Phuwin stood in front of the mirror in Pond's bathroom, the oversized shirt hanging off his shoulder, the hem grazing his thighs. It was Pond's—black, soft from a hundred washes, carrying that faint cedar-and-sweat smell that had started to mean safety. He tugged the collar up, breathed it in, then pulled on the tights. Black too, high-waisted, snug enough that they curved everything. His thighs looked like they'd been poured into them. His ass—he turned, twisted, checked the angle—looked like exactly what every man on campus had been licking his lips at for weeks.
He caught his own eyes in the mirror and felt heat climb his neck. This was deliberate, and he knew it. He wanted Pond to see. Wanted everyone to see, actually, that he belonged to someone now, even if that someone was built like a young god with a split lip and a bruised chest from a father who couldn't keep his hands to himself.
He stepped out of the bathroom and found Pond leaning against the kitchen counter, phone in hand, scrolling. When he looked up, his thumb stopped mid-swipe. The phone hovered. Then his jaw tightened, and his eyes went dark in a way that made Phuwin's stomach flip.
"What?" Phuwin said, feigning innocence, tugging at the hem of the shirt. "Too much?"
Pond set the phone down slowly, deliberately, like he was buying time. "You're wearing that to campus?"
"Yeah. Why?"
Pond crossed the kitchen in three strides. His hands found Phuwin's waist, thumbs pressing into the dip above his hips, and he leaned down until his forehead touched Phuwin's. "Because I'm going to have to fight every single person who looks at you."
Phuwin laughed, soft and breathy. "Good."
Pond kissed him—quick, possessive, a promise—then pulled back and grabbed his keys. "Let's go before I change my mind and keep you here all day."
---
The car smelled like coffee and the vanilla air freshener Phuwin had hung from the rearview mirror last week. He sat in the passenger seat, the plushie bear on his lap, its button eyes staring up at him. He adjusted its little bow tie—red, slightly crooked—then smoothed its fur and settled it against his chest like a child.
Pond glanced over as he pulled out of the parking garage. "You're going to take that thing to class?"
"His name is Fluffy," Phuwin said, deadpan. "And yes, he's coming with me. He has feelings."
Pond snorted. "Of course he does."
Phuwin cradled the bear, stroking its ear. "You bought him for me. That means you're responsible for his wellbeing. He's our son now."
"Our son." Pond's voice cracked on a laugh. "We've been official for like two weeks and we already have a child."
"A very handsome child. He has your eyes."
"He has button eyes."
"Exactly."
The rain had stopped overnight, leaving the morning slick and gray, steam rising from the asphalt as the sun tried to burn through. Pond drove with one hand on the wheel, the other resting on Phuwin's thigh, thumb tracing slow circles through the tight fabric. Phuwin's skin tingled under the touch, and he kept his eyes on the bear, pretending he didn't notice, but his breath had gone shallow.
---
They pulled up to the campus gates. Students milled around the entrance, some with umbrellas, most with coffee cups, their voices carrying through the damp air. Pond killed the engine and turned to Phuwin, and for a second neither of them moved.
"Ready?" Pond asked.
Phuwin nodded. He tucked the bear under his arm, opened the door, and stepped out onto the rain-slicked pavement. Pond came around the car and took his hand—warm, calloused, steady—and they walked through the gates together.
Heads turned. They always did when Pond was around, but today the whispers had a sharper edge. Girls watched with narrowed eyes. A few guys stared openly at Phuwin's legs, at the curve of his ass in those tights, and Phuwin felt the weight of their gaze like a touch he hadn't asked for. He squeezed Pond's hand tighter.
"I need to grab something from the car," Pond said, stopping near the main walkway. "My laptop. Forgot it."
Phuwin looked up at him. "Okay."
Pond let go of his hand, then paused. He winked. Slow, deliberate, a tease that landed right in Phuwin's chest. "Don't miss me too much."
Phuwin's face went hot. He shoved Pond's shoulder. "Just go."
Pond laughed and jogged back toward the parking lot, and Phuwin watched him go—the broad back, the easy stride—before he turned and headed deeper into campus, the bear tucked under his arm like a talisman.
---
The campus yard was busy. Groups clustered on the grass, on benches, around the wood tables near the food stalls. The air smelled like fried rice and wet leaves. Phuwin spotted Siyh and Jungkook at their usual table, and his shoulders relaxed.
Siyh was on her phone, scrolling, her expression flat. Jungkook was eating a skewer of grilled meat, talking between bites. When Phuwin approached, Siyh looked up, and her face cracked into a grin.
"Well, well, well," she said, setting her phone down. "Someone's dressed to impress."
Phuwin slid onto the bench across from them, arranging the bear on the table in front of him. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"That shirt is definitely not yours." Jungkook pointed with the skewer. "And those tights are illegal in at least three countries."
Phuwin grinned. "They're comfortable."
"They're a crime," Siyh said. "A beautiful, beautiful crime." She looked past him. "Where's your giant? I saw you two walk in together."
"Forgot his laptop. He'll be here in a minute." Phuwin looked around. "Where's Santa?"
Jungkook and Siyh exchanged a glance. Then Siyh held up three fingers.
"One," she said.
Jungkook nodded. "Two."
"Three," they said together, and then in unison: "Getting fucked by Perth right now."
Phuwin groaned, dropping his head onto the table. "I didn't need to know that."
"You asked," Siyh said, completely unrepentant. "I'm just telling you the facts."
"He's been gone for like an hour," Jungkook added, checking his phone. "Perth texted me a picture of his back. It's... a lot."
"I hate you all," Phuwin mumbled into the tabletop. The bear stared up at him, unblinking.
