Jock Next Bed (BL)
Chapter 151: "Focus on me,"

Chapter 151: "Focus on me,"

Though Chris was across the room, slowly drinking and chatting with a couple of people, he kept his gaze often on him.

At first, it was the usual—Sky being the center of attention, girls and guys alike orbiting him like satellites. But then came the drinks. One beer after another. A glass of wine. Another.

Sky looked like he would throw up soon. But whenever he made to leave, someone was trying to get his attention. Make him drink. Make him talk. Make him laugh.

And the idiot remained there.

Chris’s stomach twisted as the memory of that last big party resurfaced, the one where someone had slipped something into Sky’s drink. That night had nearly ended in a disaster. His worry deepened when he saw a new group of girls approach Sky, giggling and offering him more drinks. Sky was already too far gone.

His face looked like a tomato.

He looked adorable, but not for the good reason.

Chris didn’t think twice. He crossed the room swiftly, ignoring the people he was chatting with.

"Excuse me," he said to the girls, his voice firm but polite. "Need to borrow the roommate for a minute."

Sky blinked at him, his eyes hazy and unfocused, as if he couldn’t quite believe Chris was there.

Chris didn’t give him a chance to protest. He grabbed Sky’s arm and pulled him, draping his arm over Sky’s shoulder like bros at a college party would.

Sky leaned heavily against him, his body warm and languid from the alcohol. "Chris...?" he slurred, blinking in confusion.

"Yeah, yeah," Chris muttered under his breath. "Let’s get you out of here for a while."

Chris guided Sky through the throng of bodies, his jaw clenched with determination. Sky was a mess, but Chris wasn’t about to let history repeat itself.

It was a struggle to find any place where the noise wasn’t deafening or the bathrooms weren’t packed with people. Chris had just about given up when Sinclair spotted them, his eyes narrowing.

"You good?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Chris sighed, looking down at Sky, who now had that distant, hollow expression. "Any other free bathrooms? This guy here has gotten to his limit."

Sinclair chuckled, glancing around. "The basement. Be careful with the stairs."

He pointed in the direction, and Chris, practically carrying Sky at this point, led the way. The basement was darker than expected, but Chris switched on his phone flashlight, guiding Sky down the creaky stairs. As they reached the bottom and opened the door, he paused.

The room wasn’t what he expected. It was empty—aside from a few stacked boxes—but clean and surprisingly spacious. The faint smell of old furniture lingered, but there was a decent-sized bathroom. Chris helped Sky to the door, which he opened, then turned on the light inside.

"Do whatever you want," Chris said. He was about to leave when Sky’s hand shot out and gripped his wrist, keeping him from walking about.

Chris glanced down, a flicker of confusion in his expression. "I’ll be waiting for you outside."

Sky didn’t say anything, but his grip tightened slightly, the vulnerability in his eyes almost making Chris hesitate. With a sigh, Chris gently pulled his hand free and stepped outside the bathroom door.

From inside, he could hear the sounds of Sky throwing up, followed by the hiss of water running and the sound of the toilet flushing. It wasn’t long before Sky emerged, looking pale and exhausted, his movements sluggish. He also had water splashed on his face.

"Better now?" Chris asked, voice laced with concern.

Sky nodded faintly, but it was clear he wasn’t feeling great.

Chris helped Sky settle down against the wall. Then he plopped down beside him, careful not to crowd him too much as they both sat on the floor. Sky rested his head on the wall and closed his eyes, his breathing evening out.

Just then, Chris heard footsteps descending the stairs. He glanced up to see Noel and Rachel, both looking at him and Sky with wide eyes as they paused. From their reactions, it seemed they hadn’t expected to find them there. Chris shot Rachel a pointed look, sensing the awkwardness.

Noel cleared his throat first. "We saw you heading here, so we came. What’s up?" The question didn’t sound genuine. "Is Sato okay?" Noel looked at Sky, who gave a weak thumb up without changing his position or looking at them at all.

He seemed completely out of it.

Before any other words could be said, footsteps continued toward the direction. Henry was the next to arrive, with none other than Rain tagging along, looking unbothered.

"Hey, you!" Rain said to Chris, her face lighting up when she saw him. Then she turned to Noel. "Can’t believe you all came to hide here without me!" Rain declared dramatically, flopping down on the floor as if she owned the place.

