Desire - ATEEZ Mingi

3

Yeeun's POV:

I marched to the very top of the bleachers, and sat down next to a middle-aged couple I knew Mingi would approve of me sitting by. He doesn't like me sitting next to anyone I might spark a conversation with. In fact, he doesn't let me socialize much at all. Any friends I had at one point, Mingi scared them all away. I think he's afraid I'm going to tell someone about how he treats me behind closed doors.

My eyes wandered over to the student section. I cracked a small smile, seeing all of my classmates dressed up in red and black and cheering loudly. I wished I could join them. They looked like they were having so much fun.

I wanted to be like them. I wanted to be a normal teenager with a normal boyfriend, living a normal life.

Frowning, I focused my eyes back on the game in front of me. They were just a couple minutes into the first quarter with no score. We had the ball, which meant Mingi was on the field. I picked him out in his number nine, black and orange jersey. He was behind the defensive line, his gloved hands open and waiting for the ball. He yelled a bunch of things I couldn't understand in his gruff quarterback voice that he only used on the field. Then he shouted, "Hike! Hike!" and caught the ball, moving out of the pocket and searching for a receiver.

He locked his eyes on a teammate who was wide open about thirty yards from the end zone. Mingi got rid of the ball just in time before a big guy from the other team slipped through our defense and got to Justin. He was taken down, but quickly got back up to see where the ball was at. A small part of me wished the other guy would've hit him harder.

The kid he'd thrown it to was running towards the end zone, but didn't make it there. He was taken down just shy of the line of scrimmage, meaning we missed the first down. That was fourth down and our defense started moving onto the field.

Mingi threw back his head in frustration before jogging off the field. He tore off his helmet on the sidelines, setting it down on the bench before taking a big drink of water. I could see how gross and sweaty he already was.

Setting his water bottle down, he looked up into the stands and I knew he was looking for me to make sure I'd actually shown up. Once he found me, he smiled, showing off his perfect teeth. I forced a smile back to him before he turned around to focus back on the game.

Sighing, I slouched my shoulders and watched the game in silence. Before I knew it, the first quarter was over and there was no score.

"Did I miss anything interesting?" A female voice suddenly spoke. I looked up to find a girl that was most likely my age taking a seat next to me. She had brown hair that touched her shoulders and glasses covering her green eyes. I grew slightly anxious.

"Uh, no. Not really," I answered the girl quickly, not wanting Mingi to see me talking to someone. I'd definitely hear about it after the game if he did. "Good." She replied before pulling on a sweatshirt. I envied her. I'd forgotten to bring mine. I wondered if Mingi would get angry if I went and got it out of my car real quick. Not wanting to take my chances, I decided to tough it out.

"I'm Soyeon, by the way," the girl said, sticking out her hand. I faked and smile and shook it. "I'm Yeeun." I replied, pulling my hand away. That was probably the quickest handshake I'd ever had. Nervously, I glanced down at Mingi to see if he was watching me. Luckily, he was talking to one of the coaches and I lightly sighed in relief.

"Are you new here? I've never seen you around," she asked and I desperately wished she would just leave me alone. I didn't want to get in trouble. "Uh, no. No, I've been going to this school my whole life." I told her while keeping my eyes glued to Justin.

"Oh, really? What grade are you in?" She asked curiously. I wanted to just tell her to leave me alone. She seemed nice and everything, and I hated to be rude, but I'd rather not get hurt tonight. Mingi managed to go all day without hurting me and I was shooting for a full day of being unharmed because it was so rare.

"I'm a senior," I replied, quickly and shortly to Soyeon's question. "Oh, that explains it. I'm only a junior." She said and I nodded, trying not to be rude but trying to hint that I didn't want to talk at the same time.

I tried focusing on the game, but Soyeon just kept on talking and asking me questions. At one point, Mingi glanced my way. His eyes shifted from me to Soyeon before he focused back on the game. He didn't seem to take much notice in her, but obviously it's hard to really tell thanks to the distance between us.

Finally, I had to risk it and leave to get my sweatshirt for two reasons. I couldn't deal with the cold anymore and Soyeon was making me anxious and unknowingly putting me at risk of getting hurt.

"I'll be right back," I told her shortly before standing up and slowly making my way down the bleachers. Mingi was on the field when I left and I hoped he wasn't noticing me leaving.

I took my time to get to my car, in no hurry to get back to Soyeon. Maybe I would move somewhere else when I got back to the stands. But I knew that would be rude to Soyeon. Despite the risk of making Mingi angry, I didn't want to be mean to such a nice girl.

By the time I returned to the game, it was half time. That meant Mingi and the team were in the locker room and I could relax for a little bit.

The stands had cleared out a little bit because everyone was crowding around the concession stands. But I found Soyeon right where I left her, except she had a hot dog in her hand. She must have beat the rush for the concessions.

"Hey, you were gone a while," she commented when I got back up to her. "Yeah," was all I said in reply. I didn't want to lie about why I took so long, but I didn't want to tell her the truth either.

I glanced at the scoreboard and saw that we'd received a touchdown, plus the extra point. The opposing team still had no points.

Suddenly, I felt my phone vibrate. Digging it out of my pocket, I saw I'd received a text message from my mom. Unlocking my phone, I read it and saw she wouldn't be able to make the game. She told me to apologize to Mingi for her.

I sighed and didn't bother replying. I wish she didn't have to work as much and as hard as she does. It's not fair to her. She's such a great mom and a great person. She deserves so much more.

Shoving my phone back into the pocket of my jeans, I turned to Soyeon. As long as Mingi wasn't around, I knew it was safe to talk to her. I was glad to have an actual conversation with her instead of giving her quick replies and making little eye contact. I decided that I really liked her. She seemed really nice and sweet, but I didn't dare consider her a friend. After tonight, I'd probably never be able to talk to her again.

I was really disappointed when the team ran back onto the field. I knew I would have to go back to a no eye contact, short reply basis with Soyeon.