about my love life, and I won’t lie to you, I have dated a few times. But most of those rumours were just that- rumours.”

“I didn’t hear anything..bad.”

“But enough to scare you off.”

“No, it’s not-“

“Just give us a chance, all right? That’s all I am asking.”

A long moment gone without a sound other that the static.

“JingYu?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m very boring.”

“I’m enough of an excitement for both of us. And I kinda like boring when it comes to you.”

They both laughed.

“Are you free on the New Year’s eve?”

WeiZhou’s pacing stopped at that.

“I…guess so, why?” Oh God, he’s gonna ask…he’s gonna ask…

“Will you go on a date with me?”

Yes! Of course! Wait, what?! No, no way! Nope. No. Yes. Umm..

“Don’t you think a new years eve date is bit too much cliché?”

“Doesn’t mean it can’t be romantic. Stealing a kiss in a Truth or Dare game is too much of a cliché too, but that didn’t stop you from enjoying it. You did enjoy it, right?” JingYu’s voice was shaking with stifled laughter.

Cheeky brat!

“Shut up!”

“But you did, didn’t you? I did. Very much so. And been dreaming for a repeat since then.”

“You-“ A fire extinguisher could have been handy right now for soothing his burning face. “Go to sleep. It’s almost 22:30.”

“Ah, is my baby feeling shy?”

“JingYu.” WeiZhou warned. Things had begun to go out of his hands. While he was all up for fun teasing and stuff, he could not handle it from JingYu at the moment. Too many things were happening in too little time, and it was throwing him into a sensory overload.

“Okay, okay. Don’t be mad.”

“Then, go to sleep. I’m hanging up.”

“Wait!”

“What?”

“Came to the window first.”

Everything in WeiZhou stopped for a second then started with a doubled up speed when the brain caught on. He scrambled to the window, pulled the curtains aside, and rubbed his hand frantically on the glass to clear off the foggy indentation.

On the pavement below, opposite his house, stood a bundle of warm clothes and a bobble hat, face red, breaths misting up at every exhale, one arm bent to hold the phone to his ear, another holding a bicycle. A huge, foolish grin was plastered all over the face.

Huang JingYu would be the death of him someday. This truth hit WeiZhou like a like a freight train.

“What are you doing here?! Oh my God! It’s freezing outside! JingYu…wha- why? What are you doing?”

If anything, the incredulity in his voice seemed to cheer the idiot up more. He waved a hand at WeiZhou who stood there looking from his first floor window.

“I missed you and wanted to see you.”

The glass was fogging up again, hindering his view. He wiped it with his sleeve calf.

“But in this cold?! You’ll get Pneumonia!” He didn’t know what to do, what to say. “Are you crazy? Okay, okay, wait there. I’m coming outside. Just a minute.”

Coat? My coat? Where’s the damned coat? Where is it?

“No, wait, WeiZhou.”

He was halted in his search.

“Don’t come outside. It’s- It’s really cold. You’ll catch a cold and then our date will be cancelled.”

He was at the window once again, staring anxiously at the lone figure on the street below.

“The why the hell are you here at this late? JingYu…. You could have told me earlier! God, I feel so… so, bad.”

“I wasn’t sure.”

“Of what?”

“That you’d want to see me.”

He wanted to smack himself for his decision not to contact JingYu first. If only he did, this big fool wouldn’t do something like this.

“You thought wrong. Now, please go home, please?”

Never once JingYu looked away from him. Those eager, intent eyes did funny things to WeiZhou’s stomach.

“But you haven’t answered me yet,” JingYu said. “About the date,” he added.

You still can’t tell? Am I that difficult to read?

“Yes. Yes, I will go on a date with you.”

“On 31st?”

“Yes, on 31st.”

“And you won’t backtrack again?”

“No, I won’t.”

“Okay.”

“Okay.”

JingYu held up his hand, palm facing WeiZhou, who in turn rested his own palm on the glass.

“It will be a happy new year. I’ll make it so.”

“I know you will.”

“And I’m gonna miss you till then.”

He bit his lip. Still not ready to open his heart so blatantly.

I’ll miss you, too. “I’ll text you.”

“And I’ll text you back.”

They both laughed at that.

“JingYu, please go home now.”

“I don’t wanna.”

“Please?”

JingYu huffed dejectedly, “All right, all right. Don’t have to take that voice with me. I’m already at your service.”

As he looked on, JingYu pressed the fingers of his hand to his lips, then, held the palm at him.

And peddled away.

WeiZhou stood there, with a dreamy face, thumping heart, gazing at the retreating back of the boy who had stolen his first kiss……….and probably his heart, too.

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