Henry rolled his eyes but followed her, collapsing beside her on the floor. "You literally just got here," he reminded her, clearly unphased by her theatrics.

Rachel hesitated, sitting down awkwardly while Noel did the same.

"Whew! This is nice," Henry commented, his voice too loud for the small space, as he kicked his legs out in front of him, clearly enjoying the change of space.

Another set of footsteps.

Again!

Sinclair strolled into the room, his smile lazy as he took in the crowd. "Oh! We’re having a party here?" he teased, glancing around the group.

"Or maybe we’re running from one," Chris answered dryly, leaning back against the wall.

Sinclair chuckled and casually slid down to sit on the floor beside Chris, clearly unbothered by the unexpected group. "Don’t tell me my party’s that boring," he said, leaning toward Chris, his voice a low murmur.

Different eyes watched them but no one said anything.

"Aren’t you going to make sure no one sets your place on fire?" Chris asked Sinclair.

"Ah, a guy need rest too. Just a few minutes before I run back there again. Young people are wild."

That took a chuckle out of a couple of them.

Soon, normal conversation began to flow smoothly between them while Sky still looked dead in his side. Whether he was sleeping or not, no one knew.

Henry was mid-sentence, recounting the time he almost spilled an entire drink on himself after a bad fall, when Sinclair chimed in with his own story about nearly drowning in the pool while trying to impress a girl by doing flips.

Chris couldn’t help but laugh, shaking his head. He loved the chaos of it all—the way these people seemed to bounce off each other’s energy so easily. It was distracting, in the best way. He was even starting to forget the whirlwind of emotions from earlier. This was the kind of fun he should’ve been having more often. To help him unwind.

"So," Henry began, looking over at Noel with a mischievous grin, "who here remembers their very first lecture? You know, the one where you’re trying to act like you totally belong, but then do something completely embarrassing?"

Noel instantly shot him a glare, but Henry continued, oblivious to the threat in the room. "I’ll never forget the first time Noel had to thank the professor for the class after the first general lecture. You know, the one where he stood up and yelled, ’Thank you!’ for the entire class after the professor finished the lecture, sending everyone into fits of laughter."

The entire group broke into laughter. Chris chuckled, but he could see how red Noel’s face was turning.

Noel’s face twisted in mock horror as he threw an empty can of beer at Henry. "I told you never to remind me of that!"

Henry ducked, still laughing. "I mean, how could I not? It was the loudest ’thank you’ I’ve ever heard in my life! You practically yelled it like you were on stage at a concert."

"Ugh, it was a first-day panic moment, alright?!" Noel muttered, hands on his face in embarrassment.

"Hey, we all did dumb stuff," Sinclair chimed in, leaning back with a smirk.

"Yeah," Rachel added, "I spent my first month trying to figure out why no one was calling me by my last name anymore. I thought I was being snubbed, but then I realized that was high school nonsense." She laughed at herself.

"Everyone still calls Sky ’Sato’ since high school until now." Rain chimed in. "I’m not sure where that leaves me."

Everyone turned to look at Sky, who had been quiet the entire time.

Although Chris was sitting beside Sky, he had been engrossed in their conversation so when he turned towards Sky beside him together with the others, he was near stunned when he found Sky’s eyes weren’t only open, but they were staring at him. Intensely.

Like he was the only one in the room.

Then, suddenly, they all heard Sky’s voice. Quiet.

Groggy.

"You are so beautiful..."

The room immediately went silent, everyone’s sharp gazes now on Sky. And Chris.

Chris’s heart stopped for a beat as he stared back at Sky, whose eyes were locked on him with a strange intensity.

Everyone seemed just as shocked by the statement.

Chris awkwardly cleared his throat, trying to shake off the unexpected comment. "Uh... what?" he asked, half-laughing, his face almost flushing.

The guy was really drunk.

Chris turned his face away from him as he thought about the most sensible comment to make.

But he was even more shocked when Sky’s hand reached out, almost gently, grabbed Chris’s chin, tilting his face toward him.

"Focus on me." Sky said quietly.

And just like that, Sky leaned in and kissed him.

On the lips.

In front of everyone.