Jungkook laughed, then his eyes slid past Phuwin, and his expression shifted. "Speaking of people staring..."
Phuwin lifted his head. "What?"
Jungkook nodded toward the walkway behind him. "Look around. Like, actually look."
Phuwin turned. A group of guys near the food stalls were watching him. One of them—tall, sharp-jawed, with a lazy grin—met his eyes and winked. Another licked his lips, slow and deliberate. A third raised his cup in a mock toast. Phuwin felt his skin prickle.
"That's Ajax ," Jungkook said, pointing at the one who licked his lips. "Business major. He's been talking about you since the painting exhibition."
"And that's Top," Siyh added, nodding at the one who winked. "Engineering just like Pond is. He asked me for your number last week. I told him you were taken."
"Aggressively taken," Jungkook said. "Violently taken. 'I know a guy who will break your kneecaps' taken."
Phuwin forced a smile at the group, then turned back to the table. "They're just looking."
"They've been looking for weeks," Siyh said, her tone flat. "It's not exactly subtle."
Phuwin picked at a splinter on the table's edge. He didn't tell them that he'd noticed. That every stare felt like a tiny thorn under his skin, a reminder that he was something to be looked at, not someone to be known. He didn't tell them that Pond's jealousy made him feel safe, but the stares themselves made him feel like meat.
Instead, he changed the subject. "Where's Tai?"
Siyh's face softened. "She's got a morning class. We're meeting for lunch." She looked at his bear. "You brought Fluffy to school?"
"He's my emotional support son." Phuwin adjusted the bear's bow. "Don't judge."
Jungkook snorted. "I'm judging you so hard right now."
---
The laughter faded when a shadow fell over the table. Phuwin looked up. Ryu stood there, arms crossed, her face twisted into something that looked almost ugly against her pretty features. Behind her, two of her friends hovered, phones in hand, smirking.
"Phuwin." Her voice was sharp, cutting through the ambient noise of the yard. A few heads turned. "We need to talk."
Phuwin's stomach dropped. He set the bear down gently, like he was protecting it from the sound of her voice. "I don't have anything to say to you."
"That's funny, because I have a lot to say to you." She stepped closer, and the table felt suddenly small. "You think you're so special, don't you? Walking around in your boyfriend's shirt, playing house in his penthouse. You think you've won."
Siyh stood up slowly. "Ryu. Not the time."
"Shut up, Siyh. This doesn't involve you." Ryu's eyes stayed locked on Phuwin. "I've been patient. I've been nice. But I'm done watching you play games with someone who was supposed to be mine."
Phuwin stood too, his legs steady even as his heart hammered. "Pond was never yours. He told you that. I told you that. The only person who doesn't seem to get it is you."
"You think I care what you say?" Ryu's voice rose, cracking on the last word. A few more students turned, phones already angled toward them. "Everyone knows Pond and I were going to happen. Everyone. And then you came along with your big eyes and your sad little paintings and you stole him."
"I didn't steal anyone. He chose me."
Ryu laughed, sharp and brittle. "Chose you? Please. You're just a distraction. A pretty little whore he's going to get tired of once he realizes what he actually wants."
Phuwin felt something cold settle in his chest. "Get the fuck away from me."
"Or what? You'll cry? You'll paint another sad picture?" She stepped closer, close enough that he could smell her perfume—sweet and cloying. "You don't scare me, Phuwin. You're nothing. A slut who spreads her legs for anyone with a nice car."
The words hit like ice water. Phuwin's vision went white at the edges. "Who the fuck do you think you are?"
Ryu's eyes glittered. "I'm the one who knows the truth. You've been with Dice. You've been with Marin. You've been with Chain. Everyone knows it. You're a fucking whore."
The rage came from somewhere deep, somewhere primal. Phuwin's hand moved before his brain caught up—he shoved Ryu hard in the chest, and she stumbled back, shock flickering across her face before it hardened into fury.
"You fucking bitch—"
Her hand cracked across his cheek. The sound was loud, wet, and Phuwin's head snapped to the side. His lip split against his teeth, and the taste of copper flooded his tongue.
Then he was moving.
He grabbed a fistful of her hair and yanked, pulling her down, and swung his other fist into her face. The impact jarred his knuckles, but the rush of adrenaline drowned the pain. She screamed, clawing at his arm, her nails digging in deep enough to draw blood. He didn't stop. He pulled her head back and hit her again, and again, the world narrowing to the sound of her cries and the thud of his fists.
Somewhere far away, he heard Siyh yelling. Heard Jungkook's voice, sharp and urgent. Heard phones recording, heard laughter, heard someone shout for a professor. But he couldn't stop. Ryu was on the ground now, curled up, her arms over her head, and he was still hitting her, his breath ragged, tears blurring his vision.
She called me a whore. She called me a slut. She said Pond would leave me.
Hands grabbed him from behind. Strong arms wrapped around his chest and hauled him back, and for a second he fought, thrashing, until a familiar voice cut through the red haze.
"Phuwin. Phuwin, stop. Stop."
Pond. The word broke through. Phuwin went limp, his chest heaving, his fingers slick with blood. He looked down at his hands. They were red. Ryu was on the ground, her face a mess of blood and swelling, her friends crouched over her, crying her name.
"Holy shit," someone in the crowd whispered. "She's not moving."
Phuwin's knees buckled. Pond caught him, lowered him to the ground, and cradled him against his chest. His voice was shaking. "It's okay. It's okay. I've got you."
But Phuwin couldn't hear him anymore. His eyes were fixed on Ryu's still form, on the blood pooling on the concrete, on the phones still recording, and he knew—with a cold, sinking certainty—that nothing was ever going to be the same again.